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Seeds of Success:
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| Florida Students Excel at National History Competition |
| Outstanding Agricultural Educators Announced |
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July 10, 2009 |
Vol. 3, Issue 13 |
News Slices
Successful School Improvement Program Expands to Cover All Public Schools
Florida’s Differentiated Accountability pilot program has been expanded to account for every public school student in the state. With Governor Charlie Crist’s recent signing of House Bill 991, the Differentiated Accountability pilot program now incorporates all public schools that, for two years in a row, fail to meet 100 percent of federal proficiency standards. These schools will receive escalating district and state support based on their specific needs.
Under the program, schools are placed into six categories based on their state-assigned letter grade, percentage of federal proficiency requirements met, and the number of years they have failed to meet those requirements. Support provided to these schools varies, depending on the amount of improvement needed. Some examples of support services include assistance in school-wide planning, leadership development, teacher training, curriculum development, and data analysis. To learn more, visit http://www.fldoe.org/news/2009/2009_06_25.asp.
Florida’s Colleges Lead the Southern Region in Graduation and Progression Rates The U.S. average three-year graduation rate for full-time freshmen who enrolled in public two-year colleges to pursue associate’s degrees or vocational certificates in 2004 was 20 percent. The average in the SREB region was 16 percent, with Florida’s rate at 30 percent, the highest in the region. Also in the SREB region, 47 percent of full-time freshmen who first enrolled to pursue an associate’s degree or vocational certificate in 2004 had graduated within three years, still were enrolled or had transferred to another college or institute—up two percentage points compared with those entering in 1999. Florida had a 14-point gain to 59 percent, the highest rate in the region. To learn more, visit http://www.fldoe.org/news/2009/2009_06_24.asp
Florida’s public two-year colleges lead the southern region in graduation and progression rates, according to the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) 2009 Fact Book. The Fact Book, one of the nation’s leading sources of comparative higher education data, annually summarizes and reports key higher education data for each of the Region’s 16-member states.
Florida Leadership Academy Focuses On School Leadership Florida’s Differentiated Accountability program was recently expanded through the signing of House Bill 991, to incorporate all public schools that, for two years in a row, fail to meet 100 percent of federal proficiency standards.
Nearly 120 statewide participant teams of school administrators including principals, assistant principals and teacher leaders, attended the Florida Leadership Academy in Tampa June 21-26, to focus on the development of school-based leadership. The weeklong event was designed by the Council For Educational Change with the help of the Florida Department of Education to assist schools, including those in the Differentiated Accountability Program, facing current educational challenges. The event culminated with the development of individual instructional leadership plans which will be implemented back at the school site. The Department of Education’s Differentiated Accountability Team members attending the Academy included Leila Mousa, Joseph Burke, Nikolai Vitti and Julene Mohr.
Santa Fe College Goes Solar The Charles Perry Construction Institute on Santa Fe’s main campus has two thin-film arrays for a total of 25 kilowatts (kW) of generating capacity expected to produce more than 30,000 kWh of electricity annually, which is enough electricity to power two average homes for a year. Santa Fe's Associate Vice President for Facilities Bil Reese, who oversees the solar projects, said the solar thermal systems are intended to save the school money.
Santa Fe College is home to Gainesville’s first “thin-film solar arrays.” Traditional solar electric arrays are silicon-based panels commonly two or three inches thick and mounted on aluminum support brackets. Thin-film solar equipment is approximately 1/8 of an inch thick, and was chosen for Santa Fe’s Charles Perry Construction Institute because of its ease of installation on rooftops and its resistance to wind load factors.
Florida’s Community Colleges Top National Report for Seventh Year in a Row
For the seventh year in a row, several Florida colleges rank among the top producers of associate degrees in the United States. According to Community College Week’s annual Top 100 report conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Florida institutions lead America’s more than 1,200 community colleges in an array of degree categories. To see the degrees awarded by Florida’s community colleges, visit http://www.fldoe.org/news/2009/2009_06_23.asp.
Central Florida's First Public Four-Year Interior Design Program Approved Students with another A.S., an Associate in Arts, or a bachelor's degree also may apply online at http://www.seminolestate.edu/bas-interiordesign/. SCC's new four-year curriculum combines a liberal arts program with courses that emphasize sustainable and barrier-free design as well as space planning and safety issues.
Seminole Community College has received approval from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) to begin the college's first baccalaureate degree program in January 2010. The new program, a Bachelor of Applied Science in Interior Design, is Central Florida's first public four-year interior design program, and is designed for students who have earned an Associate in Science in Interior Design. A recent survey indicated that 96 percent of local firms and 94 percent of students felt it was important to incorporate an Interior Design program in Central Florida, since the closest program to the area was more than two-hours driving time away.
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Florida Students Excel at National History Competition The 55 Florida students who advanced to the NHD contest were winners at the Florida History Fair in May. These middle and high school students prepared historical papers, exhibits, documentaries, performances, and Web site entries relating to this year’s theme, The Individual in History: Actions and Legacies. Congratulations to the Florida students who placed in the competition! To see the list of winners, visit www.fldoe.org.
Outstanding Agricultural Educators Announced All of the winners will be recognized during the FAAE annual meeting in August, and will each represent Florida in their respective categories during the national convention. The National Association of Agricultural Educators will recognize six national winners, one from each region, per awards program. Regional winners will receive an engraved plaque and a complimentary trip to the NAAE convention, including accommodations. |
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Branching Out |
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Florida Reading Association 47th Annual Conference
Florida Association for Staff Development Leadership Conference
2009 37th FAME Annual Conference: Connecting to the Digital Literacy Hub
Florida School Counselor Association 2009 Annual Convention
Leadership of Mathematics & Science Curriculum, Instruction & Assessment Statewide Conference |
For more information on this electronic newsletter, please e-mail thecore@fldoe.org.