The Parent Academy

JACOBS, WATSON ELECTED BY PEERS TO CONTINUE

Members of the Prince George's County Board of Education re-elected Verjeana M. Jacobs, Esq., and Dr. Ron L. Watson as Chair and Vice Chair, respectively, during a special meeting on December 7. They will serve in their positions of leadership until December 6,2010, before the next school board election. “This past year has been a challenging one. We have been faced with budget cuts,reductions in force, and an overall reevaluation of programs and options for our students at a time when our students need options the most,” said Ms. Jacobs. “These tough decisions must be faced head on while keeping one thing in mind – to advance the achievement of our diverse student body through community engagement, sound policy governance and accountability, and fiscal responsibility.”

Ms. Jacobs, a Bladensburg High School graduate, and Dr. Watson, a Central High school graduate, both look forward to continuing to serve students and families in rince George's County for a third term. Under the leadership of the current Board of Education, the past year has seen many noteworthy accomplishments in the school system, including continued steady gains on the Maryland School Assessments, a systemic review of school boundaries, and the implementation of initiatives to reduce truancy and out of school suspensions. “This Board of Education has done many great things together as a unified team,” said Dr. Watson. “It’s all about increasing the collaboration and understanding of the broader goals of this school district, and working together with the community to improve education and ensure that all students succeed.”

The Board holds annual elections on the first Monday in December to elect a Chair and Vice Chair among its members. Regular Board meetings are held throughout the school year, and are open to the public, except for meetings in executive session. Meetings are held in the Board Room at the Sasscer Administration Building in Upper Marlboro, unless scheduled otherwise. For more information on the Prince George’s County Board of Education and to see a complete calendar of Board meetings and events, visit www1.pgcps.org/board.

Clips From First Family Academy

PGCPS ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR NON-PUBLIC

The Prince George's County Public Schools (PGCPS) Talented and Gifted Office iscurrently accepting applications for Non-Public Testing for Talented and Gifted (TAG)program eligibility. The testing is for students currently in grades 1-7 who are enteringPGCPS from a non-public school setting.

To request a Non-Public TAG Testing Application, please call the TAG Office at301-808-3790, or email Theresa Jackson, TAG Supervisor, at tjackson@pgcps.org or Scott Brenner, TAG Program Specialist, at sbrenner@pgcps.org.

The applications and supporting documentation are due in the TAG Office no later than January 15, 2010.Non-public testing for the TAG program is scheduled for Saturday, February 6, 2010,at 8:30 a.m. at Kenmoor Middle School, located at 2500 Kenmoor Drive in Landover.

The snow date for testing is February 14, 2010. Only students who have completed anapplication will be tested – no walk-in's. For more information, please call the TAG Office at 301-808-3790.

Milwaukee Public Schools plans to spend 4 million on parental engagement

Written by
By Erin Richards of the Journal Sentinel

Lennise Crampton, a 40-year-old Milwaukee mother of eight, sometimes wonders how her children would have performed in school if she'd known how to be a better parent from the start.

A single mother until she married this year, Crampton usually managed decent meals and clothing and getting her kids to class. It was up to the school, she thought, to handle the education part.

Then in December of 2005, a representative from Lloyd Street School marched up to Crampton's door and asked her to participate in a program that improves relationships between teachers, schools and families.

Crampton started coming to weekly meetings at Lloyd, where her two youngest attended. She learned about training she could get as a low-income parent. She learned how to engage in her children's academics at home and how to advocate for their needs at school.

"These little ones get the best of the best now," she said. "If it applies to my children's academics, I'm on it." Crampton's experience underlines the critical connection between schools and families, teachers and parents. Though her children are not always model students, Crampton knows they tend to do better in school when she's engaged, and that they drift academically and socially when she's less diligent.

To read the rest of the story, click on the link below:
Erin Richards

NEW PROGRAM BRINGS COLLEGE TO THE CLASSROOM

WHO: Dr. Anisha Campbell, Project Lead, Bowie State University
Dr. David May, Project Manager, University System of Maryland
Dr. Christine Barrow, Professor, Prince George's Community
College (PGCC)
Dr. Bruce Katz, Officer, Office of Higher Education Partnerships,
Prince George's County Public Schools (PGCPS)
College Presence students at Largo High School
WHAT: College Presence Dual Enrollment Program Media Tour
WHEN: December 8, 2009 • 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
WHERE: Largo High School • Media Center, 505 Largo Road, Upper Marlboro

BACKGROUND:

Through a partnership effort with local colleges and universities, Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) students at four high schools are participating in a special pilot program that allows them to simultaneously earn high school and college credits in science.

The Prince George’s Community College (PGCC) College Science Scholars Program, college Presence, is one component of a five-year, $12.4 million grant,awarded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) known as the Minority Student Pipeline Math and Science Partnership (MSP2).

The College Presence Dual Enrollment Program Media Tour will begin with a brief information session in the school's media center, followed by a classroom tour and opportunity to interview students in the program.