Wake Ed Power Hour Launches Annual Campaign

Major investments from area corporations have put Wake Education Partnership’s 2007 campaign at 54 percent of its goal, campaign co-chairs announced at last week’s Power Hour event to launch the public phase of the campaign. Wake Education Partnership kicked off its annual campaign – “Wake Ed ‘07 – Join the Conversation” – led by Wake Ed Trustees and campaign co-chairs Hilda Pinnix-Ragland, vice president of Progress Energy Carolinas - Northern Region, and Jack Clayton, regional president of Wachovia Bank. The event was sponsored by Progress Energy and Wachovia.

The following companies announced leadership gifts to Wake Education Partnership at the event: SAS, AT&T, The News & Observer, Wachovia, the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce, Paragon Commercial Bank and PriceWaterhouseCoopers. The campaign, which plans to raise $1 million by June 30, funds Wake Ed Partnership’s work to ensure world-class public education in Wake County through business and community involvement. Companies and individuals from across Wake County attended the Power Hour in support of Wake Ed Partnership. Other companies recognized at the event for their earlier gifts to Wake Ed included Progress Energy, WakeMed, First Citizens Bank, Time Warner Cable, Golden Corral, Closure Medical and IBM. To make a gift to the campaign, visit Wake Ed online.

Teacher Council Seeks Applicants

The Superintendent's Teacher Advisory Council (STAC) seeks applications from educators interested in making a significant impact on teaching and learning in Wake County. Currently, STAC is looking for an elementary teacher from the Central region, a high school teacher from the Eastern region, and a high school teacher from the South Central region. Each selected teacher will serve a three-year term on both STAC and as a member of the Superintendent's Summit. STAC, currently in its sixth year, brings together a group of 18 educators who exemplify the diversity of the school system in relation to grade and subject, teaching experience, and regional representation. STAC seeks to impact student achievement by elevating the teacher voice into policy conversations, while advocating for students with an understanding of the classroom. Council applications can be requested by emailing Kim Hughes at khughes@wcpss.net and are due by Friday, April 20, 2007.

Parent Council Accepting Applications

The Superintendent's Parent Advisory Council is currently accepting applications from parents to serve a three-year term on the council. The SPAC is in its third year as a diverse group of engaged and informed parents who serve as a sounding board and problem solving entity to the Superintendent of the Wake County Public School System and his top leadership team. This 18-person council works with representatives from the Teachers Advisory Council, the Staff Advisory Council and the Association of Principals and Assistant Principals to work together to provide input on specific issues identified by the Superintendent. The Superintendent's Summit meets four times a year. Applications are being accepted through April 13, 2007. Selection will be made by May 11 and the first meeting will be on June 11. For more information or to receive an application, please send an email to Virginia Parker at parkervg@earthlink.net or call 919.846.1928.

Students to Present Book at Borders

Two local Boys & Girls Club members will hold a book signing for their poems included in the recently published book, Making One Good World: Kids Write About Diversity, on Saturday, April 7, from 1-3 p.m. at the North Raleigh Borders. The book, considered a powerful collection for its honesty, is free while supplies last at the signing. For customers using a 10 percent off coupon on April 7 and 8, Borders will donate 10 percent of the purchase price back to the Boys & Girls Club – visit the Wake BGC online to download a coupon.

Boards Agree to Deal for Tax Rebate

The Wake County Board of Education and Board of Commissioners have approved an agreement that provides for transfer of title of school property to the county for the duration of construction projects at new and existing schools, so that the county can claim sales tax refund from the state and appropriate that money to WCPSS to reduce project costs. Currently, public schools in North Carolina, unlike county governments, are not eligible for a rebate of sales taxes. It is estimated that over the term of the currently authorized building program between $11 and $13 million in sales tax could be rebated under this agreement. For more information, visit WCPSS online.

N.C. House Reconsiders School Start Date

The News & Observer reports that a state House committee voted overwhelmingly on March 29 to make it easier for schools to open before late August each year. The bill, supported by the state's school administrators and school boards, would come close to reversing a 2004 law. The proposal, endorsed by a 38-13 vote, would allow more schools to qualify for state waivers allowing them to open before Aug. 25. The bill moves now to a vote of the full House. Parents, students and principals who want to return responsibility for setting school calendars to local boards say the late August start throws off the timing for high school students who want to take college courses. High schools where students take community college classes can get permission to start earlier.

Cable Awards Seeking Innovative Teachers, Champion Principals

For 17 years, Time Warner Cable has honored teachers across the United States with its National Teacher Awards, recognizing teachers who bring enrichment and innovation to our nation's classrooms. This year, Time Warner Cable will recognize 15 projects for creative use of cable television resources. The winners will receive $2,000 cash and $3,000 for school technology advancement. Applications are due by April 13 and are available online.

For the first time, Time Warner Cable announces the Champion Principal Award, to recognize the power of a principal’s encouragement and support in effectively using technology to maximize teaching and learning in the classroom. The Champion Principal will receive a trip for two to the TWC National Teacher Awards gala celebration in Washington, D.C., and $5,000 for classroom technology enhancement. Applications are due by April 13 and are available online.

College Board to Require Audits of AP Courses

The College Board recently announced plans to audit every Advanced Placement course in the nation, requiring teachers to provide written evidence of sufficient rigor by June 1, 2007. Large increases in AP participation over the past several years have led some educators to question whether all AP courses are actually providing college level content. For more information, visit the Washington Post online.

Ed Week Releases Annual Technology Report

The tenth edition of Technology Counts from Education Week is now online. Technology Counts 2007 grades states on leadership in educational technology and finds wide variation among them in the core areas of access, use, and capacity. Also included is an interactive timeline that examines key educational technology trends over the past 10 years. The use that students and educators are making of digital technology has moved in new directions. Students are taking more tests on computers. And educators are making ever-greater use of digital data on student achievement -- principally standardized-test scores, but also other student work organized in digital portfolios -- to make decisions about instruction. Much of that data analysis is being driven by test-based accountability, but not all. The Editorial Projects in Education Research Center now finds that, unlike 10 years ago, most states have technology standards for students and educators, for example. But few states test to see if those standards are being met, so the degree to which schools are reaching them is unknown. Anecdotal evidence and research suggest that teachers’ integration of digital tools into instruction is sporadic. Many young people’s reliance on digital technology in their outside lives stands in sharp contrast to their limited use of it in school. Large gaps, though, have emerged in students’ use of computers at home based on their demographic backgrounds. So while disadvantaged students now have nearly as broad access to computers in schools as their more advantaged peers, at home they typically have much less.

MAKE AN INVESTMENT

Your donations make the Partnership's work possible. Please help us continue to support excellence in public education in Wake County by making an investment in the Annual Fund for Education today. When we invest in our schools, we build a better, stronger, more prosperous community for us all. And together, we all win.

UPCOMING WAKE ED PARTNERSHIP EVENTS

May 9: Education Exchange meeting from 7-8:30 p.m. at the Holly Springs Cultural Center. Topic: Comparing school construction in Wake County to districts across the country. No registration required.

June 6: Reception hosted by Ann & Jim Goodnight to support the Wake Ed ’07 campaign at Prestonwood Country Club. Online registration available soon.