Education News in Alabama

September 19 , 2007 (archive)

By Sallie Owen

A+ LANDS $13.2 MILLION GRANT TO BOOST ADVANCED PLACEMENT (AP) PROGRAMS
This grant launches A+ College Ready, a program to increase student participation in Advanced Placement (AP) courses and improve performance on AP exams in math, science and English.

The United States needs more people choosing careers in science and engineering, and these rigorous classes effectively prepare students to succeed in college.

The National Math and Science Initiative's award of up to $13.2 million over six years is the largest private grant on record for K-12 public education in Alabama.

A+ College Ready is a partnership of the A+ Education Foundation, Gov. Bob Riley, State Superintendent of Education Joe Morton, the Alabama Power Foundation and the Alabama Mathematics, Science and Technology Education Coalition.

Alabama's AP performance has been improving because of several statewide initiatives.

Find more info (news release, fact sheets, links) at www.aplusala.org.

The announcement garnered tons of news coverage. Here's the Associated Press version: http://snipurl.com/collegeready08. You can watch video of the Sept. 6 event from http://www.governorpress.alabama.gov/listings.asp?t=pr.

MONTGOMERY, JEFFERSON COUNTY SYSTEMS CHOSEN AS A+ COLLEGE READY'S PILOT SITES

A+ College Ready will provide services and resources to participating schools. These will include technical assistance; professional development and mentoring for teachers; additional time for student learning and financial incentives based on academic results.

The first school systems to benefit from A+ College Ready will be Montgomery County and Jefferson County.

WHAT'S YOUR AP STORY?

Tell us about your experience with Advanced Placement programs. How did AP affect your readiness to meet professors' expectations when you got to college?

Send messages to comments@aplusala.org.

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SCHOOLS GET $ REWARDS WHEN CHILDREN LEARN MORE
Principals grinned nonstop last week when state education officials announced $5 million in rewards for schools where students made significant academic progress.

The rewards are designed to honor and motivate educators working in Alabama's most challenging schools. Money is targeted at high-performing, high-poverty schools as well as schools where a defined group of students (such as special education, minority or poverty) posted top marks. Almost every school system was eligible for rewards.

Altogether, 318 schools from 75 systems were honored. Gov. Bob Riley actually bowed to the principal from Collins-Rhodes Elementary, which earned $105,000 for the top haul of the day. Read more about Collins-Rhodes at http://snipurl.com/07rewards.

Go to http://www.aplusala.org/media/index.asp for more details and a spreadsheet listing the reward-earning schools. Rewards must be used for instructional purposes.

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NGA SHOWCASES MATH, SCIENCE EDUCATION IN ALABAMA
When the National Governors Association wanted to highlight progress in math and science education, the group's Center for Best Practices came to Alabama. Gov. Bob Riley and leaders from 18 states met in Huntsville to discuss successful strategies. Alabama showed off the Alabama Math, Science and Technology Initiative (AMSTI), which is boosting student achievement.

"Riley vows to keep building up schools," The Huntsville Times http://snipurl.com/ngabestpractices

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STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION UPDATE
The Alabama State Board of Education met Sept. 13. All members were present.

The board distributed academic rewards (see No. 2 above), hired Larry Craven as general counsel and approved a University of Alabama at Birmingham teacher education program.

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EXAMPLES OF EXCELLENCE
 *GREAT TEACHING MATTERS: The U.S. Department of Education has picked fifth-grade teacher Leann White from Dean Road Elementary in Auburn to be the 2007 No Child Left Behind American Star of Teaching. White is known for using real-world experiences and inquiry-based lessons, especially in math.

*SCHOOL LEADERS LISTEN TO PARENTS, CITIZENS: Dothan City Schools are in the midst of nearly 20 public forums for school officials to hear from parents and other citizens. Such forums can be an important first step to building better relationships between schools and communities. Read more at http://snipurl.com/dothanforums.

*MORE TIME FOR LEARNING: Smart leaders know children win when they have opportunities for learning beyond the regular school hours. At Tarrant High School, seniors are using ACCESS distance learning after school to catch up on credits (http://snipurl.com/moretime1). And teachers at Hewitt-Trussville Middle School were surprised by the popularity of new classes offered before and after school (http://snipurl.com/moretime2).

*'PARENTS, THE LINK TO SUCCESS': That's the slogan on Cleburne County Middle School student Teron Dukes' prize-winning poster. The design is popping up on billboards around the state to promote the key role parents and families play through their wisdom, love and prayers. She's also raising money to buy school supplies for children in Honduras.

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WHAT'S UP @ A+
WE'RE GROWING: A+ College Ready is an exciting new part of A+, and we are ecstatic about this opportunity to be involved in high school reform.

CONGRATULATIONS to active schools in the Alabama Best Practices Center's Powerful Conversations Network that earned financial rewards for gains in student achievement! They include N.H. Price Elementary and Huffman High (Birmingham); Austin Elementary (Butler County); Lafayette Eastside Elementary (Chambers); West Elementary (Cullman City); Leon Sheffield Magnet, Banks-Caddell and Frances Nungester elementaries (Decatur); West Jasper Elementary (Jasper); Brighton Middle (Jefferson); George Hall, Calcedeaver and Maryvale elementaries (Mobile County); Oak Mountain Intermediate (Shelby); Childersburg and Stemley Road elementaries (Talladega County); Paine Intermediate and Paine Primary (Trussville); and Hillcrest High (Tuscaloosa County).

ABPC IN THE NEWS: Keep up with the Alabama Best Practices Center's amazing work with these news stories. "The future is now" (http://snipurl.com/apbc01 ) captures how innovative teachers are using new ways to deepen students' learning experiences. "Fayetteville only school in state chosen by Microsoft for forum" (http://snipurl.com/abpc02 ) profiles a teaching team tapped for a national forum of top educators, and "Middle School Survivors" (http://snipurl.com/abpc03) shows how educators can use free online resources such as wikis to engage students who have never known a world without the Internet.

Find more at www.abpc21.org.

WE NEED YOU
Please consider making a tax-deductible donation. You can give online or mail your check to P.O. Box 4433, Montgomery, AL 36103.

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The A+ Education Foundation, based in Montgomery, publishes Education News in Alabama twice a month. A+ is a nonprofit organization that advances policies, programs and initiatives in Alabama's K-12 education system that result in high achievement by every child.

Past editions can be found at www.aplusala.org/ednews/index.asp

Feedback is welcome. Send messages to comments@aplusala.org