Education News in Alabama

January 15, 2009 (archive)

By Sallie Owen Gowan

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1. State commission recommends redesign of teaching profession
2. Alabama's math, science efforts make cover of Education Week
3. Dear Mr. President ...
4. An economic stimulus plan we know will work – more high school graduates, fewer dropouts
5. Learn more about aggressive dropout prevention in Alabama
6. A+ College Ready launches new site
7. State Board of Education Update: Bice outlines Alabama's progress on math, science issues
8. What's Up @ A+
   • Congrats to Dr. Mason
   • A big thank you to our supporters

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1. STATE COMMISSION RECOMMENDS REDESIGN OF TEACHING PROFESSION

The second report from the Governor's Commission on Quality Teaching recommends creating Professional Pathways to give teachers new options for taking on additional responsibilities without having to leave the classroom. That is one of seven recommendations designed to increase student achievement through more effective instruction.

"The Alabama Professional Pathways plan is leading the way," said Tom Carroll, president of the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future. "Alabama's forward-thinking investment in rewarding career pathways for teachers will pay huge dividends as these teachers join forces to ensure that the state's students master the competencies needed for successful participation in 21st century college, work and community affairs."

State Superintendent Dr. Joe Morton says that many of these recommendations can move forward without additional taxpayer dollars. Grant money is being sought to pilot Professional Pathways.

Get the report "Innovations in Teaching: Creating Professional Pathways for Alabama Teachers" and news release:

http://governorpress.alabama.gov/pr/pr-2009-01-14-01-RedesignTeachingProfession.asp

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2. ALABAMA'S MATH, SCIENCE EFFORTS MAKE COVER OF EDUCATION WEEK

Education Week, the news source of record for education, featured Alabama on the cover of its Jan. 7 edition. A trio of articles spotlight Alabama's efforts to strengthen math and science education, using phrases such as "one of the largest and most ambitious state-run math and science programs in the country."

Check out these articles:

"Alabama lends math, science resources" about AMSTI, the Alabama Math, Science and Technology Initiative
http://snipurl.com/edweek01

"Scientists delve into public education" highlighting the public-private partnerships of the HudsonAlpha Institute
http://snipurl.com/edweek02

"Schools challenged by 4-year math, science mandate"
http://snipurl.com/edweek03

(Full access to www.edweek.org is free through Jan. 19)

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3. DEAR MR. PRESIDENT...

As a finalist for national superintendent of the year, Dr. Suzanne Freeman of Trussville City Schools recently took part in a conversation about what the Obama administration must do to ensure all children succeed.

Find the video here:

http://www.aasa.org/awards/content.cfm?ItemNumber=890

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4. AN ECONOMIC STIMULUS PLAN WE KNOW WILL WORK - MORE HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES, FEWER DROPOUTS

"While the future return of a single stock certificate in a municipality's investment portfolio will always be unpredictable, converting one dropout to a college graduate adds another million dollars in working lifetime income to the economy.

"This is the kind of return that Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway would be delighted to feature in its annual report," write Bob Wise (former WV governor, now with the Alliance for Excellent Education) and Marguerite Kondracke (America's Promise Alliance) in U.S. News and World Report.

Wise will speak in Mobile Feb. 3. See next item for details.

http://snipurl.com/studentbailout

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5. LEARN MORE ABOUT AGGRESSIVE DROPOUT PREVENTION IN ALABAMA

Because today's students are tomorrow's workforce, Mobile citizens are coming together to reduce their dropout rate, and the collaborative effort includes Mobile Mayor Sam Jones, Mobile School Superintendent Dr. Roy Nichols and Carolyn Akers of the Mobile Area Education Foundation.

To see what Mobilians are doing to decrease the dropout rate, increase the rigor of course offerings and reform secondary schools system wide, plan to attend the Dropout Prevention Summit in Mobile on Feb. 3. Keynote speaker is former WV governor Bob Wise.

Details and online registration available at http://maef.net/Default.aspx?tabid=764

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6. A+ COLLEGE READY LAUNCHES NEW SITE

A+ College Ready, a division of the A+ Education Partnership, has launched its own website. You can find out all about Alabama's Advanced Placement** training and incentive program at www.apluscollegeready.org.

P.S. Stay tuned - school announcements in the Huntsville/Madison Co. area are scheduled for Jan. 21.

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7. STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION UPDATE:
Bice outlines Alabama's progress on math, science issues

Amid the national and international focus on math- and science-related careers, Deputy State Superintendent of Education Dr. Tommy Bice presented an overview of Alabama's progress on STEM (science technology engineering and mathematics) issues.

Highlights:

• Alabama's workforce is likely to be short 1,000 to 2,000 STEM graduates per year for the next decade.
• At the state level, there are six efforts underway to address this challenge: 1) Alabama Math, Science and Technology Initiative (AMSTI), 2) ACCESS distance learning, 3) Advanced Placement (AP) Initiative (including A+ College Ready), 4) Engineering Academy Initiative for Alabama, 5) Alabama Teacher Recruitment Incentive Program, and 6) First Choice diploma plan.
• Several of these efforts are built on public-private partnerships with business and industry.

Download Bice's presentation from www.alsde.edu/general/STEM.ppt. (copy and paste link into browser, 15.9 MB document)

The board met Jan. 8 in Montgomery. All members were present except the governor. In other business, the board commended several teachers and schools that had received a variety of state and national awards, including Montgomery's Loveless Academic Magnet Program High, which U.S. News and World Report ranked as the 25th-best high school in the country and the fifth-best magnet school.

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8. WHAT'S UP @ A+

CONGRATS TO DR. MASON – Dr. Charles Mason, superintendent of the Mountain Brook school system, is the new president of the National Staff Development Council. Mason is a longtime member of the A+ Board of Directors, a founding executive committee member for the Alabama Best Practices Center as well as a serving on the Superintendents' Leaders Network planning committee.

A BIG THANK YOU TO OUR SUPPORTERS – All of us at the A+ Education Partnership are deeply grateful to everyone who responded to our December fundraising campaign. These gifts tell us you believe it is worthwhile to continue working to create great schools for every child – and a bright future for Alabama. We commit to working harder than ever this year.

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**Advanced Placement Programs is a registered trademark of the College Board, which was not involved in the production of, and does not endorse, this product.

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The A+ Education Partnership, 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.

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