Please mark Wednesday, May 22 from 12:00 – 1:00 pm on your calendar for the “How to Support Your Student in College” session, part of our College Knowledge lunch-and-learn workshop series. You can register online through May 20.
Understanding adolescent and young adult development is a must for effective parents and educators. As students prepare for college they will face challenges – some of which they are prepared for and some of which they’re not. This new way of looking at growing up will help parents understand the pressures students are feeling. The session will include a panel of college students for Q&A. Afterwards, parents will have a fresh perspective on their changing role as their emerging adults plan for and start college.
Please feel free to circulate this flier to others you think would be interested in learning more about this topic.
We hope to see you there!
- Janice Neal, Program Associate, College and Career Success
Share our College Knowledge flyer with friends, post at work, and ask a friend to join you! Don’t forget to register online by April 16.
One by one, students described their old playground: “The slides would burn your skin. The equipment was rusty and would cut you. There were wood chips everywhere and they got in your socks and shoes.”
In front of a beautiful, modern, and functional new space, students, funders, and faculty dedicated the new playground at Calvin Donaldson Environmental Science Academy this morning surrounded by parents and other invited guests.
With a gift of $100,000 from the Leonore Annenberg School Fund for Children and a match of $50,000 gift from the Benwood Foundation, Public Education Foundation, Hamilton County Department of Education and Calvin Donaldson Environmental Science Academy transformed the school’s playground and science lab into places for hands-on STEM learning.
“We wanted our outdoor area and the science lab to inspire our students,” states Becky Coleman, principal of Calvin Donaldson. “The playground and nature area is a shared space with the intent to bring students and community members together around a school of excellence. Additionally, the science lab is now an engaging space for STEM hands-on learning that connects directly to Calvin Donaldson’s environmental science focus.”
“Leonore Annenberg was committed to improving the lives of children, particularly those living in poverty,” says PEF president Dan Challener. “This grant certainly underscores the heart of her mission to provide students resources to help them shine brightly. We are thrilled to see this and Benwood’s investment launch two new facilities to encourage hands-on environmental science learning for students.”
After the ceremony, guests were invited to tour the new science lab with student docents. The lab features plant nurseries, new equipment such as microscopes, and a Promethean board, as well as new tables, chairs, and bright paint.
PEF is proud to partner with Calvin Donaldson, the Leonore Annenberg School Fund for Children, Benwood Foundation, and Hamilton County to provide these students with a place to work and play that they so richly deserve!
- Shannon Edmondson, Development & Communications Officer
Project Inspire is looking for outstanding grade 4-8 math and science teachers to serve as year-long mentors in our teacher residency program.
It is an extensive focus on preparation that makes the residency model different from any other program in education. From beginning to end, every aspect of the model is designed to provide teachers the knowledge, skills and disposition they need to make an immediate impact in the urban classroom — a difference every one of their students can feel.
To learn more, join us for a Clinical Instructor Information Session:
Tuesday, February 19
4:45 – 6:00 pm
PEF Holmberg Leadership Center, 3rd Floor
100 E. 10th Street
Be sure to RSVP so we can have materials ready for you. Please share this with great teachers you know across the district!
- Mark Neal, Director, STEM Teacher Residencies
College Goal Tennessee is a program designed to offer free assistance to students and parents applying for financial aid to go to college.
Upcoming programs in our area include:
For many high school students, lack of information about how to pay for college has discouraged them from applying. It’s critical that students and families have access to the information and resources needed to help them explore educational opportunities. Please help us spread the word about College Goal Tennessee!
- Stacy Lightfoot, Vice President, College and Career Success
We believe that great public education is necessary for our city – for any city – to thrive. But what is the best way to transform public education? Within the world of education policy there are competing and opposing viewpoints on how to best approach education reform. With no “silver bullet” that will solve every issue in public education, we must promote dialogue about different approaches to ensure all students have access to great public education.
Last year, PEF partnered with the Benwood Foundation and UTC for the Hunter Lecture Series to present Michelle Rhee and her ideas on putting students first in the classroom. On Tuesday, September 18th at 7 PM in Roland Hayes Auditorium at UTC, PEF is pleased to partner again with this group to present Diane Ravitch. Drawing on her forty years of research and experience, Ravitch questions the use of punitive accountability to fire teachers and shut down schools, the effectiveness of charter schools, and the funneling of private money to reform failing schools.
In a city where private foundations have invested enormous amounts of money to help improve public education and in a state where teacher evaluations are based on testing accountability, Ravitch is sure to stir up emotions among the community. But that’s okay – let’s start the conversation about what works, what doesn’t, and how we can all work together to transform public education.
For a sneak peek into what to expect, take a look at this video.
- Christa
