THE EAST COAST TIMES
Volume 11, Issue 29
August 2011
SIATECH AND MYCROSCHOOL
National Job Corps Commencement Day
G ai n es v il le,
Jacksonville,
Homestead,
and
Miami
Job
Corps
Centers celebrated National Job
Corps Commencement Day to
celebrate the success and transformation of youth who complete
their high school education and
transition into employment.
Senator Anthony Hill delivered the commencement address at the Jacksonville ceremony which was held at Edward
Waters College. His message to
the graduates emphasized the
value of passion and hard work
as well as the importance of surrounding oneself with smart people.
A final message from the Vice
President of Edward Waters College included a chant from the
graduates of “I Can, I Will, I Must
SUCCEED!”
Evelyn Tukes, SIATech JAX Board
President, attends the ceremony.
Above: Natasha Ernst-Bailey, Supervisor from DCPS Charter School Operations and Principal Michael Laroche
Transforming Lives
One student, one story,
one success at a time.
Jacorey Johnson, a 2009
SIATech Jacksonville graduate, paid a surprise visit to
SIATech in August to say
Above: Kenderson Hill, Jacksonville CD, with SIATech teachers
Robert Hayeck and Kate Cooley.
by Michael Laroche
hello and thank you once
again for changing his life.
After graduation, Jacorey
enlisted in the United States
Navy and is currently station
in Maryland.
Above: Jacory (center) with SIATech
JAX staff members.
Inside this issue:
Guest Speaker Inspires Students
2
Relentless Principals
2
Algebra 1 End-of-Course Results
2
MYcroSchool Ribbon Cutting
3
Maya Angelou’s Grandson Inspires Students to Read. More on page 2.
Page 2
THE EAST COAST TIMES
Poet Inspires Students by Andrea Loring
Above: Mr. Jones embodied the
message of his legendary
grandmother, who said that
poetry is music for the voice.
Mr. Elliot Jones,
Director of Community
Engagement at the
Miami Children's Initiative, spent the afternoon in the Homestead
English lab. He read
some of his favorite
poems written by his
very famous grandmother, Maya Angelou.
He shared her
philosophy and favorite
stories about her, mesmerizing the students.
Mr. Jones asked that
students share some of
their own poetry, which
they were asked to
bring to class. A couple of students "free-
styled" rap lyrics that
they wrote. The students were required to
stand up when they
spoke and to "own their
voices".
Finally, Mr. Jones
talked to the students
about resiliency and
told them that Maya
Angelou was a poor
black female growing
up in the segregated
South yet she made it.
Relentless Principals Take Action
“Relentless
pretty much
means that
you’re
persistent and
strong-headed
and don’t
want to ever
give up.” Ask.com
Baseline data from the
April 2011 Algebra 1 EOC
exam results indicate that
56% of SIATech students
received a grade of D or
better as measured by the
grading scale calculations
of Duval County Public
Schools.
Official scoring and
passing criteria are still
being determined by the
State and are due to be
announced in late 2011.
At the Area 3 August meeting, leaders discussed corporate goals, data
systems, and tackling the new graduation requirements in Florida. The
Area 3 Principals also presented drafts of their Professional Development
Action Plans which focused on addressing attendance issues (Miami and
GMSC), establishing positive school culture (MYcro GV), using data to inform instruction (Gainesville), infusing cultural diversity into instruction
(Homestead), and transformational leadership (Jacksonville). They also
discussed how being relentless can lead to positive outcomes.
Algebra 1 End-of-Course Exam Results
T‐Score Range Letter Grade 60 ‐ 80 50 ‐ 59 40 ‐ 49 30 ‐ 39 20 ‐ 29 A B C D F NR2* TOTAL STUDENTS GV 0 2 6 13 31 0 52 *NR2—Attemptedness Criteria Not Met
JAX 0 1 4 3 1 0 9 M‐Dade Totals 0 0 3 6 20 30 38 54 39 71 7 7 161 107 % 0 4 19 34 44 N/A N/A VOLUME 11, ISSUE 29
Page 3
MYcroSchool Ribbon Cutting
On August 18, 2011 a ribbon-cutting ceremony was
held to commemorate the
opening of MYcroSchool
Gainesville on Monday,
August 22, 2011.
Getting Ready...
Principal Randy Starling hosts the
ribbon-cutting ceremony and
welcomes guests.
Teachers Shelly Victor,
Anne Malone, and Brian
Giles chat at the ribboncutting event.
It’s Official!
Area 3 Principals support the MYcroSchool event.
Randy Starling talks with
parents about the school.
Linda Dawson chats with SIATech Gainesville Board
Members Professor Zaginski and Sam Kolapo.
Sam Kolapo and Joy Baldree
receive recognition for partnership and leadership.