Message from
Ed Pratt-Dannals
Superintendent of Schools

Welcome Back!

I hope everyone has had an enjoyable summer, and that you are looking forward to the start of the 2008-2009 school year, beginning Monday, August 18. Our administrators and staff have been working diligently over the summer to prepare for a successful school year. Many teachers, as well as administrators, have been involved in professional development workshops and training sessions to help them meet the needs of our students.

During the upcoming year, we will remain focused on improving the academic achievement for all our students. Our most recent FCAT scores showed that more Duval County students are performing at or above grade level in reading, math and science. I am pleased by the positive direction in which our students are moving, and I expect that we will see even greater improvements this year.

While there are many wonderful achievements for us to celebrate and look forward to as we begin a new year, there are also challenges.

Our biggest challenge is our budget, which is facing a projected shortfall of $70 million dollars. Due to a loss of property taxes through amendments and a decrease in sales taxes due to the economy, Duval County Public Schools, like all school districts in Florida, must look for ways to reduce costs.

With our district operating on a minimized budget, your continued support will be more valuable than ever. Education must be a joint venture among students, teachers, staff, parents and community members. Let’s continue to work together to enable our students to achieve at their highest levels.

Thanks again for all that you do.

Ed Pratt-Dannals
Superintendent

One-Stop-Information-Shop for Back to School

It's that time of year again! The 2008/2009 school year begins on Monday, August 18, 2008.

We know that right now is an extremely busy time for students and parents as they prepare for the return of school. To make life a little easier, we have identified the most frequently visited pages on the district's Web site, and created a one-stop-online-shop where students and parents can easily find the information they are looking for.

Visit our Back to School page for important information about this upcoming school year, including enrollment procedures, required immunizations, bus routes and dress code requirements.

For more important dates, take a look at the DCPS District Calendar.

Don't Miss the Bus!

The DCPS Transportation Department has been very busy this summer adjusting bus routes for the 2008/2009 school year. This year, there are routes planned for 945 buses (eight more than last year).

What parents need to know:

• We have a call center that will provide parents and students with bus stop information. The number is 381-RIDE (7433), and the call center will be open 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday from Aug. 5 to Aug. 29.
• Route information is available online and has also been sent to the schools.
• Parents of kindergarten and first-grade students should tag their child with his/her name, school attending, bus number(s) and bus stop.
• Remember: It is a new school year with new bus routes. Bus drivers have practiced their routes, but it takes a few days to get the timing of the route set. In the beginning, buses will unavoidably run late. On the first day of school, if a bus is more than 20 minutes late, calls can be made to 381-RIDE (7433). Parents may opt to take their student to school the first morning if the bus is more than 20 minutes late because the student may have missed it. The student can check with the bus driver that afternoon to confirm the time they need to be at the stop the next morning.

Trip to D.C. Highlights Equality for All

During the summer break, Duval County Public Schools (DCPS) middle and high school students who were selected as award recipients for the Paper Clips project had the opportunity to visit the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.

The Paper Clips project, which took place last fall and was led by the DCPS Council on Educational Equity and Inclusion, invited students to watch the Paper Clips documentary - which details how middle-schoolers from rural Tennessee collected more than 20 million paper clips to honor the victims of the Holocaust.

Students then had the opportunity to react to the film by submitting written and visual pieces. From the work submitted, several students were chosen to visit the museum.

During the trip, students explored the devastating and long-term consequences of hatred and intolerance, and then considered how they can help construct a future of cooperation, inclusion and high achievement.

While visiting the museum's Hall of Remembrance, where memorials written on limestone walls encircle an eternal flame, Kirby-Smith student Natassia McGhee was reminded of the hatred the Nazis had for those not like them.

"Why did they think it was okay to do this?" she asked herself.

That is the question many Duval County students asked after watching Paper Clips and participating in the project.

"The goal is to encourage students to take personal responsibility for the future they wish to create," Josephine Jackson, the executive director of the district's Office of Equity and Inclusion. "We want them to be culturally competent and prepared for a future in the global marketplace, as well as to develop an understanding of the connection between ones actions and what occurs in our communities and the world."

The trip to the museum helped integrate classroom discussions with the reality of the lives of real people who are memorialized in the museum. It also demonstrated first hand the senseless violence and death caused by ignorance and hatred.

"Few words can capture the effect of seeing so many lost lives and the collapse of civilization. The stark contrast between the atrocities committed during the Holocaust and the opportunity we shared as a diverse group of people traveling, eating and learning together gave students and adults reason to pause," Jackson said. "This trip is an experience they will carry with them for a long time."

Student Natassia McGhee agreed.

"Visiting the Holocaust Museum was a life-changing experience," she said. "It made me appreciate the freedom I have to be around people of every color and race."

The following students, whose pieces were selected from the more than 80 submitted, received the trip to the museum: Tiffany Hollis from J.E.B. Stuart Middle School, Kayla Jolley from Sandalwood High School, Cheyenne Light-Smith from Douglas Anderson School of the Arts, Miranda Harrison from Baldwin High School, and Elita Cook, Natassia McGhee and William Pendergraft from Kirby-Smith Middle School.

The trip was funded by CSX, WW Gay Mechanical Contractor, Inc., Wage Peace of Northeast Florida and an anonymous donor.

Summer AVID at Sandalwood

More than 40 Sandalwood students returned to school early this year to participate in a week-long AVID summer bridge program.

AVID stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination, and it’s a program that targets students in the academic middle - B, C and D students - who have the desire to go to college and the willingness to work hard. The program puts these students on the college track: acceleration instead of remediation.

AVID students are enrolled in traditional classes, but also spend one period per day in the AVID elective, learning organizational, critical thinking and study skills. The elective also provides time for students to receive academic support from their AVID teacher, peers and college tutors.

This is the first year Sandalwood has had a summer bridge program, and five teachers returned this summer to help.

Jessie Kirk, formerly a Spanish teacher at Sandalwood, is beginning her second year teaching AVID. She plans to continue teaching in the program because of the growth – both academically and personally - that she sees in her students.

“The AVID program gives students who would typically get lost in the shuffle more self confidence, and equips them with learning strategies that not only help them succeed in their other classes, but also prepares them for college,” said Kirk.

For more information about the Summer AVID Program, read the full article.

In This Issue...

August 2008

• Superintendent's Message

• School Meal Price Changes

• Back-2-School Information

• District Calendar

• Don't Miss the Bus!

• August ACE Meetings

• Trip to D.C. Highlights Equality for All

• Board Meeting Recap

• Inside DCPS

• Summer AVID at Sandalwood

• Stay Informed

• Contact Us

School Meal Price Changes

This academic year, the price of school meals will be increasing.

District Calendar

August

August ACE Meetings

Public meetings will address facility assessment, utilization and school boundaries.

Please visit the ACE section of our Web site for more information.

Board Meeting Recap

At its monthly meeting on Aug. 5, the Duval County School Board and Superintendent Pratt-Dannals recognized several employees for their outstanding accomplishments and contributions to Duval County Public Schools. For a list of all those recognized, please read the news release.

Inside DCPS

Duval County Public Schools
1701 Prudential Drive
Jacksonville, FL 32207
www.duvalschools.org

Superintendent
Ed Pratt-Dannals

School Board Members

• Martha Barrett, District 1

• Nancy Broner, District 2

• Kris Barnes, District 3

• Brenda A. Priestly Jackson, District 4

• Betty Burney (Chairman), District 5

• Vicki Drake, District 6

• Tommy Hazouri (Vice Chairman), District 7

Stay Informed