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 Looking Back on Another Year
As 2011 comes to an end, I want to take this time to reflect on some of the successes of our schools.
Now more than ever, I am confident that the district is moving in the right direction. Thanks to our Strategic Plan, and its targeted goals, we will continue taking a holistic approach to improving our schools.
The Florida Department of Education released the 2011 Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) results in June. I’m pleased that the district maintained its “B” status for the fourth consecutive year, and 85% of Duval County public schools made a satisfactory grade or higher, while some schools showed significant improvements.
This year in Duval County, 112 schools out of the 131 schools earning grades earned excellent, good or satisfactory grades. The grades for our high schools are expected to arrive prior to Winter break.
We launched Read It Forward Jax! in June and have been lucky to work with so many great partners in helping to improve the reading performance
of our students. Business partners have stepped up to donate classroom libraries for schools, and we have seen an increase in Reading volunteers. For more information on
Read It Forward Jax!, visit our website at
www.readitforwardjax.org.
Our high school grades should be coming out in the middle of December, and I am optimistic that we will see an increase in the number of high schools that will have higher school grades for 2011.
The safety and security in our schools continues to improve. Significant progress is being made in decreasing the number of school suspensions and absences. Out of School suspensions continue to decline, with an increase in students who are suspended attending our Alternative to Out of School Suspension Centers. We have also shown significant improvement during the last three years to decrease the number of students in grades K-12 who are absent more than 20 days.
These gains in achievement and increase in attendance can be attributed to the hard work of our students, teachers, principals, district support staff, parents and community partners.
This year has been challenging, with a continued decline in our budget, yet we’ve managed to stay focused and see some great things happen with public education in Duval County. I strongly believe, through the commitment of our students, the dedication of our teachers and staff, parents and the community, we will be successful.
Happy holidays! I hope that you have a prosperous new year.
Ed Pratt-Dannals
Superintendent
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DCPS has released
Winter Packets designed for student enrichment during
Winter Break.
Remember, just because students are on winter
vacation doesn't mean learning has to stop - - Research suggests that students
who continue to read while on school breaks and vacations maintain their
academic progress made during the school year.
The Department of Education's Just Read, Florida! office released its 2011 Holiday Reading List, which provides suggested literary works to encourage families and students to both share and enjoy the gift of reading and literacy throughout the holiday season. For more information, visit
www.justreadfamilies.org.
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Crayola and the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP)
announced
Greenfield
Elementary as one of the 20 recipients of their “Champion Creatively Alive
Children” school grants. Greenfield Elementary was awarded a grant from among
the hundreds of schools that applied based on the innovative ideas proposed for
infusing art into learning. Greenfield received a $2,500 monetary grant and $500
worth of Crayola products.
The grants provide principals and educators with funding and supplies needed to
explore new ways to foster critical 21st century skills in children known as the
4 Cs: creativity, collaboration, communication and critical thinking. These
essential skills are imperative for children to develop for greater success in
school and in their future careers.
“Creativity is a skill that students need every day and for every career,” said
Mike Perry, Crayola president and chief executive officer. “Art-infused learning
increases academic achievement and prepares children for the future with the
essential skills they’ll need for any career.”
The grant opportunity asked principals to explore a "what if..." learning
opportunity. For example, what if arts-infused learning thrived everyday in
schools? What if schools relied more on project-based authentic assessment
rather than standardized tests? The entries were judged on innovation,
collaboration and sustainability.
Principal Lauzon plans to implement a program that asks: "What if" students
deeply engage in three genres of Georgia O’Keeffe’s work – cityscapes, flora and
archaeological artifacts, and use this inspiration to explore the history of
their community through a fully integrated art, science and social studies
experience? What if collaboration between the school, Timucuan Ecological and
Historic Preserve, Cummer Museum, Jacksonville Library and the Mayor’s office
reinforced this cross-curricular approach of using art to understand the current
and past cultures of Jacksonville, FL? This cross-curricular program uses an
outdoor field laboratory to study Native Timucuan archaeology and the context
for how they influenced the contemporary city.
"School principals are charged with preparing our nation's children to thrive in
the 21st century - a task that depends on cultivating creativity," said Gail
Connelly, NAESP executive director. "Working with Crayola on the Championing
Creatively Alive Children grant program has allowed us to provide principals and
teachers the tools they need to ignite the potential in all of their students."
Greenfield Elementary will share the outcomes from its program via Crayola and
NAESP’s websites to inspire other principals and educators with ways they can
integrate art into various subject areas like science, math and social studies.
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Eight lucky students and several faculty members from
Palm Avenue Exceptional
Student Center were invited to visit the Fleet Readiness Center Southeast
(FRCSE) at the Naval Air Station Jacksonville. Attendees gained a better
understanding of the facility's military mission in support of the war fighter.
Principal Alexander joined the students for a special tour of
the P-3 Orion aircraft production lines. Senior officer and pilot, Stephen
Mayer, escorted the students through the production line, explaining the work
cells. Students marveled at the size, condition and cleanliness of the
aircrafts.
The next stop on the tour was the ejection seat shop where
the aircraft ordinance systems supervisor explained how pilots eject from the
damaged, airborne planes. Students took turns sitting in the specialized chair.
“This was a great experience for our students,” said
Principal Alexander. "We had no idea how much work it takes to maintain these
planes, but it is necessary and important for the safety of our Navy military
personnel."
Thanks to the tour organizers for their part in this experience: Andrea
Saunders, FRCSE; Marsha Childs, FRCSE; Rosemarie Parsch, DCPS. The two-hour tour
served as part of the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) Disability Mentoring
Day.
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Duval County Public Schools is
pleased to announce that seven high school seniors have earned recognition in
the National High School Essay Contest sponsored by Omega Psi Phi fraternity.
The essay contest was held during National Education Week.
The students wrote essays in response to a central theme: How can a quality
education allow someone to be successful in this economy? Judges scored the
essays based on their effectiveness in developing and supporting a clear thesis
with appropriate writing conventions.
Congratulations to the following students:
• Malcolm C.,
Stanton
College Preparatory School, first-place
• Earnest B.,
Ribault High School,
second-place
• Christopher G.,
Sandalwood High School, third-place
• Ian M.,
Raines High School,
fourth-place
• Brandon N., Stanton College Preparatory School, fifth-place
• Dylan C., Sandalwood High School, finalist
• Jerron W., Stanton College Preparatory School, finalist
Daryl Johnson, contest coordinator, presented college scholarship checks to the
students at an awards banquet. Malcolm, Earnest, Chris, Ian and Brandon received
checks for $1,000, $500, $250, $100 and $100, respectively. Keep up the great
work and good luck in your future endeavors!
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 New Berlin Elementary Honors Veterans with Flag Retirement Ceremony
Hundreds
of students, teachers, parents and staff at New Berlin Elementary gathered
around the school’s flag pole to honor the veterans with a new American flag.
After retiring the flag that flew since the school’s inception five years ago,
the U.S. Navy Honor Guard arrived to present New Berlin Elementary with a new
American flag.
 Several More Duval County Sports Programs Saved for the 2011-2012 School Year
Duval County Public Schools held a press conference to announce that the funds have
been raised to save wrestling, J.V. soccer and slow-pitch softball for the
2011-12 school year. Thanks to the efforts of several individuals Pat Fairfax,
Mike Levine, Barry Dixon, Steve Satchell, Michael Goodman, David Bailey and Doug
Alred, approximately $87,000 was raised to keep these sports in Duval County
public schools.
 DCPS Donates Thanksgiving Baskets to Families in Need
Thanks to dozens of DCPS’ employees, the
district collected food for 150 Thanksgiving baskets. Each basket contained one
box of potatoes, stuffing, corn muffin mix and cake mix, one cake icing, one jar
of gravy, and one can of cranberry and green beans.
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December
7 |
Student Early Release Day |
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19-22 |
Weather Days |
| 23-30 |
Winter Holiday (Schools and District Offices Closed) |
January
2 |
Winter Holiday (School
and District Offices Closed) |
9 |
School Board Meeting,
6 p.m. - Cline Auditorium, 1701 Prudential Drive |
11 |
Student Early
Release Day |
16 |
Martin Luther King Jr.
Holiday (Schools and District Offices Closed) |
20 |
Teacher Planning Day
(No school for students) |
21 |
Magnet Mania & School Choice Expo, 11
a.m. - 3 p.m. Prime Osborn Convention Center |
25 |
Student Early Release
Day |
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Read It Forward Jax! is a
district-wide initiative designed to improve our students reading
skills to ensure they are reading at or beyond grade level.
Through this campaign we have asked for community leaders from city,
non-profit, faith-based and business organizations to partner with
us in providing the necessary tools and resources for our students
to succeed.
There are several opportunities for individuals and/or organizations
to contribute to Read It Forward Jax!
You can sponsor
TVtextbooks for students or
classroom libraries for schools. You can also sign-up to be a
reading volunteer
If you would
like to make a donation, fill out this
donation card
and follow the instructions on the form to send donation to Duval County Public
Schools.
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Duval County Public
Schools
1701 Prudential Drive
Jacksonville, FL 32207
www.duvalschools.org
Superintendent
Ed Pratt-Dannals
School Board Members
Frequently Called Numbers
Main Line
904-390-2000
Transportation
904-858-6200
Human Resources
904-390-2840
School Board Office
904-390-2293
Community & Family Engagement
904-390-2960
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Duval County Public Schools has a Facebook page. To follow us, visit
Facebook and select 'Become a Fan' at the top of the page.
You can also follow DCPS on Twitter by visiting
www.twitter.com/DuvalSchools and clicking 'Follow.'
Both pages are
updated regularly with news, important messages and information about current
events.
 Looking
for photos from school events? Visit our
flickr photostream.
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News Update
Looking for the latest school and
district news? Read our most recent
news releases, visit our
Spotlight on Education section or tune in to
dcpsTV for a detailed look into what's going on at DCPS.
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