On August 11, teachers from Timucuan Elementary School gathered for their Back-to-School Breakfast at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) to celebrate the school's 'A' grade on the 2008 FCAT.
While having breakfast, teachers had a chance to catch up with returning co-workers, and they were introduced to several new teachers, a new guidance counselor and two teacher interns.
One of the school's first-year teachers is Dulcie Stahler. Dulcie was an Art Educator at the Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens, but decided to switch to classroom instruction after hearing about the Educator’s of Change (EOC) program.
"Working at the Cummer, I was able to impact a lot of kids in a small way," said Dulcie. "Now I can impact a small group of kids in a big way." She also shared that the EOC program made it less intimidating to enter her second career as a teacher because of the support the program provides to non-traditional teachers.
Teachers were also introduced to Tommy Hazouri, vice chairman of the Duval County School Board, who congratulated them on the hard work and dedication it took to improve their school by two letter grades. The school made a 108 point increase from the previous year, in which they received a C. This was the second highest gain in the school district.
After breakfast, teachers moved to the fifth floor art studio to make decorations for the school's 2008 theme, “Going for the Gold,” inspired by the 2008 Summer Olympics. Each of the school's six hallways will be decorated to resemble a different continent, excluding North America. The school's multi-purpose room, where staff meetings are held, will have a Beijing-inspired theme.
The event was made possible through donations by Riverplace Parking, who donated $500 to cover the cost of parking in their Republic Parking facility and MOCA, who allowed the school to use their facility free of charge, which is normally a $500 rental fee.
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