A Year Of Educational Opportunities Planned For Miami-Dade County Public Schools Students

A YEAR OF EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES PLANNED FOR
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS STUDENTS

MIAMI – Miami-Dade County Public Schools, the nation’s fourth largest school district, is looking forward to a year of promising educational opportunities for more than 336,000 students. Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho has personally directed these efforts that will give students a dynamic jump-start to their school careers. “I am extremely positive and hopeful that innovation, creativity and dedication of the part of all of our employees will make 2009-2010 our best year yet,” said Carvalho.

Five new Miami-Dade County public schools will welcome students beginning Monday, Aug. 24. The facilities are Gateway Environmental K-8 Learning Center, Terra Environmental Research Institute, Hialeah Gardens Senior High School and Alonzo and Tracy Mourning Senior High Biscayne Bay Campus. North Miami Senior High School students will spend their first day in an entirely new facility, located directly across from the old school. Another new facility, the Law Enforcement Officers Memorial High School is scheduled to open mid-year.

On August 24th, the doors of the M-DCPS Primary Learning Center (PLC) will open to approximately 54 pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students. Located in the Annex Building of the M-DCPS administrative offices, the PLC will be staffed by District Office employees and will service children from the surrounding businesses, as well as District Office employees.

With the goal to combine the best research and practice from a range of national models, the program has been designed to provide a comprehensive and balanced curriculum through the acquisition of a second language. The curriculum will be aligned with standards, instruction and assessment within and across grades pre-kindergarten through grade 2. The International Education Program curriculum at the proposed school will be comprised of conceptual development of big ideas based in thematic studies that will utilize a number of different strategies. Additionally, global concepts will be taught through the study of two languages (Spanish and French), culture, art, music, and history.

Miami-Dade County Public Schools, in partnership with the many performing and visual arts organizations, museums, and cultural institutions in our community, will launch the Cultural Passport Program, a new educational initiative that will provide all students, grades K-12, with a different cultural field experience each school year. In the course of their education, all students will visit museums and art galleries, and experience live musical, theatrical, and dance performances.

Through the Posse Foundation, deserving students (Posse Scholars) are awarded four-year, full-tuition leadership scholarships by 33 partner universities and colleges in 17 states. Students are sent to colleges and universities in a Posse, a group of ten students. Each Posse acts as a traveling support system to ensure that each Posse Scholar succeeds and graduates from college. Miami-Dade County Public Schools is pleased to partner with the Posse Foundation to ensure that all students, regardless of race, ethnicity, or background, are given the opportunity to meet their full academic and leadership potential.

Superintendent’s Showcase Events – Spotlight on Miami-Dade County Public Schools

Miami-Dade County Public School is proud of the many programs and special events provided to our students, parents, and community. These special programs and events provide students with opportunities to extend their learning beyond the classroom, explore areas of interest, and showcase their talents and abilities. These programs and events also provide teachers, parents, students, and members of the community with opportunities to celebrate and share in the many successes of the students in Miami-Dade County Public Schools.

Cultural Concerts Program: The proposed Cultural Concerts Program is an exciting, new initiative utilizing dynamic concert performances to showcase the talent within the Miami-Dade County Public Schools’ community. Two events are planned: one fall concert scheduled for November 2009, and one spring concert scheduled for May 2010.

Olympic Day Program: The Olympic Education Program in Miami-Dade County to be held on May 8, 2010, will be coordinated with the same goals as World Olympic Day developed by the United States Olympic Committee.

Health and Wellness Event: On Saturday, September 26, 2009, a synergy between the school system and Miami Dade County Health Department will be created as employees and families join together at Tropical Park to promote health, fitness and wellness through healthy lifestyles and activities. The event will support the four components of the District Wellness Policy: Nutrition, Physical Activity, Health Services, and Health Literacy focusing on employees and their families.

Students and parents will be able avail themselves of learning paths available through the Student and Parent Portals, customized to each student’s learning needs. Each student’s learning path will be based on results from state and local assessments. Learning paths will be designed to help remediate deficiencies and/or to provide skills practice and enrichment for students in grades 3-11.

This program will encourage individuals and organizations to donate viable laptop computers to The Education Fund, and The Education Fund will, in turn, give the laptops to Miami-Dade County Public School students. Additionally, the District has secured numerous laptops for student use. These computers will be turned over to the Education Fund for distribution to students. Students that qualify for free or reduced price lunch will be eligible for the free pre-owned laptop computers.