I enjoy seeing teens step up and take part in this year's school board campaign. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools students introduced the candidates at an Oct. 3 forum that drew about 150 people to the Stratford-Richardson YMCA.
Students from Youth Voice, a program of Kids Voting Mecklenburg, will take part in Wednesday's interactive debate, sponsored by MeckEd and WFAE, and helped interview candidates for the WTVI program that will air from 4-6 p.m. Oct. 30.
Of course, this year's election is a breeze compared to the political hurricane headed for Charlotte in September 2012. The Youth Voice crew is also taking part in Charlotte Teachers Institute panel tonight on "Exploding Canons: The Changing Landscape of Political Conventions."
I'm sure a lot of teachers, college professors and youth-group advisors are cooking up ways to tap into the energy the Democratic National Convention will bring -- not just the president and the country's leading Dems, but protestors, media and pundits. If you've got any good real-life civics projects in the works, please keep me posted. It's going to be a fascinating year for people across the political spectrum.
Friday, October 14, 2011
Real-life civics ramping up
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As Charlotte's K-12 civic education organization, we have many great projects ahead!
We hope to make Charlotte in 2012 a catalyst for civic learning.
Among other things, we'll be creating nonpartisan educational resources with local, regional and national partners plus offer fun ways for students to learn about and get involved.
Each year, we partner with CMS, non-public schools and youth programs to provide standards-based classroom curriculum linked to K-12 civic literacy - and the kinds of real-life civics experiences you note: policy discussions with officials, voting in elections, participating in government meetings and more.
Amy Farrell
Kids Voting Mecklenburg
www.kidsvoting.org
PS
We're celebrating 20 years of educating local students to lead in their schools, communities and the nation. Later this year we'll have some exciting announcements to make about Kids Voting Mecklenburg. Stay tuned!
I just wish all these Children could have heard the inspiring speeches we had today at JCSU during the second annual, Searching for New Possibilities: HBCUs at the Leading Edge Invitational Symposium.
Dr. Brian Madison Jones, of JCSU spoke on his book.
Mary Curtis of TV fame was a moderator of an event.
Dr. Diane Bowles VP of JCSU was a great motivator and speaker.
But Dr. Aprille Joy Ericsson blew the doors off the place with Her speech. A real Rocket Scientist.
I challenge everyone to look up her story one site is here http://journeythroughtheuniverse.org/downloads/Researchers/Bio-Ericsson.pdf it will inspire your children.
We were also graced with:
Dr. Carl Spight. He has so many credits to his resume that his story is one you need to look up and see for yourself. Some of his work sits on the moon to this day.
Ginger Richardson and Dr. Timothy Champion added so much that I can not describe how great this day was to all of us.
Next year we are going to webcast it and have it available to schools and the like.
But the nice part was the fact Dr. Ericsson is on the Board of Directors of a Charter School in which Brown University has in Washington and is a big supporter of Charters.
So I will be getting some information from a Rocket Science and posting it for us about the success of Charter Schools and how they have taken kids from three grade levels behind and made them excellent students in a system and economic situation that is considered very dire.
So just wanted to let you know that the upcoming 35 million donation news to the campus is being well received and the new technology center which will be the main focus is being anticipated.
Many students around the district protested more subtly last year when they purposely bombed their summative exams because THEY understood the folly and idiocy of using those tests for pfp. Bravo kids!
Start tweeting about the cmsboard #cmsboard now at www.Twitter.com
You can join us at the event tonight at six at West Charlotte and tomorrow night at CPCC
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/10/17/2698851/board-forum-goes-high-tech.html
ADH. Ask CMS what their process was to replace the Independence principal. The Mint Hill voters are not happy with the selection and the district typically allows staff input. This one was decided in one day. Something needs to be looked into. Why did they change the rules for this one?
Exactly, CMS is putting someone not suited for high school in as principal at Independence. She has management issues at Middle School. She does not know how to effectively manage students at the middle school level...she will fail at the high school level. This is too big to have ignored the process. Maybe the public needs to investigate the reasons behind the hurried switch. Wait, this is District 6, our representative is "I don't care what my people want cause I Know what they need" TIM MORGAN. VOTE and vote him OFF the BOE!
Big Larry....we all know you are stumping for votes, but must you respond to every darn post?
Ole TIM is running for at large to make sure testing and pfp has enough votes. What a sham.
WAY TO GO, CMS! Nothing like throwing 3 to 4 schools into a state of flux just so you can fill an administrative position. What is more important? Four schools moving steady or one admin position? You are a bunch of dolts. You should have made this change in June. Morons.
Someone should inform the state that Harding and Berry simply achieved the results that they have because they instituted admission requirements for their magnet and specialized school programs. They did not "turn around", they kept certain students from attending. Everyone has forgotten that, beginning 2009-2010, only students who had achieved Levels 3 or 4 could apply for their programs. Another lie being perpetrated by CMS when they know the truth behind the numbers. West Charlotte Principal, one of the finalists for Principal of the Year? What a joke! Investigate the true conditions there!
Why did 56 out 85 teachers opt to leave Harding during the transfer process last year? Why are so many demoralized and ready to leave there now? It's not about the kids!
I guess the schools that became K-8 or were technically closed but kept the name will be recognized for turning around next year! What a farce CMS is. Peter Gorman left a legacy of lies and liars that will keep this district from facing the truth for years to come. Vote for people who know the truth about CMS and will not allow it to go unspoken!
The truth is being told there! The Changes in the BOE are critical to eliminating the Gorman Virus. Get Tim off and then eliminate the base of Gorman Chearleaders. We don't need a national search, we don't need PfP, We don't need HB546. We need honest people in charge of the
Administration of CMS and the elimination of the Regional offices with the multiple of useless positions that do not contribute to student learning.
Put control in the schoolhouse. Hold the principal accountable. VOTE....
The truth is being told there! The Changes in the BOE are critical to eliminating the Gorman Virus. Get Tim off and then eliminate the base of Gorman Chearleaders. We don't need a national search, we don't need PfP, We don't need HB546. We need honest people in charge of the
Administration of CMS and the elimination of the Regional offices with the multiple of useless positions that do not contribute to student learning.
Put control in the schoolhouse. Hold the principal accountable. VOTE....
The first thing CMS should do is petition Thom Tillis and the state legislature for a NC constitutional amendment that ends the practice of a free public education being a "right" in NC. That will give principals and teachers some power in cleaning the riff raff out of schools. There are too many great kids, parents, teachers, principals for us to continue to jeopardize their futures because the do gooders think everyone deserves everything without having to work for it.
Then, we need to really improve the quality of teacher and principal professional development programs so they are focused, meaningful and truly help teachers deliver better educational experiences to their students and allow principals the knowledge and tools to LEAD their people in positive ways.
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