Institute for Learning Partnership
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We are now on Facebook!
We’re a bit late to the dance, but we’ve joined the Social Revolution with our new Facebook page. Follow us and friend us. It’s another way for our extended ILP community to continue to be connected.
Educators honored for professional development success
Wisconsin honored some of its newest National Board Certified Teachers over the weekend, celebrating the educators who have completed one of the most stringent and thorough professional development programs for teachers in the country.
This past year more than 100 Wisconsin educators attained certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. National Board certification has a significant link to teacher effectiveness; a study found that students taught by National Board Certified Teachers make higher gains on achievement tests than students taught by other teachers.
Newly certified teachers gathered over the weekend in Middleton to celebrate their professional development achievements while those starting the process met with mentors.
In 1999, Wisconsin had two National Board Certified Teachers in classrooms. Today, there are more than 780, ranking 18th in the nation.
“We’ve come a long way,” said Nancy Schwartz, regional outreach director for NBPTS.
Schwartz and WEAC Vice President Betsy Kippers helped honor the newly certified NBCTs over the weekend.
“This accomplishment shows how dedicated Wisconsin’s educators are to improving instruction for our state’s students,” Kipper said.
WEAC IPD Consultant Ron Jetty; WEAC Vice President Betsy Kippers; Oconto Falls teachers JoAnn Miller and Candice Behnke; and Nancy Schwartz, regional outreach director for the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, join a celebration of newly certified teachers.
UW-Green Bay lands $186,000 grant to serve K-12 music educators
UW-Green Bay has received a two-year, $186,000 grant to create the UW-Green Bay Music Education Institutes. Prof. Mark Kiehn, Education and Music, wrote the grant and directs the program.
Funding will support 30 professional music teacher/participants attending the institutes for two years. The first institute session is scheduled for Aug. 1-12, 2011. The project is funded by the Wisconsin Improving Teacher Quality (WITQ) Program.
The need for creating the institutes was identified through collaborative meetings over the past two years with many professional music teachers and administrators in Northeast Wisconsin. The teachers were asked what they need for professional development, and identified topics necessary to advance student learning, teaching pedagogy, and the research agenda/initiatives in music education.
Wisconsin preK-12 music educators holding a current teaching license in music areas (vocal, instrumental, general) seeking the opportunity to apply new ideas to improve music teaching will be invited to apply on a new website in March 2011 for acceptance to the institutes.
Danz teachers celebrate collaborative achievement and master’s degrees
On December 18, Danz educators Carissa Teaters, Amber Funmaker and Kristen Retzlaff (left to right in the photo above) will graduate with their master’s degrees in Applied Leadership for Teaching and Learning from UW-Green Bay. They also graduate knowing their degrees have been put to good use at Danz Elementary School in Green Bay, where they work as bilingual educators.
Chancellor Harden shows appreciation to Phuture Phoenix supporters
Uw-Green Bay Chancellor Thomas Harden gives gratitude to Phuture Phoenix supporters on Monday, November 15th. Select the link to read the entire article.
http://blog.uwgb.edu/inside/index.php/featured/close-ups/11/17/phuture-phoenix-supporters/
More 'Phirsts' for Phuture Phoenix
Article done by: UWGB’s Inside http://blog.uwgb.edu/inside/index.php/featured/close-ups/10/13/video-firsts-phuture-phoenix/
Each fall, UW-Green Bay gets a little younger for a day or so as local fifth-graders visit campus on Phuture Phoenix Day for a look at college life.
The fall 2010 edition was special for its record turnout, gorgeous weather and the fact the program is now old enough that “alumni” — students who toured campus themselves as fifth-graders — help as mentors and tour guides. As always, it’s a fun experience.
“It was pretty cool to come here and see real classes studying and the view up in the library tower,” said fifth-grader Brooklyn Oleck, West De Pere.
For the students, it’s an opportunity to get a glimpse of college life.
“Went to the library, saw the Winter Garden, went on an elevator,” said Daniel Fiscal, a fifth-grader from Fort Howard Elementary School in Green Bay.
For the University, it’s a chance to reach out to at-risk students.
“It helps the University connect with the community in a very tangible way,” said Stephanie Cataldo Pabich, associate director of the Phuture Phoenix program. “It brings students, who might not ever have an opportunity to ever walk on a college campus, out here and meet a very welcoming campus community that really enjoys engaging with 10-year-olds for one day out of the year.”
Cataldo Pabich says this is a record-setting year for the program. More than 1,400 fifth-graders from 16 schools took part in the program. There were so many students, in fact, that for the first time they had to sit in the balcony at the Weidner Center.
This year, 91 faculty participated in the program, by far the most ever.
It’s also the first time former Phuture Phoenix students who are now students at UW-Green Bay, are giving the tours.
In 2003, Ka Vang was a fifth-grader at Danz Elementary School in Green Bay. She was among the first students in the Phuture Phoenix program.
Now, she’s a UW-Green Bay student and is giving tours to fifth-graders from her old school.
“I’m the first to go to college in my family so I never really knew about college until Phuture Phoenix actually. I never knew that there was school after school,” Vang said.
2010 also marks the third time Phuture Phoenix has been replicated. Representatives from Silver Lake College in Manitowoc came to campus to observe the day and get ideas for the soon-to-be launched Look Ahead Lakers program.
“Manitowoc is a factory town. It has always been a factory town where the expectations were that children would move into work in factories and on farms and many of those jobs are not going to be there for them and so we want to encourage them to consider higher education,” said Carol O’Rourke, project director for the program at Silver Lake College.
Silver Lake College joins Western Washington University and UW-Eau Claire in replicating the Phuture Phoenix program.
Cataldo Pabich says the continued replication showcases the success of the program.
“I think it says that this program is able to touch students and that’s the whole goal,” Cataldo Pabich said. “We’re able to help other people in other areas do the same for students that are at-risk in their communities.”