Using Hip Hop to Reach Youth in Norfolk

The City of Norfolk's Public Library uses Hip Hop to engage youth and the entire community with the library. Thanks to this program, they know the library exists and it has something to offer them.

Using Hip Hop to Reach Youth in NorfolkView this presentation in a new browser window; click on "Full" to view full screen; click on "Download" to download the presentation to your own computer.

Posted and reprinted by permission of the City of Norfolk Communications Department. Originally seen by the City's residents in the print publication "Norfolk Quarterly," the Communications Department is allowing us to offer this information to the entire region.

SmartRegion.org welcomes other information about local community engagement efforts for the benefit of the entire Hampton Roads region! Please submit to: Contact@HRP.org

Community Solutions to Norfolk's Dropout Problem to be Highlighted at June 6 Conference

Nationally Recognized Author-Educator will be Keynote Speaker

The quest for community solutions to Norfolk's 13% public schools dropout problem continues from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, June 6, 2009, with a conference aimed at "Engaging the Parents and Students Beyond the School Doors" and including ideas on how parents can keep their children constructively focused -- and away from trouble -- throughout the summer.

The keynote speaker will be Salome Thomas-El, a well-known Philadelphia educator and author of the best-selling book, "I Choose to Stay: A Black Teacher Refuses to Desert the Inner City," and "The Immortality of Influence," with a forward written by actor Will Smith. The Walt Disney Co. recently purchased the movie rights to "I Choose to Stay."


Thomas-EL, currently CEO and principal of the Russell Byers Public Charter School in Philadelphia, gained national acclaim as a teacher and chess coach at Vaux Middle School where eight of his students won recognition as national chess champions. He has motivated hundreds of children in Philadelphia to attend magnet high schools, major colleges and universities and he frequently appears on C-SPAN, CNN and National Public Radio.

The June 6 conference, open to the community, will be held at Coleman Place Elementary School, 2445 Palmyra St., Norfolk and will include a free lunch for anyone who registers by June 4.

The conference is sponsored by the Norfolk-based nonprofit Hampton Roads Children of the Sun Athletic/Education Foundation in partnership with Gen. Colin Powell's America's Promise Alliance and the State Farm insurance company. The event is the first follow-up program to the April 4 Dropout Prevention Summit at Booker T. Washington High School, which also was spearheaded by Children of the Sun with help from America's Promise and State Farm and drew more than 600 people.

"Participants at the April 4 summit said they wanted more focus on ways to keep parents and students constructively engaged with each other. They believe that is one of the key action-plan items for keeping students in school, so that's why our first follow-up conference will concentrate on that theme," said A.L. Aswad, executive director of Children of the Sun and a resident of Norfolk's Ballentine Place neighborhood.

Coming near the conclusion of the school year, the June 6 conference will be especially helpful to parents by giving them ideas and resources for motivating their children during the summer vacation and guiding them away from trouble, Aswad said. "It's important to keep the momentum going for parents and students," he said. "This can be difficult for parents who work and cannot always keep their eyes on their children during the summer."

The conference will include a presentation on Gang Awareness by the Norfolk Sheriff's Department and workshops on "Engaging the Parents and Students Beyond the School Doors," "Healthy Start" (nutrition and health issues), "The Impact of Parental Involvement" and "The Student/Parent/Teacher Relationship." Each workshop also will have resources for summer activities.

The June 6 conference also will honor people who live or work in Norfolk, as well as Norfolk businesses and organizations, that have motivated youngsters to stay in school instead of dropping out.

Children of the Sun is planning additional follow-up events during the 2009-10 school year, according to Aswad.

The focus on dropout prevention in Norfolk connects with one of the policy themes of President Barack Obama, Aswad said. He noted that on Feb. 24, Obama told the nation and Congress that "... dropping out of high school is no longer an option. It's not just quitting on yourself, it's quitting on your country -- and this country needs and values the talent of every American."

Aswad also noted the negative impact of quitting school before graduation. Dropouts, he said, are more likely to become incarcerated, rely on public programs and social services, and go without health insurance than those who graduate high school.

To register for the June 6 conference, visit the Hampton Roads Children of the Sun website www.hrcots.org or send e-mail to hrcots@aol.com. Register by June 4 for a free lunch.

For more information, call A.L. Aswad at (757) 855-5358 or call Coleman Place Elementary School at (757) 852-4642.

For more information about Salome Thomas-El, visit Web site www.ichoosetostay.com or call (215) 972-1700.

To learn more about America's Promise Alliance, visit www.americaspromise.org.

Get your “America’s First Region” Poster

America's First Region Poster

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Direct POSTER LINK

Remembering “America’s First Region”

In the past, the Hampton Roads Partnership supplied colorful posters to area schools describing historical events that occurred in “Hampton Roads, America’s First Region” over the past 400 years. If you would like to receive the large 24" x 26" color poster for your 4th grade classroom, please let us know.

By participating in this educational initiative, you are providing your students with important information about where they live and the contributions our region has made to the history of our nation.

From April 26 to May 14, 1607, three English ships sailed and explored Hampton Roads from Cape Henry (today's Virginia Beach) to Jamestown, our nation's first permanent English settlement.

HRP members are among 2009 Outstanding Faculty Award Recipients

Governor Timothy M. Kaine honored 12 Virginia educators recently as recipients of 2009 Outstanding Faculty Award for excellence in teaching, research and public service.

“These faculty members were selected by academic and business leaders as exemplary educators committed to student learning, beneficial research endeavors, and community volunteerism,” Governor Kaine said. “They represent the unique missions of their institutions and have helped make the Commonwealth’s higher education system one of the finest in the nation.”

The following HRP member universities are represented among the 2009 Virginia Outstanding Faculty Award Recipients:

• Lizabeth A. Allison, the Dorman Family Term Distinguished Professor of Biology at the College of William & Mary, internationally recognized scholar in the field of traffic control in cells.

• Christopher Howard, the Pamela C. Harriman Professor of Government and Public Policy at the College of William & Mary, a leading expert on U.S. social policy and tax policy.

• Lawrence J. Hatab, the Louis I. Jaffe Professor of Philosophy and University Professor at Old Dominion University.

• Lawrence Weinstein, Professor of Physics at Old Dominion University, internationally recognized for his work in electron scattering nuclear physics.

Photos and additional biographical information about each of this year’s recipients can be found on the web at www.schev.edu.

The College of William & Mary also made Princeton Review's "Best Value" list, ranking No. 3 in best value in public education.

Schools in Hampton Roads earning Governor’s Award for Educational Excellence

Governor Timothy M. Kaine announced that 162 Virginia public schools earned the 2009 Governor’s Award for Educational Excellence. The award is the highest honor under the Virginia Index of Performance (VIP) incentive program created by the Board of Education to advance Governor Kaine’s “competence to excellence” agenda to encourage advanced learning and achievement in the Commonwealth’s public schools. Last year, 89 schools received the award.

Schools in Hampton Roads earning the Governor’s Award for Educational Excellence are:
• Chesapeake — Camelot Elementary, Hickory Elementary, Norfolk Highlands Primary and Sparrow Road Intermediate
• Hampton — Armstrong Elementary and Barron Elementary
• Isle of Wight County — Hardy Elementary
• Newport News — General Stanford Elementary, Hilton Elementary and Joseph H. Saunders Elementary
• Norfolk — Poplar Halls Elementary, School of International Studies at Meadowbrook and Willoughby Elementary
• Portsmouth — Churchland Elementary
• Virginia Beach — Creeds Elementary, Green Run Elementary, John B. Dey Elementary, Kemps Landing Magnet, Kingston Elementary, Old Donation Center, Strawbridge Elementary and Trantwood Elementary
• York County — Tabb Elementary

A list of all schools and school divisions earning Virginia Index of Performance Awards is available on the Virginia Department of Education website.

Contact: Gordon Hickey/Governor's Office; Charles Pyle/DOE

Smart Beginnings: Ready for School, Ready for Life

Smart Beginnings South Hampton Roads Presentation

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Presentation to the Hampton Roads Partnership Executive Committee on 11/21/08 by Smart Beginnings South Hampton Roads (SBSHR) Executive Director, Lisa Howard, and Board Chair and CIVIC Leadership Institute's Darden Award winner, Paul Hirschbiel.

Smart Beginnings’ vision is that children arrive at kindergarten healthy and ready to succeed. They generate awareness about early childhood, advocate for public investment, and work in the community to ensure that high-quality early education is accessible for all. The Norfolk Foundation and the Batten Educational Achievement Fund granted SBSHR $4.7 million to support these initiatives: Child Care Quality Improvement, Early Learning Challenge Grants, Public Awareness Campaign, Universal Screening and Referral.

Learn more at http://www.SmartBeginningsSHR.org

Economics Club of Hampton Roads: "Tough Choices, Tough Times"

At their November 5th luncheon (sponsored by The Norfolk Foundation), The Economics Club of Hampton Roads presented “Tough Choices, Tough Times,” the report of the NEW Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce. Marc Tucker, President of the National Center on Education and the Economy, presented. Click on the logo above for the Full Report.

The NEW Commission's report is an update of the original 1990 report. New emphasis is placed on the fact that the U.S. is now in direct competition with skilled workers in other parts of the world willing to work for much lower wages. Example: Chinese skilled workers make 1/100th of the pay of their U.S. counterparts.

The 1990 Commission assumed that only the richest countries could pursue better education. Admittedly, they were wrong. The rest of the world has substantially raised their standards of education. When comparing just China and India (pop. 2.3 Billion) to the U.S. (300 Million), their top 10% of students is staggering in sheer numbers alone.

Automation is another pressure, in jobs and in wages, on the U.S. workforce. For every job sent off-shore, another 10 are being automated here.

The Commission forecasts: unless something is done about Education in the U.S., we will experience a steady lowering of our standard of living until it meets that of our biggest competitors, India and China.

The hope for America is that more niche companies will surface, those producing goods and services available nowhere else. Apple, for example, with their "mesmerizingly desirable" leading edge designers, marketers and manufacturers attracts the best educated, most innovative employees who also command very high wages.

According to the Commission's report, if we had lots of Apples in the U.S., we'd have a strategy to maintain a higher standard of living for a very long time. It doesn't matter where the company is located, only that they hire American workers. And, those leading edge companies won't come to the U.S. for a workforce unless ours is the best educated, most innovative, most creative workers AND the fastest, most motivated learners.

The comparisons and 40-year trends shown in the report do not bode well for this pressing need. South Korea, for instance, has made enormous gains in educational attainment and is now ahead of the U.S. in world standing.

40 years ago, the U.S. boasted the best-educated workforce in the world. Today, we are 10th and falling rapidly.

Our educational outcomes have not improved while our costs have increased (240% increase over the last 30 years, adjusted for inflation). Currently, 30 Million in the U.S. workforce are without a high school diploma, adding to the problem every year.

The Commission's studies show that today's American worker will experience 4 to 6 periods of unemployment and change jobs 10 different times. And, this negative trend is increasing exponentially.

The summation of the Commission's report is that our educational system has not changed in the last 100 years. We've tried more money. We've tried new initiatives. The one thing we haven't tried is to change the basic design of elementary and secondary education systems.

Cost neutral suggestions (to spend no more than we do now) are provided in the Commission's report and based on other country's best practices which provide very clear standards and accountability systems.

Suggestions such as:

• allowing the approximately 60% of 16-year old high school students who are ready for college-level work without remediation to move on if they pass a board competency test, saving money for courses no longer required at the junior and senior high school and saving on remediation needs in higher education
  
  
• investing in high quality early childhood education for ALL 4-year olds and ALL low-income 3-year olds, to prevent our current philosophy to "teach to the middle" (by 4th grade, the struggling "bottom" will never catch up)
  
  
• creating public-private partnerships with 3rd party performance-based contracts
  
  
• getting School systems out of direct-employment of teachers, a system which finds the best teachers in the wealthiest areas of the country
  
  
• eliminating our current system of "social promotion" whereby everyone expects to spend a specific number of years per school level whether basic competency is met or not, avoiding diplomas that are merely attendance certificates
  
  
• providing longer school days, year-round schools and top-up funding whereby each student represents the same dollar amount to a school district

The Commission report explains that we can't just cut costs and maintain our current lower standards. We need to get better results for what we now pay for Education.

You can download the full report at: http://skillscommission.org/pdf/exec_sum/ToughChoices_EXECSUM.pdf