Socorro Superintendent Xavier De La Torre told a room of more than 500 people this afternoon that the district is doing well, but he also noted areas for improvement.
He spoke at the annual state of the district luncheon at the Judson F. Williams Convention Center.
De La Torre highlighted district successes and concerns, both financial and academic. He discussed budget issues and the challenges the district faces with a state deficit of up to $27 billion.
“We will likely be able to weather the storm, but that is not the case for all districts,” De La Torre said.
He also mentioned areas he felt the district could improve upon. He said 95 percent of the district campuses are recognized or exemplary, but he wants more to be exemplary. He also said the district needs to prepare students even more for careers right after high school.
“We don’t give enough time to occupational literacy,” De La Torre said.
He also spoke about the growth the district experienced in recent years and how the growing presence of Fort Bliss will only increase this pattern.
John Falchi and I will be speaking in Boston at UMassOnline next week about the emerging standards like Basic LTI and Common Cartridge that empower teachers in whole new ways. The ability for a teacher to mash-up the best-of-breed tools as they see fit and freely exchange material with their fellow teachers is a vision which many in the industry have been working hard to make real for well over a decade.
The recent release of the no-cost www.coursesites.com cloud-hosted LMS from Blackboard that support Basic LTI and Common Cartridge is an important moment in this trend toward teacher empowerment. This presentation wll look at the real pain points that teachers face in a Web 2.0 environment and how the standards and vendors are working together to provide a new way of teaching and learning.
Announcement
UMassOnline invites you to attend a free event featuring guest speakers John Falchi, Chief Program Strategist for IMS Global Learning Consortium, and Chuck Severance, Clinical Associate Professor, School of Information at the University of Michigan, for a discussion and demonstration entitled, Mashing-up the Learning Enterprise to Provide Enhanced Learning Environments for Faculty and Students.
Good for you! You’ve figured out that seeing a college in person is a really good idea. Now the only question that may be on your mind might be when you should actually start physically looking at colleges? This depends a lot on your future plans but, as always, My College Guide has a few tips for you to keep in mind as you think about making the college campus visit!
Up and At ‘Em! – Do you have a lot of colleges on your list? Don’t wait! Even Sophomores can benefit from visiting colleges. If a school doesn’t feel like the right college fit for you, you can cross it off of your list.
On the other hand, if a school is a maybe, you can always revisit later when you know whether you are a good academic match and if it still feels “right” as your high school career draws to a close. Starting to m
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Working from home means you don’t have to commute (so can spend longer working rather than travelling) and should allow you to work around your children. However, there are downsides that you should consider: you need dedication and commitment (it can be hard to resist the call of the TV and your waistline may not thank you for the easy access to the fridge!) and isn’t for everyone since it can be lonely.
There are ways of improving those difficulties: ensure that you schedule regular (but not too frequent!) breaks like as you would have at work; unplug the TV and minimise other distractions (let your family and friends know your working hours so they don’t interrupt with phone calls); if you’re working for an employer then keep in regular contact with your boss and the rest of your team to build confidence on their part that you are working(!); and when you’re not working then make sure you still spend time with other people – your friends and/or other mums so you don’t feel isolated.
On the plus side, if you want to work in your pyjamas you can! Y Read more…
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The Championship game of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference 2011 Women’s Basketball Post Season Tournament belonged to the Tigers from the get-go as the league champion Tigers defeated Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 55-49 at Rush Gymnasium this evening, punching a Playoff ticket before cutting down the nets before an excited crowd.
A slow start on both sides, saw little happen in the first eight minutes, but when Oxy broke a 6-6 tie with just over 11 minutes to play in the opening half they used a 16-6 run to close out the period and take the momentum out of the sails of the Athenas, never looking back.
Occidental opened as much as a 13-point lead, but CMS would hang tough, chipping back within five points with 3:38 to play but Michelle Lo countered with one of her two three-pointers of the night to give the Tigers an eight point cushion with 1:27 to play in the second stanza.
Clint Independent School District officials set the make-up days for those lost during the winter storm.
Students and faculty will attend classes on Feb. 25 and April 22. Faculty will make up a development day on April 9.
District officials said they are applying for a waiver from the Texas Education Agency for the remaining two lost days.