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PLATFORM HIGHLIGHTS
- Neighborhood schools, children as close to their homes as possible
- Maximize CHOICE, supporting year round, charter, magnet, and focus schools such as Gregory and Williston schools of math, science, and technology
- Inner city magnet schools provided with exceptional resources
- Return to comprehensive, pre-emptive long range planning
- Close achievement gap through the programs that appear on this list
- Expand vocational education opportunities
- Support Special Education
- Support Gifted Education
- Turn around falling test scores
- Decrease dropout rate
- Maximize educational opportunities at all schools through technology
- Landscaping and maintenance improvements
- Raise expectations of standards and accountability for parents, teachers, administration, AND students
- End to social promotion
- Expansion of Foreign Languages
- Expanded partnerships with business and community
- Safe Schools (Lake Forest Academy) and expanded intervention programs
- Hold parents legally accountable for their children's actions in school
- Improve perception of the School Board
- Promote creation of leadership council of local elected officials
- Support Early Learning Centers
Disruption in the classroom:
Mr. Bilzi personally researched and made the motion against all district pressure to create in six months a plan for an alternative school to accept disruptive students. He then travelled around the state and personally also found a program in Caldwell County that became the model Lake Forest Academy, our highly awarded facility. This facility is a win-win, giving relief to teachers and children in the classroom while providing a comprehensive intervention for children who are in various ways unprepared for a classroom environment.
Achievement Gap:
We must start with a fresh conduct a climate survey, focus and model academic rigor, expand our pre-K programs, better align educational systems from pre-K through college, greatly expand high-quality physical and human resources to inner city schools, provide culturally relevant professional development and data usage training to all personnel, improve our system of measuring accountability, seek, emulate, and share successful practices, a fully expanded high-speed network, and develop partnerships that provide unique opportunities for achievement.
Under-performing/failing schools -
No Child Left Behind:
Parental involvement is key: I support neighborhood schools. All major studies agree that parents are the most important factor insuring success in school. Studies show that specific programs are less important than the right mix of people, energy, and timing. My position is, therefore, to concentrate on strategically placed, highly trained personnel, flexibility, and patience: it may be years before even successful interventions show results. We must resist the temptation to constantly change programs or personnel. No Child Left Behind may expect too much too fast. The right people in the right place at the right time, provided with resources, professional development and time to teach and rather than mired in paperwork, can make any program effective.
Budget cuts:
Again, people are key to the success of any organization, and are to be saved. By concentrating on excellence in staffing, ongoing professional development, and flexibility, we can cut millions in cute gadgets and "programs-of-the-month" resources designed as quick fixes to enable poor or untrained workers to achieve minimally positive results. Also, athletics and the arts have proven key factors in achieving educational excellence and are to be protected.
Choice:
Public Schools nothing to fear from choice. Vouchers, charter schools, year round schools, magnet schools, focus schools, and open enrollment, are all examples of choice that provide families with a wealth of opportunities. The existence of these issues assures a heathy competition that serves to make public schools stronger.
Vocational Education:
Not all prominent, high-demand careers require a college degree. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 10 out of the 28 top fastest-growing careers could be pursued with vocational training available through public schools.
Examples are:
- Culinary arts
- Horticulture
- Communications (design and visual)
- Cosmetology
- Marketing
- Early education and care
- Carpentry / electricity (including heating, ventilation, air
conditioning, etc)
- Drafting
- Programming and web development
- Automotive repair, technology, and refinishing
Upon completing the vocational and high school requirements, students can pursue immediate employment, advanced education opportunities, and added career choices. They might also continue to immediately pursue apprenticeships, specialized college programs, or other professional routes.
Benefits of public school vocational programs:
- Hands on learning experiences
- Training from licensed vocational teachers
- Program-specific experiences and knowledge
- Safety, support, and remedial interventions and training
- Career guidance, placement support, and career explorations for
incoming 9th graders
- Academic and vocational assessments
- A high school diploma and proficiency certificate
- Co-ops, internships, job shadows, and / or apprenticeships
That should pretty well cover everything but if there are still issues that you would like to ask about, please contact me at: steve@stevebilzi.com
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