So, take a minute to think about what you learned (other than we love Oregon for not having the humidity of the east coast!) and share it in the comments below for the benefit of all GEAR UP coordinators. Specifically:
What is one thing you learned at a session or in conversation with other attendees?
How will you incorporate that at your school or in your GEAR UP work?
I am excited about creating "College Tip of the Week" (or other similar topic) to be used as announcements in schools as well as possible local newspaper ads and radio PSA's. Look for these in each weekly bulletin this fall!
ReplyDeleteAlso - our elected officials are approachable and we need to spread the word as much as possible about GEAR UP! The Hill visits were a great start (be sure to send them thank yous on Facebook, Twitter, e-mail or actual note) - but we can do more.
The National PTA provides parent resources (webinar, information sheets, tips on strategies to increase parent engagement). The information sheets are organized by grade level and are available in English and Spanish. You may find these resources at http://www.pta.org/4446.htm
DeleteI learned about a cool monthly "curriculum" that Texas has created that we can adapt to help our schools better organize the amazing things they're already doing. Stay tuned for details!
ReplyDeleteMy focus for the conference was in building community partnerships. One big take-away for me was that I will need to invite myself to community meetings rather than only invite people to my building or wait to be invited to their building. One area of focus that I had not thought about was "faith-based" organizations. As public schools I think we sometimes stay away from religious organizations...but, because of that thinking I realize I am missing a broader audience that I need to reach. The other big take-away for me was the need to be a better friend to the Chamber of Commerce in our community. Before going to these folks I will need to refine my purpose/goals for wanting to meet with them and determine ways that I can be helpful to them so they want to be helpful to us.
ReplyDeleteIn order to have some me time I learned that I should schedule a time for nothing. So, if someone says to me what are you doing on Friday and I tell them nothing and that is exactly what I am going to do.
ReplyDeleteI, also, came back with some ideas on how to get more businesses involved in supporting our program.
I loved the “handsonbanking.org” information I received for our students to use. What a great way to teach kids about money management. I also loved the presentation on study skills class from the folks in Utah. What a wonderful experience.
ReplyDeleteI connected with the A.C.T. folks again and it reminded me that we need to do a better job getting that information into the hands of students and parents. We have already talked with LPMS principal and are hoping to incorporate the reading of the test results @ spring conferences. We'll see if we can make it happen.
ReplyDeleteThe second thing, (I know you only asked for one). But the one workshop with the folks from Hawaii had tons of good information. The one piece that I'm going to explore is looking for sustainability through local outlets of national companies...like insurance companies and our grocery store. I'm going to go through the Chamber of Commerces list and see who might have national ties. Those companies have a bigger resources than our local small businesses. I'm going to see about using them to support one of our annual activites each. ie. Grocery store=lunch for Career Day businesses, Insurance company=luch at a college visit. We'll see how that goes.