Thursday, May 20, 2010

Congratulations West-Oak Middle School!

I am continually inspired by the dedication, hard work and passion exhibited by our special education teachers. Way to go Joey Bryson and Cynthia Opperman for working diligently to earn a $5,000 Toolbox for Education grant awarded by Lowe's Charitable and Educational Foundation. The money will be used for creating a hands on career development and exploration center for at-risk students. West-Oak Middle is one of more than 450 schools or parent organizations to be awarded a Lowe’s Toolbox for Education grant for school improvement projects benefiting K-12 public education across the United States during the 2009-2010 school year. The goal of the program is to help students take ownership of their education and ultimately decrease the drop-out rate of our at-risk student population. Career exploration in business and marketing, home and consumer science, manipulatory processing and production, and industrial technology will be offered. Students will experience what it is like to be an employee in a real-work setting as teachers take on the role of supervisor and assign duties requiring problem-solving, locating materials, following written directions, and documenting performance. The project is scheduled to be up and running by fall of 2010. I am sincerely looking forward to visiting this program next year. Kudos to Cynthia and Joey for doing what it takes to see their vision come to fruition!

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