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| NEF Commits to Train One Million Students in
STEM+ 6/30/11 June 30, 2011 Dr. Appu Kuttan, Founder and CEO of the National Education Foundation, the national nonprofit leader in bridging the academic, digital and employment divides, made an impressive commitment today to train one million students of disadvantaged K-12 schools/school districts/charter schools in 3 years. The students will be trained at NEF’s CyberLearning Academies in the schools in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) as well as ELA (English Language Arts), Social Studies, SAT/ACT, IT (including 60 certifications), Business and Management (including Project Management certifications). The NEF Total Solutions program has 6 essential components – Differentiated Learning using the top-rated Web-based online courses, Teacher Training, Mentoring, Motivation, state-of-the-art Learning Management System and Tech Support. The NEF program can advance a student one grade level in 25 hours of active participation Any school/school district with 35% or more students on free/reduced cost lunch is eligible to apply. NEF will provide 80% of the funds as grants, amounting to $300 million at $300 per student. The schools/school districts or sponsoring corporations/foundations /nonprofits/governments will provide the remaining 20% or $70 per student per year. In order to help raise the 20% for the schools, NEF has launched a national "Adopt a School" program, giving corporations/foundations/nonprofits/governments a unique opportunity to sponsor schools/school districts/charter schools of their choice. The sponsor has two choices: it can donate the $70 per student to the school or NEF as a tax-deductible donation, or it can hire NEF to provide IT/business/management/personal development training (web-based online/blended) to its employees at a cost below market cost. In the latter case, NEF will put up the 20% or $70, while helping the sponsor to save significant training funds. In either case, the CyberLearning Academy at the school will be named after the sponsor. Thus the sponsor gets to assist schools of interest to them, while receiving good PR and Community Service/Diversity Service/Corporate Social Responsibility credits. The NEF partners so far include Pearson Education, RBC Capital and
Johnson Controls and 4 disadvantaged school districts in Pennsylvania
–Allentown, Midd-West, Shamokin and York, To sign up as a partner, interested schools/corporations/foundations/nonprofits/governments
can call NEF Academy Director Dr. William Diehl, Education VP at 703-823-9999
or email lpittard@nefuniversity.org Times Observer Savings and benefits of CyberLearning touted at presentation 2/25/11 To qualify for QZAB (Qualified Zone Academy Bonds) loans to renovate schools, the Warren County School District must find an organization willing to provide a 10 percent match. National Education Foundation (NEF) CyberLearning is willing to contribute in-kind services and materials that are worth 10 percent of the $23.5 million in loans for Beaty-Warren Middle School and Eisenhower Middle/High School for which the district has been approved. Of course, the district would have to institute a CyberLearning program in those schools. The Post Journal Jamestown High School students Eric Tyra, Simon Liuzzo, Ryan Lamb, Richa Gupta, Philipp Bender, along with graduates Emily Bracey and Katie Desantis, received from Barbi Price, a JHS teacher, a $50 Apple gift certificate given by the National Education Foundation and CyberLearning. The students completed three CyberLearning SAT practice tests and increased their most recent PSAT or SAT scores by 30 points in math and 30 points in verbal to qualify. CyberLearning offers free, online lessons to Jamestown Public School students including a SAT/ACT/NY Regents Web-based online course. The course covers test taking strategies, math concepts, verbal concepts and practice questions. The course also provide several practice exams that mimic a real, full-length SAT or ACT test. JHS Students Excel In CyberLearning NEF in partnership with the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe Wins $641,000 grant from the Broadband Telecommunications Opportunities Program (BTOP) 9/28/10 The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe is proposing to upgrade public computer centers and add training and certification courses to the services it provides to economically vulnerable residents in Franklin County, New York, which is along the Canadian border. Many Mohawks suffered job losses in auto manufacturing and aluminum production during the recent economic downturn, and the project aims to provide the broadband access and training in digital literacy, workforce skills, and business development needed for the Tribe’s economic recovery. St. Regis Mohawk Tribe BTOP Project CyberLearning Launches its Montana Native American Initiative 9/20/10 Dr. Appu Kuttan, Chair of the NEF declared his commitment to help any Montana Native American majority school district at a kick off event at the Hyatt Regency Capital Hill on Monday September 20th. In making his remarks Dr. Kuttan referred to the importance of challenging every student so that they can perform their best and that anything less will not be sufficient if American students are to compete successfully in the 21st century economy. He talked about the value of motivation and how it is an often overlooked element in schools but how vital motivation was for the training of major athletes. Dr. Kuttan related in this context his experience of helping to recruit and train three world champions, Monica Seles, Jim Courier and Andre Agassi. CyberLearning Launches its Montana Native American Initiative Certiport 2010 Worldwide Competition on Microsoft Office 8/10/10
Revamping School Curriculum 5/27/10
According to The Chattanooga Times Free Press schools in the area are teaming up with local industries and the national group Project Lead the Way to increase the rigor of its engineering program Accountability Comes to Higher Education 5/27/10 The Boston Globe reports that Massachusetts’ state Board of Higher Education approved a plan yesterday to overhaul the way public colleges and universities in Massachusetts measure and report student achievement, in an effort to ensure that students from all racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds are being served. Maryland endorses new Reading and Math Standards 5/27/10 The Washington Post reports that “Maryland on Tuesday became one of the first states to endorse academic standards that are part of a movement to unify reading and math instruction across the nation, a move that would affect every public school student in the state and require new teacher training and standardized tests. The new common standards for math and reading, developed by a state-led coalition with encouragement from President Obama, are part of national efforts to improve public education. Current standards and tests are a patchwork of varying quality.”
Virginia School Districts look for 21st century skill standards
5/27/10 The Richmond Times Dispatch reports that “Chesterfield County middle schools this year are assessing all eighth-graders' knowledge of 21st-century skills, which include communication, collaboration, critical thinking, problem solving, innovation and use of technology. "We obviously want our kids to have those 21st-century skills," said director of technology Lynda Gillespie. "The only way to make sure that you have those skills is through assessment." Press CoverageWauzeka-Steuben Schools Newsletter - July 20, 2009 CASBO Newsletter (Colorado Association of School Business Officials) - May 2009 School Planning & Management - February 2009 Eaglevision Ministries Newsletter - June 15, 2008 Gwinn Area Community Schools - January 2008 Fraklin Parish Schools - June 5, 2007 Collier County Schools - September 21, 2006 Certiport - August 7, 2006 Lockheed Martin - April 18, 2005 |