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Education in the First State
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Fellowships offer hands-on education policy experience
Tanner Polce, legislative aide to Senate Education Chair David Sokola, is an alumnus of the Delaware Future Education Leaders Program, which gave him hands-on experience in education policy that has benefited his career.
Mote Elementary music teacher Maria Knieste spent last summer creating goal-setting tools for educators to be used in the Student Improvement Component of the state's educator evaluation system. She also had the opportunity to learn about and share her input on other policy work underway in the Delaware Department of Education's Teacher & Leader Effectiveness branch.
"It was fascinating to observe and assist with each of these important policy pieces," the
Red Clay Consolidated School District teacher said. " ... I started my new school year more informed about policy at the state level and more driven to be the best teacher I can be."
The Delaware Department of Education again is accepting applications for summer fellowships for promising future leaders and current educators who have a passion for education and want to gain hands-on exposure to policy work.
The deadline to apply is April 4.
"My experience as a fellow truly allowed me to build upon my knowledge and passion for education policy. The conversations, research and overall engagement prepared me for my current role as legislative aide to the chair of the Senate Education Committee, Senator David Sokola," fellowship alum Tanner Polce said. "The friendships and knowledge I developed through the program remain critical for my works for the Delaware State General Assembly, and for that I'm very grateful."
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Delaware College Scholars supports first-generation college student
The Delaware College Scholars program helped Middletown senior Brandon Dawson, who will be a first-generation college student when he attends Duke this fall, with the college application process.
When Brandon Dawson, 17, was a sophomore at
Middletown High School in the
Appoquinimink School District, his school counselor called him down to her office. She said she had good news: Brandon had qualified for the Delaware College Scholars (DCS) program - the only student in the entire school who was eligible - and she asked Brandon if he would like to apply.
The only problem was that neither Brandon nor his counselor knew anything about DCS. Just that it was a new program in Delaware, in its first year, targeting first-generation college students. Brandon was planning to be a first-generation college student. And the program would assist students with the college application process. Brandon knew he wanted to attend college.
"So I figured it wouldn't hurt to apply," Brandon said.
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Woodbridge senior excels in science lab, on basketball court
Woodbridge High's Altia Anderson explains her senior project to Delaware Secretary of Education Steven H. Godowsky.
During a visit to Marquette University in the summer of her junior year, Altia Anderson found inspiration for her high school senior project - to raise catfish and test how different environments affect the weight gain of the fish.
The
Woodbridge High honor roll student and star athlete left the visit knowing the school was the right fit for her. She was impressed not only by the school's basketball program and coaches but also by the academic programs. She has signed a national letter of intent to play basketball at Marquette while studying biological sciences. She hopes to become a fish farmer.
Woodbridge Superintendent Heath Chasanov says Altia "is truly a remark
able student and a great example of what is great about schools in Delaware."
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Order's up on learning, career exploration at Kirk Middle School
Teacher Amanda Hearn watches as eighth-grader Hassun Jones prepares pancakes to fulfill breakfast orders in the class restaurant. As short-order cook for the day, Hassun managed multiple demands for his attention and time. See more photos.
The ring of the bell alerts the servers that their orders are up. They review their slips with the cook before carrying the food back to their tables: Chocolate chip pancakes, eggs and turkey sausage, check. Wait, these pancakes are missing the fresh strawberry topping.
The pace gets rapid in these
Kirk Middle School kitchens as the short-order cooks try to quickly fulfill the breakfast orders for their hungry classmates, getting real-life experience in kitchen management as they juggle multiple demands.
The
Christina School District middle school's "Skinny Period" - so dubbed because it is an hour long, 10 minutes shorter than the rest of the periods of the day - offers students a daily dose of intervention or enrichment. Students select two offerings, which alternate days.
Culinary arts teacher Amanda Hearn created her introduction to hospitality course to expose students to all the career opportunities they can go into through hands-on experiences.
Eighth-grader Hassun Jones, 14, said he took the class because "I like to cook and I barely know how to wash clothes."
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Gaming is learning in Seaford Middle afterschool Minecraft Club
Students love to play Minecraft, and the club's assignments provide structure to their game play, Seaford School District officials said. See more photos.
The learning continues after school at
Seaford Middle School thanks to its Minecraft Club. The club allows the students to play Minecraft, an open, sandbox video game on the computer. They build, explore and create anything their minds can imagine.
Seaford uses a specific version of the game called MinecraftEDU with all the trappings of the original game as well as modifications that give the teacher a measure of control over the game and gives students more tools to create what they want. Students play collaboratively, working together to build castles and cities. Up to 25 students at a time are able to connect individually to a server.
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Other Good News in Delaware's Public Schools
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