Women’s History Month is a celebration of women’s contributions to history, culture and society and has been observed annually in the month of March in the United States since 1987.
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Celebrating Women's History Month
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For ideas on how you can celebrate Women's History Month with your mentee, Click Here! You can start learning about the contributions of women, by watching some of the videos below:
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Rosalind Franklin: The Unsung Hero of DNA
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The true story of Sacajawea
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From pacifist to spy: WWII’s surprising secret agent
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Take Stock in Children
Scholarship & Mentorship Program
The TSIC program is now accepting application from 7th and 8th grade students. The last day to submit an application is May 15th. This is a wonderful scholarship opportunity for deserving students in Hillsborough County - help spread the word!
Students that are admitted into the program will be paired with a volunteer mentor- like yourself- and awarded a Florida Prepaid Scholarship!
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Take Stock in Children Scholarships - Hillsborough...
If you could choose any job, what would you want to do? Use your imagination... because our mentoring program can help your dreams become reality. No matter what interests you, you have the potential to fulfill your goals and excel in a career.
Read more
educationfoundation.com
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Application Process
- Complete an online application
- Write an essay
- Submit a copy of 1040 Tax Returns and copy of Social Security Card
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Participate in an in-person or virtual interview if selected to move forward in the process
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For more information, contact
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MENTOR OF THE MONTH
TRACY SMITH
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How did you become involved with mentoring through the Hillsborough Education Foundation?
In my previous occupation as a Special Agent with U.S. Army CID I was part of a joint counter-drug task force with the D.E.A. A friend of mine on the taskforce told me that based on my outgoing personality, and affinity for style, formal education (at the time I had a masters degree and had not yet gone on to complete my PhD), and career that he believed I would make a great Big Brother or Mentor. That was almost 30 years ago, and as my wife and I don’t have children, I have been involved in mentoring ever since. I moved to the Tampa Florida area from Washington DC when I retired out of the Pentagon 14 years ago and sought out a mentor program to become involved with. I found Hillsborough’s program as a former colleague had previously been a mentor with the program. The program was excellent and so I began mentoring and plan on continuing to do so. It was a blessing to find such a great organization doing such amazing things for the youth in Hillsborough County and to be able to participate and be a part of Take Stock in Children.
What has been the most rewarding part of mentoring?
The most rewarding part of mentoring is to see mentees grow and progress. Not only academic growth but also personal growth as well, as they begin to realize their potential and work towards their goals. It is also rewarding to see them establishing new goals and dreams, some of which they had never previously realized were possible for themselves.
What do you believe is the key to being a quality mentor?
I think the most key element to being a quality mentor is to truly have empathy and care about the success and growth of your mentee. I think it is also important to recognize that we as mentors can grow and learn from our mentee’s as well.
When you are not working with students, how do you prefer to spend your free time?
I have always believed in being thankful for every day we are blessed with and living life to the fullest. As such I have so many interests and things I love to do. I met my wife while I was a special agent but also was performing and teaching salsa with a professional dance company. So when the pandemic subsides I look forward to dancing salsa again, as I love all genres of music and dance. I love roller skating and previously also skydiving while in the military (also referred to as jumping out of a perfectly good airplane). I love working out and sports; I work out 4-6 days a week and have done this since I was 13 years old (I’m now 54-Wow time flies). I started training and competing in martial arts and still train now as well; just no more full contact fighting. I started playing golf about six years ago and it is also one of my favorite activities as well as one of the hardest things I have ever done. I love spending time with my wife Dr. Uhuru Smith who is a physician/Anesthesiologist. We are truly best friends and enjoy traveling (pre-pandemic), dinners, movie nights and just hanging out enjoying each others company. We previously owned a wellness spa together and co-published a related book together. I love motorcycles (although my wife is happy I don’t ride much anymore) and sports cars. I am part of an exotic car club and love doing car rallies all around the country with my car club. I most love spending quality time with my friends and family doing anything enjoyable. Basically like I said, just living life to the fullest; thankful for everyday we are blessed with.
What do you hope your mentee(s) will learn from you?
I am so proud of my mentee Romello. From the beginning of our relationship he and his family have made me feel truly appreciated and they are always engaged and invested in his growth and success. My father was a career Army Veteran; he my Mother and Grandfather always stressed the importance of love, God, empathy, good relationships with family and friends, morals, discipline, and a sound work ethic for any endeavors you are involved in; to always strive for excellence; to do the best you could with anything you became involved in. One of the biggest things my Mother stressed was the value of a great education. I have two younger sisters one with a Masters Degree in Social Work running her own practice in New Orleans and one who was an Accountant for the Department of Justice and also has a Stanley Cup ring because she was a Cheerleader for the Washington Capitals when they won the Stanley Cup (cool fact I’m really proud of). My mother only had two years of college when she retired from her career with the Department of the Navy. To continue to set the example for us she elected to go back to college at 70 years of age completing her BA degree at 72 years old. Based on their influence and example I also went back to school after retiring from the military to complete my Doctorates in Psychology. I hope Romello can learn about the importance of the same values and education as I did and how important they can be in allowing you to be successful and fulfilled in life. I hope and am confident that Romello will also be a great success and then give back by being a mentor and role model for other youth in the future.
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CAREER EXPLORATION RESOURCE:
JobSpeakers
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Take Stock in Children State Office is excited to share this new Career Pathways Resource - JobSpeakers Podcasts. These free podcasts are created by Rob Hendrickson, a successful three-time Manatee Take Stock in Children Mentor, Community Council Member, and incoming Take Stock in Children Manatee County incoming Board Chair. These podcasts introduce a wide range of jobs and careers to students through interviews with people in various career fields. During each podcast, the interviewee shares about their jobs, career journey, and life lessons learned along the way.
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Daisy is an Alumna of the TSIC program. She is currently a Sophomore at the University of Florida. Daisy has been going to school during the pandemic, and has given us an update on how she has adjusted to the many changes brought on by COVID, as well as what she has been up to at UF! Read what she has to say below:
"Back when the pandemic began in March, I found myself devastated to say the least. I was finally beginning to get accustomed to my university and experiencing the so called “college experience” so to have that taken away from me in a matter of a few days was really rough.
I will say, on a brighter note, during this rough time, a lot of opportunities came knocking at my door and I eagerly took it upon myself to find ways to still get the college experience virtually. The summer before my sophomore year I was able to participate in being an orientation leader for my university as well as gain positions in UF Student Government's Bridges Minority Outreach Program, the Mexican-American Student Association, the Hispanic Student Association’s Cabinet, the Homecoming and Gator Growl team, and Dance Marathon at UF. I enjoyed my time being an orientation leader throughout the summer and then continued finding other ways to get involved on another level with the University by participating in the University’s Great Gator Welcome three week event and then later also becoming an ambassador for the Machen Florida Opportunity Scholar’s program, which is a scholarship provided to by the university that aims to help the same students that Take Stock In Children aims to help. And not to brag or anything, but I also was able to earn a volunteering opportunity with the Equal Access Clinic Network in Gainesville, that I will finally be able to begin next semester!
In terms of my grades, I am happy to say that I finished the spring semester with A’s and one withdrawal (Calculus 3 was not my friend). I chose to also take classes in the summer and I got A’s in all of them. And I am excited to say that I managed to get A’s in most of my courses this fall semester and one A-! I expect my GPA to be a 3.86-3.87 before I begin the next semester and if you are wondering, I am currently at a 3.84! Also, I think I finally made it on the Dean’s List this semester!
To sum things up, though this was not what I imagined my college experience to be like, I am very proud of myself and my ability to have found the light in a dark tunnel and act upon it. The way my mentor from Take Stock In Children put it, this year was a blessing in disguise and I could not express how excited I am to see what the new year brings, even if we’re still under the same circumstances!"
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This toolkit was assembled by the Florida Department of Education to assist teachers in the development of more resilient and healthy students. While it was designed for teachers, there are a lot of resources that mentors can use to enrich their meetings with their mentees. Utilizing the instructional resources included in this toolkit will empower Florida’s students as they develop resilience and character education skills to adapt to a variety of situations.
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Florida Senate leader would target college tuition aid, including Bright Futures, to programs that ‘lead directly to employment’
Florida’s Senate president has backed a proposal that would tie eligibility for state aid to college enrollment in programs that “lead directly to employment” and require lawmakers to determine the value of Bright Futures awards each year as part of the budgeting process. The bill would limit students’ eligibility to receive state-backed financial aid, including Bright Futures scholarships, to a total of 60 credit hours or two years of tuition unless the student enrolls in one of the designated “market-driven degree programs.”
Source: Orlando Sentinel
Expect College Wait Lists to Be Obnoxiously Long This Year
Many college admissions officers are stumped this spring over how many applicants to admit. Their mathematical models to predict which admitted students might accept their offers and enroll as freshmen are proving useless because the coronavirus pandemic threw most traditional elements of the admissions process—campus visits, standardized tests, essays about busy extracurricular schedules—into disarray.
Source: The Wall Street Journal
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Click the name of your assigned College Success Coach to email them.
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Director of TSIC
(813) 463-4283
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College Success Coach
(813) 574-0272
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College Success Coach
(813) 574-0271
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College Success Coach
(813) 574-0264
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College Success Coach
(813) 574-0269
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End of 3rd Grading Period
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Middle School Report Cards Are Available for Quarter 3
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High School Report Cards are Available for Quarter 3
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For more detailed information about the events occurring in Hillsborough County Public Schools, click the link below:
For more information, contact Anna Corman via email.
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