ADE Briefs

Vandy Nash of North Little Rock was named the 2010 Arkansas Teacher of the Year during an awards gala at the Governor’s Mansion in Little Rock on Friday night. Nash, a fourth-grade teacher at Indian Hills Elementary School in the North Little Rock School District, received a $15,000 cash award with the title. In addition, she will represent Arkansas in the 2010 National Teacher of the Year competition and spend the 2010-2011 school year working in-residence at the Arkansas Department of Education.

The award was presented by Governor Mike Beebe and Education Commissioner Dr. Tom W. Kimbrell during the Arkansas Teacher of the Year Awards Gala, which was televised live by KTHV. Craig O’Neill served as the emcee.

Fifteen regional finalists were selected by a committee composed of former teachers of the year and Arkansas Department of Education Office of Teacher Quality staff. Those 15 were then narrowed to four, with Nash the winner and three runners-up:
• First runner-up Andrea White, a second-grade teacher at Valley View Elementary School in Valley View School District
• Second runner-up Jeannie Martin, an English as a second language teacher at Angie Grant Elementary School in Benton School District
• Third runner-up Kathy L.Prophet, a seventh-grade science teacher at Hellstern Middle School in Springdale School District

The 11 regional finalists included:
• Lisa Morris Anderson, an eighth-grade science teacher at Nashville Junior High in Nashville School District
• Angela Brady, a sixth-grade math teacher at Walnut Ridge School in Lawrence County School District
• Lenora Bullington, a literacy facilitator at Cavanaugh Elementary School in Fort Smith School District
• Bobbie Ruth Coleman, an 11th and 12th grade English teacher at Searcy High School in Searcy School District
• R. Ellen Corley, a special education teacher at Forest Heights Elementary in Harrison School District
• Toni L. Elliott, third-grade teacher at Noble Elementary in Hamburg School District
• Shelley Forbess, a tenth- through 12th-grade physics teacher at El Dorado High School in El Dorado School District
• Lekia Jones, a sixth-grade mathematics teacher at College Hill Middle School in the Texarkana School District
• Bill Maxwell, a sixth- through 12th-grade band director at Mountain Home Junior High School in the Mountain Home School District
• Delois McGhee, and eighth-grade mathematics and Algebra I teacher at Dollarway Middle School in Dollarway School District.
• Cherilyn Minnis, a 12th-grade English teacher at West Memphis High School in West Memphis School District

Innovations, a publication of ETS, featured Beverly Williams, assistant commissioner for human resources and licensure, as the voice of a state practitioner in an article focusing on the difference between teacher quality and teaching quality. Others asked for their thoughts on this topic included National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education President James G. Cibulka, former National Teacher of the Year Kimberly Oliver Burnim and education policy guru Andrew J. Rotherham.
Williams take on the difference between the two? “[T]eacher quality is about the teacher as a person, and teaching quality is about the successful learning of the students.”
Posted by JJT.

Vandy Nash is one of the four top finalists in the 2010 Arkansas Teacher of the Year Competition. The winner will be announced Friday night at the Arkansas Teacher of the Year Awards Gala by Governor Beebe and Education Commissioner Dr. Tom W. Kimbrell. This profile by Channel 11, which will film the awards ceremony, gives a peek into why Nash is one of this year’s top contenders for the title.

Three school districts turned in applications for four conversion charter schools to the Arkansas Department of Education earlier this week.
The basic concept of public charter schools is that they exercise increased autonomy, all the while being held accountable for student perormance. A conversion charter school is one in which a school district reorganizes one of its own schools as opposed to open enrollment charters, in which a non-profit organization opens a school separate from the school district structure.
The proposed conversion charter schools are Cloverdale Aerospace Technology Conversion Charter Middle School in Little Rock School District; Harris Science and Health Elementary Charter and STAR Academy, both in Pulaski County Special School District; and Lincoln Middle Academy of Excellence in Forrest City.
The Arkansas State Board of Education will consider the charter applications in early 2010.
Posted by JJT.

Andrea White, a second grade teacher at Valley View Elementary School in the Valley View School District, is one of the four finalists for Arkansas Teacher of the Year. Today’s THV Channel 11 profiled her on Tuesday’s newscast. She will be recognized Friday evening at the Arkansas Teacher of the Year Awards Gala, which also will be televised on KTHV at 6:30 p.m.
Posted by JJT.

Staff with the state’s EAST Initiative along with students and teachers from Little Rock Central High School and Harrisburg High School are in Washington, D.C., today strutting their stuff in a a showcase of model educational technology programs at the Hart Senate Office Building. The showcase is being presented by the State Education Technology Directors Association (SETDA) and the National Science Foundation (NSF).
EAST is an educational model that originated in Arkansas and has been adopted by stated across the nation. EAST engages students in sophisticated service-learning projects that involve relevant teamwork and cutting-edge technology.
The teams from Little Rock Central and Harrisburg High aredemonstrate projects that they have undertaken in documenting Arkansas’ history, helping local farmers and other projects that expand learning into the community and outside of the traditional school day.
Posted by JJT.

Today’s THV Channel 11 aired a profile of Kathy Prophet of Hellstern Middle School in Springdale, one of the four finalists for Arkansas Teacher of the Year. The other three finalists will be introduced during the news throughout the week, leading up to Friday’s telecast of the awards ceremony, where all 15 regional finalists will be recognized.
Posted by JJT.
Posted by JJT.

Tickets to this year’s Arkansas Teacher of the Year Gala are sold out, but you still have an opportunity to watch the awards ceremony as it happens. Today’s THV Channel 11 will air the gala’s 30-minute awards ceremony live at 6:30 p.m . Friday, November 6. Those outside of the Central Arkansas viewing area may stream it from the KTHV Web site. Don’t miss watching the 2010 Arkansas Teacher of the Year being named as Craig O’Neill emcees and Governor Mike Beebe and Education Commissioner Tom W. Kimbrell present awards to the winner, runners-up and all regional finalists.
Posted by JJT.

The Arkansas Workforce Summit on Thursday, November 5, at the Verizon Arena in North Little Rock promises to be a prime opportunity for employers, community leaders, chamber representatives, legislators, government officials, educators, economic development and workforce development professionals to take action to address the new realities facing workforce development in Arkansas.
Plenary Sessions will include:
•The Governor’s Workforce Cabinet: Integrating Education, Workforce and Economic Development
•Building Work Ready Communities
•State Sector Strategies: Regional Solutions to Address Skill Needs
Registration is free through today at www.dws.arkansas.gov
Posted by JJT.

The Richard C. Bartlett Environmental Education Award is awarded annually by the National Environmental Education Foundation to an outstanding high school teacher who has successfully integrated environmental education into his or her daily education programs. The award is given to an educator who can serve as an inspiration and model for others.
A $5,000 cash award is provided for the recipient to continue their work in environmental education.
Additionally, as part of the prize, the winner travels to Washington, D.C., to meet with representatives from the environmental community to further his or her network.
Posted by JJT.