From Dr. Seuss to Weather Investigators:  Rivermont Summer Enrichment Camp Has It All!               

Rivermont Collegiate's Summer Enrichment Camp is now accepting registrations! Classes are open to the entire Quad City community and are only $80 each.  Over 85 week-long classes are offered beginning June 10 for preschool through high school.  Students have the option of attending morning, afternoon, or the entire day.

Rivermont Summer Camp is a fantastic opportunity for local students to spend their summer doing everything from exploring computer programming to creating unique artwork to experimenting with science.  Popular classes include Robotics, Anatomy Academy, Olympic Sports, Spy Camp, Dr. Seuss, Harry Potter-ology, Young Actors' Studio, Web Design, and Photography.  Don't delay - classes will fill up!

Classes will be held on the Rivermont campus, located directly off 18th Street behind K&K Hardware in Bettendorf.  The entire catalog may be viewed online at www.RivermontCollegiate.org or contact Linda Paget at (563) 359-1366 for more information.

(DES MOINES) - Gov. Terry E. Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds announced today that teachers in the Central Decatur and the Saydel school districts overwhelmingly voted to adopt a teacher leadership and compensation structure in partnership with the National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET).

Last September, the districts and NIET won a grant from the U. S. Department of Education's 2012 Teacher Incentive Fund to put the teacher leadership and compensation structure in place. The districts have been in the planning stage since then. Before finalizing the plan, which is tailored to meet local needs, NIET requires that teachers in each school building vote on whether to approve it.  In Central Decatur, 87 percent of teachers voted yes. In Saydel, 94 percent of teachers voted yes.

The goal of the project is to build on the expertise and growth potential of teachers in each school, providing them with support in boosting student achievement and meeting higher academic goals. This will be done by putting in place NIET's System for Teacher and Student Advancement (TAP), which creates mentor and master teacher roles that provide more support for classroom teachers to help them improve instructional strategies.  These teacher leaders work with administrators to align professional support with school academic goals and with the needs of each student. As part of the project, the districts will make it possible for teachers who specialize in science, technology, engineering and math to seek more training at local universities. Helping principals become more effective also is a focus of the project.

The grant provides $2.3 million for the first two years, with the possibility of nearly $9.6 million total over five years depending upon annual congressional appropriations.

"Teachers are eager to better utilize the expertise of top teachers to improve instruction and raise student achievement," said Reynolds "With higher expectations for all students today,  it's critical to better support the more complex work we are asking teachers to do."

"We modeled the teacher leadership and compensation structure in our 2013 education reform package in large part on NIET's successful Teacher Advancement Program," said Reynolds.  "I would like to thank NIET and the Central Decatur and Saydel school districts for working together to move forward with this grant. Teachers will have new career options in these two districts because they recognize that the traditional one-size-fits-all approach in the teaching profession limits professional opportunities."

The Central Decatur and Saydel superintendents said the grant will better support work already under way in their districts.

"As our staff learned about the TAP system, we were most excited by the constant theme of structured and strategic support for teachers that resulted in improved student achievement," said Central Decatur Superintendent Chris Coffelt.  "Staff support and willingness to implement this system will not just positively impact our students and staff, but will ultimately transform our school culture and the work we do as professionals."

For Saydel, Superintendent Brad Buck expects education to be transformed in terms of student learning and teachers' careers: "I am so proud of our teachers for providing us with a vote percentage akin to a mandate for improvement. They are working hard and believe this model, through a variety of proven supports, will better translate their hard work into increases in student success."

 

The grant won by Central Decatur and Saydel was one of 35 grants announced last fall by the U.S. Department of Education to "improve teacher pay structures, reward great teachers and principals, and provide greater professional opportunities to teachers in high-poverty schools." For more information: http://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/us-department-education-boosts-district-led-efforts-recognize-and-reward-great-t

 

 

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MOLINE, IL -- The Western Illinois University-Quad Cities Graduate Studies Program will host an open house for interested students, their families and business professionals from 4-6 p.m. Tuesday, March 19 at the WIU-QC 60th Street Campus, room 102A. 

"The open house is an excellent opportunity for current students and business professionals to meet and network while learning about the our graduate programs," said Antoinette Murphy, assistant director of admissions for Graduate Studies. "There will be a variety of campus representatives available to discuss resources, career developm ent and financial aid assistance." 

The event will include guest speakers from financial aid and career services, as well as individual program and break-out sessions about program requirements and graduate assistant opportunities. The event will also feature student panel discussions, faculty question-and-answer sessions and a tour. 

For more information, contact Murphy at (309) 762-9481 or AR-Murphy@wiu.edu . Learn more about WIU-QC Graduate Studies athttp://www.wiu.edu/qc/future_students/grad.php.

Ames, Iowa–Iowa Learning Farms will host a cover crops workshop, along with the Eastern Iowa Hay Producers Association (EIHPA), Iowa State University Extension and Outreach and Practical Farmers of Iowa, on Thursday, March 21, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at Buzzy's Pizza in Welton. The workshop will focus on cover crops for feed, soil and nutrient management.

Topics covered at the event include strategies and goals for cover crop implementation, incorporating cover crops for rotational grazing and row crops with livestock; and includes a field tour at the Neal Engel farm, in Jackson County. The workshop will have presentations and discussion with Sarah Carlson, research and policy director at Practical Farmers of Iowa; Mark Carlton, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach field agronomist; Bruce Van Laere with Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Clinton County and a panel including Neal Engel and other area cover crop farmers.

The event is free and includes a complimentary lunch. This workshop is in conjunction with the EIHPA annual meeting. The EIHPA will collect annual dues as part of the business meeting at the workshop. The public is invited to attend, but an RSVP is  recommended. To register for this event, please call one of these county NRCS offices: Cedar County, 563-886-6214; Clinton
County, 563-659-3456; Dubuque County, 563-876-3418; Jackson County, 563-652-3237; Jones County, 319-462-3196. All numbers will use extension 3.

The workshop will be held at Buzzy's Pizza, 414 Main Street, Welton. The field tour will be to the Neal Engel farm, 25439 Iowa Highway 64, Maquoketa. The farm is located four miles southeast of Maquoketa at the junction of Highway 64 and County Road Y-60; approximately 10 miles north of Welton on Y-60.

Iowa Learning Farms takes a grassroots approach offering innovative ways to help all Iowans have an active role in keeping our state's natural resources healthy and not take them for granted. A goal of Iowa Learning Farms is to build a Culture of  conservation, encouraging the adoption of residue management and conservation practices. Farmers, researchers and ILF team members are working together to identify and implement the best in-field management practices that increase water and soil quality while remaining profitable.

Iowa Learning Farms is a partnership between the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, Iowa Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Iowa Department of Natural Resources (USEPA section 319); in cooperation with Conservation Districts of Iowa, the Iowa Farm Bureau and the Iowa Water Center.

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