A community comes together to support Family Literacy Program

(Rock Island, IL)  With the recent influx of immigrants, many children and families are struggling to understand the new culture and language.  But thanks to many community partners coming together sharing resources, families from nine different countries speaking six different languages are learning English and nineteen community partners supporting them.

A news event highlighting the first year's success of the Lights ON for Learning Family Literacy Program is being held Thursday, May 20th at 11:00 am at the Church of Peace (1114 12th Street in Rock Island) in the Fellowship Hall.   The program began with three families in the fall and at year's end there are now over forty adult students and 25 pre-school children participating.

Attending the news conference will be Rock Island Mayor, Dennis Pauley, Rock Island Schools Superintendent, Mike Oberhaus, the former Superintendent of the Regional Office of Education, Joe Vermeire, as well as representatives from the various community partners who are the backbone of this program.  The teachers and the families involved in the program will also be available for interviews.

The program is from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursdays at the Church of Peace.  A typical day at the Lights ON for Learning Family Literacy program consists of English as a Second Language tutoring, lunch and activities with their children, parenting and life skills, and computer and library skills training.

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Is there educational value in your Saturday night trip to the cinema?  Though some may hesitate to admit it, films are a significant influence on today's students and compete with books as the primary mode of storytelling.  In today's society, how often does anyone sit still and focus on one thing for two full hours?  That's part of the magic of film! Film can be a powerful educational tool - bringing to life characters, settings, and events that can seem very foreign and remote from a student's world.   Films tell stories in images, color, movement, sound, and light - going immediately to the senses.  For this reason, it can be argued that students register a stronger emotional intensity from film than from text.  The same skills a reader can be taught to bring to a written text are those that a viewer can be taught to bring to a visual text - exploring details of character, theme, plot, mood, conflict, and symbolism.

Local students at Rivermont Collegiate in Bettendorf will be "locked-in" overnight and immersed in the educational value of film on Saturday, May 22nd.  Students in grades 9-12 will gather in the auditorium on the Rivermont campus to view Academy Award winners and nominees including Avatar, The Hurt Locker, Sherlock Holmes, Crazy Heart, and Young Victoria.  To enhance the educational value of the evening and avoid distractions - all cell phones and electronic devices will be confiscated!  Though the value of books and the written text cannot be denied, these students plan to absorb the lessons offered by the best in directing, editing, visual effects, writing, and costume design - and have a little fun, of course!

For additional information on Rivermont Collegiate, contact Cindy Murray at(563) 359-1366 ext. 302 or murray@rvmt.org.

Rivermont Collegiate is the Quad Cities' only private, independent, non-sectarian PS-12th grade college preparatory school.  Visit us online at www.rvmt.org!

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Much attention has been given in recent years to reinvigorating history education in our nation's schools - updating curriculum, exploring effective teaching strategies, and increasing training and professional development for our history teachers.  The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), publishers of The Nation's Report Card, report America's twelfth and eighth graders know more U.S. history now than in the past, with performance improving on the most recent assessment (2006) compared to 2001.  Still, only 43% of twelfth grade students performed at or above the Basic achievement level (as defined by NAEP), with 11% at or above Proficient and only 1% at Advanced.

National History Day is one program aimed at addressing this issue - making history come alive by engaging youth in hands-on discovery of the experiences of the past.  Students conduct primary and secondary research on their selected topic, then present their work at local, state, and national levels.  National History Day inspires students through exciting competitions while teaching essential historical literacy.  The 2010 National Contest will take place June 13th -17th at the University of Maryland and feature 24 Iowa students!  Among those representing Iowa will be the teams of Christopher & Christine Mbakwe and Meghana Pagadala & Joann Weeks from Rivermont Collegiate in Bettendorf.  2010 is a national year for the NAEP U.S. history assessment, meaning it was administered country-wide in select schools between January and March, with results to be released in 2011.  With programs like National History Day in place, it is expected performance will continue to improve!

The community is invited to attend a fundraising history-themed Trivia Night on Friday, May 21st in support of Rivermont students' trip to the national competition!  Trivia Night is open to the community - adults and students (grades 6 and up).  Pizza will be served at 5:30 p.m. and competition will get underway at 6:00 p.m.  Cost for adults is $10 and for students is $5.  Participants may register a whole team (6-8 people) or just themselves and they will be assigned to a team (and make some new friends!).  Participants are asked to register by Wednesday, May 19th.  The competition will take place in the auditorium on the Rivermont campus, located directly off 18th Street behind K&K Hardware in Bettendorf.  For additional information on Trivia Night and to register, contact Leigh Ann Schroeder at schroeder@rvmt.org or (563) 359-1366 ext. 343.

For additional information on National History Day, visit www.nationalhistoryday.org

For additional information on The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and The Nation's Report Card, visit http://nationsreportcard.gov

For additional information on Rivermont Collegiate, contact Cindy Murray at (563) 359-1366 ext. 302 or murray@rvmt.org

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Illinois Institute of Technology Receives Federal, State Awards

CHICAGO - May 12, 2010. Governor Pat Quinn today announced that the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) will receive a total of more than $5 million to train and develop workers in smart grid technologies.

It is expected that over 49,000 power industry employees, union workers, teachers and students will be trained in the first three years of the program. The funding is made possible through the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and Illinois Jobs Now! program, the job and capital construction plan signed into law by Governor Quinn last year.

"Illinois' economic recovery must include the development of a more robust green sector that supports job creation and sustainable economic growth," said Governor Quinn. "With the help of this funding, Illinois will have a pipeline of workers who are trained in 21st century green careers and smart grid technology, further addressing our energy independence goals."

IIT will receive nearly $5 million in funding to develop a World-Class Smart Grid Education and Workforce Training Center, including a $2.5 million funding commitment by the state through the Illinois Jobs Now!.

The Center will use IIT's strong Smart Grid and power engineering infrastructure to engage utilities, corporations, labor, veterans, K-12 educators and community colleges in a collaborative, statewide initiative to train the strongest workforce in the world to meet the global challenges in Smart Grid, energy independence, clean tech and sustainable energy.

Illinois Jobs Now! is a $31 billon program which will revive the state's ailing economy by creating and retaining over 439,000 jobs over the next six years. For more information go to jobsnow.illinois.gov.

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MOLINE, ILLINOIS - WQPT, Quad Cities PBS is proud to announce that Hilary Osborn, a broadcast student at the University of Illinois is the recipient of the WQPT 2010 Broadcast Scholarship. The $500 award can be applied to tuition, books and fees.

Miss Osborn said "I am truly honored to be a recipient of the WQPT scholarship. From the time I was in middle school, I have known that I wanted to be in the field of broadcast journalism."   She also shared a story about WQPT, "When I was a young child, I remember watching the children's programs on this very station. Those programs were a great supplement to my early childhood education. For that, I am so grateful. It is reassuring to know that these programs are still available for young minds. Long Live WQPT and PBS!"

"We are delighted to be able to award this scholarship to Hilary and to know that WQPT helped play a role in her early childhood education," said WQPT General Manager, Rick Best.

WQPT is a broadcast service of Western Illinois University-Quad Cities located in Moline, Illinois.

 

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Fifth and sixth graders at Earl Hanson School are participating in the "National Lab Day" celebration this week by learning about water treatment programs. Area scientists and professors are going to spend part of the day educating 100 students about clean water, water conservation, third world water problems, etc.

The connection among the school and scientists was made by teacher, Kate Lievens, who signed up online through a relatively new nationwide program called "National Lab Day" (www.NationalLabDay.org). At this site teachers sign up for projects they would like to see in their classrooms and are matched up with scientists who want to help educate area school children.

The media is invited to see National Lab Day in action Wednesday, May 12th beginning at 11:00 at Earl Hanson School (4000 9th Street). Available for interviews are Lievens, Dr. Kevin Geedey (Professor of Biology at Augustana College), Sandy O'Neill with the Rock Island Water Treatment Plant, Bob Bohannon a Moline Water lab Chemist and Greg Swanson, Moline's Utilities General Manager.

The National Lab Day site is one element in a White House initiative to encourage public-private partnerships in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education. Lievens is one of the first teachers to participate in the program and has been featured in a national science magazine.

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On Wednesday May 26th at 8:30am, some Jordan Catholic School eighth graders will receive the Presidential Academic Award. The invitation that went to parents is attached below. Criteria for the award:

Students must have a grade point average of 90% or a 3.5 GPA.

Along with one of the following 2 criterias:

  1. 85% or higher in math and/or reading on the Iowa Basic Skills test

  2. Teacher plus one other staff member's recommendation

ROCK ISLAND, IL (05/07/2010)(readMedia)-- More than 75 Augustana students, including several from the local area, will share their advanced research projects on Saturday, May 8 at Augustana's 14th annual Celebration of Learning. This unique on-campus research symposium gives students an opportunity to show off their academic accomplishments to their families and friends and members of the Augustana community.

Celebration participants can choose to present their research through a poster display or an oral presentation. Many students present the results of their senior inquiry project, a multiple-term research project required for most academic programs. Other students share Honors capstone projects or student-faculty research. Because of the advanced level of research involved, most of the presenters are upperclassmen.

Students from the local area who are participating in Celebration of Learning include :

Daniel Meden, a senior from Davenport, IA who is majoring in biology. Meden will be presenting his project " Which Birds Die from Striking Windows?" in the biology sector of the symposium.

Students from the local area who are participating in Celebration of Learning include :

Sam Alvarado, a senior from Davenport, IA who is majoring in chemistry. Alvarado will be presenting her project " Synthesis of New Phosphine-Functionalized N-heterocyclic carbene Ligands" in the chemistry sector of the symposium.

Students from the local area who are participating in Celebration of Learning include :

Michael Seevers, a senior from Cordova, IL who is majoring in geography. Seevers will be presenting his project " A Study to Determine the Highway Culverts in Upper Rock Island County, Illinois" in the geography sector of the symposium.

Students from the local area who are participating in Celebration of Learning include :

Sara Michaletti, a senior from Rock Island, IL who is majoring in classics. Michaletti will be presenting her project " Latin Pedagogy" in the classics and theatre sector of the symposium.

Students from the local area who are participating in Celebration of Learning include :

Luke Osborne, a senior from Moline, IL who is majoring in classics with a Latin emphasis. Osborne will be presenting his project " Plato's Republic and Symposium and Homer's Iliad and Odyssey" in the classics and theatre sector of the symposium.

Students from the local area who are participating in Celebration of Learning include :

Steven Ash, a senior from Moline, IL who is majoring in physics. Ash will be presenting his project " A Study of Neutron-Rick Nuclei" in the poster sector of the symposium.

Students from the local area who are participating in Celebration of Learning include :

Jacob McDowell, a senior from Rock Island, IL who is majoring in psychology. McDowell will be presenting his project " Morality and Patriotism: Predictors of Responses to Terrorism?" in the poster sector of the symposium.

Students from the local area who are participating in Celebration of Learning include :

James Sales, a junior from Rock Island, IL who is majoring in biology. Sales will be presenting his project " Differences in Health Perceptions of Students" in the poster sector of the symposium.

Students from the local area who are participating in Celebration of Learning include :

Alex Sieg, a senior from Bettendorf, IA who is majoring in biochemistry. Sieg will be presenting his project " The Annotation of N-acetyl-ornithine/N-acetyl-lysine deacetylase, AbpE Family Lipoprotein and 4F-4S Iron Sulfur Binding Domain pProtein from Meiothermus ruber" in the poster sector of the symposium.

Students from the local area who are participating in Celebration of Learning include :

Henry Stauffenberg, a senior from Bettendorf, IA who is majoring in geology. Stauffenberg will be presenting his project " Another Step toward Answering the Dolomite Question" in the poster sector of the symposium.

Students from the local area who are participating in Celebration of Learning include :

Sam Anderson, a junior from Rock Island, IL who is majoring in mathematics and computer science. Anderson will be presenting his project " Tournaments" in the mathematics sector of the symposium.

Anne Earel and Stefanie Bleumle, Augustana reference librarians and the event's co-directors, are glad that the Celebration of Learning provides an outlet for students to show off their accomplishments. "Not every student will be able to go to a conference somewhere off-campus," Earel said. "This provides an on-campus opportunity to be part of a professional scholarship community."

Leah Mortenson, a junior from Manhattan, KS, will present her analysis of the media used in a current environmental advocacy campaign. She believes the Celebration of Learning will give her the chance to show how she has grown, academically and personally, through her project. "Celebration of Learning opens up doors for sharing knowledge about various fields of study with peers who may have different perspectives and experiences than you," she said.

The event will begin with a keynote address by Caroline Skaggs Sallee '02. She double majored in economics and history at Augustana. Ms. Sallee is currently the director of Anderson Economic Group's Chicago Office, where she manages economic and public policy projects. Her address is entitled, "The Augustana Difference: How a Liberal Arts Education Prepared Me for the Real World."

For more information on the Celebration of Learning, please visit www.augustana.edu/celebration.

About Augustana: Founded in 1860 and situated on a 115-acre campus near the Mississippi River, Augustana College is a private, liberal arts institution affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The college enrolls nearly 2,500 students from diverse geographic, social, ethnic and religious backgrounds and offers more than 70 majors and related areas of study. Augustana employs 287 faculty and has a student-faculty ratio of 11:1. Augustana continues to do what it has always done: challenge and prepare students for lives of leadership and service in our complex, ever-changing world.

Rivermont students not only study history - they make history!  For the first time since 2001, four Rivermont students will compete at the national level of the National History Day contest.  Though Rivermont students have often been named alternates to the event, this year the teams of Christopher & Christine Mbakwe and Meghana Pagadala & Joann Weeks will be among 24 students representing Iowa at the national competition in June!  Each year, more than half a million students participate in the NHD contest.  The program makes history come alive, engaging youth in hands-on discovery of the experiences of the past.  More than five million students have gone on to careers in business, law, medicine, and countless other disciplines where they put into practice what they learned through NHD.

At the state level of the competition, held in Des Moines on April 26th, the team of Christopher & Christine Mbakwe scored perfect marks, earning first place in their category, for their project Innovation of the Assembly Line: Man or Machine? The team of Meghana Pagadala & Joann Weeks won second place, as well as the Judges Choice award for their use of a primary source as media, with their project Picking Cotton and Picking Fights: Eli Whitney's Patent Problems.  Both teams will compete against 2,500 of their peers from across the globe at the University of Maryland in June.  In addition, the students' hard work will benefit their peers at Rivermont.  As a prize for second place in the overall school category, Rivermont was presented with two books for their library!

For additional information on the National History Day program,

visit www.nationalhistoryday.org 

 

For additional information on Rivermont Collegiate contact Cindy Murray at

(563) 359-1366 ext. 302 or murray@rvmt.org 

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Supporters can vote online now through May 31, 2010 at www.refresheverything.com/missionmoneycontrol

Des Moines, IA., May, 4, 2010 - The Iowa College Student Aid Commission (Iowa College Aid) is in the running for a Pepsi Refresh Grant that would help fund an interactive, web-based financial literacy curriculum to empower teenagers and young adults with the knowledge to make smart financial decisions.

Iowa College Aid's financial literacy program, "Mission: Money Control", is just one of many projects in the running for a $50,000 Pepsi Refresh Grant during the month of May. The 10 projects with the most votes in this category at the end of the month will receive funding.  If Iowa College Aid's project is funded, the grant will be used to expand the Mission Money Control program to include an online financial literacy resource. Over 150,000 students and families in Iowa would have free access to the program through the statewide community web portal, www.IHaveaPlanIowa.gov.

"Too many young adults graduate from high school and college unprepared to take control of their financial futures," stated Karen Misjak, executive director of Iowa College Aid. "We hope to change that  by incorporating an online financial literacy curriculum into the www.IHaveaPlanIowa.gov web portal," Misjak said.  "Students in Iowa middle and high schools already use the web portal to create high school course plans and explore career and college programs best suited to their interests, values and strengths.  Incorporating financial literacy curriculum into the web portal makes sense.  We can impact the future of nearly every Iowa student if we receive this grant, but we need to get the word out to make that happen."

The Pepsi Refresh Project is an open voting system, so public involvement is needed to receive the grant.

What you can do to help:

  1. Register at www.refresheverything.com
  2. Vote daily during May at: www.refresheverything.com/missionmoneycontrol
  3. Spread the word to your family, friends, co-workers, colleagues, and, of course, your social networking groups.

For more information about the Mission: Money Control project, contact Iowa College Aid's Information Service Center at 877-272-4456.  More information about financial aid and products and services that help Iowa families plan, prepare and pay for college is available on Iowa College Aid's website at www.IowaCollegeAid.gov.

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