SC GEAR UP
Weekly Memo - 10/12 to 10/18
Good Morning!
As we move forward this week in recovery mode from last week's events, it is important that we continue to support our students and families impacted by the flooding. If we can do anything extra in Columbia, let us know. I know that some of our schools are still not in session. I still want you to touch base with your school/district personnel to determine if they have needs we can support. Moving forward, I will need each of you to provide me with a weekly report on your schools. This is for all schools, in all regions. Don't just focus on the DE and Enrichment courses. I want by school reports on the schools, activities and students. Cover your tutoring programs and special events.
In light of the state of the programs before and after the flood, I think this is the most effective way to monitor the programs. I will also endeavor to be much more visible in the schools and regions. We have experienced some events that have made an already challenging year that much more of a challenge. Time to be more proactive.
Award Letters
Award letters went out a few weeks ago. Obviously with everything happening in the past few weeks, getting them signed was not a priority in your Regions, nor should it have been. As we attempt to move forward, we need to get the letters signed and back to us.
College Application Month events
Please make sure you are attending your CAM events and, more importantly, that the Coaches are attending and supporting them. Check with your counselors and coaches to determine if they were impacted by the flooding. If they need to move the date of their CAM, we support that decision. If they give us enough notice, we can attempt to notify the college Reps of the changes, and they may still be able to support the event. If nothing else, have the coaches reach out to the local colleges in your area to determine if they can support the event. It will be excellent practice for them as they will likely need to do this next year. Even if the College cannot support at the same level, please let the school know that they will have the SC GEAR UP Team's support. If that means pulling coaches from other high schools to assist, we can discuss that as well. Vickie and I will stand ready to be on hand. Karen has also pledged to support where she can.
PLEASE MAKE SURE THE SURVEY IS GETTING DONE AT THE CAM EVENTS BY THE STUDENTS!!!
This is most important for data collection purposes.
College Goal SC Event Registration
ACT/SAT Prep
Objectives for 2015-16
The SCGU Grant objectives for 11th grade will be that 1) At least 25% of our cohort will have passed at least 2 math courses above Algebra by the end of 11th grade; 2) 80% of our students will pass U.S. History by the end of 11th grade.
Remember, the success of the SC GEAR UP Grant will be judged on three things:
1) Did your GU cohort graduate high school at a higher rate than the non GU cohorts?
2) Did your GU cohort enroll at a post-secondary institution at a higher rate than the non GU cohorts?
3) How prepared to succeed were our GU cohort when they arrived at college?
Finance
Some of you have inquired about invoices. Please know that we are working very hard to get invoices processed and paid. I understand their have been some delays on our end and I apologize for those. Some of those delays were out of our control, but I will not make excuses. We will get them paid as soon as we can.
College Access/Social Media Update
The SC GEAR UP Facebook and Twitter are now both up!!!! Please have the coaches encourage students to like and follow SC GEAR UP on social media. We can do better on Twitter and certainly on Facebook.
Don't forget about the newsletters as well!