SC GEAR UP
Weekly Memo - 9/14 to 9/20
Good Morning!
I trust everyone had a great weekend! As we are now getting back into the swing of things I want to be sure we are all working hard towards the same goal(s).
Staff Meeting
National GEAR UP Week
National GEAR UP Week is coming next week, 9/20 to 9/26! I want to be sure everyone has their activities laid out, so bring your school plans for National GEAR UP Week to the Staff Meeting on Wednesday. And please make sure the coaches take plenty of photos of our events!
College Application Month events
CAM season is in full swing at this point. Please make sure you are attending your CAM events and, more importantly, that the Coaches are attending and supporting them. They will bare the responsibility of CAM next year for our cohort, so they should be walking hand and hand with the counselor to see how it is being done. They should also do some type of "Junior" activity with our cohort that runs alongside the CAM event.
PLEASE MAKE SURE THE SURVEY IS GETTING DONE AT THE CAM EVENTS BY THE STUDENTS!!!
This is most important for data collection purposes.
Step 1, Step 2, and now Step 3
Just to give you an update, at the last CHE Access and Equity & Student Services Committee, Karen unveiled the plans for adding a third step to our College Access process, College Signing Day (Step 1 = CAM and Step 2 = College Goal SC). While you already knew we wanted to do this for our schools this year, the unveiling by Karen and the approval given by our Committee essentially puts a big spot light on our College Signing and Commitment initiative. This means SC GEAR UP has to lead the way. So please make sure your coaches are already talking with their Administrations about the 3 step process and laying out plans for how their Commitment (11th graders) and Signing (Current 12th graders) Days are going to look like.
COMPASS Report
We've been working this project for a year and now its time to see what we've accomplished. I need to know at the meeting exactly what your programs look like at each school and if they are operating currently.
- # of students in Dual Credit
- # of students in Enrichment
- # of students who have opted out and are not in either
- Start date for Enrichment Course(s)
- Start date for Dual Credit Course(s)
- Is a Carnegie Unit being offered for this Enrichment Course?
- What is the name of course in PowerSchool?
- Who is teaching the courses? Are they certified/qualified?
- If you aren't doing a program in Fall/Spring/at all, what are you doing in that school that is different and new?
- What concerns have parents shared with you or the school?
- Issues you are encountering at any level
- What will be the role of the Graduation Coach?
- How will the GC monitor the progress of the D.E students?
Budget and Award Letters for 2015-16
I'm attempting to schedule one on ones with you to discuss your school budget requests. So far I have meetings set up with 2 of you. Let me say that you don't HAVE to meet with me to discuss the plans. But you may want to be knowledgeable of the cuts we make so that you can explain them to the schools. As a heads up, we are going to reduce EVERYONE's award letter this year. Unused funding is an issue and we are going to move that funding to initiatives that benefit everyone.
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
We meet on Tuesdays to go over the Program and sign invoices. Questions usually come up. Be available between 1:30 and 3:00 for a potential call or text.
CCTI
CCTI sign-up is currently open. I have about 1 week to get the class to at least 50% SC GEAR UP participation or we will lose it.
Get the coaches on getting counselors to take the course....please!
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!
We have set a date of February 27th, 2015 for College Goal SC statewide!!! Please keep in mind that every SC GEAR UP School is required to serve as a College Goal site (or partner with a neighboring site) this year. Your dates don't have to be on the 27th though.