Oklahoma HSTW Updates

QUICK HSTW REMINDERS
1. SREB Annual Report is due online by September 30, 2008.
2. October 30, 2008 is the HSTW 2008 Data Workshop. Look for registration details next week.
3. Contact Cheryl Bell at cbell@okcareertech.org if you’d like to serve on a HSTW technical assistance visit. They are:
· U.S. Grant High School – October 27-29, 2008
· Durant High School (pacesetter site) – November 4-5, 2008
· Drumright High School – November 11-12, 2008
· Shawnee High School – February 11-12, 2009

STUDENT LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES

Help for Literacy Coaches
Literacy coaching provides teacher support and development while simultaneously increasing students' literacy skills. For resources to support a coaching program at your school, check out the following link: http://lists.ncte.org/t/1520916/7538683/855/0/.
Literacy Coaching Teacher Resource Collection (G), includes numerous articles and links to additional materials.

Healthy Lifestyles Video Contest
First Lady Kim Henry has joined State Superintendent Sandy Garrett and the Oklahoma State Department of Education in coordinating a healthy lifestyles video contest for students age 13 and up that begins Wednesday, October 1 and runs through the end of the school year. Students must submit videos promoting healthy lifestyle choices and that can be used for public service announcements (PSA). Monthly winners will be chosen for first place prizes of $3,500 and second place prizes of $1,500. Plus the schools of a first place winner will receive $1,000 worth of fitness equipment.
www.mytakeonhealth.com/
Deadline: May 2008
Contact: Shelly Hickman, Administrative Services, SDE (Phone – 405.521.3371)

Letters about Literature
“Letters about Literature” is a national reading and writing contest for students in Grades four through 12 sponsored by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, the Oklahoma Center for the Book and Target. Students can enter by writing a letter to an author, explaining how one of the author’s books changed the student’s view of the world or of themselves. Students must be at least 9 years old and enter in categories of Grades 4-5, Grades 7-8 and Grades 9-12. State winners will received a $50 Target Gift Card and cash prizes. Six national winners will receive a $500 Target Gift card, plus a grant of $10,000 for their school or community library. Twelve national winners will receive a $100 Target Gift card and a grant of $1,000 for their school or library.
Deadline: December 6, 2008
Contact: Bill Young, Public Information Manager, Oklahoma Department of Libraries (Phone: 405.522.3562)
www.loc.gov/letters

“Fossil Fuel Fund” supports Museum Field Trips
Funding is available to help cover the cost of transporting students to the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, in Norman. The funding covers the cost of an educational program for students (laboratory programs not included). Student admission is $1.75 per student. The Fossil Fuel Fund uses a competitive application process; applications will be reviewed as they are received. All funded trips must take place October 2008 through March 2009.
Deadline: Saturday, February 28,2009
Contact: Carmen Eppler, Education Department, Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History (Phone: 405.352.4712)
www.snomnh.ou.edu/schoolprograms


RESOURCES

PASS for Parents
The Pass for Parents can now be found at http://sde.state.ok.us/Curriculum/PASS/Parents.html.
Pass them along to other curriculum areas and let your principals know they can print them out for use at PTO meetings and open house. The colorful document can be used to help explain the curriculum to parents.

Win Books for Kids!
What Book Got You Hooked? Please take a moment to click the following link and help OK kids get 50,000 free books. The only field that must be filled out is the state that you are voting for. The others are optional.
You can vote once every 24 hours. Please share this link with your Oklahoma friends and ask them to vote too. http://www2.firstbook.org/whatbook/index.php
Oklahoma won last year. Let's go for a repeat by voting early and voting often.

New Competency Model Clearinghouse Resources
The U.S. Department of Labor has added two tools to their Competency Model Clearinghouse, Build a Competency Model Tool, and Build a Career Ladder/Lattice Tool. Both tools are accessible at www.careeronestop.org/CompetencyModel/careerpathway/cpwoverview.aspx . Also included are emerging industry skill needs, curriculum development resources, information on career pathways, and skill based job descriptions. Access the home page at www.careeronestop.org/CompetencyModel.


PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Oklahoma Career Information System (OKCIS)
"Train the Trainer" sessions will be held in Stillwater as well as offering user webinars. Contact Jo Kahn at jkahn@okcareertech.org or 405.743.5404 for more information on OKCIS. Many OKCIS resources can be located on the Career and Academic Connections Website at http://www.okcareertech.org/cac/Pages/OKCIS/okcis.htm.


POWER POINT PRESENTATIONS
The following presentations are available on the web:
Summer Conference Presentations for Tech Prep are posted here: http://www.okcareertech.org/techprep/presentations.htm

You can get the Guidance Division Summer Conference Presentation here: http://www.okcareertech.org/cac/Pages/guidance/SC2008/2008presentations.htm

In other news, the CAC Division (formerly Guidance) has a new home on the web: http://www.okcareertech.org/cac/

GRANT OPPORTUNITIES

CABLE TV LEARNING ACTIVITIES
Time Warner Cable is accepting applications for the Teacher Showcase for Learning Grants program. Time Warner Cable will award grants to teachers to develop creative learning experiences using cable television resources (examples include: programming, websites, and streaming video). Grant winners will use that money to create a project for Time Warner Cable's National Teacher Awards (which take place next year). The grants also may be used to pay for technology projects, training, or services. This funding initiative is open to full-time, K-12 teachers and school library media specialists.
http://www.timewarnercable.com/midohio/education/teachershowcase.html
Deadline: October 3, 2008
Grant: $500

TEACH AWARDS - K-12 TECHNOLOGY PROGRAMS
Best Buy Teach Awards provide gift cards to schools to purchase technology for their students. The Best Buy Teach Award program recognizes creative uses of interactive technology in K-12 classrooms. Winning programs focus on kids using technology to learn standards-based curriculum, rather than on teaching students to use technology or educators using technology that children aren't able to use hands-on. The purpose of the Best Buy Teach Award program is to reward schools for the successful interactive programs they have launched using available technology. Please do not be discouraged from applying if your school does not have the most current equipment.
http://www.bestbuyinc.com/community_relations/teach_awards.htm
Deadline: October 12, 2008
Grant: $5,000 - 15 awards of $10,000 for 9th grade programs
Cost Sharing or Match - No

STATE FARM® GOOD NEIGHBOR SERVICE-LEARNING GRANTS 2009
Fear of failure does not motivate those use to failure. State Farm Companies Foundation, Youth Service America is offering the annual State Farm Good Neighbor Service-Learning Grant for youth-led community improvement projects. Grants up to $1,000 support teachers and service-learning coordinators to engage students (ages 5-25) to implement service-learning projects for Global Youth Service Day, April 24-26, 2009. State Farm encourages semester-long projects that are launched on Martin Luther King Day on January 19, 2009 and extend through Global Youth Service Day.
1. To download the Introduction and Requirements (pdf). http://tools.ysa.org/downloads/grants/statefarm/StateFarm_GrantRequirements2009.pdf
2. To preview the application form and guidelines (pdf).
http://tools.ysa.org/downloads/grants/statefarm/StateFarm_GrantAppPreview.pdf
3. To download our NEW web-based application form (htm).
http://tools.ysa.org/downloads/grants/statefarm/StaTeFarmGoodNeigbor_Form2009.htm Save the application and complete it at another time. Please note the following:
a. The entire application must be completed in one session, including the budget template. Information that you fill in cannot be saved.
b. Connect to the internet to access the online resources provided as hyperlinks in the application.
c. Submit the completed form and budget spreadsheet on-line.
d. Upon successful submission of a completed application, an automated confirmation is sent via email. If a confirmation is not received, your application was not submitted correctly.
Contact: goodneighbor@ysa.org
Deadline: October 15, 2008
Grant: $5,000

AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION READING LIST PREPARATION
The American Library Association is accepting applications for the Carnegie-Whitney Awards, which were created to provide grants for the preparation and publication of popular or scholarly reading lists, indexes, and other guides to library resources that will be useful to individuals who use all types of libraries (public, school, college, etc.). Also, the Association notes that the grants may be used for print and electronic projects, and the projects may vary in length. The grant money covers preparation costs that are appropriate to the development of a useful product. This includes the cost of research and compilation.
Deadline: November 3, 2008
http://ala.org/ala/ourassociation/publishing/alapubawrds/carnegiewhitney.cfm

SCHOLARSHIPS FOR TEACHERS
Applications are available for Teacher Scholarships for Professional Development to support educators in attending top-quality regional and national conferences. Scholarships help cover tuition, travel, lodging and to pay substitute teachers. Applications will be posted online in early October, with a mid-November deadline. Scholarships are offered in Tulsa, Stephens and Carter counties, to Oklahoma special education teachers and to math and science educators in Oklahoma City metro area. Other categories will be added soon.
Contact: Brenda Wheelock, Director of Communications and Development, Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence (Phone – 405.236.0006)
www.ofe.org
Deadline: mid-November