Teachers, school-based administrators, and other educational staff will be involved in professional learning activities on Wednesday, August 28th and Thursday the 29th at the St. Croix Educational Complex that are centered on gaining a deeper understanding and continued implementation of the Common Core State Standards, during a two-day Everything Common Core Conference on the theme “Getting to the Core.”
Over the upcoming year, the district will be focused on "Getting to the Core" of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and on implementing best practices to prepare our students for the next grade level, college, and careers. The CCSS are curriculum and instruction standards that have been adopted by the Virgin Islands Department of Education as well as by forty-five states, the District of Columbia, and other territories. These standards provide a coherent delineation of what students should know and be able to do as they progress from one grade level to another and prepare for college and careers.
Educators are scheduled to participate in the upcoming conference as follows:
August 28th – Elementary educational staff and administrators
August 29th – Secondary educational staff and administrators and all school counselors
Each day registration begins at 7:30 a.m. with the opening and general session to commence at7:55 a.m. Workshops will span until 4:15 p.m. daily.
Attendees will have the opportunity to communicate, collaborate, and learn with colleagues both from the public and private sectors and to provide input on strategies for actualizing continued mastery of the standards. The core conference presenters are all certified in the Common Core State Standards--some in mathematics and others in English language arts. Additional presenters bring a wealth of knowledge on best practices and available resources that when used strategically will improve teacher and leader effectiveness, academic achievement, and positive school cultures.
Included in this year’s conference is keynote speaker Stephen Peters. Stephen has over 32 years in education and has been a classroom teacher, assistant principal, principal and director of secondary education. Most of his experiences have been in schools that made significant growth in short periods of time thus, resulting in both National and State Blue-Ribbon distinction. He is the founder of the nationally recognized Gentlemen’s & Ladies Club programs, which provide options for thousands of at-risk and honor students throughout the United States. Stephen is currently CEO and President of The Peters Group, a national education consulting company.
Stephen has served on panels as an education expert with former U.S. Secretary of Education, Dr. Rod Paige in Washington, D.C. His mentoring and self-empowering program, The Gentlemen’s Club, has been featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show as well as on “America, America,” which broadcasts to two million viewers in Portugal and Brazil.
For more information, contact Cheryl Willocks, Director of Curriculum and Instruction at 340-778-1600.
