|
Welcome to Dateline!
Greetings!
Welcome to the February 2013 issue of Dateline. This informative newsletter is for all those in Contra Costa County who work in education. Please tell your fellow teachers and administrators, as well as your friends who would be interested in joining our mailing list ( click here, or the link button at the left column).
|
Professional Development / Opportunities
|
|
3rd Annual CCCOE STEAM Colloquium
|
Full STEAM Ahead: Pathways to the Future is the title of the 3rd Annual CCCOE STEAM Colloquium, which is a forum to discuss and share best practices in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) education. Participants will include STEAM educators, business leaders, and community organizations. The colloquium will feature outstanding breakout sessions and keynote speakers.
|
Contra Costa Public Information Network (CCPIN)
|
Social Media for Public Agencies: The Update Beyond Your Status Updates will be the topic of the next CCCPIN meeting. The guest speakers of this insightful program will be Liz Payne, multimedia producer, City of Walnut Creek and Isa Polt-Jones, public information representative, East Bay Regional Park.
Date and location: February 7, 10:00 a.m.-Noon; CCCOE, Pleasant Hill
For info and RSVP: Contact Peggy Marshburn at (925)-942-3420, visit this Web page for flyer
Fee: Free
|
2013 East Bay Business and Education Leadership Summit
|
The East Bay Business and Education Leadership Summit will focus on increasing the region's ability to supply skilled workers through purposeful alignment of high-school transformation strategies with post-secondary education and training that links learning to the East Bay economy in high-wage, high-skill, high-demand sectors. Learn about the thriving systems that are preparing students for success in the STEM workplace and build connections between education, workforce development, and the economy to enable our region--and the state--to have a more competitive global presence
Date and location: February 27, 7:15 a.m.-4:00 p.m.; Hilton Concord
For info: Visit their website
Fee: Free
|
Digital Citizenship Webinar Series
|
A webinar series, produced in partnership by the CCCOE, AT&T, and Region IV CTAP, will cover the issues surrounding digital citizenship. These presentations are directed to school-district or school-site administrators, teacher leaders, and technology managers. The one-hour sessions are presented by nationally recognized guest speakers, representing such services as NetSmartz and Common Sense Media. Each webinar will leave time for questions from the participants.
|
The Distinguished Speaker Series
|
This month's Distinguished Speaker Series keynote presenter will be Calvin Terrell, a nationally known consultant on preventing bullying and violence in our schools: How to Create a Learning Culture in the classroom. In addition, there will be various breakout sessions to choose from.
Dates and location: February 23, 8:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m.; Saint Mary's College, Moraga
For info: Contact Laurie Aguirre at 925-631-4936, or visit their website
Fee: $65; Graduate academic semester units are available for a special rate of $165/unit (maximum of six units per year).
|
Alcohol, Tobacco & Other Drugs & the Adolescent Brain
|
|
Upcoming Events / Field Trips |
It Takes a Community! Education Summit
|
Students in grades 7-12 are invited to It Takes a Community! Education Summit. This event is for first-generation African American, Latino, Asian American, Native American, Pacific Islander Students and their families and will include workshops on STEM careers, preparing for college financial aid, and more
For info: Call (510) 885-3516 or visit their website
|
Contra Costa Science and Engineering Fair
(volunteer judges needed)
|
|
High School Mock Trials (Law Professional volunteers needed)
|
The CCCOE is looking for additional members of the California Bar Association and second- and third-year law students to serve as scorers and judges at the upcoming 32nd Annual Contra Costa County Mock Trial Program. New volunteers will be joining more than 100 practicing and retired Bay Area lawyers, district attorneys, public defenders, and judges, as well as Bay Area college law students, who will be returning as Mock Trial scorers and judges.
Dates and locations: February 5, 7, 12, 14, 19, 21, and 26, 5:00-7:30 p.m.; Martinez courthouses
|
Contra Costa County Science & Engineering Fair
|
The 2013 Contra Costa County Science & Engineering Fair welcomes all to attend and view numerous projects submitted this year by county middle- and high-school students. Attendees can observe the presentations and experiments up close, as well as talk to the students who entered them.
Date and location: March 17; 10:30-11:30 a.m.; Los Medanos College, (Science Building), Pittsburg
For info: Contact Liz Ritchie at (925) 684-4995 or visit the Science & Engineering Fair's website
Fee: Free
|
The 10th Annual Get Real Academy
|
The 10th Annual Get Real Academy, presented by Soroptimist International, is a life-skills conference for high school senior girls focusing on life after high school. Seminars throughout the day will include such topics as money management, women's health, domestic and workplace violence issues, insurance, career success, and job search tips. Sign-ups are now being taken.
Date and location: March 1, 8:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.; Embassy Suites, Walnut Creek
Deadline: February 13
Fee: Free
|
Emergency Shelter-in-Place Preparedness Grants
|
The Contra Costa County Community Awareness and Emergency Response (CAER) provides up to $2,000 grants to improve the preparedness of Contra Costa County schools and agencies in responding effectively to shelter-in-place emergencies. The proposed drills and exercises must have a stated list of objectives and goals that must be addressed.
For info: Contact Lori McDonald at (925) 313-9296 or visit CAER's
website
Deadline: February 11 (extended)
|
The Captain Planet Foundation
|
The Captain Planet Foundation funds grants to promote understanding of environmental issues for school-age children. Grant amounts range from $250-$2500, with applications reviewed three times a year.
Next Deadline: February 28
For info: Visit their website
|
Healthy and Sustainable School Food Journalism Awards
|
Together with prize-winning journalist Michael Pollan, the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, and Alice Waters of the Edible Schoolyard Project, the Earth Day Network food journalism competition seeks to mobilize a healthy school movement across the nation. Articles submitted for its competition must focus on the benefits of and best practices that advance the goal of healthy and sustainable school food.
First prize: $1,500. Second prize: $1,000. Third prize $500. Fourth Prize (x3): $300. Plus, $200 for your journalism class and the opportunity to have your work publicized on our websites and through our extensive networks.
For info: Visit their website
Deadline: February 28
|
Fourth Annual First Amendment Cartoon Contest
|
Join the Judiciary of California and Constitutional Rights Foundation in celebrating the Bill of Rights with the Fourth Annual First Amendment Cartoon Contest. The contest is open to K-12 students nationwide. Six winners will each receive a $50 gift certificate. In addition, up to five entries will receive honorable mentions. Winners and honorable mentions will be announced on Law Day, May 1, 2013.
|
Fifth Grade Story Contest
|
The Berkeley Branch of the California Writers Club will once again sponsor the 27th Annual Fifth Grade Story Contest. Current fifth-grade students attending schools in Contra Costa or Alameda counties are eligible to compete for a number of cash prizes.
For info: Contact the Berkeley Branch of the California Writers Club via email or visit their website
Deadlines: March 15
Fee: $1 per submission, only one submission per student
|
|
Respect Others' Opinions - The Choose Civility Principle for February
|
"If all mankind minus one were of one opinion, and only one person were of contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind."
-- John Stuart Mill
"Respecting others' opinions is part of a larger attitude of respect - respect for the whole person. Respect for opinions is not an easy art at all. It requires self-esteem, self-control, sensitivity, tolerance, fairness, and generosity. It applies both to stated opinions and to opinions that are left unspoken."
There are two ways to show disrespect for others on account of what they think. One is to tell them their opinions are crazy, stupid, worthless... The other is to assume that what we think must be what they think also. Respecting others' opinions doesn't mean being untrue to our own. It simply requires us to recognize that others are entitled to look at the world differently, and when they share their views they can expect a fair hearing.
Present your opinions as just opinions, rather than transcendental truths. Invite feedback. Ask "What do you think?" Make room for disagreement. You may learn something by listening to an opposing view. There are forms of qualified disagreement, which in most circumstances are preferable to absolute disagreement. If, however, the opinion in question is repugnant to you, feel free to reject it outright: "I'm sorry, I believe this is wrong"; "You know, this really goes against my principles." You are entitled to your preferences, but others are also entitled to hear them expressed in a civil way.
Excerpt from P.M. Forni's book, Choosing Civility
About CCCOE's Monthly Focus
Choosing Civility, by Dr. P.M. Forni, lists twenty-five rules of considerate conduct. Over this school year, the CCCOE will consider ten of these principles. For additional information about our Choose Civility initiative, please visit our website.
|
Published by the Contra Costa County Office of Education Communications Office77 Santa Barbara Road, Pleasant Hill, California 94523Joseph A. Ovick, Ed.D., Superintendent of SchoolsEditor: Peggy Marshburn; Writer/Layout: Jonathan Lance, (925) 942-3429;Diane Morrell, Designer; June Stephens, Web Developer Dateline is distributed during the school year to all public schools in the county by the Communications Office. Information must be received by the first of the preceding month. Publication does not signify the Contra Costa County Office of Education endorses the event or program mentioned. Sincerely,
Jonathan Lance CCCOE
|
|
|