February, 2016 
Quick Links...
Friends to Friends
 

"Our school was voted "best business to work for" in the ALT magazine out of Texarkana! I'm so proud and attribute that to Friends of Texas Public Schools and the work of our Ambassadors. Please share with Leslie and Jane.  We are in the top 5 in another community publication called 4 States Living. Just how awesome is that????? Thank you for making such a difference in our school!"

Kathy Allen, Superintendent
Redwater ISD

Do you have good news to share?  We would love to hear about it and share with our Friends.  Send us an email at smilder@fotps.org.

 
 
Share the great news about public education by adding the FOTPS logo to your webpage and social media.


School districts can piggyback on money-saving contracts available through two national cooperative purchasing programs under one roof, The Keystone Purchasing Network andPEPPM Technology Bidding and Purchasing Program.  Both programs advertise and solicit sealed bids, which are awarded to the most responsive and responsible bidders.  The result is higher quality at lower prices.

We are thrilled to report 187 districts have joined the network. 


Network membership is $300 for the school year. If your district is not listed and you'd like to be a part of the Friends Network send us an email and let us know.  


Want to help out Friends of Texas Public Schools?


When you shop on Amazon, go to www.smile.amazon.com and log in as you normally do. Amazon will donate a percentage of your purchase to Friends of Texas Public Schools when you select us as your charity of choice.

DK Haney Roofing is a certified TIPS and TXMAS vendor dedicated to helping schools get roofing projects done. Schools have been our specialty for 23 years, so we can help you navigate insurance claims and board approvals. Our state-of-the-art roof management portal provides instant access to all your roofs and reports. Call 866-379-4846. 
Raise Your Army of Ambassadors
photo by Dr. Diane Frost

Training the 600,000+ people who work in our schools to step up as ambassadors for themselves, their students, and their schools is the most effective long-term strategy for restoring the public's confidence in public education and neutralizing the destructive rhetoric leveled against Texas public schools.
 
Ambassador program participants gain actionable strategies for raising morale, strengthening the culture of brotherhood, and restoring public pride, hope, optimism and confidence in their schools. 
 
Contact Leslie Milder at lmilder@fotps.org, or by phone at 214-498-7680 to get started.
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Message to Texas Educators from Bret Champion, Superintendent, Leander ISD
 


My name is Bret Champion, and I'm the proud superintendent of schools for Leander ISD. Election season is upon us, and today, I'm challenging Texas teachers and all of us in education to exercise our right to vote. 
 
I encourage you not to take this precious right for granted. While many of us may not give it a second thought, in other parts of the world where democracies are teetering on the edges of chaos and violence, the majority of citizens will literally risk their lives to exercise that right to vote. 
 
Take a look at the attached link for a moving tribute written by Leslie Milder with Friends of Texas Public Schools. The story about her cousin, Sgt. Nick, and it's a humbling reminder of the freedoms our soldiers are fighting for and the importance of voting in a democracy. 
 
Here in Texas, voter turnout in the 2014 November election was just 38 percent. I believe we can do better! As educators, it is our civic responsibility to not only teach our students about our republic, but also to model our own commitment to the process by casting our votes in local, state and national elections. And as one of the largest voting blocs in Texas, the power to shape the future is in our hands... if we vote. 
 
So, let's be good examples to our students and to our friends and to our neighbors. Let's Go Vote. You can help spread the word with the hashtag #TexEdVotes. 
 
And remember: Primary Election Day is March 1. Then there are some elections in May, and of course a big election in November. 
 
Come on, Texas. Let's vote!  Thank you. Have a great day.

Texas Schools Meet and Exceed State Standards

Texas public school students and educators continue to meet and exceed the standards established by the state legislature. Results for the 2014-15 school years show 96% of public school districts earned the Met Standard rating, which is the highest rating in the state's accountability system.  Only 4% of our public schools earned the Improvement Requirement rating. By comparison, 70% of charter schools in Texas earned the Met Standard rating. An additional 16% of charter schools met the alternative standard, which is a rating option not available to the public schools, leaving 8% of charters with the Improvement Required rating.
"The state frequently changes its expectations for our public schools in an effort to catch them off guard and paint them as failures, but it just doesn't work. Our educators are professionals and they continue to meet and exceed the state's standards game each and every year," said Scott Milder, Found and CEO, Friends of Texas Public Schools. "They also consistently outperform the charter schools of Texas."
Final school district ratings (including charter operators) by category in 2015 are as follows:

Summit On Deeper Learning Event

DATE:     March 22, 2016
 TIME:      8:30am to 3:30pm
LOCATION:     Alief Independent School District, 
4250 Cook Road, Houston, TX 77072

MIND Research Institute (www.mindresearch.org) in partnership with Friends of Texas Public Schools (www.fotps.org) will host a 1-day education summit for district and school education leaders on relevant topics including the science of deeper learning, the myths of assessment and the impact of social and emotional learning to engage learners. The outcome is to bring about a mindset of growth and opportunity for districts to build upon their knowledge and apply best practices within their schools and districts.

The summit will build upon the science of deeper learning and how to achieve success within our districts, schools, classrooms and communities. The first step in the process is to understand and develop the learner, then understanding the culture and climate to support quality teaching and learning for academic success.



A Focus on Thought Leadership - Keynote Speakers

keethKeeth Matheny, speaker, author and content expert on Social and Emotional Learning will highlight key components for engaging learners through grit, perseverance and struggle. He is a national model SEL teacher and frequent public speaker and keynote on social and emotional learning, student engagement and character education.

JohnJohn Tanner, an expert at understanding the unintended consequences of school accountability and adept at explaining what schools need to do to be great, will speak on the myths of teaching to the test and how we must focus on teaching and learning through quality instruction.

MathewDr. Matthew Peterson, Co-founder and Senior Scientist at the MIND Research Institute will address the science of deeper learning. Dr. Peterson shares insights on how our brains learn and how to create active learning environments that encourage deeper learning and foster student success in the 21st century.

LeslieLeslie Milder, Co-Founder of Friends of Texas Public Schools, educator and author of Hello My Name is Public School, visits districts throughout Texas sharing the mission and beliefs educators must have to create a climate required for deeper learning. This begins with helping organization's build purpose and strengthen the culture for promoting confidence in public education.

REGISTER ONLINE
Meet the New FOTPS Board Member
 

David Baldner has been involved in education for over 33 years serving as a teacher, campus administrator - assistant principal and principal, central office administrator with supervision of elementary campuses and Title I funding, and then as an administrator of regional service centers in both Houston and then Lubbock.  

David's involvement in strategic planning began in 1990 and continued both at the campus, district, and regional level. He has had training in several models for strategic planning (DuPont, TQM, Arthur Anderson, and Cambridge)  He is a current member of American Society for Quality Training with experience in quality awards such as Award for Performance Excellence - Texas, the Baldrige Award (serving as an examiner) as well as training in ISO 2001.  He has been involved with the Quality community in both the public and private sectors. David currently has two ventures:  a strategic planning firm called "Blueprint for the Future;" and, working with MWM Architects Inc in Lubbock, Texas in business development. 

David's wife, Cindy Baldner, is a teacher and has been in the classroom for 30 years.  David and Cindy have two children, Sarah and Philip, both 2010 graduates from the public school system (Frenship ISD - Lubbock, Texas).
Advertise with Friends!

With more than a million hits annually on our website and more than 22,000 e-news subscribers, we are pleased to offer advertising and sponsorship opportunities available to organizations wishing to reach school leaders across Texas who support Friends of Texas Public Schools. 

For information on getting your organization's message out to Friends of Texas Public Schools followers and readers, please email Scott Milder at smilder@fotps.org.