| Mentee Name and Project Name | Project Descriptions |
|---|---|
| Arellano, Veronica
Brazelton Touchpoints |
Staff will learn about Touch Point principles and parent assumptions. Staff will work towards strengthening their relationship with children and families. Families will feel valued and supported as they enter our Head Start Program. |
| Boer, Debbie and Gore, Linda Paraeducator Recruitment Video |
Our project is to design and develop a 3-4 minute short-form video representing the importance of the Paraeducator position in a special education classroom. The video content will give a realistic, honest appraisal of the duties involved, as we serve the students with the most severe disabilities. The intent is to improve Paraeducator hiring and retention. This project supports Goal #5: SCCOE will be the premier employer in 番茄社区 with an organizational culture that supports employee success. |
| Brown, Angela and
Johnson, Carey MAP (My Action Plan) |
The purpose of our project
is to address a need for students in the Alternative Education Department
that has gone unmet. The department has been historically unsuccessful in
creating and consistently implementing an Individual Learning Plan (ILP)
that addresses the unique needs of our students as a result of their varying
and substantial needs. In addition, we are in the process of applying for
accreditation through the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC)
and an ILP supports the area of Student Personal and Academic Growth. We created an Individualized Learning Plan (ILP) called the MAP (My Action Plan) that refocuses students on academics and gets them back on track educationally. It also assists them with creating a one-on-one relationship with a caring adult that they may be lacking. The MAP is being piloted at both a community and institutional school. At least 65 students now have a MAP and an academic plan for their future in high school and beyond. |
| Gamboa, Sylvia and
Gonzalez, Chriselda Head Start Legal Document Procedure |
Our project is to develop a Head Start Legal Document Procedure for all staff. As Family Advocates of the Head Start program we are responsible for creating and maintaining all children抯 files. Our current intake process does not have anything in place as to how to address or forward key information regarding any legal documents. Our focus is to establish a working procedure that will help address and identify children that are dependents of the court, restraining orders, custody orders and or any other legal documents that may arise. The development of this procedure will be for all staff and will allow staff to feel competent in the execution of their everyday work. The children抯 files will then be identified so that in the event of any emergency, staff can then proceed with proper follow up. Within the development of this procedure there will be a consistent collaboration with Social Services to help address the needs of every child and most importantly their safety and wellbeing. |
| Green, Trish Sign Language and Literacy: Tools for Parents |
My project is to create a
website for the parents and family of SCCOE students in the Deaf/Hard of
Hearing (DHOH) Program. The SCCOE DHOH program uses Total Communication with
spoken English and a manually coded sign language system (Signed Exact
English or SEE). SEE helps to promote the development of English language
and literacy skills. It is not American Sign Language (ASL) which is its own
distinct language with its own grammatical structure. SEE retains the
structure of English. There are many web-based ASL resources, but few SEE
resources.
The website will feature videos of adults reading and signing children抯 books. Parents may view the website to learn new sign vocabulary, develop their own receptive sign language skills, and learn how to incorporate sign language into story time with their children. |
| Kirk, Kelly Identification of New Strategies to Support Site Observation Practices for TA Providers
|
California invests $550 million in Out-of-School-Time (OST) programs each year. ASAPconnect supports OST Technical Assistance (TA) Providers who provide professional development to staff at these sites. In 番茄社区 alone, TA Providers support 130+ OST programs operating on our school campuses. TA Providers often conduct site visits to check the quality of programs, ensure compliance to mandated policies, and for a variety of other reasons. Using the Instructional Rounds Approach, which is currently being implemented in some SCCOE districts during the core-day, I am learning how the OST field can better align with SCCOE initiatives, as well as with core-day best practices. I would like to offer the OST field some suggestions on how to improve the quality of information we collect during site visits. If quality information is collected, targeted professional development for staff can be provided, which in turn improves the quality of programs for our students. |
| Magana, Judy Bullying Prevention & Awareness |
I am working on Bullying Prevention and Awareness alongside another SCCOE department (Educational Services- CSH Outreach Specialist, Myrna Zendejas, Student Health & Safety) as part of a grant awarded to Gilroy Unified School District (GUSD). Together we form part of a district team that will support GUSD as they adopt and implement the Olweus Bully Prevention program across five school sites (two middle schools, one alternative, two elementary). I'm taking on the parent and community component and my role is to provide parent presentations at local parent committees to build awareness on the topic of bullying and the Olweus program which would also include South County Head Start sites. |
| Maloney, Ron Students on Roster
|
This project is an attempt to uncover the various reasons as to why county students located on a district site cannot be placed on that site's computer base roster. The term, "On roster" means that students are placed in a computerized list with an identification number. Being on this list allows district and site to track student grades, contact parents more efficiently, produce report cards, schedule courses, and pay for meals at school electronically. Our county students do not have this kind of access. Scheduling into classes is accomplished when I, their teacher, knock on the doors of general education teachers and request that my students be included in their class. My students do not have the same identification number as the district students, but are given dummy numbers so they can pay for meals electronically. My students do attend, participate in, and complete assignments in general education classes, but cannot be given a grade because they are not included in the grade book. So, this project is about uncovering why our students are being denied this access and how we can change this for the better. |
| Mosunic, Marko DBAS MasterClass |
MasterClass provides a safe and professional environment for every employee and participant. The Spark instant messenger client was implemented concurrently with the start of MasterClass to help bridge the communication gap between employees. DBAS MasterClass gives everyone an opportunity to get a better understanding of communication styles of individuals within the department. Once the class is completed, the department will be able to effectively communicate messages efficiently and effectively to every member in DBAS. |
| Paeste, Marjorie Let抯 talk Solar! Solar Savings for the COE |
The goal of my project is
to explore alternative cost-saving avenues for the 番茄社区 Office
of Education.
Over the past four years, education funding has seen unprecedented cuts, which resulted in several program reductions. Installing a solar system may be one way to mitigate funding short-falls by decreasing overhead costs and increasing general fund savings. This endeavor may also champion environmental stewardship and align some of our cost-saving efforts with the districts that we serve, as a number of them have already installed solar panels at their sites. In my project, I will present survey results conducted with members of the SCCOE organization, as well as a quick overview of a feasibility study done by a reputable vendor. |
| Parra, Ruby Migrant Education Resources Wiki Site |
My project focuses on creating a Wiki website that will provide information on the different community services accessible to our migrant families in all six counties covered by Migrant Education Region 1. This will facilitate the collaboration and the sharing of resources in the different counties. This information will be accessible to our migrant families and staff. Some of the resources that are crucial for migrant students educational success are educational continuity, health services, food, housing and clothing just to mention a few. The Wiki will provide the different community agencies that can assist with those needs. The wiki will be an ongoing project as districts input and update available resources. |
| Ramnath, Padma Information Booklet on Common Core State Standards (CCSS) |
My project is to create a user friendly booklet on Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for a pilot group of district teachers by June 2013 to help them understand the shift from CA state content standards to CCSS. This booklet will include some resources that can be used by teachers to apply to their current teaching practices in order to make the shift to CCSS. This booklet will serve as a quick look up guide to better understand the CCSS. |
| Smith, Louis The Whole Child Initiatives |
My project focuses on the implementation of the Whole Child Grant Initiatives within Odyssey Community School (Grant is from ASCD.) Our vision is in educating the whole child with the help of educators, families, and community members, students in working together to create a sustainable and collaborative school. As a team our school we will focus on Healthy and Safe Initiatives which are two of the six initiatives listed on the grant. We know it will require the entire community to implement the initiatives and seek to include our community to help us with following through with the grant requirements. |
| Vasquez, Lisa Integrating Math Into Everyday-A Family Involvement Pilot Project |
The focus of my project is to support school readiness through delivery of Early Childhood Education and Family involvement. This will be achieved by providing a series of trainings for parents at their child's site at a convenient time for optimal participation. The parents will have an increased understanding of developmentally appropriate activities in the area of Emerging Math as the trainings will focus on six mathematical skills that children learn through play. The parents will come away with tips and math activities to create learning opportunities in the home. Information will be provided in English and Spanish to represent the languages present in the State Preschool/Head Start Program. A pre training survey will be provided to gather data on current habits in the home environment in regards to early math and a post training survey will be given to document any changes in those habits. Desired Results Developmental Profile data will also document children's growth in the area of mathematics. These series of trainings will align with current research and support State Preschool/Head Start program goals. |
| Vuong, Frances Raising the Assessment Score on Language and Literacy for Quality Preschool |
My project is to implement a tool called "Early Language & Literacy Classroom Observation" known as (ELLCO) to help improve quality in the classroom as well as student performance by doing a pre and post observation during the beginning and end of the school year in the State Preschool Program. |
| Wonch, Melisa Analyzing Business Services |
I am examining the systems within Business Services, specifically in internal services, to look for ways we can improve efficiency and communication through surveys and interviews. A report will be presented to the Chief Business Officer for review. |