Pasco-Hernando Community College gets grant
Pasco-Hernando Community College has received an Adult Education Career Pathways Grant for $243,410. The grant’s primary goal is to provide a clear set of educational steps that will give adult education students a direct educational path to jobs in the community.
Part of the project will emphasize how reading, writing and mathematics skills are used in the workplace.
The grant-supported program will run through June 2012.
Wesley Chapel rummage sale
The Wesley Chapel High Parent Teacher Student Association will have a rummage sale from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. on Nov. 5 at the corner of Old Pasco Road and Country Club Road.
Proceeds will benefit the school’s Assist Believe Care program to help those in need of a Thanksgiving meal and other assistance throughout the holidays.
East Pasco Retired Educators meet
The East Pasco Retired Educators Associations will meet at the IHOP Restaurant, 13100 US 301 in Dade City at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 20. All retired school personnel and friends are welcome. For more information call Joyce Snow, in Dade City at (352) 567-5050 or Joan Knowles in Zephyrhills (813) 788-4980.
Odessa Elementary events
Odessa Elementary is having a Bingo night from 6-8:30 p.m. in the cafeteria at the school, 1874 Ketzal Drive in New Port Richey.
Other upcoming events include a Red Ribbon week beginning Oct. 24, health screenings on Oct. 27 and a fall carnival from 5-8 p.m. on Nov. 4.
Sand Pine PTA fall festival
Sand Pine Elementary’s Parent Teacher Association will hold its fifth annual Fall Festival from 6-9 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 4, at the school.
The family friendly event will include food, games, prizes, a decorating contest and more. If you would like more information or are interested in volunteering, please email or contact Chrystal Mueller at (813) 794-1900.
Sand Pine Elementary School is located at 29040 County Line Road in Meadow Pointe.
SAT participation rates increase
The percentage of 2011 seniors in Hillsborough County public schools taking the SAT test increased 15 percent over the previous year.
The College Board, publisher of the SAT, reported that 9,071 district 12th graders took the SAT in 2010-2011, an increase of 1,207 students from 2009-2010 (7,864). This represents a 42 percent increase (an additional 2,688 students) over the number who participated five years ago.
GED graduates
Graduates who received GED diplomas were honored in the East Pasco County Graduation Ceremony on Aug. 25.
The 107 graduates represented students from Land O’ Lakes, Sunlake, Pasco, Wesley Chapel, Wiregrass Ranch and Zephyrhills high schools and also from Moore Mickens Education Center. They ranged in age from 16 to 57.
The ceremony was held at Pasco Schools Center for the Arts at Wesley Chapel.
Long-time adult education teacher Allen Sweet was honored posthumously and a scholarship fund was established in his memory. He was lauded as a dedicated and talented teacher who helped thousands of students during his career.
Rushe Family Fun Night
Charles S. Rushe Middle School will have a Family Fun Night from 4-9 p.m. at Extreme Adventures on SR 54. Proceeds from the event will be used by the Parent Teacher Student Association to benefit the school in various ways.
Safe walk to school day
All Children’s Hospital will sponsor a Walk to School day at Woodland Elementary on Wednesday, Oct. 5 in honor of International Walk to School Day.
These locations have been identified as a meeting place to help assist in staffing volunteers. Teachers, volunteers and All Children’s staff will be at Zephyrhills First Christian Church on the corner of North Ave and Eighth Street or Zephyrhills First Nazarene Church on the corner of Henry Dr. and 12th Street.
The focus of the event is to emphasize bicycle and pedestrian safety, physical activity, improving air quality and ensuring there is a safe, walkable community.
The groups will be walking in shifts, with the first group leaving at 9 a.m. and the last one leaving at 9:20 a.m.
All students that participate will receive a prize and refreshments.
Students all over the world will be participating in the same time in the international wall. For more information, visit www.walktoschool.org
ACT says college and career readiness improving
College and career reading improved slightly among ACT-tested U.S. high school graduates, according to ACT’s yearly report, The Condition of College & Career Readiness 2011.
The findings also reveal that there is still substantial room for improvement.
Test results show that 25 percent of graduates in the class of 2011 who took the ACT exam met or surpassed all four of the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks, suggesting they are ready to succeed academically in specific first-year college courses (English composition, college algebra, introductory social science and biology) without the need for remediation. This compares to 24 percent last year, marking the third consecutive year that overall college-and-career readiness has increased.
This year, 45 percent of test takers (compared to 43 percent last year) met or exceeded the ACT College Readiness Benchmark in math, while 30 percent (compared to 29 percent last year) met or exceeded the benchmark in science. In comparison, 66 percent and 52 percent met or surpassed the benchmarks in English and reading, respectively, both unchanged from last year.
Nearly three in 10 test takers (28 percent) in the 2011 graduate class failed to meet any of the four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks, unchanged from last year.
This year’s pool of ACT-tested graduates is the largest and most racially diverse in the 52-year history of the exam. More than 1.62 million 2011 graduates — 49 percent of the entire U.S. graduating class — took the ACT, an all-time record for the seventh year in a row. The proportion of African American and Hispanic/Latino test takers has grown from 19 percent in 2007 to a high of 26 percent in 2011.
