After the Student Town Hall Forum...

After last Thursday evening, I was left with only one overwhelming feeling: amazement. The First Annual CCPS Student Town Hall Forum had fifty participants from all middle and high schools of Calvert County Public Schools. 50! Fifty students with fifty unique identities and educational experiences. Fifty voices contributing something different to our overall conversation of how the school system can work to ensure the success of all students.

The Student Town Hall Forum was developed by the Superintendent of Schools, the Student Advisory Council, and myself with the goal of creating a forum for evaluation of the educational programs of Calvert County Public Schools that doesn't involve testing, as we've noted time and time again that standardized testing is not indicative of the many talents and strengths of a unique group of students. Our participants commented on a number of topics pertaining to student life, such as integration of technology, earning college credits in high school, and the ability of the Code of Conduct to address current student issues. Your voice has positively impacted the future development of programs sponsored by Calvert County Public Schools.

The Student Town Hall Forum wasn't incredibly costly or require a hefty amount of hours to coordinate, but it's such a great example of how a common goal can be achieved when it truly means a lot to those involved. I'm thankful to the Student Advisory Council, Dr. Curry, the other members of the Board of Education, and so many other members of the CCPS community for making student advocacy a priority. I'm also extremely hopeful that this event was just one of many efforts that CCPS and its immediate community will take to ensure that student voice is at the forefront of decisions that influence our future.

Check out The Calvert Recorder's front page headline for the Wednesday the 23rd edition for some fantastic coverage of The Student Town Hall Forum by Andrew Cephas!

Congratulations to the new SMOB-elect...

On February 25th, the Calvert Association of Student Councils elected the Student Member on the Board of Education for the 2016-2017 school year. Lucie Roach is a sophomore at Huntingtown High School, and I'm excited to see the work she will do for students of CCPS in the next year. Below is a message from Lucie!

Hi I’m Lucie! 

After a long stressful day and three rounds of voting on February 25th, I was elected to be the next Calvert County Student Member of the Board of Education for the 2016-2017 school year. I’m a sophomore at Huntingtown High and I really excited to be your SMOB.  Let me tell you a little about myself, I’m crazy about my goats, I love singing and the performing arts, and I’m super into medicine and politics. My main goal as SMOB is to get either partial or full voting rights, so I and the future SMOBs of Calvert County have an even bigger voice and representation of the students! I’ve already talked to our superintendent, Dr. Curry, about it and we could be on our way to getting some sort of voting rights once we look into the fine print some more.  I’m also looking forward to working with the Student Advisory Council to build a more diverse and active group of students that will work with Dr. Curry and the BOE to create events and activities to get students involved in fixing the issues of our county. 

I have a lot of ideas and goals to better our educational experience and I can’t wait to work with each and every one of you! 

Your 2016 – 2017 Student Member of the Board of Education,

Lucie Roach

If you have any questions or comments feel free to contact me!

lucieroachcs@gmail.com

443-684-0462

StAC Member Spotlight: Nick

We will be posting introductions of this year's Student Advisory Council members so everyone can get to know us! This message comes from Nicholas Schmitz, the Legislative Affairs Director.

My name is Nicholas Schmitz, your StAC Legislative Affairs Director. I also serve students as President of the Calvert Association of Student Councils. I hope the position of Legislative Affairs Director will come up with legislative positions in which the StAC will influence the Board of Education's policy statements and political positions. This position must work to ensure knowledge on decisions of the Maryland General Assembly as well as legislation that impacts Calvert County Public Schools, its employees and students. This can be accomplished through legislative research and a thorough understanding of CCPS political decisions, which must be achieved to allow for students to have a voice in their education; which is the goal of student advocacy. 

StAC Member Spotlight: Yavor

We will be posting introductions of this year's Student Advisory Council members so everyone can get to know us! This message comes from Yavor Gray, Regional Deputy of PPMS!

As a StAC member, I can honestly say that this organization is a positive environment for students! My role as a part of StAC is the Regional Deputy of Plum Point Middle School. I am a voice for the students of PPMS. I enjoy working with my peers to improve the student environment.

There is so much to be learned and experiences that you just can't find everywhere. I am glad to be a part of something great that I know will teach me many valuable life lessons. 

StAC Member Spotlight: Tony

We will be posting introductions of this year's Student Advisory Council members so everyone can get to know us! This message comes from Tony Proulx, the Senior Advisor of Technology

Hello everyone.

First I would like to say thanks for coming to this corner of the internet. I hope to see some of these viewers at a StAC meeting, which is always open to everyone.

So, my name is Tony Proulx and I am the Senior Advisor of Technology. My job is to look out for any technical or other electronic issues and come up with solutions for them. This is a very important position as we are faced in society today with the “Information Age.” The term comes from the fact of a digital society exists in the USA and most of us deal with electronics in our daily lives.

For example, in a typical classroom nowadays, a teacher usually uses a SMART Board for a lesson. Students could be exploring or doing work using Smartphones or computers. Office 365 offers students ability to complete assignments anywhere with an internet connection and to use Microsoft Office even if they do not have it. Using this, teachers can now grade using the computer and not bring home hundreds or thousands of papers. The one-to-one computers, like at MCMS, all offer students to take home laptops and do their work through it. These are just a few ways that tech is used today.

The students are the ones who are “in charge,” not the adults. Without students, the school system could not survive. So, advocacy is needed to help learn how students learn best. In order to take action, there has to be a voice which delivers the problem. Contact me at proulxt3@gmail.com with any comments on anything electronic based (Agile Mind, Office 365, one-to-one computers, tablets, paperless report cards & Interims, etc.). I will happily compile them and see what students need in this field and we the students can take action to solve issues.

Keep Calm and Speak Your Opinion. This is Tony logging out…

StAC Member Spotlight: Ashley

We will be posting introductions of this year's Student Advisory Council members so everyone can get to know us! This message comes from Ashley Anderson, the Regional Deputy of Huntingtown High School.

My name is Ashley, I am a freshman at Huntingtown High and I am the Regional Deputy from Huntingtown. My job is to help the communications department and spread the word at Huntingtown of the things that StAC does. This year my job is to spread the word of the start of StAC and our town hall meeting coming up on March 17th. 

  Next year, I want to start having once a month meetings with the students at Huntingtown to get feedback from them about what they want to see StAC do and what they want to see the SMOB do. I am available by email at ashleyand2000@gmail.com if you have further questions or suggestions for anything you want to see happen. 

Student Town Hall Forum

Hey, Alexya here!

The Student Advisory Council is hosting the first annual Student Town Hall Forum on March 17th, 2016 from 7 to 8:30pm at the Central Office!

You're probably wondering, what is a Student Town Hall Forum? Read below for some information on what it is and how to get involved!

Who is the Student Advisory Council?

The Student Advisory Council (StAC) is a “committee” of middle & high school students from CCPS that advise the Student Member of the Board of Education and Superintendent of Schools on issues pertinent to the success of all students in our community. This is StAC’s first year in existence!

What is a Student Town Hall Forum?

The Student Town Hall Forum is an opportunity for CCPS students to have a discussion with the professionals that develop educational curriculum and programs that directly affect your learning and experiences as a student. For the event, roundtable discussions will be set up where you can ask and answer questions with a CCPS professional and other students in your level (middle or high school) in a small group.

What might I be asked?

Bring an open mind and willingness to speak about your unique experiences in school. You may be asked about the novels you read in English class, or how prepared you feel for college. Everything you say is valuable and will be taken into consideration for how to best educate our students.

What is the goal of the Student Town Hall Forum?

The Student Town Hall Forum has a few main goals, including

* Establishing an annual event to solicit student feedback on educational programs

* Encourage leadership and a culture of conversation in our countywide community

* Provide another measure of evaluation of programs other than testing

Please be sure to sign up with your counselor so that we may reserve your spot as one of your school’s Representatives. The address of the Brooks Administration Building is

1305 Dares Beach Rd.

Prince Frederick, MD 20678

If you have any other questions or need to cancel your reservation for the event, please send an email to Alexya Brown at SMOB@calvertnet.k12.md.us. We look forward to having a successful Student Town Hall Forum, and hopefully many more for the years to come!