Governor Launches the Georgia S.H.A.P.E. Partnership

Governor Perdue also signs an Executive Order creating the Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness, Sports and Nutrition

Yesterday Governor Perdue announced the creation of the Georgia Student Health and Physical Education (SHAPE) Partnership, a public-private initiative that will launch a five-school system pilot program focused on fitness assessments in grades 1 – 12.

This partnership is the result of HB 229, signed by Governor Perdue during the 2009 legislative session, which focuses on student health and wellness by requiring all students in a physical education course to receive an annual fitness assessment.

“A big part of getting better in anything – school work, athletics or personal fitness – is knowing how you measure up and what you need to improve on,” said Governor Sonny Perdue. “The formula for a healthier Georgia starts with measuring fitness levels but it is sustained through healthy living choices.”

In June, the State Board of Education adopted the Fitnessgram program as the state’s physical fitness assessment tool. Five school systems were chosen to participate in this pilot program - Bibb, Hall, Gwinnett, Lowndes and White - before it goes statewide during the 2011-12 school year, as required by the SHAPE Act of 2009.

“Good nutritional and physical fitness habits help produce a more positive and well-rounded student in the classroom,” said State School Superintendent Brad Bryant. “We look forward to working with these five school systems to learn how to best implement this program statewide.”

The Georgia SHAPE Partnership includes the Governor’s Office, the Department of Education (DOE), the Division of Public Health within the Georgia Department of Community Health (DPH), the Georgia Children’s Health Alliance (GCHA) and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Each organization will play a role in providing training, centralizing data, rewards and recognition and creating a sustainable plan for long-term results. The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation has given a $130,000 grant to support the Georgia SHAPE Partnership and this pilot program.

“There is no greater cause than helping the children of our state become healthier and happier,” said Donna Hyland, President and CEO of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. “This is an important first step for the children and families of our state. Working with the SHAPE Partnership, we can begin to change the future for the next generation of Georgians.”

Governor Perdue also signed an Executive Order creating the Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness, Sports and Nutrition in conjunction with the Georgia SHAPE Partnership. The Council will consist of public and private experts who are charged with advising the executive branch in areas focused on health and wellness and obesity, while also ensuring the sustainability of programs like the Georgia SHAPE Partnership.

About Fitnessgram


Fitnessgram was created in 1982 by The Cooper Institute to provide an easy way for physical education teachers to report to parents on children's fitness levels. Then and now, students are assessed in these areas of health-related fitness: cardiovascular fitness, muscle strength, muscular endurance, flexibility, and body composition. Scores are evaluated against objective criterion-based standards, called Healthy Fitness Zone standards, that indicate the level of fitness necessary for health. Fitnessgram software generates the student and parent reports, which contain objective, personalized feedback and positive reinforcement. These reports serve as a communications link between teachers and parents.


The Healthy Fitness Zone standards were developed by The Fitnessgram Scientific Advisory Board, a team of scientists and practitioners who are experts in the field of health and fitness, based on extensive research on the relationship between fitness, activity, and health.

HHS Announces National Effort to Reshape and Raise Quality in Head Start Programs

Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced new proposed regulations that for the first time require lower performing Head Start programs to compete against other entities for continued funding. The proposed regulations will be implemented with a number of new training and technical assistance initiatives to help Head Start grantees meet higher standards.

Under the proposed rules, Head Start grantees will be required to compete for their grants if they fall short of quality benchmarks, including classroom instruction and health and safety standards as well as financial accountability and integrity. Among the factors that will be considered is a classroom assessment that was developed by researchers at the University of Virginia and has been validated through rigorous research.

"These new regulations represent an important step in raising the bar on quality in Head Start programs," HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said. "Head Start has a critical mission - to help vulnerable children achieve their full potential. It is a top priority for the Obama Administration to ensure that the program fulfills that mission by holding programs accountable for classroom quality and high standards of program integrity."

Under the proposed rule, at least 25 percent of grantees will be required to compete for funding. This proposal goes beyond a recommendation from an advisory committee convened in early 2008 that 15 to 20 percent of programs compete for funding. The Head Start proposed rule is consistent with the Administration's broad commitment to hold those that receive federal funding accountable and to use competition to ensure that only the highest quality entities receive federal funding.

HHS is also announcing this week, four new national training and technical assistance centers which will identify and disseminate evidence-based best practices to local Head Start programs. Head Start training and technical assistance centers will support Head Start programs to bring best practices into Head Start classrooms around the country, promoting continuous improvement and innovation at the ground level. HHS is also placing expert mentors/coaches in a number of Head Start programs across the country to provide on-the-ground training to teachers and program directors, to help them improve their classrooms. Further, 10 exceptional local Head Start programs, each nominated by the governor in its state, are being named as Centers of Excellence and will provide peer-to-peer technical assistance. A goal of all of these training and technical assistance initiatives is to help Head Start grantees meet the standards articulated in the proposed rule that is also being released today.

"These important reforms will directly benefit the children and families we serve," said David Hansell, Acting Assistant Secretary for Children and Families. "Head Start and Early Head Start serve nearly a million of our most vulnerable children during the critical first few years of cognitive and social development. Holding programs accountable for meeting quality standards, and providing the help grantees need to meet these standards, will ensure that programs provide a quality Head Start experience that children need to be successful in school and life."

"A renewed era of innovation, improvement and integrity in Head Start is here," Secretary Sebelius said. "Helping all children realize their dreams and potential will help us build tomorrow's workforce, strengthen our economy, and fulfill American's promise. Giving poor children and families the tools they need to succeed is in everyone's best interest."

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Atlanta Leaders Announce New Early Education Initiative

/PRNewswire/ -- After 18 months of study, the Early Education Commission (EEC) has issued strategic recommendations for improving access to quality early education for children ages zero to five across metro Atlanta, and ultimately the state.

The recommendations lay out a multi-year plan for assuring consistently high-quality early learning - with Georgia ultimately becoming a national leader in ensuring that children enter kindergarten ready to learn and on a path to "read to learn" by third grade. "Read to learn" refers to a reading skill level necessary for a third-grader to learn at an age-appropriate pace and become a successful student.

Stephanie Blank, Trustee of the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, will chair the governing board of the Georgia Coalition for Early Education (GCEE), a new, independent successor group to the EEC that will offer strategic assistance to existing providers, funders and stakeholders in early learning and care. A national search is being launched for an executive director of the coalition.

"The key to Georgia's future economic prosperity and social well-being lies in the care and education of our youngest children," said Ms. Blank, who served on the EEC. "There is ongoing advocacy and quality improvement work in metro Atlanta and the state: our goal is to move early learning to the top of the public agenda and broaden the scope and reach of those efforts."

Co-chaired by Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta CEO Dennis Lockhart and Spelman College President Beverly Daniel Tatum, Ph.D., the EEC assembled in the fall of 2008 to investigate the impact of early learning on the short- and long-term economic health of metro Atlanta. The commission learned from nationally renowned experts in the early education field, studied research, assessed the state of early learning in the metro area and state, and identified opportunities for improvement.

"It is essential that children be ready to learn when they enter kindergarten - we know brain development in a child's early years charts a course for success over a lifetime," said Dr. Tatum. "We also know that there is more to school readiness than being ready to read - social, emotional and other cognitive milestones are important, and the EEC's recommendations address all of those."

In addition to the neuroscience aspects of early childhood education, EEC members learned about the positive return on investment early intervention provides versus the exponential cost of remediation, and the importance quality centers and trained educators play in these outcomes.

Said Dennis Lockhart, "Beyond the intrinsic social value, investing in early education is just the smart thing to do. Research clearly shows that early interventions have better rates of return than do traditional economic development projects."

Consistent with the commission's recommendations, the GCEE will focus on four main areas:

-- Improve Quality - for both center-based and home-based early care and
education.
-- Enhance Parental involvement - supporting families with the tools and
resources needed to provide quality learning experiences.
-- Increase Public Awareness - to raise awareness of how quality early
learning experiences impact a child's long-term success.
-- Intensify Advocacy - for increased quality, accessibility and
affordability of early childhood care and education.

"This commission has recommended vital next steps that will significantly support and enhance ongoing efforts in our state," said Holly Robinson, Commissioner of Bright from the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning. "Helping parents identify and assure quality early education is critically important for their children and for Georgia. And Stephanie Blank is a brilliant choice as chair of the coalition; she is a greatly respected community leader who researches, understands and is devoted to this issue."

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HHS Accelerates Head Start Quality Improvements and Submits Impact Study on 2002-2003 Head Start Programs

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today announced plans to strengthen the Head Start and Early Head Start programs as part of an Administration-wide effort to close achievement gaps and promote early learning through the first eight years of life for the nation's most vulnerable children. These quality improvements respond to growing
evidence on what works in early learning policy and practice, and incorporates Congressional mandates from the 2007 reauthorization of the Head Start Act.

"Head Start is a key part of the Obama Administration's strategic focus on early learning," said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announcing the new initiative. "The program provides comprehensive education, health, nutrition and social services to low income children and families. "Still, for Head Start to achieve its full potential, we must improve its quality and promote high standards across all early childhood programs."

A Congressionally-mandated study on the impact of the 2002-2003 Head Start program was submitted to Congress on January 13, 2010. The study measured the cognitive and social/emotional development, health status and behavior of approximately five thousand 3 and 4 year olds who were randomly assigned to either a control group or a group that had access
to a Head Start program.

"These results make it clear that we need to build a more coordinated system of early care and education, and to focus on key improvements to teaching and learning in the early grades," said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. "Through our collaboration with our partners at
HHS, we have begun to tackle this challenge by identifying the key elements of high quality early learning programs, and studying what works to improve and sustain outcomes once children reach school."

The study showed that at the end of one program year, access to Head Start positively influenced children's school readiness. When measured again at the end of kindergarten and first grade, however, the Head Start children and the control group children were at the same level on
many of the measures studied.

"Research clearly shows that Head Start positively impacts the school readiness of low-income children. Now we must increase its effectiveness and continue to provide the support that our children, from birth to eight, need to prepare to succeed later in school and in life," Secretary Sebelius said. "The President has looked to HHS and the Department of Education to develop a coordinated and seamless plan to get children off to great starts, and to help families and
communities to break cycles of poverty."

To strengthen the impact of Head Start, HHS is in the process of:

* raising program performance standards
* increasing program accountability by only renewing grants for
high-quality, constantly improving programs
* improving classroom practices by providing higher quality training for
classroom teachers, staff and program directors and improving technical
assistance to grantees looking to improve their programs
* convening a research advisory committee to gather insights from the
Head Start Impact Study and other relevant research
* partnering with the Department of Education to collaborate with early
childhood education and ensuring continuity of quality programs

"Head Start has been changing lives for the better since its inception," said Assistant Secretary for Children and Families, Carmen R. Nazario. "Now we are raising the bar with the Head Start program to make sure it does all it can to expand children's vocabulary, develop math skills,
and help them engage with teachers and other children in ways that enrich their lives and prepare them for school and beyond. We will work to ensure that the advantages children gain in the program are sustained in the years ahead."

Nazario went on to explain how the Administration has begun to ramp up efforts to improve the quality of all early childhood programs, with a focus on those serving low income families. One key element to this integrated effort will involve the Early Learning Challenge Grant program now under consideration in Congress. The program, which would be administered jointly by HHS and the Department of Education, would challenge states to develop innovative models that promote high standards of quality in all early childhood settings - including Head Start, child care centers and public and private preschools. Funds would be granted to states already making progress on reform and excellence, allowing them to bring their models to scale. Grants would also go to states that show promise, but need additional assistance to launch a standards-based, outcomes-driven system.

Established in 1965, Head Start promotes school readiness for children in low income families by enhancing their social and cognitive development through educational, nutritional, health, social and other services. Head Start, and the more recently launched Early Head Start,
have provided services to 25 million children and currently serve nearly a million children each year.

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Updated Federal Guidelines for 2009 H1N1 Influenza in Schools Offer Many Options

Updated federal guidelines offer state and local public health and school officials a range of options for responding to 2009 H1N1 influenza in schools, depending on how severe the flu may be in their communities. The guidance says officials should balance the risk of flu in their communities with the disruption that school dismissals will cause in education and the wider community.

The guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was announced today at a joint news conference by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, and CDC Director Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., M.P.H.

The school guidance is a part of a broader national framework to respond to novel H1N1 influenza, which includes encouraging people to be vaccinated against the virus and to take other actions to avoid infection. The CDC anticipates more illness after the school year starts, because flu typically is transmitted more easily in the fall and winter.

``We’re going to continue to do everything possible to keep our children – and all Americans – healthy and safe this fall,’’ Secretary Sebelius said. ``But all Americans also have a part to play. The best way to prevent the spread of flu is vaccination. A seasonal flu vaccine is ready to go, and we should have one for the 2009 H1N1 flu by mid-October.’’

“The federal government continues to coordinate closely with state and local governments, school districts and the private sector on H1N1 preparation as we head into the fall flu season—and the upcoming school year,” said Secretary Napolitano. “Readiness for H1N1 is a shared responsibility, and the guidance released today provides communities with the tools they need to protect the health of their students and teachers.”

For an outbreak similar in severity to the spring 2009 H1N1 infection, the guidelines recommend basic good hygiene, such as hand washing. In addition, students or staff members with flu-like illness (showing symptoms of flu) should stay home at least 24 hours after fever symptoms have ended.

“We can all work to keep our children healthy now by practicing prevention, close monitoring, and using common sense,” Secretary Duncan said. “We hope no schools have to close. But if they do, we need to make sure that children keep learning.”

The guidelines also recommend schools have plans in place to deal with possible infection. For instance, people with flu-like illness should be sent to a room away from other people until they can be sent home. Schools should have plans for continuing the education of students who are at home, through phone calls, homework packets, Internet lessons and other approaches. And schools should have contingency plans to fill important positions such as school nurses.

If H1N1 flu causes higher rates of severe illness, hospitalizations and deaths, school officials could add to or intensify their responses, the guidelines say. Under these conditions, the guidelines advise parents to check their children every morning for illness, and keep the children home if they have a fever.

In addition, schools could begin actively screening students upon arrival and sending ill students home immediately. If one family member is ill, students should stay home for five days from the day the illness develops, the guidelines say.

“Influenza can be unpredictable, so preparation and planning are key,” said Dr. Frieden. “We can't stop the tide of flu, but we can reduce the number of people who become very ill by preparing well and acting effectively.”

For more information visit www.flu.gov.

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Georgia State Receives Grant to Educate Children about DNA’s “Language”

The National Institutes of Health has awarded Georgia State University with a three-year, $760,000 grant to help educate Georgia’s K-12 students about DNA and genetic principles through the university’s Bio-Bus program.

The grant is part of nearly $17 million in grants from the NIH’s Science Education Partnership Awards, aimed at stimulating scientific curiosity among students and to encourage hands-on science education.

The project’s goal is to teach children about DNA, the essential building blocks of genetics, as a language — something that has not done at early ages, said Barbara Baumstark, professor of biology and principal investigator of the project.

Baumstark said since DNA contains a certain code that is read from left to right, it is usually taught as a language. But concepts surrounding DNA, including the “alphabet” of the genetic language — adenine, cytosine, guanine and thymine, abbreviated A, C, G and T —are not commonly taught until adolescence, even though younger children often acquire languages much more readily than older children and adolescents.

“We were missing an excellent opportunity to allow younger children to get familiar with DNA,” Baumstark said.

She and her colleagues will develop activities in partnership with the Decatur City Schools to teach children ages 6 to 9 to help get them familiar with the concepts. Those activities will hopefully spread to other schools throughout the state.

The Bio-Bus program brings biology education to Georgia school students, offering hands-on, inquiry-based activities designed to get K-12 students enthusiastic about science.

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UGA One of Six Regional Sites for Duke TIP Scholar Weekends

More than 100 of the brightest high school students from Georgia and surrounding states will get their first taste of college courses during a Scholar Weekend hosted by the University of Georgia’s College of Education Nov. 15-16 through a partnership between UGA and Duke University.

The UGA Scholar Weekend is part of the Duke Talent Identification Program, which seeks out academically talented children and provides resources to challenge, nurture and identify each child’s abilities.

TIP scholars are identified through standardized test scores and invited to take the SAT or ACT in the seventh grade as part of the program. Those scoring exceptionally well are invited to attend TIP’s Scholar Weekends where they are exposed to interesting and challenging topics not typically covered in middle or high school curricula.

UGA is one of six locations in the Southeast to host TIP Scholar Weekends. Other sites include the University of South Carolina, New College in Sarasota, Fla., the University of Houston and Duke University’s main campus. However, Duke is interested in making UGA its main regional site, said Elizabeth Connell, coordinator of educational programs in UGA’s Torrance Center for Creativity and Talent Development.

“The opportunities this program creates for UGA and its faculty are incredible,” she said. “Not only are exceptional students from around the state and surrounding states visiting our campus, they are learning from talented UGA faculty and graduate students, and experiencing the vast resources available through the university. It’s an excellent opportunity for recruitment of some of the best and brightest students to UGA’s programs.”

At TIP Scholar Weekends, students are introduced to the collegiate experience by participating in two days of intense study in courses taught by UGA professors and Athens area school teachers. The overall goal is to enhance student skills, enrich the learning experience and foster an interest in college as well as specific collegiate majors.

Courses in the Nov. 15-16 session include “Shakespearean Comedy: 16th Century Prime Time,” “An Introduction to Behavioral Theory and Applied Behavior Analysis,” “International Relations: U.S. Foreign Policy in the 21st Century,” “Geocaching: High Tech Scavenger Hunt!” “Architecture: From Playhouses to Mansions,” “Introduction to German Studies: Language, Life and Culture” and “Intelligence and the Brain.”

The Torrance Center hosted its first TIP Scholar Weekend in May 2008 with 100 students from Georgia and Florida participating. In November, students from South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee and even Texas have applied along with those from Georgia and Florida.

UGA’s participation in the TIP program will continue to grow. Next spring, UGA will host two Scholar Weekends for exceptional seventh to eleventh graders who have participated in the Duke Seventh Grade Talent Search. UGA also will begin a program called Academic Adventures for students in grades 4-6 who have participated in the Duke Fourth to Fifth Grade Talent Search. It is hoped that these younger students will be able to move from the Academic Adventures to the Scholar Weekend programs.

Deadline for student applications is Oct. 13. UGA professors and Athens area school teachers interested in participating in future Scholar Weekends at UGA are encouraged to contact Connell at connelle@uga.edu.

For more information, see http://www.coe.uga.edu/torrance/ .

By Cindy Schnably
University of Georgia

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Georgia State: Children’s Defense Fund President to Speak at College of Education Lecture

Marian Wright Edelman, Founder and President, Children’s Defense Fund
20th Annual Benjamin E. Mays Lecture
6 p.m. on Monday (Oct. 13)
Rialto Center for the Arts, 80 Forsyth St.

Marian Wright Edelman, founder and president of the Children’s Defense Fund, will be the keynote speaker at the College of Education’s 20th annual Benjamin E. Mays Lecture.
Free and open to the public, the lecture will be held at 6 p.m. on Monday (Oct. 13) at Georgia State University’s Rialto Center for the Arts. During her talk, Edelman will discuss trends in urban education.

“It is crucial that we address today’s educational crisis that America’s children face,” Edelman said. “Many of our children can’t read at grade level and our schools are now arresting children for infractions that used to be dealt with in the principal’s office. This isn’t just a problem for students, but a problem that affects all of our communities.”

A book signing will be held after the lecture for Edelman’s latest publication, The Sea is So Wide and My Boat is So Small: Charting a Course for the Next Generation, in stores now. Edelman has been an advocate for disadvantaged Americans for her entire professional life. Under her leadership, the Children’s Defense Fund has become the nation’s strongest voice for children and families.

The annual lecture series, sponsored by Georgia State’s College of Education and Alonzo A. Crim Center for Urban Educational Excellence, began in 1989 to encourage the discussion of issues facing urban educational leaders. The annual event not only honors the memory of Mays, an Atlanta educator, but also promotes his philosophy of excellence in the education of those typically least served by society.

“Spanning over 30 years, Mrs. Edelman’s work speaks to the need for caring families and communities to give our children the best possible start in life that will insure a successful transition to adulthood,” said Gwendolyn Benson, associate dean of the College of Education.

A graduate of Spelman College and Yale Law School, Edelman began her career in the mid-60s when, as the first black woman admitted to the Mississippi Bar, she directed the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund office in Jackson, Miss. In l968, she moved to Washington, D.C., as counsel for the Poor People’s Campaign, which Martin Luther King, Jr. began organizing before his death. In l973, Edelman began the Children’s Defense Fund. She has received many honorary degrees and awards including the Albert Schweitzer Humanitarian Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Robert F. Kennedy Lifetime Achievement Award for her writings, which include eight books.

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Georgia Aquarium Hosts Education Conference September 22-24

Education Conference for nonprofit organizations working with at-risk students
Georgia Aquarium
September 22-24, 2008

PRNewswire-USNewswire -- The Georgia Mentoring Partnership (GMP) and the Georgia Parental Information & Resource Center (GA PIRC), in partnership with Communities In Schools of Georgia, are conducting a joint conference to provide resources and help participants better serve at-risk students. The event is open to anyone who wants to learn more about mentoring, parent engagement and other dropout prevention strategies. Participants will learn how innovative ideas and techniques can help establish and maintain effective school- and community-based programs. Hot topics that are frequently in the news, with suggestions on how to manage, will also be discussed. Visit www.cisga.org for registration information.

Event topic highlights and speakers include:

Financial literacy for youth provided by the FDIC

Gang awareness, what to look for, and how to minimize it (including a separate session on the infamous most dangerous gang, MS-13 and its infiltration in the southeast)

Dr. Susan Weinberger, known nationally as "Dr Mentor"

Susan Taylor, former editor of Essence magazine and now with the National Cares Mentoring Movement

Ron Clark, founder of the Ron Clark Academy

CIS is the nation's largest dropout prevention organization. CIS partners with local school districts and community organizations to connect needed resources and services to kids and families. In Georgia, 50 CIS local affiliates and 29 Performance Learning Centers(R) provide services to nearly 135,000 students in 66 school systems. Key programs include mentoring, tutoring, parent education, literacy, after-school programs, youth leadership, and PLCs. PLCs are geared toward high school students who are not succeeding in the traditional school setting. Communities sponsoring CIS programs have seen an increase in their school graduation rates, a decrease in violence and disruptions, and an increase in attendance and academic achievement. For more information, visit HYPERLINK "http://www.cisga.org/" www.cisga.org or contact Catherine Broussard at 404-897-2955 (w) or 404-788-9044 (c).

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