A Community for Completion Promising Practices to Increase Completion in the Florida College System

Volume 3∙ Issue 1∙ April 2013 2013 Connections Conference—Focus on the Future The Florida Department of Education's Division of Florida Colleges Did you know? presented the 8th annual Connections Conference (Connections) on

The College of Central Flor- Thursday, April 11, and Friday, April 12, 2013. This was the second ida’s men’s basketball team is year in Gainesville, Florida, hosted Connections and this year’s programming highlighted Florida's transition to the Com- the 2013 National Junior Col- mon Core State Standards lege Athletic Association’s (Common Core). (NJCAA) national This year's conference, titled champion! "Focus on the Future," was the second time K-12 teach- ers, administrators, and counselors were invited to attend and collaborate. With a mix of speakers from Flor- ida and breakout sessions on Common Core and developmental educa- tion topics, the conference provided meaningful and timely coverage on current trends in college and career readiness.

“The Florida College System embraces Common Core and what it means for college and career readiness,” said Florida College System Chancellor Randy Hanna. “We stand ready to help the next generation of educators deliver Common Core instruction and look forward to col- laborating with our public school colleagues to ensure successful imple- mentation.”

Inside this Issue Commissioner of Education Dr. Tony Bennett opened the conference as the keynote speaker. Commissioner Bennett highlighted the progress 2013 CONNECTIONS CONFER- 1-2 ENCE Florida has made as a national leader in education reform, and empha-

CHIPOLA COLLEGE BRAIN BOWL 3 sized the work that needs to be done in terms of awareness of the Com- mon Core. “Florida’s students deserve a high-quality education that CONTACT 3 prepares them for college and career success,” said Bennett. “Transition to Common Core will provide deep mastery of the knowl- THE COMMON CORE STATE 4 STANDARDS QUICK FACTS edge and skills necessary for college. It is important our schools and colleges work together to ensure a seamless transition to the new stan-

dards.”

To close Day 1, participants attended a welcome social to celebrate Florida College System (FCS) Month. Page 2 A Community for Completion

2013 Connections Conference Continued from page 1 Julie Alexander, Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Af- fairs with the Division of Florida Colleges, jump started Day 2 with a state update. Alexander focused on current 2012 Legisla- tion implementation and 2013 proposed legislation regarding high school diploma designations, dual enrollment, and devel- opmental education.

Cassandra Brown, Coordinator of Postsecondary Readiness with the Division of Florida Colleges, followed Vice Chancellor Alex- ander and spoke to participants about the impact of the Com- mon Core on higher education. Brown stressed the students produced from the new standards will be college-ready and ex- Commissioner Tony Bennett delivers the pect more hands-on instruction. Brown stated, “For this reason, Keynote Address at Connections 2013 it is important that postsecondary institutions work with their local school districts during this transition phase to prepare stu- dents for college. In order for this to happen, higher education faculty need A special thanks to “Sammy,” to be aware of the Common Core and local school districts will have to be the Florida pine snake, knowledgeable of postsecondary expectations.” (Pituophis melanoleucus mugitus), from Santa Fe Col- After a quick break, Day 2 transitioned into breakout sessions. In the first lege’s Teaching Zoo for his breakout session, participants had the opportunity to learn about Common celebrity appearance during Core collaborations between school districts and colleges and developmental the Florida College Month education redesign involving modularization. Celebration Welcome Social!

For lunch, district participants were matched with the colleges and universi- ties in their service areas in the second-annual “Team Talk.” Seated at round tables, K-12 and college educators and administrators were able to en- gage in thoughtful discussion about college readiness and the Common Core.

The second breakout sessions were again focused on Common Core imple- mentation collaborations between school districts and colleges and modular- ized developmental education redesign. Additionally, speakers from Florida State College at Jacksonville and presented on innova- tive approaches to developmental education.

Finally, the day ended with workshop sessions facilitated by Florida Depart- ment of Education administrators aimed at employing the input of partici- pants in the areas of legislatively proposed meta majors, Common Core alignment, Common Core con- tent areas, and the PERT Repository. These workshops were valuable forums to plan for the future suc- cess of Florida’s students.

To review presentations and materials from Connections, please visit our website: http://www.fldoe.org/fcs/connections/2013/default.asp

For further information on Connections 2013, please contact: Dr. Shanna Autry Coordinator of Academic Program Support Division of Florida Colleges [email protected] Volume 3, Issue 1 Page 3

Chipola College Brain Bowl Team Finishes Top Community College in ICT

Congratulations are in order for the 2013 Chipola College (Chipola) Brain Bowl Team who advanced to the championship bracket of the Division II Intercollegiate Championship Tournament (ICT) on April 13, 2013. Chipola beat the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with a 290-245 win to advance to the last round of the preliminaries. The 2013 Chipola team became only the second community college in history to make the championship round. The Chipola team was awarded the Top Community College for the third year in a row. The 2013 Chipola team members are: Paul Kelson, Katelyn Miller, William Singleton, and Becca Delgado. Chipola finished the initial round robin with a 6-1 record. Other teams in the championship bracket in- cluded: Stanford, Harvard, Yale, Chicago, Illinois, Williams, and MIT. In the championship bracket, Chipola lost to tournament second-place finisher Yale—losing on the last question of the match! The Chipola team also fought hard against fourth-place finisher, Harvard. With two questions remaining, Chipola had a chance to win the match, but lost a couple of buzzer races . Stanford went undefeated to win the championship.

Earlier this month, Chipola broke a state record with six consecutive state championships. The Brain Bowl team will be recognized at their own high school tournament on Thursday, May 2, at 1:30 p.m. in Chipola’s Building Z.

Link to overall standings: http://www.naqt.com/stats/tournament-teams.jsp?tournament_id=4301 Link to Chipola Games: http://www.naqt.com/stats/team-performance.jsp?team_id=50847 Link to individual stats: http://www.naqt.com/stats/tournament-individuals.jsp?tournament_id=4301

Our Mission The Division of Florida Colleges is a dynamic and responsive Department of Education team. We provide leadership and advocacy to promote edu- cation innovation and continuous improvement within The Florida College System, fueling eco- Division of Florida Colleges nomic development for the state of Florida and its 325 West Gaines Street citizens.

Suite 1544 Tallahassee, FL 32399-0400 Our Vision Phone: 850-245-0407 The Division of Florida Colleges will be the na- Fax: 850-245-9466 tion’s leading advocate for postsecondary educa- tional opportunity, access, and student success. We help our colleges change the world! Visit us online at http:// www.fldoe.org/fcs/OSAS/ newsletters/

Common Core State Standards Quick Facts

What are the Common Core State Standards (CCSS)?

The CCSS are a state led effort to establish a single set of clear, voluntary, shared educational stan- dards for English/language arts and mathematics. The National Governors Association (NGA) and the Chief Council of Did You Know? State School Officers (CCSSO) brought together teachers, experts, parents, and school administrators to draft the standards. Forty-six states and the Dis- Core Writing Teams in English/Language Arts and Mathematics in- trict of Columbia (DC) have cluded: adopted the Common Core Postsecondary faculty State Standards. K-12 teachers State curriculum and assessment experts Florida adopted the Common Representatives from State Higher Education Executive Offi- Core State Standards in 2010. cers (SHEEO) and National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) Final standards were released in June 2010 and Florida was an early adopter. The CCSS is more than just replacing current standards and the intent is to change practice in at least three primary areas: Content, instruction, and assessment. The Florida College System Teacher Educator Programs are the first in the nation to voluntarily commit to a system-wide implementation of the CCSS. The new standards will be embedded in the teacher preparation program curriculum throughout the college system so new teachers who enter the classroom will be ready for the more rigorous standards.

For more information on the CCSS, please visit: CCSS – http://www.corestandards.org/ Florida CCSS Institute – http://www.fldoe.org/schools/ccc.asp

For even more information on CCSS, please contact: Cassandra Brown Coordinator of Postsecondary Readiness Division of Florida Colleges [email protected]