Two Queens Public High Schools Are Joining City's 'Community Schools'
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Two Queens public high schools are joining city’s ‘Community Schools’ reform program Flushing and John Bowne High Schools are among 69 public academic institutions across the city that will be joining the Department of Education’s (DOE) “Community Schools” initiative when the new school year starts this September. Each of the new “Community Schools” will partner with various community based organizations (CBO) to better address the needs of its students through expanded learning programs and other initiatives designed to boost family engagement and promote students’ social and emotional development. The designation comes with a major funding commitment through the 21st Century Community Learning Center, as the 69 schools will receive a combined $25.5 million in annual grants for up to five years. On Thursday, May 11, Mayor Bill de Blasio and Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña stressed that the Community Schools program is an investment designed to bring a more equal and higher quality of education for all students while also going beyond the classroom to ensure that every student and their families have what they need to live full and healthy lives. “Equity and Excellence is about evening the playing field for our students, and Community Schools help to do just that,” said de Blasio. “To reach success in their classes, our students often require some extra support outside the classroom. This expansion allows us to provide additional after school activities, mental health counseling, enhanced family engagement, and so much more.” “It’s essential that we invest in the whole child, and through the Community School model, we are bringing additional social emotional supports, mental health services, and deepening family ties,” Fariña added. “Schools are anchors for the entire community, and by embedding high quality community based organizations into schools, we can meet the needs of students and families. With this expansion, these game-changing resources will benefit more than 108,000 students in all five boroughs.” Flushing and John Bowne High Schools are perhaps the most prominent — and most crowded — Queens academic institutions slated to become Community Schools. With 3,566 students, John Bowne currently has a four-year graduation rate of 74%, but is struggling to have its students ready for college and the workforce, according to the DOE’s School Quality Snapshot for 2015-16. Just 33% of graduates met CUNY college-readiness standards, and 54% of all of its high school graduates enrolled in a college or got a job within 6 months of receiving their diplomas. John Bowne has come under fire in recent months for a number of violent incidents, including the stabbing of a student and an assault on a school safety agent monitoring a metal detector. The situation is slightly worse at Flushing High School, which has 1,812 students and a four-year graduation rate of 63%. Its School Quality Snapshot for 2015-16 found that only 18% of graduates met CUNY college-readiness standards and 44% of all graduates enrolled in college or got a job shortly after graduation. Borough-wide, 43% of Queens public high school graduates meet college-readiness standards, and 58% of high school graduates enrolled in college or got a job within 6 months of graduating. As Community Schools, John Bowne and Flushing would have “expanded learning time, health and wellness services, enhanced family and community engagement and targeted attendance improvement strategies,” according to the Mayor’s office. Each Community School will have a dedicated director, shared leadership and greater data tracking abilities to combat negative school trends such as truancy. Community Schools may also offer services including health centers, vision screenings, food pantries and adult education. One local lawmaker, state Senator Toby Ann Stavisky, said she’s excited to see what kind of improvements the Community Schools program will bring to both high schools as well as J.H.S. 189 in Flushing, which was also added to the program. “Supporting our schools is essential in providing a well-rounded education for our children,” Stavisky said. “The Community Schools program operates with the understanding that improving struggling schools requires a holistic approach. It is more than just throwing money into equipment. It is also about engaging the community, health and wellness services and partnering with parents.” CUNY professor named 2017 Fellow of the International Carotenoid Society THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK Professor Eleanore Wurtzel of the Department of Biological Sciences at Lehman College and a doctoral faculty member of the PhD Program in Biology (Plant Sciences and Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental subprograms) and PhD Program in Biochemistry of the Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY) has been named a 2017 Fellow of the International Carotenoid Society (ICS) during this inaugural year for Fellow selection. The ICS recognizes members whose consistent contributions to the Society, the scientific community, and the general public demonstrate a commitment to excellence, leadership, and sound ethics. The 2017 ICS Fellows will be formally announced at the 18th International Symposium on Carotenoids to be held in Lucerne, Switzerland from July 9 - 14, 2017. Dr. Wurtzel will also present a plenary lecture on "A novel gate-keeper of carotenoid biosynthesis in plants" on Wednesday, July 12 at 9:15 a.m. in Lucerne Hall. Dr. Wurtzel was elected as an ICS Fellow for significant career-long contributions to research on provitamin A carotenoid biosynthesis, which is enabling sustainable solutions to global vitamin A deficiency. Her interdisciplinary research integrates molecular biology, cell biology, biochemistry, genetics, bioinformatics, and systems biology. For example, Dr. Wurtzel and her team took advantage of natural genetic diversity to elucidate pathway control points and to develop molecular markers for breeding high-provitamin A maize, identifying gene families and their roles in controlling carotenoid accumulation. Most recently, the Wurtzel laboratory discovered Z-ISO, a new carotenoid enzyme, which is essential for biosynthesis of all plant carotenoids, including provitamin A carotenoids. This breakthrough led to the discovery of a new prototype function for heme proteins, uncovered a novel means for regulating carotenoid biosynthesis in plants, and redefined the carotenoid biosynthetic pathway in plants. Upon learning of this honor, Dr. Wurtzel described herself as very much surprised. "My career has been devoted to making a difference in global health which was its own reward," Dr. Wurtzel said. "I am humbled and grateful for this unexpected recognition." Since its establishment in 1996 at the 11th International Symposium on Carotenoids in Leiden, The Netherlands, the ICS has supported and encouraged all areas of carotenoid science--pure and applied, academic and commercial, research and educational. The ICS endeavors to facilitate contacts and multi-disciplinary cooperation between carotenoid workers in different parts of the world and different areas of the carotenoid field; to promote education, communication, and the exchange of ideas and expertise; and to provide help and advice to new and younger researchers entering the carotenoid field and to those in poorer countries. As a truly international and independent organization, the ICS seeks to increase public awareness of the carotenoid field and of exciting new advances, and to provide reasoned, authoritative statements on controversial matters. The City University of New York is the nation's leading urban public university. Founded in New York City in 1847, the University comprises 24 institutions: 11 senior colleges, seven community colleges, and additional professional schools. The University serves nearly 275,000 degree-credit students and 218,083 adult, continuing and professional education students. Scientist identify key locations for spread of pin-tailed whydahs May 11, 2017 Invasive parasites are a biological oxymoron. And yet, they are in our backyards! This study analyzes the case of a brood parasitic bird, the pin-tailed whydah (Vidua macroura) and its recent spread into the Americas! Biodiversity hotspots—or places with large numbers of species found nowhere else on earth—also tend to make suitable habitats for invasive species that can, in turn, destabilize ecosystems and supplant indigenous biota. A new study in The Condor: Ornithological Applications predicts where the pin-tailed whydah, a songbird native to sub-Saharan Africa that has expanded its natural range thanks to the pet trade, may next spread in North America and Hawaii. The pin-tailed whydah is a brood parasitic bird that lays its eggs in other bird species, typically small African finches, and has been introduced from Africa to Puerto Rico and southern California. In this study, researchers used species distribution models to predict where the whydah may continue to spread in the continental U.S., Hawaii, and the Antilles. To determine the whydah's potential distribution, they used sightings of this species reported to the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). The investigators then identified suitable whydah habitat by finding correlations between locations where these finches have been seen and global climate data. As brood parasites, whydahs need hosts to complete their life cycle, so the researchers also used the presence of six known host species that have been Co-introduced in the whydah's