PTSA BOARD VOTE MAY 2
The
MLWGS PTSA Board will be seeking a vote for the election of the following
candidates for the 2017-18 PTSA Executive Board. The vote will be held at the
MLWGS General Membership PTSA meeting on May 2, 2017 at 5:30 p.m. in
the Auditorium.
The
current MLWGS PTSA Board is pleased to present the following candidates:
President: Anthony Taylor
President
Elect: Natalie Smith
VP
Finance: Rachel Downey
VP
Membership and Communications: Mary Michael Schweiker
VP
Events: Sarah Van Dam
Treasurer: Christine Pimblett
Secretary: Jessica Coffey
SENIORS
Graduation
Paraphernalia Arrives This Week!
Herff
Jones will be at MLWGS during lunch on Thursday, April 20 and Friday,
April 21 to deliver caps, gowns, announcements, and any other graduation
paraphernalia that you ordered. Seniors should go to the downstairs
commons area to pick up their items. If there are any errors with the
order, please call Herff Jones directly: 804-598-0971.
The
class photo taken on the outdoor steps of the school will be photographed by
Strawbridge Studios on Tuesday, April 25. Seniors need to bring their cap and
gown with them for the picture. Information to buy the picture will be
distributed after Spring Break. Photos cost $15.00.
If
you have any questions, please contact Kerry Sheppard, graduation coordinator,
at ksheppard@gsgis.k12.va.us or 801-354-6800
ext. 3304
SPANISH
AND FRENCH STUDENTS NEED HOST FAMILIES IN JULY
Have
an amazing experience this summer! Host a student from Spain or France (ages
13-17) in your home for 3-4 weeks. Learn about their culture while he or she
learns about living in an American family just being a part of what you
regularly do. There are a variety of programs to suit a family’s work or
non-working schedule. Families receive stipends to help out with expenses. We
can help work out transportation or vacation concerns. This will be a rich
experience for your family!
Contact
Debbie Hardy 909-3190 or debbiehardy2003@yahoo.com.
UPDATE REGARDING LAPTOP PILOT PROGRAM
Letter
from Jeff Hall, Coordinator of Instructional Technology
In
the Fall of the 2017-18 school year, Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School will
begin a small one-to-one laptop pilot with a small percentage of incoming
freshmen. The goal of the pilot is to explore the impact that having
ubiquitous technology resources and internet access would have on the
instruction and learning of our gifted students. Additionally, we are
constantly seeking to enhance the learning of students through the effective
use of technology. This letter is meant to provide the community
with an update on the status of this initiative.
Maggie
L. Walker Governor’s School is a truly unique school designed to meet the
special instructional needs of gifted students. As a part of our school
technology plan, we are continually evaluating the effectiveness of various
instructional technologies. Specifically, instructional leaders have been asked
to explore the possibility of providing equitable access to computer hardware
across the entire student body (Technology Plan #5.03.08). Therefore, during
the first semester of the 2017-18 school year, we have been approved to launch
a small pilot to explore what impact a one-to-one laptop program might have on
learning at MLWGS. There is no predetermined outcome of this pilot.
Specifically the pilot is designed to collect data on a variety of
hardware, software, and services in order to determine which products best meet
those unique instructional needs. Additionally with our small IT staff of
two, we need to determine which products provide the management support that
will allow for effective deployment and ongoing maintenance of such a program.
Lastly, this pilot will act as a catalyst to deepen the conversation on
establishing “clear and concise” instructional goals for a possible proposed
one-to-one (1:1) program.
This
pilot calls for the deployment of three different kinds of devices to 45
students, 15 per device. This deployment would take place at the beginning of
the 1st semester in 2017-18 school year and end June 2018. In addition to
hardware, this would allow us to pilot the various management systems, updated
projector systems, printers, along with ‘on-demand’ high-quality
instructional content providers.
While
the deployment of devices will begin with the start of the 2017-18 school year,
the process of planning began in the 2016-17 school year in order to ensure a
successful outcome. Thanks to the hard work of our Technology Office, we have
begun to address the wireless network which has been identified as essential
for the success of any such pilot. Under the supervision of the One-to-One
Pilot Advisory Committee, which is made up of stakeholders including faculty,
students, parents, and administration, we are in the process of procuring the
equipment, software, and services needed. Over the course of the next few
months, we will continue work with the Technology Office to establish the
criteria for determining candidates, specific tools that will be used to
measure the effectiveness of the devices, participating faculty and student
training, as well as the process of deployment.
It
is our goal to engage the entire MLWGS community in this conversation. To that
end, there will be multiple presentations about the pilot to the PTSA and with
faculty. This letter is meant to bring the members of our current community up
to speed on the pilot and its objectives. We look forward to a productive
and collaborative conversation as we initiate and move forward through this
exciting process.
Our
ongoing instructional technology goal is to “Create. Connections.” for our
students by providing them with authentic learning opportunities where they can
collaborate both locally and globally. Members of our community can
expect regular communications through the Smoke and Scales newsletter, PTSA
meetings, and faculty meetings. In the meantime, if you have any
additional questions, please feel free to contact Jeff Hall, the Coordinator of
Instructional Technology, at jhall@gsgis.k12.va.
Thank
you for your continuing support of our unique school and its mission.
FORMER DRAGON, YA AUTHOR MAKING LOCAL APPEARANCES
Jenny
Han (Class of 1998) will be in Richmond soon for a stop on the book tour for
her Young Adult novel Always and Forever, Lara Jean (http://www.simonandschusterpublishing.com/alwaysandforever/),
the final volume of the bestselling To all the Boys I’ve Loved Before. Jenny will be at the Chesterfield Towne Center
Barnes & Noble on Tuesday, May 2 at 7 p.m.
(http://stores.barnesandnoble.com/event/9780061850596-0).
She would be delighted to see any Governor's School students, parents, and
alumni who can attend.
