$2.9 million grant for AP programs in schools

whitneym@sunmulti.com

The Houston County Board of Education and Robins Air Force

Base discussed a $2.9 million grant for all Houston County schools from the

National Math+ Science Initiative (NSMI) at a press conference held Thursday at

Warner Robins High School.

The funds will go toward increasing enrollment and support

of advanced placement (AP) courses at Houston high schools and also toward

preparing middle school and even elementary school students for these courses.

Teachers will receive expert training and a total of 80 hours of professional

development.

The grant will help provide financial incentives for

students, open up the courses to students who otherwise would not have been

able to take them, offer tutoring sessions and provide necessary materials.

According to Dale Fleury, National Math+ Science Initiative

Senior Director of Programs, the organization has had success in helping other

communities strengthen their advanced placement programs. He project even

better results in Houston County. NSMI expects a 75.6 percent increase in AP

math, science and English enrollment by 2013-2014, growing from 890 students to

1,563 students. NSMI also projects a 127 percent increase in AP math, science

and English qualifying scores by 2015-16, from 419 students to 952

students.

This is the largest investment in any community by NSMI and is the first time

NSMI funding will go toward all high schools in one county.

Superintendent Robin Hines said the NSMI grant was one of

“the finest and most exciting programs to come to this community.”

He said the BOE expects AP enrollment to soar and test

results to skyrocket.

“All of this contributes to the vision to be world-class and

for our students to compete with the best of the best across the world,” said

Hines.

Fleury addressed the AP students in the audience, providing

them with several facts pertaining to their future. He said 86 million baby

boomers will retire in the next 10-15 years, which means lots of potential jobs

and that companies will be retraining 100 percent of their workforce.

“There is a bright future for you,” said Fleury.

He then added that eight out of 10 of those jobs will

require a high level of math and science.

“Step up to the plate and take rigorous courses to position

yourself as a leader in the global economy,” Fleury said.

According to Fleury, in the next 40 years, people will

change jobs an average of 15-20 times because of technology. This means workers

will need the skills required to adapt to these changes.

Fleury ended with a message for both the students and the

community. He said that 50 percent of the students will return to the community

in which they are from at some point in their career, which means that 50

percent of the future workforce of Houston County is sitting in local

classrooms right now.

Misty McAfee teaches at Veterans High School now, but taught

at Howard High in Macon last year, which is where she first became involved in

the NSMI program. McAfee said it was some of the best training she’s had in her

career.

“The most significant return is the confidence instilled in

children,” said McAfee. “It truly changed the lives of some of my students who

never would have taken these classes but were able to because of this program.

They gained the confidence to succeed in the course. It was life altering for

me as well as for them.”

Carmen Foskey, a junior at Warner Robins High School, took

five AP courses this year and recently finished her last exam. Foskey

acknowledged that it was “a bit of an undertaking” but said she felt well

prepared by the Houston County school system. Foskey is looking to continuing

her education after graduation at Yale, Harvard or possibly Emory if she

decides to stay in Georgia. She is excited to see what this program will lead

to because “you can always do more.”

Jane Johnston has been a teacher at Warner Robins High

School since 2005 and has been teaching for 20 years. Johnston was also

recently named Teacher of the Year at WRHS. Johnston said that Houston is by

far the best school system she has taught in and she is excited about the

opportunity for expert training.

“I think this new

initiative will attract new students that weren’t previously going to take AP

classes,” Johnston said. “We’re going to change some lives.”

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