Ken Plum: Mixed messages for education

Ken Plum

I was at Benjamin Banneker Academic High School in the District of Columbia last week when President Barack Obama delivered his third annual back-to-school speech to students at Banneker and by video to students throughout the country. For many students his pep talk to work hard, stay in school, and be successful was appropriate, but…

Boys & Girls Clubs receives 21st Century Grant from Department of Education

AFP

The Boys & Girls Clubs is pleased to announce it has received a $195,000 grant from the Virginia Department of Education. The Boys & Girls Clubs will use these funds to support the afterschool program for Kate Collins Middle School students at the Waynesboro Boys & Girls Club. The 21st Century Community Learning Centers program…

BC teacher education given model program status

AFP

Bridgewater College’s teacher education program is now ranked as a “model” program by the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ). Of three Virginia colleges evaluated by the NCTQ, Bridgewater was the only one that received a positive ranking. Bridgewater College was hailed by the NCTQ “for being part of a consortium of universities that jointly…

FMS to showcase education mission

AFP

Small class sizes, loads more one-on-one instruction, discipline to set a course for a lifetime. That’s what Fishburne Military School offers, and what the Waynesboro-based private school will be showcasing in a series of upcoming open houses. Fishburne will be hosting Open House events on Saturdays beginning this weekend and running through Aug. 20. Parents…

Former EMU education professor dies

AFP

Kathryn F. (Kass) Seitz, a former member of the Eastern Mennonite University teaching faculty, died Sunday, June 5, at Oak Lea Nursing Home in Harrisonburg. She was 73. Seitz was a member of EMU’s education department faculty from 1979 to 1986. Her teaching specialty was elementary education. Her spouse, Kenneth L. Seitz, Jr., who survives,…

‘TOP’ teachers celebrate ‘Magic of Education’ at JMU

AFP

James Madison University sophomore Abby Jamison has wanted to become a teacher ever since she can remember. Influenced and encouraged by the example set by her mother, a second-grade teacher in New Jersey, Jamison is preparing for her dream career to make students’ learning experiences “enjoyable, significant and fun.” “I think teachers have such an…

Artisans Center of Virginia launches education series

AFP

The Artisans Center of Virginia and Piedmont Virginia Community College are teaming up to offer a series of business classes for artisans. ACV Studio School courses are offered at The Stultz Center for Business & Career Development, 501 College Drive, Charlottesville, at the intersection of I-64 and Va. 20. To register, call 434.961.5354 The course…

McDonnell unveils education-jobs agenda

Chris Graham

Gov. Bob McDonnell is pushing a bipartisan higher-education initiative that he says will help Virginia colleges and universities issue an additional 100,000 degrees over the next 15 years. “Every student in Virginia deserves the opportunity to get a high-quality education at an affordable price. Virginia’s higher education institutions are among the best in the nation….

The business of education

AFP

The Greater Augusta Chamber of Commerce is sponsoring a Business at Breakfast forum on Wednesday at Fishburne Military School examining the business of education. The 8:30 a.m. event will feature a panel discussion looking at FMS’s plans to open a new military junior college, Blue Ridge Community College’s new advanced technology faciity, and Woodrow Wilson…