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Student advancement changes for countyJan 21, 2010 (Jackson County Floridan - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- The Jackson County School Board approved the 2009-10 student progression plan at Tuesday's board meeting. Following months of deliberation among board members, the plan has now met their approval. It determines the criteria for Jackson County students' promotion to the next grade. One of the changes to the plan include the requirement that students in the first and second grades must receive a minimum yearly average of a 70, or "C", in reading and mathematics. Currently, first and second grade students are only required to have a minimum yearly average of a 60, or "D", in mathematics. Another change was the elimination of reference testing in grades kindergarten through second. The expansion of the Virtual School option to full-time for grades kindergarten through eighth, and part- or full-time for grades nine through 12, was another addition. However, the Virtual School option available to grades nine through 12 is limited to Department of Juvenile Justice programs, dropout prevention programs and career vocational programs. Students who may enroll in the Virtual School must reside in Jackson County; must have been counted in the October 2008 and February 2009 student counts; and must be a dependent child of a member of the military who was transferred within the last 12 months pursuant to a permanent change of station. All Virtual School students must still participate in state testing, or they are subject to dismissal. In other news from the Tuesday meeting, board members approved the participation of the school district in the federally funded Florida Back to Work Program. This is a statewide initiative funded through federal stimulus grants. The program is designed to provide employment to individuals who have been out of work for at least 30 days and have at least one child under the age of 18 in the household. The program will reimburse the school board 95.83 percent of wages paid to any person hired under this program. The jobs must be new positions, or positions that have been vacant for more than 30 days, according to Deputy Superintendent Larry Moore. "This is a really good opportunity to fill some positions and provide opportunities to local residents," school board Chairman Kenny Griffin said. The board also approved the purchase of 40 new computers for Cottondale High School at a cost of $41,859. To see more of the Jackson County Floridan or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.jcfloridan.com. Copyright (c) 2010, Jackson County Floridan, Marianna, Fla. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |