PPS Town Hall Meetings (10/13 - 11/20/14) - Advocate for TAG Services!

Dear TAG Advocates:  Here is our chance in an informal setting to put faces to names of TAG students and their families and to advocate for services for our students directly to members of the school board. I will be attending the meeting at the high school (Cleveland) in my zone.  

Please join in me in utilizing these forums as an opportunity to make the voices of TAG students and their families heard!

Thank you!

Brenda Ray Scott

Portland Council PTA and PPS invite the Public To Eight Town Hall Meetings:

The eight meetings set across the district, co-hosted by the PPS School Board and Portland Council PTA, are designed to allow the School Board to hear from the community in an informal, dialog based format as well as launch the campaign about the importance of public education in Oregon.  The meetings will be from 6-7:30 pm and there will be translators and childcare available.  School Board Members will attend the meeting at the high school within their zone. 

          Schedule:

• Monday, October 13th- Wilson High School with Ruth Adkins
• Wednesday, October 15th- Madison High School with Pam Knowles
• Monday, October 20th- Roosevelt High School with Steve Buel
• Monday, November 3rd- Grant High School with Pam Knowles
• Thursday, November 6th- Jefferson Middle College with Matt Morton
• Thursday, November 13th- Cleveland High School with Greg Belisle
• Monday, November 17th- Franklin High School with Tom Koehler
• Thursday, November 20th- Lincoln High School with Bobbie Regan

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• Wednesday, October 15th- Madison High School with Pam Knowles
• Monday, October 20th- Roosevelt High School with Steve Buel
• Monday, November 3rd- Grant High School with Pam Knowles
• Thursday, November 6th- Jefferson Middle College with Matt Morton
• Thursday, November 13th- Cleveland High School with Greg Belisle
• Monday, November 17th- Franklin High School with Tom Koehler
• Thursday, November 20th- Lincoln High School with Bobbie Regan

OATAG (Oregon Association for Talented and Gifted Conference) - 10/18/14

Upcoming OATAG (Oregon Association for Talented and Gifted) Conference on October 18th Friends: This is a reminder to register NOW for the 2014 OATAG conference “Every Child Counts: STEM and Gifted Students,” on Saturday, October 18, 2014 at Pacific University in Forest Grove. ONLINE REGISTRATION ENDS OCTOBER 9th. Space is limited and you won't want to miss it. Every year teachers and parents tell us how much this conference has meant to them. This year's keynote speaker is Dr. Susan Assouline, Director of the Belin-Blank Center at the University of Iowa. In addition to her work as the co-author of the Iowa Acceleration Scale, Dr. Assouline has written numerous books , includingDeveloping Math Talent and co-authored A Nation Deceived: How Schools Hold Back America’s Brightest Students. She serves on the board of Gifted Child Quarterly. The Conference will also include breakout sessions on acceleration for both parents and educators by Dr. Assouline and on such topics as the transition to the Smarter Balanced Assessments, social-emotional development, serving gifted ELL students and other topics. Students can get a start on preparing for college: the conference will also feature the Path to Scholarship program for high school students in addition to a tour of the Pacific University Campus. Saturday Academy will also offer concurrent student workshops for TAG students in grades 1-6. Space is very limited and registration is first-come, first-served. For more information about the conference go to: http://oatag.org/OATAG_2014_ConferenceTo register for the conference go to: http://oatag.org/event-764981For more information about the student sessions go to: http://www.oatag.org/Resources/Conferences/Student%20Sessions.pdf

TAG Meetings - PPS Advisory Council Tonight, 9/16/14 and Sellwood Informational Thursday, 9/18/14

PPS TAG Advisory Council Tonight - Tuesday, 9/16/14

The first Parent TAG Advisory Council meeting of the 2013-14 school year is tomorrow night, Tuesday, Sept 16, from 6:30 to 8:00. Location is the Mazama Conference room on the 2nd floor of the BESC Administration Bldg at 501 N Dixon St.

Come meet the new TAG Administrator, Erika Gillis, and some (maybe all) of the 4 new TAG TOSA's. Ms. Gillis is also PPS's new Senior Director of the Office of Teaching Innovation, so should have major influence on future computer based teaching tools that show up in classrooms. She will be presenting. More information is available on the PPS TAG website:http://www.pps.k12.or.us/departments/tag/

Sellwood Middle School TAG Informational Meeting, Thursday, 9/18/14

We will meet at 6:15 p.m. in the big gym to discuss plans for TAG programming at Sellwood Middle School.  Brian Anderson, Principal, and Marylyn John, Assistant Principal, and our school's TAG Coordinator will be on hand to facilitate the discussion!

PPS TAG Advisory Council - Meets Tues. 4/8/14 6:30 p.m.

Hello!  Here is your friendly reminder of the next TAGAC meeting scheduled for Tuesday, 4/8 from 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. at the BESC (District Administration Building) at 501 N. Dixon St, 97227 Mazama Room (second floor).

This meeting will focus on committee work and lively discussions including Differentiation.

Please visit http://www.pps.k12.or.us/departments/tag/ for additional information or with questions about TAG services or the work of the Portland Public Schools TAG Advisory Council.

Brenda Ray Scott ô adept_diva@hotmail.com

P Please print this email only if necessary and recycle.
Communications (Volunteer), Portland Public Schools – TAG Advisory Council
Board member (Volunteer), Oregon Association of Talented and Gifted (OATAG)

TAG Opportunity to Act by 3/21/14 - School Funding Task Force

Information shared by TAG advocate Margaret DeLacy: The School Funding Task Force will be meeting to hear public testimony in Salem on Friday, March 21. This is your chance to get your written testimony in to the task force before it meets.  Let's do this for the sake of our children.  Don't they all deserve a chance to learn? You can see the testimony that has already been submitted at: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=4122 Please plan to participate. It's important!  This is likely to be a crowded and busy hearing. Instead of testifying in person, I strongly recommend sending written testimony to  the committee staff member:  jan.mccomb@state.or.us . Let her know that your message is intended as testimony for the hearing.  Your testimony should be short and concise. Express your views about the need for consistent TAG funding based on your own experience. Include your name and address and any relevant status information--for example, "a parent of an Oregon public school student" "an elementary school teacher", "a resident of Woodburn" or "a small business owner" .  Letters written by students are always especially welcome. Task Force on School Funding Date:   Friday, March 21, 2014 Time:   1:00  4:00pm Place:  Hearing Room A         State Capitol Building 900 Court Street NE, Salem OR Public Testimony         The task force will take public testimony on the State School Distribution Formula Witness signup sheets will be available in the hearing room at 12:45 pm.  If distributing written testimony to the task force, please bring at least 15 copies to the meeting. School Funding Task Force The Task Force on School Funding was established by HB 2506 (2013). Its directive is to “make recommendations regarding possible modifications to the funding formulas used to distribute State School Fund moneys to school districts and education service districts.” Task Force Membership The task force consists of 13 members. The Speaker of the House appoints two members; the Senate President appoints two members; and the Governor appoints 9 members. The Governor’s appointees shall be persons who represent school teachers, school administrators, school district business managers, district school board members, and education service districts. Task Force Members Senator Richard Devlin Senator Fred Girod Representative Betty Komp Representative Sherrie Sprenger Kelly K. Devlin John W. Hayes, Jr. PhD Claire S. Hertz Steven G. Isaacs Sena E. Norton Bobbie Regan John M. Rexford Heidi A. Sipe Michael D. Wolfe A report from the task force must be submitted to interim committees related to education no later than October 1, 2014. Oregon Department of Education meetings comply with open meeting laws and accessibility requirements. A request for an interpreter for the hearing impaired or for other accommodations for persons with disabilities should be made at least 48 hours before the meeting to Jan McComb at (503) 947-5616.  Questions or requests to be added to the task force distribution list may be e-mailed to Brian Reeder, brian.reeder@state.or.us or Jan McComb, jan.mccomb@state.or.us

From the New York Times: Even Gifted Students Can’t Keep Up

This editorial describes the continuing challenges of all students to succeed and of gifted students, especially racial or ethnic minority students, not being identified and not getting necessary resources.  Please take a few moments to read this editorial from the Editorial Board.

From the editorial:
Federal, state and local governments and school districts have put little effort into identifying and developing students of all racial and economic backgrounds, both in terms of intelligence and the sheer grit needed to succeed. There are an estimated three million gifted children in K-12 in the United States, about 6 percent of the student population. Some schools have a challenging curriculum for them, but most do not.

With thanks to Margaret DeLacy for sharing the link, I'm posting it here:

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2013/12/15/opinion/sunday/in-math-and-science-the-best-fend-for-themselves.html

Feel free to share this item with others in your network! Thank you!

PPS TAG Advisory Council - Meeting - Tues. 12/10/13 6:30 - 8:00 p.m.

Please join the PPS TAG Advisory Council for a meeting taking place on Tuesday, December 10 from 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. in the Mazama Conference Room (second floor and through/behind the Cafeteria) in the Portland Public Schools District Administration

Visit http://www.pps.k12.or.us/files/tag/TAGAC_Agenda-2013_Dec_draft1.pdf for more information. 

If you aren’t able to attend the meeting happening on Tuesday, December 10, please save the date for the next meeting happening on:

Tuesday, January 14, 2014 from 6:30 - 8:00 p.m.

BESC (District admin. building) at 501 N. Dixon St, 97227 Mazama Room (second floor)

Brenda Ray Scott ô PH 503.680.5196ô adept_diva@hotmail.com

 P Please print this email only if necessary and recycle.

Member, PPS TAG Advisory Council

Past Chair, PPS TAG Advisory Council

Board of Directors, OATAG