Two days after an emergency State Department of Education meeting to discuss the FCAT Writing scores, Commissioner Gerard Robinson officially released the state’s FCAT Writing results late Thursday evening.

 

"Florida's higher standards help ensure students are learning what they are expected to know so that they are prepared for college, career, and life. As Florida transitions to higher standards and higher expectations, we can expect our assessment results to reflect those changes," stated Commissioner Gerard Robinson.

 

The Monroe County School District students scored one percent below the state average at the assessed grades 4, 8, and 10 for writing. In addition, the average district writing score was consistent with the state average score.

Click here to read the MCSD Press Release

Click here to view the Comparative Report of FCAT Writing

The Monroe County School District and The United Teachers of Monroe, Florida, will hold Collective Bargaining on Thursday, May 24, 2012, at 4:00 pm at Marathon High School, Room 6209, 350 Sombrero Beach Road, Marathon.

The School Board of Monroe County will hold a Regular Business Meeting & Public Hearings on the Adoption of Policies & Job Descriptions on Tuesday, May 22, 2012, beginning at 5:00 PM at the Marathon High School Media Center, 350 Sombrero Beach Road., Marathon.

 

The Workshop/special meeting and the Regular meeting will be broadcast live on Comcast cable channel 78. If a person decides to appeal any decision made by the Board, with respect to any matter considered at a School Board meeting or hearing, that person may need to make sure that a verbatim record of the proceedings is made. If signing, special seating or other accommodations are required, please call 293-1400 ext. 53324 (TDD Number 293-1400 ext. 53445) 72 hours prior to a meeting.

The Key Largo School Safety Patrol recently visited Washington, D.C..  Thanks to everyone who supported their fundraising efforts to make this trip possible!

Plantation Key School will be having an open house on Tuesday, May 22, 2012, from 5 PM - 8 PM.  An art show, Scholastic Book Fair, curriculum showcase, and Microsociety program presentation are planned.  There will be a PTA General Meeting and Board Elections at 6 PM. 

For further information, please call 305-853-3281.  The school is located at 100 Lake Road (MM 89) in Tavernier.

For the second consecutive year, the Key West High School Chorus earned the highest possible rating for their performance at the State Music Performance assessment. Their SUPERIOR rating is a reflection of the great things our students and teachers accomplish at the high school. The program is considered one of the elite music ensembles in the state, and represents the highest performance standards possible.

The Monroe County School District ESE Department and Assistive Technology is thrilled to have received an iPad, cases, and iTunes cards from the Silverliners group in Key West. This donation will allow students who do not have a voice the ability to communicate.  Through use of the iPad and a special communication program called Prologue2go, nonverbal student have had a whole new world opened up to them.

The Silverliners have been partners with the Monroe County School District for over 20 years. They have been instrumental in orchestrating the annual Flight to the North Pole for our Preschoolers from Big Pine to Key West. Thank you to the Silverliners for their continued dedication and generosity!

(Photo submitted by Catherine Kanagy)

The Monroe County School Board is seeking qualified candidates for the position of Superintendent of Schools, to be available to begin work on or about August 1, 2012.

The Board is seeking an innovative, proven and dynamic leader for our A rated school district.  The Board, staff, and community are committed to continued high academic standards and quality education.  We are a very diverse district of 8400 students, located in the Florida Keys with 11 district schools and 6 charters schools with an $80 million budget.  We operate under school-based management, a philosophy that allocates resources to individual schools and emphasizes decisions about teaching and learning at the school level.

Click here for qualifications and application information.

It is not too late to join the twenty-two students from Monroe County High Schools to become Ambassadors from the Florida Keys to the Experiment in International Living (EIL) cross- cultural experience. These adventurous students will visit 15 different countries this July and August.  

“There are still openings for this summer in the groups being formed going to 29 different countries around the world,” Chris Frantz, Deputy Director of EIL, announced today from the EIL headquarters in Vermont. “Interested students should call 1-800-345-2929, or go to: www.experimentinternational.org “

Click here to view the press release for more information about the program.

Students in Mrs. Bernal's class at Key Largo School had the opportunity to study the development and hatching of chicks by following their incubation period for 21 days.  Pictured are students with the hatched chicks. (Photo courtesy of Darren Pais)

Marking the Text is an active reading strategy that asks students to identify information in the text that is relevant to the reading purpose.  Encouraged in classrooms district-wide, Marking the Text uses selective underlining and highlighting as a study and comprehension tool.  For more information on Marking the Text, click here.

The Florida Department of Education is conducting a survey to provide the state with information on how well schools are supporting parents’ involvement in their child’s education. All parents of children with disabilities who have a current IEP in grades preschool to 12 can go online to www.ESEsurvey.com to complete the survey. The responses to the survey provide important information for planning and monitoring improvement activities. The survey is open and can be completed from February 1 through June 30, 2012. A paper copy of the survey is available by calling the district office at (305) 293-1400 x 53375.

GEMS stands for Great Educational Moments for Monroe County Students. It is an effort to shine a light on the great things happening in the District Schools.  This is an initiative from the Curriculum Department led by Mrs. Theresa Axford, Executive Director for Operations which recognizes the GEMS in Monroe County. 

In order to create a GEM, it takes the leadership of a great principal, the expertise of wonderful teachers and the commitment of outstanding students.

Click Here to view the GEMS web page and see the MCSD GEMS for 2011-2012!