Statewide School Choice Parent Advisory Council Update
Nine Meetings held in North, Central and South Florida
Town Hall Meetings scheduled to begin in February
Submitted by William Storms, Chairman
The “Statewide School Choice Parent Advisory Council” is well into its second year and has now completed nine official meetings.
- The ninth meeting, a conference call, was held on January 13, 2010 to plan SCPAC Town Hall meetings scheduled for February 9, March 9, April 13, and May 11, 2010.
- The eighth meeting was held in Orlando on November 18, 2009 at the Dr. Carlo Rodriguez Champion of School Choice Summit. This face to face meeting at the Summit allowed the Council to complete much important work including the review of a Strategic Plan to develop local School Choice Parent Advisory Councils and to begin the planning for local Town Hall meetings.
- The seventh meeting was a conference call on September 2, 2009 to work on the upcoming year’s Strategic Plan.
- The sixth was also a conference call, and Council Members spent much of the time developing additional strategies to establish Local School Choice Parent Advisory Councils.
- The fifth meeting was held on April 7th, 2009 at the Florida Department of Education Turlington Building in conjunction with the “Academies on the Hill” Conference in Tallahassee.
The Council’s Mission, “All Florida Parents will be informed of all educational options and opportunities” is quickly becoming a reality. In the meetings and back home in the Council Members’ regions, protocols for sharing parent information and concerns on all Choice Options are being established. SCPAC Members are establishing a much needed communication link between local School Choice stakeholders and the Department of Education.
This statewide group, composed of School Choice stakeholders including parents, school district Choice leaders, and others with a special interest in School Choice, is a resource to interact with parents throughout the state on issues and concerns related to School Choice.
During the last year, the Statewide School Choice Parent Advisory Council has made significant progress in recruiting members for local advisory councils which will meet on a local and regional basis. Coupled with our Parent Resource Centers and School District School Choice Supervisors, the School Choice Parent Advisory Council is currently establishing fully functional local School Choice Parent Advisory Councils in each district in Florida and will soon be conducting School Choice Town Hall Meetings in the five Choice Regions in Florida.
In directing the last nine meetings, including five conference call meetings, Chairman Bill Storms has led the group in discussions which attain the goals of the statewide council. In the previous meetings, the group established and reviewed goals, discussed meeting formats and protocols to be utilized, established Council By-Laws, edited and approved DOE Choice publications, worked on the design of easy to read Choice Information, learned how to and then conducted successful meetings with district superintendents, and continuously reviewed local member recruiting techniques. From the first organizational meeting in Orlando on November 18, 2008, the members have made significant progress in this innovative initiative.
During this second year of operation, all newly appointed and reappointed members of the SCPAC have received a Certificate of Appointment from Florida Commissioner of Education, Dr. Eric J. Smith, and have been empowered to act on the Councils behalf in their own regional area. The nine meetings of the SCPAC have been very productive and Council Members are now using the resources and information they have received to recruit parents and Choice stakeholders who are interested in serving on a local School Choice Parent Advisory Council so that they, in turn, may help others seeking information or currently taking advantage of School Choice.
If you are interested in serving on a local School Choice Parent Advisory Council, please contact Chairman Bill Storms at 941-356-2064 or directly by email at captwindy@comcast.net.
You may also contact Yolanda Miranda-Hill, Voluntary Public School Choice Manager at (850) 245-9077 or by email at Yolanda.Miranda-Hill@fldoe.org.
