NEWS
- D.C. teacher of the year helps charter students succeed [KIPP DC PCS mentioned]
- One million students to receive free Office 365 , including many in D.C.
D.C. teacher of the year helps charter students succeed [KIPP DC PCS mentioned]
Watchdog.org
By Moriah Costa
January 23, 2015
WASHINGTON, D.C. — For Jennifer Ramacciotti’s eighth grade math students at KIPP DC AIM academy, it’s all “go, go, go.”
“We don’t waste a minute,” she said.
Ramacciotti was named Washington, D.C.’s 2015 Teacher of the Year in January by the Office of the State Superintendent of Education for her work as a teacher, running coach and music director.
Her hard-work shows — 94 percent of her students scored proficient or advanced on standardized math tests last year, with 64 percent scoring advanced.
“Ms. Ramacciotti exemplifies the leadership, dedication and understanding necessary to help her students succeed against all odds,” Amy Maisterra, the interim state superintendent of education for OSSE, said in a statement.
Nominations for the annual award are accepted from both the D.C. Public School and charter schools. The winner is chosen by a board of education leaders and the application process includes interviews, classroom observation and a comprehensive essay.
On her application, Ramacciotti’s colleagues highlighted her willingness to always step in, OSSE said in a statement.
“Our principal began professional development for all of the coaches in our building by saying, ‘List all of the things that a new staff member would need to know how to do in order to become Jen Ramacciotti,’” wrote Kathleen Murray, vice principal at KIPP DC AIM Academy.
Ramacciotti became a life-long educator after seeing the problems in the Philadelphia school district, where she taught for two years with Teach for America.
“I just felt really unsatisfied with how I left things, that I needed to go somewhere and see education done right,” she said.
She joined KIPP DC in 2008 and taught sixth grade for two years before becoming vice principal of AIM for three years. Last year, she returned to the classroom, applying the lessons she learned as an administrator.
Ramacciotti likes to get her students to use technology as much as possible, whether it’s watching Khan Academy videos, a nonprofit that provides free education lessons on Youtube, or solving math problems on their Chromebooks.
“We have an analogy at the school: You don’t learn how to swim by standing on the side of the pool and so you’ve got to get kids in the pool, working and practicing,” she said.
Ramacciotti splits her classroom into group and individual study, to better help students who are behind or keep advanced students interested with harder problems.
“I think my eighth grade math class will be a small challenge for them in the big scheme of things and so if we can start to build that grit and that determination and the resilience through this then they’ll be able to continue through these other challenges,” she said.
It’s the impact Ramacciotti has on individual students that keeps her going. One of her first sixth-grade students, now a senior in high school, told her she applied to George Washington University because Ramacciotti once took her students to a basketball game and college tour.
“It was a moment of really feeling like we had come full circle, that the mission of KIPP, to get our students to and through college, was right there and that I had a hand in that,” she said.
In May, D.C. will honor Ramacciotti at its inaugural Educators of the Year Celebration.
One million students to receive free Office 365 , including many in D.C.
The Washington Post
By Michael Alison Chandler
January 23, 2015
More than a million students, including many in the District, will be able to download Microsoft software for free at home, through a partnership between the non-profit Communities in Schools and the technology giant.
Officials said the boost in technology will help bridge a digital divide by providing the tools to students who traditionally have less access.
The licenses will go to students in the 2,200 schools in 26 states and the District of Columbia that are working with Communities in Schools, a drop out prevention program.
The suite of Microsoft Office 365 Pro Plus includes: Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, OneNote, Publisher, Access, Lync, and OneDrive with access to cloud storage.
Students will also be able to pursue training and certifications through Microsoft’s on-line IT Academy.
Dan Cardinali, president of Communities in Schools, said the collaboration will “provide their students with technology that can help close the achievement gap and better prepare students for real jobs.”
Microsoft also recently partnered with the Maryland Education Department, and is making the software available for free to public school students statewide.
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