UWF EVT 6664 Session 3 (a)

BY: Anthony C. Grant

THE KEYS TO SUCCESSFUL SCHOOL, FAMILY, AND COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS

Partnerships in Polk County Florida

Public Relations

Our goal is to provide members of our community with up-to-the-minute news and information on

public schools in Polk County.

Community Involvement

Welcome to the Community Involvement homepage of the Community Relations Department. Here you

will find a variety of information on how you can start getting involved in public education as a business

or community organization. Please browse our site and contact us with any questions you might have.

http://www.polk-fl.net/districtinfo/departments/officeofthesuperintendent/communityrelations.htm

Broadcast Communications

Our goal is to provide the citizens of Polk County with a quality source of news and information about

the programs and services offered by the Polk County School Board. We welcome your input as we

continue to develop this valuable communications tool as a link between homes and schools.

http://www.polk-fl.net/districtinfo/departments/officeofthesuperintendent/communityrelations.htm

Volunteers

The Polk County School Board has an outstanding volunteer program, with over one million service

hours donated by more than 30,000 volunteers each year. Investing in our schools helps students

succeed.

Becoming a Volunteer

The security of our students is a primary concern. Volunteers pay a one-time, non refundable fee of

$24.00 to cover the cost of a Florida Department of Law Enforcement background check. Payment is

made by certified check or money order payable to the Polk County School Board and submitted with a

volunteer application at the school site. Volunteer approval is continuous from year to year and applies

to all Polk County Schools. Check with your school and make sure you are not already approved.

How Can You Help?

Ways to Help

The Polk Education Foundation has several ways for an individual to help with the many progams they

offer. Here is a list of some of the ways you can help.

1. Donate

"Just One $ for the Kids" Payroll Deduction Program

If you are a Polk County School Board employee, you can help by

filling out a payroll deduction card for just $1/month. This

money will automatically be taken out of your check and used to help those events and students

involved in various programs. The money you donate may be deducted from your taxes if you

request a tax deduction letter at the beginning of each year. Please contact Lou Ann Antonelli

(863) 534-0519 at the foundation office for more information or download a payroll deduction

card and send it back to the PEF Courier Route E.

Pledge

A pledged gift offers donors an opportunity to support the Foundation by making monthly,

quarterly, or yearly payments. If 10,000 Polk County residents donated just $1 per month, the

Foundation could raise over $100,000 in just a year!

Memorial or Honor Gifts

Make a gift in memory or in honor of an individual or group. Contact our office for more

information.

2. Sponsor

Grants Grants for teachers, schools and special projects are funded through the generosity

of individuals, corporations and civic groups

Event Sponsorship Sponsoring a Polk Education event or program provides many benefits to your

organization.

o Sponsorship could be provided to things like the county science fair,

spelling bee, poetry contest, academic competitions and minority

achievement banquet just to name a few.

Sponsor a Foundation Program AmeriCorps Polk Reads, Take Stock in Children, Teacher to

Teacher/School to School Connection, Project Fill-A-Bucket and

more.

3. Volunteer

As an Event Volunteer Serve on an event planning committee and help with various tasks

associated with hosting events

As an Office Volunteer Assist with various tasks and projects as needed

As a Reading Tutor Work with K-3rd grade students.

http://www.polk-fl.net/community/volunteers/americorps.htm

As a TSIC Mentor Serve up to 30 minutes per week mentoring a scholarship student in grades

7-12. http://www.polk-fl.net/community/volunteers/tsicmentors.htm

4. Purchase

Purchase a License for Learning license plate. This license plate shows

that you care about education in Polk County. When you pay for this

plate, the additional $20 will be returned to Polk County classrooms

through grants and services of the PEF. The $20 is also tax deductible. These tags are available at your

local tag office. The tag is listed under Florida Educational. Click the link below and renew your tag

now. Please consider purchasing Support Education License tags for your company or fleet vehicles as

well.

5. Plan

A retirement fund advisor, tax attorney, or certified financial planner may advise you of the best way to

make a planned gift that would benefit you most.

Bequests Remembering the Education Foundation in a will or living trust is one way

to support future student achievement. To be recognized appropriately, the

following language must be used for a will or living trust to be recognized:

“I give, devise and bequeath to the Polk Education Foundation (or the

Polk Education Foundation Endowment Fund) the sum of ______dollars

(or ______% of the estate, or otherwise describe the gift)” For more

information, please contact Susan Copeland, phone: (863)534-0434.

Charitable Annuities Charitable gift annuities make it possible for a donor to benefit public

school students or teachers while guaranteeing income for specified

parties and specified lengths of time. This is achieved by donating assets

to the Foundation in exchange for the Foundation’s promise to pay the

specified party the guaranteed income. For more information, please

contact Susan Copeland phone: (863) 534-0434.

Charitable Trusts:

Charitable Remainder Trust: You may establish a trust designed to provide income to you or one

or more beneficiaries for life or a specified number of years. At

termination, the trust assets are paid to the Polk Education

Foundation.

Charitable Lead Trust: A Charitable lead trust is similar to the charitable remainder trust

with one exception. With a charitable lead trust, the Polk Education

Foundation receives the income payments for a term of years of the

life of the individual(s). When the trust terminates, the remaining

trust assets and undistributed income revert back to you or your

beneficiaries. For more information, please contact Susan Copeland

phone: (863) 534-0434.

Life Insurance: You may provide for a future gift by naming the Polk Education

Foundation as a primary, co-primary or contingent beneficiary on your life

insurance policy. You may also transfer ownership of a paid-in-full policy

to the Foundation, or purchase a policy naming the Foundation as owner

or beneficiary. For more information, please contact Susan Copeland

phone: (863) 534-0434.

Retirement Plans: Retirement plans can make a desired gift possible by naming the

Foundation as beneficiary of all or a portion of the remainder of the

account. For more information, please contact Susan Copeland phone:

(863) 534-0434.

Mentors - Youth Motivators and Take Stock in Children

Youth Motivators

The Youth Motivator program brings together positive role models from the community and students

who can benefit from one-on-one attention. Students are selected by teachers and guidance counselors.

Parents sign a permission form for participation in the program. Students and mentors meet, usually

once a week, to work together to improve grades, set goals for improved attendance and behavior or

focus on career interests.

http://www.polk-fl.net/community/volunteers/youthmotivators.htm

Take Stock in Children

Take Stock in Children is an award-winning program that provides scholarships, mentors, and hope for a

better future to Florida's most deserving low-income, at-risk children. A public-private partnership, this

school-based mentoring organization has positively affected the lives of more than 11,000 children since

1995

http://www.polk-fl.net/community/volunteers/tsicmentors.htm

AmeriCorps Polk Reads

AmeriCorps Polk Reads is a grant-funded reading tutoring program in Polk County, Florida. Members

provide reading tutoring to more than 425 K-3 students each year while working collaboratively with

community agencies to strengthen community ties.

http://www.polk-fl.net/community/volunteers/americorps.htm

Doing Business With Us

Business Partners

Good education is good for business and good for the community. The purpose of the Partners in

Education program is to strengthen the educational process through collaborative relationships between

schools and the community.

http://www.polk-fl.net/community/doingbusinesswithus/businesspartners.htm

Vendor Application

The School Board of Polk County welcomes the opportunity for a business relationship with interested

suppliers in the community. The district’s Purchasing Department is interested in fostering participation

by all qualified business persons offering commodities and/or services that may be used by the District.

http://www.polk-fl.net/community/doingbusinesswithus/vendorapplication.htm

Facilities and Operations Projects

Here you will find information on Facilites Projects, Construction Bids, Pre-qualification, Permits, and

Public Announcements.

http://www.polk-fl.net/community/doingbusinesswithus/facilitiesprojects.htm

School Concurrency

Ideally, School Concurrency provides coordinated planning among the County, local governments, and

the School District to ensure that school capacity is available at the time of impact of residential

development.

Polk County’s accelerated growth has led to a growing demand for school facilities. The implementation

of public school concurrency will result in a cooperative and financially feasible process permitting the

School Board to address existing school crowding and to provide adequate capacity for projected new

growth.

http://www.polk-fl.net/community/doingbusinesswithus/schoolconcurrency.htm

Instructional Programs and Materials

In order to enhance the focus of researched based materials to be used with all students in Polk County

and to ensure that the professional learning provided by consultants is focused on district priority

professional learning needs, all external providers of professional learning must complete the PCSB

Instructional Program Review Application.

http://www.polk-fl.net/community/doingbusinesswithus/pure.htm

Awards and Distinctions

It is an honor for the Department of Community Relations to be recognized for the quality of our work.

The programs and projects on this page are representative of the good work that the PCSB Department

of Community Relations produces daily with the united goal of providing rigorous, results-driven

educational opportunities for Polk students.

http://www.polk-fl.net/districtinfo/departments/officeofthesuperintendent/communityrelations.htm

Recognition Programs

The Polk County School Board has many events and programs celebrating the accomplishments and

hard work of our staff, community partners and students from both the present and the past. The

following recognition events are coordinated by the Community Relations Department.

Hall Of Fame Nominations

The Polk County Public Schools are seeking nominations for its Hall of Fame.

http://www.polk-fl.net/community/recognitionprograms/halloffameinductees.htm

Face and Master Key Awards

The About Face Award recognizes secondary students who have made a significant turn around in their

behavior, academic achievement and attendance in school. One student from each middle and high

school in the district receive the award annually at the Awards Program. Students are nominated by their

school and receive a medallion for their success.

The extraordinary efforts that teachers of exceptional students make to help them achieve their

maximum potential. They award the Master Key award to four exceptional education teachers who have

demonstrated excellence, perseverance and longevity in their careers.

This event is made possible through the sponsorship of TECO Energy.

Volunteer of the Year

Volunteer of the Year honors outstanding volunteers in our schools. Each school nominates a volunteer

who has provided exceptional service to students and teachers throughout the year. There are three

categories of winners, youth (up to 21), adult (22-60) and senior (61+). Twelve outstanding volunteers

are selected each year as finalists, four in each category.

Volunteer of the Year is sponsored by The Ledger.

http://www.polk-fl.net/districtinfo/departments/officeofthesuperintendent/communityrelations.htm

Learn and Serve Grants

Service-learning is a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with

instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility, and strengthen

communities.

Teachers can write Learn and Serve grants to help fund the efforts that they would like to make in their

schools and communities. Below are the grant applications as well as some other helpful resources.

Family and Consumer Sciences

General Information

The mission of Family and Consumer Sciences is to strengthen families and empower individuals to

take action for the well-being of self and others in the home, workplace, community and the world.

Family and Consumer Sciences prepares students for jobs in related occupations and equips them with

lifelong learning skills as family members. The programs of instruction include exploration of careers,

employability skills, consumer education and resource management, nutrition and wellness, family

living, child development, parenting skills, fashion design and clothing construction, life management

skills, and home management and technology.

Training for gainful employment opportunities begins with entry level through technical level, to

managerial and professional levels. Wage-earning programs are Early Childhood Education, Culinary

Operations and Fashion Design and Production.

Family and Consumer Sciences School Based Enterprises

Family and Consumer Sciences programs across the county provide serves both to their school and to

the community. Please follow the links in the charts below to find out more.

Workforce Education

Mission

The Mission of Workforce Education is to educate students to be responsible, productive, competent

contributors to the workforce.

http://www.polk-fl.net/districtinfo/departments/learning/workforceeducation/default.htm

Career Academies

Career academies are small, personalized learning communities within a high school. Students enter the

academy through a voluntary process; they must apply and be accepted with parental knowledge and

support.

A career academy involves teachers from different subjects working together as a team.

Staff teams, who often share common planning time, work together to implement the key features of the

academy and provide students with career training. Students may be grouped together for several

periods every day with a core group of teachers. This promotes a family-like atmosphere and results in

close student-teacher ties.

A career academy includes the following essential elements:

A small learning community supported by a local advisory committee

A career theme that may include a college-prep curriculum and lead to industry certification

Partnerships with employers, the community, and higher education

By design, these three central elements of a career academy lead to a school that is rigorous and

relevant.

Sponsors and Support

Many thanks to the 2008 Take Stock in Children Major Golf Sponsors

Lakeland Tournament Host Lake Wales Tournament Host

A total of $85,000 was raised at the tournaments and due to our match from the Florida Prepaid

Foundation allowed us to purchase $170,000 worth of scholarships.

Community Centers

There are currently 30 community centers in Polk County that are

affiliated with the Polk County School Board. Many of these sites

are actively training and all sites are offering computer services for

students or adults or both. There have been over 1600 logins by

community center participants in 2009. This partnership is making

a difference in Polk County!

Chain of Lakes Achievers, Inc.1900 Havendale Blvd. Suite DWinter Haven, FL 33881863-299-7177Contact/Liaison Name: Seretha TinsleySite Trainer Name: Cheryl Watford

Compassion Action for Haitians, Inc Florence Villa Community 111 Ave R NE Winter Haven, FL863-294-2410Contact/Liaison Name: Dr. Harry Sainthill Site Trainer Name: None

Eloise Resource Center710 Snively AvenueWinter Haven, FL 33880863-298-4485Contact: Johnny Brooks & David DennisSite Trainer Name: Lois Reszetucha

Lake Shipp Elementary School250 Camellia DrWinter Haven 33880(863) 291-5384Contact & Site Trainer: Nathan Guteras

Wahneta Sports & Neighborhood Assoc.Next to Wahneta Elementary315 4th Wahneta Street EWinter Haven, FL 33880Contact/Liaison Name: Daniel NobleSite Trainer Name: Brittanie Moore

Wilfred Smith Community Center135 Avenue Y NEWinter Haven, FL 33881863-298-7898Contact/Liaison Name: Mary SmithSite Trainer Name: Brittanie Moore

Winter Haven Cultural Arts & Recreation Center801 Avenue TWinter Haven, FL 33881863-291-5675Contact/Liaison Name: Wayne DavisSite Trainer Name: Amelia James

References:

© 2007 Polk County Public School District, Florida

http://www.polk-fl.net/community/default.aspx