The Stavros Center Global Leadership Academy- Creating Tomorrow’s Leaders: Preparing Students for the Global Economy (Voluntary Public School Choice- Administrative Division)

The Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS) Voluntary Public School Choice Grant (VPSC) programs, in collaboration with the University of South Florida (USF) College of Education’s (COE) Gus Stavros Center, completed a series of 3 seminars for teachers and students. These seminars were designed to connect Choice programs of academic rigor, including Advanced Placement Programs (APP) in high schools and Rigorous Academic Programs (RAP) in middle schools, to the needs of the global economy.

The seminars were titled The Stavros Center Global Leadership Academy- Creating Tomorrow’s Leaders: Preparing Students for the Global Economy. The seminars complemented the existing goals and purposes of the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program by reinforcing the academic achievement and individual determination needed for success in the 21st century. In addition, the seminars connected and exposed participants to successful local business leaders who discussed the changing workplace and necessity for lifelong education.

The goals of the Creating Tomorrow’s Leaders seminars were to provide a larger purpose for obtaining critical academic skills and to evoke a sense of urgency for increasing the college-going culture in schools. The targeted population for the project consisted of AVID coordinator/teachers and AVID students from VPSC funded schools. The seminars held in January and February 2010 introduced the concepts of the global economy as well as the skills that will be needed to thrive in the future. In each session, Dr. Dick Puglisi, Director of the Stavros Center, provided a welcome and introduction. The participants viewed a portion of the C-SPAN In Depth interview with Thomas Friedman. In the interview, Friedman discusses globalization with concepts from his book, The World Is Flat. Participants then read newspaper articles and analyzed political cartoons in order to collaborate and create suggestions to improve schools in ways that will prepare students for the future. Students shared their suggestions with the group. Specially selected guest speakers added to the events through a presentation regarding the relevant skill-sets, attitudes, and competencies needed to effectively operate in the coming years. The students who participated will share their recommendations for improving curriculum and instruction in their schools in ways that reflect the needs of the global economy.

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