Hillsborough County Public Schools Student Services and Federal Programs
Action Item

DATE: Tuesday, October 7, 2008
TO: School Board Members
FROM: MaryEllen Elia, Superintendent

SUBJECT / RECOMMENDATIONS

Approve $36,985 Payment to the University of South Florida for Services Associated with Their Partnership in Hillsborough County Public Schools Smaller Learning Communities (SLC) Grant, Project #S215L070536 (Student Services and Federal Programs Division)

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The U.S. Department of Education (USDOE) awarded $9,549,227 to Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS) for the District’s SLC grant project, entitled Tomorrow’s Leaders. The purpose of the program is to support activities to improve student academic achievement in large public high schools with enrollments of 1,000 or more students. The following high schools are included in the grant: Armwood, Brandon, Durant, Hillsborough, Jefferson, King, Riverview, and Robinson. The District’s Supervisor for Academic Programs serves as Project Director for this grant. The awarded amount for year two of the five year project is $1,872,077. Of this total amount, $36,985 is for project services rendered by the University of South Florida (USF). Dr. Patty McHatton, an expert in service learning, will deliver service learning staff development to teachers at the SLC schools. This will support the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship service hours requirement for students at the targeted schools. Additionally, Dr. McHatton and her staff will provide ongoing support, both face-to-face and online, to participating teachers as they implement service learning projects in their classrooms. Year two of the project begins October 1, 2008, and ends September 30, 2009.

ANNUAL DISTRICT GOAL(S) AND CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTOR(S)

GOAL 6 - All schools in the District will be assigned a state grade of A, B, or C (accomplish goals and critical success factors for goals 1-5).

FINANCIAL IMPACT (Budgeted: No)

Funding for this project is provided by (USDOE)(SLC) grant, Project # S215L070536. HCPS is the grant’s fiscal agent, and project funds reside with the District.

EVALUATION

Under the terms of the grant, HCPS is responsible for project evaluation. Copies of the annual reports and final evaluation report will be provided to the District Office of Assessment and Accountability. The anticipated date for the final evaluation for year two is December 30, 2009.

SUBMITTED BY: Lynn R. Fell, Grants and Research Operations Officer

Gwendolyn L. Luney
Assistant Superintendent, Student Services and Federal Programs
(813) 272-4879
Gretchen Saunders
Chief Business Officer
(813) 272-4270
A 5.12
Hillsborough County Public Schools (Florida) * Mtg.#20081007_301 * Section A Item# 5.12