Student Spotlight: New College students named Fullbright scholars

Six new College students have been named Fullbright scholars and will be taking their studies internationally.
They will travel to Germany, , Sweden, Tawain and the Czech Republic to study and to teach English.  
These students are ones to watch. Fullbright recipients often go on to significant positions in government, academia and the arts: 44 have received the Nobel Prize, 78 have won the Pulitzer Prize and 10 have been elected to Congress. 
These students are nothing short of astonishing. 
The winners representing Florida this year are: 

Claire Albiez

Claire Albiez has already built a resume of international experience. She was born in Hong Kong, has dual German-American citizenship, grew up in England and has traveled to Mexico, Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Spain, Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic. Wow! Talk about an accomplished globetrotter!  

She moved to Florida in 2001 and graduated from Pine View School, where she was in the first violin section of the chamber orchestra.

At New College, she embraced her heritage, studying German language and history along with art history. She traveled twice to Germany, studying art history and architecture. She also learned about teaching, volunteering at Children First Head Start in Sarasota and at the New College Child Care Center.  

 Albiez will teach English in Germany during her Fulbright year, and hopes to go to graduate school for a doctorate in art history, then teach at the undergraduate level.

Seth Borden
Seth Borden has built a record of leadership and  public speaking on the way to his Fulbright grant.
While studying economics and political science at New College, he also has taken four semester of Chinese language.
Outside of classes, Borden has served as a resident advisor, a teaching intern at St. Stephens Preparatory School and a reporter with radio station WSRQ.  He also trained volunteers as a community organizer for President Obama’s re-election campaign.
A hobby of Borden's outside of school is rowing.
Borden will teach English in Taiwan during his Fulbright year, where he also hopes to sharpen his understanding of the Chinese language and international relations. He plans to teach back at home in the United States before entering graduate school and preparing for a career in foreign policy.


Rosalia Maier-Katkin
Rosalia Maier-Katkin grew up in a bilingual German-English home, but for her Fulbright year she will teach English in the Czech Republic.
The interest stems from her childhood, when she traveled to the Czech Republic several times. Her father, a Florida State University professor and dean, was working there on a State Department grant to help the country develop its judicial system.
At New College, she studies International Studies, with a focus on European politics, and has studied in Germany, visited the Balkans and taken classes in German and Russian.
During study abroad at the University of Tubingen in Germany, she picked up a course in Czech language. She was determined to continue learning the language, so she found a tutor to continue her studies when she returned.
Maier-Katkin hopes to build her Czech skills as she teaches in the city of Plzen, and then study international law for a career with the International Criminal Court or the United Nations.


Amelia Nordin
Amelia Nordin already is a talented musical composer and performer, and her Fulbright research grant will let her expand her New College studies of history and music at the University of Heidelberg and the Theater and Orchestra of Heidelberg.
At New College, she has been a teaching assistant in music theory, composed two pieces performed in concert series and interned with Sarasota Opera.
Her studies have been in a field known as musicology, in which disciplines such as history, philosophy, psychology and even mathematics are used to analyze music. She also is an advanced-level German speaker.
At Heidelberg, famed for its music program, she plans to examine the political and social influences of foreign music and 18^th-century opera. Nordin expects that deeper understanding of German opera will help her with a long-term goal of working in opera management or a doctoral program in the musicological business.



Silvia Ulloa
Silvia Ulloa will travel to Sweden under her Fulbright research grant to study resettled Iraqi refugees, an experience she understands on a personal level.
As the daughter of a U.S. Foreign Service family, Ulloa spent her childhood in four countries. The family lived in Saudi Arabia when the second Iraq War began, and had to be evacuated twice. She came away with concern over the plight families face when they flee a war. So during her New College work in anthropology and gender studies, she traveled to Jordan to work with agencies that assist Iraqi refugees.

Her Fulbright grant will allow her to compare the experiences of the Iraqi refugees in Jordan and Sodertalje. The city, near Stockholm, has an established Iraqi community that has taken in more refugees than the entire United States.
She hopes to develop a framework for better meeting the needs of a refugee community, which would prepare her for graduate school in public policy and a career with organizations working in international migration.

Picasso would be proud: Nolan Middle students complete mural

The Manatee County School District may be in financial disarray, but the students never cease to display their many talents. 

Fifteen talented art club students from Nolan Middle just completed a three-month long mural project representing the Health Occupation Students of America  and future health professionals. 

 Under the direction of the school’s art teacher, Wade Smith, students used images of wholesome food production in an agricultural theme for the 9’ x 6’ mural painted on the school’s cafeteria, supporting the importance of dairy, grains, fruits and vegetables. 

Nolan Middle School HOSA advisers Pam Rahn and Michelle Boculac, secured a grant for the mural.

The mural is dedicated to health professionals and to the nationwide movement focused on fighting childhood obesity and is meant to empower kids to take control of their own health.

"The dedication of our HOSA advisors, Ms. Rahn and Ms. Boculac and FACTS advisor, Mr. Smith is absolutely incredible," said Nolan Middle principal nancy High.  "Through their coordinated leadership, we have a beautiful mural in our cafeteria that depicts the importance of good nutrition."

My times as a judge: silver-tongued students shine at speech contest

I had the wonderful opportunity Monday morning to be a judge for the Gullett Elementary 4-H Tropicana Speech Contest.
The contest is sponsored by Tropicana and provides teachers with classroom materials for educating kids about the art of public speaking.
It was my first time being a "judge" for anything, but I felt honored to be included.
I was sympathetic for the kids stepping up to the microphone because of my experiences as a spelling bee participant (I won first place at the state competition for private schools in the eighth grade , but I avoid sharing that fact so that people don't constantly ask me how to spell things).
The fourth and fifth graders fidgeted in their seats in a semicircle on stage in the cafeteria. One-by-one they shuffled up to the microphone to  speak on topics of their choice.
Speeches varied from persuasive and informative to comedy sketches. No matter what the theme, each child was lively and confident.

Working with children has a way of instantly melting your inner critic. It was incredibly hard to judge this competition because it is never easy saying a kid has done something wrong or performed poorly.
I cringed every time a student went over the time limit or lost their place and had to back track, and I had to fight the urge to ignore their mistakes
However, they all presented well, and as in all competitions, there are a few that bubbled to the top.

First place went to fifth grader Hailey Wahlers, who spoke on how to give a good speech. The topic is not wildly out-of-the-box, but Whalers stood out as she combined humor with information. Wahlers also had one of the best conclusions.
"Remember these tips when giving your next speech, or you can just hire a speech writer. I'm available!"
Wahlers gets to represent Gullett Elementary at the county-wide competition May 11.

Second and third place went to Emilio Vega and Robby Goecker. If you remember their names, it is because they had the opportunity to go to Washington, D.C. earlier this month to help plant the White House kitchen garden with Michelle Obama.
Surprisingly, neither of them spoke on this topic.
Vega articulately spoke about his family vacation to Hawaii and did exceptionally well for any young student, let alone an English as a second language student.
Goecker spoke about how he believes athletes' salaries are unfairly high, an astute observation for a fifth grader.

While not everyone can come out with a medal, I do have some honorable mentions:

Shea Murphy, because her presentation was so animated. Her humorous speech about life before modern conveniences, such as plumbing, also included miming.

Austin Gobcynski, because his speech about looking though the windows of other people's cars while travelling was unique and creative, and I genuinely laughed aloud during his performance.

Jaquisha Barnes, because her speech was about the downside of being rich and famous. Principal Kathy Hayes said she has heard students deliver speeches about the desire to be famous, but never about its disadvantages.

Taylor Woodring, because she committed her entire speech to memory and did not use flashcards, resulting in excellent eye contact with the audience.

Ethan McDonald, for his speech "Things I Shouldn't Do in Public." The title alone...

I am grateful that I had the opportunity to be a part of this event. Every one of the 20 students today defeated one of the most common fears among people, which is speaking to a crowd.

Gullett Elementary plans on participating in the 4-H Tropicana Speech Contest again next year.

Southeast High Students have pressing questions for superintendent Mills

Southeast High School student’s show Seminole Teen Talk Live may sound light, but the students involved show serious interest in the issues of the school board, particularly the budget.
Host and creator MacKenzie Yayura interviewed Manatee County school board chairwoman Karen Carpenter and superintendent of schools Rick Mills about the school board’s top issues of the past month, particular the budget shortfall.
According to the show’s producer, junior Gillian Palino, Teen Talk has aired about 10 episodes since Yayura started it this year under the direction of the production teacher Mike Sanders.
The show normally features interviews with other students, and topics addressed include International Baccalaureate versus Advanced Placement, balancing homework and stress and technology’s role in students’ academic lives.
The format allows audience members tuning in from around the community to submit questions via email and Twitter.
Thursdays episode garnered questions from other Southeast High School students, parents in the community and even a fifth grader from Willis Elementary.
Thursday’s episode gave
Carpenter and Mills took the opportunity to visit with students and tell them on a personal level some of the issues the district is facing.
“We need to be more fiscally alert,” Carpenter said on the show. “There is nothing criminal about stupidity, but we didn’t have a comprehensive financial plan.”
Concerns raised included the future of art and athletic departments community’s investment in both high and low performing students and the reimbursement of money to schools.
Yayura also inquired about a possible student advisory for the school board, as well as the possibility of student school board members.
“We need student voices at the school board, policy-making level and in their own schools,” Carpenter said. While she said that it is unlikely, and maybe even against Florida statutes, that a student would be elected to the school board, she still wants to hear student voices.
Yayura is graduating next month, but with younger siblings in the public school system, she said that she has concerns and fears that she would like to see addressed.
“There is too much attention taken away from high performing students,” Yayura said. She added that she would like to see a change in the community’s perception about her soon-to-be alma mater, Southeast High School. “I know I’m biased, but it’s a great school, and I would like to see more community collaboration around it.”
Yayura said that she found Carpenter’s and Mills’ responses reassuring.
“Mills has an action plan, and he is ready to analyze and develop solutions,” she said. “Carpenter supports students and student voices.”
Carpenter and Mills said they enjoyed hearing the interests of students as stakeholders, and they both had broad smiles as they left the Seminole Teen Talk set.
Episodes of Seminole Teen Talk can be viewed any time at www.highschoolcube.com
Erica Earl, education reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7081.


http://www.highschoolcube.com/profiles/setv

New Food Regulations on the horizon for Manatee County Schools

Sandy Ford, the food services director at Gullett Elementary School, is proposing a new food plan for the Manatee County School district at the school board meeting Monday night.
Ford would like to see the plan implemented as early as the 2014-2015 school year, but acknowledges that it probably will not be ready to be implemented until 2015.
Regulations she will be proposing for the school board to consider include:


-50% or more whole grain
- No more than 35% percent calories from sugar and fat
- No more than 200 calories per serving for packaged products
- 200 mg sodium limit per portion
- Limit of 350 calories per entrée
- No beverages except juice, water and milk or products that are less than 50 calories per 8 ounce serving AND not in food service area
- No milk bigger than 8 ounce

Voting on the proposal is not on the school board's agenda for Monday, but they will be listening to the proposal.

Gullet Elementary has been heralded for their efforts in promoting healthy choices. Earlier this month five fifth graders from Gullett were invited to the white house to help plant the White House kitchen garden with Michelle Obama.

SCF offering courses in Homeland Security

MANATEE -- The State College of Florida will offer new bachelor's degree programs in public safety administration and homeland security.

The college Monday released a promotional video about the classes filmed at the Sarasota/Manatee Airport Authority, which features James Carlino, police chief of Sarasota-Manatee Airport Authority and SCF adjunct professor.

Coursework will include crisis and disaster issues, public safety, homeland security, management and terrorism prevention. Homeland security program graduates can find employment opportunities in federal or state government, colleges and universities and the private sector.

Employment for public safety administration includes positions such as fire chief, deputy chief, emergency management coordinator and state trooper.

Carlino said the courses were designed by professionals.

"Not only do they teach but they have done the work on the street," Carlino says in the video. "You are learning from experience."

Homeland security class

es include contemporary issues in public safety administration/homeland security, catastrophic event response planning, critical incident management and intelligence analysis.

Carlino said the program is ideal for high school graduates and adults going back to school.

Carlino said he was an adult learner himself, going back to school and working his way up the ranks to chief.

Course videos can be accessed online at scf.edu/Academics/BaccalaureateDegrees.

Read more here: http://www.bradenton.com/2013/04/16/4484304/scf-offers-new-degree-in-homeland.html#storylink=cpy

Attttention! Southeast High's JROTC academic and leadership teams heading to D.C.

After a victory in the regional competition, Southeast High School's JROTC Leadership Academic Bowl (JLAB) battalion will be heading to Washington, D.C. for the national competition.
Southeast was one of the first place teams in their brigade, which consisted of schools from Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia and Florida.The competition consisted of online play.
The competition in D.C. will take place at the George Mason University campus and requires the Leadership Academic Bowl cadets on the academic team to answer questions relating to SAT and ACT preparation. Leadership team members answer questions about organizational and professional leadership, such as how to properly treat one's subordinates.
The competition also considers battalions' community service hours and fundraising efforts.
Southeast High will be heading to the nation's capitol June 20. While the trip is paid for by the US Army, battalions are still expected to help raise funds on their own.
"We are expected as a courtesy to pay for as much of the trip as possible through fund raising," said freshman Brittani Sudbury, who competes on the academic team. "that is how we help give back to the army."
At the national competition, Southeast High will compete against several number one teams from around the country in leadership and academic events. One sole army winner will compete with winners from the marines, navy and air force.
Sudbury said that no seniors are allowed in JLAB. The leadership and academic teams each consist of one freshman, one sophomore and two juniors.
"Part of the competition is coming up with questions that may be used against other teams," Sudbury said. "This allows us to see how to come up with the answers."
Sudbury and other members train by studying after school.
"We will be very prepared for the SAT," she said. "The leadership team also gets training in social and working roles that you do not gain in ordinary classes."
Sudbury said the academic teams meets once or twice for two or three hours at a time. The leadership team meets for briefings every other day.
Southeast High School's JROTC also has a drill team and a rifle team that compete in events separately, including obstacle courses and marches.
Those teams will not go to Washington, D.C. as they are not a part of the Leadership Academic Bowl.






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New College names VP of Advancement

New College of Florida, a liberal arts honors college, has seen a fair amount of transition lately. After welcoming the new president Donal O’Shea earlier this year, the institution named Shannon Duvall as the new vice president of advancement and the executive director of the New College Foundation.
Duvall grew up in Winter Park and was accepted into New College out of high school. Although she pursued her education at Michigan State, New College left a favorable impression on Duvall.
Duvall is currently the associate vice president for development at Albion College, a nationally recognized, independent liberal arts college in south-central Michigan, where she has been responsible for prospect management and research, and staff development and training. She was also  responsible for alumni engagement and annual giving for 16 months.
At New College, Duvall will be responsible for all aspects of the College’s fund-raising program, including major and planned giving and the annual fund.
After a national search that started in December, Donal O’Shea, president of New College, and the search committee unanimously chose Duvall for her experience in securing large gifts, developing and managing giving programs and generating a strong return on investment in fund raising.
“The committee members were especially attracted by her professionalism, her impressive track record, her knowledge of all aspects of educational advancement, and her personal warmth,” O’Shea said.
Duvall said that she was more eager to start after meeting  O’Shea, the trustees, and the directors of the foundation.
“I was impressed by O’Shea’s wonderful leadership. The opportunity to be close to family again is a bonus,” Duvall said. “This is a win-win, and I think we will make a great team.”
A major part of Duvall’s position is the New College Promise, a $60 million campaign to provide necessary resources to advance the college. Since its launch in 2010, it has raised $23 million. Money is acquired through major gift giving, planned gifts and event proceeds. The money will be used for increased scholarships, endowment, student and faculty travel research grants, a new building for international studies and items for the library.
Duvall’s says her experience in development at Albion College has prepared her for the advancement position at New College.
“My time at Albion allowed me to stretch my managerial muscles,” Duvall said.
Duvall added that her time at Albion confirmed that her work brings her joy.
The vice president of advancement is a new position at New College that has absorbed the existing position of executive director.
She is replacing Clint Monts de Oca, who is retiring after serving on an interim basis after Andre Walker resigned due to family health issues.
Duvall’s vision for her position at New College is to be able to support O’Shea’s visions and provide necessary resources to keep education affordable.
Her plan is to engage alumni, parents and friends and talk about the importance of investing in college and in the futures of students, faculty and staff.
Duvall believes it is important to lead by example, and she has already given to the New College annual fund.
Duvall equated the task of fund raising to puzzle pieces.
“In one hand we have the needs of the college, and in the other we have alumni and other donors working to figure out what pieces they have to contribute,” Duvall said. “We will help those with philanthropic interests figure out how their interests fit with the needs of the college.”