U & D

Opportunity knocks! If you do not know about the inexpensive, articulate, wonderfully planned, fully researched, hands-on programs offered by Old Fort Western (museum, Historic Landmark, education center in Augusta), you need to rush to their website and download the Programs brochure (or just click my link – it is a .pdf file). There are at least two programs at each curricular level (k – 12) that directly support implementation of LD 291.

I know that many of your schools – like mine – have frozen budgets for this year. As long as they can afford it, the good folks (Jay Adams) at Old Fort are making their onsite and “at your school” programs available at no cost (via Scholarships) to schools that can demonstrate (1) need, and (2) full implementation of MLR for Social Studies (e.g. curriculum already in place).

Here is the e-mail I received yesterday:

News from Old Fort Western

For more information contact: Patti Violette, 626-2385

Social Studies Scholarship Funds Available for Schools

Old Fort Western is pleased to announce that it has funds available to defray the cost to schools associated with scheduling field trips to the Fort, classroom outreach programs presented by Fort staff, or Fort-led professional development for teachers on the subject of teaching about Maine Indians in the context of the State Social Studies Standards.

The Fort has initiated this program to help mitigate the effects of the absence of a Social Studies requirement in Federal standards and the reduction in State aid to local schools that has resulted in the wide-spread curtailment of field trip, enrichment, and professional development opportunities for students and teachers.

Old Fort Western Scholarship funds are available on a first-come, first-served basis. No one school may schedule more than a single day of such programming. All requests for funded programming must be accompanied by a letter signed by the district superintendant certifying the following:

1. That district funds for field trips, classroom visit outreach programs by enrichment providers, and school-staff professional development have been frozen for the balance of the 2009 school year (i.e. through June 2009)
2. That there is no chance those funds will be unfrozen by the end of the said school year. If such funds are unfrozen after an application and certification are received and free Fort programming has been delivered, the superintendant must inform Old Fort Western of that fact and must reimburse the Fort in full by June 30, 2009 for what would have been the cost of said programming
3. That no other sources of related funding for such programming, including grant funds, PTA, PTO, or similar private sources of funds, are or will be available by year’s end.

In addition, in case the number of applicants exceeds the amount of funds available, the nod will go first to those schools which have fully implemented the 2007 Maine Learning Results for Social Studies. For this reason, applying schools must provide a written copy of their social studies curriculum along with the above-mentioned superintendant’s certifications.

Interested schools and/or teachers must phone Old Fort Western in advance to make specific program arrangements. Once completed, those arrangements will be confirmed as soon as the required certifications and curriculum materials have been received. Please phone 626-2385 for more information or to make preliminary scheduling arrangements.

Schools and districts with available field trip, classroom enrichment, or professional development funds are of course encouraged to partake of Old Fort Western school programming and professional development offerings by phoning 626-2385.

Start up funds for Old Fort Western Social Studies scholarships have been provided by the Augusta Kiwanis Club. Old Fort Western is seeking additional contributions from individuals and businesses to expand the scholarship program. Please contact Fort director Jay Adams or Fort curator of education Patti Violette for more information. Contributions are needed now if this scholarship program is to be effective during the remainder of the 2009 school year. All contributions are tax-deductible.

This is the type of generous educational sharing and initiative that we should be seeing more of in the great state of Maine!