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TAPESTRIES Wins Ohio's BEST Practice Award

published: 06/07/2001
posted to site: 06/07/2001

TAPESTRIES Wins Ohio's BEST Practice Award

A collaborative effort between The University of Toledo, Bowling Green State University, Toledo Public Schools and Springfield Local Schools is receiving honors from an education improvement consortium called Ohio's BEST.

This coalition of more than 100 education, business and community organizations works to improve teaching and learning across the state. Each year Ohio's BEST recognizes outstanding educational initiative. This year they have awarded the Toledo Area Partnership in Education: Support Teachers as Resources to Improve Elementary Science (TAPESTRIES) a $20,000 BEST Practice Award.

TAPESTRIES is a joint project with four partners:

  • The University of Toledo's College of Education;

  • Bowling Green State University's College of Education and Human Development;

  • Toledo Public Schools; and

  • Springfield Local Schools.

Co-directors Drs. Charlene M. Czerniak, interim dean of UT's College of Education, and Jodi Haney, associate professor of education division of teaching and learning at BGSU, initiated the program in 1998. TAPESTRIES is designed to develop comprehensive school science programs through the sustained professional development of all K-6 teachers in Toledo Public and Springfield Local schools. The five-year project is funded through a $5.2 million grant from the National Science Foundation.

The Ohio's BEST Awards initiative, launched in 1995, honors exemplary, innovative education programs that have been successful in improving the performance of Ohio's students, teachers and schools. Recipients of BEST Practice Awards have demonstrated an exemplary focus on quality, continuous improvement and measurable positive results.

Reward recipients will be honored at the Sixth Annual Ohio's BEST Awards Gala this fall in Columbus.

Funds from the BEST award will go to the Toledo Public and Springfield Local School districts in the following ways:

> Provide stipends to teachers for their participation in a pilot that researches the effectiveness of a new teaching practices that contributes to student achievement in science, and

> Provide stipends of $1000 or more to schools for strong "action plans" that improve proficiency scores, quality of teaching, and quality of assessment. Distribution of funds will be determined by a group consisting of TAPESTRIES staff and teachers and administrators from Toledo Public and Springfield Local School districts.

For more information on the award, or the TAPESTRIES program, contact Connie Black-Postl in TAPESTRIES at (419) 372-9667 or via email at cblackp@bgnet.bgsu.edu.