Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/2868
ers, education support profession- als, administrators and parents for working together to help our stu- dents of greatest need.” Parent Lewis Brown is chair of the Cooper School Site Council, which has a strong QEIA imple- mentation role. Brown joined teachers and the school principal, Marilyn Abelon, in attending the summer QEIA training. CTA and the training impressed Brown and Abelon. “I see CTA now as a viable part- ner,” Abelon says. “We want the same things. We want this school and our students to succeed.” She says the diverse school — where 69 percent of 563 students are poor enough to qualify for free or reduced-price lunches — is bet- ting that QEIA will save it from punitive measures mandated by the federal No Child Left Behind Act after a school fails to make Program Improvement goals for five years. Next year would be the fifth year for Cooper. QEIA provides the resources to make immediate changes. The school was able to hire an addi- tional teacher leader who is a cur- riculum expert, providing on-site professional development help; an additional intervention teacher aiding with extra reading classes; and two new teachers in the fourth and fifth grades, which now have smaller class sizes, courtesy of two new portable classrooms pur- chased with QEIA funds. Cooper teachers like third- grade educator Alice Ira meet ev- ery Tuesday to troubleshoot and strategize. “I don’t feel so isolated now,” Ira says. “I feel like I’m part of a team.” Vallejo Education Association President Janice Sullivan takes an active role in seeing that stake- holders continue sharing ideas at all four QEIA schools in Vallejo Point Loma Nazarene University | School of Education Advancing Education and Your Career Nazarene University School of Education has designed its high-quality graduate programs for committed, working professionals like you. Y Degree Offerings Teaching Credentials Preliminary and Clear Service Credentials M.A. in Education Certifi cates Educational Specialist Regional Centers Arcadia/Los Angeles Bakersfi eld Corona/Inland Empire MissionValley/San Diego For more information, call (866) 692-GRAD or visit www.pointloma.edu/grad gradinfo@pointloma.edu Your Alaska adventure begins now. Princess 7-day Alaska Cruises from $699 Start planning your summer vacation to Alaska now and take advantage of early booking discounts and special CTA benefits, including: • $50 shipboard credit on select sailings • $50 Macy’s Gift Card • Discounts on groups of 8 cabins or more (800) 638-0600 www.summitcruisevacations.com/cta Rates are per person, double occupancy for select departures 5/7/09-9/30/09. Airfare and government fees are additional. Restrictions may apply. Subject to availability. Ship registry: Bermuda. CST#1007858-10 november 2008 | California Educator 25 ou’re passionate about education, and you want your role to make a difference. Point Loma City Unified: Cooper, Mare Island Elementary, Vallejo Middle School and Vallejo High School. In Riverside County, Mountain View Middle School teacher Erika Garcia in the Moreno Valley Uni- fied School District is overjoyed at the drop in class sizes, which went down from 36 to 26 students. When parents heard that news, more tried to enroll their children in her QEIA school. Garcia teaches math and sci- ence to English learners, who clear- ly benefit from one teacher not hav- ing to teach to hordes of kids. “There is much more time to dif- ferentiate in the classroom and to CTA Exclusive!