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The Central Education Center will be
visited on Tuesday, October 28, by Georgia business, education
and political leaders from around the state, when the Georgia
Partnership for Excellence in Education’s “Bus Trip Across
Georgia” makes a visit to the school.
The Bus Tour will arrive at CEC at approximately 9:00 a.m.,
after the October 28 Newnan-Coweta Chamber of Commerce monthly
breakfast, which is held at CEC.
CEC is one of 12 Georgia schools showcased on the 16th Annual
Bus Trip. The educational tour – sponsored annually by the
Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education (GPEE) –
introduces leaders from around the state to high-achieving
public schools and gives them examples of educational innovation
in Georgia.
GPEE’s bus trip event began in 1993. Schools selected as stops
have a proven track record of academic excellence, educational
innovation and sustained performance, said Dr. Stephen Dolinger,
president of the Partnership.
“The Central Education Center - as well as the other 2008
schools - represents what is right in Georgia’s public education
system,” said Dolinger. “In the case of the CEC, we see
innovation in the partnerships established between the Coweta
County School System, local business and industry, and West
Central Technical College. Preparing the future workforce is
what this program is all about.”
This is not the first time that CEC – Coweta County’s first
charter school and a national model high school – has been
featured on GPEE’s itinerary. The Bus Tour visited CEC as it
began in 2000, to see an example of a charter school created
through a unique local partnership.
“We are excited about the Georgia Partnership’s second visit to
CEC,” said Mark Whitlock, CEO of the Central Educational Center.
“Since they last visited us, CEC has doubled in size and added
many new programs,” said Whitlock. “They are visiting us this
time to see some of those changes, but also, we believe, because
our community's bold step is now being replicated in about ten
other Georgia communities.”
CEC has served as a model and, often, an advisor for the 10
Career Academies created by school systems and technical
colleges across the state in recent years, with five other such
academies in some stage of planning or construction across the
state.
GPEE’s Dolinger said that the annual Bus Trip accomplishes two
things. “While we are bringing much deserved recognition to
these schools and their school systems, we are also showcasing
best practices to influencers who might adopt some of these
great ideas for use in their own communities.”
Dolinger said that another objective is to provide decision
makers an opportunity to see how policy impacts the classroom.
“Education decisions made at the state level will ultimately
reach the grassroots level. It is important for these leaders to
see firsthand the results of their actions.” He added that the
annual trip helps highlight where and how Georgia needs to be
focusing its efforts in improving student achievement.
Whitlock said that improving graduation rates among high schools
students has been a goal – and an accomplishment – of CEC’s,
with particular success to be found in the extremely high
graduation rates of high school students who are “dual enrolled”
in classes which earn them both high school credit and specific
technical college credits or certificates.
“Our partnerships with West Central and business leaders allow
us to offer some very unique opportunities to students, and that
has been a large part of our success,” said Whitlock. “Because
of that success, the Georgia Partnership will be able to visit
us and find a facility twice as large, an enrollment that has
more than doubled, and an even stronger partnership among the
Coweta County School System, West Central Technical College and
local businesses than when they visited the first time.”
“Our community, through CEC, has expanded the idea of graduation
to mean even more than the attainment of a high school diploma,”
he said. “Coweta County, through CEC, has led many in our state
to conclude that high school graduation can also include
attainment of significant portions of an associate degree and
relevant work-based experience that leads to more informed
career choices. So GPEE will visit this time to better
understand a statewide movement.”
The Central Educational Center (CEC) – a public charter school –
was created nearly 10 years ago through a partnership of the
Coweta County School System, West Central Technical College, and
local business and industry leaders.
As a charter school, CEC operates under a charter which details
the school’s governance and standards of accountability, which
they adhere to in exchange for greater freedom from state
educational rules that govern public schools.
CEC’s visit on the tour comes as the school is in the process of
renewing its charter for the second time since its creation. The
Coweta County Board of Education approved a renewal charter for
the Central Educational Center at its October 14 regular board
meeting, sending the charter on to the State Board of Education
for final approval.
The charter must be renewed by several governing bodies every
five years, including CEC’s charter board, the Coweta County
Board of Education, and the state Board of Education. New state
charter school laws allow for ten-year renewals, which CEC is
seeking.
This year’s Georgia Partnership Bus Trip event will be conducted
in two three-day increments. The first leg of the trip will
visit six north Georgia schools, including CEC. Another six
schools will be visited on a southern swing, More than 200
riders and local site visitors are expected to participate over
the entire schedule.
Joining the Central Education Center on the north route are 12
for Life, Carroll County; Marietta High School, Cobb County;
Pickens Middle School, Pickens County; the Hudgens-Gwinnett Tech
Early Education Center, Gwinnett County; and East Jackson
Elementary School, Jackson County.
Schools on the south route include Huntington Middle School,
Houston County; Schley Middle High School, Schley County;
International Studies Elementary Charter School, Dougherty
County; Hand in Hand Primary School, Thomas County; Lowndes High
School, Lowndes County; and Funston Elementary School, Colquitt
County.
Traditionally, the tour attempts to provide a wide range of
educational programs for riders to experience. This year’s theme
is “Strengthening the Pipeline to Increase Graduation.” Stops
will be made at schools and programs from pre-kindergarten to
post secondary.
Founded in 1990 by the Georgia Chamber of Commerce and the
Georgia Economic Developers Association, the Georgia Partnership
for Excellence in Education consists of business, education,
community and government leaders who share a vision of education
excellence.
More information about GPEE can be found on the organization’s
web site at
www.gpee.org. |
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