Education

Dr. Greg Smith

CCISD superintendent announces retirement

Clear Creek ISD Superintendent echoed the sentiments of staff and the larger of Schools Dr. Greg Smith publicly community. “Dr. Smith is a leader of all leaders. announced his retirement for Dec. 31, His handprint is all over this school district. I 2020 during the June 22 know I speak for the other school been named as one of 10 finalists for the 2021 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the nation’s signature recognition of high achievement and performance among community colleges.

Awarded every two years since 2011, the Aspen Prize recognizes institutions that achieve strong student outcomes across four key areas: teaching and learning, degree completion and successful transfer to four-year institutions, success in the workforce, and equitable outcomes for diverse student groups. In 2017, San Jacinto College earned the Aspen Rising Star Award; and in 2019, the Aspen Institute named San Jacinto College as one of the top 10 community colleges in the country.

“It is again an honor to be recognized by the Aspen Institute for the incredible work being done at San Jacinto College to help our students reach their educational goals,” said school board meeting. The public announcement is necessary to allow the school board ample time to identify the next leader of “Clear Creek ISD is the district it is today because board members when I say that Clear Creek ISD is the district it is today because of his strategic mindset, heart for children, and CCISD. of his strategic willingness to bring people to The decision to retire was made five years ago when Dr. Smith signed his final contract, informing the board at the time of his intent mindset, heart for children, and willingness to the table for the good of the community.” Dr. Smith joined Clear Creek ISD in 2008 as Superintendent of to close out his 40-year career in bring people Schools. During his tenure, he was education here in the Clear Creek Independent School District. His contract expires Dec. 31. to the table for the good of the named Superintendent of the Year by the Texas Association of School Boards, the Top Administrator

“There is never a good time to community.” by the Texas Classroom make this type of announcement, Teachers Association and the but it is important to give the CCISD community Superintendent of the Year by the Texas PTA. time to find the right person to lead this He has been in public education for 40 years, exceptional school district,” Dr. Smith said. 20 of those years as a superintendent. He is the “For those who know me, I do not tire. I remain longest serving superintendent in Clear Creek committed to the work ahead of reopening Clear ISD’s history. Creek ISD to 42,000 boys and girls and leading us As for plans after December, Dr. Smith plans into a strong fall semester.” to continue his support to public education

San Jac College named finalist for 2021 Aspen Prize

San Jacinto College has

CCISD Board President Dr. Laura DuPont throughout Texas. San Jacinto College Chancellor Dr. Brenda Hellyer. “This recognition is due to the dedication of our Board of Trustees, administration, faculty, and staff to ensure that all of our students have the resources they need and well-planned educational pathways to complete their certificates or degrees. On behalf of everyone at San Jacinto College, I thank the Aspen Institute for this amazing honor.”

FOCUS ON COMPLETION

The college’s laser focus on student completion has resulted in a 168.7 percent increase in certificates and degrees from 2009 to 2019. This is the result of the comprehensive work of employees to advise and track students from admissions to completion.

The institution has developed an intentional, integrated advising

program to help students succeed. This program was designed to make the student experience more relational and less transactional and more intrusive and intentional, with career information and exploration strategically placed throughout the process. College Outreach Advisors monitor students’ progress and provide help, guidance, and encouragement if needed.

“We know that our students are more successful when they have a connection to the college from the moment they come to campus to the moment they walk across the stage at graduation,” said San Jac Deputy Chancellor and College President Dr. Laurel Williamson. “That’s why we have been intentional about removing barriers and putting support systems in place so that our students can get the help they need wherever they are in their certificate or degree programs.”

The 10 Aspen Prize finalists were selected from the nation’s 1,000 community colleges in a process that included qualitative and quantitative data analysis and engaged more than 30 experts in the field. The finalists all effectively identify, develop, and scale strategies to propel all students to not just complete college but also succeed after graduation.

2021 Aspen Pri ze Finalists • Amarillo College, Amarillo, TX

• Borough of Manhattan

Community College, New York,

NY • Broward College, Fort

Lauderdale, FL • Odessa College, Odessa, TX • Pasadena City College,

Pasadena, CA • Pierce College, Pierce County,

WA • San Antonio College, San

Antonio, TX • San Jacinto College, Pasadena,

TX

• Tallahassee Community

College, Tallahassee, FL

• West Kentucky Community and

Technical College, Paducah, KY

New UHCL alumna Jasmine Keeton, left, and her daughters, JoyLynn and Jadean, celebrate their graduations on the “Today” show.

By Alisa Star

Shuttered schools and shattered families across the globe are being affected by the Coronavirus crisis. Will this generation of our children and adolescents see themselves as the “lost generation,” whose lives will be forever affected by this horrible pandemic that is affecting our children in today’s crisis over Covid 19.

With high school graduation rates up almost 70% and dropout rates lower than 30% in the past decade, educators are concerned that school closures could hurt the progress that has been made. Being in school every day help social skills, learning skills, mental health, and being able to ask a question if they don’t understand a virtual assignment. Being on a computer and receiving an assignment does none of these for a student. School has two parts; it has experience and it has instruction. Right now we have a virtual learning system trying to address the instruction side, and that makes the school side on hold. There are also

Bachelor of Science in Social Work from Prairie View A&M. “I am on the ‘Today’ show email distribution list,” Keeton said. “They said there was an opportunity to be part of the ‘virtual’ plaza gaps in adult supervision for schooling at home during this pandemic, working parents often leave children alone and this can lead to risky behavior, including peer pressure and substance abuse, leading to becoming a dropout. This pandemic is exposing inequities, this is that so many of the kids are not having internet access or a quiet place to study, and a lot of our schools don’t have enough computers to sign out Spot on ‘Today’ creates some graduation pomp, despite circumstances party celebrating 2020 graduates. I wrote a quick story about my youngest daughter JoyLynn, about how T his year, graduation season brought more heartbreak than happiness to students around the U.S. who were forced to stay in home quarantine due to the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Still, Jasmine Keeton, who had hoped to put on her cap and gown alongside her two daughters, decided to try to find a way to salvage the situation. Keeton, a career Johnson Space Center contractor who was set to graduate from University of Houston-Clear Lake with her Master’s degree in Engineering Management, thought she’d found the perfect way to celebrate her younger daughter JoyLynn’s graduation from Robert Turner College and Career High School in Pearland with her high school diploma as well as her Associate’s Degree from Alvin Community College, and her older daughter Jadean, who was receiving her awesome she is, and noted that we had three women graduating in our family. I sent that in.” And ever since, Keeton said, it’s been crazy. “Getting chosen to speak on the ‘Today’ show was a total surprise,” she said. “I was told the anchors might say hello if they had time, so when Hoda Kotb called our name, I was completely surprised.” She said the producers had told her that they would go live at 7 a.m. but it was actually earlier. “We recorded it at 6:30 a.m.,” she said. “When they started talking about the different people graduating from school, we were the first ones she called.” They were holding a sign saying, “Mama we made it!” made by JoyLynn. “Then, KPRC Channel 2 saw it and we were on the 5 o’clock news as well,” she said. Keeton said she had waited 20 years to get her advanced degree. “I always knew a high school diploma would never be enough, and a college diploma wasn’t enough either,” she said. “I knew I needed a master’s degree and now that I have it, I am seriously considering a doctorate.”

Her goal is to receive her certification as a project management professional and after researching, she found out that UHCL was the only university to offer a degree that would prepare her. “I hesitated about the GRE, because it had been a long time since I had studied for an exam,” she said. “I wanted to take the next exam, and it was in 10 days! So I studied for nine days with books and practice tests. The kids brought me food and I had piles of notes and books everywhere. I took the test and got the score I needed.”

She found out that she could go to school after work at a university that was in her own back yard. “It was time for me to get something for myself,” she said. “Everything was in alignment. It just took me to decide, and once I found the school, it was a perfect match.”

She said her degree in engineering management will prepare her for the project management program that will allow her to advance in her career. “I always wanted to move into a management position,” she said. “If I don’t progress as a contractor at NASA Johnson Space Center, it will still open doors for me in private industry.”

Keeton said her goal was to pass the test as soon as it became available again, after COVID-19- related delays. “I am going to pass this test. I know I will, because I absolutely got the preparation I was looking for at UHCL,” she said.

“Being on the ‘Today’ show is a moment we will cherish the rest of our lives,” she said. “No matter what the challenges, keep striving for what you

How the Coronavirus pandemic has affected our children’s future

want and you will get it.” to families to cover the amount of kids that don’t have a computer. This puts kids at failing school! This is a setup for failure and not being able to achieve what they would be able to do if they were in school.This is not a forward pathway by any means. In fact it has been known that 60% of those in prison are school dropouts..

The online learning also puts the children in more dire circumstances with social interaction with peers and teachers, this can cause learning requirements not to be met. This is a perfect potion for drop-outs, but even if a student graduates this year, under these present conditions they will have reduced learning. And this will affect their future in education. Schools are hubs for social activity and human interaction, when schools close many children will miss out on social contact that is essential for learning and development..

Students who are vulnerable to dropping out need to know they matter. They need support from their family and a school support system to stay in school, that they are our future and they matter to society. The economy will recover, the crisis will soon end and you still have a future. Stay in tune of your studies and don’t back down from achieving that very important goal, getting your high school diploma.