School
leaders detail impact Amendment 1, shortfall has on
Duval County classrooms
On the next “School
Matters,” education leaders will explain the
importance of a renewed push to recruit 20,000
mentors in Jacksonville. The impact of the passage
of Amendment 1 on public school funding and the
advantages of a longer school day at
Lake Forest Elementary also will be part of the
monthly question-and-answer program hosted by Joyce
Morgan Danford. “School Matters” airs Sunday, Feb.
24, 2008, at 10 a.m. on WJCT-TV, Channel 7, Comcast
Channel 8.
Dr. Alvin White, Duval County
Public Schools’ new Chief of Staff and Partnerships,
and Warren Grymes, Executive Director of Big
Brothers and Big Sisters of Northeast Florida, will
join Superintendent Ed Pratt-Dannals to discuss
plans to boost the number of mentors in Duval County
schools. They will reveal the collaborative effort
underway in Jacksonville to recruit, train and
retain in-school mentors. Dr. White will explain the
positive effects that the volunteers often play in
the lives of underprivileged youth.
Pratt-Dannals will be joined by
Deputy Superintendent Pat Willis and the district’s
Executive Director of Business Services Michael
Perrone to detail how a projected $74 million
funding loss over five years will affect classrooms
in Jacksonville due to the passage of the referendum
last month. They also will discuss the impact of
reduced state funding this fiscal year due to a
statewide economic slowdown.
Chief Operating Officer Doug
Ayars and Duval County School Board Chair Betty
Burney will tell viewers about the Academic and
Community Excellence (ACE) facilities plan that is
beginning. They will explain how the public can
assist with the district wide effort to determine
the best solutions to overcrowding in some schools
and low student population at others.
The principal at Lake Forest
Elementary, Kim Bays, will explain the student
achievement growth she has seen since the facility
became one of four in Florida to extend the school
day by one hour. Executive Director Jackie Byrd will
tell why the pilot program is popular with teachers,
parents and students.
The program is produced monthly
by WJCT-TV and the Communications Department of
Duval County Public Schools. “School Matters” airs
the fourth Sunday of every month at 10 a.m.
