Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 12-11-15 Edition

Local Letter To The Editor
West Tampa CDC Adds New Board Member
BYLEON B. CREWS Sentinel Staff Writer
The West Tampa CDC has announced the addition of Michael Randolph to its Board.
Randolph is the CEO for The Center for Non-Profit and Community Development that provides technical support in the area of organizational ca- pacity building.
Randolph, who was born and raised in Baltimore Mary- land, has specialized in com- munity planning for more than 20 years.
Working as a community organizer, Randolph worked as a community strategist, pro- gram developer, grant writer, and the designer of compre- hensive solutions for urban distressed neighborhoods.
West Tampa CDC Vice- Chair, Joe Robinson said Randolph has worked hard and diligently as an economic director and he’s always been passionate about West Tampa, the residents, and the business owners.
“He’s very anxious to be a part of the future of West Tampa, and we do need his ex- pertise and energy.
“Michael’s appointment was very emotional for all of us. He’s very dedicated to West Tampa, and does his due dili- gence in preparing for meet- ings.”
Randolph said as a staff member, his ideas weren’t going anywhere.
“Now as a Board member, I think my voice will have more
impact. I think we need to reach out to everyone to achieve our objectives. We have to engage everyone and make them feel they are a part of what’s going on.
“At the end of the day, we want a better West Tampa.”
Randolph said growing up in Baltimore left him with some valuable knowledge that will help him be a better asset to the Board.
“We have to start thinking on a national level and as far as West Tampa is concerned, we must have a plan that will transform the community into what it should be.
“We don’t need or want re- gentrification. We need to do right by the people already liv- ing and working in West Tampa, and we have to fight to make sure the populace stays put, is allowed to grow and prosper, and take advantage of all the opportunities.”
Randolph said his bout with cancer was a wake-up call for him and he never lost sight of what’s needed in West Tampa.
“We have to develop a plan, and stick with it. It has to be something that will benefit everyone. I think we have the potential to bring $80 million or more into West Tampa, and that’s exactly what we have to do.”
On the Board with Ran- dolph are:
Dr. Margaret Fisher, Chair; Joe Robinson, Vice- Chair; Leroy Moore, Ran- dolph Kinsey, Phil Alessi, John Rodriguez.
Mrs. Doretha Edgecomb: Educator, School Board Member Extraordinaire
I wrote this article to in- form the public of my per- sonal experiences with school board member, Mrs. Doretha Edgecomb.
At the beginning of the school term, I contacted Mrs. Edgecomb concerning the Common Core Math curriculum, and the writing demands on first and sec- ond graders.
First and second graders are required to write a be- ginning, a middle, and an end opinion paper. They are also expected to be able to write a beginning, a middle, and an end paragraph on a given topic.
Many of these students have not been taught the prerequisite skills for writ- ing such as:
• The difference between a sentence and a fragment
• Parts of a sentence
• Four types of sentences • What is a paragraph
• Why paragraphs are in- dented
• Qualities of a topic sen- tence
• Qualities of supporting sentences
• Capitalization & Punctua- tion Rules
• Introduced Parts of Speech
• Subject & verb agreement
• The writing process (Pre- writing, writing, revising, publishing)
Prior knowledge of most of these skills are required if students are to become successful writers.
Another concern I had was fifth graders being re- quired to take their test on the computer without first
being taught the keyboard and how to navigate the computer. There is a vast difference between typing sentences on a timed math test and clicking on a, b, or c for the correct answer choice.
Parents, grandparents, concerned relatives and community are you aware of the following:
• How well students are performing on district-wide tests? (Math, science, read- ing, etc.)
• How quickly students are taught math in contrast to how quickly they are as- sessed on the material? How many math skills are assessed on each chapter test?
• What percentage of stu- dents in Hillsborough County Schools did not re- ceive a D grade for the 2014- 2015 school year? What percentage of students were Black? What happened to those students without D grades?
• What research says about “How Students Learn”?
• How much repetition is required before a child ac- tually learns and retains this information in their long term memory?
These are just a “few” of my concerns I have been discussing with Mrs. Edge- comb. I also called Superin- tendent Jeff Eakins’ office and voiced my concerns.
His office scheduled a meeting with Assistant Su- perintendent for Curricu- lum and Instruction, Denny Oest. This meeting followed several telephone calls from Elementary Math Supervi- sion and other county re- sources personnel to me.
I contribute the Dis- trict’s interest in my con- cerns directly to Mrs. Edgecomb’s involvement and agreement with my Common Core curriculum concerns.
Mrs. Edgecomb and I have been in constant con- tact. I call her at her office and all times of the day and night at her home. If she is out of the office she always returns my phone call. Mrs. Edgecomb informed me she requested my presence at her next Superintendent meeting; however, our meeting with the Superin- tendent has been side- tracked with the latest school board chairperson issue.
If you want to reduce
crime, we must work to- gether to improve our edu- cation system. If you have students attending school for 12 years and not receive a diploma, what kind of fu- ture do they have? The mili- tary, most businesses and colleges require a high school diploma or GED. If you want to reduce crime we must improve the Edu- cation System.
We must begin by elect- ing and retaining knowl- edgeable, educated, dedicated, sensitive school board members. Mrs. Edge- comb is a retired principal which means she has come up through the ranks of the education system. There- fore, she knows what con- stitutes effective teaching instructions.
Mrs. Edgecomb should be retained as a member of the school board until she decides not to run for the school board again, but con- tinue to service the commu- nity in a different capacity.
In the meantime, any person interested in run- ning for her position, should first begin by shad- owing Mrs. Edgecomb. In this way, the potential can- didate would be a person not only interested in run- ning, but also has been an apprentice of the best, most knowledgeable member on the school board. A member who is strong, committed, well-educated, dedicated, sensitive, and has a true vested interest in providing “all” students with a quality education.
We both agree that stu- dents should be provided with a quality education and given every opportunity to be successful. Students should connect with what they are learning, be chal- lenged, be explicitly taught and be able to apply these skills.
Keep Mrs. Edgecomb on the school board, our chil- dren deserve the best repre- sentation possible!
A “voice” not full of opin- ions, but of facts and expe- riences!
If you are a parent or guardian with a child who is struggling in school, contact the school board at 813-272- 4000 and ask for the chair or the co-chair of the school board and voice “your” con- cerns.
BETTY MANN, M.S., Retired Teacher (36 1⁄2 years) Student Advocacy
PAGE 4-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2015