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Visit the web site of Jennifer Whitson, Anchor Commander, to follow the progress of Orbit
Building on the success of the collaborative endeavor of TLCF Pilot, LAUNCH 1 and LAUNCH 2, competitive grants in the amount of $538,000 were awarded to fund nine ORBIT Centers in Tennessee. ORBIT = Orchestrate Regional Bases for Integrating Technology.) ORBIT Centers will provide regional access to teachers so that students may benefit from the affordances of technology in education.
The DeBusk ORBIT Consortium is a collaborative enterprise among five schools within proximity of each other within the boundaries of Field Service Center 1 - East Tennessee Region. DeBusk Elementary will serve as the anchor school for four satellite schools: Mosheim Elementary in Greene County, Cosby High School in Cocke County, Lincoln Middle School in Hamblen County, and Hawkins Elementary School in Hawkins County. DeBusk will receive $118,000 of the total amount; and each satellite school will each receive $105,000. This competitive grant funds are issued through Title II Part D of the federal “No Child Left Behind” Act by the Tennessee Department of Education.
Last year DeBusk received one of fourteen $300,000 Launch 2 Grants. Principal, Debra Jo Boles, motivated the Technology Team to apply for both of these grants and was instrumental in developing the proposals.
In January, DeBusk Elementary School selected and invited the four satellite schools to become a part of their consortium. After each Director of Schools agreed to the assurances and the faculties of the individual schools voted to join us, each school assessed their needs and wrote a draft. In February, the grant writers got together to finalize the proposals before editing and submitting the consortium’s group plan.
The DeBusk portion of the proposal provides stakeholders the opportunity to become technologically literate self-learners. The professional development skills and knowledge obtained through Launch 2 will be shared with satellite schools representing four counties, grades K-12, and urban/rural areas. DeBusk master teachers will teach the Intel Teach to the Future Course and other pertinent workshops, provide peer-to-peer mentorship, and share best practices. Anchor Commander, Jennifer Whitson, will work 100 days on-site with satellite commanders assisting in professional development and implementing new instructional strategies. Technology Coach, Judy Collins, will serve as her mentor, work with the DeBusk faculty, and provide workshops for Greene County teachers. The principal will be involved in scheduling, monitoring, and supporting all actions steps. Sixty percent of funding is for individualized and group site-based professional development that is ongoing, sustained, and intensive. Thirty-seven percent of funding is for purchasing the hardware and software needed to achieve goals. Two percent of the funding will cover indirect costs. (Major purchases include new software, printing supplies, and six presentation carts, each with a Classroom Performance System, laptop, projector, and two InterWrite Student Pads. We will also get an online predictive assessment series which is an assessment for learning not of learning – using the results to drive instruction.)
The Mosheim portion of the proposal provides a full time Satellite Commander, Carla Tullock. It utilizes the Technology Support Teacher, Nancy Justis, and Webmaster, Louis Hankis, to provide both job-embedded and after-hours training and to help implement new instructional strategies to increase technology integration. The professional skills and knowledge which teachers gain will be shared by posting best practices on the school web page. The purchase of software and a wireless mobile lab will allow students opportunities to complete project-based activities related to the curriculum standards. The Technology Committee and the Principal, Yhona Jones, will monitor, support, and evaluate all activities. Forty-nine percent of funding is for individualized and small group site-based professional development that is ongoing, sustained, and intensive. Fifty-one percent of funding is for purchasing hardware and software needed to achieve goals. (Major purchases include a wireless mobile lab, Office 2003 for all school computers, Kidspiration/Inspiration software for all computers, and Adobe Creative Suite.)
The other commanders in the DeBusk Consortium are Katy Richards of Lincoln Middle, Gena McBrayer of Hawkins Elementary, and William Lewis of Cosby High School.
The other winning consortiums are as follows:
Updated 9-1-06
