IASB Job Fair Scheduled for March 7, 2009

MARK YOUR CALENDARS AND REGISTER ONLINE AT www.iasb.com/jobfair09

The Illinois Association of School Boards presents its:

14th Annual IASB Job Fair for Teachers, Administrators, and Education Majors

Saturday, March 7, 2009
9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
The Shannon Center
of Saint Xavier University
3700 West 103rd Street
Chicago, Illinois

Are you putting the finishing touches on your education degree?  Are you ready to take that first step?  Or, are you preparing to take the next step in your career?  Whether you are just completing your education or are ready to advance your career, the time to act is now!

Come to the 14th Annual IASB Job Fair for Teachers, Administrators, and Education Majors for on-site interviews with school recruiting teams from Illinois schools.  The IASB Job Fair is the perfect opportunity to get your name, face, and credentials known to the people who will make hiring decisions for both current and future positions.

Register online at www.iasb.com/jobfair09. $5 in advance or $10 at the door. Advance registration closes at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 3rd. Registration fees are non-refundable; only confirmed registrants will be allowed to enter the Job Fair.  Each recruiting school district will receive the IASB Job Candidate Database containing information provided in the online registration form.

Approximately 45 school districts are anticipated at Job Fair, so bring enough copies of your resume to share with each representative you meet.  Doors will open to candidates at 9:00 a.m. and parking is free!

This event is an Equal Employment Opportunity.

Please feel free to share this information with your colleagues.

Hope to see you on Saturday, March 7th at the Job Fair!

IASB is a voluntary, not-for-profit organization dedicated to training and advocating on behalf of local school boards.  Its mission is excellence in local school governance and support of public education.

Scholarship Opportunity!

Up to four $1500 scholarships will be awarded in the “REACh Your Goals” Scholarship Program.

Eligibility criteria:

To be eligible for the scholarship program, you must meet the following criteria:
•    be at least twenty-five years old at the time of application;
•    be enrolled in or admitted to a degree or certificate program at an eligible college or university that is a member of the REACh organization (check our website for a list of member schools whose students are eligible to apply);
•    reside in the greater Chicagoland area;
•    be a US citizen or permanent resident;
•    be eligible to receive the REACh Scholarship per your institution’s financial aid guidelines;
•    undergraduate students must have earned the equivalent of a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale and have completed a minimum of 12 semester hours or 15 quarter hours of college level credit at time of application;;
•    graduate students must have earned the equivalent of a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 on 4.0 scale based on the last half of baccalaureate credit hours or based on 12 semester hours or 15 quarter hours of graduate level credit.

Application deadline: All applications must be postmarked no later than April 15th, 2009.

You can download and application form from: http://www.reach-chicago.org/scholarships/2009/REACh_Scholarship_2009.pdf

About REACh, from their website at http://www.reach-chicago.org:

Resources for the Education of Adults in the Chicago Area (REACh) is a not-for-profit consortium of educational, civic, and corporate organizations.  REACh was organized as a collaborative effort to provide adults easier access to information about educational and financial aid opportunities.  Our members include academic institutions representing technical, vocational, undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs, financial institutions, and civic minded corporations.  The association was formally incorporated in 1988 and has grown to include approximately 50 member institutions throughout the greater Chicago metropolitan area.

Winter 2010 Student Teaching Applicants

There will be mandatory meetings for all students who wish to apply for student teaching in Winter 2010. You must attend one of these meetings. These meetings will be held at the times below and will last about 45 minutes.

Wednesday            January 14th       9:00 AM              G227

Wednesday             January 14th       3:00 PM               G227

Thursday                 January 15th       9:00 AM              G227

Thursday                January 15th        3:00 PM               G227

Contact Sara Acton at s-scton@govst.edu if you have questions.

Winter 2009 Orientation

The Winter 2009 New Student Orientation will be held on Friday, January 16th from 9:00 – 2:30 in the Hall of Honors. This is a very important meeting and all new students should attend.  Contact Sara Acton at 708-235-7356 or s-acton@govst.edu for more information.

Fall 2009 Student Teaching Applicants

Mandatory meetings for Fall 2009 Student Teaching Applicants will be held on the following dates and times:

Wed., Nov. 19, 2008 at 9 AM in G261

Wed., Nov. 19, 2008 at 3:00 in G261

Thurs., Nov. 20, 2008 at 9 AM in G261

Thurs., Nov. 20, 2008 at 3 PM in G261

Announcement: Basic Skills Prep Workshop Information

The Academic Resource Center presents:

PREPARATION WORKSHOP MATH REVIEW FOR THE ILLINOIS TEACHER CERTIFICATION BASIC SKILLS TEST. THE PRICE FOR THESE WORKSHOPS HAS BEEN LOWERED FROM $150.00 TO $100.00 (for 3 workshops)!

This 3 week workshop reviews the content, problem-solving and mathematical reasoning skills needed to help participants prepare for the math portion of the Illinois Certification Basic Skills Test.

The $100.00 workshop registration fee includes:

• Preparation materials
• Study Guides
• Diagnostic exam

THE DATES OF THE NEXT WORKSHOP SERIES TO PREPARE FOR THE BASIC SKILLS EXAM ON NOVEMBER 8, 2008 ARE AS FOLLOWS (You’ll attend all three sessions for the complete workshop):

• OCTOBER 18, 2008
  
• OCTOBER 25, 2008
  
• NOVEMBER 1, 2008

The workshops are held in the Academic Resource Center from 9:00 a.m. to noon on these 3 Saturdays!

FOR REGISTRATION AND PAYMENT INFORMATION, CONTACT:

DONNA RUTLEDGE
Academic Resource Center
708-235-3964
d-rutledge@govst.edu

ALL FEES MUST BE PAID ONE WEEK PRIOR TO THE FIRST WORKSHOP SESSION!

Lab II students

Remember to take your Content Exam (Test 110) on October 4th (late registration for that test is good until Sept. 12th) or Nov. 8th (late registration for that test is good until Oct. 17th.  There is no test in Dec.

Visit the ICTS website to register for the Content Exam at http://www.icts.nesinc.com

NEWSFLASH! ICTS exam scores now good for 10 years!

We’ve recently received good news from the Illinois State Board of Education: passing scores from Illinois Certification Testing System examinations are now good for ten years. Previously the exam results had a shelf-life of only five years. This change in regulations now covers

• Basic Skills Test
• Content Area Tests
• Assessment of Professional Teaching Tests

Welcome to the 2008-2009 academic year!

Greetings, and welcome to the Fall 2008 trimester in the College of Education at GSU! We’re looking forward to a great academic year:

• Get connected with LIVETEXT! GSU ID#s must be in all account profiles! You’ll notice that we will be ramping up to full deployment of LiveText in all education programs. As programs and courses come on board we want to make sure that all of you have access to all the resources that faculty will be making available to candidates enrolled in their courses. In order to make sure that your LiveText account is fully integrated with all course functions, you must make sure that your GSU ID number is included in your online LiveText account profile. It’s easy to check; and it’s easy to add your ID number to your account if it’s not there already. Just check out our new GSU LIVETEXT Resources Page at www.govst.edu/livetext. You’ll find a Quick Tips sheet to help you add your ID# to your account profile. Only 4 easy steps!
• Our new dean, Dr. Deborah Bordelon, will be coming on board late in the term. We look forward to welcoming her to GSU; and I know that Dr. Bordelon is looking forward to opportunities to meet all of you. Stay tuned!
• Finally…we’re beginning our final full academic year in advance of our unit NCATE continuing accreditation visit during the winter of 2010. Look for information about the project and for ways that you can participate!

Have a great start to the new academic year, everyone!

MAPP Exam Dates for Fall 2008, Winter 2009

MAPP exam dates have been set for the Fall 2008 and Winter 2009 terms. The MAPP examination is required for all early childhood, elementary, and secondary education program candidates at the undergraduate level. The schedule is as follows:

Fall 2008 Trimester:

• Friday, September 19, 2008, 9am – Noon in the Hall of Honors (Check-in begins 8:30am)
• Saturday, October 11, 2008, 9am – Noon in room F1603 (Check-in begins 8:30am)

Winter 2009 Trimester:

• Friday, January 23, 2009, 9am – Noon in the Hall of Honors (Check-in begins 8:30am)
• Saturday, February 7, 2009, 9am – Noon in the Hall of Honors (Check-in begins 8:30am)

Candidates may now pre-register for the MAPP sessions on the GSU website by clicking here.

If you have any questions about the MAPP exam, you may read more about it at the ETS website by clicking here. Any questions about how the MAPP exam relates to your program or about whether or not you are required to sit for the MAPP exam, contact your adviser.