WEAC Direct

Kickoff Kids still kicking

There's still time to nominate a student for WEAC's Kickoff Kids promotion with the University of Wisconsin Badgers football team. Justin Biege of Janesville was selected this week for the October 17 game. Justin will do what Caleb Fernholz did last week while the Badgers played Fresno State: run out and grab the opening kick tee, and appear on the JumboTron waving to fans. Two more Kickoff Kid spots are left in the contest. Read more and nominate

Eight schools earn Blue Ribbon award

Eight schools in Wisconsin were recognized this week as national Blue Ribbon Schools, a program that honors elementary, middle and high schools that are either academically superior or that demonstrate dramatic gains in student achievement to high levels.

The schools were chosen based on student academic achievement. One-third of the schools recognized serve communities in which at least 40 percent of students are from economically disadvantaged families. Read more

Blogs tackle swine flu issues in schools

The weac.org Tech College Blog brings up some interesting questions for colleges and universities hit with cases of the H1N1 virus. How are students with the flu to stay on top of course assignments? What if contagious students in programs like nursing fall below the number of clinical hours needed to complete the course? How will colleges handle students flirting with being marked incomplete?

The possibility of a widespread flu outbreak has left colleges and their faculty and staffs struggling with those and other difficult questions. For help, the Tech College Blog references H1N1 guidelines for higher education institutions released by the Centers for Disease Control and the U.S. Department of Education. Read more

Additionally, in his latest entry, Editor Bill Hurley reports the results of our H1N1 poll (one-third of respondents think swine flu will force many school closings, half believe it will have only a minor impact, the rest say it will just blow over and have virtually no impact) and details our Web resources for the H1N1 virus.

The weac.org H1N1 resource page covers everything from hygiene behaviors that can help stem the spread of the virus in schools, to sample letters from teachers or schools to parents, to strategies for maintaining continuity of learning in the event of school closings or large numbers of absences. Read more

Shape your professional development

When and how do you want your professional development? What subjects and topics are of greatest interest? Take the WEA Academy survey to let us know and you'll be eligible for prizes, including sweatshirts, baseball caps, aluminum water bottles and 2GB flash drives. The survey takes about four to seven minutes and is focused on your professional development needs.