University of Central Florida School of Teaching, Learning and Leadership. Yes, Saturday is Pi Day-and It Is a Special One

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1 Yes, Saturday is Pi Day-and It Is a Special One F or all us nerds out there Saturday is the Holiday in March; St. Patrick move over. You can see why Saturday is Pi Day when the date is written However, Pi Day in 2015 is special. Write the date using the same format and adding 2 digits for Yes, you get and is Pi to four decimal places is definitely special. Okay. Now for the nerdie part. Will there ever be other special years or is 2015 unique. What about years in the past? Would you call Larry Jaffe a nerd if he could recite Pi to 100 decimal places? FTCE Study Manual Authored by STLL Faculty Released A new Cliff Notes study guide for the Elementary Education FTCE tests was released on February 24. Written by STLL s own Janet Andreasen, Lee-Anne Spalding, and Enrique Ortiz, it hopes to assist our teacher candidates in studying for these important tests. IN THIS ISSUE. Yes, Saturday is Pi Day-and It Is a Special One 1 FTCE Study Manual Authored by STLL Faculty Released 1 Faculty and Doc Students Offer Exciting HAPPY Hour Workshops 2 Elementary Education Doctoral Student Presents on New Literacies at University of Georgia 2 Art Education Student Exhibition at the UCF Library March 2-31, OPASS An Opportunity for UCF Students 4 A Hearty Good Luck to the Hult Participants 4 Calendar 5 Page 1

2 Faculty and Doc Students Offer Exciting HAPPY Hour Workshops Making Math Fun for All Students: Math Games will be held from 4:30 p.m.- 5:30 p.m. on Monday, March 16, 2015, in TA130 on the Orlando campus. Presenter: Jennifer Holbrook, Doctoral Student and Toni Jennings Fellow. This workshop is geared toward Elementary Education majors. What Do You Do with Graphic Novels? will be held from 4:30 p.m.- 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 18, 2015, in CMC (ED 194), on the Orlando campus. Presenters: Yolanda Hood, Curriculum Materials Center (CMC) Director; Panel of Local Librarians/ Teachers. This workshop is geared toward all students. Diversity in Today s Inclusive Classrooms: Culturally Responsive Teaching will be held from 4:30 p.m.- 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 19, 2015, in TA130 on the Orlando campus. Presenter: Samantha Stone, Association of Doctoral Students in Exceptional Education (ADSEE). This workshop is geared toward all students. DOTS Understanding Your Hidden Biases will be held from 5:00 p.m.- 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 19, 2015, in Rm. 101 on UCF South Lake Campus. Presenter: Barbara Thompson, Assistant Director, UCF Office of Diversity and Inclusion. This workshop is geared toward all students. Elementary Education Doctoral Student Presents on New Literacies at University of Georgia N andita Gurjar, Elementary Education doctoral student, presented at JOLLE conference held at University of Georgia on Embodied and Participatory Literacies: Inspire, Engage, Create and Transform on February 7th, Her presentation titled, Magic of Indian Folklore in Participatory Culture, Global Collaboration and Collective Intelligence focused on the role of Indian graphic novels in promoting visual literacy skills and participatory culture through play, performance, simulation, distributed cognition and collective intelligence (Jenkins et. al., 2006). mythological tales engraved in stone as cave paintings and sculptures, and depicted in Indian graphic novels were explored through interactive, hands-on activities in the transform strand of the conference. Page 2

3 Art Education Student Exhibition at the UCF Library March 2-31, 2015 C urrent and former UCF Art Education Majors are presenting a broad range of two and threedimensional works that they produced during their program of studies. Some works come from specific art education courses and some from art studio classes. Some actual works and images of the works completed in ARE 4453 and 5454 Studio Experiences in Art Education held at the Atlantic Center for the Arts in 2014 are included. Many sculptural and ceramic pieces are going to be shown in display cases. A statement of origin that chronicles content and concept development and sources used accompanies each student work. Faculty members Thomas Brewer and Bryndís Arnardóttir may show a few works and both student and faculty work may be available for purchase. Funds will go toward supporting the UCF Student Chapter of the National Art Education Association, an SGA organization. We are pleased that the UCF Art Education Program provides our service region with so many highly qualified art educators and is a vital and vibrant part of the College and University. National Art Educators Student Chapter Holds March Meeting D r. Thomas Brewer reports that the National Art Educators Association (NAEA), UCF Student Chapter met March 5 th in the UCF Teaching Academy. y met to discuss professionalism, the survival of our inner artist, and the current Major Students Exhibition currently on display in the John C. Hitt Library. Page 3

4 OPASS An Opportunity for UCF Students uillermo Escobar, Program Manager for the City G of Orlando AmeriCorps Governor/Mayor Initiative, Orlando Partnership for School Success (OPASS) would like to share a great opportunity available for UCF teacher candidates that would allow them to get some classroom experience with pay. Below is the information on our program, for which we are currently recruiting. AmeriCorps O-PASS represents Florida s Governor/ Mayor Initiative, one of just eight state-city partnerships funded by the Corporation for National & Community Service. national initiative provides governors the opportunity to identify a pressing need and partner with a mayor and other partners to address this challenge by deploying AmeriCorps members. Governor Rick Scott and Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer s AmeriCorps O-PASS program is recruiting 32 members to provide in-school and after-school tutoring, mentoring, and wrap-around support services in Orlando area community centers and public schools. As a result, students will demonstrate improved academic performance and decreased absenteeism. PROGRAM INFORMATION Program Year: August 1, 2015 July 31, 2016 # of Members: 32 open positions Required Total Hours to Work: Full-time (1,700hrs) Target Student Population: Middle School and High School Living Allowance: $12,530 Benefits: Health Insurance Educational Award: $5,730 upon successful completion of all hours -- Guillermo Escobar Recreation Program Coordinator After-School All-Stars Phone: Cell: guillermo.escobar@cityoforlando.net A Hearty Good Luck to the Hult Participants B e sure to wish the two teams competing for the Hult prize good luck! One team, mentored by Lee- Anne Spalding, Kelly Jennings and Connie Goodman is presenting in San Francisco. other team, mentored by Judith Levin and Judit Szente, is with their students in Boston. Founded in 2009 the Hult Prize is the world s largest student competition and crowdsourcing platform for social good. In October of 2012, the Hult Prize was named as one of the top five ideas changing the world by President Bill Clinton and TIME Magazine. Regional rounds of competition are held each spring in Boston, San Francisco, London, Dubai, Shanghai and Sao Paulo, with a final round and awards ceremony held at the Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting each fall. All of the finalists are invited into the summer Hult Prize Accelerator Program and given a one-year membership into the CGI. More information about the Hult Prize can be found at their website. A more thorough report on the teams Page 4

5 Calendar of Events f= New Item This Week MARCH Mar. 14 American Alliance for atre and Education (AA) Conference, Orlando Repertory atre Mar. 28 UCF Faculty Advocates for Advanced and Gifted Education conference, 8:30am 1:00pm, MIRC APRIL Apr. 1 Founder s Day Convocation, 10:00am, Pegasus Ballroom Apr. 3 UCF 17th annual Literacy Symposium, 8:30am 3:30pm, Education Complex Apr. 18 6th Annual UCF Book Festival (Morgridge Int l Reading Center, TA, and CEHP Complex) Apr. 28 CEDHP faculty meeting, MIRC MAY May 1 HAPPY Hour Committee Meeting and Potluck, 9:00am 11:00am, TA 130 May 8 Doctoral Pre-Commencement Ceremony, 12:00pm, MIRC May 8 Commencement, UCF Arena, 2:30pm JUNE June 4-5 3rd Annual TeachLivE Conference, Morgridge Int l Reading Center Page 5