These days, education can use all the help it can get from outside resources. That’s why organizations such as the Santa Cruz/Silicon Valley New Teacher Project and the Tiger Woods Learning Center in Anaheim are true local treasures and recipients of ACSA’s Partners in Educational Excellence Award for 2008.
Tiger Woods, one of golf’s all-time greats, established the Tiger Woods Learning Center to inspire and support career exploration by students through interactive enrichment programs in reading, math, science and technology.
The 35,000 square foot, 14-acre facility reaches out to a diverse group of students in Orange, Los Angeles and Riverside counties. Thousands of grade 5-12 students have experienced the TWLC since it opened, with career orientation the focus for grades 5-6, career exploration for grades 7-8, and career prep for grades 9-12.
“The TWLC has exceeded our expectations and allowed us to touch the lives of almost 20,000 young people,” Woods said. “We’ve had kids write us letters saying, ‘Thank you for this opportunity,’ or ‘I am going to be the first in my family to go to college,’ and that is why the TWLC is so important. We strive to make a lasting, positive impact on the lives of these kids.”
The center almost has a college-like atmosphere, with seven high-tech classrooms, a computer lab with 90 laptops, a multimedia center, student lounge, auditorium and café. And it comes as no shock to hear the campus includes a golf driving range and putting course.
The TWLC offers a wealth of courses in such cutting-edge areas as marine biology, forensic science, environmental integrity, aerospace rocketry, biotechnology, engineering, music appreciation, veterinary medicine and business entrepreneurship. Instruction is based around technology and hands-on interaction. Naturally, golf instruction is offered as well.
TWLC works collaboratively with local school districts Anaheim City SD, Anaheim Union HSD and Magnolia SD to ensure the programs offer enrichment aligned with academic goals. The center also works closely with Advancement Via Individual Determination to support college-bound students.
The New Teacher Center at the University of California at Santa Cruz provides the leadership for the Santa Cruz/Silicon Valley New Teacher Project, a collaborative effort that serves more than 25 school districts in Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, North Monterey and San Benito counties.
The New Teacher Project delivers innovative support for educators that has resulted in a sustained, positive impact on student achievement. Established in 1988, this mentor-based teacher induction model has grown to include principals and helps novices become confident, skilled professionals through coaching, networking and seminars that focus on skills essential to site leadership.
The primary purpose of the Santa Cruz/Silicon Valley New Teacher Project is to assist and support new teachers as they enter the profession and build their skills and knowledge of the California Standards for the Teaching Profession.
Improving classroom practice is the goal, along with developing reflective teachers who are responsive to the diverse cultural, social and lingusitic backgrounds of all students.
Over the past 18 years, testimonials from teachers who have benefited from the project follow a similar theme. Typical comments include:
• “I’ve been teaching for 12 years. Without the New Teacher Project, I probably wouldn’t still be here today.”
• “NTC taught me that I could be a successful teacher, despite my personal doubts when I first started teaching.”
• “The New Teacher Project gave me confidence and the tools to survive those first few years of teaching. Now I mentor new teachers and am proud to do so.”
The New Teacher Project has supported more than 10,000 beginning teachers during the first two years of their careers.
The project’s executive director, Ellen Moir, is no stranger to accolades for her work, having previously received the national Harold W. McGraw Jr. Prize in Education for her pioneering efforts, as well as the California Council on Teacher Education’s Distinguished Teacher Educator Award.