It is back to school time, and I just love the energy and excitement, don’t you? Now is the time that structures and routines are forming, goals are being set, and futures are being made.
Do you have a favorite “first day” picture from Facebook? Have you taken this calendar shift as an opportunity to commit to learning something new yourself? As I turned this new leaf, I looked up some facts I want to share with you.
The National Education Association churns out plenty of numbers from the 2011-2012 school year about Georgia public K-12 education: Enrollment in Georgia was 1,684,430, ranking eighth nationwide. Georgia had 196 operating public school districts and 96,666 high school graduates. Total instructional staff was 128,378 with 110,788 teachers.
I need no further evidence that educating our youth is an enormous job.
How are the students performing? Georgia students have more than 96 percent average daily attendance, which is surpassed by only 15 states. We have one teacher for every 15.2 students enrolled, which puts Georgia at 24th and beats poor California where each teacher faces an average of 25.6 students.
One incredible win: According to the American Legislative Exchange Council’s report card on American education, Georgia leads the way in closing the White-Hispanic achievement gap from 2003-2011.
The money numbers ignite my day. Though Georgia ranks 33rd in revenue per student at only $10,748, we are ranked ninth when education expenditures are measured as a percentage of personal income.
So the answer may not be to spend a greater percentage on education but rather to make more money in Georgia via the creation of higher paying jobs. That’s our daily mission at The Creative Coast, and we welcome your help.
Now for the hard-to-swallow facts: The World Economic Forum ranks the United States 52nd in the quality of mathematics and science education while the Huffington Post reported that Georgia was 19th in the U.S. on math and science.
Now I don’t know how being 19th of 52nd shakes out for your child, but those statistics might explain why more than 50 percent of graduate school students and 67 percent of engineering doctoral candidates are foreign.
What I do know is that U.S. News and World Report ranked Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology as the third best high school in the country.
I also know the University of South Carolina Beaufort in Bluffton, S.C., was recently awarded a $600,000 grant from the National Science Foundation for computational science scholarships.
Yiming Ji, associate professor and program coordinator of the CSci program at USCB taught me that computer science is the study of computing whereas computational science is the applying of computing to problem solving.
This energetic visionary is excited to be a part of a new campus with the flexibility to blaze a trail in STEM.
What can you do? Open your calendar and get involved! You might even have fun.
Mark your calendar for three incredible STEM (science technology, engineering and math) related events.
First is Georgia Southern’s i2 Explore, which is the community event portion of the STEM Fest to be held Sept. 14. Come see robotics in action, learn about ancient mammoths, make ice-cream with liquid nitrogen, blast off Alka-Seltzer rockets and more.
Second, you won’t want to miss this year’s Technology Association of Georgia’s STEM Awards.
This one day conference on “The Future of Digital Learning” boasts an incredible line-up, including Robert Swiggum, the chief information officer of the Georgia Department of Education, along with Robert T. McGrath, Georgia Tech senior vice president and director of the GT Research Institute, and other leaders in the field.
The highlight will be the awards honoring outstanding effort and achievement in supporting and promoting STEM education in Georgia. The event will be held from noon-9 p.m. Sept. 27 at the Savannah International Trade & Convention Center.
Finally, dive into the Ocean Exchange, an organization that encourages, promotes and reviews innovative ideas throughout the year as they believe in a better future through innovation. Come to The Ocean Exchange “Leap to Zero +”, a two-day conference filled with innovative presentations and finale gala the evening of Oct. 1, which includes two $100,000 prizes.
We are so blessed to have events like these to push America further. They are here, they are now. Don’t miss them.
Bea Wray is the executive director of The Creative Coast, a not-for-profit organization that promotes the creative and entrepreneurial community within the region. Bea can be reached at 912-447-8457 or bea@thecreativecoast.org.