Education Bulletin

Local college named to most affordable online college rankings

SR Education Group, an education research publisher founded in 2004, just launched new rankings of the 2016 Most Affordable Online Colleges and Degrees on their website OnlineU.org. Rasmussen College based out of Maitland ranks No. 4 in Computer Science, No. 24 in Early Childhood Education, No. 4 in Human Resources, No. 23 in Marketing, and No. 14 in Medical Billing and Coding. To develop these rankings, SR Education Group researched accredited schools across the nation offering online degree programs and ranked them according to annual tuition rates. The full list is available at onlineu.org/most-affordable-colleges

Winter Park resident makes dean’s list

Kathryn M. Thompson from Winter Park is among the 543 students who earned dean's list honors for the fall 2015 semester at Mount St. Mary's University in Emmitsburg, Md. Kathryn, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James Thompson achieved this honor by maintaining a 3.4 or higher grade point average.

University of Minnesota Twin Cities honors six Winter Park students

Winter Park residents Brooke Bumgarner, Kathleen Capdesuner, Ana Ouzande, Maria Philco, Alexandra Sampedro and Lauren Werner were named to the 2015 fall semester dean's list at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. To qualify for the dean's list, a student must complete 12 or more letter-graded credits while attaining a 3.66 grade point average.

Florida Department of Education releases local graduation statistics

Graduation rates for the class of 2015 resulted in Florida achieving a 12-year high, according to data released by the Florida Department of Education. Florida’s statewide graduation rate climbed to 77.8 percent, an increase of more than 18 percentage points since 2003-04 and 1.7 percentage points over last year. Orange County improved their graduation rate to 77.6 percent, a 3 percentage point increase over last year and 6.2 percentage points since 2010-11.

Winter Parker makes Kent State Dean’s List

Winter Park resident Jessica Moore, a freshman at Kent State University, was named to the fall 2015 dean's list. Moore is among nearly 8,300 undergraduate students who have earned and received this recent academic recognition. To qualify for this honor, undergraduate students must obtain a 3.4 GPA or higher while maintaining 12 or more credit hours in a semester.

Cadets take top honors at The Citadel

Cadets Logan Barber of Winter Park and Colin Green of Maitland were recognized on The Citadel’s fall 2015 dean’s list. Recognition is given to cadets registered for 12 or more semester hours and whose grade point average is 3.2 or higher with no grade below a C for the previous semester's work. Logan Barber was also awarded Gold Stars by The Citadel for earning a grade point ratio of 3.7 or higher during the 2015 fall semester.

Florida House passes two education Bills

On Feb. 18 the Florida House of Representatives passed two bills that expand and improve the diverse educational options provided to Florida families. House Bill 1365 on Competency-Based Education, sponsored by Representative Ray Rodrigues, and House Bill 669 on Public School Choice, sponsored by Representative Chris Sprowls, continue and improve education options in Florida. House Bill 1365 will support competency-based education pilot programs in selected public schools in Lake, Palm Beach, Pinellas and Seminole counties and the P.K Yonge Developmental Research School at University of Florida. This new education model allows students to advance to higher levels of learning when they demonstrate mastery of concepts and skills regardless of time, place or pace. House Bill 669 will give parents the ability to choose the best educational path for their child by allowing them to choose any public school in the state, as long as it has space available. It will also give parents the ability to request a classroom change when it is not a good fit, and increase transparency by requiring districts to inform parents annually about the amount of total funding spent on their child.

Expeditions program visit Orlando Science Elementary

Students at Orlando Science Elementary School had the opportunity last month to take part in Google’s Expeditions Pioneer Program on campus. Expeditions is a virtual reality platform built for the classroom that allows teachers to take students on virtual field trips. Google is currently sending Expeditions Pioneer Program teams to schools around the world to demonstrate the new technology. Providing virtual field trips that can’t be achieved by sending students on a school bus, Expeditions immerses students in experiences beyond the classroom. The Wildlife Conservation Society, PBS, the American Museum of Natural History, the Planetary Society and the Palace of Versailles contributed to developing the educational encounters. The “trips” are collections of virtual reality panoramas – 360° photo spheres, 3D images and video, ambient sounds – annotated with details, points of interest, and questions that make them easy to integrate into curricula already used in schools.