2006 EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR |
Jasmin Deboo - Teacher of the Year
Deerfield Beach Elementary School teacher Jasmin Deboo began her teaching career 11 years ago and has continually worked to help her students, support her colleagues and improve herself as a teacher. It's that dedication to her profession that led her to the stage of the Broward County Convention Center recently where she heard her name announced as Broward County Public Schools Teacher of the Year for 2006.
"I consider a great teacher to be a 'life-long learner' whose classroom extends outside the four walls where they work and long after the 2 o'clock bell," explained Ms. Deboo. Just talk with her for a few minutes, and you'll quickly learn that Ms. Deboo varies her teaching approach to meet the needs of her students. "Children learn in different ways and at different rates. I help them to understand and accept who they are while encouraging them to experience all the wonder of who they are yet to become."
Ms. Deboo has found that developing a strong connection with her students' families and the community is key to providing the best education possible. Those relationships have brought numerous visitors to her classroom, including parents, former students and the media - all observing and participating in unique lessons.
She knows that no matter where children have come from and regardless of their family history or their socio-economic situation, they all have the ability to shine if given the chance. And she understands the power that she, as a teacher, has in her hands. "Children are miraculous beings with limitless potential. As teachers, we have the power to reveal dreams and, sometimes, be the only positive example in our student's lives."
2006 Teacher of the Year Finalists
• Cheryl Ann Chartrand, Eighth Grade Math & Honors Algebra I Teacher - Falcon Cove Middle School
• Daryl Linda Diamond, Broward Virtual Education Teacher
• Nicole M. Greggs, Music Teacher, Plantation Park Elementary School
• Brian J. Keough, Reading Teacher, Silver Trail Middle School
• Diana F. Nusbaum, Curriculum Specialist, Apollo Middle School
• Michael D. Rooney, Mathematics Resources Specialist - Welleby Elementary School
• Maria M. Voyles, Spanish Teacher - Coconut Creek High School
Broward Schools Phone Home
Broward Schools can now "phone home" better than ET ever could. On August 3rd, 2004 the School Board approved the purchase and installation of a new call-out phone system -- ParentLink. The system, which being offered at no cost to schools, provides call-out capabilities to student homes for truancy notification, dissemination of routine school and classroom information and for emergency purposes.
Fourteen schools successfully piloted ParentLink during the first nine weeks of this school year. In November and December, staff members from 160 additional schools were provided site-based system administrator training. Nearly all of those schools began using the system upon completion of the training. Project planners are pleased that this was accomplished one month earlier than originally planned.
The system is already producing clear results. By the semester break, ParentLink had been used to make 385,000 calls -- the vast majority being delivered successfully. Failed calls were usually the result of inaccurate student contact data that had inadvertently rolled forward from year to year. Schools are working to improve the accuracy of contact information, and success rates are increasing. For example, Plantation Middle School Media Specialist Richard Lowy said that his school's contact success rate has risen from 75% to over 92%. For administrators at Plantation Middle - and other schools jumping on board - the effort being put forth to update student's home phone numbers will reap rewards in the long run, particularly in the event of an emergency.
School administrators appreciate the fact that ParentLink automatically generates and completes attendance calls every evening from data in the Total Education Resource Management System (TERMS). Schools are also utilizing the system's ability to make general announcement calls. Currently, for every attendance call being made using the system, two general information calls
are being made. This use pattern illustrates how enthusiastically Broward schools' have accepted this new technology to improve school-to-home communication.
For additional information about ParentLink and future training opportunities contact Bill Graff, 754-321-0364 or Michelle Gresham, 754-321-0446. |
