Virginia Schools Hail Successes and Fund Challenges
Virginia Schools recently received national acclaim for some of its successful schools. Newsweek released its list of the top 5% of schools in the nation, and 87 Virginia Schools made the cut. Eleven Virginia Schools made the top 100, and an additional two were included in the list of the “public elites.” Those two were Maggie Walker Governor’s School for Government and International Studies and Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. Both were included because of the higher than average SAT and ACT scores of their students.
Virginia Schools achieve these results while spending about $7,751 annually per pupil. This puts the state right in the middle for national spending. Clearly some good results are coming from some of the efforts of Virginia Schools. But there are still some big concerns and certain gaps. Like the rest of the country, Virginia Schools struggle with an achievement gap for minority students. African-American and other minority students consistently score lower as a group on standardized tests. Socioeconomic factors have proven to dramatically effect a student’s academic success.
One way that the Virginia Schools are trying to remedy this problem is through a partnership with the ECMC Foundation. In 2003 the ECMC and the Virginia Department of Education teamed up to create the Virginia ECMC Scholars Program to “increase participation in postsecondary education by economically or otherwise disadvantaged students, and to challenge these students to better prepare during the junior and senior years of high school.”
2007 will be the fifth cycle of funding and the ECMC has upped its pledge for Virginia Schools to $3 million dollars in scholarships, mentoring stipends and program funding. Participants in the programs are selected from Virginia Schools at the end of their sophomore year. What makes this scholarship program different is that educators select students they know. Anonymous strangers who base the decision on faceless essays or a qualifications list choose participants in most other scholarship programs.
ECMC and Virginia Schools select children based on future potential rather than past grades. The participants are mentored and tutored through their junior and senior years to bring out their best potential. Ten Virginia Schools were selected on basis of need, and the program is funded through 2009.
Privately funded programs like the Virginia ECMC Scholars Program are one way that Virginia Schools hope to close the achievement gap and propel the state school system forward. Virginia had its own testing system in place (Virginia Standards of Learning) prior to the 2001 No Child Left Behind Initiative. But the national mandate implemented class size and Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) markers for every school in the nation. Pressure for students to meet passing marks in both Virginia Schools and across the nation has been intense. Educators and politicians continue to debate the merits and pitfalls of standardized testing as a way to raise learning standards in the nation.
Do you know of schools that take international students to play football?
We are from New Zealand and we would like to know if there are any high schools that offer places/scholarships for international students to play ball. My brother is 15/16 y.o. of solid build and of Samoan descent and would like the opportunity to experience what high school football is all about. I am pretty much sick of him play NFL on playstation and basically need to know that logistics of getting them to there.
Experience: Elite Rugby player in first/second five position (which to you would be your quarter backs and play makers). Due to muscle and size he plays a forward position (which to you would mean he would act as a blocker or protector of the quarter back). He is also part of the Varsity Athletics Team 3 years in discs/shot put. Enjoys making hard tackles and playing hard. His motto: “you either commit to the tackle or you don’t”
P.S. talks about being part of the defensive line…whatever that means.
Serious answers would be great.
About Author
Patricia Hawke is a staff writer for Schools K-12, providing free, in-depth reports on all U.S. public and private K-12 schools. For more information please visit Virginia Schools
19 Comments on “Virginia Schools Hail Successes and Fund Challenges”
Hi,
For information on scholarships, student support, grants and student loans have a look at
http://taweek.com/11.html
It's got a lot of good stuff for you to look at. Have a look at the free textbooks you can download at the 'TextBooks – Sometimes Free – Always Cheaper' section further down the page
Good Luck
University Language Services is currently hosting a college scholarship for international and study abroad students. You must be a senior in high school or already in college. It is a photo contest that allows you to win one of four prizes. Check it out and good luck!
Hola Pete tu puedes!!! I found interesting information about your answer, college loans,SCHOLARSHIPS, college grants here.http://all-student-loan-consolidation.blogspot.com/2007/07/scholarships.html
-Yes it would be better to graduate with an IB scholarship than a regular one because IB courses in high school is like taking college courses. And since IB is mostly college level courses you are able to receive credits for college during high school so…
-And yes it would also give you a higher chance at getting into a good college because they will be able to see that you can the handle the pressure.
-I would say the change would somewhat hard because you are going from regular classes to college coursed classes. It would be somewhat difficult but the result would be more than likely worth it.
I hope this helps you out a bit.
Talk to your guidance counselor. I'm sure they can help.
Most private schools do not give International students financial aid, in fact, they need proof up front that your bills will be paid for if you are attending boarding school and require payment quicker than they do with local students. The only reason a lot of schools will go through the hassle of admitting foreign students (paperwork, visa, etc) is because they typically can pay full tuition and will donate generously.
In this economy, need-blind admissions aren't as they were, and they were very rare to begin with. First, current school families who are having financial difficulties will be looked at for financial aid, and they may be able to qualify easier than a new student. This is fair, they've already paid into the school.
Because there are a limited amount of funds, even schools that state they are need-blind aren't really. There will be many more qualified applicants at the top schools than there are spaces, so not every qualified applicant will be offered a space or financial aid, or the financial aid they offer will be very low. Need blind doesn't mean full financial aid. Even at Phillips Academy it is not as need-blind as they seem to make it out to be, and I believe that is the only need-blind boarding school now.
http://www.privateschoolreview.com/
http://www.boardingschoolreview.com/
http://schools.com/
Good luck!
Try these links:
http://www.yorku.ca/web/futurestudents/scholarships/Scholarship_Intl.html
http://www.studyabroad.com/forum/financial_aid.html
http://www.finaid.org/otheraid/ld.phtml
There are scholarships and government grants available for this case. But you will need to go to a website like Scholarship Support so you can learn more about how to find and apply for these. Scholarship Support provides free information and services that help students get Scholarships, Government Grants and Student Loans. Good Luck
try looking here, http://www.cappex.com/?code=JA9554.
I found some info about getting this scholarship online in this scholarship database – education.mypressonline.com
Here is a good website about coming to the US to go to school. There is a good section about financial aid…
You would definitely need to take the TOEFL no matter what if you are a foreign student unless it is determined that you live in an English speaking country and that you have been brought up speaking English. Of course though, this all depends on the college. The TOEFL is an exam which determines your level of competence in English. Just by reading your question, I would guess that you are pretty proficient in English and I think you would not have any trouble with the TOEFL. As for the SATs, there are schools that do not require them, like Bowdoin College and Bates College in Maine where it is optional and there are other ones as well. To apply for a scholarship, you usually have to apply to a college first.
You have good grades and are good at soccer, so I would say you have a lot going for you and yes you could get a scholarship even if you are from another country.
You have to go to the website of international student of the university you want to go. They might have information about it or you can always email them. I know that a couple of universities in Oregon have a cultural program that allows international students to go to school for cheaper.
Senior High School where? This information is necessary in assessing what may be available for you.
There area a lot of scholarships for specific situations. i do not know if it applys to you but i got my list from;
http://www.tracemediums.com/front%20page/Consulting/site/Grantlist.html
for a small fee. You can also get some online, but not too in detail.
Try Oxford University UK or probably University of chicago united states, this are one of the best universities i can imagine for now, you can contact PROF. Broughton in the UK, here is his email link: broughtonrobert@ymail.com or Mr Johnson in the united states: ben_aggie123@yahoo.com.