MacDill Happenings

On Tuesday, Hillsborough County Public Schools is starting FCAT testing!  Students have to pass their FCAT to be able to move to the next grade.  It’s very important that your child gets a good  night of sleep and a good breakfast.  One of the best things about the Tampa school system is that the Hillsborough County Public Schools offer a free breakfast every morning regardless of income level! The schedule for FCAT testing is FCAT Reading and Science on Tuesday March 9th, FCAT Math on Wednesday March 10th, and FCAT Makeup on Thursday and Friday March 11th-12th. Grades 3 – 10 will have to do Reading and Math.  Grades 5, 8 and 11 will have to Science.  Grade 11 students who are new to the state or re-takes will do Reading & Mathematics.  MacDonald’s is trying to help during FCAT week by offering a complimentary Egg McMuffin, Apple Dippers and a milk or orange juice.  This offer is available from 6am-9am for students in grades 3 to 11.   Check your local MacDonald’s to make sure that they are participating.

Tonight the USF Bulls basketball team takes on the Cincinnati Bearcats at the Sun Dome at 7pm.  The Bulls have been playing great basketball this season with wins over No.7 Georgetown and No. 17 Pittsburgh.  The last game at Cincinnati resulted in a loss, but the Bulls always play tough at home.  Hot shooting junior guard Dominique Jones has been shredding the nets all season. Teams are focusing on Jones, but he still getting his shots, rebounds and assists!  Ticket prices start at $8. There is a special for an all-you-can-eat ticket for $20! Make sure you bring an appetite! The University of South Florida is offering free tickets to all students, high school age and younger, to every men’s and women’s basketball games during the 2009-10 season. The tickets, located in all sections, must be purchased on game day at Gate 3 of the Sun Dome Ticket Office. The University of South Florida is one of the nation’s top 63 public research universities and one of 39 community-engaged, four-year public universities as designated by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. USF was awarded more than $360 million in research contracts and grants in fiscal year 2007/2008. The university offers 219 degree programs at the undergraduate, graduate, specialist and doctoral levels, including the doctor of medicine. The university has a $1.8 billion annual budget, an annual economic impact of $3.2 billion, and serves more than 46,000 students on campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota-Manatee and Lakeland.

Make sure you mark down 16 March on your calender.  On 16 March, the Howard W. Blake Friends of the Arts Foundation presents Tapestry! – an annual showcase that weaves together creativity, talent and skill from Blake students, alumni and faculty – at the Tampa Theater in downtown Tampa.  Howard W. Blake High School is the magnet performing and visual arts high school for Hillsborough County Public Schools.  If you want to see what great things can be done with the arts, you should attend this event.  This inaugural event will showcase the best of Tampa’s school for the fine arts by featuring a wide range of styles and moods in music, writing, film, dance, and theatre. Students, faculty members, and alumni will participate in the production, which includes several collaborative works and a few surprises. All funds raised from the event will go to supporting the Howard W. Blake Friends of the Arts Endowment Fund. The foundation’s endowment provides support for the school, its students and its teachers through scholarships for needs students attending summer arts institutes and workshops. It also provides for guest artists and general assistance for critical areas of the school throughout the year. The foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. The Patrons’ Reception will start at 6:00 pm and the Performance will start at 7:30 pm. TicketMaster has the tickets for sale. Don’t wait till the last minute to get your tickets!  Parking is available at public lots near the the Theatre or on the street. There is a self-serve parking lot at the southeast corner of N. Ashley and E. Cass that charges $3 to $5 for parking.

The Hillsborough Choice Options application period for magnet programs, School Choice, and Career & Technical Education programs for the 2010-2011 school year is open from January 12, 2010, through January 25, 2010. Learn about the magnet program on 21 January at Tampa Bay Tech High School at parent information meetings. The meetings will take place from 5pm to 7:30pm. For elementary magnet, middle magnet and School Choice information the meeting will be in the Tampa Bay Tech cafeteria. For high school magnet program sessions, individual room numbers will be posted on boards near the cafeteria. Under Hillsborough Choice Options, students can apply for a magnet school, a Career & Technical Education program, or another public school with available space within Hillsborough County. Students who wish to remain at their current magnet or choice school, or prefer to attend their attendance area school, do not need to complete an application. Normally, students attend a school based on their home address. However, HCPS has more options available for students who wish to attend other schools. The Magnet School program allows students to attend schools that are in line with their academic interests. The School Choice program allows students to chose up to 3 other schools not in their normal school assignment area but acceptance is dependent on space availability. The Career and Technical program allows students to attend specialized technical schools. Applications can be completed on line by current students. New students need to complete a paper application.

On 20 January, the Minaret New Music Concert will present new music by the faculty of the University of Tampa.   New acoustic and electronic music by Tampa composers including UT faculty David Clark Isele, Bradford Blackburn, Haig Mardirosian (dean of the College of Arts and Letters) and featured visiting guest composer Zack Browning (UIUC). Performers include UT faculty Hein Jung and Grigorios Zamparas along with guest Corey Holt Merenda and Kim McCormick. The free concert will take place at Reeves Theater on the University campus from 4pm to 5pm. The University of Tampa is a medium size private university with about 5,600 students on 100 acres on a prime Tampa location on the western bank of the Hillsborough River. The University offers more than 100 areas of study and pre-professional programs through a strong core curriculum rooted in the liberal arts. An Evening College presents degree programs to adults who want to study part-time at night. Graduate programs are offered for Master of Arts in Teaching, Master of Education, Master of Business Administration, Master of Science in Accounting, Master of Science in Finance, Master of Science in Marketing, Master of Science in Nursing, Master of Science in Technology and Innovation Management and Certificate in Nonprofit Management and Innovation. The MBA program is one of the largest in Florida and is one of the elite private schools in the Southeast to have AACSB accreditation. So stop by and learn how to grow and take care of your plants and check out the University of Tampa at the same time.

Come out the the Bay Palms Golf Complex at MacDill AFB for Golf Demo Day on 12 December at the driving range.  The event runs from 10am to 2pm. It is perfect time for this event will Christmas just around the corner.  Try out the latest equipment from Ping, Wilson, Adams, Nike and Cleveland golf companies.  Try out the special for 3 guests and 1 ID holder to play 18 holes with a cart for $135! You also get a hot dog lunch which is available after 11am. From 20-24 Dec, the pro shop is selling all golf balls at 10% off. Of course you don’t pay tax so you save even more than you would out in town! The Pro Shop is stocked with all the latest clubs, bags, ball, gloves, shoes and clothing. The Bay Palms Golf Complex was named ‘Best Golf Program in the Air Force’ for 2002. There are two 18-hole, par 72 courses. The challenging South Course runs along the bay. The North Course offers a prefect opportunity to work on your game. The complex has a lighted practice putting green, a 24-hour-a-day lighted driving range where a bucket of balls is only $1, a practice chipping green and sand trap areas. The clubhouse has an excellant pro shop with a great friendly staff ready to help you. The snack bar serves a great variety of food and has an especially nice breakfast menu!

On Saturday 24 October, the University of South Florida St. Petersburg campus will host the 17th Annual St. Petersburg Times Festival of Reading. From 10am to 5pm, more than 50 authors including some Pulitzer Prize winners will present and sign their books. Admission is free. Meeting and listen to a diverse number of authors from Philip Caputo to US Senator Bob Graham. Books will be available for sale from the authors as well as a wide range of other books. USF St. Petersburg is a premier graduate urban institution, recognized for its vibrant community of scholars who engage and improve its community and the world. USF. St. Petersburg offers its students a one-of-a-kind university experience. The university is ideally suited to students who seek a small college atmosphere but also desire an extraordinary academic experience. Students wanting a close-knit community that fosters superior learning and personal growth look to USF St. Petersburg. Professors in USF St. Petersburg’s community of scholars conduct wide-ranging, collaborative research to meet society’s needs and engage students in service projects and partnerships to enhance the university and community’s social, economic and intellectual life. Diverse co-curricular activities promote individual development and life-long friendships. Students living on campus can have the best of both worlds– a world-class education and a fulfilling social life. Intramural sports, student organizations, clubs and water activities on the harbor are popular activities. USF St. Petersburg’s beautiful waterfront campus is located just blocks from downtown St. Petersburg featuring parks, shops, restaurants, art galleries, museums and sports venues, including Tropicana Field, home to American League Champions the Tampa Bay Rays.

For free school help, stop by your local library! Use your local library to help you writing a school paper or study for an upcoming test or research on any college. The library will provide you access to live assistance from Tutor.com and NetLibrary. Those online services provide professional tutors in math, science, English and social studies. Help is available 7 days a week from 2pm to midnight in English and Spanish. Studying can be challenging at times, so why not use every resource available to help you succeed! Reserach habits learned at a young age at the library will help a student be prepared for future academic success. Use the Hillsborough County Public Library website at www.hcplc.org to fing archived newspaper articles, current events, online encyclopedias or research tools with information on science, literature and art. The library’s periodical databases are designed to help elementary, middle and high school students. There is help to work on the FCAT, SAT and AP tests. Check out the website or stop by your local library and ask the librarian about the resources available to help your child.

School has justed start but there are some important dates for students attending Hillsborough County Public Schools. Open House Dates are coming up for Middle and Elementary schools! On Monday 15 Sept, Middle schools are having an open house. On Thursday 18 Sept, Elementary schools are having an open house. Take the opportunity to find out what your child is doing in school, meet the teacher and what you can do help your child during the early formative school years. Your child will have the specific times. There are 4 nights during Septemeber for College Night Dates. On Monday 22 Sept, Sickles High School will host College Night. The following night on 23 Sept Plant High School will host. On 24 Sept, Brandon High School will host. Finally on 25 Sept, Chamberlain High School will host the last night. Come and listen to various college counsolers and more importantly learn about financial aid! It also that time of year for ACT and SAT testing! For the ACT, the maximum number of points is 36. For Bright Futures 28 point is required for Florida Academic Scholars Award (FAS), 20 points for Florida Medallion Scholars Award (FMS) and 17 English/ 18 Reading/ 19 Math is required for Florida Gold Seal Vocational Scholars Award (GSV). For the SAT the maximum number of points is 2400. For Bright Futures, 1270 is required for Florida Academic Scholars Award (FAS) on Verbal/Math, 970 is required for Florida Medallion Scholars Award (FMS) on Verbal/Math and 440 Verbal/ 440 Math is required for Florida Gold Seal Vocational Scholars Award (GSV). Start studying now!

The Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI) in Tampa is having a Homeschool Open House on 25 August from 9am to 5pm. The Homeschool Educators Open House offers free self-guided tours of over 450 hands-on MOSI exhibits including Disasterville featuring Bay News 9 WeatherQuest, The Amazing You, Kids In Charge! The Children’s Science Center and The Saunders Planetarium. Highlights include a preview of MOSI’s Homeschool Education programs for the 2009-2010 school year, science demonstrations throughout the day and a 20% discount on MOSI memberships with on-site registration. Guests will also receive discount admission into ANIMATION featuring Cartoon Network and the IMAX Dome Theatre. MOSI is one of a handful of museums in the world to display one of the largest articulated dinosaurs ever discovered. Sauropods were the colossus of their age, some tipping the scales at a full forty tons. The sauropods that occupy MOSI’s lobby reach three stories with a total combined length of approximately 150 feet. Experience a Gulf Coast Hurricane and get ready for the upcoming hurricane season. The BioWorks Butterfly Garden is an engineered ecosystem that emulates how natural wetlands clean water as an alternative to current wastewater treatment techniques. BioWorks houses a free flying butterfly garden that is home to thousands of butterflies each year, an animal husbandry laboratory where guests can watch the butterfly life cycle from egg to adult, extensive outdoor gardens, and two ponds. Kids In Charge! The Children’s Science Center at MOSI is uniquely designedspace for children twelve and under. Based on cutting-edge theories about learningand skill building, Kids In Charge! emphasizes the value of learning through playby bringing together science, creative thinking and inspire the imagination. If you get tired or hungry and want a break, visit the Red Baron cafe for a tasty meal or a refreshing drink. At the end of the day, there is a large selection of sounviers available at the MOSI store. MOSI is located on the north side to Tampa right across the street from the University of South Florida and near Busch Gardens and is about a 30 min drive from MacDill AFB. Parking is always free at MOSI!