Atlanta Partners for Education
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apfeinfo@macoc.com |
Atlanta Partners for Education (APFE) is a long-standing 25 year partnership between the Metro Atlanta Chamber and Atlanta Public Schools that helps the community get involved in schools. Atlanta Partners For Education hosts several events a year, including the A+ Awards, Principal for a Day, and the "State of the Schools in Atlanta" Address. Atlanta Partners for Education also has partnered with the mayor's "Next Step" Summer Internship program. You will find more information on each of these programs below. A+ Awards Highlights
The mission of Atlanta Partners for Education is to galvanize and coordinate meaningful civic involvement and partnerships in Atlanta schools to improve student achievement. The program now has more than 200 business, non-profit organizations or agency partners involved in Atlanta Public Schools. Those partnerships involve more than 3,700 volunteers and provide millions of dollars in estimated cash and in-kind contributions to the schools. Help make this school year a great one by joining Atlanta Partners for Education. >>> Atlanta Partner For A Future >>> History of Atlanta Partners For Education
Metro Atlanta Chamber, Atlanta Education Contacts 
The annual A+ Awards, now in its 18th year, is sponsored by Atlanta Partners for Education (APFE), a joint venture between Atlanta Public Schools and the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. The A+ Awards celebrate achievement and excellence in educational partnerships between Atlanta Public Schools and metro Atlanta businesses and organizations. The awards encourage the pursuit of excellence in education while focusing public attention on educational achievements in the Atlanta Public Schools and successful partnerships between schools and the business community, nonprofit, civic, higher education, religious, social, and professional organizations. Atlanta Public Schools' Teachers of the Year are also recognized and awarded for their commitment and excellence in education. Awards are presented in the categories of: Rookie Achievement; Innovative; Collaborative; Magna Cum Laude; Summa Cum Laude and Principal’s Leadership Award. This year the 2007 A+ Luncheon was held on Wednesday, April 11th, at the Georgia World Congress Center in the Thomas B. Murphy Ballroom. It was attended by more than 900 guests. The 2007 A+ Awards winners and sponsors are listed below. APFE honored the following Teachers of the Year:
The following are the 2007 A+ Awards Finalists
2007 A+ Awards luncheon sponsors were:
"Principal for a Day", now in its eighth year, has recruited more than 400 business, civic and political leaders to spend a day paired with a principal in every one of Atlanta’s 89 public elementary, middle and high schools -- creating awareness of the progress schools have made and the challenges they face. "Principal for a Day" also serves as a springboard for the business community to form long-lasting partnerships with schools. You can sign up to become a partner in education with an Atlanta Public School by completing the Partner For A Future application. By becoming a committed partner you will contribute to helping make our schools stronger and our students better educated through improved student achievement. Volunteers participate in class discussions, meet with parents, read to students, and attend special activities and performances. Above all, the program allow volunteers to spend time with principals and faculty to share ideas and learn about the joys and challenges that come with running a front-line institution critical to the future of Atlanta. "Principal for a Day" is hosted by Atlanta Partners for Education, a longstanding partnership between the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and Atlanta Public Schools. The 2006 event was chaired by Arthur Blank and Bill Lorenz. Merrill Lynch was the corporate sponsor. >>> Press Release: Merrill Lynch’s Bill Lorenz & Equifax’s Rick Smith –
Educating Atlanta and Impacting the World
For more information call
404.586.8519, or email apfeinfo@macoc.com.
2006 "State of the Schools in Atlanta" Address * Note: The Chamber issued the following statement on Oct. 5 in response to Superintendent Dr. Beverly L. Hall's 2006 "State of the Schools in Atanta" Address. At a critical halfway point in a 12-year plan to reform Atlanta’s K-12 system, public education in Atlanta is improving under the leadership of Superintendent Dr. Beverly L. Hall. That was the reaction of key Atlanta business leaders in response to Dr. Hall’s third annual “State of Schools in Atlanta” address – a tradition started three years ago by the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce in conjunction with Atlanta Public Schools. “No urban public school system in the nation has completely reformed its K-12 system – but that’s exactly what Superintendent Hall is determined to do,” said Dick Anderson, Group President Global Business Services AT&T and the Chamber’s 2007 chairman. “Business leaders in Atlanta applaud the high standards she has set, and the determination with which she has tackled these goals.” Since coming to Atlanta in 1999 from New York City, Dr. Hall has spurred important reforms, including: renovating decades-old school facilities, conducting a major operations audit to run schools more efficiently and taking the best education practices from across the nation and putting them to work in Atlanta. Future goals include transforming all high schools into small learning communities, piloting single-gender academies and launching a new math initiative that includes teacher training. “Nothing is more important to the future of our region than a well-educated, well-trained workforce,” said Curley Dossman, president of the Georgia-Pacific Foundation and chair of the Chamber’s Atlanta Public Schools Committee. “ The leaders of tomorrow are sitting in the classrooms of today – and Dr. Hall is working with principals, teachers, parents and community leaders to make sure we all play a role in helping these children succeed.”
Mayor Franklin's "Next Step" Summer Internship Program For the second year in a row, the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin are calling on metro Atlanta companies to provide summer internships for this year's class of graduating seniors in Atlanta Public Schools. The internship project -- which helped place more than 500 students last year at more than 100 organizations in the public and private sectors -- is in partnership with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and ajcjobs. “We had a great year last year, and I'm calling on the community to step up again this year,” said Mayor Franklin. “Next Step... The Atlanta Promise is designed to provide students first-hand assistance in planning for their dreams, whether it's college, technical school, military or the workforce. Internships help keep these dreams alive.” Internships would run from June 4 through July 27. Companies are asked to provide 35-40 hours of work per week and pay $8 to $12 per hour. Companies that cannot host an intern can still become involved by sponsoring an intern at another company. “Nothing is more important to the future of our region than a well-educated, well-trained workforce,” said Tom Hough, Area Managing Partner for Ernst & Young LLP and chair of the Chamber's Atlanta Public Schools Education Committee. “ Atlanta companies have an opportunity to directly affect the lives of our students and the prosperity of Atlanta by offering first-rate internships for graduating seniors.” Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Beverly Hall said internships offer students the real-world experience and career connections they need to succeed. “Atlanta Public Schools has always been able to count on the strong support of the business community,” she added. “Business leaders continue to get engaged in real and tangible ways that make a difference. A good internship can literally change a student's life and encourage them to keep dreaming and keep achieving.” This internship initiative is part of Mayor Franklin's Next Step…The Atlanta Promise program, which helps Atlanta Public School graduating seniors map out a plan for success after high school. The Next Step…The Atlanta Promise Youth Programs are administered out of the Atlanta Workforce Development Agency (AWDA). AWDA assists students with unmet needs that may hinder their entrance to the training and/or institution of their choice. The Chamber has been involved with public schools for decades through the Atlanta Partners for Education, a joint venture of the Chamber and Atlanta Public Schools . Companies interested in supplying internships are asked to consider whether their location is conducive to students who rely on public transportation for their commute. The structure of the internship is determined by the hiring company, but should include exposure to an office environment. All eligible students have been pre-screened and accepted to two- or four-year colleges or technical schools this Fall. For more information and/or to register for this program, go to www.ajcjobs.com/nextstepinterns or contact Philippa Brown, Special Assistant to the Mayor on Education, 404.230.1600 or PBBrown@AtlantaGa.gov >>> 2006 Corporate Internship Participants The Next Step Program is facilitated by the Atlanta Workforce Development Agency. For additional information on the Next Step Program generally, please visit www.nextstepatlanta.org. |
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2007 System-wide Teacher of the Year 
