November 4, 2009

Dale City Team Wins International Quality Education Award

Competing against education teams from around the world, the “Dale City Math Club” School Improvement Team received the Gold NQEC Team Excellence Award at the 17th National Quality Education Conference (NQEC) held recently in Jacksonville, FL. The team, led by Dale City Elementary principal, Cinthia Crowe-Miller, included Kevin Weaver, Karen Moonan, and Ellen Mackinnon, Dale City elementary teachers; Donna Stofko, PWCS Elementary Mathematics Coordinator; and Laura Lovelace, PWCS Data Analyst. After a preliminary round of judging during the summer, three teams were selected as finalists to present before a panel of judges and audience members at the NQEC Conference in October. The Dale City Team took top honors by winning the Gold Award.

"What an excellent example of blended mathematics at work in PWCS!" said Prince William County Public Schools Superintendent of Schools Dr. Steven L. Walts.

The purpose of NQEC is to provide opportunities for teachers, administrators, support personnel, and other stakeholders to use quality tools and examine continuous improvement principles that have been successfully used in education. The “Dale City Math Club” School Improvement Team was recognized for planning and implementing innovative approaches to fully engage students in learning mathematics, particularly struggling students. As a result, math anxiety decreased, enthusiasm for learning greatly increased, and all sub-groups met the Adequate Yearly Progress requirements. The title of the year-long project was “The Dale City Math Club - a Small School with a BIG Change: Improving Math While Having Fun!”

Congratulations to Principal Cinthia Crowe-Miller, her School Improvement Team, and the Dale City Elementary math teachers who implemented this project.