TO THE SUPERINTENDENT ADDRESSED:
The opening of a new school year is behind you, and hopefully your district was successful in making all of the preparations necessary for a great school year. Of course, one of those preparations is securing a complete and well-qualified teacher workforce. As a discipline, Family and Consumer Sciences Education (formerly Home Economics Education) is experiencing a large number of teacher changes, retirements, and overall shortage of teachers. Many districts have filled these vacant positions with persons on emergency permits or who lack recent training and/or experience teaching the discipline. These teachers have a special need for professional development to inform them of the focus, content, and resources of the discipline TODAY. The change in the program name is only one of many changes that have occurred recently in the discipline. Unless these teachers are schooled in conducting a program that reflects these up-to-date changes, an out-of-date program will result.
In order to address issues and questions common for family and consumer sciences teachers who fit the categories of "new" or "returning" (returning to a family and consumer sciences assignment following an absence from teaching or a period of teaching outside the family and consumer sciences discipline), an intensive training conference has been scheduled for October 6-7. This conference, to be conducted in Austin, will focus on issues related to program philosophy; Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for the discipline; effective instruction; curriculum; instructional resources; management; funding; reporting; Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (formerly Future Homemakers of America) activities; State Board of Education policies; and the implementation of education initiatives (career concentrations, coherent sequences of courses, integration of academic skills, and Tech Prep) through Family and Consumer Sciences Education. Perspectives and needs of both middle school and high school teachers will be addressed. Opportunities will be provided for conference participants to pose their unique questions. A conference registration form is enclosed.
The topics to be included are central to conducting an effective Family and Consumer Sciences Education program. We believe that teachers want to do outstanding work and will, if they have both a clear vision of the expectations and the tools for meeting the expectations. This conference has been designed to bring the expectations into focus, to sharpen professional skills, and to make participants aware of available resources.
If you have new or returning family and consumer sciences teachers in your district, I hope that you will be supportive of their participation in this training. Please assist us in informing these teachers by distributing copies of the enclosed information; we, too, will try to get the information into the appropriate hands. Thank you for your support and assistance. Please feel free to contact the Family and Consumer Sciences Education unit at (512) 463-9454 if there are questions regarding this matter or the Family and Consumer Sciences Education program in your district.
Sincerely,
Gay Nell McGinnis, Program Director Family and Consumer Sciences Education
For further information on this topic, contact the Family and Consumer Sciences Education unit at (512) 463-9454.