Partnerships - P-16 Task Force
In April of 2005, a collaborative of leaders in education (preschool through college), business, and the community came together to form the San Luis Obispo County P-16 Council. At this watershed gathering, it was agreed that collaboration across institutions is the best approach to addressing critical gaps in educational achievement. Members of the group met monthly for the next year in an effort to implement this cross-institutional concept. As its first imitative the P-16 Council chose early childhood education and is developing a master plan for providing high quality preschool experiences.
The P-16 Council launched its second initiative focusing on Mathematics and Science Education in 2006-7. With a generous contribution from PG&E, the Council hosted a county-wide Science Leadership Banquet in April of 2007, entitled Science Education for a New Millennium featuring a keynote address from Dr. Albert Ghiorso, co-discoverer of elements 95-106 on the Periodic Table of Elements. The goal of the meeting was to create a science collaborative comprised of teacher leaders, private industry professionals, and community representatives from across the county to meet on a quarterly basis. These three afternoon meetings facilitated the sharing of ideas, activities and encouraged collaboration among K-12 educators, and Community College and University professors.
A similar endeavor was launched in May of 2008 with Mathematics Leadership Banquet featuring a keynote address from Dr. Uri Treisman of Dana Center at the University of Texas.