Item 8A v
CITY OE ATLANTIC BSACII
CITY COMMISSION MEETING
STAFF RSPORT
AGENDA ITEM #8A
AUGUST 14, 2006
AGENDA ITEM: Expansion of Jordan Community Center to Accommodate After
School Tutoring Program
SUBMITTED BY: Jim Hanson, Ci Mana
DA'I'S: August 7, 2006
BACKGROUND: The City of Atlantic Beach has provided an after school program for
children in the Jordan Park Center for several years. Volunteers have
helped many of the kids with their homework. Beaches Habitat has
recently obtained funding to expand the program by paying a fulltime
coordinator and making improvements to the building that will allow for
the tutoring to be conducted in several study modules. One problem in tt-~e
existing building is the noise level from having so many kids in one room.
Habitat has offered to construct an addition to the building costing
$75,000 and will provide staffing to manage the tutoring program for at
least three years. City staff has worked with Habitat representatives over
the last couple of months on the building design. This design, along with
the expanded tutoring program that it will support, will help in the
education of many of the children in the Jordan Park area.
BUDGET: The construction of this addition will be paid by Beaches Habitat with no
funds required from the City of Atlantic Beach. Additionally, the person
managing the program will also be paid by Beaches Habitat for at least
three years. After that time, Atlantic Beach may be requested to provide
funding for some or all of the operational costs of the program, although
no commitments have been made to do so.
~"' RECOMMENDATION: Approve the request by Beaches Habitat to allow for the construction of an
addition to the Jordan Park Community Center and to allow the use of that
center for the use of the after school tutoring program.
ATTAC NTS: 1) Letter dated June 8, 2006 from Ralph Marcelio of Beaches Habitat
describing the program with attachments
2) Second letter front Ralph Marcello dated June 20, 2006 fiQi-tl~er
describing the commitments of Beaches Habitat
3) Architectural drawings of the proposed expansion
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Jim Hanson
City Manager
' City of Atlantic Beach
800 Seminole Road
Atlantic Beach FL. 32233
Dear Jim,
Habitat
far Humanity°
.~aec~cs~e-~oriBle ~3e~.1~~
AGENDA ITEM #8A
AUGUST 14, 2006
Thank you for taking the time to meet with Joyce and I last week. I have
attempted to answer your questions, which I believe focused on three areas:
• Habitat's commitment to the Education Program
• The continuity, or longevity of the Education Program
• Program and building management
We are prepared to contractually commit to our program responsibilities.
Please note that our only goal is to build a better facility (at no initial cost to the
city) to accommodate our After School program. The growth of the program has
~, been documented in our prior correspondence.
Architectural and engineering drawings will be ready by the end of July. We
would like to schedule a presentation to the city council at this time.
We appreciate you help and support.
Ralph M cello
Executive Director
Habitat for Humanity-Jacksonville Beaches
After School Program
Program Goals & Results
AGENDA ITEM #8A
AUGUST 14, 2006
The After School Tutoring Program is an important component in our overall
Education Program. The goals are threefold:
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• Make education a priority for the participating children.
• Motivate young students to further their education
~,,, Help them with their studies at an early age by using the Great Leaps
Reading and Math program.
Kathy Christensen, a teacher with a special education degree, runs the program.
Kathy is supported by a group of approximately 12 volunteer tutors as well as an
Americorps volunteer.
n We now see about 40 students at the Jordan and Donner Center. Historical
growth in students and volunteers has been documented in prior
communications.
Program Commitment & Continuity
The Board of Directors and staff of Habitat for Humanity of the Jacksonville
Beaches are committed to the program for the long term. Most importantly, our
major donors, Herb &Miyuki Scheidel, are committed. Current in place financial
~' commitments include:
• 5 new UNF scholarships and 30 to 40 new FCCJ scholarships available
every year. These scholarships are thanks to a generous $2.2 million
donation from Herb &Miyuki Scheidel with a $1.8 million match from the
State of Florida.
• Student Awards for academic excellence and perfect attendance, which
total $25,000 per year, are funded for the long term by Herb &Miyuki
Scheidel.
• The Jaguars Foundation had indicated they would most likely renew our
$17,500 per year grant for the After School Tutoring Program.
• Habitat will add a full time Education Director, Amanda Ward. She will
begin in August of this year. Kathy Christensen will continue to serve as
the administrator of the After School Program.
• $75k to expand the Jordan Park Community Center. No costs would be
incurred by Atlantic Beach.
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AGENDA ITEM #SA
AUGUST 14, 2006
2005/2006 fiscal year Education donations total $130k. Our Education Bank
Account balance currently exceeds $110k.
Current fiscal year total Habitat cash donations will exceed $1.2 million. Total
~° income will exceed $2.5 million. Funding the After School program on an
ongoing basis will continue.
Habitat would certainly be willing to commit to a 5-year contract with the city of
Atlantic Beach to run the After School Program.
Program & Building Management
Habitat sees no major change in the management of the After School Program.
The management of building facilities would also not change. However, Habitat
would need all day access to the expanded facilities. If necessary, we could
place locked doors on both sides of the building so we would not have access to
the common room during the day.
Please note that the expanded center could be used to support other city
activities including adult education and computer training.
The addition is a win-win for both parties.
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6:,
AGENDA ITEM #8A
AUGUST 14, 2006
I;eaches Habitat
Habitat for Humanity of the Jacksonville Beaches, Inc.
Jim Hanson
City Manager
City of Atlantic Beach
Dear Jim,
June 8, 2006
~'" Habitat of the Jacksonville Beaches has been working in partnership with Atlantic Beach to provide
an After School Tutoring Program at both the Donner and Jordan Community Center. These
programs have been successful and we currently see about 40 children every day in both centers.
Our home building program is in full gear with 150 homes complete, most of which are in Atlantic
Beach. Our next 8 homes will be built on Francis and Ardella. 60 building lots located near Mayport
~!* Road still remain. We anticipate the After School Program to at least double over the next 3 years
primarily from new Habitat homes but also from other Atlantic Beach residents. This trend can be
seen in the attached After School Program Growth Chart, that shows how much the program has
grown since its inception in 2001.
To improve our facilities at the Jordan Center, we propose to build a 1,000 square foot addition to the
center. This would provide a small computer area, additional tutoring space and a conference area for
our reading clubs. In addition we plan to install some noise abatement materials in the common
room. The high ceilings and vinyl flooring make the room quite noisy.
Herb Scheidel, who donated $2 million to establish a LJNF & FCCJ scholarship program, sees the
importance of the After School Program to better prepare more students for a college education. He
„~, has committed to donate between $50,000 to $75,000 to build this addition. There would be no cost
to the city. Our plans are to move forward and develop working plans for the addition. Before we do
this, we would like to meet with you to discuss these plans (see attached).
Education is the way out of the poverty cycle and in this community of Atlantic Beach, an education
center could provide opportunities beyond tutoring children. Jacksonville's rate of adult illiteracy is
very high. Many children and adults would like to become computer literate. With forward thinking,
this expansion could be the home to a wide variety of educational opportunities that would benefit
the people residing in this community.
Thank you for your past support. We look forward to making this program a model in the
community.
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Ralph rce o
Executive Director
P.O. Box 50939 Jacksonville Beach, Florida 32240 (904) 241-1222
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AGENDA ITEM #8A
AUGUST 14, 2006
After School Program
Overview
The Prep Club, and educational organization for students living in Habitat homes, provides
~" monetary incentives to encourage academic achievement. Post secondary scholarships are also
available for those students who qualify. The City of Atlantic Beach provides a homework
assistance and recreational program for the children in the community. After volunteering in that
~" effort, it was evident that many children were not performing on grade level in reading or math.
The Jordan Community Center Director and the Beaches Habitat Education Coordinator worked
together to provide additional reading support to the students who were struggling, and began
"" using the Great Leaps Program, aphonics-based supplemental reading program using direct
instruction with an adult and one child.
Ezaansion of the After School Program
During the second year of using Great Leaps (2003-2004) student performance was recorded .
There were 14 children, and in order to see these students at least 3 times per week, 3 volunteers
were added. 75% of the students who participated significantly improved their reading fluency.
However, a new approach was needed for students who could read fluently, but did not
comprehend what they were reading.
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During the 2004-2005 school year, 20 students were tracked at the Jordan Center and 7 students
at the Donner Center in Great Leaps. The Strategies for Teaching Comprehension program was
added for 12 students. Working one-on-one with a student in both fluency and comprehension
takes 20 minutes minimum as a result, volunteers were increased to approximately 8 (2-3 each
,~„ day). Reading Comprehension data for the 2004-2005 school year was very encouraging and
showed that students were improving their reading skills.
„~, Current Year
At the beginning of the 2005-2006 school year, 30 students enrolled at the Jordan Center and 13
at the Donner Center. Currently there are 15 tutors serving both the Jordan and Donner Centers.
~, At the Jordan Center 3-4 volunteers have been assigned daily from 3:30-S:OOpm and 12-15
students are tutored per day in Great Leaps and Comprehension. In addition to the 30 students in
Great Leaps, 36 students attend our popular Book Clubs. There are also students who come to
~„ the center for help with homework that are not tracked or enrolled in the additional programs.
Each year the number of students seen in the after school program has increased, and with
additional Habitat families moving in the area, that trend will continue.
Students at the Jordan Center use the large community room for both recreation and homework
assistance. There are two small rooms available for tutoring. Students are very conscientious
when reading aloud, and students are timed when reading. This makes it difficult to tutor more
than one child in a room, and it is very distracting to tutor students in the large room with
children coming in and out of the building. In addition to the one-on-one tutoring programs,
there are organized book clubs for the students. This is their time to read for enjoyment, discuss
ideas aloud, play vocabulary games and enjoy participating in a group. Children look forward to
weekly book clubs, however there is not a room that can accommodate the number of students in
the groups. On occasion, Book Clubs have access to the conference room on the side of the
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AGENDA ITEM #8A
AUGUST 14, 2006
building where the offices are located, but this makes it a less than ideal area to congregate for
instructing groups of children.
In addition to struggling readers, there are students who are not passing math. There is a former
math teacher conducting a small math group to build basic skills. The math group meets in the
conference room on the Beaches Habitat office side of the building.
~„ Expansion
Beaches Habitat would like to see the students who come to the after school program have the
best possible environment for assisting them in their academic work. Beaches Habitat has
~. effective teaching materials, incentives, trained volunteers, and eager students. By providing this
after school program with an area conducive to tutoring individual students and small group
instruction (i.e. quiet area, less distractions and interruptions), Beaches Habitat could provide an
~.. optimal learning setting for the children, most of who are struggling academically.
After School Program Growth
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
^ Studerrts ^ Tutors
2001-2002 2002-2003 2003-2004 2004-2005 2005-2006
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