Amazing science opportunity coming up SOON.

From the National Hispanic Environmental Council:

Dear Students, Educators, NHEC members, and Community Leaders:

For those who may not have seen our previous email, the National
Hispanic Environmental Council (NHEC) is still accepting applications
from students to participate in our upcoming 9th annual "Minority
Youth Environmental Training Institute", to be held August 13--22,
2010 in beautiful Glorieta, New Mexico.

Like our NYC and CA regional Institutes, the national Institute in New
Mexico is an intensive, residential, multi-day, science-based
environmental education AND environmental career awareness program for
talented teens, aged 16--19, selected competitively from all across
the U.S. Note that students in both high school and college are
eligible to apply.

Through a full scholarship NHEC will COVER ALL COSTS for accepted
students, including round-trip airfare, housing, meals, books, science
equipment, and more for the 10 day long Institute.

The NM Institute is being funded by a number of sponsors, including
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service, and the
National Park Trust. Like past Institutes, we use a variety of
facilities as learning sites, including national parks, national
forests, national laboratories, and more.

Students will be housed at the Glorieta Conference Center and closely
supervised by NHEC instructors and staff. The Institute is designed
to help build the next generation of environmental leaders and
professionals. Students learn about key environmental, energy, and
natural resource topics, as well as the wide range of careers in the
environmental, natural resource, and energy arena. Students also
receive information about college majors and universities in these
fields.

In addition to our Instructors, NHEC also has an overlay of "role
models" -- working minority professionals from every environmental
field -- who each year participate in the Institute as volunteers. A
number of role models are present every day to inspire the students,
help teach the curriculum, and share their environmental expertise,
technical knowledge, and cultural heritage.

The attached pdf files contain all materials necessary for students to
apply to the Institute. Please read the "Fact Sheet" first, as it has
key information about the program. Interested students should apply
as soon as possible as the Institute is fast approaching.

We also ask that you forward this email on to those you think might be
interested in this highly educational program, including qualified
students, fellow educators, high schools, colleges, youth
organizations, and more. We appreciate your help.

Feel free to contact NHEC, especially our Programs Coordinator, Juan
Rodriguez, at jrodriguez@nheec.org or myself, at rrivera@nheec.org if
you have any questions. Thank you.

Roger Rivera

President, NHEC

New High School Advisor Sample Lessons TOMORROW!

Hi everyone,

We are in the process of hiring a new high school advisor/MS math teacher, and a part-time MS science teacher. Elizabeth Johnson has taken a new position at the Native American Youth Association Early College Academy and will no longer be with us. Elizabeth has been a powerful voice of support and advocacy, and a brilliant teacher during her 5 years at Trillium. Her legacy will continue to be felt for years to come.

We have had more than 150 applicants for these positions and are excited at the array of experience these candidates may bring to the position. Through the interview process we have narrowed down the candidates to 5, all of whom will be doing sample lessons tomorrow, Wednesday, July 21st at Trillium, starting at 9:30. WE NEED HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS to come give feedback on who they see as the best fit. And we will feed you lunch.

Let me know if you can make it. Hope to see you there.

Peace.
Ken

Trillium Board of Directors Update

Good afternoon,

I'm writing today to provide an another update on our school director succession plans and financial picture.

The Board has approved the Personnel Committees recomendation that in the long run, we should have two separate director positions: an Executive Director and an Educational Director. We will begin the hiring process for a new Executive Director immediately, and will pursue an Educational Director later in the year as finances allow. For those of you with some history at the school, you may recognize that this is a familiar refrain - this desire to pursue two positions has been articulated in the past, but never executed. The Board also decided to commit to the two positions financially, as you'll see in the plan below.

Because of our financial constraints and the desire to manage a smooth transition, this is the plan that we have agreed to follow:
- We will begin the hiring process to bring in a new Executive Director now with the hope that they will start in August, 2010
- The position will be half time now, and will convert to full time no later than July 1, 2011
- Stephanie's stay with the school at half time for transition purposes through the end of the 2010-2011 school year
- The new Executive Director will be immediately vested with the decision making authority of the job.
- We will hire a full time Educational Director to start in early 2011
- The new Executive Director and the board will work closely to close budget gaps necessary to finance both positions fully. If necessary, class size (enrollment) will be raised again for the 2011-2012 school year.
- The Board will work to design and clarify any necessary decision rights for the two director positions as we hire the Education Director

We are assembling a small hiring committee and interview team immediately and hope to be conducting interviews in early August. We'll be seeking a mix of upper school and lower school staff and parents to participate in the process. If you are interested, and particularly if you have interviewing and hiring experience, please contact David Poe as soon as possible.


Regarding the school finances, the current budget looks stable for now (thanks to staff and board members who've worked so hard on this), but we will be running very close to the edge and making no substantive improvements in major issues such as the overall debt load of the school or teacher pay equity with PPS pay. We have more to do in the coming year to overcome these hurdles. Much will depend on the state budget scenario as it gets finalized, as well as our ability to raise funds in the coming year.

Thanks,
James Hindes
Chair, Trillium Board of Directors
Parent to Annie (Beth's advising) and Holden
jhindes@trilliumcharterschool.org