25 Florida School Districts Work Together to Hold Jan. 27 Events to Recruit New Teachers

You Can Teach: Improve Our Future events in Orlando, Tallahassee and Fort Lauderdale.

Seminar participants will have the opportunity to meet with school district officials, who can provide important insight into the availability of teaching positions, teacher shortage areas and benefits for new teachers

Tallahassee, FL (PRWeb) January 22, 2007 -- More than 25 school districts, the Florida Department of Education and several community organizations will work together to recruit new teachers at statewide You Can Teach: Improve Our Future seminars in Tallahassee, Fort Lauderdale, and Orlando on Saturday, January 27, 2007 (www.improveourfuture.com).

The seminars are free and opened to the public. Sponsored and organized by the non-profit American Board for Certification of Teacher Excellence (ABCTE), You Can Teach: Improve Our Future sessions are designed to recruit talented professionals to change careers and become teachers. Florida faces a need for approximately 30,000 new teachers every year.

The sessions will be held from 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. in Orlando, Tallahassee and Fort Lauderdale. Individuals can stop by at any time and presentations will begin every hour on the hour. Interested participants are encouraged to register for the free events online at www.improveourfuture.com.

By enrolling to earn teacher certification in January, individuals will have the opportunity to earn certification in time for the Great Florida Teach-In, which is held in June and gives participants the opportunity to find teaching positions in any of Florida's 67 counties.

"Seminar participants will have the opportunity to meet with school district officials, who can provide important insight into the availability of teaching positions, teacher shortage areas and benefits for new teachers," said Colleen Corliss, ABCTE's manager of public affairs and the conference's coordinator.

The Florida Department of Education will participate in seminars in all three locations.

Participating school districts include the Florida Department of Education, Orange County Public Schools, Osceola County Schools, Brevard County Schools, Volusia County Schools, Collier County Schools, Monroe County Schools, Alachua County Schools, St. Johns County Schools, Charlotte County Schools, DeSoto County Schools, Seminole County Schools, Gadsden County Schools and the North East Florida Education Consortium (which represents Baker, Bradford, Columbia, Dixie, Flagler, Gilchrist, Hamilton, LaFayette, Levy, Nassau, Putnam, Suwannee and Union County School districts.)

Participating organizations include the Florida Consortium of Charter Schools, local chapters of the NAACP, the Urban League of Greater Miami, Teachers-Teachers.com, Argosy University (Tampa) and ACORN.

Event Details:

Pre-register to attend the free events online at www.improveourfuture.com

South Florida
Saturday, January 27th, 2007
10:00am - 3:00pm
Embassy Suites Hotel Ft. Lauderdale
1100 SE 17th St. Causeway
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33316

Central Florida
Saturday, January 27th, 2007
10:00am - 3:00pm
Comfort Inn - Universal Studios Area
6101 Sand Lake Road
Orlando, FL 32819

Northern/Northwest Florida
Saturday, January 27th, 2007
10:00am - 3:00pm
Tallahassee-Leon County Civic Center
505 West Pensacola Street
Tallahassee, FL 32301

What it Takes to Earn Teacher Certification

The American Board for Certification of Teacher Excellence offers the state-approved, affordable, flexible and high quality Passport to Teaching program, designed specifically to help career changers successfully transition into teaching.

The program does not require individuals to quit their current jobs as they prepare to earn certification. The program fee is only $560 (individuals who enroll during a conference will save $100 off of this fee). No additional college courses are required (a bachelor's degree in ANY subject area is required to enroll. Non-degreed individuals, such as college students, who will earn a degree within 12 months of earning certification, are also eligible to enroll).

Working with an advisor, candidates will:
-assess their strengths and weaknesses in the area they choose to teach as well as their teaching skills
-develop an individualized plan to successfully transition into teaching and prepare for required examinations
-pass two national teacher certification exams
-pass a federal background check.

ABCTE offers a full portfolio of preparation resources designed to support candidates as they prepare for their exams, including practice exam CD-ROMS, online refresher courses and recommendations of other preparation materials designed to meet each candidate's individual schedule, budget and study style.

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• Become a Teacher: Make it Your New Year's Resolution to Make a Difference; Become a Teacher and Save $100 on Certification Fees in January 2007-01-09