Local Initiatives

The Hillsborough County Community-School Partnership Volunteering Initiative

The Hillsborough County Public School (HCPS) system is the 7-th largest US school district, serving a large and diverse population, including urban schools, rural schools, IB and Cambridge magnet programs, as well as students who take classes online through the Florida Virtual School and a significant home-schooled segment. Among this diversity, community schools are designated by the district for their potential to benefit greatly from a partnership with local resources in order to improve educational and related services for children, youth, families, and communities. The current HCPS community schools are:

•   Brandon High School

•   Broward Elementary

•   Burney Elementary

•   Corr Elementary

•   Edison Elementary

•   Foster Elementary

•   Gibsonton Elementary

•   Greco Middle School

•   Jennings Middle School

•   Mango Elementary

•   McDonald Elementary

•   Mort Elementary

•   Potter Elementary

•   Sulphur Springs K-8 Community School

•   Tampa Bay Technical High School
  

This volunteering initiative is approved by the HCPS with logistic and educational support from Tampa-based faculty and undergraduate student organizations, in which volunteers are assigned to a team led by faculty, paired to a community school subject coach, and integrated into the school activities based on availability and flexible scheduling. High school students earn volunteering hours and the unique opportunity to use their educational achievements to make a meaningful contribution to their community and support their peers. Undergraduate students may access the Federal Work-Pay Program through the USF Institute for School-Community Partnerships. 

Staff:

•   Kimberly Thompson, HCPS Community Schools Coordinator

•   Nadine Livingstone, HCPS District Resource Teacher

•   Whitney "JP" Jean-Pierre, Community Programs Coordinator for the Unlimited Potential Initiative in the Institute for School-Community Partnerships, Integrated Services, and Child Mental Health and Educational Policy.

•   Dustin Krein, Sustainability Director for the Unlimited Potential Initiative (UPI) in the Institute for School-Community Partnerships, Integrated Services, and Child Mental Health and Educational Policy (ISCP).

If you are interested in volunteering, please email the team at contactus@eastcoaststeammagazine.org

The Tampa Math Circle

Through the Strawberry Crest High School STEM Journal Club, Tampa joins the Florida Math Circles (currently represented at UF, UCF, and UNF), establishing for the first time a Tampa Math Circle, integrated with the AMC and MAA activities in Florida. This organization will provide:

•    monthly training cycles for facilitators (starting in November 2024),

•   a public in person Math Kangaroo contest center at USF (scheduled for Saturday, March 22nd, 2025), 

•   organizing a Math Festival on January 30th, 2025, as part of the 2025 Hillsborough County Math Bowl after the contest and before the awards.

Monthly training cycles will sponsor 3-4 students with a $120 stipend for the cycle to do 2 or 3 monthly cycles. Facilitators will provide a reflection memoir documenting their activity

To participate, please email Peter Alspaugh, the current President of the Florida Epsilon Chapter of the Pi Mu Epsilon National Honor Society at alspaughp@usf.edu for details.

The Tampa Bay Putnam Competition Collective

This development provides information and resources for students participating in the Mathematical Association of America's 2024 William Lowell Putnam competition.  

Participating Institutions:

The Putnam teams of:

•   University of Tampa

•   University of South Florida

•   St Leo University

•   Regional high school students affiliated with these official sites

Join the Community

Send an email to the website administrator (contactus@eastcoaststeammagazine.org) to be included on the mailing list and provided with access information to competition preparation materials. The 2024 competition will take place on Saturday, December 7th.