DATE: July 14, 2008
CONTACT:
Pam Bryant, (803) 553-7705
pbryant@clemson.edu
WRITER:
Pam Bryant, (803) 553-7705
pbryant@clemson.edu
School teachers taking part in seminar of S.C. Teacher Renewal Center
PICKENS — Nineteen public school educators from across South Carolina are hiking through pristine Upstate forestland as part of a five-day, pilot experience that will help shape the design of a program expected to have an impact on thousands of their colleagues over the next decade.
The teachers are participants in the inaugural seminar of the S.C. Teacher Renewal Center, a partnership initiative of Clemson University and the S.C. Department of Education.
In March, The Cliffs Communities and the company's founder and CEO Jim Anthony announced a gift of more than $10 million cash and more than 350 acres of prime forestland for development of the renewal center on the banks of the Keowee River between Lake Keowee and Hartwell Lake. Initial plans include a hotel, restaurant and conference complex.
The S.C. Teacher Renewal Center seminar began Friday at Clemson's Youth Learning Institute (YLI) in Pickens. Teachers have participated in team-based discovery activities, creative inquiry projects, a forensic science experience and brainstorming sessions about future program themes and designs, all for the purpose of creating a model for the nature-based, health and wellness-focused experiences the future center will offer. Those experiences will be aimed at helping teachers stay connected to their passions for teaching and avoiding the burnout that causes so many educators to leave the profession.
“Gaining the input of these teachers is essential to the design of a successful program that accomplishes the goals of retaining the state’s best teachers, rewarding them for their dedication and renewing their passion for teaching,” said Jack Blodgett, YLI program coordinator for the seminar. Blodgett said future seminars are expected to be highly experiential in nature, incorporating health and wellness as major themes.
State Superintendent of Education Jim Rex, will be at the seminar to hear reflections from teachers and speak at a lunch. Jorge Calzadilla, executive director of Clemson's Youth Learning Institute, also will attend.
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