While most students are out-of-school for the summer, educational officials are preparing for their return. To help educational institutions get off to a smooth start, the question to be asked is: What are some critical recommendations for the 2015-2016 school year? Over the past years, we have written articles purposely to support the professional development and intellectual capital of all stakeholders in public education. The following provides an excerpt of four articles that we recommend educational institutions consider reading and instilling the suggestions in their environments as they prepare for the 2015-2016 school year. A full description of these articles can be found on theholmeseducationpost.com.

Anti-Hazing Training

Hazing is prevalent in the K-20 environments despite the adoption of anti-hazing laws in 44 states. The Holmes Education Post (THEP) and Einestine Technology Services (ETS) extend an invitation for the leadership and administrative team at educational institutions to review a free 9 minute pilot of its online national anti-hazing curriculum on “How to Eradiate Hazing” from the educational institution’s culture. Please click the link “Hazing Curriculum” on THEP or ETS to review the online module in the curriculum. The fully developed online curriculum is made available for students, parents and faculty members and can be adapted to fit any educational institution’s brand.

Equitable Learning Environment

More than 400,000 teaching vacancies for both public and private schools will need to be filled by the year 2018. As a viable solution to this concern, the USC Rossier School of Education and Knowledge Delivery Systems have formed a partnership and created an Equity Educator Certificate Program. The target students for this program are teachers and leaders in school districts across the U.S. and globally who serve a diverse student population – especially teachers and leaders in large, urban districts where a majority of students of color and English learners reside.

Social Media

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and LinkedIn are the major social networks in use by the average Internet user. Today’s schools are being forced to use social media as their way of communicating to the public. This article shares four superintendents’ thoughts on social media presented at the 2015 National Conference on Education in San Diego, Calif. They included Joe Sanfelippo of Fall Creek School District in Fall Creek, WI; Brad Saron of Chippewa Falls Area Unified School District in Chippewa Falls, WI; Bridget O’Connell of Palisades School District in Kintnersville, PA and Dan Frazier, Litchfield Independent School District in Litchfield, MN.

Vertical Alignment

Vertical alignment has been regarded as one of the best strategies to improve student performance in the schools according to the Center for Comprehensive School Reform and Improvement. Vertical alignment “ensures what is being taught and tested in the classrooms aligns with the state standards and assessments. It articulates the logical, consistent order for teaching the standards-based content at each grade or course level, which allows teachers to focus on building skills and knowledge while reducing the need for excess review and repetition.”

The coordination of all parties involved in the vertical alignment plan has to be seamless through the leadership team of key district and school officials. With their support and expertise, the high, middle and elementary teachers would have to buy into the plan and establish a collaborative relationship with their feeder partners. For example, the elementary teachers would need to bridge relations with kindergarten constituents (students, parent and teachers) for improved learning.

Our educational institutions are challenged to identify effective practices to foster a positive learning environment. We hope these articles provide added support to educational institutions for the 2015-2016 school year. Continue to log on to The Holmes Education Post for a wealth of resources and solutions to improve public education.

Dr. Ronald Holmes is the author of nine books, “Education Questions to be Answered,” “Current Issues and Answers in Education,” “How to Eradicate Hazing,” “Professional Career Paths,” “Your Answers to Education Questions,” “How to revitalize the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.” “Completing the Dissertation: Tips, techniques and real-life experiences from Ph.D. graduates,” “Jacob’s Dream, A Story of Careers for Children” and Jacob’s Dream, A Story of Animals in Africa. He is publisher of “The Holmes Education Post,” an education focused Internet newspaper.  Holmes is a former teacher, school administrator and district superintendent. He can be reached at [email protected]