Bill Text: VA HJR931 | 2017 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Commending the MathScience Innovation Center.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Passed) 2017-02-23 - Bill text as passed House and Senate (HJ931ER) [HJR931 Detail]

Download: Virginia-2017-HJR931-Introduced.html

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17104339D
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 931 Offered February 10, 2017 Commending MathScience Innovation Center. ---------- Patron-- Bagby ----------

WHEREAS, in 2016, the MathScience Innovation Center celebrated its 50th year in operation as a nonprofit educational consortium serving the students and teachers of central Virginia; and

WHEREAS, originally called the Mathematics and Science Center, the MathScience Innovation Center (MSiC) was founded in 1966, by the superintendents of six Richmond-area school divisions using funds provided under Title III of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965; and

WHEREAS, when the Title III grant expired in 1969, the superintendents from the counties of Chesterfield, Hanover, Henrico, Goochland, and Powhatan, and the city of Richmond pooled their resources to continue operating MSiC because they saw the void the Center filled in their divisions; and

WHEREAS, today, MSiC is the oldest Title III project funded by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 still in full operation in Virginia and the only one in the country continually funded locally after 1969; and

WHEREAS, MSiC provides innovative student and teacher programs to ignite interest and deepen learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM); and

WHEREAS, annually, the MSiC serves more than 130,000 students and 2,000 teachers from the 12 school divisions that now make up the MSiC consortium; and

WHEREAS, through its weekday, Saturday, summer, and virtual programs MSiC students work collaboratively and use inquiry-based approaches to solve problems, explain and defend ideas, and develop new questions to explore; and

WHEREAS, MSiC provides important professional development opportunities for Kindergarten through 12th grade teachers, including workshops, conferences, and college-credit courses; and

WHEREAS, MSiC's mission of developing the leaders of tomorrow is as critical as it has ever been given the predicted workforce demands in the STEM fields; and

WHEREAS, MSiC could not have continued to thrive and grow over the past five decades without the support and leadership of its Board of Directors and the many administrators and educators from consortium school divisions who have contributed to its success; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend the MathScience Innovation Center on celebrating its 50th year in operation as a non-profit educational consortium in central Virginia; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Dr. Hollee R. Freeman, Director of the MathScience Innovation Center, as an expression of the General Assembly's admiration for the Center's efforts to inspire innovation and develop the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics leaders of tomorrow.