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ORANGE COUNTY <br />BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br />Meeting Date: December 14, 2004 <br />Action Agenda <br />Item No. ~_ <br />SUBJECT: Educational Excellence Work Group Update <br />DEPARTMENT: County Manager PUBLIC HEARING: (Y/N) No <br />ATTACHMENT(S): <br />None <br />INFORMATION CONTACT: <br />John Link or Rod Visser. ext 2300 <br />Durham 688-7331 <br />Mebane 336-227-2031 <br />TELEPHONE NUMBERS: <br />Hillsborough 732-8181 <br />Chapel Hill 968-4501 <br />PURPOSE: To receive an update about the UNC School of Education team that has been <br />working to provide research and analysis about the resources available to the two school <br />systems in Orange County. <br />BACKGROUND: In February 2004, the Board of Commissioners endorsed the creation of an <br />Educational Excellence Work Group to examine the resources made available to the Orange <br />County Schools and the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools. As originally proposed, the Task <br />Force's mission was to provide a review of both Orange County school systems, investigating <br />the educational resources available in both school systems and making recommendations for <br />improvement and how these resources could become equally accessible to all Orange County <br />students, <br />In the March 2004 inaugural meeting of this work group, it was determined that representatives <br />of the UNC School of Education would develop a proposal to pursue the research and analysis <br />upon which the envisioned recommendations could be developed. In .June 2004, the Board of <br />Commissioners approved an agreement with UNC incorporating the research proposal <br />prepared by Dr.. Madeline Grumet, former Dean of the School of Education. <br />Dr. Grumet has been leading the research team from the beginning of the project in July 2004 <br />to date. The research team briefed elected representatives from the BOCC and both schcol <br />systems on progress in early November 2004. This December 14 agenda item updates the full <br />Board of Commissioners on preliminary findings and outlines some work remaining to be done <br />before the research team concludes its work and provides its report in early January 2005. <br />