(8/28) Bill Foster releases Part IV of his “Forty Bright Ideas” for the future of St. Petersburg

Installment Four - Education; Miscellaneous

31. Annual Education Fair. At the beginning of each school year, we will hold a College & Vocational School Admission Seminar (Fair) at Coliseum. We will partner with Pinellas County Education Foundation, PCSB, PTEC, Job Corp, SPC and USFSP. On site will be presentations by universities, guidance counselors and admission advisors who will offer advice on ACT/SAT, scholarship clearinghouse, essay preparation, Bright Futures, Vocational opportunities, etc. Program could be taped by Brighthouse then carried on demand and on our city website.

32. Tutorial services. We will utilize recreation centers and libraries for tutorial programs for city residents (everything from English to Algebra to SAT preparation), staffed by city employees (payroll incentives) and volunteers (teachers, retirees, and high school students needing CAS hours).

33. We will expand the Mayor's Top Apple program to reward great teachers, not just great Principals, with incentives raised from the private sector.

34. To encourage reading and library use, we will waive the fee for resident identification cards if the child checks out 10 books from the public library and actually reads the book.

35. Internship programs. We will partner with PETC, Job Corp, Work Net, Youth Build, and cost out the development of internship programs for all City Departments.

36. School Resource Coaches. In cooperation with the PCSB, I would like to recruit and place "School Resource Coaches" for each high school in St. Petersburg, each one committed to volunteering three hours per week in the school to engage the students. They would be there at the opening of the school day, during the changing of classes, and can randomly sit at the back of a class during the class period. During class breaks and lunch, they can visit and mingle with the students. All participants would be recognizable community leaders, and will have to make a commitment and qualify as a volunteer with the school board.

37. I will continue to work on the private development of a Teen Magnet (a social destination for our youth).

38. We will look ahead to envision and create an extension of downtown called "The Edge" (Central Avenue from MLK to 16th Street). This vision includes a retail shopping district, cafes, entertainment, night life and art galleries.

39. I will arrange to have "Breakfast With the Mayor" each month at a local eatery, with the public invited. Locations will vary, and will be published on the city web site.

40. St. Petersburg will be a major hub for international baseball using Al Lang and local training facilities, with Al Lang being the spring training facility for an Asian Major League team (added to the spring MLB schedule), and with other months being occupied by teams from Canada and Europe. Tourism and marketing benefits abound.

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