Focus on TUSD - November 2007

2008-The Year of International Education Proclaimed by the Tucson City Council
The Tucson City Council has issued the following proclamation for 2008:

Whereas the Tucson Unified School District and other Greater Tucson Metropolitan Region public school districts have resolved to build relationships with respected and accredited international student organizations, to bring foreign exchange students from diverse nations to help both foreign and Tucson students become proficient with international cultures and languages, and to create opportunities for southern Arizona's students to participate in exchange programs that build social and professional proficiency in other cultures and nations in the global society, and

Whereas the Tucson Unified School District has become the only school system in the United States to offer all six of the official United Nations languages of international diplomacy--English, French, Spanish, Chinese, Russian and Arabic--as part of its curriculum, and

Whereas Pima Community College and the University of Arizona have established internationally recognized complementary language and cultural studies programs to provide the professional capacity for southern Arizona's students to serve as leaders in the global economy and the related fields of international relations, and

Whereas the Tucson Unified School District has received national acclaim for the integration of international refugee resettlement students into the extended Tucson community and for the establishment of programming that incorporates heritage languages and cultural understanding into the academic curriculum and extended civil society,

Therefore, the City of Tucson commends the educational institutions of Tucson and commits to the support of student achievement, diversity, and preparation for the global society, affirms the community goal of becoming a national leader in integrating student exchanges and international education into a comprehensive K-16 academic curriculum, acknowledges the contribution of Tucson's Heritage Language community to the international strength and economic potential of the Greater Tucson Metropolitan Region, and determines to promote the strategic educational goals necessary for the community to compete in a global society by hereby proclaiming the year of 2008 as The Year of International Education.

TUSD - Proud Supporter of Small Classes

Photos in the November issue by Jes Ruvalcaba of Communications & Media Relations, unless otherwise noted.

The deadline to submit material for the December Focus is Friday, Nov. 7. The Focus will be published Monday, Nov. 17. Email submissions to Chyrl Hill Lander or Sharon Dunham in the Communications & Media Relations Department or use the online Tip Sheet.