Posts tagged Housing Human Services
Food Tax Rebate applications available
Feb 29th
Deadline to apply is in June
Each year, the City of Boulder provides rebates to help compensate lower income residents for the city sales tax they pay on food. Those seeking a rebate must fill out an application documenting their eligibility.
The application period begins Thursday, March 1. Applications can be picked up starting March 1 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mondays through Fridays, at the West Boulder Senior Center, 909 Arapahoe Ave. Completed application forms must be received by Friday, June 29, or postmarked by Saturday, June 30. Applicants from 2011 will automatically receive an application in the mail.
Rebates are $73 for low-income individuals and $224 for low-income families. To be eligible to receive a rebate, people must have been a resident of Boulder for the entire 2011 calendar year and be:
• a low income senior, age 62 or over for the entire 2011 calendar year,
• a low income person with disabilities, or
• a low income family with children younger than 18 in the household for the entire 2011 calendar year;
The Food Tax Rebate Program is administered by the Department of Housing & Human Services, Division of Senior Services. Additional information on the program is available online at www.boulderseniorservices.com or call John Bunzli, program manager, at 303-441-1836.
Boulder Mexican, African & Anglo Kids produce sobering video on achievement gap. Oooh.
Aug 19th
NEWS
Friday, Aug. 19, 2011
Contact:
Cindy Smith, Housing & Human Services, 303-441-4045
Sarah Huntley, Media Relations, 303-441-3155
www.bouldercolorado.gov
Friday, Aug. 19, 2011
Contact:
Cindy Smith, Housing & Human Services, 303-441-4045
Sarah Huntley, Media Relations, 303-441-3155
www.bouldercolorado.gov
Student video addresses achievement gap
Three high school student members of the City of Boulder’s Youth Opportunities Advisory Board (YOAB) have created a video addressing the achievement gap from a youth perspective. This 13-minute video includes interview footage with a number of local students and advice for teachers about how to help all students succeed.
The achievement gap refers to differences in educational success between defined demographic groups. The Boulder Valley School District (BVSD) has one of the largest achievement gaps in the state, and Colorado has one of the largest in the nation. Based on 2009 to 2010 BVSD data, while 85 percent of all students graduated from high school in four years, just 60 percent of economically disadvantaged students and 58 percent of Latino males graduated in four years.
YOAB member Peter Osnes said, “We created this video to try to raise awareness of methods to close the achievement gap. This was aimed primarily at teachers not because of any deficiency, but because they have the most power to make change. The BVSD has remarkable teachers and I believe they can cinch the gap more than any program or additional funding.”
Ellen Miller Brown, chief academic officer for the BVSD, agreed that the video will be useful to teachers.
“We showed this video to all of the principals and assistant principals in BVSD at the end of last school year, and everyone was very impressed with the YOAB students’ honesty and clarity about the ways that adults in schools can help every student be successful,” she said. “Knowing how teachers value student voices, they’ll surely find this video’s suggestions to be meaningful and worth considering.”
Although the video is focused toward teachers, the youth who produced it expect that principals, parents and students will also get something out of watching it.
YOAB member Nancy Contreras said, “Parents and students should see this video because it is important that parents know the high school graduation statistics. The video will also give them ideas about what may be best for their child and how to encourage them to succeed.”
To see the video, go to www.yoab.org.
YOAB is part of the Youth Opportunities Program in the Department of Housing and Human Services. The mission of the program is to strengthen the community though empowering youth, providing opportunities for youth, encouraging youth civic participation and volunteer work and advising city government. For more information contact Youth Opportunities Coordinator, Alice Swett, at 303-441-4349 or swetta@bouldercolorado.gov.
