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Education
The Southern Union Conference is home to 203 schools, including
187 elementary schools, 16 academies, two colleges, and one
university. Please check our Schools
page to visit some of these sites.
During the 2003-2004 school year, these K-16 schools educated
16,262 students. More than 900 teachers in grades K through
12 accepted the challenge of guiding the students, both academically
and spiritually. And, the SUC office of education (meet our
staff
below) was responsible for providing administrative support
to each of the eight conferences, assisting them in their education
mission.
The office of education at the Southern Union is divided into
several areas of service:
Administrative
Development
Early
Childhood Education
Elementary
Education
Secondary
Education
Teacher
Certification
Administrative
The director's office handles the administrative leadership
and functions of the department, and is responsible for the
employment and supervision of all Southern Union Conference
office of education personnel, development of union-wide education
polices and procedures PreK-12 (SU Education Code K-12 Book,
Employment Manual, K-12 Educational Personnel, School Board
Manual), coordination of the Adventist EDGE comprehensive
school improvement initiative, curriculum materials, staff and
philanthropic development, finances, and the salary scale for
K-12 education personnel.
The director of education also serves on several committees,
some of which include the following:
• Member of the North American Division Union Directors
of Education Council
• Member and Secretary of the Southern Union Conference
K-12 Board of Education
• Member of each local conference K-12 Board of Education
in the Southern Union
• Member of the Southern Union Conference K-16 Education
Advisory
• Member of the Southern Adventist University Board of
Trustees
Development
Development, an area mandated in the North American Division
Journey to Excellence, is an integral part of the Southern Union
Adventist EDGE/Comprehensive School Reform Plan and the Southern
Union Education Marketing initiatives.
The development specialist provides on-going staff development
leading to improved instructional strategies, and also works
in cooperation with the Southern Union Trust Services Department
and the Philanthropic Service for Institutions (PSI) to develop
creative partnerships for additional time and funding.
Early
Childhood Education
The Southern Union Conference administration,
office of education, and child development advisory, as a result
of studies and research conducted during the late 1990s, concluded
that the Church has a responsibility to embrace the ministry
of early childhood education. Currently, the early childhood
education programs operating within the Southern Union territory
serve more than 2000 children from birth through four years
of age.
Our mission and goals include the following: 1) operating educationally
sound, Christian early childhood education programs, which follow
developmentally appropriate practices, as a ministry and service
to families of the church, school, and community, and 2) providing
quality care for the young children by well-qualified personnel
in safe, age-appropriate environments, while maintaining the
Christian principles of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
Elementary Education
The elementary segment of the office of education
serves 187 elementary schools
throughout the eight conferences, and works with the office
of education personnel at each conference.
The elementary staff deals with a variety of areas, including
the following:
Curriculum—what should be taught
Instruction—teaching methods
Assessment—measurement and evaluation of
student achievement
Resources—textbooks and other instructional
materials
For additional information visit (Adventist EDGE web address).
Secondary
Education
The secondary segment of the office of education serves
the academies
and junior
academies
within the Southern Union, and works in conjunction with the
education personnel at each of the eight conferences.
There are a total of 16 day and boarding academies, 12 of which
are conference-sponsored. Four self-supporting academies also
receive some guidance from the Union. The associate director
for secondary education serves on the board of each of these
academies.
Twenty-six junior academies are supported by secondary education.
The secondary administrative assistant acts as the junior academy
registrar, keeping grade records up to date and issuing transcripts.
The secondary education office also regulates school evaluations
and accreditation for K-12.
Teacher Certification
The certification area of the office of education deals with
certification for all teachers in Southern Union schools, grades
K-12. The registrar works with more than 900 teachers, assisting
them in achieving and maintaining accreditation.
New teachers are evaluated to determine which additional classes
they must take to be certified; returning teachers are re-evaluated
and informed of classes required for recertification.
Meet Our Staff
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Luberta Biggs
Administrative Asst.
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