CNU project helps teachers of learning-disabled students

News Release - July 7, 2006

Media contact:
Karen L. Gill
Office of Communications and Public Relations
(757) 594-8428

(NEWPORT NEWS, Va.) — Thirty special education teachers and 15 paraprofessionals from Newport News and Hampton are gathering at Christopher Newport University for a summer project to increase their math knowledge.

The ALGEA, Algebra and Geometry for All, project was developed as a partnership between CNU, Newport News and Hampton public schools  to upgrade the algebra and geometry content knowledge of those who teach mathematics to learning-disabled students and who work with learning-disabled students on a one-to-one basis.

Dr. Stavroula Kostaki-Gailey of the Mathematics Department at CNU was awarded $175,000 in a Mathematics and Science Partnership grant for the project.

The teachers and paraprofessionals will be on campus for the project July 31 to Aug. 10. They will implement the knowledge gained, disseminate it to local colleagues, present it at the Virginia Council of Teachers of Mathematics conference and attend follow-up seminars. Teachers and paraprofessionals will receive a stipend, and the tuition will be paid by the grant and the respective school systems.

Christopher Newport University is a four-year public university in Newport News, Virginia. CNU enrolls 4,800 students in programs through its College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the Luter School of Business and offers great teaching, small classes and an emphasis on leadership, civic engagement and honor. Visit us at www.cnu.edu.

---