Page 74 - South Mississippi Living - December, 2024

GIVING BACK
GCEIC
Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium, Inc. 11975 Seaway Rd., Ste. A220, Gulfport 601.528.5342 www.gceic.org
First in education.
First in leadership.
First in collaboration.
story by Lynn Lofton photos courtesy of GCEIC
Here in South Mississippi there is a local organization that provides support for school districts with training for teachers and administrators. It’s the Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium (GCEIC), formed in 1987 for school district members to engage in networking and provide collaborative support for one another.
“Today, in addition to professional learning and collaboration, GCEIC promotes partnerships with business and industry, community colleges, and state universities to maintain connections in the community and to support employment and post-secondary education for students,” says Executive Director Dr. Christine Moseley.
GCEIC enhances learning opportunities for educators and educational leaders to improve student performance that in turn promotes a well-trained work force, attracts new industry, retains existing industry and benefits all sectors of the community, she adds.
“Our training does not take the place of schools and districts providing professional development but works in tandem with them to help create and facilitate training based on need,” Moseley said.
The consortium plans and implements professional development opportunities for member districts, particularly in the areas of educational content, teaching strategies, technology and classroom management. Custom-made workshops are also continually developed to discern specific needs. GCEIC represents 23 districts consisting of more than 110,000 students and 6,000 educators and administrators. For instance, GCEIC works closely with a prominent medical provider and educational leaders to facilitate the annual ADHD and Related Concerns Conference that just celebrated its twenty-first year.
They expanded to include a quarterly high school principals’ meeting and resumed the Gulf Coast School Board Association to provide guidance for school board members.
“As for student improvement, this year’s accountability ratings for our member districts were stellar, with 80 percent attaining A ratings and the remainder attaining B ratings. All of our member districts showed overall student achievement gains. These ratings are calculated from student achievement and growth on the Mississippi Assessment Program,” Moseley said.
74 | December 2024
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