Council backs pilot civic-education and school-support initiatives including retired-teacher tutoring

The Village of Royal Palm Beach discussed several initiatives intended to strengthen ties with local schools and to support teachers and students; councilmembers agreed to pilot multiple small programs and directed staff to coordinate implementation.

Village staff described a Youth Civic Leadership program that would run from September through April and introduce high-school juniors and seniors to local government functions. The village manager said students would apply through their principals and that the program would include a Sept. 3 orientation, departmental introductions and an April certificate ceremony.

Council members also endorsed four pilot ideas derived from surveys of principals and the Education Advisory Board: recruit retired teachers as volunteer tutors and mentors (to be solicited at the villageYoung at Heart senior event),experiment with expanded civics education and a youth civic leadership placement, offer end-of-year "Teacher of the Year" recognition presented by the Education Advisory Board, and explore a voluntary business "teacher appreciation" discount program to be discussed at a small-business roundtable. The council emphasized the pilots should be time-limited and lightweight: try each for a year and evaluate before expanding.

Council members asked staff to consult principals and the volunteer Education Advisory Board about execution and to keep administrative burdens light so volunteer boards would not be overwhelmed. The village manager agreed to circulate the draft program schedule and to bring back program materials to finalize sign-ups and principal approval prior to the Sept. 3 orientation.