pinellas problem solving routine

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• Problem Solving Using Models: Grades 4-5, June 25 ... /

Problem Solving Using Models

• Teacher: LUKAS HEFTY

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Forward Pinellas is a land use and transportation planning agency. We guide integrated transportation and land use solutions that sustain economic value by connecting the communities of Pinellas County and the Tampa Bay region.

The agency is charged with addressing countywide land use and transportation concerns, as both the Pinellas Planning Council and Pinellas County Metropolitan Planning Organization. Forward Pinellas not only provides a forum for countywide decision-making on transportation and land use issues, but also assists Pinellas County’s 24 cities and unincorporated Pinellas County  with technical support, regional coordination and policy advice and guidance.

Our economic prosperity in Pinellas County depends in large part on wise decisions that enable seamless transportation and redevelopment that provides opportunity for people and communities to thrive.

Our mission.

Forward Pinellas will provide leadership to align resources and plans that help to achieve a compelling vision for Pinellas County, our individual communities and our region.

We will do so by:

• Creating integrated land use and transportation plans that provide viable mobility options and sustainable development patterns;
• Engaging the public in the development of transportation and land use plans;
• Forging effective partnerships among public agencies, citizens and the business community;
• Defining cost-effective strategies to meet the transportation and land use goals of Pinellas County; and
• Setting priorities for sound public investment in transportation improvements.

These actions will occur within a spirit of collaboration with our public and private sector partners. We will cooperate to strengthen access to economic opportunity, foster resilient, livable communities and improve safety within Pinellas County and the Tampa Bay region.  

We aspire to an organizational culture of professional public service with high ethical standards . We also work to foster creative problem-solving, continuous learning, leadership development and a team environment, continuously seeking to align goals and actions across jurisdictions.

In its role as the Pinellas Planning Council, Forward Pinellas is governed by a special act of the State Legislature ( Chapter 2012-245, Laws of Florida ) and the Pinellas County Charter. The agency is tasked with providing policy advice and recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners, in its role as the Countywide Planning Authority.

Forward Pinellas also serves as the metropolitan planning organization (MPO) for Pinellas County. The Pinellas County MPO operates in accordance with Federal Law (23 USC 134 and 135) and Chapter 339.175, Florida Statutes to address the mobility needs of people and freight while fostering economic growth and minimizing fuel consumption, air pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions.  The Pinellas MPO was established in 1977 following the passage of the Federal Highway Act of 1974.  It develops plans, policies and priorities that guide local decision-making on transportation issues . Principal responsibilities include the development of a 20-year Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) a five-year Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) a two-year  Unified Planning Work Program  and related transportation planning studies and projects.

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See game-based learning in action at pinellas.

Something special is going on with math education at Pinellas County Schools (PCS). Local public radio picked up this story:

It’s family game night at Davis Elementary School in Clearwater, but there's not a Monopoly board or a Jenga block in sight. Instead, kids and parents are playing math games. First grader Eleanor Nartker places a purple marble inside a diagram so she can complete a pattern. It's a little bit like Tic-Tac-Toe,  and she just made a bold move against her opponent, who happens to be her mom.

WUSF Public Media  captured the experience of families attending Family Math Night events held at five elementary schools in Pinellas School District, Fl. You can l isten to the radio segment  here .

Family Math Night Combines Games, Community and Math 

Family Math Night is a way to connect families as they have conversations and learn about math together. It allows students to demonstrate their math skills and be introduced to mathematical concepts beyond their everyday school work.

Powered by MIND Research Institute, creators of the ST Math game-based learning technology, Family Math Night events help students and parents see math in a different way: as an experience they can participate in together.

Thank you @JiJiMath for an awesome Math Family Night and to @my_pcs for supporting ST Math. #lgdscholars #stmath pic.twitter.com/9srAzmJhPd — Leila G. Davis ES (@LeilaGDavis_ES) January 14, 2017

Sign up for more information about hosting a Family Math Night in your area.

Game-based Learning Technology in the Classroom

Family Math Night isn't the only example of Pinellas County Schools' innovative approach to math education. The district piloted ST Math at select Title I schools and saw great results.

“ST Math has added value in our curriculum providing an engaging, conceptual computer-based program that supplements the traditional text-based resources.” -Sandra Downes, Director of Elementary Mathematics, PCS

Data shows that students who work their way through more of the ST Math curriculum perform better on the Florida State Assessments than those who complete less.

Read the profile.

Continuing What Works

Today, Pinellas has expanded their use of ST Math to over eighty schools in the district.

And the Family Math Nights are not just a one-time event. Several more Pinellas elementary schools are already planning their own Family Math Night in partnerships with MIND Research Institute. MIND and the district are working together to scale the program to bring more events to more families in Pinellas.

"We want more excitement, more productive struggle and more problem solving [in math education]. We want to show people that math is fun." -Brandon Smith, Lead Mathematician, MIND Research Institute

About the Author

Calli Wright was the Marketing Manager at MIND Research Institute. She loves playing and designing board games, which she often talks about on twitter @CalliWrights .

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Pinellas Trail to get ‘education and enforcement’ blitz from cops

• CARL DiORIO Tampa Bay Newspapers

For anyone wondering how Pinellas Trail rules are enforced, this news: Police from municipalities belonging to something called the Pinellas Trail Security Task Force, and Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office deputies, are planning to stage an “education and enforcement” blitz in the near future.

A Targeted Enforcement Day was originally scheduled for Saturday, but officials from Forward Pinellas have decided to reschedule it to April 6 due to rain in the forecast.

The Task Force meets quarterly at the Pinellas County Public Safety Service at the Sheriff’s Office headquarters. And at its most recent meeting in October, those in attendance decided some sort of public safety display might be needed, said Kyle Simpson, active transportation planner for Forward Pinellas.

“We’ve seen an increase in the number of concerns at the various intersections along the trail — things like drivers not yielding properly and such, general safety concerns — as well as people concerned about (transport devices) like scooters and e-bikes,” Simpson said.

So, at the latest Task Force meeting, participants decided to do “a targeted day to have a visible presence for trail users and motorists driving across the trail at intersections to reinforce proper behavior,” officials said.

For trail users, that means respecting the posted trail speed limit of 20 mph.

“That’s supposed to the maximum safe operating speed,” Simpson said. “But when you’re passing people, you (may) need to be going slower than that.”

The Fred Marquis Pinellas Trail runs from downtown St. Petersburg to Tarpon Springs in a 67-mile route set to grow eventually to 75 miles. It’s used by bicyclists, e-bikers, pedestrians and joggers for recreational exercise and also as a convenient transit route by many commuters.

Forward Pinellas is responsible for county planning issues as they relate to transportation and land-use matters.

“While most users have a positive experience on the trail, there has been an increase in the number of complaints regarding trail user and driver behaviors,” Forward Pinellas said in announcing the targeted safety push.

No one factor prompted the task force to schedule its one-day educational push, so much as an aggregate of concerns including a big increase in trail traffic since pre-pandemic times, officials said. An estimated 1.5 million users in 2019 jumped more than 50% in the first year of the pandemic, when cabin-fevered residents took to the trail in bigger numbers, and Forward Pinellas says annual user traffic has remained at 2 million-plus ever since.

Police officers from departments in Belleair, Clearwater, Largo, St. Petersburg and Tarpon Springs are expected to participate in the educational blitz, along with Sheriff’s deputies.

The law enforcement officers “will be on the trail and at key roadway crossings to ensure motorist and trail users are complying with traffic laws,” officials said.

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Representatives of Forward Pinellas, Friends of the Pinellas Trail and the Center for Urban Transportation Research also will be on hand at locations in downtown Dunedin — a hot spot for trail traffic incidents over the years — and downtown St. Petersburg “distributing safety materials and safety devices.”

Among the items set to be distributed are bike lights, bike bells and trail maps.

“This effort is in tandem with Pinellas County’s ongoing trail courtesy campaign, which reminds people how to share our trails in a courteous and safe manner,” Forward Pinellas said.

To date, the courtesy campaign mostly has featured the installation of temporary trail signage and occasional leafleting by Friends of Pinellas volunteers and others, encouraging courteous behavior and adherence to rules and regulations. Meantime, even the most basic trail protocols, such as directional traffic flow, have been the source of confusion in recent months.

The situation came to a head last summer, when Forward Pinellas erected signs instructing both pedestrians and bike riders to use the same right-hand lanes going north and south along the trail. The longstanding practice of most trail users has been to keep the two groups separate, with pedestrians staying within a designated lane for walkers and joggers — a lane that was quietly eliminated several years ago yet remains much intact.

The stay-to-right campaign also will be publicized as part of the one-day educational blitz, Simpson said.

For additional information about the Pinellas Trail Security Task Force, visit here .

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Planning Technician

Category: Classified Pay Grade: C18     Job Code: 06102

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform the essential job functions satisfactorily.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the primary job functions herein described.  Since every duty associated with this position may not be described herein, employees may be required to perform duties not specifically spelled out in the job description, but which may be reasonably considered to be incidental in the performing of their duties just as though they were actually written out in this job description.

JOB SUMMARY

Performs entry-level paraprofessional work, with significant amounts of time dedicated to routine administrative tasks, research-related projects, and case support; works closely with the public to provide technical assistance on planning and/or zoning related issues; produces maps, charts, and graphs, miscellaneous reports, and similar tasks requiring special industry-related skills.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS (examples, not all inclusive)

• Provides technical assistance and information to staff and the public in the administration of specific planning program areas or ordinances;
• Prepares variance case files for Board of Adjustment hearing;
• Reviews site plans and zoning permit applications to assure compliance with requirements such as use, setbacks, height, performance standards, and parking ratios;
• Performs routine office tasks in designated program areas, including data entry, file management, copying, answering telephone, and responding to emails;
• Develops and maintain automated tracking systems, hard copy files, and records;
• Prepares reports and recommendations of limited complexity, such as special use permits and variances;
• Researches and compile information on a variety of planning issues from multiple sources;
• Prepares public notices or property owner verifications;
• Prepares maps, charts, and tables of limited complexity;
• Proofs maps changes for zoning and land use cases;
• Investigates conformance with planning regulations and ordinances, including possible site visits;
• Attends public meetings, assisting other planning staff as appropriate;
• Assists customers in retrieval of information for specific locations and projects;
• Maintains department webpage with schedules and hearing results;
• Performs other related job duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS

Education and experience:.

Four (4) years of administrative and technical experience in urban planning, plans review, zoning administration, architecture, construction management, social sciences, or related field; or an Associate’s degree with course work in one of the above fields plus two (2) years of experience as described; or a Bachelor’s degree with coursework in one of the above fields; or an equivalent combination of education, training and/or experience.

Special Qualifications (May be required depending on area of assignment):

• Florida Driver’s License or Florida Commercial Driver’s License and endorsement, if any.
• Assignment to work a variety of work schedules including compulsory work periods in special, emergency, and/or disaster situations.
• Other knowledge, skills, abilities, and credentials required for a specific position.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Knowledge of planning and zoning principles and practices;
• Knowledge of principles and practices of research, data collection, and report preparation;
• Knowledge of effective writing techniques;
• Knowledge of basic math and ability to apply such knowledge in practical situations;
• Knowledge of computer hardware and software programs, which may include Microsoft Office, Internet applications, and GIS;
• Knowledge of oral communication and interpersonal skills to explain rules and procedures clearly to the public;
• Knowledge of problem-solving skills to gather relevant information to solve vaguely defined practical problems.
• Ability to review plans and apply provisions of the ordinances and codes to determine compliance with such regulations and to apply regulations to field conditions;
• Ability to analyze facts and exercise sound judgment in arriving at conclusions;
• Ability to work on several projects or issues simultaneously;
• Ability to work independently or in a team environment as needed;
• Ability to meet firm deadlines.

PHYSICAL/MENTAL DEMANDS

This work requires exerting up to 20 pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 10 pounds of force to move objects.  Additionally, the following physical abilities are required:

• Fingering: Picking, pinching, typing, or otherwise working, primarily with fingers rather than with the whole hand as in handling.
• Grasping: Applying pressure to an object with the fingers and palm.
• Handling: Picking, holding, or otherwise working, primarily with the whole hand.
• Pulling: Using upper extremities to exert force in order to draw, haul or tug objects in a sustained motion.
• Reaching: Extending hand(s) and arm(s) in any direction.
• Visual ability: Sufficient to effectively operate office equipment including copier, computer, etc.; and to read and write reports, correspondence, instructions, etc.
• Hearing ability: Sufficient to hold a conversation with other individuals both in person and over a telephone; and to hear recording on transcription device.
• Speaking ability: sufficient to communicate effectively with other individuals in person and over a telephone.
• Mental acuity: Ability to make rational decisions through sound logic and deductive processes.
• Talking: Expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word including those activities in which they must convey detailed or important spoken instructions to other workers accurately, loudly, or quickly.
• Repetitive motion: Substantial movements (motions) of the wrist, hands, and/or fingers.
• Standing: Particularly for sustained periods of time.
• Stooping: Bending body downward and forward by bending spine at the waist. Occurs to a considerable degree and requires full motion of the lower extremities and back muscles.
• Walking: Moving about on foot to accomplish tasks, particularly for long distances or moving from one work site to another.

WORKING CONDITIONS

Work is performed in a relatively safe, secure, and stable work environment.