Would you like to learn conversational Spanish? How about flamenco dancing or how to cook once for 14 days? These are just a few of the adult and community education offerings at local Boca Raton schools this fall.

The Palm Beach Community Educator recently mailed the fall schedule to all current residents. Most classes meet in the early evenings for one to two hours once a week and have a reasonable registration fee. Registration typically begins September 29 and classes normally start on October 13th, but local school should be contacted for dates of registration and classes.

This is a great opportunity to continue to expand your knowledge base. Pick whatever course appeals to you and feel like a student again starting classes in the fall.

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Monday, August 18th is the official opening date of public school in Palm Beach County. Although it seems like just yesterday, it has been ten weeks since school ended in June. As the new school year commences, the following are some thoughts to consider:

1. Check out your school website to see if there are any new changes. Spanish River Community High School, for instance, has a new stricter dress code.

2. Do not wait until the last minute to prepare for school to start. Gather your school supplies and modify your schedule to adjust to new sleeping patterns.

3. Drivers need to be on the look out for pedestrian students around school facilities. Also, be aware of student drivers near schools.

4. Take the opening of school as an opportunity to get off to a good start and make it a great year.

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Not too many students can say that they are studying at MIT. Even fewer can say that their major is neuroscience. Even more infinitesimal are the number who can say that their picture is in the August issue of Popular Mechanics for class work conducted in Peru. Enter Jackie Gold, a 2005 Spanish River Community High School graduate, and certainly a student to watch.

This winter Jackie spent a month in Compone, Peru with a group of MIT students and faculty working to improve the lives of local citizens. The project was part of a class called the D-Lab run by MIT Professor and rising star Amy Smith. The D-Lab is a selective course with only 30 students accepted from over 100 applicants. The D stands for development, design and dissemination and as part of the class Professor Smith devises ways to improve poverty throughout the world using simple engineering solutions.

Among the projects that the MIT group worked on were water filtration, powering a grain mill with a stationary bike, and mechanical removal of kernels off corn cobs. The main project of the group involved transforming corn cobs into briquettes. The residents of Compone burned corn cobs as sources of heat, causing significant indoor pollution. The pollution was substantially reduced by using corn cob briquettes in place of corn cobs.

Jackie returned home with a new perspective on the world. The month in Peru benefited not only the people of Compone but also Jackie and her fellow students. Being featured in Popular Mechanics was an exciting added bonus for Jackie and these rising star MIT students and faculty.

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Starting in August when the new school year begins, Spanish River Community High School will begin enforcing a new school dress code. Students violating the dress code policy will be required to change clothes. Students with continuous or flagrant violations of the dress policy are subject to detentions or suspension. The dress code is as follows:

• No visible underwear on either boys or girls at any time or the lack of it.
• Head covers are out- includes any form of hat, scarf, do rags, stocking, bandanas or towels.
• Girls may not wear low exposing tops or shirts exposing any cleavage or midriffs. Midriffs must fall below the waistline rather than just meeting the top of the garment.
• Students must not wear tube or strapless, halter, spaghetti straps or any tank tops. Carrying a sweater on top or wearing a jacket over it is not adequate.
• Tops must be high enough to eliminate any exposure of cleavage and long enough to prevent any exposure of midriff.
• Many students know what they are wearing is inappropriate. If we see parts of the body exposed as a result of midriff tops or low cut tops, students will be required to change.
• Girls must wear shirts that have sleeves. If they choose to wear a sleeveless shirt when the weather is warm, the shirt must have a collar.
• Short shorts and short skirts have no place in school. They must be just above the knee.

This new dress code represents a significant departure from existing policies. Female students can only wear sleeveless shirts if they have a collar and tank tops are prohibited. I support our educators and believe that a dress code is warranted. The sleeveless shirt policy, however, is possibly sexist, rather strict given South Florida's hot weather, and one that will surely be controversial when school returns.

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The students in Ms. Oyer's social studies classes at Boca Raton Middle School continue to show that they have learned the true meaning of civic involvement. As you may recall, Ms. Oyer's classes actively participated in the effort to fight the cancellation of the television show "Jericho" by writing protest letters to CBS and bringing in spare change to help purchase advertisements in Variety.

Not content with stopping there, Ms. Oyer and the students learned of a program where DVD's of "Jericho" are sent to troops stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Staten Island Program For Our Homefront purchased and shipped 100 DVD's of "Jericho" season one last year. Ms. Oyer's students raised $440.27 which will buy 20 DVD's of "Jericho" season two for the soldiers and Ms. Oyer contributed to make it 21 DVDs. Currently, the program has raised enough to purchase 67 DVD's, making Ms. Oyer's classes a major contributor.

Many of the students have friends and family who either were or are in the military. The students all stressed that they want the servicemen and women to have something to entertain them. As noted by Ashley Cope, "My uncle is thinking of going to war and I want to support people like I would support my uncle." Billy Tobener concurred noting that his uncle was in Iraq and said "it was boring and there was nothing to watch on television." Julian Parks summed it up by stating that he "wanted the troops to not just think about war."

The students raised the money through a variety of means, including enlisting their parents assistance and picking up spare change found on the school floors. Bobby Kron raised the most money and said he did chores to raise his contribution.

The DVD's donated by Ms. Oyer's classes will be sent as soon as the second season is released in mid-June. They will contain a personal message for the troops noting that the DVD's were purchased by the students and will provide address information for the soldiers to respond to.

As the school year is winding to a close, it is clear that these students have learned valuable lessons in civics and philanthropy that will create a lasting legacy. Their donations, which coincide with Memorial Day, highlight for all of us the need to support our troops and be active participants in the local, national and global level. If you would like more information about the DVD donations or the students involvement with "Jericho" go to http://www.jerichorangers4ourtroops.com/ or http://www.Jericho4kids.com .

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1. Enjoy every minute of your graduation festivities. Live in the moment. There are very few opportunities in life for closure, which makes graduation a unique experience. Enjoy this chance to savor completing a significant task. Do not focus on what is coming next; there will be plenty of opportunities for that later.

2. Resolve to respect the principles of karma. Even if you think the Golden Rule is trite, remember that your actions lead to reactions that could adversely affect you later. Try not to do anything spiteful, malicious or inadvertently stupid as what goes around does eventually come back around.

3. Do not smoke. If you do smoke, quit immediately. There is no question that smoking is one of the most harmful things you can do to your body.

4. Even if you think you are invincible, take care of yourself. Watch your weight and try and exercise. Try not to do anything that has irreversible deleterious effects.

5. Register to vote. Be part of the civic process and go willingly when called for jury duty. Serving on a jury is a great honor and one that you may actually find that you enjoy. Be an active member of whatever community you live in wherever you live.

6. Always remember to give back. Serve as a volunteer or donate money to your favorite cause. You will receive much more than you give once you discover the benefits of helping others.

7. Remember that no one is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes, including you. Do not beat yourself up over the past and instead learn from it and move forward. Forgive others for their errors.

Congratulations to you and your family on this wonderful occasion! Now go party - SAFELY.

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Students in Ms. Oyer's sixth and seventh grade social studies classes have had the opportunity to learn first hand about civics and economics concepts thanks to the television program Jericho. Jericho is a show about a small town in Kansas and what happens in the town following a nuclear bombing of the United States. The show chronicles how the residents survive and the choices they make in governing and allocation of resources.

Ms. Oyer, a teacher at Boca Raton Middle School, recommends that students watch the show as part of their homework assignment. She said the show helps make abstract concepts easier for the students to understand. The students get absorbed in the show's characters and at the same time learn about societal, economic and governmental choices through concrete examples.

The only problem is that CBS has decided to cancel the show for the second time. The show was cancelled in 2007, but due to viewer response was reinstated. An on-line protest involving delivering 20 tons of peanuts to CBS Entertainment in New York and California succeeded in bringing back Jericho. Peanuts were used because in the very last show the main character's battle cry was "nuts".

Just as the students learned about civics from the show, its cancellation also presents an opportunity to become involved. Knowing that the fans are rising up in revolt again, the students want to do their part and have written letters to CBS asking for Jericho to be continued. When the on-line fans decided to raise money to buy huge ads in Variety and Hollywood Reporter, the students brought in spare change and raised $52.11. A note with the donation posted on the protest website by Ms. Oyer received great feedback and motivated others to donate. Once again peanuts are being sent, this time to entertainment writers at newspapers so that they can generate media coverage about the cancellation.

The loyal viewers are hopeful that CBS will sell the show to another station who will continue to produce it. As Ms. Oyer optimistically states, " This show is not dead, just in transit." Whatever happens, these social studies students have had a real life opportunity to learn about civic involvement.

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On the third floor of the Florida Atlantic University library, lies a treasure trove of art works disguised as books. The Arthur and Mata Jaffe Collection of Books as Aesthetic Objects contains over 4000 books handmade by artists. The books were created more for their artistic merit than content and each one is a mini masterpiece.

The collection was started and donated by Arthur Jaffe and his late wife Mata. Arthur is a curator for the collection and has a hands on role in continuing to grow and exhibit the books. I attended a special exhibition that he arranged and it was delightful to see the books and the joy and pride he took in displaying them.

The books are housed in a 4800 square foot center which is open to the public by appointment. In the atrium right outside of the center, there are continuing exhibitions which are displayed at all times that the FAU library is operating. In addition, many of the books are available for viewing online at http://www.library.fau.edu/depts/spc/jaffe.htm .

Visiting the Arthur and Mata Jaffe Collection is a trip to a combination art gallery and library. It's an enchanting collection and a town treasure for Boca Raton.

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Irving R. Levine's guest introductions are worth the price of admission alone to the Lynn University Dively Frontiers in Globalization Luncheon Lecture Series. Having Carl Hiaasen as the principal speaker on November 13th, turned the event into a double hitter.

Mr. Levine, Dean Emeritus of International Studies at Lynn University, always introduces the guest lecturer with a well thought out and humor filled speech, this time being no exception. In keeping with Carl Hiassen's theme of Florida as the axis of weirdness, Mr. Levine explained that part of the problem in Florida is that people understandably would rather be an auto thief in Miami as opposed to Detroit. He joked that any South Florida politician without handcuff marks on his or her wrists is an elder statesman.

Mr. Levine also used the platform to talk about the presidential candidates. Quoting other sources throughout, he noted that Fred Thompson has the empathy of Donald Trump and the charm of Dick Cheney and that Hillary Clinton's laugh has the spontaneity of an alarm clock. He explained that Rudy Giuliani decision to follow Ronald Reagan's 11th commandment and not speak ill of his opponents needs to be consistent with the 7th commandment, to not commit adultery.

Although a tough act to follow, Carl Hiassen, noted author and columnist for the Miami Herald, did a more than admirable job and was also quite humorous. He explained that he often writes books with outrageous characters and events but that there is nothing that he can write that isn't surpassed by true stories found in the newspaper. For example, he stated that he thought his book Skin Tight was about the worst plastic surgeon, someone who accidentally killed a patient during a nose job. Then he read about Dr. Lips, a surgeon in Miami, who accidentally killed a patient while performing a combined face lift, liposuction and genitalia enhancement. As Mr. Hiassen noted, this true case made his fictional account look like a Disney story.

Mr. Hiassen also spoke about the fact that Florida is a state where bad behavior is so rampant that nitwits are not noticed. He explained that because of this many of the 9/11 terrorists resided in Florida. He noted that we also attract more than our fair share of notoriety from people like O.J. Simpson, Anna Nicole Smith and events like the hanging chad debacle. He concluded that even though we live in a community of weirdness, we are all in it together.

The next and final luncheon of the year is on Friday, February 8th and will feature Doris Kearns Goodwin, author and presidential historian. For more information and to purchase tickets go to www.lynn.edu/dively. You can be sure that Irving R. Levine's introduction will be a highlight of the event.

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