The Community Education Karate Program for Youths and Adults in the Friendswood area is set to begin Thursday night, September 17, 2009, in the Friendswood Junior High School Snack Bar.  Classes for children ages 5-12 start at 6:30 pm and classes for ages 13-70 begin at 7:30 pm. 
      The fall program of Community Education classes at Friendswood High School is set to begin Tuesday, September 29.  Those classes usually meet on Tuesday and/or Thursday nights and last from one night to 8 weeks. 

      A wide variety of educational, self-improvement, enrichment and recreation classes will be offered during the coming program.  Adult Educational / Self-Improvement Classes include the following:  Computer Classes in Windows, Word, and Excel; Buying and Selling Real Estate; Buying Foreclosures; Defensive Driving Online, how to take advantage of Tax Sales, How to Budget Your Money and Save, and Writing and Publishing Your First Book (or 7th).
      Enrichment and Recreation Classes for Adults include the following:  Chess, Floating Beaded Jewelry, Frustration Attraction, Got Snow, Homemade Holiday Treats, Instant Guitar for ages 13 through adult, Karate, Orchard Fresh, Staging to Sell (one's home), Thanksgiving Edible Art, and Woven Jewelry Making.
      Youth Classes include Karate for ages 5-12 and Red Cross Babysitting for teens and 'tweens ages 11 and older. Online SAT/ACT Prep Courses are also offered.
      The Online Classes are tailor-made for those who need flexible scheduling.  FISD Community Education offers a full slate of online classes to assist with professional growth for teachers; job skills enhancement; computer applications, programming and troubleshooting; web page programming, design, and graphics; personal enrichment; accounting and business, to name but a few of the topics available at the click of your mouse.  New online classes start monthly. 
      Some of the most popular online classes are those involving Digital Photography and Photoshop, Accounting, Speed Spanish (multiple levels), Creating Web Pages, Microsoft Excel 2007, Survival Kit for New Teachers, Medical Terminology, and Grant Writing.  Each online course lasts six weeks, and two lessons per week are delivered to students.  To access our online offerings directly, go to ed2go.com/fisdcomed.
      Brochures are mailed to addresses in the 77546 zip code, and the complete list of classes is available online via the Friendswood ISD website, fisdk12.net.  Community Education is listed under Departments.  One may also call the Friendswood Community Education office, 281-482-6000, or come by portable building 111 off the back parking lot of the FISD Administrative Office Building, 302 Laurel Drive, for more information.