At Roberts High School, students most at risk of dropping out are getting the support they need to succeed.

The school serves a diverse student body.  Some are teen mothers, others are homeless. More than a few have been expelled from the district’s traditional schools or have failed many classes. Some are homebound students, who must be out of school for a variety of reasons, and others are hard core offenders who have seen the inside of a prison or a jail. Too many are economically disadvantaged and hail from single-family homes.

For students who attend Roberts, their chances of dropping out of school are much greater than of hearing pomp and circumstance at their own graduation.

Helping Students Who Need the Most

This alternative high school in the Salem-Keizer School District is a fully accredited school that offers the same core curriculum as traditional schools—but with some enhancements: smaller class sizes, access to online classes, a GED program, and the option to retake classes for credit.

“You have to love these kids and be able to look past what they show you because it’s not always their best foot forward,” said Lorelei Gilmore, the school’s principal.  “Given the current economy, students have more needs than ever. Homes become much more dysfunctional in tough times.”

At Roberts, the focus is not only on boosting test scores but also on raising up the whole student—and the result is that academic success follows. In this learning-centered environment where choices and behaviors are emphasized, students who previously had difficulty in school are thriving.

Roberts was one of four schools in the district to receive $2 million in federal funding from a School Improvement Grant. The grant, which expires in 2013, is helping schools do things they always wanted to try, but never had the funding to implement. And, for the first time in a decade, Salem-Keizer Public Schools inched past the state’s graduation rate.

With the SIG, says Gilmore, “We’ve been able to have a laser-light focus…It’s been a driving force. It’s been the target that we can shoot for, and it’s given the purpose to move forward in lots of ways.”

Kathleen Sundell, who serves as president of the local teachers union, the Salem-Keizer Education Association, agrees.

“The union has worked with the school board, the superintendent and the principals around what is needed to complete the SIG grant including the evaluation instrument,” said Sundell. “We brought in [the National Education Association] immediately and trained our teachers and our staff in what was expected of them, what they were going to be participating in, and what were the changes that were going to occur.”

And early indicators show test scores are headed in the right direction: up.

Using the Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (OAKS) test, gains in math went up by double-digits and reading scores climbed 15 percent.

“We focused on [getting] the reading and math scores up because most of them were lacking in those areas,” said Patrick Schrader, the assistant principal of Roberts/Early College High School. “We saw about a 20 percent gain in our math scores.”

It’s not just scores that show things are changing at this alternative school. As staff and administration say, students are in their seats when the morning bell rings, engaged and eager to learn.

“We have a 96 percent attendance rate that is also the highest in the district, which is kind of interesting because we’re a school that kids have to apply to,” said Schrader. “[Students] come from all over the city, from South Salem, West Salem, and we don’t provide school transportation, and so they’re coming by either parent transportation or most of them by city bus, public transportation.”

With their hard work paying off, staff and students are excited.

“The work we’re doing here at Roberts is kind of cool.” said Roberts teacher Jane Killefer.  Her enthusiasm is shared with Gilmore who says “it’s pretty darn exciting what’s happening here [at Roberts].”

Collaboration is Essential

Management and staff agree those gains wouldn’t have been achieved without a collaborative spirit among all stakeholders. With staff layoffs due to budget cuts, working collaboratively has never been so important.

“Collaboration is essential,” said Sundell. “Without collaboration, it’s like missing a leg off a three-legged stool. You need all pieces there in order to make sure the student can find success. We’re doing whatever it takes to get students to succeed.”

That collaboration has made it possible for the school district and school’s administration to work with SKEA to tweak and adjust the traditional contract, helping to benefit students with the greatest needs. No matter the circumstance, the teachers and staff at this alternative high school work hard to educate and empower every one of their students.

“Our union has led the way in a variety of really exciting things,” said Killefer. “We looked at how we could move forward with improving education for all students while still keeping union values.”

Modifying the collective bargaining agreement, re-defining work days and extending school are just some of the adjustments that SKEA made to lead the way for change. The local worked with its state affiliate, the Oregon Education Association, and NEA’s Priority Schools Campaign to host a symposium, bringing together school staff, building administrators, district and association leadership, and other key education stakeholders. SKEA also has implemented professional development and provided additional resources to help school staff succeed in reaching the most at-risk students.

For Kathy Schliesmayer, an 18-year classroom veteran who teaches electives from sewing and sculpture to printmaking and drawing and works with many of the students who are teen mothers, the students are the staff’s motivation.

“I am deeply committed to the girls being successful,” said Schliesmayer.  “I have found them to be delightful, resilient women that have a lot of obstacles in their way, and if they’re given the opportunity or a few tools, they overcome those obstacles and then they can be a successful parent as well as a successful student, kind of breaking that cycle.”

New data released last week by the Oregon Department of Education show that graduation rates are on the rise statewide, and 59 percent of Portland Public Schools’ students earned a regular diploma in four years, compared to 54 percent last year. Of the Portland schools with a significant graduation rate increase is Roosevelt High School, one of the NEA Priority Schools Campaign intensive support sites.

As reported by The Portland Tribune:

Most of PPS high schools saw marked gains; two stood out with significant success.

Roosevelt High School, now in its second year of using federal school improvement grant money, bumped its four-year graduation rate up 14 percentage points, from 38 percent to 51 percent.

The infusion of $7.7 million during three years – as well as steady leadership by Principal Charlene Williams, a reinvigorated staff and parent community and a motivated student body – is apparently paying off.

West Seattle Elementary School in Washington is changing. While the irksome perception persists that this school in a high-poverty neighborhood is too ill-equipped, mismanaged, or even incapable of high student achievement, the school’s students, staff, and parents work quietly and effectively to change its course.

“We have a vision of becoming a blue ribbon school where teachers teach and students are in their proper grades,” says Assistant Principal Pam Conyers. “We are now on that path.”

After a year of participating in a federal program aimed at boosting student success, West Seattle’s 420 students are measurably improving faster than anyone expected.

For example, in grades 3 through 5, students’ scores on a reading test were highest in the district in 2010-11. In math, West Seattle students showed the greatest growth in the district, according to the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP). Last year, the school reached Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) goals for the first time in seven years.

“We made AYP 100 percent in each student subgroup,” says Conyers, referring to Black, Hispanic, Asian, American Indian, and Pacific Islander groups. “That, for me, is closing the achievement gap.”

According to an accountability index used by the Washington State Board of Education, in the last two years the school moved from Level 1 (underperforming) to Level 3 (maintaining growth). The index provides schools with a snapshot of their achievement taking into account improvement from the previous year and a school’s relative performance compared to demographically similar schools. The highest level (7) applies to schools or districts where at least 90 percent of students meet prescribed academic standards.

To help support and promote West Seattle, the National Education Association’s Priority Schools Campaign (PSC) selected the school as one of its intensive support sites. Nationally, the PSC program focuses on making substantial, educator-led improvements in high-needs schools. Many of the teachers and education support professionals (ESPs) at the school are members of the Seattle Education Association (SEA), which has 4,900 members.

“There are no short cuts to improving student achievement,” says Jonathan Knapp, SEA vice president. “It takes time, but SEA is proud to work out innovative ways to address the achievement gap in our district.”

Since last school year, West Seattle has narrowed the achievement gap due in part to receiving a School Improvement Grant (SIG). West Seattle and two other local schools are sharing the $3 million grant, which expires in 2013. By accepting the federal grant – adding an estimated $350,000 to $400,00 to school coffers – West Seattle agreed to install a new principal, new teachers, 15 extra minutes of school each day, and  more after-school activities. So far, the changes have yielded positive results.

“Our school climate has improved tremendously, meaning that children feel welcomed, engaged and safe,” says Laura Bermes, a counselor who joined the staff in 2010 as part of the transformation process. “Parents tell me they feel confident that their children are receiving an adequate education and that they, too, feel welcomed.”

Bermes says that office discipline referrals decreased dramatically this year, which means students “spend less time in trouble and more time engaged in learning.” She attributes this achievement to “amazing staff support, incredible parent engagement, and great teaching.”

Knapp says the federal grant also helped to create parent engagement and community-based education programs that mitigate the impact of poverty on student’s lives.

“The SIG process has shown us that concerted action on the achievement gap with targeted supplemental support for educators can produce real improvements in student learning,” he says. “Adding a new administrator, for example, has freed up the principal from mundane administrative duties to be more present in the classroom as an instructional leader.”

While some changes have come quickly, others have come maddeningly slow. Unexcused absences and tardiness are a problem. To address these and similar issues, school staff take it “one step further than parents or students expect,” says Bermes.

“(We) sit on the kid until mom shows up to pick him up,” she says. “(We) drive a student home if dad won’t pick up his child because of a discipline issue.”

One innovation at West Seattle geared to improving student achievement has been the installation inside the school of a chapter of the YMCA. As director of education and leadership at the school’s YMCA Community Learning Center, Nathan Sander runs an after-school program which supports academics by providing tutoring, small group instruction, and homework assistance.

“We also offer enrichment classes in everything from art and music to science and cooking,” says Sander.

The YMCA program runs 150 days a year and serves between 70 and 80 students. The youth organization also operates a six-week academic-based summer program called High Point Scholars. It focuses on closing the achievement gap and combating summer learning loss.

“Public school educators in Seattle have long said ‘it is about the relationships,’” says Knapp. “Parental engagement is key, as are community partnerships that actually meet the needs of students.”

Meeting the needs of students can include meeting the needs of their parents as well. For example, parents of Somali students at the school were unaccustomed to the U.S. public school system.

“They would drop off their kids a few blocks from the school,” Conyers says.

This prompted staff to organize a school open house and barbecue night. More than 400 people participated, including Somali parents.

“They (Somalis) come in all the time now,” Conyers says. “They bring us tea.”

Conyers credits the school’s resilient Bilingual Orientation Center and Family Support Worker Team with overcoming a cavalcade of language, cultural and economic elements to reach Somali and other immigrant parents.

Last November, parental involvement was most impressive during Teacher Appreciation Week. On that Monday, Somali parents brought in a variety of African dishes for school staff. Tuesday was Hispanic Night, and Wednesday was reserved for Asian parents.

“We are definitely a community school,” she says. “We are like a beautiful mosaic with a vast array of students who speak (collectively) 13 languages. Our classrooms are like the United Nations with people from across the world.”

Located in the high-poverty area of High Point, West Seattle used to be named High Point Elementary School. Years after re-naming the school, the sign on the main building had not been updated. When Conyers spoke to a parent group last year, because of the old sign some didn’t know the school had changed its name.

“When I said I was from West Seattle, they thought I was at the wrong meeting,” Conyers says. “There are still a lot of challenges here, but also a lot, a lot of rewards.”

When Maricela Rincón first started school she was sent to the back of the room because she didn’t speak English. Even though she was born in Chicago, Maricela felt isolated and rejected because she spoke only Spanish.

“At that time language wasn’t valued… And so I was usually placed in the back of the room, given crayons. It felt like it wasn’t right. I felt like essentially I was punished.”

Ricardo Rincón had a similar experience. He immigrated as a child from Mexico, and despite the fact that he loved learning math, he felt like he didn’t belong in school.

“I was in a new classroom setting, new teachers, new language, new peers, everything was new, therefore I felt like I wasn’t in the right place.”

Jonalene Ly, a 1st grade teacher at Kit Carson Elementary School in Las Vegas, came from Vietnam when she was three years old. Her mom was unable to help her with her homework because she didn’t know English.

“My mom didn’t have much education, so she didn’t know how to teach me at home or support me at home, unless it’s math. And so basically I was on my own.”

Eventually, they each found dedicated teachers who took the time to encourage and inspire them. Today, they are all educators who are sensitive and aware of the needs of students like them.

Maricela and Ricardo, full time teachers in Las Cruces, New Mexico, have gone the extra step of becoming volunteer trainers for educators across the nation. As part of NEA’s English Language Learner Culture, Equity and Language Professional Development program, they share skills, academic strategies and research based ideas.

There are more than 5.3 million English Language Learners in U.S. public schools. Close to 85 percent were born in the United States and they represent more than 150 different languages.  Many of them are concentrated in low-income school districts.

Achievement gaps between ELL and non-ELL students are deeply rooted, complex, and challenging. With a commitment to student success, NEA’s Priority Schools Campaign strives to empower educators to raise student achievement at struggling schools. This is done in partnership with school districts, administrators, families and communities, through research-driven strategies, including improvement of staff capacity and effectiveness.

Working with NEA’s Priority Schools Campaign, a cadre of member-leaders conduct professional development sessions with educators to better serve ELL students in priority schools.

Recently NEA, in partnership with the Clark County Education Association, provided three days of professional development at Kit Carson Elementary School, Doris Hancock Elementary School and Rancho High School in Las Vegas. The sessions included in-the-classroom modeling by the cadre leaders, so that educators could see the methodology applied with their own students.

“The professional development that we’re doing has been asked for by educators and by NEA’s leadership at local and state levels. Educators are reaching out for our professional development because it includes specific strategies that will assist them in the reading, writing and math for their English Language Learners,” explains Linda Cabral, Associate Director for the Quality Schools, Programs and Resources at NEA.

“The preparation that they have received before or through their university studies to become a teacher is good, but the critical piece on the working with this specialized group of youngsters, the cultural and linguistic responsiveness, is not always part of their certification or their credentialing,” points out Cabral.

In addition to the academic strategies presented, the program also addresses the culture, equity and socio-economic factors that affect teaching and student learning.

Pamela Muniz, a second grade teacher at Kit Carson Elementary School in Las Vegas, Nevada, was able to implement some of the strategies in her classroom after participating in the program. She specifically recalls an example presented by the cadre members in which students said that the teachers were talking too fast for them to understand all the words.

“I actually spoke to my kids about my speed of speaking. I feel like we’re always rushing to get things done. So we had a conversation about that and we have a symbol now.  If I’m talking too quickly they give me a symbol to let me know to slow it down,” Muniz explains.

“I think that one of the most important things about this professional development is to have the awareness of our English language learners and to make sure that we’re meeting their learning needs; that we are aware not only of who they are, but what we need to do for them so that they are academically successful, to make sure that they are able to achieve their optimum,” adds Maricela, who was one of Muniz’s cadre leaders.

From Chinese, to Russian, to Somali, English Language Learners in U.S. public schools represent more than 150 different languages.

The program also strives to dispel the misconceptions that many have about students who do not speak English.

“Some of my colleagues may believe that these students come with nothing to offer.  And that is a huge mistake. They have plenty to offer, they may have reading skills already developed, they have mathematical skills already developed.  We just have to access those skills and then help them to make the transition from one language to the second,” states Ricardo.

The combination of academic strategies, targeted methodology, cultural awareness, classroom modeling and practical examples presented in NEA’s ELL Culture, Equity and Language Professional Development Program adds to the professionalism of educators who are already making a difference in the lives of their students.

“I’m pretty sure that the most meaningful thing for me that a teacher could do for a student is make them feel welcome and make them feel valued. Appreciate who they are, where they come from and as much as possible allow them to feel like they are an important part of your classroom, because they have a lot to contribute and they have a lot to share,” concludes Maricela.

Good ideas come at any time.  Playing with your children. Cooking.  During the commute. Albert Einstein once asked, “Why is it I always get my best ideas while shaving?”

Ed Small, principal of Academy Park High School in Sharon Hill, Pennsylvania, got inspiration knocking pins during a bowling game.

Before moving to The Park (as it is affectionately known), Small had significant success at raising student achievement through collaborative efforts among educators and administrators at Delcroft School.  So when the opportunity came in August 2010 to manage the only high school in the Southeast Delco School District, he gladly accepted.

Small became principal of Park in large part because of the School Improvement Grant (SIG). The federal grant provided $2.6 million because it had struggled academically for the past ten years.   As part of SIG, the school leadership adopted a transformational model to help raise student achievement, which required the school to get a new principal.

“Leadership counts when it comes to transforming a school that needs extra attention and resources,” said Carolyn Karcher, president of the Southeast Delco Education Association. “We were excited to know Small came to us with a strong background in school reform.”

One night, Small went out with an old college friend.  What started out as a back-and forth buddy conversation about his new career turned in to a brainstorming session on how to prepare and move his students toward college readiness.

The newly arrived principal noticed some of his top students were not challenging themselves academically while other students were seeing a detachment between doing well in high school and getting in to a good college.

“Some of my high-performing students attempted to take the least rigorous courses. Although they’re good classes, it’s not what a college looks for,” said Small. “Other students were saying, ‘I’m going to study tonight so I can pass my test,’ rather than ‘I’m going to study tonight to become a doctor.’”

After multiple brainstorming bowling games, Small came back to work with the idea of Rising Scholars, a program designed to prepare students for college by helping to change their mindset and create motivation to do well in school because of an end goal—college, career, and quality of life.

Based on the framework of the U.S. Department of Education’s TRIO programs, which helps individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds through the academic pipeline, Rising Scholars is intended for students from each grade level, various academic standings, and socio-economic backgrounds.

Rising Scholars serves 130 students, who meet after school and every other Saturday to discuss various aspects of college: from the college application process, career exploration, and financial literacy to service learning, mastering college life, and leadership and mentoring programs. Students also go on college campus tours.

“The idea was to bridge the gap between high school and college with things students encounter when they [first] walk on to a college campus,” said Small. “You walk on campus and you realize you need to go to the book store to get books, but you don’t know where the book store is, and you probably don’t know who to ask to get that information. The idea was to expose students to this information before they [arrive on campus].”

Since the program started, Rising Scholars has formed partnerships with various higher education institutions, including the University of Delaware, Delaware County Community College, and Cheyney University.

Members of Rising Scholars have gone on four college campus tours. In one tour—to the University of Delaware—students stayed on campus for three nights, slept in dorm rooms, ate at the dining hall, and sat in on classes.

“We build a much stronger relationship when we’re able to wake up and go to the dining hall together,” said Small. “It’s here where we re-emphasize that this is college life—no one is waiting for you to go to class; you will get left behind,” adding that Rising Scholars also helps build the self-discipline needed to be successful in college.

An added benefit to Rising Scholars is the peer-to-peer component. Students range from high-academic performers and star athletic players to students who are on the verge of dropping out or who struggle academically. The composition of the group allows for students who do well in school to serve as role models for students who need extra help.

Asiha Braxton, a senior and Rising Scholars member, is taking three AP classes, Spanish and physics, and still finds time to promote Rising Scholars.

“I’ve recruited at least five people,” said Braxton. “I tell them this is a good opportunity to get the help you need to go to college.”

Braxton is currently waiting to hear back from Penn State, Hampton University, and York College of Pennsylvania.

The year Rising Scholars started, every senior who participated in the program applied and was accepted to a college or university. This year, Small hopes to increase that number, as well as track his students to ensure they finish with a four-year degree.

Small runs the program through the help of several educators, including Southeast Delco Education Association member Erika Llewellyn. Llewellyn teaches a reading class and is also charged with collecting data from standardized tests.

When Llewellyn is not assisting her students or reviewing data, she helps with logistics for the college tours.

“This program helps strengthen relationships between students and teachers,” said Llewellyn. “The main idea for a school that struggles is to get students engaged. Through these out-of-the-classroom bonds, we’re able to create interest in the program. And, we’re seeing students show up on Saturdays or snowy days—we’re seeing a strong motivation from them.”

Coming from a grades 1-8 school building to transform a struggling high school is no easy feat.  Small was immediately tasked with implementing a rigorous evaluation and development system, instituting a comprehensive curriculum, increasing learning time and applying community-focused school strategies, and providing greater operational flexibility and support for the school.

According to Small, Rising Scholars, in part, helps address the student achievement piece of the federal grant. One of Small’s goals with the grant is for seven out of ten students to be proficient in state-wide tests. By using Rising Scholars to challenge his students to do well in school, Small believes he can help close the student achievement gap, as well as give them the necessary skills to do well in college and in life.

“Last year, we made AYP status for the first time since No Child Left Behind was instituted in 2001. The relationships we’ve built with students through Rising Scholars are a positive factor in student gains,” said Small.

Some critics of America’s public schools say teachers don’t want to be held accountable for the challenges of struggling schools. Not true. In fact, teachers demand to be held accountable and they’re the first to say, “The status quo must go,” in education. But they want it done, fairly, realistically, and with purpose.

In a recent address to participants in the NEA Priority Schools Campaign forum, Changes, Challenges and Collaboration, NEA President Dennis Van Roekel said, “We need to be dissatisfied with the way things are. It has to gnaw deep down in your gut so hard that you can’t stand it. That you can’t take it for one more day that it stays the way it is. That you not only accept change, you demand change,” said Van Roekel.

A group of educators in Romulus, Michigan did just that—change a system that didn’t work for them. District and school administrators, educators, and union leaders at Romulus Middle School seized on the public policy window afforded by the Obama administration’s School Improvement Grant (SIG) program to help raise student achievement and remove the stigma of a “failing school.”

Romulus was one of 28 Michigan schools to receive SIG funding. Part of the grant required school leaders to reform its existing teacher evaluation system. However, Romulus was ahead of most Michigan school districts in overhauling its evaluation system. Four years ago, local education leaders started looking at different professional growth models to transform its outdated assessment tool because what they had in place resembled a grocery list.

“The previous teacher evaluation was a check-off form. People were either ‘satisfactory,’ ‘unsatisfactory,’ or ‘in need of improvement,’” said Gary Banas, president of the Romulus Education Association. “There was no clear rubric.  It was meaningless.”

The way it worked:  Educators at the middle school would be formally evaluated every three years. The school principal and a content expert from the school district would conduct two formal evaluations that were thirty minutes long. Afterwards, they would go through the motion of checking off boxes.

“The initial system was ineffective,” said Jason Salhaney, principal of Romulus Middle School. “Educators were left feeling ‘I’m just okay’ rather than finding out what they’re really good at or what they’re not good at.”

Dissatisfied with its system, a committee was formed to research various evaluation and accountability systems. The group—union leaders, district and school administrators, and educators—spent two years looking at various professional growth plans.

After numerous revisions, the initial evaluation model allowed teachers and principals to develop a common understanding of Charlotte Danielson’s teacher performance standards and its relationship to student growth.

“Our goal in Romulus was to shift teacher evaluation from an event that teachers and principals endured to a process that requires teachers and principals to trust each other as they work to improve performance,” said Carl Weiss, superintendent of Romulus Community Schools.

Weiss continued:  “While performance standards are foundational to every teacher evaluation system, the tipping point for a highly effective system is a collaborative, trusting relationship between teachers and their principals,” said Weiss. “Where trust exists, teachers will stretch themselves by trying new strategies in an effort to improve their skills. Principals then work with each teacher to create realistic and attainable performance goals that will have a positive impact on the kids.”

The revamped evaluation system allows for a healthy dialogue on teaching and learning between teachers and administrators. It also promotes professional creativity and ingenuity, and draws on inspiration from teachers. The plan also has numerous metrics to guide the evaluation plan, which includes the school’s current reality: student, school and district growth goals; teacher objectives; and available district resource.

“This allowed us to get feedback. It wasn’t coming in and looking at a lesson in one day. It was a sequence in a period of time where you can look at actual growth,” said Salhaney. “It gave teachers more focus and it really was about instruction—and that was the biggest difference,” referring to the past evaluation system.

Quarterly assessments are conducted throughout the year, giving teachers a better understanding of what is working for student growth and what is not. At the end of the year, teachers are individually evaluated, and this part of the evaluation takes into account student test scores.

The use of student growth as a silver-bullet solution to measure teacher effectiveness is a contentious topic across the country.

The three-million plus member NEA want a high-quality teacher evaluation system that supports the use of standardized tests only if they are developmentally appropriate, scientifically valid, and reliable for purposes of measuring both student learning and teacher performance. Moreover, such evaluations should be local school district functions.

However, a number of states, Michigan included, are linking a high ratio of student growth to teacher assessment tools. NEA stands behind its research, citing that statewide linkage does nothing to further the goal of producing a high quality, reliable system of educator evaluations.

In Romulus, local education leaders had been monitoring state legislative trends and realized student growth would be a heavily-emphasized component to its evaluation system. As a result of these trends, the 200-member REA decided to accept the reality and move on, incorporating 50 percent of student growth into its evaluation system from the onset.

As forecasted, this past summer, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder signed into law a bill that attached teacher evaluations to student data by 50 percent. The 50 percent requirement is being phased in so that in the 2013-14 year it’s 25 percent, the next year 40 percent, and the following year 50 percent.

“We knew this was coming, and my district and our teachers were ahead of the wave, not afraid to discuss changes to our evaluation system,” said Banas. “We were comfortable going with 50 percent because we’re in this together to make sure our kids do well. However, our product is not perfect and has some areas of concern.”

The local education association is working to merge the collaborative evaluation plan with the state’s required use of data. It’s not as easy task, according to the local president, Banas.

“This has been a very challenging topic. The fact that 50 percent of the gauging of the ‘effectiveness’ or ‘ineffectiveness’ of any one teacher is tied to substantial student growth, based upon some random measure of monitoring is absolutely absurd,” said Banas.  “Two teachers could have the same student growth goal, use different means to monitor for success, and based on those results, one teacher could potentially be deemed ‘ineffective’ while the other could be deemed an ‘effective’ teacher.  We have a serious problem,” said Banas.

Banas remains confident about the collaborative work in the middle school, but acknowledges the challenges ahead in meeting the state’s requirement.

“As soon as professional growth plans become administrative-driven growth plans, we lose the very essence and purpose that we set out to promote in the development of the new teacher evaluation program. Professionalism and growth results from people coming together, discussing ideas, experimenting to improve the system, building upon past knowledge, and discovering and trying new techniques.”

If it hadn’t been for parental involvement at Glendale Middle School, a large group of girls would be failing gym class for one simple reason – they couldn’t wear the uniform.

Nearly a quarter of the student population at Glendale is Muslim, and for religious reasons, Muslim girls are unable to wear short-sleeved t-shirts or shorts, the standard uniform at the Salt Lake City school. But thanks to Glendale’s Refugee Task Force – a group of families who fled their country because of political turmoil and settled in here – the girls are now able to participate in P.E.

The task force was formed last year, and they meet monthly with the staff at Glendale to discuss concerns and strategies for increasing their involvement in the school.

Glendale is a target site of NEA’s Priority Schools Campaign, which works to transform low performing schools through a number of measures, including developing family and community partnerships. Research shows that parent, family, and community involvement in education correlates with higher academic performance and school improvement. When schools, parents, families, and communities work together to support learning, students tend to earn higher grades, attend school more regularly, stay in school longer, and enroll in higher-level programs.

“I went into the first meeting with my own agenda, thinking I knew what we’d discuss, but it quickly turned into a “Three Cups of Tea” moment,” says Glendale’s Assistant Principal Jennifer Mayer-Glenn, who convenes the monthly meetings in collaboration with other educators at the school. “There were two interpreters and they explained to me that the community of refugees had already decided on the topics for discussion at the meeting. Topping the list was P.E. uniforms.”

Glendale’s Assistant Principal Jennifer Mayer-Glenn holds up the uniform made by the school's sewing club for Muslim female students.

After several Google searches, Mayer-Glenn finally found an appropriate uniform — a long sleeve t-shirt dress with pants that could be worn underneath. She took photos of it to the sewing club, another parent group consisting of mainly Latina mothers, and within a week, they had a prototype.

The task force was thrilled and asked only that they change the color from white to black.

Parents Welcome in School

In addition to the sewing club, Glendale Middle also holds an after-school and evening knitting club. Mothers bring their small children, socialize with fellow parents, and create beautiful hats and scarves that help keep their families warm during the long, frigid Utah winters.

“We want parents to feel welcome and comfortable in our schools,” says Salt Lake Teachers Association President Susan McFarland. “When they feel welcomed, they’ll get more involved, which helps their children succeed academically.”

It wasn’t long ago that parents were afraid to become involved at Glendale Middle School. The school had a bad reputation for gang and drug activity and violence. A serious incident of racial violence once broke out in the school cafeteria and parents began pulling their kids out of the school. Enrollment eroded, and along with it, achievement.

But with a dedicated faculty and brand new administration – a new principal and two new assistant principals – along with the help of the Priority Schools Campaign, the school has developed strategies to make the school safer and bring in more parents.

This year, enrollment was up by 50 students, and Glendale is expected to make AYP for the second year in a row as students now focus on their studies rather than gangs, fights and crime. There’s been a 50 percent decrease in referrals for fighting and a 50 percent drop in referrals for bullying.

Many of the changes were simple – the school added safety features like more patrol staff at crosswalks on the main road, where gang activity had been reported. They identified other problem areas and assigned more school staff to help monitor them. Now there are teachers at every door during class transitions to cut down on fights in the hallway. And there are “trackers,” which are school staff assigned as secondary sweepers in the hallways and around the school grounds to make sure all students are in class rooms and not wandering unsupervised. As a result, tardies and discipline referrals are down by 30 percent.

Glendale Middle School welcomes parents, families and their younger children to activities in the Parent Resource Center.

Maria Garcia is the single mother of three kids. Her 11-year-old daughter is a student at Glendale Middle School and Garcia was at first afraid to enroll her in the school. But now she’s delighted with the way the school is run and is proud her daughter is a Glendale student.

“I wanted to see changes, and I did with the new principal and new programs the teachers are leading, and I’m so happy,” she says. “My daughter is doing so well, she’s involved in more activities at school, and so am I. I’m a regular volunteer at the school for recess and field trips and things, and I come to every Pastries for Parents meeting.”

Pastries for Parents

Pastries for Parents is held on Thursday evenings from 5:30 to 6:30 and Friday mornings from 8:45 to 9:45  — times when parents, many of whom hold two or more jobs, could make it to the school. The meeting, held in both English and Spanish, provides school updates and offers tips and strategies for parents to become more involved and help their children with their studies.

Gilberto Rejon Magaña runs the meetings as a volunteer through University Neighborhood Partners, a program of the University of Utah that partners with schools throughout Salt Lake City’s West End to help at-risk youth and their families.

When Magaña saw that parents were taking their kids out of Glendale, he knew he had to do something. “They were pulling out the smartest kids. Our best future,” he says. “I said, this where we live, this is our school! Let’s make it better together.”

That’s when he agreed to help involve parents, help them become familiar with the school and show them it’s a great place for their kids to learn.

At the first meeting, he brought boxes of donuts and Mexican pastries with bright pink icing. But he waited in the room by himself. Nobody showed up, and he wound up taking the donuts and pastries home.

Pastries for parents is a popular time for families of Glendale students to learn more about the school and how to help their children at home.

At the next meeting, he had two parents. By the following week, there were five. Before long, word of the meetings spread throughout the community. This year the room is always crowded with parents, who also bring their young children, and the boxes of donuts and pastries are always empty by the end of the meeting.

One way to measure the meeting’s success is by the number of pastries left in the boxes. But a better way is by the number of issues that parents bring up, Magaña says. Recently there was a discussion of what would happen if undocumented parents were taken away while their children were at school.

“This is a real concern out there, and one that’s not talked about openly, so that was an indication to me of trust,” says Magaña. “I told them that they could find information at the Mexican Civic Center, and said that we’d all work on a way to figure it out because we are a school and a community built on trust. And if you have trust, you have everything.”

As partisan clashes in Congress continue to delay decisions on measures that would provide some relief for middle class and poor Americans, a growing number of families are relying on free and reduced-price meals to prevent their children from going hungry.

The numbers paint a distressing picture: A New York Times analysis of Department of Agriculture data reveals a 17 percent increase in the number of students qualifying for subsidized lunches, with 11 states reporting a shocking 25 percent jump. Census figures show the number of people living in poverty reached an all-time high and the number of children considered poor rose by 1 million in 2010. And a new report from the Food Research and Action Center shows a dramatic drop in food spending—especially among black and Hispanic families—as more Americans face unemployment or underemployment.

The toll it takes on students is clear to educators.

“When kids come to school hungry, you can tell,” said Doreen Raftery, who saw all too many students struggle through the school day on an empty stomach during her years working as a paraprofessional in New York City public schools. “They can’t concentrate, they can’t perform.”

Research supports her observations. Students who miss meals have more behavior problems and are more likely to fail math, arrive late at school, miss days entirely and repeat a grade.

Schools’ ability to respond to this result of the economic crisis would have been diminished if the bipartisan Healthy and Hunger-Free Kids Act had not been signed into law by President Obama a year ago, after educators and other child advocates across the country spoke up in favor of its passage. That measure expanded the reach of the National School Lunch and School Breakfast program by 115,000 students and improved the nutritional value of school breakfasts, lunches and other food options available in schools. At NEA’s urging, the bill also provided professional development funds for food service workers to learn new ways to prepare the most nutritious meals possible with available resources.

But even when students qualify for free meals, they don’t always get them: on average, less than half of children eligible for subsidized breakfast are eating it. Lower-income students with fewer transportation options are less likely to get to school early enough to take advantage of breakfast programs. Another possible barrier is students themselves—even in communities with widespread poverty, there’s a stigma attached to being seen eating in the cafeteria before school.

Read the full story at educationvotes.org.

Carrebec elevates the bar (February 1, 2012)
The Morning Sentinel in Maine wrote that “the Carrabec Education Association, the Maine Education Association and the National Education Association also are helping to drive the changes at Carrabec” after U.S. Dept. of Education senior advisor Jo Anderson praised the school’s transformation efforts.

Carrabec High School setting example for rural schools, says federal official (February 1, 2012)
The Bangor Daily news covered Jo Anderson’s visit to Carrabec High School, where the work of the Maine Education Association and NEA Priority Schools campaign is credited.

Utah Education Association hopes for collaboration with lawmakers (December 31, 2011)
The Salt Lake Tribune mentioned Glendale Middle School’s involvement with the NEA Priority Schools campaign in an article about stronger collaboration amongst public education stakeholders in Utah.

Amazing stories from our public schools (December 29, 2011)
The Learning First Alliance blog selected the NEA Priority Schools Campaign story about the flipped classroom at Clintondale High School in Michigan as one of their top 5 success stories of 2011.

More districts sending teachers into students’ homes (December 13, 2011)
Education Week wrote about teacher home-visits, a parental involvement strategy supported by the NEA Priority Schools Campaign.

SAD 74 union to expand its role (December 12, 2011)
The Morning Sentinel wrote about how the Carrabec Education Association is “broadening its traditional role by planning specific ways to improve the education of students in Anson, Embden, Solon and New Portland,” including NEA Priority Schools Campaign site Carrabec High School.

TUSD school sees marked gains, gets help from national ed group (December 7, 2011)
The Arizona Daily Star reported on the campaign work with Howenstine High Magnet School.

Report showcases partnership-driven school reform (November 21, 2011)
Education Daily covered the release of the NEA Priority Schools Campaign’s Family-School-Community Partnerships guide, and how “family-school-community partnerships can boost student achievement.”

Carrabec teachers in leadership role (November 21, 2011)
The Morning Sentinel reported on the team of teachers, district staff and school board members from Anson, Maine who traveled to the NEA Priority Schools Campaign forum in New Orleans.

Marysville teachers, officials share ideas on turning schools around (November 16, 2011)
The Herald reported on the team of teachers, district staff and school board members from Marysville, Washington who traveled to the NEA Priority Schools Campaign forum in New Orleans.

Community and family engagement (November 15, 2011)
NEA Vice President Lily Eskelsen spoke with Utah Public Radio about the release of the Family-School-Community Partnership 2.0 guide.

Education Association looking for classroom superheroes (November 14, 2011)
8NewsNow in Las Vegas, Nevada noted NEA’s Classroom Superheroes project and the educators and support staff nominated from Clark County.

Union will help three Richmond County high schools implement grants (October 17, 2011)
The Augusta Chronicle wrote about the participation of T.W. Josey, Lucy C. Laney and Glenn Hills high schools in the NEA Priority Schools Campaign.

Flipping the classroom: homework in class, lessons at home (October 7, 2011)
The Learning First Alliance blog shared the story from NEA’s Priority Schools Campaign about flipped classrooms at Clintondale High School in Michigan.

Making the most of transitions (October, 2011)
The Oregon Education Association featured Roberts High School and the Priority Schools Campaign in the bi-monthly Today’s OEA.

It’s back to school for NEA President (September 15, 2011)
The Dayton Weekly News covered NEA President Dennis Van Roekel’s visits to Westwood PreK-8 School and Belmont High School.

NEA chief applauds Belmont success (September 12, 2011)
The Dayton Daily News covered NEA President Dennis Van Roekel’s visit to Belmont High School.

NEA visit to DPS (September 12, 2011)
Dayton Public Schools TV interviewed NEA President Dennis Van Roekel about his visit to Belmont High School.

NEA partners with SIG schools in Priority Schools Campaign (Summer, 2011)
The work of NEA’s Priority Schools Campaign was highlighted in the U.S. Department of Education’s School Turnaround newsletter.

McGary students plant a seed that grows and grows (August 27, 2011)
The Evansville Courier & Press highlighted the community garden project at McGary Middle School.

Crime dips 77% at Belmont High School (August 27, 2011)
The Dayton Daily News reported on the improvements at Belmont High School in Ohio.

How Are Unions Working on Education Reform? (April 21, 2011)
Matt Franck of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch wrote during the 2011 Education Writers Association Conference that union-led transformation efforts such as NEA’s Priority Schools Campaign would motivate him to think differently about how he covered teachers unions.

If you’re not a member of the news media but have questions, please contact us at priorityschools@nea.org.

Advisory: Local leaders urge community to join effort to transform Howenstine (December 2, 2011)
TUCSON—Recognizing that sustained success can only be achieved through wide-spread collaboration, local leaders are hoping Tucsonans will join a national campaign working locally to help transform a struggling school.  In the process, they’re expecting to raise awareness about an undervalued TUSD gem making a profound difference in the lives of students, and the community in which they live and learn.

Release: Oak Hill Participates in NEA Priority Schools Campaign (November 16, 2011 from Guilford County Schools)
NORTH CAROLINA – Staff members from Oak Hill Elementary were among 300 educators from 17 states who gathered for the NEA’s Priority Schools Campaign forum in New Orleans. Oak Hill, which was a recipient of a $2.9 million School Improvement Grant, has made tremendous growth due to the dedication of staff, parents and volunteers. The school was recognized for its achievements and staff were able to share their ideas and strategies with others at the conference.

Release: NEA shares strategies for developing family-school-community partnerships (November 15, 2011)
WASHINGTON – Backed by research that shows parent, family and community involvement in education correlates with higher academic performance and school improvement, the National Education Association (NEA) was joined by Parenting magazine today for the release of “Family-School-Community Partnerships 2.0.” Released on Parents Day during the 90th anniversary of American Education Week (AEW), the guide aims to help educators develop more effective partnerships with the most important people in their students’ lives.

Release: NEA conference focuses on improving student success in low-income communities (November 9, 2011)
NEW ORLEANS – Declaring that “the status quo must go,” National Education President Dennis Van Roekel will lead classroom teachers and allies during a three-day conference on strategies to transform struggling schools in some of the nation’s poorest communities. Educators and committed partners from NEA’s Priority School’s Campaign will convene in New Orleans Nov. 10-12. Participants will include more than 300 teachers, education support professionals, union leaders, district administrators and parents, representing 36 Priority Schools from 17 states.

Release: Evans School students off to a healthy start with Breakfast in the Classroom (August 4, 2011)
EVANSVILLE – Breakfast will never be the same for Evans School students, as they received the gift of coolers on wheels today thanks to a unique partnership between the Evansville Teachers Association and the National Education Association’s Priority Schools Campaign. The two education groups leveraged an existing partnership with JEEP® to purchase coolers to maintain the school’s “Breakfast in the Classroom” program.

Release: McGary Middle School Goes Green (June 14, 2011)
EVANSVILLE —Nearly 100 students, teachers, and community volunteers helped  hammer, shovel and landscape McGary Middle School’s open space into a community garden today. The National Education Association’s Priority Schools Campaign and the Evansville Teachers Association collaborated to help sponsor the community garden project.

Release: Dayton teachers celebrate positive 2010-2011 (June 1, 2011 from the Dayton Education Association)
DAYTON—They’re clearing bulletin boards, emptying desks and placing final marks in well-worn grade books.  But this year, Dayton teachers are adding one more thing to the ritual that comes with the end of the school year—a big thumbs up—to students, parents and colleagues for working together to make the 2010-2011 school year a huge success.

Release: Education leaders plan collaboration on Priority Schools (March 4, 2010)
NEW YORK  – Public education professionals from classrooms to local governments to the Obama Administration meet here Thursday to continue mapping collaborative approaches to significantly raising academic achievement in the nation’s lower-performing five percent of public schools. These Priority Schools are the subject of an unprecedented campaign by the National Education Association to bring public education stakeholders together to help lead permanent change.

National Education Association (NEA) President Dennis Van Roekel today laid outa new action agenda for the nation’s largest organization of educators that will help transform the teaching profession and accelerate student learning.

Speaking at the Renaissance Hotel in Washington, D.C., Van Roekel detailed three major strategies that will guide the NEA’s efforts. The net effect of these initiatives will be to increase the quality of teacher candidates, make sure that teachers remain at the top of their game throughout their careers, and to improve student learning by helping educators become leaders in their schools.

“NEA aims to ensure that every student has a qualified, caring and effective teacher,” Van Roekel said. “We will support a stronger profession of teaching and I will put the full weight of our national organization behind this effort.”

The action plan incorporates proven best practices from thousands of leading teachers from around the country, and input from the independent Commission on Effective Teachers and Teaching.

Read the rest of this article on neatoday.org.

Matt Johnson graduated from Howenstine High Magnet School in 2006, where he learned the value of giving back to the community that he says has given so much to him.

“At Howenstine, I learned to build houses with Habitat for Humanity,” Johnson said. “Without Howenstine and the housing program, I wouldn’t have graduated… I wouldn’t be where I am today…And I still volunteer in my community.”

It’s because of students like Johnson that many refer to Howenstine as the “hidden gem” of Tucson’s public schools. The school is modeled around a service learning philosophy, which incorporates teaching opportunities with service-oriented projects that demonstrate volunteerism and community awareness through real life examples of how the classroom relates to the world around them.

The service learning model is especially important to the diverse population the school serves, including a high special education population. Johnson, who suffers from hearing loss and a profound speech impediment, spoke with courage and poise at a press event announcing Howenstine’s participation in the National Education Association’s Priority Schools Campaign on December 6, 2011.

Johnson was joined by local education leaders, including Howenstine Principal Maritza Nunez, Tucson Education Association President Frances Banales , Arizona Education Association President Andrew F. Morrill, and Tucson Unified School District Superintendent John Pedicone, as well as Arizona State Senator Paula Aboud and Habitat for Humanity Tucson Executive Director Michael McDonald.

The leaders asked Tucsonans to join the national Priority Schools Campaign (PSC) working in their community to help transform a struggling school. They’ve already made some gains – the school made AYP last year and increased reading scores by 17 percent in one year – but there are still challenges to overcome.

“Howenstine needs our help. And the students who come here to learn and grow each day deserve our help,” said TEA President Frances Banales. “The students—current and former—say the environment here has respected their individuality, celebrated their strengths and helped them work on their weaknesses. They say their Howenstine experience has made a profound difference in their lives and helped them know what it means to make a difference in their community.”

Howenstine was selected to be a part of PSC because of its dedicated staff, dynamic new leadership and service-learning focus. The practice is praised by NEA and the education communities because it has been found to boost achievement, build leadership and strengthen ties to the community. Association leaders are also hoping another benefit seen at some of the other 37 schools in 16 states that comprise the Campaign take root in Tucson.

“We’re proud to say that not only is PSC helping to transform low-performing schools, we’re also promoting a new model for education reform. PSC is based on collaboration. Here is an education agenda that puts students at the center,” said AEA President Andrew Morrill. “All across the country, we’re seeing success because of partnerships among students, parents, educators, districts, government, community organizations, businesses and foundations. For long-term, sustainable school transformation, shared responsibility and collaboration are essential.”

Student's in Chuck Sillence's shop class work with construction material to help Habitat for Humanity Tucson build three-bedroom homes for low-income families. Photo: Brenda Alvarez

The importance of partnerships and the value it brings to all was a thread that ran throughout the event, one underscored by Howenstine partner, Habitat for Humanity Tucson. “Since 1995, Habitat for Humanity of Tucson has partnered with local high schools to give students the opportunity to learn and develop skills related to the construction industry,” said executive director Michael McDonald. “We’re all the better for it. Students get the opportunity to apply what they learn to a hands-on apprenticeship. Educators get partners in the cause of public education. The District gets access to the only home construction technology program in the southwest for secondary school students. And, Tucson gets productive and engaged citizens, ready to assume their roles as the next generation of home builders and affordable-housing advocates.”

The highlight of the event was when the leaders took—and then urged the public to take—an online survey aimed at gauging perception of Howenstine. The quick four-question survey is part of KEYS (KEYs to Excellence for Your Schools), a comprehensive school-based assessment and improvement system that gathers data for improving teaching and learning conditions. Community data will be coupled with survey results from parents, teachers, education support professionals and administrators for a picture of where Howenstine stands on some 42 indicators research shows exist at high-performing schools.

From left to right: Juliana Anaya and Teresa Goodman, students at Howenstine Magnet High School, change the school signage to promote a community survey designed to gauge the perception of the high school. Photo: Brenda Alvarez

The 42 indicators KEYS tracks fall into four broad areas of school culture and operations: creating a culture of reflection and collaborative inquiry; making important decisions together; making continuous improvement second nature; and building partnerships and community support.

“Research shows these characteristics are present in high-performing schools and are needed in struggling ones,” said TUSD Superintendent Dr. John Pedicone. “This is a phenomenal opportunity for Howenstine and TUSD. We’re excited about the possibilities of PSC in Tucson and appreciate the value it brings, especially in these tough economic times.

The survey will be open to the public on the school’s website, www.howenstinehawks.com, until January 6, 2012.

Acknowledging it has struggled in the past, but with PSC support and recent appreciable gains on state assessments, Howenstine Principal Maritza Nunez pointed out the future looked promising. She urged Tucson parents to take a closer look at the school.

“Open enrollment continues until December 13th and if you think your child could benefit from smaller class sizes, qualified, caring, committed teachers and education support professionals, and a curriculum that connects students to the real world—our doors are open.”

Listen to AEA President Andrew Morrill talk about priority schools on KAWC.

Greg Mohammed, also known as “Mr. Moe,” is the kind of teacher who always has students surrounding him or sitting outside his classroom just to say hello. He’s the kind of teacher serious enough to motivate kids in his science class, but playful enough to craft a giant, wooden hall pass the size of a butcher block — the only one he hasn’t lost. And he’s the kind of teacher who gets emotional when he talks about the dedication he and his fellow teachers have for the kids at Glendale Middle School in Salt Lake City, Utah.

A student carries the hall pass in Mr. Moe's classroom (pictured in background). Photo: Julie Shipman

“It’s incredibly touching to me that so many of our teachers have said they’d gladly give up a bonus if it would go to the kids,” he says.

At Glendale, a target site of NEA’s Priority Schools Campaign, the teachers are taking the lead in transforming the educational experience for students at one of Salt Lake’s consistently low performing schools. Most of the students live in poverty, and many have enormous challenges in their home lives to overcome. But the students are resilient, the staff has faith in their abilities, and after making some major changes at the school, they’re seeing signs of growth. The school made Annual Yearly Progress last academic year, and is on track to do it again this year.

Glendale won a three-year federal School Improvement Grant with a faculty-approved plan that boosts the rigor of curriculum, extends class time, fosters parental engagement and community partnerships, and increases teacher development – all with staff input and collaboration between the faculty, administration and district.

“It happened quickly, but the faculty has really gotten on board with the grant,” says Susan McFarland, president of the Salt Lake Teachers Association. “There were a few initial struggles, but with the help of the Priority Schools Campaign, now we’re really moving forward.”

To kick start the process, the staff and administration attended a series of trainings and workshops, including a C.A.R.E. (Culture, Abilities, Resilience and Effort) workshop led by Priority Schools Campaign staff, which offered educators proven strategies to raise achievement at low-income schools with high ELL populations. The faculty, administration and district also participated in training on communicating their renewed sense of purpose and drive toward success.

Educators Making Decisions Together

As part of the communications training, teachers came up with “dream headlines” for the collaboration taking place to transform Glendale. The winner: “Together We Can Make Clear and Effective Decisions for Our Schools.”

Already, they’ve made several effective decisions, and the school day at Glendale looks a lot different than it did a couple of years ago.

Glendale Middle School students in science class. Photo: Julie Shipman

The academic year has been extended by 12 days and 55 minutes have been added to each school day. Students now attend two periods of math and two periods of Language Arts. There are Extended Learning Program classes, where academically gifted students are offered a chance to expand their knowledge. There’s also a Newcomers Class for kids new to the country, or even to school. Salt Lake City has a huge refugee population, and many of the new students had never attended a day of school in their lives before arriving at Glendale.

Glendale also offers the AVID (Achievement Via Individual Determination) program, which targets kids in the “middle” who have the ability to go on to college but who need extra support and encouragement. Also in place at Glendale: a continuous in-school academic support program, which prepares students for college eligibility and success, as well as intensive supports and additional class time for English learners, who make up nearly half the student body.

“Given their language barriers, these kids are doing fantastically well,” says Jeff Sorenson, who used to teach the newcomers class but now is the AVID program leader. “These kids have challenges. They go home to an empty house, they don’t have the support a lot of other kids get, but they are great kids, and we’re all so proud of them.”

Sorrenson tries not to get discouraged by the negative media attention heaped on teachers over the past year. He knows that he and his colleagues at other low-income, struggling schools are leading the profession in transforming student outcomes, despite what the headlines say.

“There’s a real backlash out there, as if we’re not doing our jobs and are just sitting around drinking lemonade,” he says. “But the teachers at Glendale are here because we really want to be. We haven’t had an increase in years, but we’re dedicated to what we’re doing and are working in overdrive to serve the needs of all different kinds of students.”

What the headlines don’t capture is what many of these students are up against and why they might not perform so well on test day, or any day, for that matter.

In Mr. Moe’s class, one student made it to school, but was unfocused. When Mr. Moe asked him why, the student said his brother had been killed in prison the night before.  On another day, a student’s father had been locked up. Then there was the time a child’s mother died of a drug overdose. Yet they all made it to school and to Mr. Moe’s class.

“How well do you think you’d perform academically under those circumstances,” Mr. Moe asks. “It’s a real wake up call to the middle class.”

Students at Glendale Middle School. Photo: Julie Shipman

Teach the Students, Not Just the Subject

Sometimes the kids get down on themselves and think the obstacles might be too large to overcome, but Mr. Moe reminds them that he came from a poor background, too, and even though he might not have been the smartest kid in school, he was one of the hardest working.

“I remind them that hard work is what matters most,” he says.

Mr. Moe says the humanness of the educational experience is why teachers come to Glendale. He says they come to Glendale to make a difference in children’s lives.

“We come here to teach the students, not just our subject,” he says.

Mr. Moe likens his students to the snowcapped mountains that ring the Salt Lake valley. After a while, he says people get used to them and take for granted the beauty they add to the world.

But he then he and a few colleagues play basketball with the kids after school. The assistant coach from the affluent high school across town also comes down to play and run drills with the kids, and he reminds Mr. Moe that his students, like the mountains, add beauty to the world.

Kids from countries that span the globe, who speak more than 30 different languages, come together to shoot hoops and run drills with each other. They’re grateful for the time with the teachers, and especially the assistant coach from one of the notorious varsity high school basketball teams.

“I can’t get half my kids to run drills at all,” the high school coach once told Mr. Moe. “But these kids don’t care who they run drills with, they’re just happy to be out there. And that’s a beautiful thing.”

We all know they can do it. We just want them to know it.

Like most cities, Salt Lake has a clear divide between the “have’s” and the “have not’s” – it’s even marked by the classic railroad track separating the affluent east side from the low-income west. Glendale is in the west, and some might say it’s therefore on “the wrong side” of the tracks.

What the educators at Glendale are working hard to do is convince the students that they’re not on the wrong side of anything.

Sarah Herron is the new library technology teacher at Glendale, and she’s been impressed by the commitment of the teachers to raising not only student achievement, but their belief in their abilities.

“They’re teaching the kids about respect for themselves and each other, and they’re putting in the extra hours and extra time to make the grant work because they know it will lead to these kids’ success,” she says. “We all know they can do it. We just want them to know it.”

Turns out, some of them just might know it already. Like Dakota, a 12-year-old who wants to be a TV anchorman or concert pianist when he grows up. “Last year I realized I wasn’t really doing the work I needed to, but my teachers helped me realize that I needed to do it for my future in TV,” he says.

Then there’s Darius, 13, who wants to be an attorney or a doctor. “With all the stuff we’ve been through, we’re still hanging on, and it’s because of our teachers,” he says. “The teachers encourage us, and make us want to work because they believe in us, so it sort of makes us believe it too.”

Educators and staff at many priority schools have seen their school ranked, labeled and listed on a recurring basis that’s rarely positive. Kit Carson Elementary School is no stranger to that trend.

The school is located in West Las Vegas, Nevada, the state with the highest home foreclosure rate in the country. With an unemployment rate around 14 percent, Las Vegas is among the worst cities to find a job. The Clark County School District, which includes Kit Carson, is the fifth largest in the nation, and among the poorest-performing. The school is on D Street, in an aging neighborhood that has been ranked one of America’s Top 10 most dangerous. Eighty-three percent of the students at Kit Carson qualify for free or reduced lunch.But these challenges haven’t prevented educators and staff at the school from standing strong in the community and leading their students to higher levels of success.

The school received its federal School Improvement Grant (SIG) in 2009 and adopted the turnaround model with the support of the Clark County Education Association (CCEA). One year after implementing the various requirements and programs associated with SIG, Kit Carson met Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) and demonstrated improvement in every subject area:

• 41 % more students met or exceeded writing standards
• 27 % more students met or exceeded science standards
• 19 % more students met or exceeded math standards
• 14 % more students met or exceeded reading standards

“The stereotypes are there,” said Kit Carson principal Cynthia Marlowe. “But once people come on campus, they get a feel for the students, the parents, and the teachers, then they have a different story.”

A School With Many Labels

Not all of Kit Carson’s labels are bad. The school is an Empowerment School, a magnet school, a SIG school, and an International Baccalaureate Candidate School.

The Clark County Education Association (CCEA) was instrumental in helping the Clark County School District secure SIG funding, through collaboration between district officials, school administrators and educators. “ We feel it’s important to have our voices in the school reform discussions as it’s occurring, not after it happens,” said Ruben Murillo, CCEA president.

The union’s work with the National Education Association’s Priority Schools Campaign has led to Kit Carson also being named an Intensive Support Site for the campaign, with additional resources being offered through NEA programs such as KEYS and ELL trainings. “The Clark County Education Association is involved with NEA’s Priority Schools Campaign because we see it as a bridge between the national, state and local associations,” said Murillo.

CCEA also initiated and bargained for the successful Empowerment School program, now involving 30 schools in the district. Empowerment Schools are designed to improve learning and student performance through increased autonomy and accountability, collaboration between teachers, administrators, students, families and community members, smaller class sizes, a longer school day and year, and more financial support.

Kit Carson became a magnet school this year, with an emphasis on college prep, creative arts and technology. The magnet designation has brought in students from other areas of the school district, expanding opportunities for all students in an area considered largely isolated by race and poverty.

While simultaneously fulfilling requirements for all these programs can be overwhelming at times, educators and staff tackle the challenge with their high-energy levels and positive attitudes.

“The teachers at Kit Carson believe in the school, they believe in the community and the parents,” said Marlowe. “I think that’s the big difference for us. We’re all working together towards one goal to not be that school that’s labeled as an at-risk school that’s failing.”

Professional Educators Making a Difference

Working in a priority school isn’t easy and there’s a lot of stress involved in helping transform a persistently low-achieving school in a bad economy.

“We’re taking on so many new programs right now,” said Pamela Muniz, a second grade teacher at the school. “All of those different elements have different requirements and different things that need to be posted in the classroom, so it’s been a challenge. We put a lot more into it than I ever have in my teaching career.”

The school day at Kit Carson is 49 minutes longer than the traditional day. Teachers meet weekly for structured planning time as well as for their professional learning communities. Staff participated in the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program authorized training in addition to dozens of hours spent in job-embedded professional development sessions.

“You have bring in your past experiences and then be flexible enough to make changes to fit the turnaround school requirements,” said Jonalene Ly, a first grade teacher at Kit Carson who joined the staff two years ago. “It’s a lot of work. We have tons of trainings, but as teachers we need to be more formal about our methods and curriculum.”

The curriculum goes beyond reading and math tests at Kit Carson. Students have the opportunity to learn Chinese, work with new technologies, explore carefully aligned social studies and science concepts, and use their creativity in art and music. With a mission to produce internationally minded life-long learners, staff at Kit Carson also focuses on teaching respect, empathy and the value of diversity.

“We’re moving towards a curriculum that’s inquiry based, which is student driven learning,” said Muniz. “They’re asking the questions, they’re coming to us with their wanderings, which I know from my past teaching experience is what really drives their learning.”

Many of the staff at Kit Carson not only lead their classrooms during the day, they lead the afterschool activities, ranging from tutoring and additional Chinese classes to martial arts and Zumba. It’s not unusual to see staff still working at 7 p.m. on any given school night.

“We are all very excited about making the students the best students they can be,” said fifth grade teacher Michael Lang. “We’ve set the blueprint for a great, great, great school here.”

Tackling the Poverty Factor

Part of being a great school is identifying the needs of the students and doing what it takes to help meet those needs. At a school like Kit Carson, those needs are often fundamental like food and healthcare.

To provide an environment in which students can learn comfortably, Kit Carson has an emergency food pantry, a school supply closet, and a closet with donated backpacks, shoes, and clothing items ranging from sweatshirts to underwear.

Every Friday, a weekend’s supply of food is left discretely outside classroom doors in backpacks for students in need to pick up. Because of the school’s culture of respect and empathy, nobody gets made fun of for picking up a backpack.

“It’s like a family,” said Elsa Flores, a parent of a Kit Carson student. “The teachers are asking what we need, what the kids need, and they help us with everything.”

Kit Carson has had success in recruiting community partners to help provide services for students and their families. Big Smiles dental company set up shop at the school and took x-rays, fixed fillings and cleaned teeth for students without dental insurance. A local ophthalmologist donates glasses to the students.

Lowes, Walmart and Victoria’s Secret all donate school supplies and clothing. The Three Square Food Bank donates food for the emergency food pantry.

This work is partly facilitated by the full time, on site coordinator from Communities in Schools, Brandon Irvin. He specializes in connecting families and students with community resources.

“Students can be thrown off track because of things that may be going on at home or things that are hampering them,” said Irvin. “They might be a student who has the same outfit to wear to school everyday. Providing them with extra clothes gives them more confidence and they won’t have to feel ashamed to come to school. It can go a long way.”

Getting Families Involved

Oneta Christian works closely with Irvin to help provide students and their families with resources to help them be better learners. She is the school’s project facilitator in the Parent Resource Center, a position funded by SIG, where any day of the week, from 7 AM to long after the school day ends, parents can be found helping out or learning themselves.

With Principal Marlowe and Christian first started at Kit Carson, family involvement at the school was low. So Christian made a point to stand on the sidewalk in the mornings and after school to greet parents and personally invite them to the Parent Resource Center.

Last year, 98 percent of the parents participated in parent/teacher conferences.

“The key is to make parents feel like it’s their school too, not just ours,” said Christian.

Parents of Kit Carson students work in the school's Parent Resource Center. Photo: Isaac Brekken

Now there are parents making copies for teachers, sharpening pencils, cutting out papers, as well as going into the classroom to help students with their reading, check papers, whatever the teachers need them to do.

Julia Ryan has a first grader and third grader at Kit Carson, and is the president of the Parent Committee. “The teachers are very involved,” said Ryan. “They are here above and beyond for these children, and it’s really exciting to see that. One of the reasons I put myself on the Parent Committee is because I see the dedication they have for our children and I want to be part of that.”

In addition to helping staff, parents can also take classes in the Parent Resource Center. Kit Carson offers adult ESL classes for family members afterschool, anger management classes, and computer classes. For the monthly parent meeting, Christian brings in outside agencies to share information with services they have available to help the families.

Through a partnership with the Las Vegas Urban League, the school hosts a Read and Rise class, where parents get information about child development and learn how to help their child read at home.

“Our program helps parents engage their children at home to make reading more fun, to motivate their kids to want to read and to help them get into a habit of reading every day,” said Charles Redmon, the Urban League partner at Kit Carson.

Through collaboration amongst the highly professional staff, the administrators, families and community partners, Kit Carson has become a bright spot in an area that desperately needed one.

“I really believe that Kit Carson is becoming a community hub in a sense,” said Muniz.

During an event Tuesday at Howenstine High Magnet School, the leaders will take—and then invite the public to take—an online survey aimed at gauging perception of the school.  The quick four-question survey is part of KEYS (KEYs to Excellence for Your Schools), a comprehensive school-based assessment and improvement system that gathers data for improving teaching and learning conditions. Community data will be coupled with survey results from parents, teachers, education support professionals and administrators for a picture of where Howenstine stands on some 42 indicators research shows exist at high-performing schools.

The survey will be open to the public at www.howenstinehawks.com throughout the holidays.

The nationally renowned-KEYS comes to Hownestine as part of the National Education Association’s (NEA) Priority Schools Campaign (PSC), an effort that leverages the resources of the 3.2 million-member NEA to complement transformation efforts at struggling schools receiving federal School Improvement Grants (SIG). At Howenstine, PSC works with and through the Arizona Education Association (AEA) and the Tucson Education Association (TEA) to deliver on-site, on-line and on-paper technical assistance in the areas of teacher and staff quality and effectiveness, labor-management collaboration, school culture and family and community engagement.

Similar school reform support traditionally can be a big-ticket expense for already revenue-strapped districts.  Thanks to PSC—which comes at no cost to the Tucson Unified School District—an estimated $2.2 million in SIG funding for transforming Howenstine can go even further.

WHO:  Mayor-elect Jonathan Rothschild

Office of TUSD Superintendent John Pedicone

Howenstine Principal Maritza Nunez

TEA President Frances Banales

AEA President Andrew Morrill

Michael McDonald, executive director, Habitat for Humanity Tucson

Howenstine graduates

WHAT:  Media event in which local leaders will take—and invite the public to take—a four-question online survey aimed at gauging the community’s perception of Howenstine Magnet High School.

Former and current Howenstine students will lead tours and talk about how this Tucson gem has made a difference in their lives and the community in which they live and learn.

WHEN:  Tuesday, December 6, 2011, 3:30 – 4 p.m.  Student-led tour immediately after press event.

 WHERE: Howenstine High Magnet School

555 South Tucson Blvd.

Tucson, Arizona 85716

(520) 232-7300

WHY:  At the core of NEA’s Priority Schools Campaign is recognition that shared responsibility and collaborative effort are the keys to students reaching their potential. For our schools and students to thrive, we are all—teachers, parents, students, the community and elected officials—accountable and responsible for fulfilling the promise of public education

For more information on NEA’s Priority Schools Campaign, click here

Follow us on twitter at www.twitter.com/NEAMedia

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The Tucson Education Association is the largest local professional organization in Tucson and promotes quality public education and every student’s basic right to a great public school. The Arizona Education Association—with over 34,000 members—is the largest professional organizational in the state.

The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing 3.2 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support professionals, school administrators, retired educators and students preparing to become teachers.