independent, public-private partnership that develops and funds school programs, professional development and leadership institutes to promote higher academic achievement by all students. Established in January 1997 with funding from the Annenberg Foundation and local matching contributions, The Houston A+ Challenge is an S P R I N G 2 0 0 4 V O L U M E 1 3 Academy Grad . . . continued on page 7 A P U B L I C A T I O N O F T H E H O U S T O N A + C H A L L E N G E
hen he was young, Houston ISD Northwest District Superintendent Joe Nuber didn’t care much for school. “I hated school,” says Nuber. “I thought it was tedious and boring.” He disliked it so much, initially decided against college. Fortunately for the principals, teachers, parents and more than 21,000 students in his district, this Houston A+ Challenge New Visions in Leadership Academy grad changed his mind. At the age of 25, he enrolled in St. Francis University in Pennsylvania as a psychology major and soon found an opportunity to serve as a volunteer tutor at the local parish school. “I enjoyed tutoring so much, I decided to become a teacher.” After graduation, Nuber began his career as a middle school teacher at a series of private schools in Pennsylvania and Florida before moving to Texas in 1982. Once in Texas, Nuber continued to work at the middle school level, teaching math in Galena Park, Alief and Houston ISDs. It was during his time at Marshall and Lanier middle schools that colleagues began to encourage Nuber to think about moving from the classroom to an administrative role. “Other people, including Kaye Stripling who was principal at Pershing Middle School at the time, saw skills in me and encouraged me to make the move.” Nuber completed his master’s degree at the University of Houston and moved from serving as magnet coordinator for Windsor Village Elementary School to assistant principal for instruction at Johnston Middle School. He served in this capacity for three years before becoming principal of the school. Ironically, it was Nuber’s own negative experience in school that drove him to look for techniques new and different to make the learning experience fun and exciting for his own students and teachers. In his search, In his search, Nuber heard about the Lamplighter School grants available from Houston A+ Challenge (formerly Houston Annenberg Challenge). Nuber and his team at Johnston (including Linda Balkan, who is the current principal at Johnston and also is a Leadership Academy graduate) were selected to receive a grant in 1998. “I heard about Critical Friends Group at a national conference and made sure it was part of our application,” said Nuber. “I could tell it was going to be an important piece of our work.” Critical Friends Group is a series of protocols to help teachers work together to identify ways to improve student achievement. As Nuber and his staff began to embrace CFG and other Annenberg principles, he heard about the New Visions in Leadership Academy. “I liked what I saw at Annenberg. I could see that the things they were teaching really worked. I knew I wanted to learn all I could about what they were doing.” Nuber applied and was accepted into the Leadership Academy’s inaugural class of John P. McGovern, M.D. Fellows in June 2000. “The thing I enjoyed most about Leadership Academy was the chance to work with principals from different districts. We all have different backgrounds and different schools but many of the challenges we face are very similar. I found the time to brainstorm and collaborate on solutions was very helpful. “I also liked the fact that even though we were working as a group, we still set individual goals,” he says. “There was a very strong sense of support, and it was an excellent environment to learn new skills.” Wo rks SCHOOL SPRING 2004 VOLUME 13 Established in January 1997 with funding from the Annenberg Foundation and local matching contributions, The Houston A+ Challenge is an independent, public-private partnership that develops and funds school programs, professional development and leadership institutes to promote higher academic achievement by all students. A PUBLICATION OF THE HOUSTON A + CHALLENGE Leadership Academy Grad Takes Work to a New Level Standing left to right are Ray Morgan, District Director; Susan Pansmith, Special Education Director; Rosie Shellenberg, District Director; Seated left to right are Patsy Cavazos, District Director; Joe Nuber, District Superintendent; Maureen Huff, District Director. Academy Grad . . . continued on page 7 W
Transcript
hen he was young, Houston ISD Northwest DistrictSuperintendent Joe Nuber didn’t care much for school.
“I hated school,” says Nuber. “I thought it was tedious and boring.”He disliked it so much, initially decided against college.
Fortunately for the principals, teachers, parents and more than21,000 students in his district, this Houston A+ Challenge New Visions in Leadership Academy grad changed his mind.
At the age of 25, he enrolled in St. Francis University inPennsylvania as a psychology major and soon found an opportunity toserve as a volunteer tutor at the local parish school. “I enjoyedtutoring so much, I decided to become a teacher.”
After graduation, Nuber began hiscareer as a middle school teacher at aseries of private schools inPennsylvania and Florida beforemoving to Texas in 1982. Once inTexas, Nuber continued to work atthe middle school level, teachingmath in Galena Park, Alief andHouston ISDs.
It was during his time at Marshalland Lanier middle schools thatcolleagues began to encourage Nuberto think about moving from theclassroom to an administrative role.“Other people, including KayeStripling who was principal atPershing Middle School at the time, saw skills in me and encouragedme to make the move.”
Nuber completed his master’s degree at the University of Houstonand moved from serving as magnet coordinator for Windsor VillageElementary School to assistant principal for instruction at JohnstonMiddle School. He served in this capacity for three years beforebecoming principal of the school.
Ironically, it was Nuber’s own negative experience in school that
drove him to look for techniques new and different to make thelearning experience fun and exciting for his own students and teachers.In his search, In his search, Nuber heard about the Lamplighter Schoolgrants available from Houston A+ Challenge (formerly HoustonAnnenberg Challenge). Nuber and his team at Johnston (includingLinda Balkan, who is the current principal at Johnston and also is aLeadership Academy graduate) were selected to receive a grant in 1998.“I heard about Critical Friends Group at a national conference and madesure it was part of our application,” said Nuber. “I could tell it wasgoing to be an important piece of our work.” Critical Friends Group is a series of protocols to help teachers work together to identify ways to
improve student achievement.As Nuber and his staff began to
embrace CFG and other Annenbergprinciples, he heard about the NewVisions in Leadership Academy. “Iliked what I saw at Annenberg. Icould see that the things they wereteaching really worked. I knew Iwanted to learn all I could aboutwhat they were doing.”
Nuber applied and was acceptedinto the Leadership Academy’sinaugural class of John P.McGovern, M.D. Fellows in June2000. “The thing I enjoyed mostabout Leadership Academy was the
chance to work with principals from different districts. We all havedifferent backgrounds and different schools but many of the challengeswe face are very similar. I found the time to brainstorm andcollaborate on solutions was very helpful.
“I also liked the fact that even though we were working as a group,we still set individual goals,” he says. “There was a very strong senseof support, and it was an excellent environment to learn new skills.”
WorksSCHOOL
S P R I N G 2 0 0 4 V O L U M E 1 3
Established in January 1997 with funding from the Annenberg Foundation and local matching contributions, The Houston A+ Challenge is anindependent, public-private partnership that develops and funds school programs, professional development and leadership institutes to promotehigher academic achievement by all students.
A P U B L I C A T I O N O F T H E H O U S T O N A + C H A L L E N G E
Leadership Academy Grad Takes Work to a New Level
Standing left to right are Ray Morgan, District Director; Susan Pansmith, Special EducationDirector; Rosie Shellenberg, District Director; Seated left to right are Patsy Cavazos, District Director; Joe Nuber, District Superintendent; Maureen Huff, District Director.
Academy Grad . . . continued on page 7
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recent article by Dr. Jean Yonemura Wing made methink of Houston. In “Small Schools—We Can’t
Afford the Alternative,” Dr. Wing examines the experience of seven small schools that recently opened in theOakland (Calif.) Unified School District and concludes that they make more sense financially than traditionallarge schools. After only two years of functioning, the pilot demonstrated the reasons why small schools are aseconomically viable as they are educationally sound.
When costs are measured in terms of money spent per graduate rather than per student, small schools havelower costs than large schools because they have higher graduation rates. Small schools save on managementbecause their scale and simpler organization requires less administrative staff. A lower teacher turnover saves
money that otherwise would be spent on teacher replacement. Small schools cost less to build, experience lessvandalism and violence, and need fewer security officers and less facility repair than large schools. By preventing student dropout,they eliminate future expenses in the forms of prisons and public assistance and save taxpayer dollars in the long term. We can learnfrom the experience of Oakland educators not only that small schools are affordable and cost-effective but also “that we can’t affordnot to create more of them.”
At Houston A+ Challenge, we are working with Houston ISD to open new, small schools. One, Challenge Early College HighSchool, opened in August 2003 on the campus of Houston Community College Southwest. Students take all advanced placementcourses and can graduate in five years with not only a high school diploma but a two-year college degree as well. Enrollment will becapped at 400 students. Planning is underway for the second small high school to open this fall. The third high school will open infall of 2005.
We also are working with the district to transition its 24 comprehensive high schools into small, theme-based academies withrigorous, real world, personalized instruction for students. Thirteen schools in three other school districts have received grants fromus as well to restructure into smaller entities.
But small is only the beginning. The type of teaching that goes on must move forward as well. Small creates a culture in a schoolthat fosters quality teaching that is hands-on, interactive, connected to the real world and relevant to students’ lives. This type ofteaching is better suited to imparting the skills and knowledge students need to succeed in today’s knowledge economy.
A recent column in the New York Times quotes Intel Chief Executive Craig Barrett as saying that India, China and Russiacombined have 300 million educated people, a figure larger than the entire U.S. workforce. “The big change today from what’shappened over the last 30 years is that it’s no longer just low-cost labor that you are looking at (in other countries),” said Barrett. “It’s well-educated labor that can do effectively any job that can be done in the United States.”
If schools do not change, we will be left behind.
he Houston A+ Challenge and Houston ISD recently receivedtwo new grants totaling more than $1 million.
Called Teachers as Historians--Teaching American History, the first grant, a three-year award from the U.S. Department of Education, was awarded to a Houston partnership composedof Houston A+ Challenge, Houston ISD, University of Houston,Rice University, Holocaust Museum, Houston Public Library,Clayton Library for Genealogy and The Museum of Fine Arts,Houston.
The approximately $1 million grant will be used to createsummer institutes to enrich content knowledge, to coordinateon-line resources at the partner institutions, to create web-basedreal-time seminars and to provide an annual colloquia forhistory professionals from the schools, universities and thecommunity. A recent study by the Thomas B. Fordham Instituteshowed that almost half of the states in the country flunked anevaluation of their history curriculum. The state of Texasreceived a “C” and ranked 15 in the study.
The Houston A+ Challenge also was selected as one of fivepartner sites to receive a $25,000 grant from MetLife for itsStudents as Allies project. Students as Allies is part of a nationalproject to include student voices in the redesign of urban highschools. Through the grant, Houston A+ Challenge will workwith partner schools:
� To promote discussions among students, teachers, principals and community partners
� To support student research in the areas of teaching and learning
� To bring the results of this research to a public forum and� To facilitate the development of student-teacher and adult-
youth partnerships.The schools participating in the grant are Bellaire, Chavez,
Furr, Lee, Madison, Reagan, and Scarborough. In the spring,each of these schools formed project teams composed primarilyof students. These teams read “Fires in the Bathroom: Advicefor Teachers from High School Students” and then conducted a
Linda Clarke
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THouston A+ Challenge and Houston ISD Receive New Grants
From the Director
New Grants . . . continued on next page
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he Houston A+ Challenge K-5 FineArts Initiative has awarded $1.25
million in grants to five elementaryschools in four districts for a five-yearinitiative to integrate fine arts into theteaching of core subjects such as math,science and language arts.
The schools, each of which will receive$50,000 a year for five years contingent onprogress, are:
� Gregory-Lincoln Education Center (Houston ISD)
� Neff Elementary (Houston ISD)� Pine Forest Elementary (Humble ISD)� Pine Shadows Elementary
(Spring Branch ISD)� Aldine Academy (Aldine ISD)At Pine Forest Elementary, Young
Audiences and The Museum of Fine Arts,Houston provided training at the start ofthe school year in all four areas of the fine arts. “This was a great way for us to introduce methods of arts infusion,”said Stacia Gower, the school’s grantcoordinator. “I have noticed a realenthusiastic response from our faculty anda desire to branch out and incorporatehands-on learning into their classroomcurriculum. Daily, existing new approach-es are popping up and being shared.”
The schools were selected by a team of12 outside reviewers with art andeducation backgrounds who reviewed andscored grant applications from 21 schools.Each school was required to put together aLeadership Team to apply for the grant.
The team consists of:� Two teachers from at least two of
the fine arts disciplines (drama, music, art, dance)
� At least one non-fine arts teacher � School principal � One other administrator� An external arts partnerThe team will lead the school as it
works to meet the Guiding Principles ofthe initiative:
� Restructuring to feature fine artsprominently in teaching and learningacross the whole school both as distinctdisciplines (such as music, theatre, visualarts, and dance) and as processes infusedinto other subject areas through anintegrated arts curriculum.
� Making fine arts available to allstudents, regardless of educationalplacement, and tailored to students’ needsand interests.
� Participating in staff development,such as Critical Friends Group trainingfrom Houston A+ Challenge, to broadenthe capabilities of teachers, arts specialistsand artists in such diverse roles asinstructor, coach and mentor.
� Changing structure and/ororganization to improve teaching andlearning. For example, schools can put inplace flexible schedules that allow forimmersion into learning or use existingstaff in new ways.
Each school will be evaluated annuallyfor progress toward this arts-integrated
model of teaching based on the HoustonA+ Challenge Peer Review AccountabilityProcess. The schools also will apply thelessons learned and the best practices thatemerged from creation of BethuneAcademy, a Houston A+ Challenge Beaconschool in Aldine ISD in the Acres Homecommunity. Started seven years ago,Bethune Academy for Mathematics,Science and Fine Arts is nationallyrecognized as a highly successful magnetschool for its accomplishments ininnovative program design and academicachievement.
Teachers also will receive professionaldevelpment from MFAH called Learningthrough Art or LTA. LTA is a multi-disciplinary resource curriculum forgrades 1 through 6 that integrates worksof art from the MFAH collection into aschool’s curriculum for art, language arts,math, science and social studies.
Research shows that students engaged inthe arts are more motivated to learn, learnmore easily and do better in school. Inaddition, students in a quality fine artseducation program acquire basic skills inkinesthetic, musical, spatial and visualintelligence. According to the SCANS2000 Report (The U.S. Secretary of Labor’sCommission on Achieving NecessarySkills), students who learn the rigors ofplanning and production in the fine artswill be valuable employees in the ideadriven workplace of the future.
Houston A+ Challenge Awards Grants in K-5 Fine Arts Initiative
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research project with their classmates and students usingsurvey questions developed by the MetLife Foundation as wellas their own teams.
In November, the schools hosted a local “Students as Allies”Youth Summit. At the summit, the school teams presentedfindings of their research to other students, parents,administrators and community advocates. The summit wasstructured to allow focused discussion on ways to improveschools based on the research and also will be the starting pointfor an action plan.
“We believe that being a partner in the MetLife grant blendswith our goals to form collaborative networks among schools,parents and the local business community to improve studentlearning,” said Linda Clarke, executive director of The HoustonA+ Challenge. “This grant will enable students, teachers, youthand adults to form working partnerships, thus creating aculture of respect and trust.”
Survey results show that students, for the first time, say thatthey believe they have a voice that will make a difference in the
restructuring of their schools. Survey results also show thatmost students in HISD believe their schools to be safe; thatstudents like most of their teachers and believe them to be notonly competent but their key advisors for both academic andpersonal problems; and that most students are serious aboutacademic success.
Participating teachers include Diane Morrow; Brian Wolf,Angela Borzon, Charlotte Burton, Tina Angelo, ChristiniaWehde-Roddiger, Debbie Deittrick, and Melinda Dominy.Nancy Votteler, Greater Houston Area Writing Project(GHAWP)co-director, is coordinating the project. Kit Chiu isthe technical director, and Dr. Nolie Mayo is the surveysupervisor/advisor. Daphne Dowdy-Jackson from the UHmedia services will conduct the final overview of the data withthe students. GWAHP is an affiliate of the National WritingProject under the direction of Dr. Margaret Hill.
The Houston project is sponsored by The Houston A+Challenge, GWAHP at University of Houston-Clear Lake andHouston ISD.
New Grants . . . continued from previous page
hirteen high school campuses fromthree area school districts have been
selected to begin a high school redesigninitiative with The Houston A+Challenge. The 21st Century HighSchool Redesign Grant Program awardsup to $100,000 per year per schooldistrict for up to five years contingent on progress.
The new program is an outgrowth ofthe Houston A+ Challenge’s work to re-design area high schools, which began in1999. After a successful pilot at ReaganHigh School in Houston ISD, HoustonA+ teamed up with the district to re-design its 24 large comprehensive highschools. Called Houston Schools for aNew Society, the Houston ISD work isfunded in part by grants from CarnegieCorporation of New York, the Bill &Melinda Gates Foundation, the Annen-berg Foundation and Brown Foundation.
“A tidal wave of change has swept overour economy and is now knocking atour high school doors, demanding bettereducated workers,” said Linda Clarke,executive director of Houston A+Challenge. “In the last three years alone,three million U.S. jobs have movedoverseas.
“If we are to give all our children ashot at a job with a decent, livable wage,we must remake our high schools. Theold model of huge high schools wherestudents sit in rows and take notes whilethe teacher lectures is obsolete.”
Alief ISD is one of the districts thatrecently joined the initiative. “We feelfortunate in Alief to be able to participatein the Houston A+ Challenge project,”says Joyce Eddings, the district’s assistantsuperintendent for secondary education.“This opportunity could not have comeat a better time. We had begun seekingways to address the needs of ourstudents because the number of ‘at risk’students was growing and we werecertain that our current systems were noteffective in addressing the ever-changingneeds of our students.”
The redesign initiatives work topersonalize the learning environment forstudents by creating several small,theme-based academies with rigorous,hands-on instruction inside each largehigh school. Research has shown thatsmaller learning communities withpersonalized instruction for each studentresult in increased student achievementand reduced dropout rates.
In the new initiative, Houston A+asked school district officials to selectone or more campuses to apply forfunding. Schools then submitted a grantproposal to Houston A+ that addressedhow their school or group of schoolswould implement each of the sevenprinciples guiding the redesign work:
� Set clear, fair and high academicand conduct expectations for allstudents.
� Personalize the school by creatingsmall units with an ideal size of 300students and by providing a personaladult advocate for each student.
� Create a coherent approach toredesign by using project-based learning,portfolios and exhibitions; connectingstudent learning to real-worldexperiences; and using a variety ofinstructional strategies for differentlearning styles.
� Make the most of time andresources by implementing a flexible
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his summer, seven teachers fromHouston ISD’s Reagan High School
spent one week working side by sidewith a specialist in their field from thecorporate world. The program, calledTeacher Externships, is a pilot project ofHouston Schools for a New Society.
The idea behind the program is forbusiness and education to meet, work,discuss and learn from each other waysthat teachers could help preparestudents for the workforce, as well asways that business could become awareof what teachers are doing in today’shigh schools. It was developed andfunded by the generous collaborationand support of Coca-Cola, ApacheCorp., Wells Fargo Bank, TexasChildren’s Hospital, Sterling Bank,
The Hobby Center and The Museum ofFine Arts, Houston.
Teachers reported that the experiencestrengthened their instructional
practice. They came back to school anddeveloped lesson plans for theirclassrooms that allowed them to relateto their students how what they werelearning is used in real life.
The experience “made me proud to bea teacher,” said Andy Gibson, whoexterned at Apache Corp. “The respectthat was given me and my job at Apachewas outstanding. I was energized tocontinue teaching.”
Teacher Shannon McSorley said sheoften wondered how the Algebra shetaught was used in the real world anddiscovered multiple uses at TexasChildren’s Hospital. She now usesexamples from her externship in herteaching.
Thirteen High School Campuses Begin Redesign Initiative
Reagan Teachers Participate in Summer Externship Program
Tom Paulson, manager of Wells Fargo’s Houston Centralstore at 1000 Louisiana, and personal banker VivianCalderon show Reagan High School teachers MaraGreenberg and Dave Messina how concepts in thefinance and business computer information systemsclasses they teach apply in the business world. Externs . . . continued on next page
Thirteen . . . continued on page 6
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Summer Science Internships Expand; Exciting Changes Planned for 2004fter a successful launch in 2002, TheHouston A+ Challenge’s Summer
Science Internship Program expandedfrom two to three high schools in 2003and resulted in a year-round partnershipbetween the schools and the BaylorCollege of Medicine to improve thequality of science education.
The program strengthens scienceteachers’ knowledge of the subject theyteach, while giving students real-worldexperience and a glimpse of the practical
applications of the theories they learn inclass. Teachers also become linked to thelarger science community, affording themaccess to a wider variety of resources.Research shows that students who learnthrough hands-on, real world experienceretain more of what they study.
“The student-teacher teams arementored by Baylor graduate students,who share their passion for science whilegaining academic experience as futureresearch investigators,” said ScottBasinger, Ph.D., Principal Investigator forthe Discovery Lab and Assistant Dean forExtramural Affairs for Baylor’s GraduateSchool of Biomedical Sciences. “Thehigh school teachers become authoritiesin scientific research and are re-energizedfor the year ahead.”
The program, which was co-developedby The Houston A+ Challenge and BaylorCollege of Medicine, was funded for thefirst two years by the A+ Challenge.Baylor College of Medicine will fund theprogram this year with a grant from theNational Institutes of Health.
In the program, student-teacher duosparticipate in a paid six-week internshipat Baylor. Last summer, teams fromWashington and Scarborough highschools joined teams from Waltrip highschool to work on long-term research
projects side-by-side with professionalresearchers, who seemed amazed at thedrive and dedication exhibited by theschool teams.
“Both the student and teacher showedgreat interest in the research and workedvery hard,” wrote one researcher on theprogram’s evaluation. “They had notrouble working with the rest of ourresearch team, and because of theircontribution, we were able to finish ourresearch objectives for this month aheadof schedule,”
Said another, “This is a great program,both for the student and teacher wholearned a lot about science outside of the classroom. It was also a great learningexperience for me in terms of being a mentor.”
The program exemplifies the type ofoutside-the-classroom experience that iscrucial for preparing high school studentstoday for success in college and theworkplace, said Linda Clarke, executivedirector of The Houston A+ Challenge.“We are working with a number of schooldistricts to revamp how teaching andlearning occurs in high school by addinghands-on, interactive, real worldexperiences like this for students.”
At the conclusion of the summer,representatives from the schools, thenorthwest district of Houston ISD,Houston A+ and Baylor sat down tobrainstorm ways to make the programeven more effective. Many of theirsuggestions are already beingimplemented from providing additionalcontent-based professional developmentfor all of the northwest district’s scienceteachers to donating laboratoryequipment to the schools and providing
training for its use.The group also has worked to bring
Baylor’s Discovery Lab to the high schoolsfor hands-on learning while working toco-develop science lessons based on realworld research projects. And, many ofthe student-teacher teams now haveongoing relationships with their mentorsat Baylor. One student, Josh Lopez, waseven asked to come back and complete the section of research on which he wasworking. Preliminary results indicate theresearch may be suitable to submit to ascientific journal for publication.
Scarborough science teacher RaphaelRosales, who was paired with Josh duringthe internship, summed up theexperience this way: “You can’t beat reallife science in a real life lab. This is stuff Iguarantee you that 90 percent of scienceteachers have never done.”
Washington High School: TeacherAngela Barnwell with student AshleyBerard. Teacher Carona Burns withstudent Shaquita Ash.
Scarborough High School: TeacherAnnette Garcia-Thompson withstudent Jill Wagner. Teacher RafaelRosales with student Jose Lopez.
Waltrip High School: Teacher JamieNichols with student Jacob Pachel.
Baylor College of Medicine:Researchers Olga Cabello, WadeHaaland, Dan Plas, Imtiaz Yakub andFuli Yu served as mentors for thestudent-teacher teams.
2003 Summer Science Participants
Corporate employees reported thatthey had a better understanding of howthey could partner with a school toimprove student achievement and turnout students with the knowledge andskills needed for tomorrow’s jobs.
“We wanted to participate in theteacher externship program because weappreciate our teachers and we want tosupport them in any way we can,” saidGlenn Godkin, regional president forWells Fargo in Houston. “We thought
this program would help give teacherssome ‘real world’ experience they couldshare with students. What we found wasthat the opportunity to exchange ideasand make new connections was valuablefor us, too.”
Plans call for this successful pilot to beexpanded in the summer of 2004 toinclude 50 teachers from Reagan andthree additional high schools.Companies interested in participatingmay contact Houston A+ Challenge at713-658-1881.
Externs . . . cont. from previous page
ASummer Science Internships Expand; Exciting Changes Planned for 2004
hen Houston ISD opened its doorsfor the 2003-2004 school year,
approximately 90 students enrolled in anew small public high school where theywill graduate in five years with both ahigh school diploma and a HoustonCommunity College associate’s degree.The only one of its kind in Texas,Challenge Early College High School isthe brainchild of Houston ISD, HoustonCommunity College (HCC) and The Houston A+ Challenge.
“Research has shown that thetransformation of high schools fromlarge schools to smaller learningcommunities has a tremendous impacton improving student achievement andincreasing the graduation rate,” saidLinda Clarke, executive director of TheHouston A+ Challenge. “ChallengeEarly College High School is anotherpiece of Houston’s ongoing efforts totransform the high school learningexperience for all students.”
Located on the HCC campus at 5601West Loop, Challenge Early Collegeoffers personalized instruction for eachstudent. It provides an accelerated,college preparatory learning program,allowing students to combine highschool and college-level classes tuitionfree. (The traditional process takes sixyears, four years of “free” public highschool and two years of college classesfor which one has to pay.)
The first students are in ninth andtenth grade. The campus will add agrade level for the next three years,eventually educating 400 students ingrades 9-13.
Abuchi Nwankwo, a student in thenew school, told HISD News Today thathe chose the Challenge Early CollegeHigh School because of its personableenvironment. “If you are in a really bigschool, teachers might forget about you,and they might not pay so muchattention to you. You might not be able to learn much. But in a smallerschool, teachers will pay more attentionto you, and you will get to knoweverybody there.”
In this new model of schooling,students will be given more time whenneeded to finish a course. They willbegin taking HCC courses as soon asthey finish the prerequisite high schoollevel material. Students will beencouraged to continue their studies andtransfer to upper level institutions.
The school is a key part of HoustonISD’s overall strategy to increase the highschool graduation rate. The Houston ISDBoard of Trustees in June set a goal ofgraduating 85 percent of all high schoolstudents by 2007.
“Our research shows that studentsdrop out of school because they arebored or don’t think material learned inhigh school applies to real life,” saidClarke. “Challenge Early College
addresses both of those issues.”In addition, the school will help meet
the state’s twin higher education goals ofmaking college prep curriculum thenorm in high schools and enrolling500,000 more students in two or fouryear institutions by 2015. Accordingto the Texas Education Agency, only
40 percent of the state’s graduating class of 200,000 in 1999 had completedcollege preparatory courses, and thatfigure is expected to have dropped in the 2000 class.
For information on the admissionsprocess, Houston ISD-zoned studentsmay contact Dr. Anne McClellan,principal, or Justin Fuentes, dean ofstudents, at 713-662-2142 or at emailaddress [email protected].
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New Small Public High School Offers Diploma and Associate’s Degree
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allocation of resources and allowingcommon planning for teachers with theircolleagues.
� Integrate technology into theteaching and learning process, includingthe creation of web-based systems todisplay curriculum, grades andattendance reports and to provideaccessible internal and externalcommunication systems.
� Support ongoing professionaldevelopment by implementing whole-school learning communities; developingrelationships with businesses andcommunity groups to build real-worldexperience for staff; and buildingrelationships with higher education toimprove student performance.
� Take active role in developingleadership opportunities by giving keystakeholders input into decision making,establishing development for principalsaround leading and managing changeand ensuring support for the redesign ofschools at the district level.
The schools will be evaluated at theend of each year to see whether they metthe goals and objectives they set for
themselves in their grant requests. Alsoincluded in the evaluation will be areview of quantitative data such as theTexas Assessment of Knowledge andSkills and a peer review.
Thirteen . . . cont. from page 4
Alief ISDElsik 9th gradeElsik High SchoolHastings 9th gradeHastings High SchoolTaylor High School
Humble ISDHumble 9th gradeHumble High SchoolKingwood 9th gradeKingwood High School
Spring Branch ISDMemorial High SchoolNorthbrook High SchoolSpring Woods High SchoolStratford High School
LIST OF SCHOOLS
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One of the most helpful tools from his time at LeadershipAcademy was the ability to use CFG protocols on a higher level, aswell as refining his ability to facilitate. “I would say that facilitatingskills are one of the most helpful things I learned at LeadershipAcademy. I use them in meetings with my principals, and I teachthem how to use them in meetings with their teachers.”
Nuber had an opportunity to use his skills on a broader level whenhe was promoted to Northwest District superintendent the followingyear. One of his first decisions was to apply many of the principleshe had learned through his work with the Houston A+ Challenge tohis work in the Northwest District.
He held a district wide visioning retreat last year. Principals,teachers, staff, parents, agencies, community partners and districtleaders were invited to participate in the three-day retreat, which wasco-developed by The Houston A+ Challenge and AmericanLeadership Forum. At the time, the Northwest District had 17schools. A reorganization last year added 16 schools to the district,bringing the total number of students served to about 21,700.
“We focused on where we’d been, where we are now and wherewe’d like to go,” said Nuber. “We found that all of the schools in ourdistrict had two overarching goals: to help students achieve and tomold them into positive, effective students. We also found that everyschool needed to choose their own path to accomplish these goals.”
From the retreat, each school created an individual vision for theircampus. Nuber’s job then became to provide the principals with thetools they needed to make it all happen. “We’ve spent the last yearmaking sure they have the tools they need to get where they want togo,” says Nuber. “We spend time at our regular principal meetingslearning new protocols. I also meet with each principal regularly tomake sure they know that I am a resource they can turn to for help.”
As the schools work to plow new ground, progress is steady. “Oneof the accomplishments of which I am most proud is to see schoolsworking together,” says Nuber. “They are really focused on helpingeach other.”
Nuber also has added resources at a district level to help themaccomplish their goals. “We have regular school site visits that arevery similar to the (Houston A+ Challenge) Peer Review process,” hesays. In addition to the internal peer review, Nuber’s district was thefirst to ask for a district wide site visit by his peers in the RegionalDistrict Senior Fellows Network to examine data and visit fiveschools for feedback to him on quality teaching and learning withinthe district.
Other A+ Challenge tools, the Developing Math Ideas workshopsand high school redesign efforts, have taken added momentum in theNorthwest District with the addition of two former A+ Challengestaffers to head the respective efforts. In fact, all of the feederpatterns in the district community are involved in a pilot programwith Developing Math Ideas workshops, which have been very well-received, said Nuber.
“My responsibilities are pretty clear,” says Nuber. “I support,communicate with and evaluate the schools in my district. I am aresource they can use, and I try to ask questions that make them
really think through what is best. The opportunity I have tocontinue to participate with other Leadership Academy Fellows andwith superintendents in other districts provides ongoing support tohelp me do my job.”
Academy Grad . . . cont. from page 1
he New Visions in Leadership Academy has graduated itsthird class of John P. McGovern, M.D. Fellows. Since its
inception, more than 90 school leaders have graduated fromthe academy. The fellows complete one-year of intenseprofessional development around distributed leadership priorto their graduation and participate in a second year of focuseddiscussion on a specific plan for improving student success.
The Class of 2002 includes:
R. Scott Allen Lakeland Elementary SchoolLucy Anderson Houston Schools for a New SocietyRichard Barajas Milby High SchoolConnie Berger Lyons Elementary SchoolGarry Blasig Bastrop High SchoolLinda Boas Rucker Elementary SchoolGayle Carter Helms Community Learning CenterPaul Castro Westbriar Middle SchoolJennifer Day Helms Community Learning CenterMoses Diaz Chavez High SchoolAlexandra H. Everson Scarborough High SchoolChristopher Garcia Alief Learning CenterMaria Gardner Chavez High SchoolJune Hardeman Olle Middle SchoolPeter A. Heinze Sharpstown Middle SchoolJose L. Hernandez Olle Middle SchoolChristina Hopkins Bonner Elementary SchoolGloria Legington Madison High SchoolAnastasia Lindo Westside High SchoolCelestina Martinez Crespo Elementary SchoolLillie McIntyre Tinsley Elementary SchoolJan Mitchell Attucks Middle SchoolSusan Monaghan West University ElementaryNicole Moore Hogg Middle SchoolJocelyn Mouton The Rice SchoolDiana Mulet Davis High SchoolSue Page Gregory-Lincoln Education CenterPamela Sailors Piney Point Elementary SchoolCassandra Shaw Bellaire High SchoolDaryl Sherman John F. Kennedy Elementary SchoolAlan Summers Wainwright Elementary SchoolSuzanne Sutherland Pin Oak Middle SchoolJames Troutman Jaime Davila Elementary School
Fellows Complete Leadership Academy Training
T
MARCH 23 Regional High School Network Meeting23, 25 Critical Friends Group Coaches Clinic
25 District Leaders Retreat25 Critical Friends Group Superintendent Seminar
26-27 Tech Integration Seminar at Chavez High School27, 30 Critical Friends Group New Coach Seminar
APRIL 1,3 Critical Friends Group New Coach Seminar2 New Visions in Leadership Academy Class of 2004 application deadline6 New Visions in Leadership Academy Cohort Meeting7 Houston Schools for a New Society Network Meeting
13,15,17 Critical Friends Group New Coach Seminar20 Regional High School Network Meeting21 Critical Friends Group Superintendent Seminar
22-23 Cross City Campaign National Youth Summit
MAY 4 New Visions in Leadership Academy Cohort Meeting5 Houston Schools for a New Society Network Meeting6 District Leaders Retreat7 Champions of Active Learning grant application deadline
(Applications available at www.publiceducation.org/calhowtoapplyasp)19 Critical Friends Group Superintendent Seminar
JUNE 2 Houston Schools for a New Society Network Meeting7-11 Critical Friends Group Training in Texarkana
17-18 Houston Schools for a New Society Learning Retreat27-29 Fondren Reforming Schools Summer Institute
JULY 19-23 Critical Friends Group New Coach Seminar23-25 New Visions in Leadership Academy Summer Institute
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THE HOUSTON CHALLENGEf o r m e r l y T h e H o u s t o n A n n e n b e r g C h a l l e n g e
1415 Louisiana, Box 9 Houston, Texas 77002-7332
713-658-1881 fax 713-739-0166www.houstonaplus.org
SchoolWorks is published by: Houston A+ Challenge1415 Louisiana, Box 9 Houston, Tx 77002
713.658.1881 / 713.739.0166 (fax)
Executive Director: Linda ClarkeAssociate Director/Director of Programs: Michele Pola, Ed.D. Director of Public Affairs: Nan Powers Varoga
