2013-2014 Annual ReportSaint Paul Public Schools Community Education

In 2013-14...

ECFE staff provided 10,223 hours of service, a 17% increase over 2012-13.

Discovery Club staff provided child care for 2,181 Pre-Kindergarten through 5th graders before school, after school, on non-school days and during summer.

over 5,700 K-12 students participated in community projects and events, like Capitol Planting and River Walk Clean-Up.

at Como Planetarium, 8,768 children and families learned about space and toured the skies.

10,518 youth and families participated in both free and fee-based youth enrichment programs.

435 learners earned their GED and 85 attended a graduation ceremony.

in enrichment classes, 6,674 adults learned new skills, explored interests, and maintained wellbeing.

Adult Special Needs programs helped 823 adults build connections and community.

INVESTING in PEOPLEOur quality programs are led by 182 professional staff as well as hundreds of part-time employees, interns, volunteers and community educators. Professional staff gather annually for Community Ed. Day* and keep learning current in educational cohorts throughout the year. *Sponsored by the Community Education Citywide Advisory Council

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ACCESSIBLE PROGRAMS We offer cost-effective learning opportunities to the community by diversifying revenue sources and using fiscally responsible budget practices. Through grants and subsidy support, we are able to offer some programs to participants at little or no cost.

ExpensesFiscal Year 2013-14$21,131,545

RevenueFiscal Year 2013-14$23,162,063

EAST SIDE LEARNING HUBIn September 2013, we celebrated the grand opening of the East Side Learning Hub @ Harding (next to Harding High School in East Saint Paul) with 200 high school students, adult learners, community partners, District staff and leadership. Guests were met by Harding’s brass band and JROTC members as they entered this state-of-the-art facility to enjoy a ribbon cutting ceremony with Superintendent Valeria Silva. The development of this space was a collaboration between Community Education, Alternative Education, Harding High school, and many supportive community partners.

EAST SIDE PROSPERITY CAMPAIGNIn 2013-14, we co-sponsored several events with East Side businesses, non-profits, and the school community to build momentum around educational success for everyone on Saint Paul’s East Side. Attendees identified opportunities for involvement, offered resources to share, and created connections that will lead to improved educational outcomes for east side residents.

HOURS MATTERAdult learners at the new East Side Learning Hub @ Harding generated 62,566 contact hours during the inaugural year of classes, a great start to building a robust program at the new site. Additionally, Distance Learning

hours increased 9.5% this year. Offering as many ways of accessing these programs as we can helps our adult learners reach their educational goals wherever and whenever they can.

MORE OPTIONS for ADULTSABE teachers and administrators served on a task force this year to implement the Alternative Adult Diploma, which went on to approval by the Minnesota Legislature. This opens up new high school completion options for adults, in addition to earning a GED. Through the Transitions to the Workplace program, we have also con-tinued to expand occupational courses. This includes classes in child devel-opment, commercial drivers licensing,

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emergency medical services, introduction to healthcare careers, medical office preparation, pre- certification for nursing assistants, retail customer service, ServSafe food safety, and boiler licensure.

NEW SPACE at 1780 WEST 7TH

In Fall 2013, we opened the doors on freshly renovated community program space at the 1780 West Seventh Street building. The new space came outfitted with a brand new kitchen, wood shop, art room, sewing room, computer lab and plenty of common area space for large events. Supportive Experiential Education (SEED) programming filled the space during the day, while adult enrichment courses brought the building to life in the evenings. 120

learners, staff, family and friends attended a winter party to celebrate the new space.

PREPARING for the ‘SILVER TSUNAMI’Over 75 people from area senior centers, social service agencies and healthcare organizations attended a forum on the impending impact of Minnesota’s aging population. The discussion focused on how we can better adapt programming with this large group in mind. The event was co- sponsored by Community Education, Saint Paul Public Libraries and Saint Paul Parks & Recreation, and featured a presentation from Minnesota Compass demographers and world cafés for idea-sharing across groups.

REVERSING TRENDS in ABE During the first nine months of 2013-14, ABE experienced average enrollment decreases of 11% every month. This urgent situation necessitated a change in enrollment practices. The solution was to update the program from managed enrollment (where new learners started monthly) to open enrollment, allowing new learners to start classes on a weekly basis. This new approach has better served our learners, who are eager to get started, and rebounded declining attendance numbers to the tune of a 2.7% monthly increases in the last three months of the year.

21ST CENTURY LEARNING21st Century Community Learning Centers is a federal grant program that enables us to provide free after-school and summer programs for middle school students. In partnership with a variety of community organizations, we offer programs that support these students’ academic, physical and social needs during out-of-school time. In 2013-14, Saint Paul Public Schools received additional 3-year, $2.3 million federal funding to expand our programming from 8 to 10 Saint Paul Public middle schools. We are excited to build upon the great work our staff are already doing at these schools.

MOVING and COLLABORATINGIn March, our West Side ECFE staff and

families moved from Humboldt Middle School to newly renovated space at 271 East Belvidere Street. At the new site, staff co-located with district Early Childhood Special Education as well as a Head Start program. This has become a prime environment for further collaboration between programs to better support our families. Additionally, our McDonough Homes program moved to expanded space at Wheelock Education Center. McDonough Homes residents continue to access ECFE at the new location. Relocating to Wheelock allowed us to expand programming to include more Family Literacy classes, better access for ELL Families, Karen and Spanish language-specific classes, and an Adoptive

Families class. Some dedicated space at Wheelock has become home to community programs for older adults as well.

NEW NON-SCHOOL DAYSIn 2013-14, Discovery Club school-age child care staff implemented a new structure for non-school days that combines programming at fewer sites and focuses on a shared theme, like ‘Explore Minnesota’. The new structure allows us to be more efficient and fiscally esponsible while also creating a cohesive, engaging experience for our young participants.

WE DAY MINNESOTAOn October 8, 2013, Minnesota joined an international roster of We Day sites

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with 18,000 students from all over the state at the Excel Energy Center. We Day is an all-day celebration and call to action that inspires students to find causes they are passionate about. Students learn about these causes, take action, and make a difference in their local and global communities through the We Act program. 552 Saint Paul Public School students attended We Day to celebrate their projects and commit to another year of impacting the world in their own unique ways.

YOUTH LEADERSHIPThe Youth Leadership Team, made up of 13 middle and high school youth from across the city, piloted their first year by defining purpose and designing service learning projects. They met regularly to

participate in team-building, brainstorming community project ideas, and researching. The team decided to focus on issues of teen depression and community art. At Central and Highland High Schools, 250 students got involved in a teen depression awareness and art design project. Each student painted a depiction of something in their lives that made them happy (everything from playing music to the chemical structure of dopamine). The team also gathered community responses to the question, “What is one thing you want to change in your community?” from 15 schools and recreation centers to create word art. Finally, Youth Leadership Team members worked on an expansion project to research pre-existing leadership opportunities at their schools

and make suggestions for future teams. We look forward to seeing more great work come from this team of young leaders.

YPQA for CHILDCAREDiscovery Club renewed a commitment to quality this year by laying the groundwork for implementing the Youth Program Quality Assessment (YPQA) model. Staff participated in Department of Education sponsored planning and Train-the-Trainer events, as well as External Assessors training. We have collaborated across the Community Education department on YPQA planning and are poised to introduce it to all childcare staff in 2014-15 through large group trainings and informal assessments at all sites.

Board of EducationJohn BrodrickAnne Carroll Mary C. DoranKeith HardyJean O’ConnellLouise SeebaChue Vue

AdministrationValeria Silva, SuperintendentJackie Turner, Chief Engagement OfficerLynn Gallandat, Community Education Director

Saint Paul Public SchoolsCommunity Education

1780 Seventh Street WestSaint Paul, MN 55116

(651) 767-8179

commed.spps.org