United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County
Texas Community Campaign for School Readiness Sustainability Plan May 31, 2013
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
Background of the Community
San Antonio, Texas is the nation’s seventh largest city. We are a community of low-
skilled, low-wage families who will live increasingly marginalized lives in a rapidly changing
global workplace. Our face resembles the future face of the nation: a Hispanic-majority
population of primarily young, under-educated workforce. We have a poverty rate of 19.1%
(and child poverty rate of 24%), home ownership rate of 62.55%, a dropout rate approaching
39%, adult illiteracy rates of more than 25% and only 23.7% of the population is college
educated. Education and literacy levels in San Antonio remain lower as compared to other
cities.
There are 15 school districts within the city limits of San Antonio. Given the density of
the families with young children in poverty in these districts, the San Antonio EDI Coalition set
out to focus on the following four school districts for the purpose of this grant, with the
expectation to add all school districts over the next 5 years:
o Edgewood ISD (11,947 students)
o Harlandale ISD (14,800 students)
o Northside ISD (98,110 students)
o San Antonio ISD (55,116 students)
Gathering Districts and Stakeholders
Although San Antonio is home to many nonprofit agencies and collaborations working to
better the community, we still struggle with early childhood data measurement and data sharing
primarily since we have fifteen different school districts, and a familial population that relies on
family, friends, and neighbors to care for young children not yet in school. Furthermore, San
Antonio’s date driven effort needed help in addressing population level data. Our efforts were
typically on an individual level basis, utilizing program performance, but EDI has provided us
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
crucial data about our students and families. We realized early on that if our collaborative and
efforts wish to make a difference on a population level basis, population level data is needed.
The specific partner stakeholders that were gathered to implement the EDI are: United
Way (including the Children’s Issue Council, Family-School-Community Partnership, and
Eastside Promise Neighborhood), CI-Now, P16Plus Council of Greater Bexar County, SA2020,
the Mayor’s Office, Avance of San Antonio, Texas School Ready! Project, Family Service
Association, San Antonio and Bexar County Head Start Program, Pre-K 4 SA, the City of San
Antonio, Edgewood ISD, Harlandale ISD, Northside ISD, and San Antonio ISD.
Community Information Now (CI:Now) has been a crucial data partner throughout this
grant. CI: Now is a partnership of over 25 public, private, governmental, educational and
healthcare organizations working together since 1998. The United Way of San Antonio and
Bexar County serves as fiscal agent. CI-Now was well equipped to lead the data-sharing
component because it was already sharing data with and receiving data from local school
districts and many other entities. Through working with CI:Now, we have taken the data a step
further by creating interactive maps that allow multiple demographics and population level data
to be combined with EDI data. CI-NOW created an aggregation infrastructure that unrelated
computer systems can contribute to using an existing data warehouse at Rackspace Managed
Hosting, and has maintained the expanded, longitudinal data system, monitoring use, authorizing
and training users and generating cross-site as well as resident-produced reports.
Before United Way was awarded the EDI grant, Edgewood ISD, Harlandale ISD, and
San Antonio ISD had already agreed to be partners in the initial pilot of gathering population
level data. Once awarded, United Way met with the Superintendents and Board Members to
explain the data collection process and responsibilities of the district. Next, we met with the
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
elementary school principals for each district to review the expectations of kindergarten teachers,
stipends for participation, and upcoming training dates. After meeting with the principals,
training dates were set for each district and kindergarten teachers were trained and given a
timeline for completion. For year 2 of data collection, the same process was followed for
Northside Independent School District.
One issue that we did not foresee happening was that although it was difficult enough to
gather and train four school districts, we have had other districts in San Antonio asking when
they can participate in data collection. Although we did not anticipate this happening, it leads us
to believe that we will not have difficulty gathering more districts within the next few years to
participate.
Corporate Partnerships
We have been fortunate throughout this grant to have corporate sponsors. IBM has been
a long-time supporter of early childhood education initiatives. Thanks to a generous grant from
IBM, we raffled off 36 KidSmart Young Explorer Computers to kindergarten teachers in the
three school districts who completed all of the assessments for their class in Year 1. Each
computer came with math and literacy programs and activities and has a bench that can fit two
student to encourage sharing and collaboration. For Year 2, we were fortunate to receive another
grant of 40 KidSmart Young Explorer Computers to be raffled off between teachers in the four
districts who completed all assessments. The students and teachers really enjoy the computers
and they serve as an excellent learning tool in the classroom to enhance technology, math, and
literacy skills.
Another corporate sponsor has been JPMorgan Chase Foundation. The JPMorgan Chase
Foundation focuses on Community Development and Education, while investing in programs
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
that have a local impact through measurable results. In May 2012, the JPMorgan Chase
Foundation awarded United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County with a $40,000 grant to help
expand our EDI efforts to include Northside Independent School District. Through their grant,
we secured the funding for training materials and teacher stipends for the district.
Sharing Year 1 Results
When we received our Year 1 results and maps, we gathered our stakeholder group to
discuss the population level data and determine if there were any surprises. Our original
saturation goal for Year 1 was 50% and 80% for Year 2. Year 1 exceeded expectations with a
62% saturation rate. Both Edgewood ISD and Harlandale ISD had a saturation rate of 100%,
while San Antonio ISD only assessed half of the students the first year and ended up with a
saturation rate of 47%. Early childhood experts were not surprised to find that language and
cognitive development was the domain that had the highest vulnerability across the three
districts. Teachers are consistently reporting that language and cognitive skills are lacking when
students enter school and they spend a lot of class time trying to catch the students up to where
they need to be. Although we knew that many students were not “very ready” for kindergarten,
the stakeholder group was surprised to find that only a third of students were very ready on most
domains. The surprise was due to the fact that the assessments were completed in January and
February of 2012 and the student were already halfway finished with their kindergarten year, but
still not showing up as ready.
As a way to show the importance of this data and release it to the community, we
schedule a news conference with Mayor Castro, the superintendents, the stakeholder group,
parents, and corporate leaders in San Antonio. Instead of having United Way or an early
childhood expert present the data, we worked with local high school juniors from our Promise
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
Neighborhood to share the results. The students were given background information about the
grant and the assessment, and then presented with the summary of EDI results chart and map
(both below). Rather than telling the students what it means, we asked if they could explain
what is happening in early childhood based on the chart and maps. The conversations were
insightful and more than we could have expected. For the news conference, the high school
students drew in their own early childhood experiences and related everything back to success in
school, high school graduation, and college/career readiness. The news conference gained a lot
of media awareness around the EDI assessment and the state of early childhood education in San
Antonio. All major news stations attended as well as Texas Public Radio.
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
Summary of EDI Results by Developmental Area – San Antonio (2012)
EDI Developmental Area Percent of children
developmentally vulnerable
Percent of children very ready
Physical Health and Well-being: Physical readiness for school work, physical independence, gross and fine motor skills
11% 34%
Social Competence: Overall social skills with peers, respect and responsibility, independence and adjustment, readiness to explore new things
11% 29%
Emotional Maturity: Pro-social and helping behavior, anxious and fearful behavior, aggressive behavior, hyperactive and inattentive behavior
10% 34%
Language and Cognitive Development: Basic literacy, interest and memory, complex literacy skills, basic literacy and numeracy
15% 30%
Communication Skills and General Knowledge: Storytelling ability, communication with adults and children
11% 34%
Percent of children who fall at or below the 10th percentile are considered “developmentally vulnerable,” while children who score at or above the 75th percentile are considered “very ready.”
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
After receiving the grant, through working with CI:Now, we created a website to have a
place to store all data, training videos, news conferences, and any other pertinent information
(www.kinderreadysa.org). This website serves as a great place for all EDI and early childhood
data and is updated and maintained by CI:Now with input from local early childhood experts and
the community.
Lessons Learned from Year 1
Many lessons were learned in the first year of collecting data, which gave us an
opportunity to make adjustments for the second round of data collection. We learned very early
on that involving the superintendent and principals was crucial to data collection and success of
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
the project. Additionally, we learned that having one central contact for the district, a district
coordinator, made the training and data collection process much easier. By working with a
coordinator from each district, all information could go through one contact and scheduling was
streamlined. The district coordinators have also been great representation for stakeholder groups
and data distribution. We also learned that given the amount of work that the coordinators put
into this project, it was an added incentive to offer them a stipend. Teachers who complete all
assessments for their classroom received a stipend of $100 and each district coordinator received
$250.
Other lessons that we learned in Year 1 were that teacher work in service days, although
preferred, were not always an option for the training date. When districts could not use a teacher
in-service day for the training, substitutes were brought in and other dates were selected. The
City of San Antonio and our local P16 Plus Council covered the costs of substitute teachers so it
would not be a burden on the district. We did find that the teachers who schedule time for
training and EDI completion all in the same day had high overall completion rates and teachers
felt that their time was valued. Finally, during our first year of implementation, we worked with
a local partner to develop a training video in case any teachers missed the scheduled training for
their district. The training video has served as a great alternative to a make-up in person training
and as a refresher to teachers who may have forgotten the steps to complete the assessment.
Another unanticipated outcome from this project has been the ability to connect teachers
and students to other resources. Numerous teachers have reached out to United Way for various
resources for their students and families. Although this was not anticipated, United Way has
become a resource for the teachers who may have not previously known about how to get
connected to services.
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
Using the Data
The expected outcome of this project was to demonstrate the value of using population-
level school readiness data to engage communities and mobilize assets on behalf of young
children. In the long-term, the expected outcome is to establish a periodic school readiness
assessment, mapping and community engagement and improvement process that can be used in
all San Antonio school districts. United Way of San Antonio & Bexar County is currently
working with several early learning and early childhood strategy partners for the use of data and
further implementation of this project. United Way will continue to utilize its existing
relationships with Board members, Eastside Promise Neighborhood, and the City of San Antonio
to also market and advertise to neighborhood leaders, parents, and key partners in the
community.
Community members and partners have had access to the data through a variety of
mediums, including utilizing the CI-Now website and our website for this initiative:
www.kinderreadysa.org. Through the use of periodic data dashboards, maps and other products
will be offered during the regular learning board meetings, school board meetings, P16 Council
meetings, and through the Eastside Promise Neighborhood Advisory Council’s board and
community meetings. Additionally, some of the designated school districts have existing data
discussions, called data round tables, where families and school administrators discuss school
data and determine possible solutions or strategies to address any vulnerability.
There have been several ways that the EDI data has been integrated within existing
programs. The Department of Education has approved the Eastside Promise Neighborhood’s use
of the EDI data as a school readiness measurement. The EDI data collected last year, during the
first year of the Promise Neighborhood Implementation, will serve as a baseline for school
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
readiness for the next four years of implementation. Additionally, for our annual Kids Day in the
Park, United Way added in the EDI domains as required components for booths. Kids Day in
the Park is an annual free event during Child Abuse Prevention Month that typically has about
8,000 attendees and over 80 non-profit and school district booth providers. This year, each booth
had to provide a children’s activity based on one of the 5 EDI domains. EDI data was shared
with the planning committee and community participants in increase awareness around early
childhood education and actions that can be taken to improve the results.
One of our current strategies is implementing Reach Out and Read clinics in a few of the
areas that collected EDI data. Then, we will overlay the EDI results with the locations of the
clinics around San Antonio to determine if the Reach Out and Read program is having a positive
impact on the children in the highly vulnerable areas. After we received our Year 2 data, we will
have the ability to implement more programming and specific tools to address the five domains
and areas of highest vulnerability since our assessment numbers will more than triple the
numbers collected in Year 1.
Financial and Practical Sustainability
United Way is a consistent source of match funding for initiatives for which we are the
applicant and for those in which we are a partner. Currently, United Way is a principal match
source for the Promise and Choice Neighborhoods Grants, dedicating over $1million in matching
funds. These resources are under the purview of our three Issue Councils. Our Board of
Directors has endorsed the provision of match dollars for key community initiatives that meet
unmet needs as a vital component of our annual fund distribution process. Further, each year we
elect to sustain multiple community endeavors that began as grant-funded programs. United
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
Way’s stewardship and accountability processes help to ensure that valuable community
resources receive the funding necessary to launch and continue.
As this initiative grows and gains momentum, we want to have the capacity and funding
available to grow with it. United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County, the P16 Plus Council,
and the City of San Antonio are dedicated to this effort financially and programmatically, to
expand it to all 15 school districts. The United Way Children’s Issue Council has agreed to be
the financial sustainability for this project with other grants coming from the City and local non-
profit and corporate sponsors. In order to grow in a meaningful way, the stakeholder group will
take the 2013-2014 school year to deeply evaluate the data and determine which districts to
expand to next, as well as a timeline for expansion of all districts. Throughout the next year of
planning, United Way will also work to secure more funding sources for this initiative.
Planning to Action
We firmly understand that for programs to improve children’s school readiness we cannot
base the action only on EDI results, but also on data gathered from other sources, and in
collaboration with the many partners involved in children’s education in the targeted
neighborhoods and city-wide. Our current partnership with the early learning and early
childhood initiatives and strategies committed to using the EDI as a focal point to enhance the
efforts of leaders already actively involved with young children in our community. United Way
and our partners have started to layer the EDI data with other available information generated by
CI: NOW, SA2020, the P16 Plus Council, our Eastside Promise Neighborhood, and the Westside
Making Connections work, to develop a comprehensive plan for young children. The P16 Plus
Council, United Way Board, and Mayor’s SA2020 have provided ready access to key
community leaders and policymakers. Furthermore, we will engage with non-traditional early
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
learning/childhood partners, such as business owners, other funders, and the faith community to
utilize the assessment at a community-wide level.
The Year 2 population level data will be helpful to move forward on early childhood
discussions. Through the Year 1 data, 3,500 assessments were completed in three school
districts, but for Year 2 at least 13,400 assessments (a 95% saturation rate) were completed in
four school districts. This added data will provide us with a larger scope of the city’s kinder
readiness levels and a comparison to how students are doing in different areas of San Antonio.
Once Year 2 data has been received, the stakeholder group will determine if committees should
be created for each developmental domain or if collectively, we want to tackle one at a time.
The data will help guide this decision. If there are any domains that show up as outliers for areas
of very high vulnerability compared to the others, then it will be addressed first by putting
programs and materials in place. On the other hand, if the domains are all fairly even on
vulnerability, then it will be more beneficial to have committees that will work on each domain
individually to determine which programs or materials would effectively help increase the levels
of readiness.
Evaluation of Impact
Texas’ demographics continue to be a reflection of what the country will look like within
the next few decades. In addition, Bexar County and San Antonio have been in the forefront of
moving from planning to action, to invest in early childhood education with initiatives such as
Pre-K 4 SA. Pre-K 4 SA was a vote that passed in 2012 to use $.08 sales tax toward pre-
kindergarten education for low income families who do not have access to subsidies and do not
qualify for Head Start. The Pre-K 4 SA data collected in the next few years will be a
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
compliment to the EDI and help to determine where there are gaps in services and which needs
still should be addressed.
United Way and the stakeholder group will evaluate the impact of the EDI needs
assessment on improving school readiness by continuously collecting assessment data. Once full
saturation is reached and all 15 school districts are participating, the stakeholder group will
determine if data should be collected every year, every other year, or every third year based on
the frequency of changes in data from previous collections. Through working with CI:Now,
United Way we will look at changes in demographics and see the role that early childhood is
playing in the city as programs such as SA2020 and Pre-K 4 SA continue to grow. Additionally,
United Way’s Issue Councils focusing on children, education, families, parent engagement, and
financial stability will continue to evolve and measure the impact of programs and assessments
throughout San Antonio.
Continuous Measurement of Early Childhood Needs
Once we can achieve complete saturation and have all 15 districts participating in this
initiative, we will have a baseline measurement for early childhood. Unfortunately, we do not
currently have a single measure across all districts that show us kinder readiness. Instead, each
district has their own assessments and we are not able to compare them to one another, making it
difficult to determine effective strategies. This community wide measurement will provide a
much needed assessment tool for San Antonio and will help guide early childhood education
efforts.
United Way and the stakeholders will continue to stay engaged through meeting at least
quarterly with other early education providers, parents, corporations, and the City of San
Antonio. The early childhood network established has been strengthened through the EDI work
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County TCCSR Sustainability Plan
and continues to grow and gain more participants. By keeping parents engaged, we hope to have
input on effective strategies that are useful for parents with young children and to strategize ways
to connect with parents to distribute data and materials.
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