Topic: Urban Schools
Urban schools face challenges of poverty, widely diverse student populations, overcrowding, old and run-down facilities, cumbersome bureaucracies, and, in some areas, a declining tax base. Many urban centers have more than their share of low performing schools. Yet, many urban schools find ways to overcome these challenges and provide rich learning opportunities for students.
This project provides targeted support to the Rhode Island Department of Education related to the implementation of the statewide 21st CCLC program. Working in partnership with the National Community Education Association, we are providing training and support for the adoption of the Continuous Improvement Process for Afterschool (CIPAS) by twenty grant-funded project sites across the state.
The Career Ladder Program has provided assistance to prospective teachers to pursue studies to become certified as teachers who are credentialed to teach English Language Learners in Rhode Island schools. The program has focused on participants from Southeast Asian and Latino communities. Participants have attended classes at RI colleges and universities, including the Community College of RI (CCRI), RI College (RIC), Providence College (PC), University of RI (URI), and Brown University.
With support from a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, The Education Alliance developed a research-based set of supports, strategies and processes to build and support collective leadership capacity, sponsor and foster cross-stakeholder problem-solving, and mobilize and facilitate collaborative learning. Known as the CSR Support and Capacity Building Program, the primary mission of our work was to support State Education Agencies and Districts in their efforts to significantly impact district and school improvement. With this as our mission, we engaged in a multitude of activities with several states and districts along the Eastern Seaboard.
Web site: /projects/csrqi
The Development and Dissemination Schools Initiative was a five-year project of the New York City Board of Education's Office of English Language Learners and The Education Alliance at Brown University. Its goal was to help New York's English language learners (ELLs) acquire both English language and other skills and knowledge they needed to meet the New Standards that the Chancellor had established for all students in New York City.
GET City is a youth-based program implemented by Michigan State University’s Colleges of Education and Engineering. The program is funded through the National Science Foundation (NSF) Information Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) grant program. A two-year, year-round program, GET City supports youth in learning to use advanced information technology skills to identify, investigate, and model solutions to urban energy problems at the Lansing Boys and Girls Club. The Education Alliance is conducting an evaluation study which will examine implementation challenges and successes as an ongoing investigation of program activities.
The International Charter School (ICS) of Pawtucket, RI contracted with The Education Alliance to help the school's governors determine the feasibility of offering middle school instruction and to answer some questions related to the existing program.
The New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) has an obligation to report to the public regarding the state of educational improvement in public high schools. The Education Alliance has an interest in gathering important information about how high schools in the region are changing their pedagogy to allow all students to achieve to high standards.
The New England Comprehensive Center (NECC) is one of 16 regional comprehensive centers funded by the U.S. Department of Education to support state education agencies in fulfilling the promises of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Headquartered at RMC Research Corporation of Portsmouth, NH, NECC is a partnership that has included the Alliance (2005-2010), Education Development Center, and Learning Innovations at WestEd.
Web site: http://necomprehensivecenter.org
The New England Equity Assistance Center (NEEAC) helps states, districts, and public schools plan and implement policies and practices that promote access to high-quality education for all students. One of ten regional centers funded by the U.S. Department of Education under Title IV of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, NEEAC provides training and technical assistance on educational issues related to race, gender, and national origin.
Web site: http://neeac.alliance.brown.edu
The New York Comprehensive Center (NYCC) is one of 16 regional comprehensive centers funded by the U.S. Department of Education to support state education agencies in fulfilling the promises of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Headquartered in New York City under the leadership of RMC Research, NYCC is a partnership that has included the Alliance (2005-2010), Education Development Center, Learning Innovations at WestEd, and the United Federation of Teachers' Teacher Center. The mission of the NYCC is to develop the capacity of the New York State Education Department and its networks and agencies to assist districts and schools in improving achievement outcomes for all students.
Web site: http://nycomprehensivecenter.org
The Education Alliance served from 1995-2005 as the Northeast and Islands Regional Educational Laboratory, under contract to the U.S. Department of Education. Many of the projects and publications available through this web site had their origins in work done under the two consecutive cycles of this contract.
The Northeast and the Islands Regional Technology in Education Consortium (NEIRTEC) focused on helping educational leaders at the state, district, and school levels put technology to effective use in schools, placing particular emphasis on the needs of schools in underserved urban and rural communities. It was a collaboration of Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC), TERC, Learning Innovations at WestEd, and The Education Alliance at Brown University. It was one of the ten regional technology in education consortia funded by the U.S. Department of Education.
The Northeast Superintendents’ Leadership Council is a network for superintendents, driven by superintendents. The superintendent plays a key role in promoting and effecting system-wide change related to student academic achievement and instruction. The Council is comprised of leaders from New England, New York, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, and provides a place where leaders can move beyond theory and discuss reform issues in an experiential realm.
The Principals’ Leadership Network (PLN) was formed to conduct action research on developing solutions to the problems faced by today's K-12 principals. The network has supported collegial relationships, guided professional growth, and fostered collaboration among principals. The key benefit of the program has been the sharing of ideas and best practices through regular meetings, workshops, and forums, and linking members with similar needs.
With funding from the Carnegie Foundation to the Providence School District, The Education Alliance has worked with the Providence district administration to assist district high schools in redesigning into small learning communities. An Education Alliance facilitator/coach worked with administrators and teacher based teams at each school on developing plans for the redesign of each school into smaller learning communities (SLC).
The Pemberton Township High School (Pemberton, NJ), Newton North and South High Schools (Newton, MA), Peabody Veterans Memorial High School (Peabody, MA), Uniondale High School (Uniondale, NY) and the Clear Creek Independent School District (League City, TX) contracted individually with The Education Alliance to conduct external program evaluations of the impact and implementations of their Smaller Learning Communities initiatives (SLC), funded by the U.S. Department of Education.
The Education Alliance, with the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory and the Smaller Learning Communities (SLC) program of the U. S. Department of Education, works to implement small school strategies in large high schools and within school districts. This is part of a federal initiative focused on personalizing high schools.
This study systematically investigated the process and effects of high school restructuring in low-performing high schools that are implementing three central elements of systemic reform: high standards for all students, smaller and more personalized learning environments, and effective use of data to support continuous improvement.
The Education Alliance and the Bridgeport (CT) public schools worked together to develop a blueprint for planning and implementing school leadership teams that would work to improve student performance at the school level. The initiative reflected a shift from a rigid, top-down bureaucratic structure to a strong, school-based governance model. School leadership teams (SLTs) made up of the principal, teachers, families, community representatives, and students (where appropriate) were empowered to develop, implement and monitor school improvement plans to drive education reform in each school.
Voices from the Field was an online periodical produced from the Fall of 1999 through the Spring of 2002. The purpose of this free publication was to present issues from the perspectives of teachers experiencing change, challenges, and growth as education reform took shape. It was fully written and edited by public school teachers in the region.
Web site: /pubs/voices
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