Big investment in troubled metro Detroit high schools pays off in a big way
March 22, 2013 |
Juwan Todd, 18, of Detroit jokes with principal Mark Mayberry between classes at Henry Ford High School. The school, once termed a "dropout factory," is reversing its fortunes thanks to support by United Way for Southeastern Michigan and the GM Foundation. / Kathleen Galligan/Detroit Free Press
By Chastity Pratt Dawsey
Detroit Free Press Education Writer
Alston Hunter, 15, of Detroit works with English language arts teacher Maggie Ramos at Henry Ford High. The goal for the 15 schools in the networks is an 80% graduation rate. / Kathleen Galligan/Detroit Free Press
A'Sia Brown, 16, of Detroit works on polynomials with math instructor Joe Maugeri at Henry Ford High. Besides classroom learning, students get mentors, internships and other real-world experiences. / Kathleen Galligan/Detroit Free Press
Two years ago, Henry Ford High in Detroit had a graduation rate of 56% and was considered a "dropout factory."
Today, it has new academic and mentoring programs, has a robotics team and is expecting a huge increase in its graduation rate because of support from United Way for Southeastern Michigan and the GM Foundation.
United Way projects that this spring 73-84% of seniors will graduate from eight schools it supports, in some cases doubling the prior graduation rates. The class of 2013 in the United Way Network of Excellence is the first group of students in the turnaround program for all four years of high school.
The United Way conceived the program four years ago, and started with eight schools in the region with support from other organizations such as the AT&T Foundation and the Skillman Foundation. In 2011, the GM Foundation donated its largest grant ever to the effort, $27.1 million. That led to the addition of seven more schools, now referred to as the GM Foundation's Network of Excellence.
The GM Foundation is a lead sponsor of NBC News' Education Nation summit, which will be held at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit today and Saturday. United Way and GM Foundation officials expect to tout the progress of the Networks of Excellence at the summit.
"We think of these as our schools," said GM Foundation President Vivian Pickard. "Education is the primary area of focus for the GM Foundation and NBC News' Education Nation On-the-Road provides a forum for us to join key stakeholders to share best practices and inspire real, systemic change."
The Education Nation summit -- an invitation-only event that the W.K. Kellogg Foundation is sponsoring, too -- will be live-streamed online. The event seeks to create a national conversation about how to improve schools while highlighting innovations that work. It will be hosted by Chelsea Clinton, an NBC News special correspondent. Mayor Dave Bing and Gov. Rick Snyder are expected to take part in today's sessions. Student and teacher town hall meetings will take place Saturday.
In June 2008, United Way set out to turn around or lobby to shut down 30 high schools in the region where the graduation rate was less than 60% for at least three consecutive years. The goal for the 15 schools in the networks is an 80% graduation rate. The grant money helps the schools pay for a turnaround expert to help change the culture, curriculum and instruction and create nurturing, personalized learning.
The high school turnaround effort also seeks to increase ACT scores on average by 1 point per year. The ACT scores proved to be a tougher needle to move. So far, the average ACT scores in schools in the program increased by 0.5 point, according to United Way.
Meanwhile, United Way hopes to get more people to believe low-performing schools can achieve transformational change.
"Graduation is a community issue," said Michael Brennan, United Way for Southeastern Michigan president. "One of our biggest challenges is belief. Confidence is building that this is possible because we have begun to see traction
."
At Melvindale High, one of the first schools in the program four years ago, the grant money funded a new after-school tutoring program, ACT preparation classes through Kaplan Test Prep and opportunities for some students to take classes at Baker College.
Shannon Luppino, principal at Melvindale High, said she expects to see a graduation rate near 90% this spring.
"We have so many nationalities and they truly want to have a better life and want to be successful, and all that United Way has offered or afforded us has helped them to get to this point," Luppino said.
Mark Mayberry, the principal at Ford, said new programs at the school are not only academic, but focus on character building and giving students mentors, internships, field trips and other real-world experiences.
"These are life-changing opportunities that lead the students to say, 'There's life after high school,' " he said.
Jaylen Moore, 18, the senior class president at Ford, landed an internship with GM and expects his class -- and future ones -- will have enough graduates to retire Ford's "dropout factory" moniker.
"It's more of a learning environment than it was two or three years ago," Moore said. "It's a big change."
Contact Chastity Pratt Dawsey: 313-223-4537 or cpratt@freepress.com
Today, it has new academic and mentoring programs, has a robotics team and is expecting a huge increase in its graduation rate because of support from United Way for Southeastern Michigan and the GM Foundation.
United Way projects that this spring 73-84% of seniors will graduate from eight schools it supports, in some cases doubling the prior graduation rates. The class of 2013 in the United Way Network of Excellence is the first group of students in the turnaround program for all four years of high school.
The United Way conceived the program four years ago, and started with eight schools in the region with support from other organizations such as the AT&T Foundation and the Skillman Foundation. In 2011, the GM Foundation donated its largest grant ever to the effort, $27.1 million. That led to the addition of seven more schools, now referred to as the GM Foundation's Network of Excellence.
The GM Foundation is a lead sponsor of NBC News' Education Nation summit, which will be held at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit today and Saturday. United Way and GM Foundation officials expect to tout the progress of the Networks of Excellence at the summit.
"We think of these as our schools," said GM Foundation President Vivian Pickard. "Education is the primary area of focus for the GM Foundation and NBC News' Education Nation On-the-Road provides a forum for us to join key stakeholders to share best practices and inspire real, systemic change."
The Education Nation summit -- an invitation-only event that the W.K. Kellogg Foundation is sponsoring, too -- will be live-streamed online. The event seeks to create a national conversation about how to improve schools while highlighting innovations that work. It will be hosted by Chelsea Clinton, an NBC News special correspondent. Mayor Dave Bing and Gov. Rick Snyder are expected to take part in today's sessions. Student and teacher town hall meetings will take place Saturday.
In June 2008, United Way set out to turn around or lobby to shut down 30 high schools in the region where the graduation rate was less than 60% for at least three consecutive years. The goal for the 15 schools in the networks is an 80% graduation rate. The grant money helps the schools pay for a turnaround expert to help change the culture, curriculum and instruction and create nurturing, personalized learning.
The high school turnaround effort also seeks to increase ACT scores on average by 1 point per year. The ACT scores proved to be a tougher needle to move. So far, the average ACT scores in schools in the program increased by 0.5 point, according to United Way.
Meanwhile, United Way hopes to get more people to believe low-performing schools can achieve transformational change.
"Graduation is a community issue," said Michael Brennan, United Way for Southeastern Michigan president. "One of our biggest challenges is belief. Confidence is building that this is possible because we have begun to see traction
."At Melvindale High, one of the first schools in the program four years ago, the grant money funded a new after-school tutoring program, ACT preparation classes through Kaplan Test Prep and opportunities for some students to take classes at Baker College.
Shannon Luppino, principal at Melvindale High, said she expects to see a graduation rate near 90% this spring.
"We have so many nationalities and they truly want to have a better life and want to be successful, and all that United Way has offered or afforded us has helped them to get to this point," Luppino said.
Mark Mayberry, the principal at Ford, said new programs at the school are not only academic, but focus on character building and giving students mentors, internships, field trips and other real-world experiences.
"These are life-changing opportunities that lead the students to say, 'There's life after high school,' " he said.
Jaylen Moore, 18, the senior class president at Ford, landed an internship with GM and expects his class -- and future ones -- will have enough graduates to retire Ford's "dropout factory" moniker.
"It's more of a learning environment than it was two or three years ago," Moore said. "It's a big change."
Contact Chastity Pratt Dawsey: 313-223-4537 or cpratt@freepress.com
No comments:
Post a Comment