Living the Core Principles Why They Make Such A Difference in Students Lives

1
Living the Core PrinciplesWhy They Make Such A
Difference in Students Lives
February 19, 2004
2
Our Commitment

• To increase the number of first generation,
  low-income, English Language Learners, and
  students of color attaining an Associates
  degree or two years of college credit and the
  opportunity to earn a Baccalaureate degree.

3
Preparation, Access, Success

• Many students--especially those who are
  low-income--graduate from h.s. without the
  academic preparation to continue on in college.
  Only 53 percent of 1992 high school graduates
  from low income families were at least minimally
  qualified for admission to a four-year college
  (compared to 68 percent from middle and 86 from
  high income families).

4
Through the Initiative
Childrens Economic FutureIncome Increases
Sharply With More Education

• 9 Partners will help to establish
• 94 Early College High Schools
• Antioch University Seattle (8)
• Foundation for California Community Colleges (15)
• KnowledgeWorks Foundation (5)
• Middle College National Consortium (20)
• National Council of La Raza (12)
• Portland Community College (11)
• SECME, Inc. (8)
• Utah Partnership for Education (6)
• Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation (9)

Increase in Earnings Relative to high school
Dropouts for Year-round, Full-time Workers (Ages
25 and Older, 2000)
Median Earnings 80,200
Median Earnings 70,500
Median Earnings 55,300
Median Earnings 46,300
Median Earnings 35,400
Median Earnings 32,400
Median Earnings 28,800
High school diploma includes GED Median annual
earnings for High school dropouts are
21,300 Source The Bureau of Labor Occupational
Outlook Quarterly, Spring 2002
5
Why Early College?

• Eliminate the need to select and apply to a
  postsecondary institution during the senior year
  of high school.
• Make college more affordable for low- income
  students and families.
• Provide guidance and coaching from adults through
  the first two years of college.

6
Why Early College?

• Unify and reconceptualize academic work from 9th
  to 14th grades.
• Require the rigor, depth, and intensity of
  college work at an earlier age.
• Reward mastery and competence with the
  opportunity to earn college credit in high school.

7
Why Early College?

• ACCELERATED ADVANCEMENTReorganization
  of resources to align with goals for advancement
  in order to introduce youth sooner to rigorous
  academic work and effective career preparation,
  and provide support.

8
Why Early College?

• ACCELERATED ADVANCEMENTCreating and
  improving systems that can help those trapped in
  poor economic circumstances to develop skills for
  family-supporting careers.

9
Starting Earlier, Going Further

• Developing a pool of ECHS students through
  collaboration with middle schools
• Mentorships, internships, BRIDGE programs, campus
  visitations
• Pre-ECHS Academies (e.g., Durham)

10
What Early College Can Do

• Draw upon research on powerful teaching and
  learning.
• Demonstrate that 16 and 17 year-old students can
  and should be engaged in serious intellectual
  work.
• Result in significantly higher graduation and
  college completion rates.

11
Size Counts

• Small, personalized learning environment
• Students are well known to adult staff
• Students are supported through counseling,
  mentoring, advisories, cohorts

12
The Power of Place

• Impact on student behavior
• Respect and responsibility
• Aspirations and increased effort
• Improved instructional processes and practice
• Increased collegiality

13
Collaboration Is Key

• Support the development of ECHS
• Identify and nurture secondary/postsecondary
  relationships
• School and curriculum planning
• Resolution of conflicts
• Mutual role in instruction
• Leverage campus resources

14
Benefits of A College Environment

• Access to cultural recreational facilities
• Access to services
• Access to technology
• Access to Information resources

15
Key Issues ChallengesPostsecondary

• Establishing incentives buy-in from higher
  education for mission of ECHS
• Forging and negotiating complex
  secondary/postsecondary partnerships
• Avoiding the tendency to blame high school
  students for everything

16
Key Issues ChallengesFinancing

• Implementing ECHS in the current economic climate
  
• Identifying strategies for paying students
  college costs
• Determining actual costs of ECHS and adequacy of
  current funding formulas

17
Key Issues ChallengesStart-up

• Staffing-up quickly
• Engaging communities in ECHS planning
  development
• Identifying scheduling facilities for ECHS
• Testing assumptions about the most viable size of
  ECHS
• Collaborative planning

18
Key Issues Challenges

• Academics
• Student assessment and strategies to prepare
  students for college level work
• Literacy
• Science
• Mathematics Skills
• Completion of a highly rigorous high school
  curriculum and Associates degree

19
A National Movement

• Early College is a national demonstration to show
  that it is time to raise expectations for what
  students can do and to restructure secondary
  school to better prepare students for access and
  success in postsecondary education