Donation Opportunities
The following system wide programs are seeking support from donors. To learn more about any of these programs and how to support them, please contact External Affairs & Partnerships, at 773-553-1540.
Student Achievement: AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination)
AVID comes from the Latin word that means “eager for knowledge”.
AVID is an Internationally Acclaimed 5th through 12th grade College Preparatory Initiative that targets students performing in the academic middle. It provides students with the tools (WICR – Writing, Inquiry, Collaboration, and Reading Across the Curriculum) they need to be successful in rigorous academic course work (International Baccalaureate, Honors, and Advance Placement).
AVID has grown from the 8 original schools that started the initiative in CPS in 2003 into 244 schools (185 elementary and 59 high schools) in 2008. Both internal CPS data reports and external data (i.e. University of Chicago’s Consortium Report) has underscored the strategies success. For example, 2007-2008 data highlighted AVID’s students outperformed their peers in overall college enrollment (68.7% to 50%), four year institutions enrollment (75.6% to 68%), and G.P.A.’s between 2.0 and 3.4 (70.4% to 53.7%)
The keys to AVID success has been strong and dedicated school level AVID Site Teams, student supported classrooms (i.e. college tutors), instructional strategies are that are data-driven and classroom proven.
Elementary Battle of the Books
On Saturday, April 18, 2009 hundreds of students will gather to test their knowledge on books that they have been reading during the school year outside of the classroom. The fourth annual Chicago Public Schools Mayor Daley’s Elementary Battle of the Books hosted by the CPS Department of Libraries encourages ongoing reading, teamwork and partnership throughout the course of a year and culminates in this one-day event.
Over seventy-five schools will send students to represent them and share their learning in an interactive, competitive and inspiring environment. Teams are comprised of students in two categories: 4th through 6th grade, and 7th and 8th grade. Each division has a separate reading list of 20 books and one digital book. Students score points during three rounds of competition for answering questions about plot, characters, and settings with bonus points for giving the full name of the author. The three teams with the highest scores compete in the championship round.
Battle of the Books is funded strictly through private donations, and we’re seeking a total of $50,000 to support Battle of the Books 2009. Donations contribute toward:
Books for Central Library Loan –$20,000 (use of which continues into future years)
Gift books for students to take home–$5,000
T-shirts and awards to commemorate a student’s participation–$7,000
Breakfast/lunch–$8,000
Administrative support such as printing, custodial and security personnel, audio sound
system, etc. –$10,000
In addition, we need approximately $65,000 to support over 75 schools at a cost of $875 per school.
Books–$500
Bus Transportation–$125
Teacher/Librarian Stipend–$250 (assumes 2 individuals/school)
Feedback from students, teachers, and parents has been extremely positive. Two of the most memorable quotes summarize well the feeling students leave with after a day of mental challenge, friendly competition, teamwork, and fun: “The best part was at the end when they made everyone feel like they won”, “I learned how to be confident with myself”
Graduation Rate: YES (Youth Engaged in Schools)
YES is a two-year program aimed at reducing youth involvement in gangs and violent crime, decreasing the drop-out rate among juvenile offenders, and providing improved employment/education outcomes for youth offenders and at-risk youth. The program is funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Labor. DOL awarded the grant to five school districts: Chicago, Milwaukee, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Orange County, FL.
The YES program is structured around the belief that students who bond with their schools through supportive environments, with strong academics, and envision a future for themselves through education/career exploration and planning are less likely to become involved with gangs and the juvenile justice system, and are more likely to experience success in postsecondary endeavors.
Student Achievement: The Paper Project
The Paper Project, created by the Education Innovation Laboratory at Harvard University (EdLabs), aims to develop student interest in school and a commitment to reaching academic goals during the first two years of high school when students are most at risk for dropping out. It is a financial incentive program that offers 5,000 ninth-grade students the opportunity to earn up to $2,000 in their first year of high school–simply for earning good grades. This is one of several programs across the country that EdLabs at Harvard University has helped to design and will evaluate as part of ongoing research on innovative new programs in education.
The program is currently being piloted at 20 schools across the city. The rationale for the program is that not every high school student is motivated by sports, or music, or other extra-curricular activities and it is the goal of CPS to reach every student in every school at this very critical age. The Paper Project is another tool we can use to offer our students clear academic goals and incentives that will help keep them focused and push them to perform at their best.
School Environment Support: Safe Haven Network
CPS created an Environment Support Committee (“ESP”) a few years ago to address growing issues of violence within CPS schools. The Committee has currently identified 40 schools (31 high schools and 9 elementary/middle schools) as the most violent for the current school-year based on a history of frequent violent incidents, significant numbers of arrests on school property, and their possible past status as a receiving school. The ESP monitors the climate of these schools on an ongoing basis and offers support when violence increases (to the extent that resources allow), such as extra security personnel, cameras and alarm systems, and school-based student advocates, who mentor students and develop school-based gang and violence prevention programming.
Beyond working to keep children safe while they are physically on school property, CPS is currently developing and implementing a variety of different initiatives to take a more strategic versus reactionary approach to addressing violence in our most needed schools/areas; one of which is the Safe Haven Network. CPS plans to pilot the Safe Haven Network at 3 high schools that are on the ESP watch list and that reside within some of Chicago’s most violent areas. The goal of the Safe Haven Network will be to establish an organized network of free State, Local, and Community Based resources that would work together with the schools’ internal resources in a holistic manner to address high violence in 3 key target CPS school communities. The 3 target high schools will act as the hub schools for each of these networks.
The proposed framework for the Safe Haven network has been created based on feedback from CPS leadership and their departments, feedback from Principals and Students, and considers other initiatives currently in place at CPS and by our Sister Agencies. The ultimate goal is to minimize the participation and impact of violence in the lives of our youth. Key sub goals are to:
1. Identify and strengthen relations with State, Local, and Community Based organizations to increase the amount of free resources made available to the youth and adults within each of the targeted communities,
2. Establish a collective strategy that effectively engages the defined community in addressing and resolving the issues of high violence impacting our youth,
3. Increase the amount and type of after school programming options available such that the school operates as a community safe haven/ resource center open in the evenings during the week and all day on Saturday for the community, and to
4. Have at least 20% percent of total student population engaged in after school programming/ This number should include at the minimum 50% of the identified target youth
College Readiness: Sponsor students for the SummerQuest program
The CPS Office of High School Programs is seeking support to offer the SummerQuest program to additional students. The program currently has more applicants than they can accommodate with their current funds. By connecting low-income high school students with high quality pre-college programs, SummerQuest sends students beyond their local neighborhoods on a quest for new intellectual, social, and leadership experiences.
There are three types of programs: (1) Academic – Credit-bearing, preparatory, and enrichment classes at college and elite college-prep high school campuses (2) Arts – Visual and performing arts at prestigious art schools and (3) Outdoor leadership – Teamwork, nature skills, and environmental experience at top outdoor leadership programs. Admission is open to students in grades 7-11 with GPAs 2.0 and above. Applications are received between October and November, interviews are conducted in December and January and selection is finalized in February.
National Geographic Live
National Geographic Live! student matinees feature National Geographic explorers, scientists, and photographers in theaters around the United States. These engaging student programs deliver fresh and exciting content and are designed to inspire young people (grades 3-12) by positioning the presenters as dynamic, passionate role models whose educational pathways and natural curiosities led them to fascinating careers. Preparation and follow-up resources – including lesson plans, articles, and maps – are available to participating schools on the NG Live education programs site, www.ngsednet.org/nglive. Schools may apply for bus subsidies to offset transportation costs.
Contact
External Affairs & Partnerships
773-553-1540
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