CPS Board President Eve Bolton, CLCI Executive Director Darlene Kamine, Senator Sherrod Brown, Ethel Taylor Principal Sean McCauley, Ethel Taylor Resource Coordinator Annie Bogenschutz, and CFT President Julie Sellers receive national award
Community schools across the nation are deepening family engagement, improving attendance, and increasing academic achievement. Highlighting the joint work of schools and communities the Coalition for Community Schools presents the 2011 National Community School Award for Excellence to: Roy Clark Elementary School, Tulsa, OK; Ethel Taylor Academy, Cincinnati, OH; and Glencliff High School, Nashville, TN.
The Awardees demonstrate: deep and purposeful partnerships with other organizations that are well-integrated in the life of the school, strong families and community engagement, financial sustainability through leveraged resources, and engaging instruction.
Ethel Taylor Academy has made it their business to ensure that their teachers, school staff, and partners are trained to engage families and make the school a more inviting place. From 2008-2010, they not only increased their academic achievement, but they significantly increased family engagement from 40% to 84%.
Cincinnati group celebrates with Congressman Chabot
The award ceremony on June 16, 2011 was co-sponsored by House Minority Leader, Steny Hoyer (D-MD), Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Congresswoman Judy Chu (D-CA), Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE), and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT). These Members are strong supporters of the community school strategy, having introduced the Full Service Community Schools Act of 2011, the DIPLOMA Act of 2011, and the Supporting Community Schools Act of 2011.
As part of the award ceremony, CPS Board of Education President Eve Bolton was featured as part of a panel of leaders of the districts of the schools of excellence. President Bolton said the community learning certers are emblematic of the kind of innovation that the federal government is seeking to promote.
Ira Harkavy, Chairperson of the Coalition for Community Schools and Associate Vice-President and Director of The Netter Center for Community Partnerships at the University of Pennsylvania, said, “These awardees represent what can be done when schools, communities, and other partners work together to provide the supports and opportunities students need to succeed and develop to their full potential.”