Transcript Slide 1

Texas High School Project—A Partnership to
Increase Graduation Rates and College Readiness
CAST
Administrator’s Science Education Institute
Thursday, November 9, 2006
What is the Texas High School Project?
• The Texas High School Project (THSP) is a
$261M public-private initiative with 3 funding
streams administered cooperatively toward
common goals:
– $148M TEA—$118M in state and $30M in federal
funding
– $57M Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other
private funding managed by THSP staff at
Communities Foundation of Texas
– $55M Michael & Susan Dell Foundation
– $1M National Instruments
Why was THSP created?
Building on previous reforms
• TAKS testing expanded with an exit-level
graduation assessment at Grade 11
• All ninth grade students now enroll in the collegepreparatory Recommended High School Program
• State funding provided for ninth-grade initiative
and high school initiative
• Personal graduation plans required for at-risk
secondary students
Result: 84 percent of Texas students graduated
from high school within 4 years
…however, disparities persist
Graduation Rates Class of 2005
100
90
80
89.5
81.7
77.4
77.4
70
60
50
African
Hispanic
American
White
Eco
Disadv
Exit level disparities are particularly
troubling
TAKS Exit Level Passing Rates
Preliminary Spring 2006
100
90
79
80
70
60
50
52
49
45
40
African Hispanic
American
White
Eco
Disadv
College readiness is low for all groups
Percent of Students Meeting THECB Standard for Higher
Education Readiness (Preliminary Spring 2006)
English/LA
Math
Both
All students
39%
49%
28%
AfricanAmerican
27%
27%
13%
Hispanic
31%
38%
19%
White
48%
63%
37%
Negative consequences are significant
• 56 percent of jobs today require some college.
• 80 percent of the fastest-growing jobs over the
next decade will require some college.
• Of the 50 best-paying occupations, only 2 do not
require a college degree.
• A male with a college degree will make almost $1
million more over his lifetime than a high school
dropout.
• A woman with only a high school diploma earns a
salary just above the poverty line for a family of
three.
What is the vision of the THSP?
All Texas students will graduate high school
ready for college and career success and
prepared to be contributing members of the
community.
To succeed in work and life in the 21st century, students need the
opportunity to achieve the highest level of education they can:
•Four-year college
•Community college
•Military
•Job training
What are the goals of the THSP?
• Key goals:
– Increase high school graduation rates
– Promote a college-going culture and increase college
readiness
– Build statewide capacity for supporting high school
redesign and reform
– Create systemic changes that ensure long-term
sustainable high school improvement
Who does the Texas High School
Project serve?
• Focus:
– Border communities and urban areas – Austin, Dallas,
El Paso, Houston, Rio Grande Valley, San Antonio
– High schools serving high percentages of economically
disadvantaged students
What are the guiding principles of THSP
programs?
The Three R’s
•
Rigor – challenging curriculum and high expectations for
all students
•
Relevance – meaningful course of study with real-life
applications; clear pathways to college and work
•
Relationships – powerful, sustained involvement with
caring adults who mentor, advise, and support students
throughout their high school careers
What has the THSP funded?
Initiative
New campus
models
Leadership
innovations
Studentcentered
programs
Programs and Funders
• Redesigned High Schools—TEA/CFT
• District-wide Reform—CFT
• Early College High Schools—TEA/CFT
• New High Schools (Charters/Asia Society)—CFT
 Pilot HS Principal Certification Program—TEA/CFT
 UTeach—TEA/CFT
 Teach for America and Texas Teaching Fellows-MSDF
• Texas HS Completion & Success Grants—TEA
• Postsecondary Success Initiative—TEA
• AVID—MSDF
• AP Strategies—MSDF
What has the THSP funded?
Initiative
T-STEM
Technical
Assistance/
Evaluation
Programs and Funders
• T-STEM Academies—TEA/CFT/MSDF
• T-STEM Centers—TEA/CFT/MSDF
• T-STEM Network—TEA/CFT/MSDF
• Statewide Redesign Technical Assistance—TEA
• ESC Support for HS Improvement—TEA
• SREB/AIR/CRSS/NCEA (District/Campus Redesign
Consultants)—CFT
• Early College High School Technical Assistance—TEA
• T-STEM Technical Assistance—TEA/CFT/MSDF
• External Evaluation of THSCS, Redesign, and ECHS
grants—TEA
What is the T-STEM Initiative?
Texas Science Technology Engineering and
Math Initiative Goals
• Develop leading innovation economy workforce by
aligning high school, postsecondary education, and
economic development
• Establish 35 T-STEM Academies, each year producing
3,500 Texas high school graduates
• Create 6-9 T-STEM Centers to support the transformation
of teaching methods, teacher preparation, and instruction
in the STEM fields
• Establish a statewide best practices network for STEM
education to promote broad dissemination and adoption
of promising practices
Why T-STEM?
• High school students continue to pass the Math and Science
sections of the high school graduation test (TAKS) at lower
rates than the ELA or Social Studies sections.
Passing Rates on Grade 11 TAKS Preliminary Spring 2006
100
94
88
77
80
75
60
40
ELA
Math
Social Studies
Science
Why T-STEM?
• Texas has lower percentages of students taking Advanced
Placement exams in Calculus, Biology, Chemistry, and Physics
than the nation and lower percentages of students scoring a 3 or
higher.
• The number of Hispanic and African American students in Texas
who score a 3 or higher on the Chemistry and Physics AP
exams is fewer than 500.
• Two of the most common reasons campuses were Academically
Unacceptable under the state accountability system were failure
to meet the TAKS math standards and failure to meet the TAKS
science standards.
• Math performance was one of the top reasons that campuses
failed to meet federal AYP standards.
What is STEM Education?
• Teaching and learning
strategies that challenge
students to innovate and
invent
• Model real world contexts
for learning and work
• Integration of math,
science, and technology
with other subject areas
• The design process
driving student
engagement
How do we help children make sense of the world
and solve new and novel problems?
T-STEM Academies Goals
Produce Texas graduates in areas of high need
across the state with the preparation to pursue
postsecondary study and careers in STEMrelated fields by:
– Providing a rigorous, well rounded education
– Establishing a personalized, college- and workready culture
– Providing teacher and leadership development
T-STEM Academies Design
• Mix of charter schools, traditional public schools, and
schools created in partnership with an institute of
higher education (IHE).
• Stand alone campuses or small learning communities
• Approximately 100 students per grade
• Grades 6 – 12 (or 9 – 12 and actively work with
feeder middle schools)
• Serve a population with a majority representation of
high-need students
• Open enrollment and non-selective
T-STEM Center Goals
• Identify and develop innovative instructional materials
that integrate math and science concepts with the
practical, problem-solving elements
• Deliver professional development to teachers in
STEM fields based on national best practices
• Train administrators and principals in effective
leadership strategies for supporting innovative math
and science instruction
• Provide technical assistance, training, and coaching to
the T-STEM Academies and other schools
• Support regional partnerships between businesses
and school districts around STEM
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T-STEM Centers Design
• Located at universities, regional ESCs, LEAs,
and other non-profit organizations
• Create regional partnerships among businesses,
higher education entities, school districts, and
other organizations to support the T-STEM
initiative
T-STEM Network Goals
• Serve as a conduit for sharing best practices and
lessons learned from the Texas Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Math Academies and Centers with all
Texas middle and high schools.
• Provide access to relevant professional development,
rigorous math and science curriculum, lessons plans
infused with real-world activities in math and science, and
expert and peer advice.
• Move as many schools and districts as possible
toward the implementation of practices that have been
proven to better serve students in science and math
T-STEM Investments to Date
Academy
Center
coverage
Texas
A&M
New Deal ISD
Burnham Wood
Harmony Science
New Teacher Project
•El Paso
UTEP
Fort • •Dallas
Worth
Texas
Tech
Irving Academy
Harmony Science
Waxahachie ISD
Dallas ISD
Richardson ISD
Leadership
investment
AJ Moore
Manor ISD
•Austin
Regions
XIII & XX
•San Antonio
UTeach at U of H
•Houston
Harmony Science
NEISD
Carver HS
YES SE
Harmony Science
KIPP
CCISD (Moody HS)
New Teacher Project
•Brownsville
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Key T-STEM Priorities 2007
1. Support development and implementation
of quality programs in Academy and
Center grantees
2. Launch STEM Network (fall 2006)
3. Identify up to 10 new Academy grantees
(spring 2007)
4. Identify up to 3 new Center grantees
(spring 2007)
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What other funding is available?
• House Bill 1
– Section 56(b)(3) provides an allotment to each district
in the amount of $275 for each student in grades 9
through 12 based on average daily attendance.
Allotment funds may be spent on the following:
1)Supporting underachieving students to succeed in
college preparatory classes
2)Increasing number taking college entrance exams
3)Increasing number enrolling and succeeding in college
prep courses including AP, IB and dual credit
4)Increasing number taking AP and IB tests
5)Expanding participation in dual or concurrent
enrollment courses
How can the HS Allotment
enhance the 3 R’s?
• High school allotment funds can be used to support
academic rigor in high schools
– Tutoring, accelerated online instruction, summer
programs, ninth-grade transition programs
• High school allotment funds can be used to institute
personalization strategies in high schools
– Advisories, small learning communities, ninth-grade
academies
• High school allotment funds can be used to align
curriculum and expectations with postsecondary
How can the HS Allotment
enhance the 3 R’s?
• High school allotment funds can be for programs at high
schools that allow more students to take advanced
courses
– Tuition, textbooks and transportation for dual credit
courses, exam subsidies for AP/IB and SAT/ACT,
courses to prepare students for the college entrance
exams
• High school allotment funds can be used to attract
qualified and effective teachers and administrators to high
schools
– Incentives/stipends for math and science teachers,
incentives at hard-to-staff campuses
Why is the THSP partnership
important?
The THSP is a partnership among elected
leaders in Texas, the Texas Education
Agency, the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation, the Michael & Susan Dell
Foundation, Communities Foundation of
Texas, educators, community
organizations, and businesses.
Ensuring that all Texas students graduate
ready for college and for work in the 21st
century requires a committed partnership
among all education stakeholders.
Join us.
Contact Information
For more information about the T-STEM Initiative, please contact
Kelvey Oeser or Mary Wells.
Kelvey Oeser
Mary Wells
Program Manager—
Senior Program Officer
T-STEM Initiative
T-STEM Initiative
Texas Education Agency
Communities Foundation of
William B. Travis Building
Texas
1701 N. Congress Avenue
5500 Caruth Haven Lane
Austin, TX 7870
Dallas, TX 75225-8146
(512) 463-4704
(512) 536-1160
[email protected] [email protected]
www.tea.state.tx.us/ed_init/thsp/
www.cftexas.org/thsp
Contact Information
For more information about the Texas High School Project, please
contact Barbara Knaggs or John Fitzpatrick.
Barbara Knaggs
Senior Director—
Secondary School Initiatives
Texas Education Agency
William B. Travis Building
1701 N. Congress Avenue
Austin, TX 7870
(512) 936-6060
[email protected]
John Fitzpatrick
Executive Director
Texas High School Project
Communities Foundation of
Texas
5500 Caruth Haven Lane
Dallas, TX 75225-8146
(214) 750-4222
[email protected]
www.tea.state.tx.us/ed_init/thsp/
www.cftexas.org/thsp