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AHSI NEWS & EVENTS

2009 SPRING CONVENING – SAN ANTONIO, TX
This year’s AHSI Spring Convening is being co-hosted by Gateway to College in San Antonio, Texas! The convening will be held at the Sheraton Gunter Hotel, 205 E. Houston St., in San Antonio, March 31 – April 2, 2009 (http://www.gunterhotel.com). We thank our Gateway to College colleagues for arranging us to visit their San Antonio College campus as well!
The convening will center on Future Focus and incorporate our capacity building topics and a look to the future of our network. The convening is scheduled to begin with a 5:00pm reception and dinner on Tuesday, March 31 and conclude by 2:30pm on Thursday, April 2. Attendees will receive further details in the coming weeks! If you have not already done so, please RSVP to Lauren at lsmock-randall@bigpicture.org.

DATA WORK GROUP
The Data Work Group will meet in San Antonio just prior to the AHSI Spring Convening to address several important tasks, including preparing a report on our 2X2 data collection and preparing for the 2009 Gates Foundation Data Collection initiative. The DWG will also devote some time to sharing ideas for using 2X2 and related data in the Annual Reviews, which will be conducted in April and May. If you have questions regarding the Data Mini Convening or workgroup please contact Charlie Mojkowski at cmojkowski@mac.com.

HIGH SCHOOL TO CAREER & COLLEGE WORK GROUP
The High School to Career and College workgroup Mini Convening was a great success! This year we had the opportunity to co-convene with the Big Picture Learning College Transition Counselors in Indianapolis, IN. Together we engaged in valuable conversations around career and college readiness, access and transition success. As a workgroup we had productive meeting time which provided an opportunity for us to make progress on our strategies and deliverables. Overall, we had an energizing and informative convening. This convening proved once again how valuable and enriching it is to have a network of similar organizations working together to improve practice as we provide the best possible services for students and families. To view a full summary and materials from the convening please visit iBackup.com.

MATH & QUANTITATIVE REASONING WORK GROUP
Inaugural MINT Visit a Huge Success!
After a great deal of collaborative planning and preparation, 12 representatives from six AHSI Intermediary organizations (including AHSI Director, Talmira Hill) traveled to Denver, CO to take part in the inaugural Mixed Intermediary Numeracy Team (MINT) experience at Mapleton Early College – a Big Picture Learning school. On Tuesday evening, February 17th, MINT participants mixed and mingled with Mapleton Early College staff and met in small, designated groups to prepare for an intensive site visit the following day. This gathering provided an opportunity for many of the MINT participants to meet in person for the very first time as prior communication had been limited to pre-visit planning conference calls and email correspondence. In addition, this venue provided an opportunity to connect with Mapleton Early College staff and engage in meaningful discussion around their current school-wide numeracy efforts – all an important part of the relationship-building process critical to this initiative’s success.

Mapleton’s Quantitative Reasoning Coach, Jon Haradon kicked things off the morning of the 18th challenging the school’s advisories to creatively plan and construct a free-standing ramp (using provided materials) to propel a Matchbox car as far and as straight as possible. In the jam-packed library, teams of students put their Math and QR skills to work, mapping out plans, explaining their reasoning, and testing hypotheses – all in the spirit of friendly competition. MINT participants roamed the room, engaging students in discussion and observing them at work. When the initial planning time was concluded and instructions given for the completion of the project in their respective advisories, students disbanded to their assorted classrooms with small teams (groups of three) of MINT participants hot on their heels.

Over the course of the day, each small MINT group spent time observing, and in some cases, actively participating, in four Math/QR-related lessons/activities facilitated by Mapleton advisors. During each classroom visit, MINT participants used the provided MINT Data Gathering Tool to cite evidence of 7 AHSI Numeracy Principles as well as opportunities for advisors to expand the numeracy offerings and/or connections. At the end of the day, MINT groups came together to discuss their findings and record information on poster-sized charts that were referenced during an evening debrief with Mapleton Early College staff. This feedback, along with Mapleton EC staff analysis and reflection, will be instrumental as Mapleton EC crafts and begins implementation of a one month, three month, and six month numeracy action plan. At the conclusion of the evening, MINT participants and Mapleton Early College staff expressed their sincere appreciations to one another for their time and commitment to this process. MINT participants were presented special QR Catalyst hats and Mapleton staff with a custom-made banner to grace the school walls. All in all, it was a very successful initial experience with this process – one that will be fine-tuned and revisited later in the school year.

Mapleton Students and Staff with custom banner now hanging in their school!

PRINCIPAL TRAINING & SUPPORT WORK GROUP
The AHSI Principal Training & Support work group gathered in Denver, Colorado on February 19th -22nd to explore strategies for recruiting, hiring, developing, supporting and evaluating site leaders across the national AHSI network. Among the distinguished guests joining AHSI work group participants were Michael Johnston, Author and co-founder of New Leaders for New Schools, Deborah Meier, Author and founder of the Harlem Central Park East schools, Elliot Washor, researcher and co founder of Big Picture Learning and Michael Soguero, Director of the Eagle Rock Professional Development Center.

A post convening survey yielded the following feedback to the collaborative event:

• I now have a sense for all of the pieces of the puzzle that I must now develop.
• Nice job. It was worth my time to come.
• I came away from this conference with a wealth of reliable information
• The highlight of Friday was the visit with Michael Johnston
• Invite me every year!
• Keep them going!

During the 2 ½ day convening, participants were challenged by a rock wall, analyzed the leadership competencies of President Obama, shared their best resources and ideas and explored the explicit and implicit attributes that define effective leadership in today’s innovative and alternative school settings.

This event allowed the AHSI leadership professional learning community some rare face-to-face time to supplement their ongoing web-based and audio conferencing engagement. Work group members will re-convene by phone on Wednesday, March 4th to debrief the event and to explore implications and next steps for further advancing work group desired results including increasing capacity of AHSI organizations to identify, develop, and support quality leaders in campuses across the national network.

AHSI NEWS FROM THE NETWORK

SCHOOLS, INNOVATION AND INFLUENCE: TRANSFORMING EDUCATION – ONE STUDENT AT A TIME
Annual Conference, April 16 – 18, 2009, Providence, RI
Big Picture Learning is proud to announce our annual springtime conference to be held from April 16th-18th at the Met Center in Providence, RI. The conference agenda will reflect our emergence as an organization dedicated to enacting change in schools, developing innovative educational practices, and influencing public policy. Each day of the three-day conference will focus on one of these three key areas, accompanied by complementary talks, workshops, and group sessions.

The Big Picture Learning design is a dynamic approach to learning, doing, and thinking that has been changing the lives of students, educators, and entire communities since 1995. In addition to growing and sustaining a global network of schools, Big Picture Learning is passionately committed to the continual improvement of our educational design, innovation of our practice, and strengthening of the theoretical foundations of our work. Through the achievement of our schools and through our innovative initiatives, Big Picture Learning is compiling an impressive list of educational successes. In turn, these accomplishments have given us added leverage to influence and change public policy.

Big Picture Learning’s Co-Founders and Co-Directors, Dr. Dennis Littky and Dr. Elliot Washor, will provide a framework for the conference; our dedicated staff of Directors who lead our various national and international initiatives will lead the conference programming; and Big Picture Learning school staff and students will contribute their knowledge and expertise. Each day of the conference will offer participants a wide variety of workshops and learning opportunities to choose from – so your experience will be as personalized as our learning design!

Who should attend? Anyone who is interested and invested in changing the very definitions of learning and education! Not only do we welcome district and school administration, teachers, and those interested in becoming a part of the Big Picture Learning network; this conference also targets and serves social entrepreneurs, public agents, and out-of-the-box thinkers with various points of view on thinking and learning.

Register now!

For large group inquires or any additional questions, please contact Jill Olson-Crowley, Big Picture Learning’s Director of Conferences & Connections at jolson-crowley@bigpicture.org.

SEE FOREVER KICKS OFF POWER OF CHANGE CAMPAIGN – A NOTE FROM LUCRETIA MURPHY, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
See Forever/Maya Angelou Public Charter School has seen great change in students’ lives for the past 10 years. We now have two high schools, a middle school, and a new school at the Oak Hill (juvenile detention facility). On average, our scholars enter our schools at least 2 grade levels behind. Yet, 70% graduate from high school and attend college; even more are beginning to make it over the hurdle of the critical first year of college. We see every day that our scholars are ready to transform their lives. I’m inviting you to invest in that change…with your change. I know times are tight for everyone. So the point of this campaign is “a little means a whole lot.” If you can, please give a little. Read below and visit https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?aid=91!

YOUTHBUILD GRADUATE PUBLISHES OP ED IN WAUSAU DAILY HERALD 02-03-09
As a Hmong teenager growing up in Wausau, I was trying to find my own identity. I went to a Catholic parochial school with Caucasian students, and it was a big culture clash. I wasn’t Hmong enough, and I wasn’t white enough. I started making bad choices to fit in. At 13, I joined a Hmong gang called PC, or Players’ Club. The foundation of every gang is that your family doesn’t care about you, but the gang does. At the time, I thought that, too. We did a lot of drugs and fighting with other gangs. We stole a lot of stuff. We lived life on the edge.

Somehow, I actually got my high school diploma at Wausau West High School, but I was a “super senior” because I was 19 when I graduated. I was on probation after a bad fight. Getting a job was a condition of my probation. I heard about a YouthBuild program from a friend who worked there. YouthBuild is a national program in which young adults earn their high school diplomas or GEDs and learn job skills by building housing for low-income families. Here in Wausau it is called Wausau Fresh Start YouthBuild and is jointly run by two non-profit agencies — the Wausau Area Hmong Mutual Association and Children’s Service Society of Wisconsin.

When I got there, my supervisor encouraged me, saying, “You’re such a great leader, but you are a very negative leader. Why don’t you switch around and become a positive leader?” I started asking myself the same question. In YouthBuild, I learned carpentry, and I actually built a house. It’s a rowhouse located in between Wausau and Weston, and a low-income family lives there. I drive by it now and then and think, “Hey, I built that.”

My supervisors at YouthBuild encouraged me to go to college, but they also helped other kids get high-paying, blue-collar jobs, which they called an honest living. YouthBuild was work, but at the same time, the supervisors and teachers became personal friends. Even now, I still contact them when I need help or when I’m stressed out. I recruited about 12 or 13 other gang members to join YouthBuild because I figured it would help them too. And it did — some of them went on to college too, and others have families and high-paying jobs now. They were close friends of mine in other Asian gangs, such as the 715 Thuggs, RTC and AC, and I tried to look after them over the years.

Today, I’m 26, and I’m working on my associate’s degree at the University of Wisconsin Marathon County. I’m majoring in English, and I plan to transfer to University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point to study English and education. My goal is to teach in Wausau. I want to repay society. I was part of the problem. I feel I have taken so much in a negative way. Coming back and teaching would make me feel I have given something back.

Getting into YouthBuild is hard because there are limited spaces each year. But my old supervisors have told me that President Barack Obama has said he wants to increase it, and I’m also told that Congress soon will decide whether to expand the program when it votes on the economic stimulus bill. Wausau’s YouthBuild students and graduates are grateful for all the help our elected officials, including our congressman, Rep. David Obey, have given the program, and we hope they will expand it even further so everyone like me can get in.

There is much I could say to the other elected officials. I’m so concerned about how much money is going into prisons and jails. Why not start earlier and reach kids when they are 16 instead of waiting until they have become convicted criminals? All you have to do is change one person, and that’s one person fewer in the criminal system. It’s also one more person who can contribute to society and make it a better place.

Cheng Lee is a graduate of the Wausau Fresh Start YouthBuild program.

THE DENVER STREET SCHOOL BOYS BASKETBALL TEAM WINS THIRD CONSECUTIVE FRCAA CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE, FINISHING CONFERENCE SEASON UNDEFEATED
Denver, CO–The Denver Street School Bulldogs claimed the Front Range Christian Athletic Association Championship Tournament title this past weekend for the third year in a row. The FRCAA semi-finals began Friday night in Golden, CO at the School of Mines gym where the Bulldogs defeated Belleview Christian High School 72 - 44. They went on to defeat Love Christian High School 82 - 67 Saturday afternoon concluding their season at 19-2 and undefeated in their conference.

Denver Street School senior Christian Lewis was named the conference MVP after scoring 50 points in the final game, a new DSS and FRCAA single game record! Lewis was also named to the all conference team along with teammates, Eric Swift and Ryan Cutts. Jared Gunderson, Head Coach for Faith Baptist and the only team to beat the Bulldogs in conference play last year stated, “Even when we lose, it is fun to watch the Bulldogs because they are so entertaining!”

During non-conference play, the Bulldogs defeated several 4A and 5A teams including Boulder High School and Ridgeview Academy. Their two season losses were handed to them by Mullen High School and Monarch High School during the Boulder Winter Invitational.

Although this team has been exceedingly triumphant, one might find Underdogs to be a more fitting name than Bulldogs, when considering the extreme adversity each team member has faced just to play the game. The boys basketball team at the Denver Street School, a private Christian school designed to aid at-risk youth, is comprised of nine young men ranging in age and experience.
Four of the young men on the team are from out of state, and are only able to participate at the Denver Street School through the Bulldog House residential program set-up for them by the StreetSchool Network™. Because many schools in the network tend to lack funding for their extra-curricular athletic programs, Jackson Hewitt has stepped in with sponsorship for this team and several others across the nation in partnership with the StreetSchool Network™.

If you would like to learn more about the StreetSchool Network™ and what they are doing to help youth like the Denver Street School boys basketball team all over the nation, visit: www.streetschoolnetwork.org or www.denverstreetschool.com. Inspire a student. Create a future.

POLICY AND PLACE-BASED PARTNERSHIPS

INDIANAPOLIS MAYOR MUSTERS RESOURCES FOR NEW ALTERNATIVE HIGH SCHOOLS 02-02-09
By Marjorie Cohen and Andrew Moore
In a unique event held this month, Indianapolis Mayor Gregory A. Ballard publicly lent his support to a broad effort to ensure that students in the city’s recently launched alternative high schools receive adequate services to help them graduate prepared for postsecondary education and career success.
Kicking off a resource fair that brought together city agencies, schools, community groups and college readiness organizations, Mayor Ballard observed, “Transportation, housing, health — these must not serve as barriers to getting to school, nor to staying in school. We know that schools by themselves can’t provide all the supports students and their families need, and city agencies and community groups can step in to fill the gaps.

“The city takes pleasure and pride in its role as one of the founding members of the Indianapolis-Alternative High School Initiative Partnership — along with The Mind Trust, Indianapolis Public Schools and several other school corporations, and the Center for Excellence in Leadership and Learning at the University of Indianapolis,” the mayor added, after being introduced by Joe’Von Beverly, a graduate of YouthBuild Indy, one of the Indianapolis AHSI programs. “It’s always great to see Indianapolis emerging as a leader,” Mayor Ballard continued. “The city is committing a lot of community resources,” he noted, in a reference to a recently announced $110,000 grant to the Indianapolis-AHSI Partnership.

David Harris, CEO of The Mind Trust, observed that after only 18 months, the Indianapolis-AHSI Partnership now supports seven alternative high schools. These student-centered schools provide personalized support for students who have struggled in traditional high school settings. The resource fair was held at one of the schools, the Indianapolis Metropolitan High School at Goodwill Industries of Central Indiana.

The Community Involvement Event took place early in the evening so that school teachers, counselors and principals could attend after the school day. In the course of the evening, school representatives circulated among some 25 tables staffed by potential resource or partner organizations. For instance, at one table, senior staff from the city’s parks and recreation department and quasi-city IndyGo transportation agency made connections regarding afterschool and bus transit options. At another, staff from the city library system outlined how their technology lab can serve as a project and study site for students.

The event included many organizations with expertise in increasing college readiness and promoting college success. “Through all of these efforts, Indianapolis hopes to turn to its own young people to fill the jobs of the present and the future,” the mayor noted. “Every student has the capacity to succeed – that’s the mindset we need.” Along with Nashville, Tenn., and Newark, N.J., Indianapolis is one of three cities developing a network of new alternative high schools in partnership with AHSI. AHSI is a network of 12 youth development organizations actively supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and co-convened by NLC’s Institute for Youth, Education, and Families (YEF Institute) and Big Picture Learning. Other national organizations involved in the Indianapolis partnership include Diploma Plus, the Street Schools Network and YouthBuild USA.

Details: To learn more about the AHSI Place-Based Partnership project sponsored by the YEF Institute, visit www.nlc.org/iyef or contact Marjorie Cohen at (202) 626-3052 or cohen@nlc.org.

NEW ALTERNATIVE SCHOOLS WILL SERVE RANGE OF NASHVILLE STUDENTS 02-02-09
By Jamie Sarrio, The Tennessean
Nashville’s options for high school will expand this fall as the district rolls out two new nontraditional choices. First is a Diploma Plus high school, a special program targeting students who have dropped out of school or are at risk of dropping out. They complete their degree in a small setting with a project-based approach to earning course credit. Second, the district will add another Big Picture High School on the heels of the success of the first location, which opened in 2007.

The Big Picture concept is heavy on internships — students spend three days a week in the classroom and two in the work force. They pick a meaningful internship to last through high school — one that requires work, not just shadowing — and format a lesson plan around the job. Through this self-guided study, students show how essentials such as math, science and social studies are relevant in their chosen fields. Both schools will open in the fall and are part of the citywide effort to reduce the dropout rate.

Right now, one in three Metro students doesn’t graduate from high school on time. And leaders are really concerned about the economic drain dropouts have on the city. Allowing students more choices may appeal to students turned off by traditional high schools. Ellen Zinkiewicz, director of youth and community service for Nashville Career Advancement Center, is heading the effort. She said each school prototype will serve a different kind of student. “These kids are really different — there’s no one magic bullet to help them achieve success,” she said. “We do not have any throw-away kids in our county.”

This wave of nontraditional schools coming to Nashville is partly thanks to the city’s participation in the Alternative High School Initiative. Last year, the mayor and vice mayor applied for this program, which is a way for cities to see how other types of nontraditional high schools are working across the country. The hope is, after the year-and-a-half participation period, local education and city leaders will know more about what kinds of programs exist for students and the best ways to introduce them in Nashville.

On the horizon are two other schools: Gateway to College targets those who have already dropped out and helps them earn a diploma and community college credit, and Youth Build lets students simultaneously work on their GED while building low-income housing in the community. All of the programs should be in place by next fall.

Nontraditional schools aren’t only appealing to struggling students — they’re also a good fit for families who wouldn’t normally consider public schools. Todd Offutt said that, if not for the Big Picture schools, his son Scott would be in private school. The emphasis on relationships between students and teachers won over Offutt, who home-schooled his son before high school. “I think it is important for parents to support this type of school and for this type of learning environment,” he said. “It’s a great program, and it should be expanded as much as it can be.”

NEW OPPORTUNITIES & STORIES OF INTEREST

REFERENCE POINTS: DIRECTORY OF FEDERALLY FUNDED PROJECTS AND CENTERS FOCUSING ON TRANSITION
The Federal Interagency Partners in Transition Workgroup has developed a directory of federally funded projects and centers focusing on youth transition. The directory includes fifteen descriptions, detailing the name of the project or center, the funding agency, and the target audience. The directory also contains a brief description of each center’s purpose, the services they provide, and links to center websites and publications. It is important to note that the document is not exhaustive of all transition services extended through federal, state, or local entities. The directory can be found at
http://psocenter.org/Docs/Resources/SecondaryTransition/TransitionResourceDirectoryfinal.pdf

SAMHSA ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR $11 MILLION IN GRANTS TO EXPAND AND STRENGTHEN TREATMENT SERVICES FOR PERSONS WHO ARE HOMELESS
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is accepting applications for fiscal year 2009 grants for the Development of Comprehensive Drug/Alcohol and Mental Health Treatment Systems for Persons Who are Homeless program. The purpose of this program is to expand and strengthen treatment services for persons who are homeless (including those who are chronically homeless) and who also have substance use disorders, mental disorders, or co-occurring substance use and mental disorders.

SAMHSA expects that up to $11 million will be available for up to 33 grants of approximately $350,000 per grant for up to five years. The actual award amount may vary, depending on the availability of funds and the progress achieved by the awardees. Funds are available for grants in two categories: “General” and “Services in Supportive Housing.” Approximately $4.5 million per year of the $11 million will be used to provide services in supportive housing. The remaining $6.8 million will be available for “General” Treatment for Homeless grants. The grants will be administered by SAMHSA’s Center for Substance Abuse Treatment.

WHO CAN APPLY: Domestic public and private nonprofit entities are eligible to apply. [See Section III-1 of the RFA for complete eligibility information.]
HOW TO APPLY: Applications for No. TI-09-006 are available by calling SAMHSA’s Information Line at 1-877-SAMHSA7 [TDD: 1 800-487-4889] or by downloading the application at http://dev.samhsa.gov/grants/2009/ti_09_006.aspx. Applicants are encouraged to apply online using www.grants.gov.
APPLICATION DUE DATE: April 30, 2009. Applications must be received by the due date and time to be considered for review. Please review carefully Section IV-3 of the application announcement for submission requirements.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Applicants with questions about program issues should contact Bryant Goodine at (240) 276-2828 or bryant.goodine@samhsa.hhs.gov . For questions on grants management issues contact Kathleen Sample at (240) 276-1407 or kathleen.sample@samhsa.hhs.gov

SAMHSA is a public health agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The agency is responsible for improving the accountability, capacity and effectiveness of the nation’s substance abuse prevention, addictions treatment and mental health services delivery systems.