Shortly thereafter, Generation Schools Network also began partnering with the College Board School, West Leadership Academy, also slated to open in the shared West High School campus. West Leadership Academy will implement many of the elements of the Generation Schools model and both academies will share an aligned calendar and school day.

Both innovation plans provide the schools with autonomy around schedule, budget and professional development; ultimately providing students with 30% more instruction time each year and teachers with 20 days of built-in professional development annually along with up to two hours of common planning time each day.

In commenting about the plans, board member Arturo Jimenez said, “This is really the essence of innovation…. It’s a very practical and a very visionary way to run the schools. Dr. Robert Villarreal and Teresa Klava and every one at the West Campus including the West team, I really appreciate you providing this wonderful example of how to collaborate.”

Andrea Merida shared her thoughts saying, “This is incredibly out of the box.”

DPS Board President, Mary Seawell praised Generation Schools saying, “West Generation Academy offers true innovation in delivering a great education to students.  It is rare for a strong community, a school district and labor to all agree on the best opportunity for students.  West Generation Academy has created a school all of us believe will be truly exceptional.”

Of the vote, Generation Schools Founder, Furman Brown shared that; “We couldn’t be more delighted to see the structural reforms we advocate take root in the district through these two new academies.  Our goal all along has been to give both students and teachers the absolute best chance for success.”

He first thought about organizing a coat drive for protestors in Zuccotti Park. Then, it occurred to him, the need for coats in his own community was tremendous, with many residents depending upon hoodies and sweaters to keep warm all winter long.

Jeffrey collected over 300 coats from students, teachers and community members. He created coat vouchers that he distributed to the Atlantic Family Shelter, St. John’s Bread and Life Shelter and Starbright Adult Family Shelter.   Chic Graphics designed a poster and post cards, which were widely distributed. Studio Fix Hair Salon donated space enabling men, women and children to pick up a winter coat on November 22^nd. For one family that lined up before the doors opened, winter coats were unaffordable, given the reality of making ends meet on an unemployment check.

Jeffrey recognized,  “How quickly life can change for a person, so you shouldn’t take life for granted.”

Jeffrey worked to engage the entire community in his project including writing his Congressman who surprised him by writing back and saying, “ Invite me. I want to be a part of what you are doing.”

Congressman Towns kept his word as he visited the school the end of last week. Jeffrey introduced Congressman Towns, who has represented Brooklyn’s 10^th District for over 30 years, telling the Congressman, “I hope to give back as much as you one day.”

Towns spent time addressing college access issues with students, explaining that there are a lot of ways to go about accessing financial resources for college including the availability of loan forgiveness programs for college graduates who enter public service.

“There is nothing like commitment and determination; once you want it bad enough, you can go and get it,” Towns told the students. He emphasized he importance of students advocating for themselves, with the right attitude, as essential for success. He explained that how students relate to their teachers and their classmates is key as is securing strong letters of recommendation.

Jonathan Franklin, BGS Class of 2012, asking Congressman Ed Towns for his suggestions to make his community safer

Towns invited graduates to dine with him in Washington, D.C. when they visit in May 2012 and was formally invited to – the students’ graduation this June.

Top Photo: Blair Namnoum, BGS History Teacher; Jeffrey Archer, Class of 2012; Congressmen Ed Towns; Diana Archer

This season we have a lot to celebrate as two of our star basketball players – Fannisha Price (Forward, Brooklyn Generation) and Jenice Winter (Wing, Victory Collegiate) – have received full scholarships to play on two Division One women’s basketball teams at Marshall and Virginia Commonwealth University.  Victory Collegiate is a Generation Schools affiliate school.

Fannisha Price (on left)

At a celebration for the girls, their families and teammates, Victory Collegiate Principal, Marcel D. Deans noted that the event  “helps spread the good word about the work we are doing here; you are helping to spread the word by getting into Division 1 schools that aren’t just great on the basketball court but also are going to hold you to very high standards in the classroom as well, and for that we thank you.”

Generation Schools Co-Founder Jonathan Spear added, “It makes me really proud to have been part of creating this opportunity. But what makes me really, really proud is what Fannisha and Jenise have done with this opportunity in high school, and what they are going to accomplish with this opportunity in college and beyond.”

“We’ll be here on this end pushing forward if you’re there pushing on your end,” added Lydia Colón Bomani, Brooklyn Generation’s Principal.

Coach Anwar Gladden South Shore Lady Vikings

Coach Anwar Gladden remarked,  “For me to see Fannisha’s dreams come true is quite an honor. I’ve seen her from a very young child.” He noted that, “the standards that you will be held to are high. It is also an honor to be on a campus and not pay tuition. Congratulations to you and your families, and the rest of the young ladies on the team. They have set the bar really high for you guys.  You just follow their lead.” Fannisha is not only living her dream but her family’s dream of a college education.

In 2011, the team lost the City Championship game at Madison Square Garden, but with Coach Anwar’s guidance, and Fannisha’s and Jenise’s leadership, they are determined to become AA City Champions in 2012.

Edward Tarngelo, an alum of the South Shore coaching staff who served for 35 years and is now retired, returned to the school to remind the assembled athletes and their teachers,  “The key is education. Education is something that can’t be taken away from you. The second thing is always be confident and believe that you can achieve.  If you feel that way about yourself, you’ll have a much better chance of achieving success. [Third], if you want to be happy do things for others.”

Support for bringing in the Generation Schools model has come from the community via the West Denver Equitable Education Collaborative, the Denver Public Schools Office of School Reform & Innovation and Denver Public Schools Board of Education who approved West Generation Academy (WGA) with a 6-0 vote as one of the two new options to be placed at West High School for fall 2012.

Students interested in athletics will have the opportunity to play on one of the historic “West Cowboy” teams. That’s because West Generation Academy, in partnership with the other academic programs at the West Campus, is keeping the West Cowboy tradition alive through a unified campus sports program.

Dr. Robert Villarreal, an award-winning principal named by President Clinton as one of the Six Outstanding Principals in America— was chosen as West Generation’s principal. We will serve 1,050 students from 6^th to 12^th grade by 2015.

Given our extended day and year, a student who begins middle school at WGA in fall 2012, and graduates in 2019 will receive the equivalent of two additional years of education.  In 2012-13 we anticipate enrolling 450 students in grades 6, 8 and 9.

We are also collaborating to supporting the development and implementation of the West Leadership Academy (WLA) operated by the College Board in our shared West campus.  It is designed to serve 875 middle and high-school students when fully enrolled. The principal recognized that only by changing its structural model, could it offer the breadth and depth of the College & Career Intensive Courses integral to our whole-school model. As a result, all students in both schools will spend 40 days each year intentionally linking learning to life.

With Rose Community Foundation’s leadership and gift of a $200,000 challenge grant, we have begun to raise visibility and financial support in Colorado, and have set a goal of securing over one million in earned revenues and institutional support.  All of these innovations are the result of the strong, promising results realized to date at our pilot school, Brooklyn Generation.

Our Intensives were featured in Time Well Spent: Eight Powerful Practices of Successful, Expanded-Time, a report issuedin September 2011 by the National Center on Time & Learning, Furman Brown and Generation Schools joined the National Center and the Harvard Graduate School of Education for an extraordinary gathering on the power of expanded learning time to prepare students for college and career success in Boston on October 25-26.

Generation Schools was also one of ten community-based organizations across New York State that received a $50,000 College Access Challenge Grant (CACG) to help low income students at Brooklyn Generation obtain a college degree. CACG grants were awarded by the New York State Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC). HESC is New York State’s student financial aid agency, helping people pay for college and is a national leader in providing need-based grant and scholarship award money to college-going students.

Gifts to Generation Schools support:  “effective whole school reform designed to maximize learning time for students and teachers, make the curriculum more rigorous and engaging, and address issues such as school leadership, teacher recruitment, professional development, and evaluation, which are critical for teacher effectiveness and student success.”

The Center for High Impact Philanthropy has also featured Generation Schools in two of their national reports:

• High Impact Philanthropy to Improve Teaching Quality in the U.S. Blueprint. School of Social Policy & Practice, University of Pennsylvania, Spring 2010. Generation Schools is one of only two effective whole-school reform models nationwide highlighted in this national report. By helping public schools successfully redeploy their existing resources to improve teacher effectiveness, we are featured as one of the most cost-effective reforms in country. See pages 53-56

• “High Impact Philanthropy to Improve Teaching Quality: Focus on High-Need Secondary Students.” The Center for High Impact Philanthropy. School of Social Policy & Practice, University of Pennsylvania, Jan. 2011

For the 2012-13 academic year, West Generation Academy will enroll students in the 6th, 8th and 9th grades. Enrollment began on December 1st, 2011 and families will have the opportunity to select West Generation Academy through the Denver Public Schools school choice process. This year, Denver Public Schools launched a new school choice application for families to simplify the enrollment process and to ensure that Denver families are fully informed about the school options available to them. The new application was mailed to families in early December.

For a calendar of additional dates, or to learn more about West Generation Academy, click here.

Dr. Robert Villarrreal, Principal, West Generation Academy

This is a wonderful opportunity for parents and students to meet West Generation Academy Principal Bob Villarreal and learn more about the new West Generation Academy at the West Campus, 951 Elati Street, Denver, CO 80204-3964

Opening Celebrations

On Thursday November 3rd, community partners and parents were welcomed to Denver’s West Campus which will be the home of West Legacy High School, West Leadership Academy and West Generation Academy.

The day began with  El Dia de los Muertos cultural dance performance for West High School students, followed by  a presentation about the academic programming that will be offered at schools in 2012. To learn more about the programming offered by Generation Schools at West Generation Academy, click here.

The two incoming principals for West Generation Academy and West Leadership Academy are working together on details of the schedule for fall 2012 when the schools enroll their first students. Both schools will use the Generation school-year calendar with its 200-day school year and eight hours of instruction that has received national acclaim. Both will offer College & Career Intensives.

The model staggers teacher schedules. Twice a year for a month at a time, students explore a range of careers.

All three schools in the West building will share sports and extracurricular activities. The school team will remain the Cowboys and will draw students from all three schools.

To read some of the press highlights of the day, please click below:

Robles, Yesenia. “Details Emerge on New Academies at Denver’s West High School.” The Denver Post. 03 Nov. 2011.

Whipple, Kelsey. “West High: Meet the Two New Academies Moving into the Low-performing School next Year – Denver News – The Latest Word.” The Denver Westword Blogs. 03 Nov. 2011.

Brennan, Charlie. “Fresh Hope for West High Turnaround.” EdNewsColorado | Colorado’s Comprehensive Site for Education News and Analysis. 03 Nov. 2011.

In the short time BGS  has been on the campus:

• Students receiving a Regents diploma has increased four-fold
• The cohort that is graduating on time has almost doubled.

Looking at cumulative graduation results from 2001 to 2006 before Generation Schools started at South Shore: 753 students graduated, 10% of their students received a Regents diploma, 33% of the cohort graduated on time,  and 25% of the cohort dropped out.

Our First Graduation!

On June 29, 2011, Brooklyn Generation held its first graduation ceremony in a heartfelt celebration at the Brooklyn Museum.

• 45 students graduated
• 87% of all Seniors graduated
• 3 out of 4 graduates (75%) received a Regents diploma
• An additional three students earned their GED.

Generation Schools Uses the New Federal Standards for Calculating Graduation Rates

As a national organization, Generation Schools employs a measure that is comparable across states developed by the National Governors’ Association:

How Does NYC Calculate Its Graduation Rate?

In New York City, the Department of Education determines a high school’s graduation rate by looking at cohort data. A cohort consists of all students who first entered ninth grade in a given school year.

For example, cohort data for the graduating Class of 2011 (Known as Cohort M in NYC) includes all ninth grade students who started high school in 2007-2008. All students who graduate in June or August are included in the cohort’s graduation rate.

All students remain in the cohort – even if the student changes high schools or drops out.

New York City’s calculation includes Local and Regents diplomas, GEDs, and special education (IEP) diplomas. It does not include disabled students in self-contained classrooms or District 75 students (students who are on the autism spectrum, severely challenged, and/or multi-disabled).

Progress Report 2010-11

In October 2011, NYC DOE reported a 55.1% four-year cohort graduation rate for Brooklyn Generation. The BGS Cohort M had 78 students in Fall 2007; 43 of these graduated with Regents or local diplomas; 10 students are still working toward graduation this year; and still others transferred to other schools and are still factored into the rate for BGS.

What’s Next?

Under the leadership of a new principal, continuous improvement efforts are underway to improve not only the graduation rate, but the percentage of graduating students who are college-ready.  We know this will take time.

When the school is fully enrolled there will be 460 students or 115 in each graduating class.

Why Colorado? With a successful history of labor innovation in public schools, and a per-pupil funding pattern that reflects most of the country, the Denver metropolitan area is the ideal site for reform. Here, we will test the model’s cost-effectiveness, adaptability to multiple districts, and potential to be scaled nationally. We are working closely with Denver Public Schools to launch a full-model school serving 1,200 students in grades 6-12 in a turnaround campus.

Our recent expansion to the Rocky Mountain region has proven that significant structural innovation is possible in a variety of districts without changes to current teachers’ contracts.

Critical Partnerships Developing in the Rocky Mountain Region ~ Responding to Data & Engaging Parents

Generation Schools is positioning itself to help meet the needs of struggling students in the Metro. An interesting phenomenon about the greater Denver area discovered by Colorado Youth for a Change (CYC) is that students on boundary lines where the 15 districts intersect struggle the most to complete high school. Generation Schools plans to partner with CYC in helping districts implement the Generation Schools model near boundary lines to catch the large number of 9th graders who essentially need to start high school over. It’s wonderful to have the results from Brooklyn Generation School demonstrate how the model can help support over-age and under-credited youth in moving toward graduation. For more on CYC click here >>>

Generation Schools has also begun to work with Padres Unidos, a community and parent organizing group, that has made a huge impact on educational outcomes in Denver. Padres Unidos has brought in higher-performing schools, forced school turnaround options, and worked with the district to adopt equitable disciplinary policies for all students. Their next project is middle school reform, and they see the Generation Schools extended learning time model as an answer. For more on Padres Unidos click here >>>

We refer to existing schools with whom we are partnering to conduct whole school redesign as affiliate schools. With our affiliates, we are demonstrating that by redeploying existing school staff, it is possible to accomplish more without costing more.