Project Grant 15VSWCO004

TWELVE VISTAS AND TEN SUMMER ASSOCIATES ARE REQUESTED TO JOIN GENERATION SCHOOLS NETWORK AND ITS PARTNER SCHOOLS IN COLORADO AND NEW YORK IN THEIR WORK OF ENSURING THAT ALL STUDENTS, REGARDLESS OF LIFE CIRCUMSTANCE, HAVE ACCESS TO A GREAT EDUCATION. THE GSN TEAM IS PARTNERING WITH THE FOLLOWING SCHOOLS AND ORGANIZATIONS TO PLACE THE VISTAS ON THE GROUND TO COMPLETE CRITICAL WORK: ENGLEWOOD SCHOOL DISTRICT (ENGLEWOOD, CO), TURNING POINT OF THE CITY, AND BROOKLYN GENERATION SCHOOL (BROOKLYN, NY). THE GSN TEAM PROVIDES COACHING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO THESE SCHOOLS IN ORDER TO ENSURE THAT TEACHERS AND STUDENTS ARE ACCESSING THE FULL BENEFITS OF GSN'S SCHOOL MODEL AND RESOURCES. GSN FOCUSES ITS SUPPORT IN FIVE AREAS: STRUCTURAL REDESIGN, LEADERSHIP & ACCOUNTABILITY, LEARNING AND TEACHING, HEALTH & WELLNESS, AND COLLEGE & CAREER READINESS. TOOLS AND PROCEDURES ARE BEING DEVELOPED AND IMPLEMENTED AT ALL OF THESE SCHOOLS AND MORE. THE GENERATION SCHOOLS MODEL IS CURRENTLY IMPACTING OVER 20,000 STUDENTS AND 1,500 TEACHERS NATIONALLY. THE VISTA MEMBERS WILL DEVELOP TOOLS AND PROCEDURES SPECIFICALLY IN THE AREAS OF PARENT ENGAGEMENT, VOLUNTEER ENGAGEMENT, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, PROGRAM EVALUATION, CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT AND SOCIAL MEDIA THAT CAN BE UTILIZED AND IMPLEMENTED LONG AFTER THE VISTA MEMBERS HAVE COMPLETED THEIR TERMS. THE REQUESTED VISTA ACTIVITIES AT ALL LOCATIONS WILL INCLUDE DEVELOPING AND IMPLEMENTING STRATEGIES FOR SOCIAL MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS, CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT, DEVELOPING TRAINING MATERIALS AND BEST PRACTICES FOR TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS TO FURTHER PARENT ENGAGEMENT, AND HELPING TO SOLIDIFY THE ON-BOARDING PROCESS, TRAINING MATERIALS, SUPERVISION, AND APPRECIATION OF THE VOLUNTEERS COMING TO WORK WITH GSN AND ITS AFFILIATE SCHOOLS. 2. HOW MANY VISTAS AND LEADERS ARE YOU REQUESTING? 11 VISTA TEAM MEMBERS; 1 TEAM LEADER + 10 SUMMER ASSOCIATES 3. WHAT IS THE ESTIMATED LENGTH OF TIME REQUIRED TO COMPLETE THE PROJECT? 4 YEARS 4. BRIEFLY DESCRIBE YOUR ORGANIZATION'S MISSION, HISTORY, AND THE BENEFICIARIES OF YOUR ORGANIZATION'S PROGRAMS. GENERATION SCHOOLS NETWORK (GSN) IS AN AWARD-WINNING NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION WHOSE INNOVATIVE EDUCATION MODEL OFFERS UP TO 30% "MORE AND BETTER" LEARNING TIME WITHOUT INCREASING COSTS OR TEACHER WORKLOAD. GSN'S MISSION IS TO TRANSFORM PUBLIC EDUCATION THROUGH SUSTAINABLE, SCALABLE STRATEGIES THAT DRIVE STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND TEACHER EFFECTIVENESS FOR ALL STUDENTS AND TEACHERS. THE VISION IS TO ENSURE THAT ALL STUDENTS- REGARDLESS OF LIFE CIRCUMSTANCES -- ARE PREPARED FOR SUCCESS IN SCHOOL, WORK AND LIFE. THE GENERATION SCHOOLS MODEL HAD ITS ORIGINS IN 1990 WHEN FOUNDER FURMAN BROWN BEGAN TEACHING IN THE FIRST-EVER CORPS OF TEACH FOR AMERICA IN SOUTH-CENTRAL LOS ANGELES. THE CHALLENGING REALITIES HE DISCOVERED THROUGH THE EXPERIENCE MOTIVATED HIM TO SPEND MORE THAN A DECADE DEVELOPING AND TESTING EDUCATION REFORM STRATEGIES IN A VARIETY OF SETTINGS. HE THEN LAUNCHED GENERATION SCHOOLS NETWORK IN 2004. IN COLLABORATION WITH NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, HE LAUNCHED BROOKLYN GENERATION SCHOOL IN 2007. WITHIN THE FIRST FEW YEARS, AS THEY IMPLEMENTED CRITICAL ELEMENTS OF THE GENERATIONS SCHOOLS MODEL, THEY OBSERVED SIGNIFICANT GAINS IN ATTENDANCE, CREDITS ACCUMULATED, AND PASS RATES IN THE NEW YORK STATE REGENTS EXAMS. SUBSEQUENTLY, GENERATION SCHOOLS NETWORK CHOSE TO PILOT THE PROGRAM IN COLORADO AND IN THE FALL OF 2012, WEST GENERATION ACADEMY OPENED. THE BENEFICIARIES OF OUR ORGANIZATION'S PROGRAMS INCLUDE THE TEACHERS, STUDENTS, ADMINISTRATORS, FAMILIES, AND COMMUNITIES OF THE SCHOOLS THAT WE WORK WITH, WHICH ARE HIGH-NEED, HIGH-POVERTY SCHOOLS NATION-WIDE. HERE IS DATA ON THE SITES THAT WILL BE HOSTING VISTAS: -ENGLEWOOD SCHOOL DISTRICT: 2,775 STUDENTS IN THE 2016-17 SCHOOL YEAR, 65% FREE OR REDUCED LUNCH (FRL) -BROOKLYN GENERATION SCHOOL (BGS): 224 STUDENTS IN THE 2016-17 SCHOOL YEAR, 75% FRL -COLORADO RURAL EDUCATION COLLABORATIVE (CREC