School turnaround videos that illustrate different models for SIG grants w/Letter from USDOE official

Colleagues:

Last week, the press shop issued a release publicizing the “suite” of school turnaround videos OCO has produced to better educate and inform the public about the Title I School Improvement Grant Program and further illustrate and explain the different models districts may choose to implement with SIG grant funds. In addition to the marketing we have done to the broadcast stations and education outlets in our ed.tv network (the response has been very strong for dvds and digital downloads), we would appreciate you spreading the word across your networks and among your constituency groups about the products and, most specifically, our latest offering:

“It Can Be Done: Turning Around America’s Lowest Achieving Schools” is the latest new video released by the U.S. Department of Education about the Title I School Improvement Grant Program and how the communities of Mobile, Alabama; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Chattanooga, Tennessee were successful in implementing turnaround, restart and transformation models to revitalize and transform their lowest performing schools. The video has also been dubbed in Spanish / En Español.

The Department’s latest video (RT: 11:21) in the series profiles the work of the following schools:

George Hall Elementary School: Beginning in 2004, George Hall Elementary School in Mobile, Ala., implemented dramatic changes to turn around the school, including hiring a new principal and extending the school day by an hour. Prior to 2004, George Hall was one of the lowest performing schools in Alabama. The school experienced declining test scores, a lack of community and parental involvement, student engagement and student disciplinary concerns. After turning around George Hall, more than 90 percent of students were performing at or above proficiency in both reading and math. In 2008, the U.S. Department of Education named George Hall a Blue Ribbon School of the Year, and in 2009, Education Trust awarded the school with its Dispelling the Myth Award.

Pickett Middle School: In 2007, Pickett Middle School in Philadelphia was closed and reopened under an independent charter organization, Mastery Charter Schools. Prior to undergoing this change, Pickett experienced severe student disciplinary problems. Student suspensions were high and academic performance was low. Under Mastery management, the Pickett campus established a learning environment focused on producing college and career-ready students. In just one year, student violence went down dramatically, while student performance increased by double digits in both math and reading.

Hamilton County School District: In 2000, the Hamilton County School District in Chattanooga, Tenn., teamed up with a community partner to transform eight of the 20 lowest-performing grade schools in the state of Tennessee. The county built leadership teams to establish staff development and incentives programs to attract and retain talent. After the transformation, third graders’ performance on state exams increased from 53 percent (2003) to 78 percent in reading and language arts (2008) and from 50 percent (2003) to 72 percent (2008) in math.

To view the other three videos produced in the series to date, visit: http://www.ed.gov/blog/2010/03/whats-possible-turning-around-americas-lo....

Thanks for your efforts to spread the word. If your partner organizations would like DVD copies of any of the videos produced to date, just let us know as we have them available for distribution.

Todd May
Deputy Director

Special Projects and Events Team
U.S. Department of Education
Washington D.C.