Centurions November, 2019 Taskforce: Education #EDUKC
Co-Chairs: Wale Akinmoladun, Stephanie Miller
Committee Members: Audra Clark, Katie Garcia, Ethan Lange, Jen Malone, Demetrius Peterson, Sarah Reape, Monice Smith-Weeks
Goal: Immerse Centurions in an experiential learning by highlighting how school districts use innovation to meet students where they are across the region.
Session One: Corporations and Education, Science City’s The Amazing Brain Exhibit
Speakers: Ray Kowalik, CEO Burns & McDonnell; Grandview Students, The Amazing Brain (Tonanci Aguilera-Gallegos, Zakery Davis, A’maris Dyke, Mariah Hayes, Robert Hayes-Givhan, Trinity Johnson, Devon Jones, Rhiamya Jones, Annalise Long, Danielle Matthews, Gabrielle McBride, Micah Rainey, Jordan Sanders, Khari Spaulding, Mya Wilson, Sebastian Williams)
Overview: Ray presented Burns & McDonnell’s view on education and the importance of STEM in the classroom for both students and teachers. He introduced the Grandview School District students who won Burns & McDonnell’s Battle of the Brains competition. The Grandview students created The Amazing Brain exhibit at Science City, and won a $50,000 prize for classroom improvements. Centurions explored the Science City exhibit with the students and their FOCUS teacher, Scott Bounds.
Lessons Learned:
- Kansas City businesses that have no ties to education use their knowledge and expertise to improve and expand upon educational opportunities for students and their communities.
- Other KC Chamber members can equally use their knowledge and resources to find creative ways to innovate for kids (e.g., banks can find ways to introduce kids into investment opportunities; law firms can find creative ways for students to use critical thinking skills; architectural firms can find ways to expand on what kids learn in art class outside of their schools).
- Students of all ages are creative and thrive when given amazing opportunities to learn and grow.
Session Two: History of Kansas City Public Schools
Speaker: Spark Bookhart, Parent Power Lab Convener; YouthBulid KCK
Overview: Spark provided an engaging presentation on Kansas City Public School’s history, including the impacts of the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case, Missouri v. Jenkins, 515 U.S. 70 (1995). Spark’s presentation laid the foundation for what Centurions would learn at Central High School. Spark also spoke about his life experiences that involves organizing communities and amplifying the voice of the seemingly voiceless.
Lessons Learned:
- Kansas City Public School’s history is complex and differs from other public schools’ challenges. Although KCPS has overcome many obstacles, it still faces many challenges based on poor decisions made at the federal, state, and local levels.
- KCPS has faced negative, unintended results that have led to skepticism and mistrust throughout the KC region.
- The effects of KCPS’ sorted history are still felt today at several of its schools.
- KCPS’s history has opened the door for charter schools and other alternative schooling options. While several urban school districts across the country are “competing” with charter schools, the KCPS/charter school dynamic in the KC region differs because of KCPS’ history.
Session Three: Central High School/Wrap Around Services
Facilitators/Speaker: City Year Members; Anthony Holland, Central High School Assistant Principal
Overview: Centurions were greeted by the Central High School band and drill team. City Year leaders lead small group tours through Central High School showcasing the many wrap around services meant to ensure student success.
Lessons Learned:
- Family Empowerment Center: The Office of Family and Community Engagement (FaCE) is a driving force of innovative and responsive programming that prepares families for and propels them towards achieving their long-term goals. In this vein, FaCE launched the Family Empowerment Center, which helps families build the skills and capacity to promote their children’s development and be involved partners in learning, creates strong family-school relationships and fosters a connected community.
- Early Childhood Center: Central’s Early Head Start program serves KCPS students who are pregnant and/or are parents of children ages 0-3 years old. Being a part of an Early Head start program is the first piece of the puzzle to lay the ground foundations for infants and toddlers to prepare them for a successful path of lifelong learning. The program offers monthly meetings, mentoring, coaching and teaching activities for teen parents and their children.
- Green Dot: Green Dot is a program that incorporates into its training a teaching tool that includes group and individual activities, team competitions, workbook activities, group discussions, and game playing for teenagers who are experiencing dating and sexual violence, stalking, and bullying. It speaks to the students with a series of video vignettes produced with other high schoolers. Instructors learn about working with school systems and incorporating parents, teachers, coaches, and other important influential figures in the high school setting.
- Jobs for America’s Graduates: Led by Ms. Tineka Rentie, Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG) is a career development, case management, and leadership program with the main purpose of preventing high school students from dropping out. She is able to impact not only the students that she works with every day, but also the economic community as a whole. With a Master’s degree in Management and Leadership from Webster University, and an undergraduate degree in Human Environmental Sciences/Consumer Affairs from the University of Missouri-Columbia, she has the foundational knowledge to train and development our future leaders of America.
- Justice in the Schools: Justice in the Schools Legal Clinic (JTS) is a free legal clinic powered by Legal Aid of Western MO in partnership with the Kansas City Public School District, School SmartKC, The Kansas City Health Dept., LSC, and LINC. The clinic was created in September 2018, out of necessity because of the high eviction rate within the district’s core residential boundaries. JTS’s goal is to provide KCPS families with access to free legal services and resources to keep students engaged in their neighborhood schools and stabilize the family core. Our goal is to assist families in matters included – but not limited to: Public and Subsidized Housing issues, Eviction Defense, Family Law issues and Guardianships, Domestic Violence Protection and Consumer Rights Matters.
- Project SAFE: Project SAFE is a Rosebrooks Center program aimed to end the cycle of domestic violence by providing therapy and support to children and teens dealing with violence at home or in their own relationships. Project SAFE offers school-based peer support groups, individual therapy, and educational presentations to give students the tools needed to make positive life choices and develop healthy relationships. Pre-school through high school students receive guidance on safety planning, healthy relationships, anger control, violence and substance abuse prevention, and building a positive sense of self, and school personnel are offered training and consultation on domestic violence.
- Urban TEC (Technology Empowered Communities): Urban TEC provides technology and soft skills training solutions targeted to meeting the needs of urban schools and communities. They provide students with a wide variety of program offerings and also serve parents with workshops focused on improving career skills such as Microsoft Word, Excel, and Powerpoint.
Session Four: Shawnee Mission Center for Academic Achievement, Broadmoor Bistro
Speakers: Matt Ziegenhorn, Community Engagement & Entrepreneurial Learning; Dr. Ryan Flurry, CAA Principal; Stephan Venne, Chef, Broadmoor Bistro
Overview: SMSD culinary students prepared lunch at the Center for Academic Achievement’s Broadmoor Bistro. Student leaders ate lunch with Centurions, sharing their unique educational experience. CAA students and administrators gave Centurions guided tours of the unique space.
Lessons Learned:
- The Center for Academic Achievement serves as an innovative, experiential learning campus for students in the Shawnee Mission School District. Opened in the Fall of 2017, the Center serves as a unique campus serving students in Signature Career and Technical programs while also supporting the administrative offices for the Board of Education and District administration.
- The Center also serves as the home to the Broadmoor Urban Farm, a unique urban farm concept initiated by the students and faculty in the Culinary Arts and Hospitality program. Students and the community benefit from the Farm to Table experience where students cultivate fresh food to be included into the Shawnee Mission School District's award-winning Broadmoor Bistro.
Session Five: Unconference
Speakers: Beth McCarthy, Prep-KC; Jacob Littrell, SixTwentyOne; Rhea Muchalla LeGrande, Teach for America; Charles King, KC Teacher Residency; Julie Holland, Parent Leadership Training Institute-KC; Ellen Sheppard, Literacy Lab; Edgar Palacios, LatinX Education Collaborative; Nate Hogan, KCPS Board; Allyson Hile, KCPS; Stephanie Campbell, LEANLAB; Colleen Jones, Liberty Public Schools; Danielle Dispenza, Show Me KC Schools; Jen Malone, Former Christ the King Chair; Jon Hile, Citizens of the World
Overview: After processing the complexity around education and the bright spots of wrap around services and experiential learning, Centurions were given the last portion of the day to participate in an Unconference. Hot topics were selected with influential speakers. Centurions “voted with their feet” to have small group engaging conversations with presenters.
Topics Included:
- Real World Learning
- Universal Pre-K
- 21st Century Teaching
- Fragmented Education
- KCPS
- Teacher Diversity
- Teacher Shortage
- Charter Schools
- School Boards