This year’s theme, Scaling up School and Community Partnerships: The Community Schools Strategy reflects the Coalition’s new guide. We are consciously encouraging school and community leaders to develop long-term systemic approaches to community schools implementation – approaches that are consistent with our belief that community schools are fundamental to education reform. Scale up efforts are particularly important at a time when there is growing discussion about the influence non-school factors, particularly poverty, has on student achievement. The emphasis on scaling up also connects community schools to strategies such as Promise Neighborhoods, Choice Neighborhoods, P-20 initiatives, and Cradle-to-Career education.
We want participants to learn from schools and communities that are planning, or are in the midst of scale up, as well as those who are at scale and working to deepen their efforts and improve effectiveness. We encourage creative proposals that demonstrate an understanding of the Forum’s theme and enable participants to gain the knowledge and skills to create, sustain, and scale up community schools. We discourage large panels, and strongly prefer hands-on learning opportunities that give people practical experience and help them develop relationships with others.
FORUM PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
Site Visits: Local community school leaders are planning a series of visits to community schools across the Bay area so participants can see what is happening in urban and suburban communities.
Preconference Institutes will offer in-depth learning opportunities focusing on such topics as: Planning for Scale Up: the Work of Community School Coordinators, Principals Leadership in Community Schools, The Challenges facing Boys and Men of Color, Literacy and Civic Engagement, and the Grade Level Reading Campaign.
Plenaries will include conversations with Oakland school and community leaders about their Full Service Community School Strategy with Superintendents about why they are leading community school efforts and with state and federal policy makers. Young people will help us kick off the conference.
Mini Plenaries and Workshops will address topics such as: chronic early absence, linkages between early childhood and community schools, family engagement, engaged learning, place-based initiatives, higher education and community schools, summer learning, STEM, community schools financing and policy.
Exhibitors and Sponsors Interested in hosting a booth at the National Form. Click here for more information on being a forum exhibitor! Interested in learning about forum sponsorship opportunities?
