THE COALITION CONNECTION
November 14, 2014
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Dear NCGS Community,
It is with much excitement that NCGS will release next week Steeped in Learning: The Student Experience at All-Girls Schools. A complimentary copy of this robust new research report will be mailed to the head/principal of each of our member schools. Steeped in Learning is a comparative analysis of responses to the High School Survey of Student Engagement (HSSSE), which was taken by nearly 13,000 girls attending all-girls schools, coed independent schools, and coed public schools. The girls' responses provide unequivocal support for the value of an all-girls educational environment. In the spring of 2013, the NAIS Commission on Accreditation started conducting a three-year study using HSSSE, which is administered by the Center for Evaluation & Education Policy at Indiana University. HSSSE is a comprehensive survey of student attitudes, behaviors, and experiences administered with the goal of generating discussions on teaching and learning and guiding student improvement initiatives. An analysis of the survey results reveals that girls attending all-girls schools are more likely to have an experience that supports their learning than are girls attending coed schools (independent and public). In particular, students at all-girls schools report: - Having higher aspirations and greater motivation.
- Being challenged to achieve more.
- Engaging more actively in the learning process.
- Participating in activities that prepare them for the world outside of school.
- Feeling more comfortable being themselves and expressing their ideas.
- Showing greater gains on core academic and life skills.
- Being and feeling more supported in their endeavors.
On Friday, November 21, NCGS will post to our website a video interview with the report author, Dr. Richard Holmgren. This interview will provide answers to questions about the report findings and offer suggestions for how your school can use the data internally and externally. NCGS was founded with a focus on research to empower girls' schools to make the case for all-girls education. Research findings give you the opportunity to strengthen teaching and learning as well as the social and emotional well-being of your students, and also to help NCGS and your school to better advocate for the unique benefits of girls' schools. Best wishes,
Megan Murphy
Executive Director
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Call for Proposals: 2015 NCGS Conference
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The 2015 NCGS Conference, From STEM to STEAM: Girls' Schools Leading the Way, will be held on June 22-24, 2015, at St. Catherine's School in Richmond, VA. The conference will provide educators with an innovative opportunity to engage in hands-on activities, participate in content-based discussions, share classroom materials, learn about web-based teaching resources, and exchange best practices for teaching girls. It will also serve as a forum to examine the ways in which we can empower girls to shift the paradigm of female underrepresentation in STEAM careers, as well as how best to incorporate the "A"-- artistic expression, creativity, and design thinking -- into STEAM education.
We invite you to submit a proposal to present on your area of expertise. Please click here for the CFP overview, guidelines, and instructions. To access the online CFP application, click here.
Proposals are due by Friday, December 12, 2014.
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NCGS and Grand Classroom Offer Leadership Retreat
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NCGS is delighted to offer member schools the opportunity to participate in a leadership trip to the Grand Canyon on June 27-July 1, 2015, in partnership with the experienced travel company Grand Classroom. The retreat is designed to bring together groups of high school student leaders -- and their faculty advisers -- to share ideas and hone their leadership skills through hands-on, collaborative activities in one of the most inspiring destinations on earth. Students will return to their schools with the tools and skills necessary to be even more effective, empathic leaders. For more information, please click here or contact John Raymond at (800) 839-6424.
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Philanthropy Lessons in Preparation for #GivingTuesday
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The first Tuesday after Thanksgiving has become a national movement known as #GivingTuesday. This event kicks off the true season of giving by encouraging charitable donations worldwide. #GivingTuesday is a special way for communities to support non-profits and take advantage of the speed of spreading the word through social media as well as the ease of donating via the internet.
The Guide to Giving curriculum, designed by Heidi Kasevich, Ph.D., Head of History at The Nightingale-Bamford School, aims to assist educators in grades K-12 to prepare their students and school communities for #GivingTuesday. This series of nine lessons, which can be adapted for various age groups and classroom schedules, provides educators concrete strategies to engage students in the twin tasks of cultivating a genuine commitment to service and energizing an entire school community around the idea of #GivingTuesday.
Click here for more information, and be sure to check out the related article, I Teach My Students That No Gift is Too Small to Make a Difference, located in this issue's IN THE NEWS column.
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Student Delegates Selected for 2015 Student Leadership Conference in Australia
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NCGS received extraordinarily strong nominations for the 2015 Student Leadership Conference (SLC) organized by the Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia. We are pleased to announce that the two NCGS delegates to participate in the 2015 SLC will be Febe Martinez from Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders in Austin, TX, and Andy Smithey from Saint Mary's School in Raleigh, NC.
Febe and Andy's determination and confidence to lead paired with their academic and community service achievements made them ideal candidates for this conference. Febe hopes to gain "a new perspective, a new way of looking at life, and new ways of thinking." Andy believes this opportunity will allow her to "meet other girls who are different from me, yet who are on a similar journey to find how they can fulfill the role of being a leader."
These two young women will be exceptional ambassadors on behalf of their schools and NCGS!
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