The Big Lift Launches First  San Mateo County Community Grants

More than 300 leaders representing 200 government, business, education, philanthropy, healthcare, labor and community-based organizations gathered on May 27, 2015 at the Joseph E. Fernekes Recreation Building in South San Francisco to celebrate The Big Lift launch of its first community grants.

Carole Groom, president of the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors, introduced the four grant recipients and their representatives: Elizabeth Schuck, Associate Superintendent,

San Mateo County Board of Education trustee Hector Camacho addresses the crowd at The Big Lift Launch.

Cabrillo Unified School District; Bernie Vidales, Superintendent of Schools, Jefferson Elementary School District; Mike Futrell, City Manager, City of South San Francisco; and Kerry Lobel, Executive Director, Puente de la Costa Sur in La Honda-Pescadero.

Each of these grantees will work with partners in their respective communities to increase access to preschool and summer learning opportunities, reduce chronic absenteeism and help achieve the ultimate goal of having all children reading at grade level by third grade.

What began as a venture two years ago spearheaded by the San Mateo County Office of Education, the Silicon Valley Community Foundation and San Mateo County to address the issue of getting all children to read at grade level by grade 3 has grown into a community-wide collaborative effort. Funding from each of these organizations, corporate partners and a grant from the federal Social Innovation Fund has bestowed the Big Lift with $28 million toward its goal of $50 million to support this effort.

Numerous community leaders spoke at the event. State Senator Jerry Hill said "San Mateo County is truly unique. When you bring together 200 organizations--it shows that it's the people, the relationships, the collaboration that makes San Mateo County. The Big Lift will succeed because we have that magic that will help it succeed and because we truly care about kids."

County Superintendent of Schools

South San Francisco preschoolers sang two songs to close The Big Lift Launch event.

Anne Campbell shared The Big Lift plan and explained why reading at grade level by grade 3 is the goal. "Third grade is the line of demarcation; it's a critical point and 43 percent of our students in San Mateo County are not reading by third grade."

But the Big Lift, she explained, is about more than reading. It's about high-quality and connected learning experiences--a bold social venture that aims to transform early learning.

San Mateo County Board of Education trustee Hector Camacho spoke about how his experience as a child in South San Francisco from a low-income family who was given access to preschool provided a foundation for his successful education. "In this community so many low-income families can't afford preschool and summer learning," he said. "I know these experiences will ignite the passion in our young people for education. I know because it did it for me."

Lois Nembhard, Acting Director of the Social Innovation Fund at the Corporation for National and Community Service, flew in from Washington, D.C.  to address the crowd. "We are excited to support The Big Lift, she said, "because we believe in the collective impact approach and going deep into a specific issue like reading by third grade. Other organizations around the country are watching and learning from your efforts."

Ralston Middle School Is Latest SMCOE AIM Award Winner 

In May the San Mateo County Office of Education (SMCOE) honored Ralston Middle School in the Belmont-Redwood Shores School District with the latest Achievement in Motion (AIM): Closing the Gap award for its work in improving school climate, closing the discipline gap and decreasing the number of student suspensions, particularly for students from disadvantaged subgroups.

The AIM award highlights San Mateo County school programs that improve academic achievement for students of color, those learning English and those from low-income families, and are yielding measurable results in closing the achievement gap. The award program began last fall with the first honor going to Capuchino High School in the San Mateo Union High School District.

In 2012, after hearing Tia Martinez, author of Suspended Education in California's Public Schools, speak at the SMCOE Respect! 24/7 event, "A Call to Action for Positive School Climate," about the disproportionate number of students from disadvantaged subgroups who get suspended, Ralston's assistant principal Jon Sanchez took the message to heart and went back to his school to tackle the problem and make some changes.

"I had recently suspended a student in special ed for willful defiance, so the symposium really hit home for me. I went back to our school, looked at our data and saw that there were a disproportionate number of special ed and minority students being suspended. So we made it a priority to address the issue," says Sanchez. 

Staff at Ralston have been working hard to take a proactive approach and provide alternatives to suspension.  Teachers led an anti-bullying committee and the school has implemented Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), a tracking system for minor infractions, and a coordination of services team that helps facilitate pre-suspension interventions. "We have seen a change in school climate," he notes. "We wouldn't have done this work without the efforts of the San Mateo County Office of Education illuminating the issue and guiding us in this work."

Eight SM County Schools Designated As State Gold Ribbon Schools

In early May, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson announced that 193 middle schools and 180 high schools had been honored under the state's new Gold Ribbon Schools Awards Program, which temporarily takes the place of the California Distinguished Schools Program while the new state assessment program is put in place.

Among those schools receiving this honor were eight schools in San Mateo County: Corte Madera School, Portola Valley Elementary School District; Hillview Middle School, Menlo Park Elementary School District; Lipman Middle School, Brisbane Elementary School District; Parkside Intermediate School, San Bruno Park Elementary School District; Crocker Middle School, Hillsborough City Elementary School District; Oceana High School, Jefferson Union High School District; Capuchino High School and Aragon High School, San Mateo Union High School District.

The Gold Ribbon awards recognize California schools that have made tremendous gains in implementing the Common Core academic content and performance standards adopted by the State Board of Education and also reflect these gains in their Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP). The judges were looking for model programs or practices, including 21st century learning, technology embedded in the curriculum, and programs that serve struggling learners to meet their social, emotional and academic needs.

Each school submitted a written application to the California Department of Education that included a narrative about their model programs and data to demonstrate their program's effectiveness. Once the schools were selected as possible award winners, a team of staff members from the Curriculum and Instruction Services Division (CIS) at the San Mateo County Office of Education (SMCOE) then did site visits to observe and verify these programs.

"It was exciting to see the dedication and great things that these schools are doing," says Lori Musso, CIS Administrator at SMCOE, who led the team making the site visits. "It's one of the best things I get to do in my job here." Each team spent a day at each school and met with focus groups including teachers, students and PTA, and observed classes. 

On May 29, representatives from each of the eight schools, along with other award-winning schools from across the region will be honored at a recognition ceremony and luncheon, and have their photo taken with State Superintendent Tom Torlakson at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in San Francisco.

Next year, elementary schools will have the opportunity to apply for this award. 

EdSource Conference Puts 

Issues of Equity at Forefront

On April 30, 2015, educators and policymakers from across California gathered in Sacramento for the annual EdSource conference. The focus of the event was how best to serve high-need students to close the achievement gap in the era of the Common Core, the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) and increased state funding for schools.

Keynote speaker Pedro Noguera, professor of education at New York University, spoke about closing the opportunity gap. "Kids need support," he said. "Kids don't succeed because they can't learn but because they haven't received the support they need." 

Pedro Noguera spoke about closing the opportunity gap at the annual EdSource conference.

He urged educators to think holistically about how to achieve results and create conditions that facilitate good teaching and learning.

State legislative analyst Mac Taylor reported on the outlook for the state budget and education funding. "At past EdSource conferences we talked about how bad things were and getting worse," he said. "I'm happy to report that things are good and looking like they are getting better." If current trends in tax revenues continue, funding for education could be up by $4 billion or more, he said.

A panel of educators including superintendents and 2011 Teacher of the Year Shannan Brown, who is currently president of the San Juan Teachers Association, spoke about the Common Core and how it best serves high-needs students.  All of the panelists praised the Common Core for increasing the level of rigor and expectations for all students but cautioned that standards alone will not close the achievement gap. The superintendents urged districts to "buy time, not stuff," to support teachers and allow them time to make the instructional shift and work together to develop properly aligned curricular materials.

A second panel, which included Michael Kirst of the State Board of Education; Socarro Shiels, Superintendent of the Santa Rosa Unified School District; and Ryan Smith, Executive Director of Education Trust-West, spoke about the Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP) and interventions that are emerging in this first year of implementation. Kirst, who was the primary architect of the LCAP, noted that although this is only the first year, he has seen a stronger link between curriculum and instruction and the business side of districts, and a more holistic approach to budgeting. He also has observed that County Offices of Education now have a more robust role in overseeing district budgets.

Smith cited several examples of innovative practices that have emerged as a result of the LCAP and LCFF. Education Trust-West has published LCFF Case Studies, looking at the first year of implementation across several districts. The San Francisco Unified School District, for example, has begun a process to engage parents in marginalized communities to be a part of the budget process. Nearly 400 community members engaged in convenings across San Francisco to inform the LCAP process.

The third and last panel, which included  Linda Darling-Hammond, Professor of Education at Stanford University; Pedro Noguera; and Kim Pattillo Brownson, Director of Educational Equity at the Advancement Project,a next generation, multi-racial civil rights organization, addressed the topic, "Closing the Opportunity Gap: What Reforms Are Needed?" 

Noguera urged school leaders to take action and not simply wait for public policies to change.  He noted that equity can be reinforced by practices that schools adopt.  Schools need to take a strategic approach, he said, and not just look at academic outcomes in isolation. Pattillo Brownson noted that investment in early education is a "simple dollars and cents approach that translates into budget savings and reducing special education costs down the line."  Noguera added, "California is not a poor state; California is a cheap state. We need a vision for the future that is ambitious and invests in our kids."