Community Partnerships Essential to Safe School Success
Written by Byron Stingily
In 2016, an agreement was reached between the McHenry County Regional Safe Schools Office and the Marengo Community High School District #154 that provided the opportunity for the Safe School students to be transported via bus daily from the Evergreen Academy site, which houses the program, over to Marengo High School.
The schools are approximately five miles apart.
The Northwest Herald Newspaper featured this partnership and the benefits provided to students in this article, which includes interviews with the current Regional Superintendent, Regional Director, and several students who participated in the program.
The students at the Alternative/Safe School have been placed there in-lieu of expulsion due to various violations of rules and major policy infractions while attending their previous schools. Some people may take the approach with these students of “out of sight, out of mind,” while the students are attending the alternative setting.
Many of these students are very intelligent and/or have potential that has not been unlocked. Some students have not met with success utilizing the traditional approach to education, which places an emphasis on rote memorization.
The Safe School students, while at Marengo, participate in 3-D Technological courses in a state-of-the-art laboratory, which includes machinery such as 3-D printers, robotics, plasma cutters, computers, and other devices. The students are also provided a certified instructor who also has practical knowledge of how to utilize the equipment.
The purpose of the partnership is to provide students with hands-on learning opportunities.
“Every educator understands the importance of providing children with direct experiences with materials, objects, and phenomena to encourage personal understanding of a lesson subject,” (“Stem Lesson-real Benefits of Hands-on Science Learning,” 2015).
Many of the students mentioned in the interview that participating in this partnership has sparked renewed interest in school.
This partnership has greatly improved the overall education experience of students attending the Safe School (Reiland, 2017, p. 1). Before this partnership, the students’ experience had been limited to core courses taught by three teachers, with additional elective courses offered online, including Foreign Language, Art, Music, Sociology, Psychology, as well as others.
The school is funded via a State of Illinois Safe Schools Grant, with a small stipend provided by referring schools.
The budget covers the basic essentials, leaving the staff to find creative ways and means to provide diverse educational opportunities for students.
The students at this particular school need as many outside and supplemental resources as possible in order to have a full educational experience.
The mission and vision of the school is to promote positive change within the students.
The participation in the 3-D tech partnership has provided an opportunity for students to develop skills that can be utilized in the workforce. The students visited several jobsites, which require the specific skills the students are acquiring in this course.
Many students have communicated that they did not fully value the education they were receiving prior to this course. The 3-D Tech course created real connections to real-life applications, making learning become meaningful and purposeful.
“In order for our children to succeed in these challenging times — and for society to benefit from their potential — it is vital that students learn how to connect what occurs in the classroom with their lives and the world outside of the classroom,” (Marincola, p.1, 2012).
The benefits of the partnership manifest itself in several other areas as well.
The school experienced a very significant increase in overall attendance. The enrollment of the program more than tripled. The program also had less behavioral referrals, and the core instructors had more time to plan for courses during the time students were in 3-D Tech. The addition of this one course improved the overall quality of the entire program.
After reviewing literature, which highlighted many of the positive outcomes associated with community partnerships, many of the desired goals were achieved as a result of this particular agreement.
Research suggests a correlation between effective community partnerships and improvements in the following areas: Academic achievement, safer schools, positive school climate, efficiency in running programs, community trust in schools, and higher expectations (“Ohio Community Collaboration Model for School Improvement,” November 7, 2017).
The Evergreen Safe School demonstrated positive results after the implementation of the 3-D Tech program.
The literature also stated how the intent of partnerships should not just be based around parties receiving an exchange of value. An example would be one party not wanting to continue the relationship once grant money is no longer available.
The Marengo High School superintendent agreed to the partnership to help the under-served students in the alternative school. The State of Illinois, due to a budget impasse, did not pay the grant for a considerable amount of time, but Marengo remained committed to partnership.
The research clearly suggests that schools, families, community agencies, and local higher educational institutions gain from solid, community partnerships, especially ones that secure broad, yet focused, community engagement (“Ohio Community Collaboration Model for School Improvement,” November 7, 2017).
The research also suggests that these types of partnerships help advance equity for under-represented communities and help improve achievement (M. Renee, p.23, 2011).
The research validated some beliefs already held, such as when you work with underserved groups, it is essential to the success of your program or school to find as many outside resources and partnerships as you can to provide students with the necessary supports to become productive citizens.
If you are an education administrator, or involved with your local school board, and are interested in implementing these types of partnerships in your district, please contact Chicago Devotion for more information on how we can improve Alternative/Safe School student education in our city.
Our children are our future, and we are dedicated to providing the best possible learning environment to ensure their continued success.
More helpful education articles, forums, information, and resources can be found on our #CD Education page at: www.chicagodevotion.com/cd-education/.
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References:
Marcincola, E. (2012, November 7). Hands-on learning boosts success in the classroom and beyond [Web log post]. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
Ohio community collaboration model for school improvement [Implementation Guide]. (2017, November 7). Ohio Community, Ohio.
Reiland, J. (2017, March 3). A new challenge. Northwest Herald, pp. 1-8.
Rene’e, M., & McAlister, S. (2011). The strengths and challenges of community organizing as an education reform strategy: What the research says. 1-34. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
Stem lesson-real benefits of hands-on science learning [Video blog post]. (2015, March 4). Retrieved November 1, 2017.
