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Develop Programs

Districts must support schools in their efforts to transform into schools of choice. Central office leaders help teachers implement specialized curriculum, streamline transportation systems, and provide necessary professional development.

Program Practices

Create a Technology Choice Option for Students and Parents
The Chicago Comprehensive Choice Initiative (CCCI) is providing Chicago Public Schools students and parents with a new technology-centered school choice option, the Technology Academies, that focuses on raising student achievement in core subjects and connecting to student interest and learning styles.

Create Attractor Programs to Maintain Diversity in Your Choice Schools
To maintain a diverse student population, Hillsborough County Public Schools incorporated attractor programs during the 2004–2005 school year. Attractor programs offer thematic strands without taking away from the existing structure of the school.

Create Programs to Promote Community Building Within the School
Foxborough Regional Charter School's charter, first written in 1997, identified community service, leadership, and civic engagement as critical to the school’s mission.

Design and Implement a Transition Plan for Enrolling Students
In 2006, FRCS designed and implemented a new student orientation plan to help transfer students succeed.

Develop a School Improvement Strategy
Mesa Public Schools takes an active, deliberate approach to assessing the needs of the district and its individual schools, then planning strategies to meet those needs.

Develop Web-based Reporting Tools to Facilitate the Choice Process for Schools and Program Evaluation
Portland Public Schools’ principals, central office leadership, and Enrollment & Transfer Center staff collaborate each fall to determine the availability in each school for transfer by non-neighborhood students.

Establish a Data-Driven School Selection Process to Focus School Restructuring in Communities of Greatest Need
One of the goals of Chicago Public Schools’ (CPS) restructuring efforts is to establish high-quality school choice options in communities with concentrations of low-performing schools.

Establish Neighborhood Learning Clusters
Chicago Public Schools used funding from the Voluntary Public School Choice to create Neighborhood Learning Clusters.

Establish Programs to Provide Academic Support for High School Students
Adopted in 2002 by the Foxborough Regional Charter School (FRCS), an online grading, discipline, and scheduling software system allowed the school to run student grade reports and identify students in definite need of help.

Expand High School Options to Promote Choice Program Student Achievement
Portland Public Schools’second VPSC grant was written with an emphasis primarily on high school needs, beginning with student transition from 8th to 9th grades.

Facilitate Transition of Students Into School Culture
KIPP’s success may lie partly in the comprehensive efforts to introduce the organization’s beliefs, values, and expectations to students. Beginning in pre-K, students participate in a range of team-building activities to acclimate them to the school norms and expectations.

Foster an Open Door Collaborative Learning Environment to Inform Innovative Teaching and Learning
The culture of KIPP emphasizes communal sharing of best practices and information between teachers and administrators through an all-encompassing open door policy (ODP) that promotes educational innovation.

Foster Collaboration Between High-Performing and Low-Performing Schools
Chicago Public Schools (CPS) promotes collaborative partnering between high- and low-performing schools through their Neighborhood Learning Clusters and school partnerships with additional schools outside of the clusters.

Help Schools Implement Programs that Meet Community Needs
As a growing community with an increased need for more schools, Desert Sands Unified School District has polled parent and community groups to assess the needs of their student population through Public School Choice Surveys for Parents.

Integrate Magnet Themes into High-Quality Curriculum that Emphasizes Academics
Hot Springs School District's magnet themes create a lot of excitement and encourage students to see learning as fun. Core academic subjects are woven into each school’s theme with emphasis placed on the students’ mastery of the core subjects.

Map Out the Steps to Implement a New Program
When the Houston Independent School District decided to use magnet schools, they created a proposal outline that describes the various factors a school must consider and plan for to implement a new program.

Offer Low-Cost Childcare at Magnet Schools
Hot Springs School District provides childcare centers at all four elementary schools to assist parents who have chosen to enroll their children in a magnet school outside their neighborhood and cannot pick them up immediately after school due to their work schedule.

Offer Students Career and Technical Education Options for Graduation Credit
Hillsborough County Public Schools' career and technical programs provide a career pathway for students in a traditional school setting. Students are enrolled in core classes while taking electives that prepare them for a particular career cluster.

Offer Students Opportunities to Interact With Other Online Students
Many Arkansas Virtual School (ARVS) students live in rural areas where interaction with students their same age is limited.

Partner With a Local University to House a Magnet School
The University of New Haven and New Haven Public Schools agreed to create a school of 616 6th–12th grade students, with 88 students per grade level, that would be available to all students without screening or entrance requirements.

Partner With a Local University to Support a Community Development Approach to Education
The Chicago Comprehensive Choice Initiative (CCCI) is working to expand on the underlying principle of connecting schools and community resources, creating a more global community-development approach.

Partner with a Virtual School to Meet Students' Diverse Learning Needs
The State of Florida offers online education options to serve the diverse learning needs of students statewide through the Florida Virtual School.

Promote Community Support for New Schools
Developing new KIPP schools requires a multi-pronged community engagement strategy. Community and parent liaisons inform and solicit support, and a Chief Growth Officer/Trailblazer mentors and supports school leaders from start-up to self-sufficiency (typically a three-year process).

Provide Support for NCLB Receiving Schools
In order to assess and plan for the transfer of new NCLB students, district administrators in Desert Sands Unified School District met with the principals and reviewed the test data on those students.

Provide Theme-Centered Activities to Promote Magnet Schools’ Themes
Hot Springs School District promotes its magnet school program through a variety of activities that highlight the schools’ themes.

Solicit the Help of Consultants and Established Programs to Help Develop Magnet Schools
New Haven Public Schools hired Dr. Pack, a retired Assistant Superintendent of Schools from Yonkers who was responsible for converting every school in her district to a magnet school, to help develop their magnet schools and themes for Lighthouse schools.

Turn Low-Performing Schools into Interdistrict Magnets
New Haven Public Schools has converted low-performing schools to interdistrict magnet programs. These schools are making considerable gains in student achievement as a result.

Work with Partners to Strengthen Your Magnet School Program
Hamilton County Schools is committed to enriching students’ educational opportunities through partnerships with local organizations. These partnerships provide support to schools and positively impact the community by helping to create the best possible curriculum and guidance for HCS students.

Sample Materials

Alternative Certification for Career and Technical Program Teachers
Business and industry professionals who choose to teach for Hillsborough County Public Schools career and technical programs must comply with the state’s alternative certification requirements.

Bank Street Program
In creating their own attractor programs, Hillsborough County Public Schools based their model on successful programs such as the Bank Street Program that originated at Bank Street College of Education in New York.

Career and Technical Program Information
Information for each career or technical program can be found on Hillsborough County Public Schools choice website. A link is provided for each individual program’s website.

College Symposium Planning Packet
This packet of information is presented to juniors and their parents at an annual Portland Public Schools College Symposium.

Florida Virtual School Website
This website includes information on the Florida Virtual School, including classes offered, frequently asked questions, and information for parents, students, and educators.

Florida Virtual School Evaluation Reports
Florida Virtual School gathers program feedback annually through student, parent, and district surveys.

Magnet Program Webpage
The Hot Springs School District website provides information on the school’s magnet program.

On Location
Through the Allied Arts of Greater Chattanooga partnership, Hamilton County Schools participates in the Kennedy Center’s On Location, a project that provides digital media for students to create their own documentaries.

Parent Newsletter
Hot Springs School District provides information to families about magnet school activities and events through a newsletter.

Partners Webpage
This webpage provides information on organizations that partner with Hamilton County Schools to develop educational opportunities that enrich student learning.

School Choice Availability
This document, available on Portland Public Schools' website, provides details on the transfer slots available in the district—critical information for parents making school choice decisions.

Self Enhancement, Inc.
Portland Public Schools offers the nationally recognized Self Enhancement, Inc. tutoring and mentoring program to at-risk African American students who may need help reaching academic and behavioral goals.

Trinity School for Children (K-5)
This HCPS charter school currently houses an attractor program that uses the Bank Street curriculum as the educational model for their school.

Learning in the Arts Grant Guidelines
Allied Arts of Greater Chattanooga partnership with Hamilton County Schools offers grants to schools to promote quality art integration in the classroom. This document includes the grant guidelines and application.

Allied Arts of Greater Chattanooga Strategic Plan
Allied Arts of Greater Chattanooga, in partnership with Hamilton County Schools, offers a variety of art education experiences for students. Their strategic plan outlines the goals and activities for this partnership.

Imagine!
Allied Arts of Greater Chattanooga, in partnership with Hamilton County Schools, developed this Arts Education Initiative, Imagine!

2008-2009 Spirit Day Schedule
This schedule gives an overview of the charities that were chosen for the monthly spirit days at Foxborough Regional Charter School.

Unit Plan Template
Desert Sands Unified School District curriculum and instruction staff use this template with schools to create themed curriculum units for the magnet programs.

Public School Choice Survey for Parents
Desert Sands Unified School District uses parent surveys to assess how parents hear about magnet programs in the district, and once enrolled, how they perceive these programs.

Proposal for Establishing a Magnet Program
This proposal template from Houston Independent School District lists the components schools should include in their proposal when applying to be chosen as a site for a choice program.

Dreaming the Dream Survey
Hamilton County Schools staff use this activity to begin magnet school improvement planning.

School Site Support - Coordinators
Desert Sands Unified School District's on-site school choice coordinators also provide support for schools that are receiving students transferring under NCLB provisions.

Magnet School Report Prepared for the Mayor
New Haven Public Schools used this report, prepared with data from their evaluator, to market and promote the Magnet Program to the Mayor of New Haven.

Vincent Mauro School Profile
This report profiles the improvement efforts and subsequent gains in student achievement at New Haven Public Schools' Vincent Mauro School. After becoming a magnet school in 2006–2007, the school immediately improved its low-performing status and met AYP for the first time in many years.

Magnet School Plan
This proposal was submitted for a science and engineering magnet school between partners New Haven Public Schools and the University of New Haven. If funded, the school will open in the 2007–08 school year.

School Site Visit Material Packets
These packets were distributed to New Haven Public Schools staff touring magnet schools in other districts. The packets include an overview of magnet characteristics and curriculum maps for New Haven staff to use in the development of New Haven’s magnet schools.

Chicago Public Schools Magnet Cluster Initiative PowerPoint Presentation
This PowerPoint presentation outlines in detail the goals of the Chicago Public Schools Magnet Cluster Initiative and the selection criteria for awarding grants to the individual cluster programs.

Principal Meeting Survey
This survey was created by Chicago Public Schools and was administered to cluster principals to assess the principal perception of the effectiveness of the Voluntary Public School Choice program support.

Cluster Principals Grant Writing Workshops
This schedule of grant writing workshops includes three workshops that were offered to select teachers and administrators within a cluster to foster their grant writing skills.

Grade-Level Peer Observation
This schedule of grade-level peer observations from Chicago Public Schools allows teachers from schools within a cluster to visit same-level classrooms in other schools within their cluster.

Cluster Book Clubs
Chicago Public Schools clusters conduct a Battle of the Books competition for students to not only promote reading, but to encourage collaboration among cluster schools.

Career Pathway Flyer
This flyer provides complete information on the firefighter career program offered in Hillsborough County Public Schools as part of its choice options.

Virtual Bowling League
The Arkansas Virtual School Virtual Bowling League gives online students the opportunity to network and socialize with other ARVS students, as well as online students in other states.

Save-the-Date Flyer
This flyer is used by the Minnesota Department of Education to provide early notification of their upcoming integration conference.

Integration Conference Attendee Survey
Minnesota Department of Education integration conference attendees provide feedback through this survey.

Integration Conference Agenda
The Minnesota Department of Education offers an annual conference addressing school integration.

Promising Practices for Intra- and Interdistrict Integration Document
A Promising Practices for Intra- and Interdistrict Integration document was created to highlight quality integration activities in the state.

Commitment to Excellence Form
KIPP requires all incoming parents and students along with teachers to sign this joint form that outlines expectations for the upcoming year.

Community Service Learning Classes for Seventh and Eighth Grades
Foxborough Regional Charter School provides a range of community service electives for seventh and eighth graders to choose from.

Individual Student Success Plan
Students at Foxborough Regional Charter School who score a level one on the English language arts and/or mathematics MCAS receive a Student Success Plan, which is intended to describe, focus, and communicate needed instruction for the student in order to coordinate strategies to raise his/her educational performance.

Initial School-based Asset Profile
This Asset-Based Community Development map is used by the Chicago Public Schools and their partners to identify the existing assets of a school before efforts are made to establish the community development approach at the location.

Attractor Program Flyer
This flyer invites parents to learn more about the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) Program offered at this middle school.

New Student Orientation Plan
Foxborough Regional Charter School developed this orientation plan to ensure that new students entering the program would receive the support needed to succeed.

Partnership Letter of Interest
At Chicago Public Schools, potential community-based partners complete this letter of interest.

Pathways Overview
Portland Public Schools’ student in grades 7 – 12 can investigate careers through the Pathways program.

Peer Tutor Description and Application
This application to become a Foxborough Regional Charter School peer tutor describes the responsibilities, eligibility criteria, and application and selection process.

Technology Lead Teachers
Chicago Public Schools employs two Technology Lead Teachers at each Technology Academy.

Principal's Data Book
The central office staff in Mesa Public Schools compiles a binder for principals that includes summary and individual student achievement, and demographic data to help guide their decision-making efforts for school improvement planning.

School Choice Administrative Tools User’s Guide
Portland Public Schools provides this information on the use of the School Choice Administrative Tools software to principals.

Student Life Advisor Job Description
Foxborough Regional Charter School employs a Student Life Advisor whose duties are outlined in this job description.

Media

Three Things to Consider

• Factor in community needs when developing new programs
• Facilitate professional development to ease the transition
• Review new curriculum to make sure it is aligned with state and district standards