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New Mentoring Program Kicks Off at Frederick Douglass School

Frederick Douglass School – in partnership with Activities Beyond the Classroom, Miami University, Operation D.R.I.V.E.N. and Humana – will kick off its “See It…Believe it…Achieve It” after-school mentoring program aimed at strengthening career readiness, financial literacy, and health and well-being for students in grades 5 and 6. The kick-off takes place November 12, 2015, at 3:00 p.m. at the school located at 2627 Park Avenue in Walnut Hills.

The after-school program will pair Douglass students with 10^th-, 11^th- and 12^th-grade students from Walnut Hills High School twice per month. Additionally the Douglass students will spend time with mentors from Miami University and Humana twice monthly. Students will work with their mentors to research prospective careers and build financial literacy skills. Health and wellness activities will be led by Operation D.R.I.V.E.N., which will implement its Personal Development program focused on exercise and nutrition.

Activities Beyond the Classroom received an Ohio Department of Education Community Connectors Grant to start the program. These grants encourage organizations to work together to offer more Ohio students access to role models who can motivate and inspire them, as well as help them develop skills that lead to success in school and the workplace. Additional community partners include Union Savings Bank, Childhood Food Solutions, PNC Bank, Buckeye Health Plan, Cincinnati Federation of Colored Women’s Club, Cincinnati Youth Collaborative, Plan The Way Foundation and the Walnut Hills High School Black Alumni Association.

Frederick Douglass School is a Community Learning Center serving students in grades PreK-6 in Walnut Hills. Activities Beyond the Classroom (ABC) is a nonprofit organization that has partnered with Cincinnati Public Schools for the last 10 years to provide a wide variety of after-school programs. ABC is the lead agency of Douglass School’s Community Learning Center.

Clark Montessori Starts New M.O.R.E. Club

Clark Montessori joined the district's M.O.R.E. (Men Organized, Respectful and Educated) Initiative, forming two clubs to serve junior and senior high students. Following the program's curriculum, Clark Montessori's 53 M.O.R.E. Club members participate in after-school activities, as well as monthly and quarterly enrichment opportunities that increase financial literacy, develop leadership skills, provide academic support, promote exceptional character, encourage community service, and cultivate health and wellness.

Each club meets twice per week for one hour to discuss current events, decision-making, diversity, Montessori lifestyle and other topics. Participants also work closely with Clark's Post-Secondary Center to learn more about scholarship opportunities, college visits, leadership workshops and more.

Grants Support New and Expanding Programs at Pleasant Ridge Montessori

The Kinder Morgan Foundation awarded the Pleasant Ridge Montessori (PRM) Foundation a grant of $3,395 to support the roll-out of the Reflex math program. Piloted in Ms. Mackenzie Peterson's 6-9 class last year, the program has proven to increase math fact fluency in a fun and engaging way. Thanks to the grant, PRM will be able to offer the program school-wide.

The Greater Cincinnati Foundation recently awarded PRM two Learning Links grants of $1,000 each. One grant will be used to expand the Accelerated Reader program, which motivates students to read more. The other grant will support integration of PRM's outdoor learning ares into the curriculum with the creation of bird watching and weather outdoor learning stations.

 

Withrow Students’ ‘Business for Good’ Projects Teach Entrepreneurship and Raise Money for Local Non-profits

 

A group of juniors at Withrow University High School learned firsthand the power of entrepreneurship to change lives when they turned $200 in seed money into more than $600 for nonprofit agencies.

As the 2015-16 school year began, Withrow’s economics teacher Craig Rush challenged his students to create a Business for Good, a social enterprise that would benefit others. Eight teams were charged with starting and running a business using just $25 in seed money provided by the Mayerson Foundation. The teams were responsible for picking a product to sell; researching their markets; creating business plans; setting budgets; producing, marketing and selling their products; and choosing which local nonprofit agencies to support.

“Instead of just reading about business principles, students created real businesses, with actual business people to help them along the way,” Rush said. “There is a real intensity to this. This is a real-world project, and research shows this is the best way for kids to learn — to pursue their passion within classroom parameters.”

The project was a collaboration among Withrow; the Mayerson Foundation, which helped fund the program; and Junior Achievement, which lined up business professionals to share insights with students. Rush and Clare Blankenmeyer, Mayerson’s Learning and Service program director, created the Business for Good program. 

It’s aligned with Cincinnati Public Schools’ My Tomorrow initiative, which focuses on preparing students for the career pathways of their choice by combining high expectations, technology and mentoring.

While the students applied well-defined economics principles to their start-up businesses, they had much creative freedom in choosing the nonprofit agencies to support, deciding what to sell and how to market their products. The Boys and Girls Clubs, the Ronald McDonald House, Celebration Inc., and Artworks were among the eight beneficiaries of the student-run businesses. Products sold ranged from doughnuts and pizza slices to bracelets and bandanas, with student teams employing everything from posters to social media to sell their wares.

As the culminating activity, each group presented its project to volunteers from local businesses and district administrators. The volunteers then voted for two teams to win $200 each to expand their businesses.

One winning group baked and sold more than 200 cupcakes for $1 each, netting $180.41 in profits to support Celebrate Inc., a nonprofit that provides birthday parties to disadvantaged children. Like all of the groups, the students started with their $25 seed money, but they also invested their own money into the venture. 

CPS high school students lead the charge to establish a college-going culture in their schools

Students collaborate to define the characteristics of a person committed to reaching his/her goals.

This year, a culture change is sweeping through select schools within the Cincinnati Public Schools district. Eleven of the district’s 17 high schools are part of a pilot project to establish a college-going culture throughout their student bodies.

While the district has always promoted college, this initiative is different: It’s being led by students. And it’s not just about encouraging their peers to go to college. Student leaders are educating fellow students about the college application and financial aid processes, keeping them on task with deadlines, and showing them that, despite real and perceived obstacles, college is a viable option.

“This is more than the typical ‘go to college speech,’” said Shavell West, a Hughes STEM High School senior and a leader of the initiative at her school. “We need to start a movement to let students know why it’s important to go to college.”

The grassroots enterprise is tied with My Tomorrow, the district’s visionary goal to ensure all students graduate high school ready to pursue the career path of their choice. The district is partnering with the United Way of Greater Cincinnati, Leadership Scholars and College Summit, a nonprofit that connects low-income youth to college and career through peer leadership, to build capacity for initiative.

“Our aim is to make sure our students graduate with a plan,” said Deputy Assistant Superintendent Laura Mitchell. “With this initiative, student leaders are using their influence to encourage their peers to prepare for what comes next after high school.” 

Woodward Career Tech Enhances 'Advanced Technologies' Career Pathway

Beginning with the 2015-16 school year, Woodward Career Technical High School will offer its Advanced Technologies Academy students an enhanced curriculum in which they'll apply their literacy, math and science skills while learning technical content and solving authentic problems found in the workplace. The curriculum was developed by the Southern Regional Education Board in collaboration with states and business and industry partners.

To prepare for the new curriculum, teachers George Doddy-Tacho and W. Earl Reed completed an intensive, two-week Summer Teacher Training Institute to become proficient in using project-based learning to engage students in a seven-step engineering/technical design process to complete real-world projects. Students will learn to collaborate, work in teams and use important 21st-century skills to solve organizational challenges identified by the industry partners that helped develop the curriculum.

 

 

Church Donates $10,000 to Mt. Washington School Foundation

Mt. Washington Presbyterian Church has donated $10,000 to the Mt.Washington School Foundation. The funds will be used to support a wide range of services and programs for students at the school.

The donation was made in honor of Pastor LP Jones. It adds to a lengthy list of support the church already provides for Mt. Washington students, such as providing power packs (weekend meals) to nearly 50 students every week, funding the school's dental and vision program, and providing backpacks and school supplies to students in need.

Many thanks to Mt. Washington Presbyterian Church for its continued generosity.

CPS ACT Scores Climbing

Cincinnati Public Schools’ students are graduating with higher ACT scores, indicating a higher level of college readiness. 

CPS’ district composite ACT score rose to 19.1 for the Class of 2015 — up from 18.5 for the Class of 2014 and the highest since 2011. The ACT is a college-entrance exam that tests students on knowledge in English, mathematics, reading and science. 

This 19.1 composite score covers only CPS students who graduated in 2015. CPS gives the ACT to all 11th-graders, with the district covering the cost, to ensure students are focused on college preparation. 

“We are very pleased to see our ACT composite scores going up,” said Superintendent Mary Ronan. “Our goal is that we continue to see improvement, as our new My Tomorrow initiative touches more students. We see My Tomorrow as a bold vision for education that combines higher expectations, technology and mentoring to prepare all our students for success after graduation.” 

My Tomorrow, which began for 7th and 8th grades in 2014-15, now is expanding to grades 5-12. The initiative’s aim is that all CPS seventh-graders graduate within six years prepared to actively pursue their chosen career paths.

CPS Students Take In College Experience At AP Boot Camps

CPS invited 160 students to experience an Advanced Placement Boot Camp at Miami University to introduce them to the rigor of AP coursework, as well as life on a college campus.

Sophomores, juniors and seniors from 10 Cincinnati Public Schools got a taste of college life when they spent a week living and learning at Miami University as members of the district’s first-ever Advanced Placement (AP) Boot Camp. 

The 160 students spent five days and four nights during June 2015 living on Miami’s Oxford campus, experiencing AP classes, expanding their academic networks, and, most importantly, gaining first-hand appreciation for college’s high expectations. 

“We are learning a lot about time management,” said Azaria Carter, a junior at Aiken High School who enrolled in AP Psychology. “You can’t get behind in an AP class or you’re through, and college is all about time management. You can’t come here and slack.” 

Withrow Selected as High School of Business Site

Starting in the 2015-16 school year, Withrow University High School will offer rigorous business administration courses through the High School of Business program.

High School of Business is a national program created by MBAResearch, a nonprofit organization specializing in educational research, and the development of business and marketing curriculum for high schools and colleges.

The program is designed to challenge high school students with an accelerated, project-based curriculum, aimed at positioning students to excel in college-level business administration programs. When fully implemented, participating students will take a series of six or more rigorous business administration classes. Students also use technology in each class, complete internships with local businesses, and learn about community and diversity through a partnership with a sister school.

"The High School of Business program will give Withrow's students opportunities to interact with peers from all over the United States," Withrow's Principal Paul Daniels said. "This program also builds relationships with local businesses and universities, and provides an avenue for students who plan to major in accounting, business or marketing to reach higher academic levels."

The first classes offered at Withrow through this program will be Economics and Marketing for students in grades 9-12. Teachers will be offered special training by MBAResearch over four days in June, and will be provided with curriculum, academic material, class projects and methods for interactive learning.