2012 All America City Award_3rd Grade Level Reading PresentationPage 1 of 4
Juanita Hilkin -2012 AII- America Cities Award
From Juanita Hilkin
To Hilkin, Juanita
Date 7/3/2012 8 48 AM
Subject 2012 All- America Cities Award
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NATIONAL �d
(JVIC illAmericaC
LEAGUE
II
For Immediate Release
July 2,2012
Contact Mike McGrath
303 571 4343
mikemOncl orq
National Civic League announces 2012 AII - America Cities
Denver, Colorado -The National Civic League named 14 communities All- America
Cities today The cities, counties and regions were recognized for their ambitious
plans to ensure that more children are proficient readers by the end of third grade
The 2012 AII - America Cities are
Baltimore, Maryland
Dubuque, lowa
Providence, Rhode Island
Louisville, Kentucky
Marshalltown, Iowa
Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Quad Cities, Iowa and Illinois
Roanoke, Virginia
San Antonio, Texas
San Francisco, California
Seattle and the South King County Cities, Washington
Southern Pines, North Carolina
Spnngfield, Massachusetts
Tahoe /Truckee, California
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The award is given to each year to recognize outstanding examples of community
problem solving, civic engagement and collaboration between the public, profit
and nonprofit sectors. This year the award had a special focus: applicants were
asked to develop comprehensive plans to bridge the reading gap between at -risk
students and other learners. The awardees named today were among 124
communities that met in Denver this weekend to launch a network dedicated to
improving early literacy and bridging the performance gap among young readers
nationwide.
The conference /awards celebration emerged from a partnership between the
Campaign for Grade -Level Reading, the National Civic League, the National
League of Cities, U.S. Conference of Mayors and United Way Worldwide. "This
partnership has been an amazing experience for our All- America City Awards,"
said Gloria Rubio - Cortes, president of the National Civic League. "We were
overwhelmed by the quality, passion and thoughtfulness of all the action plans
submitted by over one hundred cities, towns and regions. There is a real and
deep commitment to ensuring that our children are prepared to succeed."
The 124 communities who are already part of the campaign are adopting a
collective impact strategy, engaging their full community around the goal of
supporting low- income children from birth through third grade. Their plans involve
schools but acknowledge that they alone cannot address the myriad problems
that keep children from learning to read. The strategies include ensuring that
children arrive at kindergarten ready to succeed, attend school regularly and keep
learning through the summer months.
"We are leaving the Mile -High City on a high of our own, inspired by the people
who are moving mountains in their communities to serve children," said Ralph
Smith, the managing director of the Campaign and a senior vice president at the
Annie E. Casey Foundation. "We look forward to working with all of the
communities in the Network as well as more across the country to move the
needle on grade -level reading."
"It's been a wonderful opportunity to work with the other partners to really make a
difference," said Stacey Stewart, Executive Vice President of United Way
Worldwide. "Our greatest asset is the ability to mobilize both individuals and
institutions around an issue that communities think are important . This efforto to
get more kids reading at grade level by the end of third grade has emerged as a
critical priority in many communities."
"The National League of Cities congratulates the winners of the 2012 All- America
City Awards for their outstanding community plans," said Donald J. Borut, NLC's
executive director. "These communities will be among the leaders as Americans
from all walks of life rally around the goal of ensuring that every child reads
proficiently by the end of third grade."
Each of the recognized communities submitted a "Community Solutions Action
Plan" that included a broad cross - section of local partners, including schools,
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foundations, community service organizations, businesses and faith groups
detailing how they would address school readiness, attendance and summer
learning. More than 30 finalist communities were selected through a peer review
process from a field of more than 100 entries from across the country.
At the award celebration Monday afternoon, NCL President Gloria Rubio - Cortes
announced that next year's AII- America City Award will include a focus on how
communities are mobilizing to address the needs of returning veterans and
military families.
Friday marked the launch of the Campaign for Grade -Level Reading Communities
Network, a national movement of local leaders, nonprofits and foundations putting
a stake in the ground on third -grade reading. That milestone marks the point
when children shift from learning to read and begin reading to learn. Students
who haven't mastered reading by then are more likely to get stuck in a cycle of
academic failure, drop out of school, and struggle throughout their lives.
All- America City Award sponsors include: The Piton Foundation; Southwest
Airlines - Official Airline of the All- America City Awards; Scholastic; PCL
Construction; Mile High United Way; Greenberg Traurig ; US Bank; El Pomar
Foundation; JP Morgan Chase; City of Lakewood; City of Aurora; Comcast;
FirstBank; Rose Community Foundation; Western Union; and Denver Health.
NCL is a 117 - year -old nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that strengthens
democracy by increasing the capacity of groups and individuals to participate in
and build healthy and prosperous communities. NCL publishes the Model City
Charter and the National Civic Review, and conducts programs, research and
technical assistance on topics like fiscal sustainability, transportation- oriented
development, environmental stewardship, racial equity and immigrant integration.
www.ncl.orq www.allamericacityaward.com
The National League of Cities is the nation's oldest and largest organization
devoted to strengthening and promoting cities as centers of opportunity,
leadership and governance. NLC is a resource and advocate for 19,000 cities,
towns and villages, representing more than 218 million Americans.
United Way Worldwide is a worldwide network in 40 countries and territories,
including more than 1,200 local organizations in the U.S. It advances the common
good, creating opportunities for a better life for all by focusing on the three key
building blocks of education, income and health. United Way recruits people and
organizations who bring the passion, expertise and resources needed to get
things done. LIVE UNITED® is a call to action for everyone to become a part of
the change. For more information about United Way, please visit:
LIVEUNITED.orq.
The Campaign for Grade -Level Reading is a collaborative effort by foundations,
nonprofit partners, states and communities to ensure that low- income children
succeed in school and graduate prepared for college, a career and active
citizenship. The Campaign focuses on the most important predictor of school
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success and high school graduation - grade -level reading by the end of third grade.
For more information contact Mike McGrath at 303 571 4343. Mikem @ncl.org.
# ##
1889 York Street 1 Denver, CO 80206 US
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3rd Grade Reading
Community Solutions Action Plan
Executive Summary
DUBUQUE, IOWA
Community Overview
Dubuque, Iowa takes great pride in our quality educational system. Public and private preschools, and programs like
Head Start and Parents as Teachers, provide options for educating our young people. Two K -12 school systems — Dubuque
Community School District (DCSD) and Holy Family Catholic Schools (HFCS) —serve the majority of the community's
12,337 students. In addition to high schools, middle schools and elementary schools, DCSD offers an alternative program
that provides multiple pathways to graduation and HFCS offers five preschools and a Spanish Immersion School. DCSD
and HFCS have the same calendar and collaboratively share staff, instructional materials, transportation, communication,
and other support services. Dubuque is also home to numerous post - secondary institutions offering liberal arts degrees,
professional programs, graduate degrees, associate degrees, and certification and diploma programs, making it a truly
education - infused environment.
Like many Midwestern cities, Dubuque has experienced a demographic shift and schools in particular are becoming more
diverse. While the number of young people age nine and under represents just 12% of the population, this age group has
greater diversity than the rest of the community: 82% white, 8% black, 5% Hispanic /Latino, and 2.6% other.
Dubuque's poverty rate has increased, including child poverty. Dubuque's child poverty rate is 13% (vs. 15.6% statewide
and 21.6% nationally); for young people under 5 it is 20.6% (vs. 19.6% statewide and 23.0% nationally). The effects of
childhood poverty on learning and reading achievement are well documented.
To help address these challenges, the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque (CFGD) established Every Child /Every
Promise (ECEP) in 2006 to engage the community in delivering the Five Promises: Safe Places, Caring Adults, Healthy Start,
Effective Education and Opportunities to Serve Others.
Today, ECEP facilitates the 3rd Grade Reading Coalition, which is already comprised of 17 agencies, with many more
community members as advisors and participants. Over 100 people also participated in a workshop to help shape the
Community Solutions Action Plan (CSAP), a strategy to achieve collective impact in three areas: community, families, and
policy. Based on our track record of successfully reimagining our city through community partnerships, we are confident
we can find solutions that move 3rd Grade Reading Achievement from good to great in our community and become a
model for other communities.
The 3rd Grade Reading Coalition members:
Alliant Energy
Carnegie Stout Public Library
Clarke University
Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque
Crescent Community Health Center
Dubuque Racing Association
Mystique Casino
Diamond Jo Casino
Dubuque Area Chamber of Commerce
Dubuque Community School District
Dubuque Community School District Foundation
Dubuque County Early Childhood
Every Child 1 Every Promise
Four Oaks: Parents as Teachers
Greater Dubuque Development Corporation
Holy Family Schools
Iowa State University Extension & Outreach
Leisure Services
Loras College
Multicultural Family Center
Northeast Iowa Community College
Operation New View: Head Start
University of Dubuque
St Mark's Community Center
3rd Grade Reading Community Solutions Action Plan Executive Summary 1 Dubuque, Iowa 1 Page 1
The Problem
The biggest challenge facing our community is disproportionate achievement rates of minority students and students in
poverty. While overall our students are achieving at a high level, a disproportionate rate of minority students are entitled
to Special Education services: 11.45% black, 2.37% Hispanic, and 2.72% multi - racial in 2011 -12. Whether we look at
reading achievement, school attendance, or school readiness, the story is the same.
In addition, while many Dubuque students demonstrate success in 3rd Grade Reading Achievement based on the Basic
Reading Inventory, of the 14% of students not meeting 3rd grade reading targets, half (7 %) are entitled. The remaining 3rd
grade students are overwhelmingly black, male and receive free and reduced lunch services.
Dubuque students arrive at kindergarten ready to learn and data shows our four -year old preschool is a major
factor in driving these school readiness rates. However, the program is at risk due to state funding challenges and a
disproportionate number of students from at -risk populations are still not school -ready by age 5.
Similarly, while the Average Daily Attendance (ADA) rate in our schools is 95 %, the opportunity remains to reach the most
at -risk students who are not attending at rates that promote achievement. We need to improve our attendance data.
Improving summer learning opportunities may be our community's most significant opportunity. While we have an
abundance of summer activities for our young people, there is little coordination among these activities and a significant
need to incorporate learning opportunities into these programs to support the school curriculum.
We can also impact each of these challenges with broader strategies including improved coordination of efforts and
resources, and aligning provided and proposed services with a Collective Impact model.
Finally, we must consider how our policies can better ensure:
• More proportionate density of poverty and minorities within schools
• Improved access to summer learning opportunities for all young people
• An engaged health community that provides lead- testing and wellness care
• High attendance standards for kindergarten and four - year -old preschool
• Employer awareness of how policies affect parents' abilities to support children
• Issues like attendance are addressed in community -based organization programming
• School attendance policies are fair and consistently enforced district -wide.
Our goal is to find models to help impact the most vulnerable students while building on current success. We will build on
our strong history of partnerships, collaboration, and innovation to move our 3rd Grade Reading Achievement from good
to great.
3rd Grade Reading Community Solutions Action Plan Executive Summary 1 Dubuque, Iowa 1 Page 2
Desired Outcomes and Impact
Dubuque's Vision: At least 90% of our students in grades 3, 4, and 5 will be proficient on the reading comprehension
portion of the Iowa Testing Program (ITP)
We will focus on the remaining 14% of our young people who do not read at grade level by striving for impact in the way
we collaborate, share resources, and engage the community. This will require multiple agencies to work together and
initiatives that will serve to bridge race, class and socio - economic distinctions.
By building an organizational structure that facilitates setting a shared agenda, developing common assessments and
identifying mutually reinforcing activities, we will be able to pursue annual goals for school readiness, school attendance
and reduced summer learning loss that will engage the community, families, and policy makers at the local and state
levels.
When we succeed in reaching these goals, our community will:
• Witness a radical change in our community, families and policies
• Achieve new levels of collaboration that focus efforts on student learning
• Benefit from partnership between parents and the Dubuque educational community in providing learning
opportunities
• Lead the region in creating sustainable and integrated policies, best practices, and resource allocation that
incorporates evidence -based strategies to best serve children
To get started, we have established annual goals for the community, families, and policy makers in the three core
challenge areas: school readiness, school attendance and summer learning.
3rd Grade Reading Community Solutions Action Plan Executive Summary 1 Dubuque, Iowa 1 Page 3
School Attendance
Dubuque's Vision Because attendance is a community priority for parents, students, nonprofits, business partners and schools, no
students miss more than 10% of school each year
** indicates how we will measure our progress — specific goals /measures will be developed by the Collaborative in Year 1
Years Community
Families j Po1ic
Year 1:
• Inform /engage community
• Organize for success
• Develop a shared vision
• Identify numerical targets for ** Engaged community
each of the objectives members
• Develop a common
vision with the community
around school attendance
** Vision document
Year 2:
• Building capacity /resources
• Early implementation of pilot
• Mutually reinforcing activities
• Business and nonprofit
partners work with
schools to increase school
attendance
** List of businesses/
nonprofits
** New strategies being
implemented
Year 3:
• Implement with fidelity
• Data gathering with common
assessments
• Partnerships with schools,
business and nonprofits
are fully implemented
** Students engaged in
these strategies with
improved attendance
Long-term:
• Continuous improvement
- Collect and maintain data
- Analyze data, monitor
progress and modify plans
• Convene community
members in a workshop
to share data, evaluate
progress and gather input
* *Attendance, feedback and
new ideas
• Engage parents to
increase understanding of
the connection between
attendance and reading
achievement
** Parents engaged and
students with improved
attendance
• Schools will convene
community and review
attendance policies
** Improved policy
opportunities identified
**
** •
Barriers to student
attendance identified,
pilot supports to families
implemented
Students and families
engaged in supports
Improved student
attendance
• School attendance
policy improvements
recommended to school
policymakers
** Improved attendance
policies implemented by
schools
• Evaluate successes and
fully implement supports
to families
** Students and families
engaged in supports
** Improved student
attendance
• Revised attendance
policies fully Implemented
by schools
** Attendance data reflects
new policy
• Engage parents in
evaluation and feedback
process
** Attendance, feedback and
new ideas
• Verify effectiveness
of attendance policy
changes and share
outcomes with local, state
policymakers
** Outcomes and feedback
from policymakers
3rd Grade Reading Community Solutions Action Plan Executive Summary 1 Dubuque, Iowa 1 Page 4
Summer Learning
Dubuque's Vision Change summertime focus from "keeping kids busy" to purposeful activities that foster skills, including reading, math,
and science growth, and instill a love for life -long learning, healthy living, and connection to school
** indicates how we will measure our progress— specific goals /measures will be developed by the Collaborative in Year 1
Years
Community
Families
Policy
Year 1:
• Inform /engage community
• Organize for success
• Develop a shared vision
• Identify numerical targets for
each of the objectives
Year 2:
• Building capacity /resources
• Early implementation of pilot
• Mutually reinforcing activities
Year 3:
• Implement with fidelity
• Data gathering with common
assessments
Long-term:
C; ous improvement
I and maintain data
- Analyze data, monitor
progress and modify plans
• Convene community
members and partners to
develop summer learning
programs for all students,
encourage participation by
a diverse population
** Common agenda adopted
by many community
partners
• Build partnership
support and funding
streams among existing
organizations to
Implement coordinated
summer programming
** Increased participation
among organizations
** Increased funding
• Scale up training for
providers of summer
programming and expand
programs
** More trainings offered
• Summer program
directors and staff are
trained to support summer
learning objectives
** Trained directors /staff is
the expectation
• Community -wide
Involvement in offering
year -round learning
opportunities that ensure
access and equity for all
students
** Widespread participate r
from providers
** Participation by all SES
• Engage parents to identify
desired summer learning
opportunities and educate
parents about existing
summer programming
** Parent participation
• Develop coordinated
supports for families
that provides access for
children to participate
in summer learning
opportunities
** Increased supports
implemented
** Increased participation in
summer programming
• Families are accessing
year -round learning
opportunities that serve
diverse groups of students
** Participation rates
** Demographics of
participants
• Families plan for
participation in year -round
learning opportunities and
advocate for additional
opportunities
** Increased participation
rates
** Increased requests for
programming
• Engage local policy,
school, business and
nonprofit decision
makers in planning
summer programs as
a comprehensive way
to approach year -round
learning
** Year -round sfrategies
identified
• Use common
assessments to measure
the impact of coordinated
programming and
Integrated learning for
targeted students
** Common assessments
identified and data is
gathered, analyzed and
shared
• Policies that support
the sustainability of
year -round learning and
explore a calendar shift to
year -round schooling
** Policies identified and
shared for review
• Establish a data - driven
system that supports the
Integration of school and
summer outcomes
** Data connects summer
and school year outcomes
• Policies implemented
that support year -round
learning and a strategy to
pilot a year -round school
calendar
** Planning is done from a
year -round perspective
** Pilot for 45/15 calendar
identified
3rd Grade Reading Community Solutions Action Plan Executive Summary 1 Dubuque, Iowa 1 Page 5
School Readiness
Dubuque's Vision All young people in Dubuque are school ready through high quality early education in combination with additional
supports to compensate for and overcome early disadvantages for higher achievement levels
** indicates how we will measure our progress — specific goals/measures will be developed by the Collaborative in Year 1
Years
Community
Families
Policy
Year 1:
• Inform /engage community
• Organize for success
• Develop a shared vision
• Identify numerical targets for
each of the objectives
Year 2:
• Building capacity /resources
• Early implementation of pilot
• Mutually reinforcing activities
Year 3:
• Implement with fidelity
• Data gathering with common
assessments
Long-term:
• Continuous improvement
- Collect and maintain data
- Analyze data, monitor
progress and modify plans
• Inform, recruit and enroll
childcare and preschool
providers for the Quality
Rating System (QRS) to
ensure quality
** Providers participating in
trainings
• Build a sustainable
childcare and preschool
workforce through
partnerships between
schools and higher ed
• Childcare and preschool
centers commit and begin
implementing the QRS
** Number of centers
enrolled in the QRS
• Schools and higher ed
build strategies to improve
childcare and preschool
workforce
• Childcare and preschool
centers will complete the
QRS
** Number of centers with a
rating of 3 or higher
• Schools /higher ed fully
partnering to increase
quality childcare /preschool
workforce
• Provider community fully
embraces QRS
** Data reflects 90% of
providers enrolled in QRS
** Annual increase of QRS
scores of 3 or higher
• Engage and inform
community -based
organizations around the
issue of evidence -based
parent education, child
development and family
support
** Selection of a program
and implementation of a
written plan
• Create the financial
supports to increase the
capacity of the partnering
agencies to do parent
education and home
visitations
** Improved funding streams
• Initiate professional
development to increase
capacity
** Professional development
in place
• Strategies are put in place
to identify at -risk families
early -on, even at birth
• Every family in the
community is offered
parent education
programming, including
home visitations
** Enrollment increase
• Parents, schools and
providers partnering to
engage at -risk families
in parent education
programming
** Annual enrollment
increase
• Coalition will work with
Dubuque County Early
Childhood and ECEP
to engage legislators in
issues around quality
childcare and preschool
centers
• Advocacy efforts will
seek policy support of
strategies that increase
dual - generation outcomes
** Monitor legislative
contacts
• Work with ECEP to
inform and encourage
the workplace to review
policies and employee
benefits regarding quality
childcare and preschool
** Convening meetings and
number of businesses
engaged
• Business and legislators
support quality care
policies for childcare and
preschool
** Increase of policy and
funding support
• Sustainable policies for
4 -year preschool are in
place, ensuring long -term
support
** Long -term commitment to
4 -year preschool
3rd Grade Reading Community Solutions Action Plan Executive Summary 1 Dubuque, Iowa 1 Page 6
The CSAP Development Process
Building on a Foundation
Our community was fortunate to have a foundation of strong partnerships between public and private schools, city
government, philanthropy and community -based organizations. This is evidenced by our community's Youth Master Plan
and Youth Indicators Report.
Assembling a Team
The 3rd Grade Reading Coalition began meeting in October of 2011. The coalition is comprised of leaders from schools
(public and private), local colleges and universities, early childhood organizations, city government, philanthropy, and
parent organizations. Early meetings focused on understanding the opportunities in our community through needs
assessment and evaluation of 3rd grade reading achievement, summer learning loss, school readiness, and school
attendance.
A Strong Model for Collaboration
The Coalition adopted a research -based collective impact model that identifies five conditions for collective impact:
• Common Agenda - shared vision, common understanding of the problem, joint approach with agreed upon actions
• Shared Measurement - consistent data measurement to align efforts and hold partners accountable
• Mutually Reinforcing Activities - partners activities are differentiated yet coordinated to a common plan
• Continuous Communication - consistent open communication to ensure mutual trust, objectives and motivation
• Backbone Support - separate organization, staffed with skills to coordinate partners
ECEP agreed to facilitate the process and work of the Coalition.
Gathering Community Input
The Coaltion held a workshop on February 10, 2012, which was attended by over 100 people, including parents, teachers,
school administrators, mayor and City Council members, police officers and firefighters, former students, university and
college leaders, professors and students, and leaders from business, nonprofit, philanthropy and faith organizations
among others.
Working the Plan
The 3rd Grade Reading Coalition is beginning the implementation process of the CSAP. We will continue to organize
around the three core challenges while developing and implementing the strategies we have identified. We also expect to
add partners to our coalition and are organizing to share the action plan and engage the entire community. Together we
are enthusiastic and confident that we can build a culture that supports 3rd grade reading achievement for each and every
student.
3rd Grade Reading Community Solutions Action Plan Executive Summary 1 Dubuque, Iowa 1 Page 7
Dubuque, Iowa 2012
3rd Grade Reading
Community Solutions Action Plan
DUBUQUE, IOWA
There Are Several Types of Problems
Baking a Cake
Complicated
Sending a Rocket
to the Moon
Complex
Educating youth
Social sector treats problems as simple of complicated
Collective Impact, John Kania, FSG Social Impact Consultants, July 2012
Traditional Approaches Are Not Solving Our
Toughest — often Complex — Challenges
• Funders select individual grantees
• Organizations work separately and compete
• Evaluation attempts to isolate a particular
organization's impact
• Large scale change is assumed to depend
on scaling organizations
• Corporate and government sectors are often
disconnected from foundations and nonprofits
Collective Impact, John Kania, FSG Social Impact Consultants, July 2012
Isolated
Impact
Imagine a Different Approach - Multiple Players
Working Together to Solve Complex Issues
• All working toward the same goal and measuring the same things
• Cross - sector alignment with government, nonprofits, philanthropic
and corporate sectors as partners
• Organizations actively coordinating their action and sharing
lessons learned
Isolated Impact
Collective Impact, John Kania, FSG Social Impact Consultants, July 2012
Collective Impact
FSG.ORG
Working in Collective Impact Requires a Mindset Shift
Adaptive vs. Technical
Problem Solving
No Silver Bullets.... But we
do have Silver Buckshot
Credibility vs. Credit
• Allowing answers to come from within
• Supporting common agenda building.
information sharing and coordination/
alignment
• Many small changes implemented in
alignment can add up to large scale
progress
• Creating new incentives to work
collaboratively vs. competitively
Achieving Large -Scale Change through Collective
Impact Involves Five Key Elements
Common Agenda
Shared Measurement
• Common understanding of the problem
• Shared vision for change
• Collecting data and measuring results
• Focus on performance management
• Shared accountability
Mutually Reinforcing
Activities
• Differentiated approaches
• Willingness to adapt individual activities
• Coordination through joint plan of action
Continuous
Communication
Backbone Support
• Consistent and open communication
• Focus on building trust
• Separate organization(s) with staff
• Resources and skills to convene and
coordinate participating organizations
RP -yors pas- -solution on br f °ng ,bronic ah
The U.S. Conference of Mayors has unanimously adopted a resolution
urging mayors to raise awareness of the negative effects of chronic
absenteeism.
Dubuque, Iowa 2012