Facing History and Ourselves, in partnership with Boston Public Schools (BPS) and Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS), is submitting an Investing in Innovating (i3) application for a Development grant of $7.3MM ($5.0MM of Department of Education funds and $2.3MM in matching funds) for the next five school years, starting in fall 2010. The proposed project addresses the i3 Absolute Priority #1 of increasing the number and percentage of highly effective teachers by dramatically expanding its professional development and teacher support services within its partner districts, thereby increasing student achievement, graduation rates, and college readiness. The project also addresses the i3 Competitive Preference #6 of promoting college access and success by keeping students academically engaged and by fostering critical thinking skills. The project targets two large, urban school districts that serve a significant majority of “high need” students, as measured by the percentage of students who are living in poverty, attending high-minority schools, over-age for grade, or at risk of not graduating on time.
Facing History will provide intensive training and support to approximately 250 total teachers, reaching an estimated 60,000 middle and high school students over the course of five years. This proposal builds on previous research of Facing History programs to create a scalable model that can be replicated across the country to promote teacher effectiveness, increase student achievement, and close the achievement gap.
To learn more, contact Terry Tollefson.
