Houston A+ Challenge is dedicated to helping to transform the area's high schools into personalized learning environments that give all students the knowledge and skills they need to graduate and succeed in college or the workplace. We do this through a number of initiatives:
Preparing to Dream
Preparing to Dream aims to improve postsecondary access and success among low-income and first-generation college students in the Houston region, by helping school districts use student data to transform policies and priorities. Houston A+ Challenge and the National College Access Network partner with teams from five area districts -- Houston, Aldine, Spring Branch, Humble and Goose Creek -- on this Houston Endowment-funded initiative.
Houston Schools for a New Society
Houston A+ Challenge's student-focused, whole-school change effort with Houston ISD, called Houston Schools for a New Society, has two components: creating new small schools and redesigning the district's existing 23 large high schools into theme-based small learning communities that emphasize literacy across the core curriculum, rigorous instruction and personal advocacy for each student.
New Small Schools
Houston A+ Challenge has played an important role in establishing four new, smaller Houston-area high schools that provide innovative models for student success:
Regional High School Network
Currently, 16 high schools in the Aldine, Alief, Spring Branch, and Humble school districts particpate in Houston A+ Challenge's Regional Network for High School Redesign.
Teacher Externship Program
Aimed at improving connections between the classroom and the workforce, Houston A+ Challenge's Teacher Externship Program has placed more than 200 secondary school teachers in one-week job shadowing immersion experiences since 2003.
Summer Science Internship
The Summer Science Internship with Baylor College of Medicine Discovery Lab provides hands-on learning experiences for high school science teachers and their students.
|
