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American Youth Policy Forum: Bridging Youth Policy, Practice and Research
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Briefs

06/22/10
Preparing College- and Career-Ready Students: Elements of Successful Programs: This webinar examined the elements of program models that have demonstrated effectiveness in preparing students for postsecondary access and success, based on the results of rigorous evaluations. This event was a follow up of the Success at Every Step forum from February 5, 2010. Presenters included Sarah hooker, Program Associate, American Youth Policy Forum (DC); James connell, President, Institute for Research and Reform in Education, (NJ); Ryan Reyna, Policy Analyst, Education Division, Center for Best Practices, National Governors’ Association (DC); and Joel Vargas, Senior Project Manager, Jobs for the Future (MA). (Webinar). This event was recorded and is now available on the webinar page.
02/05/10
Success at Every Step of College and Career Preparation The American Youth Policy Forum (AYPF) has recently released a new publication, Success at Every Step: How 23 Programs Support Youth on the Path to College and Beyond, which profiles programs that have been proven to help young people complete high school and be prepared for success in postsecondary education and careers, based on the results of recent, high-quality evaluations. This half-day event provided an overview of the findings of the report, showcased a variety of programs that support college- and career-readiness, explored implications for federal and state policy, and included a networking lunch. Speakers included Greg Darnieder, Special Assistant to the Secretary on College Access, U.S. Department of Education (DC); RYAN REYNA, Policy, Analyst, Education Division, Center for Best Practices, National Governors’ Association (DC); Katharine Oliver, Assistant State Superintendent for Career and Technical Education and Adult Learning, Maryland State Department of Education (MD); michael wotorson, Executive Director, Campaign for High School Equity (DC); James Connell, President, Institute for Research and Reform in Education (NJ); Rachel Singer, Director of Academic Affairs, Kingsborough Community College (NY); Joel Vargas, Senior Project Manager, Jobs for the Future (MA); and david sinski, Executive Director, After School Matters (IL).(Forum BRIEF)
06/26/09
Rethinking Professional Development: Comprehensive Approaches to Ensuring Effective Teaching: As teacher quality is the number one factor affecting student achievement, improvement in teacher effectiveness is a top federal priority. This forum will showcase two comprehensive models that have been implemented in school districts that use continuous professional development that have proven effects on student achievement and the quality of instruction in the classroom. The Long Beach Unified School District is exemplary in its use of internal resources to improve teacher effectiveness through year-round professional development linked to school improvement strategies. The Urban Teacher Residency program of the Academy for Urban School Leadership in Chicago ensures continuous improvement of teaching through intensive pre-service training, classroom residency, induction coaching, use of student-level data to inform instruction, and mentoring for teachers in urban schools that have been targeted for school turnaround. Speakers at this forum will include Stephanie Hirsch, Executive Director of the National Staff Development Council, Dallas (TX); Chris Steinhauser, Superintendent of the Long Beach Unified School District, (CA); and Michael Whitmore, Director of the Teacher Residency Program, Academy for Urban School Leadership, Chicago (IL).  (Forum Brief) 
10/24/08
School Improvement and School Turnaround: Local Accomplishments Of MetLife Foundation/NASSP Breakthrough Schools: Driven by the No Child Left Behind Act, the need to improve high school graduation rates, and to lower the number of students dropping out, school improvement and turnaround initiatives continue to dominate efforts at education reform, in an effort to improve academic outcomes for students.  The upcoming series of AYPF forums will examine some of these efforts at the local, district and state levels. The first forum will focus on a project by the MetLife Foundation and the National Association of Secondary School Principals.  This project identifies, showcases, and recognizes middle level and high schools that are high achieving or are dramatically improving student achievement and serve large numbers of students living in poverty. Selection criteria are based on a school's documented success in implementing strategies aligned with the three core areas of Breaking Ranks II for middle level and high schools that have led to improved student achievement: Collaborative leadership; Personalization; and Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment. These strategies were outlined in two publications: In 2004, NASSP’s commitment to supporting principals in their schoolwide reform efforts resulted in the publication of Breaking Ranks II: Strategies for Leading High School Reform.  This was followed by the 2006 release of Breaking Ranks in the Middle: Strategies for Leading Middle Level Reform. This forum will showcase three schools that utilized these school improvement strategies, and that were grant award winners in 2008: Forest Grove High School in Oregon; Cashman Middle School in Nevada; and Wheaton High School in Maryland.  Mel Riddile of the National Association for High School Leadership (VA) will lead the presentation.  Speakers will be:  Kevin E. Lowndes, Principal, Wheaton High School (MD); John O’Neill, Principal Forest Grove High School (OR); and Misti Taton, Principal, Cashman Middle School (NV). (Forum)
3/8/2007
Philadelphia’s Project U-Turn, Citywide Efforts to Address the Dropout Problem with Paul Vallas, Chief Executive Officer, School District of Philadelphia, Ruth Curran Neild, Research Scientist, Center for Social Organization of Schools at Johns Hopkins University,  Courtney Collins-Shapiro, Director, Multiple Pathways to Graduation, School District of Philadelphia, Laura Shubilla, President of the Philadelphia Youth Network. (forum Brief)
10/27/2006
New Century High Schools Initiative with Bob Hughes, President, New Visions for Public Schools, Ronald Chaluisan, Vice President of Programs, New Visions for Public Schools, and Elizabeth Reisner, Principal, Policy Studies Associates (Forum brief)
5/19/2006
Career and Technical Education's Role in High School Reform with the Association for Career and Technical Education (Forum brief)
3/10/2006
Rhode Island High School Diploma System: Lessons Learned from Implementation with Joe DiMartino, President, Center for Secondary School Redesign, Andrea Castaneda, Development Officer, Providence Public Schools, and Joe Maruszczak, Principal, Ponaganset High School (Forum brief)
1/8/2004
California's Public Schools: From First to Worst, A Documentary Premiere with Jounalist John Merrow, Today’s forum screened the national premiere of John Merrow’s and John Tulenko’s dramatic one-hour film documentary, FROM FIRST TO WORST, scheduled to begin airing around the U.S. in February on the Public Broadcasting System. (Forum Brief)
5/30/2003
Beyond the Pipeline: Getting Principals We Need, Where They Are Needed Most, with Christine DeVita and Richard Laine, Wallace-Reader’s Digest Fund, Marguerite Roza, Center on Reinventing Public Education, University of Washington, Susan Gates, Rand Corporation, Michael Casserly, Council of Great City Schools, and Daniel Domenech, Superintendent of Fairfax County, VA Public Schools. (Forum Brief)
10/7/2002
Raising Student Achievement: A Role for Municipal Leaders, National League of Cities, with Audrey M. Hutchinson, Program Director, Education and Afterschool Initiatives, Institute for Youth, Education, and Families at the National League of Cities; Mayor John De Stefano, Jr. of New Haven, Connecticut; and Dr. Anne L. Bryant, Executive Director of the National School Boards Association. (Forum Brief)
11/14/2000
A Dinner Discussion with David Hornbeck. (Dinner Meeting)
6/23/2000
Service-Learning in State Legislation: A State-Wide Citizenship Effort, with John Benson and Terry Pickeral. (Forum Brief)
4/28/2000
Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award for Education, with Peggy Siegel, the Director of Business/Education Initiatives for the National Alliance of Business (NAB), Brenda Clark, Principal of Azalea Elementary School, Doug Smith, Principal of Osceola High School, Star Glock, Staffing Specialist at GTE, and Lisa Deprez, Six Sigma Expert Raytheon. (Forum Brief)
11/12/1999
A Close Up View of School Reform: Chicago, Seattle and Philadelphia, with John Merrow. (Forum Brief)
12/11/1998
A Revolution in School District Governance: The Chicago Experience, with Dorothy Shipps, Director, Consortium on Chicago School Research, University of Chicago. (Forum Brief)
3/12/1998
A Discussion with Dr. Thomas W. Payzant, Superintendent, Boston Public Schools: System-Wide School Reform: A National and Local Perspective. (Dinner Meeting)
1/16/1998
High Schools That Work: Critical Insights on School Reform, with Gene Bottoms, Director, Southern Regional Educational Board, State Vocational Education Consortium. (Forum Brief)

Trip Reports

09/29/08-
09/30/08
High School Redesign in Long Beach, California: Investing in Human Capital and Professional Development: The Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD) is able to boast high-performing schools in every section of the district. Its stellar accomplishments have earned it a number of national honors. LBUSD is the 2003 national winner of the Broad Prize for Urban Education and is a finalist for the 2008 Broad Prize, to be awarded in October 2008. Earlier this year, Newsweek magazine named six of Long Beach’s high schools to its list of top U.S. high schools. (Trip Report)
10/18/2007-
10/19/2007
State Policy Trip to Miami, Florida, October 18-19, 2007: Career Pathways and K-12 Education. Highlights from this trip include meeting with Rudy Crew, Superintendent of Miami-Dade Country Public Schools, as well as other policy and education experts at the state and local levels. In addition, we visited Miami Edison Senior High School, MacArthur South Senior High School, and Robert Morgan Educational Center. (Trip Report)
12/3/2002 -
12/5/2002
Building and Strengthening Linkages between Traditional and Nontraditional Education Systems in Austin, TX. The study mission was jointly sponsored by the American Youth Policy Forum and the National Youth Employment Coalition. Members of the Austin Group, a volunteer group of organizations, agencies and individuals dedicated to providing quality educational options and resources for vulnerable youth, also participated. (Trip Report)
10/29/2000 -
10/31/2000
Community Schools and Partnerships to Improve Learning and Services for Youth, in conjunction with the Coalition for Community, Kansas City, MO. (Trip Report)
3/23/1995 -
3/24/1995
Reforms in Urban Education, Youth Development, Community Service and School-to-Career Transition, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, including visits to the Fitness and Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Academies; Health Tech 2000; the YouthBuild Program; a West Philadelphia Partnership Improvement Corporation community service site, Shaw Middle School; and meeting with Superintendent of Schools David Hornbeck. (Trip Report)