Education and Workforce Development

Education

and

Workforce Development

january/february 2009

E d u c at i o n a n d Wo r k f o rce De v e lo pm e n t A J our ne y t hro ugh Lif elo ng Learn ing

A

Journey through

Lifelong Learning

Business Roundtable: Tapping America’s Potential • Accountability Systems Workforce Development in the 21st Century • The Business Impact of H-1BVisas Learning Across Industries: Benefits for K-12 Public Education DUKE University: Building Bridges Through Global Business Education

LET’S RETHINK THE BOUNDARIES OF BUSINESS SCHOOL.

Join Us. Maybe it’s time to redraw the map.

Change the lens. Change perspective.

And replace the frames of regionally predicated education with a new global looking glass.

Join us as we create a new form of business school uniquely relevant to the 21st century.

After all, the world’s most pressing business issues have no boundaries.

So why should a business school?

London St. Petersburg Shanghai Dubai New Delhi Durham

Learn more about the Duke MBA at www.fuqua.duke.edu

RETHINKING THE BOUNDARIES

table of CONTENTS

january/february 2009

In this Issue 4 Letter From The Editor 6 Letter From The Board

8 Inspiration 10 Meet The Board

96 Thank You 100 Opinion

14 Tapping America’s Potential

The Education for Innovation Initiative

24 Immigration, Still the “Third Rail” ?

The Business Impact of H-1B Visas

40 Monfort College of Business

The Performance Excellence Journey

44 Learning Across Industries

The Benefits for K-12 Public Education

48 Associated Equipment Distributors

A Powerful Workforce Development Approach

28 The Women’s College College of Collaboration

52 The New American Economy

Workforce Development in the 21st Century

32 Museum of Nature and Science

Engaging Teachers, Students and Families

56 Duke University

An Interview with Blair Sheppard

36 California Business for Education Excellence

Academic Success in Some of the Nation’s Toughest Areas ( )

01.09-02.09

60 Operation Respect

Both Hopeful and Daunting

64 Leeds School of Business

86 Denver School Partners Program Building the Community

Curriculum Emphasis on Social Responsibility

90 College Planning

More than Just Saving Money

68 Accountability Systems

Balancing our Children’s Education Against Economic Issues

72 Daniels College of Business Guided by a Compass

76 Jenks Public Schools

Excellence with a Vision for Tomorrow

92 arc Thrift Stores

Great Bargains, Priceless Results

94 Civic Canopy

A Collaborative Approach to Education

98 Cristo Rey Schools

Transforming Urban Education

80 The Evolution of e-Learning

From the Classroom to the Boardroom

102 Timberline Elementary School

More than Just Learning to Use a Computer 01.09-02.09

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LETTER FROM THE editor

january/february 2009

core economic infrastructure Education and Workforce Development

E

ducation and workforce development are not necessarily hot or sexy topics; however, they are a fundamental underpinning of our success and vitality as a country.

They serve as core infrastructures to support our economies and organizations, just like roads, bridges, and energy.

When you mention the words education and workforce development many people roll their eyes or mentally “check-out” due to information overload, fatigue or disinterest. The issue is not high on the political agenda. Therefore, it is likely that things will continue on the path of “business as usual” for the foreseeable future.

In traditional K-12 education, some alarming statistics need to be addressed quickly in order to avert major problems in the future. For example, experts predict that national teacher attrition will reach 30% in the next 3 years, and upwards of 50% over the next 5 years. While there is no single reason why K-12 teachers are exiting the classroom in record numbers, this startling statistic reflects departures because of generational divides, the challenge of meeting mandates on limited budgets, salary structures, and other systemic issues.

The overwhelming loss of expertise and knowledge in the classroom is especially profound at a time when we desperately require students to develop the knowledge and skills that will carry us into the 21st century. The low job satisfaction and high turnover rates of educators, coupled with the limited access to the global economy and global perspective of our nation’s most troubled schools will surely add to our long-term challenges as a country trying to compete for jobs and business development in a global arena.

The significant decline, over the last few months, of the economy is also unfortunate. Millions of professional and skilled people are out of work. At the same time, large numbers of retirees are attempting to rejoin the workforce after watching the value of their retirement accounts dwindle. Many of these individuals will need some sort of formal education or skill/work retraining to re-enter the job market.

Finally, recent college graduates find themselves with limited hope of finding a relevant job tied to their degree in this market, further increasing the need for direct skills training.

Education and workforce development are on the verge of a crisis.

Going forward, we must consider what we value, in the short- and long-term, for all forms of education. We must engage in the work of returning this country’s education systems to what it once was – the envy of every other country on the planet.

As Ed Rust, Chairman of State Farm reminds us, “Awareness is simply not enough. It is not enough to stand here today and declare a crisis if we don’t move to action and do so quickly. When only 70% of our children are graduating from high school – with a far lower number in our underserved and minority communities – we cannot just continue to call for action. This isn’t someone else’s problem to solve. It is mine as a business leader and yours in what ever role you serve as a community citizen.”

– Jan Mazotti

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FOUNDER AND PUBLISHER Gayle Dendinger EDITOR Jan Mazotti CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Paul M. Bauer, Ph.D. John Brackney William D. Budinger Business Roundtable Michaele E. Charles Lorna Christoff Sharon Clinebell Kim DeCoste Bill Fulton Shan Glandon Kevin Herman Patrick J. Holwell

R. Bruce Hutton, Ph.D. Steve Johnson Sajit Kabadi Bill Levis William A. Liggett, Ph.D. Cos Lindstrom Sandra L. Mitchell Jacki Paone Susan Snowdon George Sparks Chase Squires Kathryn S. Wylde Peter Yarrow Geri Zabitz Badler STAFF WRITERS Bill Levis Cos Lindstrom Jan Mazotti

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To view an electronic copy of the magazine, go to www.icosamag.com. ( )

01.09-02.09

LETTER FROM THE board

january/february 2009

Innovative Collaboration Transforming Education by John Brackney

C

ollaboration is actively transforming the face of education. Business leaders across South Metro Denver are teaming up with educators in innovative and revolutionary ways, finding solutions for a thriving economy in a globally competitive market. This approach to connection and cooperation lends itself to an education system unique from other Colorado regions – one with a straight continuum from prestigious P-20 districts and institutions such as Littleton, Douglas County, and Cherry Creek School Districts, DeVry University, Arapahoe Community College, Regis University, Colorado Technical University, and Colorado Christian University, to a highly educated workforce comprised of national and international industry leaders, such as CH2M Hill, Avaya, Lockheed Martin, and Xcel Energy. By gaining a competitive edge through a strong commitment from our community partners, we are creating significant economic development and job growth opportunities, filling the talent pipeline to employ high-skill and high-wage occupations.

Collaboration between business and education has always been there in various incarnations, but in the 21st century, opportunities for learning are so fast, so flexible and so worldwide, that collaboration has become an expectation. Some sources say, education as we know it today won’t exist in 10 years - it will be impractical to contain education within the four walls of a classroom. Because of this dynamic, the University of Phoenix, a premier national university, is evolving their educational model to include tight-knit learning centers that meet students’ needs for social interaction in an accessible environment closer to their home or workplace. Furthermore, Rich Schweigart, CEO of Colorado State University (CSU) Global Online, believes that five years from now students will literally be able to walk into a retail store and buy all of the materials to receive a degree from an accredited and reputable institution without ever entering the classroom. With their new online university, CSU Global Online hopes to give 20,000 students worldwide an untraditional education through virtual access to highly qualified professors. By purchasing the necessary software and learning materials, students can now fully complete their educational requirements and earn a college degree via a computer and the internet.

Collaboration in education is no longer the wave of the future. The world of technology and transportation is changing so rapidly that those who don’t work in partnership are finding their business or industry in second place because another rival industry cluster implements their core business model faster or cheaper through cooperation with surrounding institutions. Scores of collaborative education models are transpiring all around us. Here are a few of the most noteworthy:

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01.09-02.09

• A first for the state of Colorado: faculty members in all eight colleges on the Colorado State University campus – from Liberal Arts to Engineering – are working together to develop alternative energy solutions in a new independent interdisciplinary school – The Green University. This cooperative approach by the best of each college distinctively positions CSU to address key global sustainability challenges from a competitive well-rounded perspective.

• The Renewable Energy Task Force, created by the South Metro Denver Chamber and its member businesses, identified the collaborative nature of the California Clean Tech Open whose mission is to serve as an innovation catalyst for entrepreneurs in clean and environmentally sustainable technologies, and created one for the Rocky Mountain region. It was recognized that in early stages of business, an inventor of a product or service generally doesn’t have the expertise or infrastructure to develop a successful business model without significant support from the surrounding business community. From that premise, the Renewable Energy Task Force is initiating a five-state regional Rocky Mountain Clean Tech Open comprised of a group of small businesses experts in the fields of law, banking, accounting, marketing and virtual office space – which will help entrepreneurs bring their ideas into actionable business models.

•A rare partnership between the nation’s only laboratory exclusively dedicated to renewable energy – the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Colorado’s premier research universities – Colorado State University, the University of Colorado at Boulder and Colorado School of Mines is creating headlines. Known as the Colorado Renewable Energy Collaboratory, the group has emerged as a key player in the progression of Governor Ritter’s New Energy economy. As explained by Nigel Middleton, Provost of Colorado School of Mines, and David Hiller, Executive Director of the Colorado Renewable Energy Collaboratory, during our discussions on the Gubernatorial Trade Mission to Asia, these prestigious institutions have charged themselves with building collaborative centers around the state to provide an extraordinary and comprehensive education.

It is through collaborative models that Colorado can provide our nation’s future leading technicians, researchers and work force in the renewable energy industries.

John Brackney, President & CEO of the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce, strongly encourages you to learn more about each of these transformational stories on collaboration in education and workforce development at www.bestchamber.com.

Inspiring tomorrow’s engineers...today

CH2M HILL is a leader in full-service engineering, procurement, construction and operations. With more than $5.8 billion in revenue and 25,000 employees worldwide, we deliver innovative, practical, sustainable solutions—helping clients develop and manage infrastructure and facilities that improve efficiency, safety and quality of life.

Through our Community Partners program, we are working with local school districts, non-profit organizations, colleges and universities and other community partners to educate and encourage students in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math.

CH2M HILL proudly partners with the Denver School of Science and Technology, the Engineers Week Foundation, the Public Education and Business Coalition, and the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Education Coalition, among other organizations, to educate and inspire a new generation of engineers.

CR-08-01276-MKT © 2008 CH2M HILL

ch2mhill.com

INSPIRATIONS

Dan Ritchie

o

r a e tio p o

n

& C Collaboration Creating a Sound Economic Future

By Gayle Dendinger

recently attended an event at Cooperation Colorado where all of us were asked to tell a little about ourselves. When Dan Ritchie, the former long-time chancellor of the University of Denver, spoke he said, “I don’t know what to say.” It should have been “I don’t know where to start.”

A nursery rhyme has the line “rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief; doctor, lawyer, Indian chief!” AC/DC picked up part of this rhyme in their song “Sin City” - and if they were to re-write the song about Dan Ritchie, the line would read “CEO and rancher; community leader, and chancellor.”

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01.09-02.09

This great yet humble man, who is now the chairman of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, doesn’t need words to describe him because his accomplishments say it all. He is not, necessarily, a man of few words, but he is certainly a man of great action.

Dan is more interested in results than praise. That’s why he and his colleagues began working collaboratively to convene the Colorado Economic Futures Panel.

This cadre of talented individuals was committed to providing a map and vision that Colorado community leaders and elected officials could consult when they make important decisions about the state.

The panel hoped to empower public servants and citizens to work together for positive change on issues that rise above partisan politics, election cycles, narrow interests, and short-term thinking.

The goals of the panel were to: • Develop a comprehensive view of the state’s fiscal system.

• Build public understanding of the dynamics of the state’s financial structure.

• Provide a platform for informed discussion of key issues and appropriate modifications.

• Analyze the state’s difficult fiscal situation and provide a platform for informed discussion and possible solutions.

After months of study, the group came up with four principles to help Colorado “create a sound economic future and a favorable quality of life: • An informed, flexible process for making public policy; • A strong and effective system of representative government; • A renewal of public trust through increased government accountability; • A competitive fiscal policy based on information, shaped by an investment perspective and grounded in equity.”

In Dan’s words, “The future of Colorado depends on our ability to develop a comprehensive view of the problems and to engage citizens in solving them.”

In previous issues I wrote articles about Buckminster Fuller and Michael Porter who have inspired me with great theories that the rest of us can implement. Dan is a man who has taken these theories and put them into actions that touch the lives of people in Colorado and beyond every day.

Whether you are a resident or friend of Colorado, we encourage you to watch as members of the Colorado Economic Futures Panel work collaboratively to make this state a better place to live. Dan Ritchie is the secret sauce that will make it happen.

Yea Dan!!!

01.09-02.09

( )

advisory board

Dennis A. Ahlburg

Meet Dennis A. Ahlburg Dean, Leeds School of Business, University of Colorado at Boulder

D

ennis A. Ahlburg is the Dean of the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Before joining the Leeds School on August 1, 2005, Ahlburg was the senior associate dean, and professor of human resources at the University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Management in Minneapolis. His administrative responsibilities included faculty and research, budget, human resources, executive development, information technology, learning excellence, and the Ph.D. program.

Ahlburg received his bachelor’s in economics with first class honors from the University of Sydney in 1972 and a master’s in economics from the Australian National University in 1973.

In 1979 he received a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Pennsylvania.

Dean Ahlburg has taught human resources management, labor economics, and quantitative methods. He has consulted for the United Nations, the World Health Organization, and the U.K. and Australian Governments on human resources, health, and education issues. He has also served as an expert witness in age, sex, and race discrimination cases.

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CONTACT Dean Ahlburg: University of Colorado at Boulder 419 UCB, Boulder, CO 80309-0419 p: 303-492-1809 Dennis.ahlburg@colorado.edu

Ahlburg’s areas of interest include demographic economics, forecasting, labor economics, and the economics of higher education. He currently conducts research in the following areas: college dropout and youth labor market success, retention of employees, employment and poverty, and population growth and economic development.

Ahlburg is the recipient of many awards and honors, including a Fullbright Fellowship. In 1994 he was appointed by the Australian government to head enquiry into effects of population growth on economic development.

advisory board

Beth Parish

Meet Beth ann Parish

E

leven years ago, Beth Parish was a new mother, living on the east coast, working 60 hours a week in marketing for a large cosmetics multi-national when her husband had a new job opportunity in telecom; the hitch was that the new job was in Colorado. Never having visited the state, or really never having spent time west of New York, Parish said sure, she would leave everything she knew to move to the Wild West.

The move, which ended up transplanting her family to Boulder, Colorado, turned out to be a changing point in Beth Parish’s life. Having been committed to corporate America, with marketing skills honed at Procter and Gamble and The KAO Corporation, Parish took a look at her career and decided, to use her expertise to teach undergraduate marketing courses at Regis University, a Jesuit School committed to educating men and women of all ages to take leadership roles and to make a positive impact in a changing society. Working with students, faculty and the administration, Parish helped re-work the marketing curriculum to incorporate workplace needs with student engaging activities that integrated course learning objectives with ethics and a commitment to the Regis mission.

While teaching at Regis, Parish has been twice honored with the prestigious Excellence in Teaching Award.

Four years ago, Parish was named Program Manager of the John J. Sullivan Endowed Chair for Free Enterprise at Regis University.

The mission of the Sullivan Program is to forge multi-sector partnerships that use Free Enterprise solutions to address social needs. In the last year, the Sullivan Program has helped students, community associations, business, not-for-profit organizations, governmental representatives and faculty partners to develop Free Enterprise solutions to local, regional and national business

Photo by Josh Hardin at Regis University

Program Manager, John J. Sullivan Endowed Chair for Free Enterprise Regis University CONTACT Beth Ann Parish: 3333 Regis Blvd.

Denver, CO 80221 p: 303-458-4368 bparish@regis.edu www.regis.edu/sullivan

and social dilemmas. Over the last four years, the Sullivan program has also collaborated with local, regional and national organization to bring speakers to the Denver area who can talk to students, faculty and the community about the impact of Free Enterprise on Social Issues.

One driving principle of the Sullivan Program is that true, sustainable change is going to come from partnerships and collaborations that marry the talents and resources of the for profit, not for profit, governmental and academic communities; often not for profit organizations are seen as “all good” while for profit businesses are seen as “all evil”. Numerous examples have shown that true change and positive impact comes from relationships that leverage the strengths of each sector of our community.

In her role as Program Manager, Parish worked with a collaborative team of committed organizations to bring Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus to Denver in March of 2008. The Social Business and Microeconomic Opportunities for Youth Conference brought over 600 individuals together in Denver to begin on the path to creating change and addressing global poverty. The experience of meeting Dr. Yunus and of working with a team of talented individuals and organizations to address global poverty has moved Parish to commit her efforts to forging partnerships with impact.

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advisory board

Rebecca Saltman

Meet Rebecca Saltman Founder and President A Foot in the Door Productions

I

magine a world in which the real definition of the word “competition” is collaboration. This is a world where visionary non-profits are joined at the table by socially responsible corporate, public sector, and academic leaders. These relationships are at the heart of every successful collaboration.

Rebecca is the Founder and President of A Foot in the Door Productions - an independent, collaboration-building firm designed to bridge the varying needs of business, government, nonprofits, and academia. A “serial social entrepreneur”, her three businesses (A Foot in Door Productions, Mission First Solutions, and repFIVE) are disruptive innovations providing social value and systemic change in how people do work, develop efficiencies and create sustainability.

With 20 years experience in public relations, fundraising, and collaboration-building, Rebecca first rallied her talents in Colorado on behalf of the Huntington’s Disease Society of America, developing many grassroots campaigns (including annual Hoopa-thons) to fund Centers of Excellence nationwide. These campaigns continue to raise awareness and funds today.

Her efforts in both the private, academic and non-profit sectors have exposed her to people and events that have transformed into cultural milestones, and have spurred her to greater collaborative activity. Rebecca assembled and instructed production teams tackling one of the world’s largest, and at that time unheard-of, collaborative efforts: recording Holocaust survivor testimonies for Steven Spielberg’s Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation. Producing nearly 15,000 of the subsequent 65,000 testimonies recorded worldwide, she was also a key participant in the September 11, 1997, opening of the New York Museum of Jewish Heritage: A Living Memorial to the Holocaust.

Rebecca is proud of her recent contract work as the Interim Executive Director for the Alliance for Sustainable Colorado.

Her work focused on a partnership with Progress Now and the Daily Kos to develop and implement the Big Tent, a $620,000 Bloggers and New Media Headquarters at the 2008 Democratic Convention in Denver. The Big Tent became a linchpin for the DNC’s media strategy and has since been chosen for curation at the Smithsonian Institute and the Newseum.

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contact Rebecca Saltman: 700 Colorado Boulevard #351 Denver Colorado 80206 P: 303-388-7571 rsaltman@foot-in-door.com www.foot-in-door.com

Rebecca consults as a personal publicist for Right Management, creating community connections and collaborations worldwide.

She chose to work with Right Management because of its commitment to the health of the local community, and its investment in strengthening community by amplifying the careers and resources of Colorado professionals.

She proudly has worked with hundreds of non-profits and the businesses, agencies and academic institutions which support them - spanning from arc Thrift and Ballet Nouveau Colorado, to The Gathering Place and The Second Wind Fund. She has found academic institutions to be a unique source of collaborative energy as well. Daniels College of Business and The Women’s College both at the University of Denver have proven to be invaluable partners.

Rebecca spends most of her “free time” working with organizations such as Ashoka (supporting social entrepreneurs), the National Center for Community Collaborations (for which she is the Vice President) the Civic Canopy (where she is a board member) and increasingly, more of her time working with The Pachamama Alliance as a proud facilitator of the “Awakening the Dreamer” symposium.

I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community, and as long as I live it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake.

Life is no brief candle to me; it is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.

- George Bernard Shaw

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jewel of collaboration

tapping america’s potential

TAPPING AMERICA’S POTENTIAL The Education for Innovation Initiative

GOAL:

Increase the annual number of U.S. science , technology, engineering and mathematics bachelor’s-level graduates to 400,000 by 2015.

T

he Business Community Takes a Stand

In July 2005, 15 of America’s most prominent business organizations1 joined together to express their deep concern about the ability of the United States to sustain its scientific and technological leadership in a world where newly energized foreign competitors are investing in the capacity for innovation — the key driver of productivity and economic growth in advanced economies.

The business organizations formed the Tapping America’s Potential (TAP) coalition to advocate for renewed attention to U.S. competitiveness and America’s capacity to innovate.

TAP established a goal to double the number of U.S. science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) graduates with bachelor’s degrees by 2015.

TAP and other business, scientific and education coalitions helped to galvanize broad bipartisan agreement among federal policymakers on the need for action on U.S. competitiveness.

Despite this consensus, and the enactment of landmark authorizing legislation, Congress and the administration have thus far failed to adequately fund the innovation policy agenda advocated by TAP. America’s business leaders are frustrated that while governments around the world are building their national innovation capacity through investments in research and

STEM education, the United States is standing still. Failure to change the status quo places America’s future economic and technological leadership at risk.

Update on TAP Goal The business organizations that came together in 2005 to found TAP established a bold 10-year goal: “Double the number of U.S. science, technology, engineering and mathematics graduates with bachelor’s degrees by 2015.”

America’s business leaders recognize that highly educated technical professionals constitute the key differentiator in global economic competition. They are the world’s innovators, and their presence attracts capital and infrastructure investments, feeding a virtuous cycle of investment and capacity building that drives more rapid innovation, accelerated productivity growth, and higher levels of sustained economic growth and high-wage employment.

At the time the goal was established, 2001 was the most recent year for which data were available on U.S. bachelor’s degrees. In that year, slightly more than 200,000 STEM bachelor’s degrees were awarded to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. In the prior decade, the number of STEM bachelor’s degrees awarded annually was relatively stable and hovered slightly below 200,000. Over the same period, projected demand for STEM graduates in the U.S. workforce grew markedly, and economic competitors, such as China and India, greatly increased their output of STEM graduates. The TAP goal of 400,000 U.S. STEM graduates with bachelor’s degrees by 2015, while ambitious, is necessary to meet future workforce demands and the global competitiveness challenge.

Since the TAP report was issued three years ago, 2002–2006 data have become available that show U.S. STEM bachelor’s degrees awarded in that period fall short of what will be required to reach 400,000 by 2015. While the number of STEM degrees

America’s Business Leaders Are Committed In the three years since the TAP report was released, data on U.S. student performance, global economic competition and the link between innovation capacity and long-term economic performance have only served to reinforce the deep consensus in the business community that the United States must address its competitiveness challenges. American business leaders are more committed than ever to the policy agenda laid out in the 2005 report.

AeA, Business-Higher Education Forum, Business Roundtable, Council on Competitiveness, Information Technology Association of America, Information Technology Industry Council, Minority Business RoundTable, National Association of Manufacturers, National Defense Industrial Association, Semiconductor Industry Association, Software & Information Industry Association, TechNet, Technology CEO Council, Telecommunications Industry Association, and U.S. Chamber of Commerce are the original 15 organizations that released the report in July 2005. National Venture Capital Association joined later that year.

1

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awarded has remained relatively flat for three years, the policy changes the business community has called for to attract and retain more undergraduate STEM majors have not been enacted.

Congress has authorized, but not yet funded, the expansion of science and engineering research and STEM education programs that will make STEM majors more attractive to undergraduates.

Private-sector demand for STEM graduates has increased and may help pull more students into these majors. The latest “The key to America’s STEM workforce data show competitiveness that, in 2006, the already low challenge is innovation. unemployment rate for STEM Technological innovation drives productivity growth. graduates dropped to 2.5 percent, It creates new products and starting salaries were higher and processes — even for students graduating with whole new industries STEM degrees, particularly those — thereby generating with engineering degrees, than high-wage employment for most other majors. and a higher standard of In addition, there is a desperate need for STEM majors to teach math and science in U.S. schools.

Research indicates that a highly qualified teacher is one of the most important factors in raising student achievement, yet according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, school districts across the country have difficulty hiring qualified math and science teachers.

living for all Americans. ... The wellsprings of innovation require constant nurturing, and maintaining U.S. innovation leadership demands hard work and investment. We can meet this challenge.”

— Harold McGraw III Chairman, President and CEO The McGraw-Hill Companies

Why Major in a STEM Field?

There are a number of reasons why students should pursue a bachelor’s degree in STEM fields, including: • The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that employment in science and engineering occupations will grow 70 percent faster than the overall growth for all occupations.

• STEM graduates on average enjoy better employment prospects and higher starting salaries than graduates in non-STEM fields.

Progress on the TAP Agenda Progress on Recommendations Recommendations

Progress

1. Build public support for making improvement in STEM performance a national priority.

Mixed Progress Uneven public understanding but broad bipartisan support among policymakers at all levels

2. Motivate U.S. students and adults, using a variety of incentives, to study and enter STEM careers, with a special effort geared to those in currently underrepresented groups.

Mixed Progress Strong initial federal response but relatively weak follow-through; strong support from business leaders and states

3. Upgrade K–12 math and science teaching to foster higher student achievement, including differentiated pay scales for mathematics and science teachers.

Little Progress Greater attention from states, local school systems and the private sector but no significant federal response

4. Reform visa and immigration policies to enable the United States to attract and retain the best and brightest STEM students from around the world to study for advanced degrees and stay to work in the United States.

No Progress Broader immigration politics prevented enactment of widely supported targeted reforms for highly educated, foreign-born professionals

5. Boost and sustain funding for basic research, especially in the physical sciences and engineering.

No Progress Despite broad bipartisan consensus, federal policymakers have not increased funding to match their pledges

Source: National Science Foundation 01.09-02.09

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jewel of collaboration

tapping america’s potential

Building a Consensus for Investments in U.S. Innovation Since the TAP recommendations were issued three years ago, the policy landscape has changed in a positive direction, but progress toward implementation has been frustratingly halting and slow.

“America’s economic future lies with its next generation of workers and their ability to develop new technologies and products. This means we must strengthen math and science education in the U.S.” — Craig Barrett, Chairman, Intel Corporation

The policies TAP advocates are not new. For more than 10 years, economists and policy experts have pointed out that America’s failure to invest adequately in its innovation capacity will have negative long-term consequences for U.S. economic competitiveness. Those voices have only grown louder as global economic competition has grown more intense and America’s competitors have increased their investments in math and science education and in science and engineering research.

What is new, however, is the deep commitment of America’s business leaders to change the dynamic and reorient national policy toward greater investment in U.S. innovation leadership.

The July 2005 TAP report was but one expression of this new commitment.

“America’s horn of plenty over the past century has been filled by our ability to innovate and create new technologies that spur economic growth and improve the quality of our lives. The race to stay ahead in the brain race is critical to our future world leadership, and we need our government, our education system and the private sector to step up to the challenge.”

— Anne M. Mulcahy Chairman and CEO Xerox Corporation

From Rhetoric to Legislation In November 2005, then-Minority Leader of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi unveiled the House Democrats’ Innovation Agenda calling for increased federal investments in science, research, and math and science education, as well as incentives for small business to increase its innovation capacity.

President Bush, responding to the concerns of America’s business leaders, announced the American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI) in his February 2006 State of the Union address “Our companies have an to Congress, which proposed opportunity to give back to double federal support for to the community, to help students get excited about basic physical sciences and education in general, engineering research over 10 and math and science in years at three key civilian science particular. We can help agencies, to renew the federal them make the connection commitment to improving U.S. between studying math student achievement in math and and science now and science, and to implement highhaving great careers in skilled immigration reform and a engineering and science permanent R&D tax credit. later.”

— William H. Swanson Chairman and CEO Raytheon Company

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For the first time, an American president and congressional leaders articulated an explicit link

between physical sciences and engineering research and student achievement in math and science and future U.S. economic competitiveness. The ACI and the House Democrats’ Innovation Agenda were more than just budget proposals — they were a new rationale for public investments in America’s science and technology enterprise.

As a result of these and related legislative efforts, on August 9, 2007, the America COMPETES Act was signed into law. The legislation authorizes an increased federal investment in STEM education and science and engineering research. The America COMPETES Act is designed to:

• Strengthen K–12 math and science education by improving teacher training in math and science; increasing support for the Robert Noyce Scholarship Program, which provides scholarships for STEM undergraduate majors who agree to become K–12 math and science teachers; increasing the number of teachers prepared to teach Advanced Placement and pre-International Baccalaureate college preparatory courses; and providing Math Now grants to improve elementary and secondary math instruction.

• Expand undergraduate and graduate science and engineering programs through increased support for the National Science Foundation (NSF) STEM Talent Expansion Program, which provides grants to universities to devise creative programs to recruit and graduate more undergraduate STEM majors.

• Increase funding for basic research in the physical sciences by authorizing substantial new investments in basic research at NSF, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science — providing a blueprint for future appropriations to double research at these key agencies in seven to 10 years.

The America COMPETES Act is a significant policy advance for U.S. innovation and competitiveness. However, unless sufficient appropriations follow over the next several years, the TAP agenda with regard to STEM education and science and engineering research will not be realized.

Two Steps Forward, One Step Back In a disheartening repeat of previous years, deep consensus and nearly unique bipartisan agreement on the need to make innovation a priority did not, in the end, result in significant increased funding for basic research in the physical sciences or STEM education. Instead, appropriations provided either flat funding or real declines in fiscal year (FY) 2008, in constant dollar terms, for research and education programs.

There is an urgent need, however, to forge ahead to meet the TAP goal. Recent data illustrate why business leaders and policymakers must continue working together on STEM education priorities if the United States is to remain the world’s innovation leader.

innovations that have spawned new industries, created new highwage jobs and positively impacted our daily lives. From medical imaging and laser-based medical therapies to global positioning systems (GPS) and MP3 players, federally funded research has been the foundation of many groundbreaking scientific discoveries, including the following:

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) • MRI technologies save lives every day by providing detailed images that help physicians detect critical illnesses, often during the early stages of development.

• From the 1970s to the 1990s, the National Institutes of Health, NSF and DOE funded research that led to the development of MRI. GPS • GPS provides travelers with in-vehicle navigation, enables emergency and rescue workers to locate people in distress, and allows researchers to track and monitor natural disasters.

• T he Department of Defense (DoD), DOE, the Air Force and Office of Naval Research funded research leading to the development of GPS. Semiconductors • Personal computers, cellular phones, MP3 players, cameras, video recorders, medical equipment and other devices “Highly skilled workers, all rely on semiconductors to trained in science, function. technology, engineering • N SF, DOE, Defense Advanced and mathematics, are Research Projects Agency, the ones who generate Office of Naval Research and breakthrough innovations that lead to productivity the Air Force funded research gains, economic growth to develop and enhance and higher standards of semiconductors.

These and many other innovations arising from federal research investments also have spurred new industries, reinvigorating the nation’s manufacturing and creating high-wage jobs — a model that can serve the United States into the future with an increase in government resources targeted to basic research.

living. America enjoys a high standard of living, but we are falling behind in producing the technical talent we will need to sustain our economic leadership in the world.”

— Joseph M. Tucci Chairman, President and CEO EMC Corporation

Can We Get There from Here?

Given the limited progress to date on raising U.S. undergraduate STEM major graduation rates, is TAP’s goal of producing 400,000 U.S. graduates annually with bachelor’s degrees in STEM fields achievable? The answer is yes, but only if policies are in place to create the right incentives.

Investments in Basic R esearch Drive Innovation Investments in basic research, particularly in the physical sciences and engineering, have led to a wide range of transformative

The nature of competition and the forces of innovation shift the frontiers of science, business and technology at a rate we’ve never seen before. ... To be competitive, any individual — like any company, community or country — has to adapt continuously, learning new fields and new skills.”

— Samuel J. Palmisano, Chairman and CEO, IBM Corporation

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The America COMPETES Act, if funded in spending bills yet to be enacted, will help to increase demand for STEM graduates by doubling federal support for basic research in math, engineering and physical sciences; increase the supply of incoming freshmen with the requisite skills to pursue STEM majors by improving K–12 STEM education; and increase recruitment of new STEM majors by highlighting the value of STEM careers and their importance to individual and national economic success.

“The bottom line is that improved training in science, technology engineering and math provides benefits to all students, which will in turn help ensure a productive, innovative workplace — in all fields — for decades to come.”

— Michael G. Morris Chairman, President and CEO American Electric Power Company, Inc.

In the appendix, we present examples of progress made toward each of the specific recommendations offered in the 2005 TAP report. The story is one of a glass half full. The business community has helped change the political and policy landscape; and nearly all of TAP’s recommendations are included in pending legislation, recently enacted legislation or in the president’s budget request.

To date, however, very few have been implemented. The number of undergraduate STEM degrees won’t begin to grow at the requisite rate until more resources start flowing into university research programs, new — and newly energized — math and science teachers start flowing into K–12 schools, and STEM teaching and student performance improves — at all levels.

Conclusion Since the TAP report was issued three years ago, Congress and the administration appeared to get serious about addressing America’s competitiveness challenge but have failed to provide matching federal money for STEM education and science and engineering research.

The America COMPETES Act, signed into law last year, represents a substantial step forward toward the realization of the TAP innovation agenda. Follow-through by Congress and the administration on spending bills over the next several

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years will be necessary, however, before the vision of significantly enhanced U.S. innovation capacity embodied in the Act becomes reality.

The collapse of comprehensive immigration reform in 2007 has stymied much-needed reform of the employment-based green card and H-1B visa systems. Highly educated foreign-born professionals, particularly those educated at U.S. universities, are one of

America’s greatest competitive advantages. The United States should embrace these innovators rather than sending them home to compete against U.S. businesses.

It is incumbent upon the business community to maintain the pressure on policymakers to see that the TAP agenda is fully enacted and implemented. In particular, TAP’s priorities include: • Funding basic science and engineering research at U.S. universities at the levels authorized in the America COMPETES Act; • Funding STEM education programs at the levels authorized in the America COMPETES Act, including funds for expanding the Robert Noyce Scholarship Program at NSF, Math and Science Partnerships (MSP) programs at both NSF and the Department of Education, Math Now, Adjunct Teacher Corps, and programs to develop and expand Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate programs; • Enacting targeted reforms to welcome more highly educated foreign-born professionals into the United States; and • Complementing federal action with state, local and privatesector initiatives.

The business community continues to feel a sense of urgency about the future competitive position of the United States. If anything, the stakes are higher today than when the TAP report was released three years ago. While federal innovation investments have stalled in the United States, foreign competitors are continuing to build their own capacity to innovate by investing in research and education, opening their doors to talent from around the world, and creating a favorable climate — through

tax credits and other incentives — to attract private-sector research investments.

If policymakers continue to take U.S. economic and technological leadership for granted, they will leave us with an America that is potentially weaker and less able to compete in the global economy.

For the sake of our children and grandchildren, we cannot afford to let that happen.

Appendix: Examples of Progress on Specific TAP Recommendations Recommendations

Examples of Progress

1. Build public support for making improvement in STEM performance a national priority.

• I n the three years since the TAP report was issued, although there has not been significant change in public attitudes, there is now widespread recognition among state and federal policymakers that improvement of math and science education and more robust support for science and engineering research must be key national priorities. The National Academies’ “Rising Above the Gathering Storm” report played a major role in raising public awareness and building support.

Launch a campaign to help parents, students, employees and community leaders understand why math and science are so important to individual success and national prosperity.

(Business)

•B usiness has stepped up to the challenge and has launched several initiatives, particularly in math and science education, to expand technical literacy and communicate the value of math and science for both individual career success and national economic competitiveness.

• Examples include ExxonMobil’s print, internet and television ads in conjunction with the company’s $125 million contribution to the National Math and Science Initiative; Business Roundtable’s work with North Castle on teen attitudes toward math and science; and the public education campaign funded by The Broad Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to make education a front-burner issue in the 2008 presidential campaign.

Expand the State Scholars Initiative to • The State Scholars Initiative, www.wiche.edu/Statescholars, with funding from the encourage students to take rigorous U.S. Department of Education, operates in 24 states and uses business leaders to core academic courses in high school. motivate students to complete a rigorous course of study in high school.

(Business) Provide role models and other real-world examples of the work that engineers and scientists do.

(Business)

• T AP launched a Web-based campaign profiling CEOs with technical degrees to illustrate the fact that science and engineering are the most common undergraduate degrees among Fortune 500 chief executives; dozens of companies provide scientists and engineers to speak at schools and conduct lessons.

• The Maryland Business Roundtable for Education launched a teen Web site, www.

BeWhatIWantToBe.com, that includes profiles of scientists and engineers in the state.

2. Motivate U.S. students and adults, using a variety of incentives, to study and enter STEM careers, with a special effort geared to those in currently underrepresented groups.

•O n February 2, 2006, President Bush signed into law the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, which established academic competitiveness grants and Science, Mathematics and Research for Transformation (SMART) grants to encourage more U.S. students to pursue undergraduate degrees in math, science and engineering.

• A 2008 summit meeting, America’s Competitivenes: Hispanic Participation in Technology, sponsored by IBM and cosponsored by ExxonMobil, Lockheed Martin and Univision, focused on specific actions to increase STEM majors and careers.

Create more scholarships and loan forgiveness programs for students who pursue two-year, four-year and graduate degrees in STEM (including students who plan to teach math and science, particularly in high-poverty schools). (Federal, State, Business)

• T he Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 made student loan forgiveness programs for science and math teachers in high-need areas permanent and raised the maximum amount eligible for forgiveness to $17,500.

• An example among the many corporate-supported STEM scholarships, Texas Instruments’ Math Scholars program at the University of North Texas Dallas Campus provides scholarships to encourage students, especially from underrepresented groups, to get bachelor’s degrees in math with math teacher certification and agree to teach in Dallas-area schools for at least two years after graduation.

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Recommendations

Examples of Progress

Build on existing programs such as SMART at the DoD, the Science and Technology Scholarship Program at NASA, Robert Noyce scholarships at NSF, and federal loan forgiveness programs that provide up to $17,500 for secondary math and science teachers. (Higher Education, Business, Federal, State)

•O n August 9, 2007, President Bush signed into law the America COMPETES Act, which authorizes expansion of the Robert Noyce Scholarship Program: $90 million in FY 2008.

• The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2008, which funds civilian agencies for FY 2008 and was enacted into law in December 2007, directs NSF to increase funding for this program by a very modest amount: $15 million in FY 2008.

Supplement Pell Grants for eligible students who successfully complete core academic courses in high school.

(Higher Education, Business, Federal, State)

• T he Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 included academic competitiveness grants ($750/ student in freshman year; $1,300 in sophomore year) and SMART grants ($4,000/ student in math and science fields in junior and senior years) for Pell Grant-eligible students who have completed a rigorous academic high school program.

Offer programs, such as the Professional Science Master’s, that encourage college graduates to pursue fields outside of academia that combine science and/or math with industry needs. (Higher Education, Business, Federal, State)

• T he America COMPETES Act authorizes NSF to give grants to colleges and universities to establish Professional Science Master’s programs.

• Professional Science Master’s programs grew from 74 in 2005 to 120 in 2008.

Encourage private-sector involvement in consortia of industries and universities that establish clear metrics to increase the number of graduates. (Higher Education, Business)

• A number of private-sector organizations, including companies and private foundations, have partnered with universities to encourage more American students to pursue undergraduate degrees in math and science, but as of yet, there is no nationally coordinated effort.

Eliminate the security clearance backlog that discourages many talented U.S. citizens – graduating students and adults – from entering key national security STEM careers by providing an expedited clearance process. (Federal)

• Federal agencies have invested significant effort and resources to reduce the backlog of security clearances. While the situation has improved since the first TAP report was issued in 2005, a significant backlog remains, and delays in processing security clearances continue to discourage U.S. citizens from filling vital technical positions that require clearances.

Establish prestigious fellowships for exceptional recent college graduates or those at midcareer that lead to certification and a fiveyear commitment to teach math or science in schools with high-poverty populations. (Federal, State, Business)

• T he America COMPETES Act authorizes significant expansion of the Robert Noyce Scholarship Program: $90 million in FY 2008. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2008 directs NSF to increase funding for this program by a modest amount: $15 million in FY 2008. The Robert Noyce Scholarship Program offers fellowships for math, science and engineering majors who commit to gaining an education certificate and teaching math and science at the K–12 level, particularly in high-need school districts. The program also offers support for science and engineering professionals to become math and science teachers.

Create opportunities for highachieving math and science students, such as advanced courses, math or science immersion experiences, corporate internships, charter schools, local magnet programs, and regional/state magnet schools. (State, Business)

• T he America COMPETES Act includes support for math and science specialty high schools and incentives and training for teachers to offer Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses in math and science.

• The Ohio Business Roundtable and the Ohio Business Alliance for Higher Education and the Economy worked with other state partners to establish the Ohio STEM Learning Network, a public-private partnership managed by Battelle, that will create five regional STEM-based schools targeting low-income and minority students.

Adopt curricula that include rigorous content as well as real-world engineering and science experiences so that students learn what it means to do this work, what it takes to get there and how exciting these fields are. (District, Business)

• The America COMPETES Act authorizes grants to schools to align K–12 curricula with workforce needs. The bill also includes provisions that would afford students real-world engineering and science experiences.

• Project Lead the Way’s engineering education program, which makes math and science relevant for middle and high school students, is now in 2,000 schools across the country.

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Recommendations

Examples of Progress

3. Upgrade K–12 math and science teaching to foster higher student achievement, including differentiated pay scales for mathematics and science teachers.

• The America COMPETES Act authorizes federally funded professional development programs for math and science teachers. More significantly, states and school districts across the nation are focusing attention on improving math and science teaching.

Promote market- and performancebased compensation and incentive packages to attract and retain effective math and science teachers.

(Business, District, State, Federal)

• T he business community continues to advocate for market- and performance-based compensation and incentive packages for demonstrably effective math and science teachers, but this remains a controversial proposition that is opposed by some members of the education community.

Provide the flexibility for high school teachers, retirees and other qualified professionals to teach these subjects part time. Resources in No Child Left Behind (NCLB) that can be used to develop alternative teacher compensation systems and the proposed federal teacher incentive program are particularly crucial for helping to address shortages of math and science teachers. (Business, District, State, Federal)

•W hile some individual school districts allow for flexibility for part-time teaching by qualified professionals, there is no nationally coordinated effort to increase the use of this approach.

Support cost-effective professional development and other technical assistance to fill gaps in teachers’ content knowledge and prepare them to teach the content effectively.

(State, District, Higher Education, Federal, Business)

• T he America COMPETES Act authorizes a variety of professional programs for math and science teachers, including teacher institutes funded by NSF, support for K–12 math and science teachers to earn master’s degrees, and opportunities for professional development at national laboratories.

• The National Governors Association, the Council of Chief State School Officers, higher education and professional organizations, and corporate foundations are playing a leadership role in this issue. Approaches include strategies such as the National Science Teachers Association’s e-professional development Web portals — with resources, online classes and interactive learning activities — and Intel’s math program, taught by a mathematician and a math educator, that provides U.S. K–8 teachers with 80 hours of effective professional development on mathematics content.

Promote and strengthen the use of existing resources in federal education laboratories, regional technical assistance centers, NCLB and focused MSP programs to support best practices, with a priority on those who teach math in schools that are not making adequate yearly progress (AYP). (State, District, Higher Education, Federal, Business)

•N ational attention to math and science education has resulted in greater attention to identifying and promulgating best practices, but a more focused effort on leveraging existing federal resources is still required.

Include incentives in the Higher Education Act and in state policies for colleges and universities to produce more math, science and engineering majors and to strengthen preparation programs for prospective math and science teachers. (Federal, State, Higher Education)

•S uch incentives are currently under consideration by Congress in the context of Higher Education Act reauthorization.

Strengthen and enforce the highly qualified teacher provisions in NCLB for math and science teachers to ensure that they have the requisite knowledge in the subjects they are assigned to teach. (Federal, State)

• Legislative proposals to strengthen the highly qualified teacher provisions in NCLB for math and science teachers are currently under consideration by Congress in the context of reauthorization of NCLB.

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Recommendations

Examples of Progress

Launch a Math Next initiative as a logical next step to the U.S. Department of Education’s focus on Reading First. (Federal, State)

• T he America COMPETES Act authorizes the Department of Education to give Math Now grants to elementary and secondary schools to improve student achievement in math. Funding for Math Now was not included in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2008. Additional congressional action would be needed to get this program started.

• The U.S. Department of Education convened a National Mathematics Advisory Panel that issued a March 2008 report calling for changes in K–8 math education.

Provide high-quality online alternatives • T he America COMPETES Act authorizes the Department of Education to fund the and postsecondary options for development of Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses, students in any middle school or high including the development of online courses. Congress did not explicitly fund school that does not offer advanced these programs in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2008.

• More than half the states have established virtual high schools. math and science courses. (State) 4. Reform visa and immigration • Legislation on this issue has not passed. policies to enable the United States •R eform of U.S. visa and green card policies to attract and retain more highly to attract and retain the best and educated foreign-born professionals was included in the comprehensive brightest STEM students from around immigration reform bill that passed the Senate in 2006. No similar legislation the world to study for advanced passed the House, and the bill was not enacted. Similar provisions stalled in the degrees and stay to work in the United Senate when included in failed comprehensive immigration reform in 2007.

States.

Provide an expedited process to obtain permanent residence for foreign students who receive advanced degrees in these fields at U.S. universities. (Federal)

•R eform of U.S. green card policies to award permanent resident status to foreignborn students who earn advanced STEM degrees from U.S. institutions was included in the comprehensive immigration reform bill that passed the Senate in 2006. No similar legislation passed the House, and the bill was not enacted. The Senate rejected a similar provision when it considered comprehensive immigration reform in 2007.

• In 2008, bills were introduced in the House and Senate to exempt U.S. STEM advanced degree recipients from the green card cap.

Ensure a timely process for foreign students who want to study STEM fields at U.S. universities to obtain the necessary visas by clearing Department of Homeland Security requirements. (Federal)

• The departments of State and Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have streamlined the process of approving visas for foreign students who wish to study in the United States. Wait times for student visas for applicants from most countries have been dramatically reduced. As a result, foreign student enrollment at U.S. institutions has increased over the last two years.

5. Boost and sustain funding for basic research, especially in the physical sciences and engineering.

Reverse declines in the federal share of total R&D spending, particularly for basic research in the physical sciences and engineering at NSF, NIST, DoD and the DOE Office of Science, by adding a minimum of 7 percent a year to enable research to keep up with growth and inflation.

(Federal)

Printed with permission from Business Roundtable

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•S ubstantial increases for research funding at NSF, NIST and DOE were included in the president’s budget request to Congress for both FY 2008 and FY 2009. A significant increase for research at DoD was included in the FY 2009 budget request. Although both the House and Senate passed individual bills that met or exceeded these requests, the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2008 — the omnibus spending bill that funded most civilian agencies for FY 2008 — did not. Action on the FY 2009 request is pending.

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business impact of H-1B visas

Is Immigration Still the “Third Rail” of Politics?

The Business Impact of H-1B Visas by Kathryn S. Wylde

T

he challenges facing the incoming Obama Administration – global economic turmoil, a war on two fronts, and a laundry list of campaign promises to fulfill, from universal healthcare to climate change – are formidable. Waiting in the wings behind some of the more obvious and immediate crises is the immigration debate, which in recent years may have even replaced Social Security reform as the “third rail” of politics.

For most business groups, the logic of addressing immigration is irrefutable. Rafts of academic studies show significant immigrant contributions to economic output. Just one example: a new report from the Small Business Administration shows that immigrants

are nearly thirty percent more likely to start a business than are non-immigrants. Immigrants are helping to expand the ranks of the middle class, and in some localities even mitigating nativeborn population decline. One economist estimates that “roughly nine in ten working Americans gain from immigration.”

Yet both prejudices and objections remain. Social conservatives remain deeply opposed to any path to citizenship (often pilloried as “amnesty”) for the estimated 12 – 20 million undocumented foreigners living in the U.S. today, and favor stricter border enforcement before any plans are implemented to expand immigration. And there are concerns about the impact of immigrants on the wages of native-born workers at the low end of the wage scale, especially during a time of economic contraction.

The Business Impact High-Skilled Workers In Washington DC, business lobbies concerned with immigration have focused largely on the need for agricultural guest workers at the low end of the market and on Silicon Valley software engineers at the high end. As the H-1B became the visa of choice for software engineers, it even became known as the “Microsoft problem” because Bill Gates has been so ardent a supporter of increasing the number of H1B visas awarded each year. However, the immigration issue is important to many other American businesses. Access

» The immigration debate has become directly linked with two other priorities, education and workforce development. « to professional-worker H-1B visas (or L-1 visas for intra-company transfers) is cited as the most serious challenge for American companies across all sectors and is most troubling to small and mid-size businesses that are attempting to serve global markets from a U.S.-based operation. Currently, just 65,000 H-1B visas are allocated annually, ( 24 )

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and for the past few years all of these have been exhausted on the first day that applications are considered.

Winning the Global Race for Talent, a report released by the Partnership for New York City in March of 2008, documented that H-1B visas are used across the nation by diverse sectors, including financial services, professional services, healthcare and universities as well as IT. In terms of the number of H-1B visas granted, the New York Tri-State region had the highest concentration in the nation, with just over 21%. California used 18%, but Texas, Illinois, Florida and Virginia were all significant users of these visas as well.

Âť Companies across the spectrum are looking to foreign-born workers to connect them to the global economy. ÂŤ

Far from being strictly an issue of concern for big companies, the report found that only 11% of the H-1B visas granted in New York went to employees of Fortune 1000 companies. The remaining 89% were allocated among small and medium-sized businesses.

Companies across the spectrum are looking to foreign-born workers to connect them to the global economy.

The Business Impact Agriculture , Construction & Hospitality Farm economies in many states from California and Texas to Oklahoma and Colorado are also highly dependent on immigrant workers. Estimates vary from 800,000 farm workers to over 1 million in any given year, but a recent study by the Department of Labor concluded that some 80% are migrant workers.

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business impact of H-1B visas

Statistics released by the Pew Hispanic Center in 2007 suggest that nearly 2.9 million of the 11.8 million workers in the construction industry are Hispanic and that 2.2 million were foreign-born.

immigration policies), Rep. Tom Tancredo (R) of Colorado, is retiring, and nine of the House Republicans who were members of that Caucus lost their seats on November 4.

A similar picture emerges in the hospitality and restaurant industry, with both the American Hotel & Lodging Association and the National Restaurant Association acting as strong proponents for reform.

But even with a pro-immigrant Democrat in the White House, the path for a comprehensive immigration bill is uncertain.

Very few industries, and even fewer States, could manage without a significant immigrant presence within the economy. The political challenge that the U.S. needs to address, however, is the fear that immigrants will simply displace American workers, often at a lower wage. This obstacle can only be tackled by matching reform of immigration with simultaneous improvement to the domestic systems of education and workforce development.

The Political Position Following the 2008 Election Recently, the political tide of the immigration debate has shown signs of shifting. The pro-immigration group America’s Voice tracked races in both the House and Senate, and found that in 20 House races where candidates drew sharp distinctions on immigration, hard-line “enforcement only” advocates lost in eighteen. They found five Senate races in which anti-immigrant candidates lost.

The founder of the Immigration Reform Caucus (which opposes more open

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Getting it Done Efforts to pass comprehensive immigration reform in Congress failed in both 2006 and 2007, and any future attempt will doubtless represent a compromise option for the multiple interest groups with a stake in the outcome. Conservatives (including socalled “Blue Dog” Democrats) are likely to continue to oppose any amnesty, arguing that it rewards illegal aliens for ignoring U.S. immigration laws. On the other side of the debate, organized labor and many Hispanic groups have objections to a guest worker program on the basis that it could create an underclass. And conversations with members of Congress suggest that piecemeal fixes for special interest groups will fall foul of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, which favors a comprehensive approach.

Finding a solution is becoming an imperative for businesses and business groups across the nation. The immigration debate has become directly linked with two other priorities, education and workforce development. Comments one bank, “We are a company that invests significant amounts of money in education and training of current and future U.S.

» Grassroots advocacy will be critical in order to move this issue forward. «

workers. However, these efforts are insufficient to meet our company’s immediate needs.” And a mid-sized design firm adds, “Current U.S. policy toward… foreign labor poses a significant obstacle to the expansion of our U.S. operations [given] the global mobility of the kind of talent we need, and the expected shortage of knowledge workers in the U.S. in the decades ahead.”

Connecting Businesses and Policymakers Lawmakers have suggested that one of the reasons for the failure of the 2007 bill was that the business voice was missing from the debate. Despite powerful advocacy from Washingtonbased groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Business Roundtable, Senators did not hear from their local constituents. The Lou Dobbs perspective, on the other hand, was very much in evidence, with calls flooding in opposing the bill.

In an effort to begin to bridge that divide, the Partnership for New York City cohosted a meeting in July 2008 with the New York Immigration Coalition and invited members of the New York Congressional Delegation to attend, together with a group of CEOs. The exchange between business leaders and elected officials was frank and occasionally heated. But the takeaway was that business groups should look to find common ground with immigrant advocacy groups, form unusual coalitions and engage their elected representatives proactively, before this issue next comes to a vote.

Grassroots advocacy will be critical in order to move this issue forward. Interest is already percolating among business groups in Chicago, Houston and Los Angeles. This may be an opportunity for a network of state and local business organizations to make a significant impact on federal policy, especially with the appointment of Governor Janet Napolitano to head Homeland Security. The goal would be enacting a comprehensive reform program that provides a path to citizenship for unauthorized foreign residents

» This may be an opportunity for a network of state and local business organizations to make a significant impact on federal policy. « who meet certain criteria and a significant increase in the availability of visas and green cards for students and workers, consistent with the unmet needs of the domestic labor market. It would also dovetail with expanded investment by the U.S. in education and workforce development programs that focus on unemployed and underskilled populations within this country.

Immigrants are making a powerful and positive mark on our economy, from Chief Executives – like Robert Kelly of Bank of New York/Mellon, Cristobal Conde of Sungard, and Alain Belda of Alcoa – through skilled middle management to blue collar workers in our hotels, fields, and hospitals. It’s now time for businesses around the nation to acknowledge that contribution and work actively with U.S. policy-makers to fix our broken immigration system.

Kathryn S. Wylde is President & CEO of the Partnership for New York City, a non-profit organization of the City’s business leaders dedicated to maintaining New York City as a center of world commerce, finance and innovation. More information is available on the Partnership’s website at www.pfnyc.org.

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collaborator profile

The women’s college

The Women’s

College

College of Collaboration by Chase Squires

W

ith roots stretching back to the 1800s, The Women’s College of the University of Denver could be set in its ways by now, with ivy-covered walls and traditions dug deep into the prairie against the winds that barrel down from the snow-capped Rocky Mountains to the west.

But a decade into its newest incarnation, the ever-evolving institution finds itself again at a crossroads, clinging fiercely to its all-women tradition yet poised to shake up any old-fashioned notions about single-sex education as leaders tackle new challenges facing women in society and business.

“When I got here, the Women’s College had been conceptualized in a particular way,” explained Dean Lynn Gangone, who took the helm in the spring of 2007. “We’ve been repositioning the college ever since.”

One key to its evolution lies in a commitment to collaboration.

The women who most often choose the college aren’t typical college students, fresh out of high school and expecting lectures delivered from on high. They are career women, earners as well as learners, some supporting families. They know how the world works, they want to make it work better. Students are expected to take an active role in not only their own education, but also the education of their fellow students. They work together, to learn in an environment that values their experiences and ideas as much as lectures and textbooks.

As Gangone noted, these women are teaching and supporting each other as they learn, and professors act in many ways as facilitators, outside the traditional role of lecturers. That spirit is championed not only by instructors, administrators and students, but also by the college’s many benefactors.

» Programs are designed to encourage women to bring leadership into the classroom and share life-experiences in a collaborative manner more in tune with a graduate program of study than the old undergraduate model of lectures and tests. «

“The Chambers Center for the Advancement of Women, with its collaborative and inspirational spaces, imaginative art and hands-on work areas, fosters synergy and collaboration and provides the inspiration for women to build their knowledge and improve their communities,” said Merle Chambers, president of Chambers Family Fund, which provided the lead gift to create the college’s state-of-the-art home. Inside the center, The Women’s College and The Women’s Foundation of Colorado work together, uniquely modeling best practices in women’s education and philanthropy.”

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The Women’s College traces its heritage back to 1888 when the Colorado Women’s College was established, but the modern era begins in 1982 when the institution merged with the University of Denver (DU). The college became a separate academic unit in 1997 and moved into its signature facility and current home, the Merle Catherine Chambers Center for the Advancement of Women, in 2004.

With an identity and presence now so firmly lodged in the fabric of DU, it would be easy to settle into a comfortable rut.

But Gangone is far from a settler, The Women’s College is far from a rut, and single-sex education is far from old-fashioned.

Instead, students, administrators and supporters of the College embarked in 2008 on a rebirth of sorts for the institution, challenging preconceived notions of women’s education and nontraditional college programs.

Focusing on night and weekend classes with academic offerings tailored for working students, programs are designed to encourage women to bring leadership into the classroom and share life-experiences in a collaborative manner more in tune with a graduate program of study than the old undergraduate model of lectures and tests. Courses focus on face-to-face exchanges, and mutual support replaces competition. Efforts are made to work with women dealing with adult demands on their time and to help women use education to move ahead in their careers.

Nestled into a graceful brick building, adorned inside with an ever-changing gallery of art, on the western edge of the urban DU campus, the college is the academic launching pad for about 300 students at any given time. Women ranging from their late teens to their mid 60s (average age is 37) come in from all walks of life, pursuing degrees as time, career, family and life allow. The building itself is a vibrant hub of activity as the college shares space with bustling organizations that have set up shop inside, including HERS (Higher Education Resource Services) – an educational non-profit supporting leadership and management development for women in higher education globally – and The Women’s Foundation of Colorado, pursuing equal opportunity and self-sufficiency for women.

» Our job is to educate and empower these women. It’s not to feel sorry for them. It’s not to coddle them. It’s to say, ‘We understand the complexity of your life, and you can be that complex person here.’ « Lynn Gangone - Dean, The Women’s College

“Our job is to educate and empower these women,” Gangone said. “It’s not to feel sorry for them. It’s not to coddle them. It’s to say, ‘We understand the complexity of your life, and you can be that complex person here. We understand you have multiple demands. We understand there are times when you are predominantly a learner. We understand there are times when you are predominantly a mom.

And there are times when you are predominantly taking care of a parent. And you shift in and out of those roles. You’re not like an 18-year-old who has the luxury of predominantly always being a learner. That’s the difference here, we get it.’”

By gathering as women, by seeing women around them in leadership roles, students develop the confidence to lead, while learning from those around them and those who have gone before them.

“So when you’re walking out of class and you finish the conversation about an assignment you have and you turn to your classmate and say, ‘You know, I’m really having a tough time getting things done because my granddaughter is coming to visit,’ or something, there is someone there to say, ‘I understand what you’re talking about. Here’s how I did it,” Gangone said.

Merle Chambers - President of Chambers Family Fund

In the classroom, the college sees mothers taking classes alongside daughters and sisters taking courses with their sisters. And administrators are proud of the diversity, with more than a third of students describing themselves as women of color.

“Students might be able to take one course one quarter, or sometimes bump it up to three courses, or take one during an interterm,” Gangone explained. “We’ve got to be able to accommodate their lives. It sometimes takes them a lot of years to get their bachelor’s degree, but they are proud when they walk across that stage, they’ve earned it.”

Second-year student Mikayla Houser has already found success in the business world. At 31, she owns her own business, party planning company 5280 Events, and works at brewing giant MillerCoors as an investigations analyst. But she says she’s preparing herself for her next step, pursuing a degree in law and society, with a minor in communications, at The Women’s College.

“The environment in the classroom is extremely collaborative, and working with the staff is as well,” she said. “I am employed at MillerCoors where there is lots of change and plenty of women

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collaborator profile

The women’s college

feeling insecure in their positions. We have brought in The Women’s College to participate at the ‘Women At Coors’ events to let our employees know that there are options for them and opportunities that can help them further or finish their education, even if they are employed. Working together with The Women’s College is delightful, diverse and always done right.”

Like Solano, programs at the college are in constant motion.

Students at the college pursue undergraduate degrees in business administration, communication, information technology or law and society. In addition, the college offers certificates in conflict management, gender and women’s studies, information technology, leadership and writing.

“All our strategic planning is done in terms of collaboration, both with the other units of our campus and with the community around us,” Gangone said. “We know we can’t do this alone.”

Visioning sessions coupled with community outreach are continually sparking new ideas, uncovering new areas that need attention and delivering new opportunities for students and the community.

As the college expands its vision, Gangone sees a renewed focus on helping women not only help themselves and achieve independence and success, but also by studying how women can impact society through their roles in entrepreneurship, philanthropy and social justice. The Rocky Mountain West, with its tradition of small-businesses and entrepreneurship makes the region a perfect laboratory.

“We’re looking on and off campus to engage women who have been successful, see what they’ve done,” Gangone said. “We can’t do this by ourselves. We have to look at the community.

What makes Denver special? What makes our region special?

Let’s talk about that.”

» All our strategic planning is done in terms of collaboration, both with the other units of our campus and with the community around us. We know we can’t do this alone. «

First-year student Theresa Solano’s resume reads more like that of an instructor than a college freshman, testament to the program’s vibrant diversity. At 40, Solano is the community relations manager for Centennial, Colorado-based Hope Online Learning Academy Co-Op, a public charter school that operates at learning centers across the state and online. The Learning Academy is aimed at reaching out to at-risk Colorado students in kindergarten through 12th grade. She’s also on the board of the Denver Latino Commission, president of the board of Mi Casa Resource Center, and holds a number of positions at area non-profits.

But she’s made time for school (and earned straight A’s in her first quarter) to finally earn a degree she’s long wanted while bringing her own networking skills to the college’s ongoing collaborative outreach projects.

“Enrolling at The Women’s College has had tremendous rewards,” Solano said. “Not only does The Women’s College maintain an academic community that fosters a positive and challenging educational experience, allowing me to enthusiastically pursue my long-desired degree, but it’s given me the chance to connect three fantastic organizations. Together, The Women’s College, Public Service Credit Union and Mi Casa Resource Center will establish financial and educational opportunities for women. I am honored and humbled to have made the introductions between these organizations whose collaboration, I know, will generate outstanding benefits for women in the Denver community.”

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While women continue to make strides, Gangone said inequities persist, and the gap is closing too slowly. As the only allwomen’s higher education program in the region, the college is uniquely positioned to gather research and to share findings with women who will return to their communities to make a difference.

“Our students, their lives extend everywhere,” Gangone said. “All of these women are deeply engaged in their community. They’re engaged in their churches, they’re engaged in civic organizations. We are creating centers of engagement, and these are the women who will bring what they’ve learned and their leadership back to the community.”

And she stresses, the work doesn’t end with graduation. That’s just the beginning. Whether it’s back to school for an advanced degree in social work or business or law, or back into the career world, Gangone says she expects her graduates to get busy making a difference. Because The Women’s College places such an emphasis on face-to-face classroom collaboration, and because it’s dedicated to creating programs for working women, the school attracts largely women already living in Colorado.

Educating women who are already grounded in the Centennial State helps combat that “Colorado Paradox,” where the state reflects a statistically high level of educated residents, but an overwhelming number are transplants who came to the Rocky Mountains for the quality of life, leaving many native Coloradans behind educationally.

“We are educating the people who live here,” Gangone said. “We are educating the women who live in this area, we help them earn that degree, and they are homegrown, committed to life here in the Rocky Mountain West. This is a great college. We hear over and over that it’s the ‘best kept secret.’ We are determined that we are not going to be a secret anymore.”

Making a difference in our community.

tell me more Š 2007 Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (27922)

www.airproducts.com

jewel of collaboration

museum of nature and science

It’s More Than a Field Trip Engaging Teachers, Students & Families in Science Literacy by George Sparks

E

ach weekday, long lines of yellow school buses line the roads in City Park leading to the Denver Museum of Nature & Science (DMNS). More than 320,000 schoolchildren each year benefit from a century old collaboration between the Museum and Colorado schools. Yet what started as a field trip to see cases of natural history curiosities is a whole different animal today.

Museums offer lifelong, informal learning opportunities to all ages, complementing what schools and the formal education system provide. Modern museums take very seriously their role to provide public education, versus simply storing and displaying objects. The specific educational focus at the DMNS is science, specifically health, space, and earth sciences, anthropology and zoology. The Museum sees its core purpose as inspiring curiosity and critical thinking about the scientific issues of our time, such as global climate change, obesity, species extinction, genetics, or, here in Colorado, pine beetle infestation.

businesses who need scientists and engineers for their future workforce. Our large aerospace, oil and gas, and health industries are just some examples of businesses who want to promote the study of Museum core competencies in space science, geology, and health. And, it is no secret that our lack of scientists and engineers is an issue of global competitiveness for our country.

» Museums offer lifelong, informal learning opportunities to all ages, complementing what schools and the formal education system provide.

Modern museums take very seriously their role to provide public education, versus simply storing and displaying objects. «

Science education today is a poignant issue for Colorado schools. Recent science tests of Colorado 5th, 8th and 10th graders showed that half lack proficiency in science. Teachers, particularly at the pre- and elementary school levels, report a lack of training in science and discomfort in teaching it. Science literacy is not only a concern for Colorado schools but also for Colorado

Science museums like DMNS provide very unique learning tools for the formal education system. The collections of objects and specimens, the “real stuff,” intrigue students with dinosaur fossils; gems and minerals; the birds, insects and mammals of the Rocky Mountain region; and Native American treasures. The exhibitions have evolved from displayed collections of natural history artifacts to interactive and constantly changing scientific labs staffed by trained volunteers.

And, as always, working on an archaeological site or fossil dig with a Museum curator offers a memorable educational experience not available in the classroom.

The Museum’s collaboration with Colorado schools dates to 1908 and has grown to programs serving 327,030 schoolchildren in 37 percent of Colorado schools (2007). A surprise to some is that the Museum employs some 40 educators, as well as 15 scientists who actively work with students.

Museum educational programs range from labs and classes, to after school, home school and preschool programs, to workshops, camps and internships. Science standards are at the forefront

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in designing these programs. Science standards are spelled out specifically for teachers in online promotional materials so they can link Museum offerings to their curriculum. Currently teacher professional development programs are a major focus of the Museum with workshops for credit, offered through a collaboration with the Colorado School of Mines, and extensive online resources.

Bilingual and parent programs also are growing.

Expedition Health – Collaborative Education between DMNS, the Community, and Business Collaboration is fundamental to the development of DMNS exhibits, one of the primary teaching tools of museums. Right now the Museum is working on a new health science exhibition called Expedition Health. The goal of this exhibition is to improve our community’s health by promoting healthy personal choices by our visitors, which last year totaled more than 1.4 million. Part of a Health Sciences Initiative, the exhibition will be supported by gallery programs, classes, and online resources for teachers, parents, and the general public.

While the Museum has a Curator of Human Health (one of only two in the United States), it was important for us to talk to key partners in the community about the content, design, and outcomes of our new exhibit. Advisory Councils provided highly valued expertise and advice from schools, the scientific community, the health care industry, and related government agencies and non-profits.

The Education Advisory Council of teachers, educators, and physical fitness experts, report that student visits to the Museum: •O ffer a unique experience, not like school •P romote curiosity - learning more after the Museum visit •P rovoke questions and critical thinking •B uild in interactivity, not just with technology but between students and others • I nvolve not just students, but teachers, parents, and families.

In addition to providing and reviewing content for accuracy, the scientific advisors: •H elp the Museum share it’s research with the public •D esign the exhibit for the constantly changing nature of science.

The community advisors suggest that Museum visits: •P romote healthy lifestyles to reduce health care costs •R each out to the underserved •B e relevant, talk about living well in Colorado •B e creative - old programs have not produced behavior change as hoped.

Advice from the community informed the work of another collaborative model, the internal interdepartmental team of scientists, educators, designers, and technology experts responsible for producing the exhibit, working with Kennedy Associates of Cambridge, Massachusetts. The result is Expedition Health, which will take Museum visitors on a virtual climb up one of Colorado’s famed Fourteeners Mt. Evans (Colorado has 54 peaks over 14,000 ft), while learning about their bodies and personal health.

Activity stations in the exhibit, such as Mind Ball, Vein Viewer, Walk Visualizer, and Face Aging, are designed to engage the visitor’s body, mind and senses. A group of 12 virtual expedition guides, volunteer Coloradans (not actors) filmed on an actual mountain ascent, will coach visitors throughout the exhibit.

Colorado’s first “object theater,” will be a multi-sensory, multi-

» It is no secret that our lack of scientists and engineers is an issue of global competitiveness for our country. « media experience in an intimate 35-seat theater. Also new will be a working laboratory, where students will perform experiments and visitors may elect to participate in a national, university-based research study. The Summit Science Stage will be the backdrop for daily live demonstrations and programs on changing health topics. Children under five will enjoy a separate early learners space called Tykes Peak.

Collaboration with schools will go beyond the Expedition Health exhibition experience. The Colorado Health Foundation is supporting new education programs for underserved schools through a $1.3 million Passport to Health program. Passport to Health will extend the experience of Expedition Health into 30 low-income metro area schools over two years. The program will increase both student and parent understanding of health sciences, raise their health literacy, and encourage them to live healthier lives. Passport to Health is scheduled to launch in fall 2009.

The program begins the summer before the school year with a special one-day workshop for fifth-grade teachers at the Museum.

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jewel of collaboration

museum of nature and science

The workshop, led by the Museum’s education staff, will increase teachers health science content knowledge and prepare them to facilitate Passport to Health with their students. The Museum will provide online teaching resources to complement and enhance the program, including lesson plans about health science, nutrition and exercise.

Once the school year begins, the Museum’s outreach teachers will visit each Passport to Health classroom to engage fifth-graders in hands-on activities to prepare them for a field trip to Expedition Health at the Museum. Students will receive their own Passport to Health journal and a demonstration about how to measure and log their own personal nutrition and activity data.

Next, each Passport to Health class will come to the Museum to visit Expedition Health and attend an on-site class taught by Museum educators where they will learn how the body benefits from physical activity. Students will use their journals to collect and record more health data about themselves at the interactive stations in Expedition Health.

» The Museum employs some 40 educators, as well as 15 scientists who actively work with students. « After the Museum visit, Passport to Health will engage the families of the fifth-graders to encourage an ongoing commitment to healthy choices.

Each school will host a Family Health Night where Museum educators will present fun physical activities families can do together. Each family will be invited to a free Family Health Day at the Museum where they can visit Expedition Health together and experience more health-focused programs.

Family Health Day also will include healthy snacks and giveaways. Finally, families of each Passport to Health fifth-grader will receive a free, one-year family membership to the Museum so they all can continue to learn about health and science together.

Other Community Collaboratives In addition to collaborations with elementary schools, the Museum is partnering with the Community College of Aurora (CCA) to present demonstrations on genetics in the new health exhibition. Science students in CCA’s biology and biology technology programs will interact with visitors and demonstrate some of the interesting technical aspects of laboratory work, e.g. DNA isolation, gel electrophoresis, bacterial transformation, or protein chromatography. CCA students can earn extra credit for demonstrating lab techniques to Museum visitors and honing their public presentation skills. Importantly, young visitors will be able to see science careers modeled by the CCA students, 22% of whom are African-American and 12% of whom are Hispanic.

The Health Sciences Initiative involved many critical funding partners. Kaiser Permanente made a major investment with a $4 million grant, as well as providing access to their medical team, health programming, and marketing support. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is funding the lab-based research in the exhibit and many others are enabling the $10.2 million project to move forward.

When Expedition Health opens in April 2009, the Museum hopes that its partners and the public will say, “Wow, this isn’t the old museum field trip I remember!”

To learn more about the programs at the DMNS, please contact Bonnie Downing at 303-370-6369 or at bonnie.downing@dmns.org. George Sparks is the President and CEO of the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.

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Values Count

Whether it’s in the boardroom or the classroom.

THREE COLLEGES

ONE MISSION

“There’s a lot of grey in the world; it’s not very often black and white. Regis helps you focus on working through the grey, on working through the parts that are not easy to determine the right course of action.” ~ Elizabeth Hardin

MBA Grad 2007

www.regis.edu 3333 Regis Boulevard Denver, Colorado 80221-1099 303-458-4100

Learners Becoming Leaders

jewel of collaboration

California business for education excellence

Reaching for the Sky in Public Education Academic Success in Some of the Nation’s Toughest Areas by Bill Levis

P

ublic education is serious business in California.

Many employers would say it is the state’s most important responsibility. The question is how students can be motivated to excel and to reach for the sky.

Chuck Holland is the Program Improvement Coordinator for the Riverside County Office of Education, which has 400,000 students and 23 school districts. A principal for six years in a district with high poverty and low English proficiency, he was one of five principals nationally to receive a blue ribbon for academic achievement.

His answer to the problem is both obvious and challenging.

“You need high expectations and commitment to turn high achieving into reality,” Holland said. “Some adults only have low expectations. While money gives some students a leg up, many poorer schools are also high achieving. It boils down to the teachers in the classroom and reciprocal accountability between teachers and principals. Leadership has to have a clear vision that is understood by everyone.”

“Everyone” does not only include only those in the education community. It also involves a commitment by business. Holland’s efforts led him to the California Business for Education Excellence (CBEE) Foundation when it “selected my school as one of its honor schools three years ago. I was impressed with their genuine concern for students in the state.”

In 2008, CBEE and Just for the Kids-California singled out 911 public schools for their Honor Roll. These schools had both high student academic achievement and had made significant improvements in decreasing achievement gaps.

Jim Lanich – CBEE President

» It boils down to the teachers in the classroom and reciprocal accountability between teachers and principals. Leadership has to have a clear vision that is understood by everyone. «

The Star Schools Award was given to 214 schools with a large number of socio-economically disadvantaged students who had shown significant improvement in grade-level proficiency for four years. The 697 schools receiving the Scholar Schools Award also had significant academic achievement but do not have the large numbers of socio-economically disadvantaged students.

The California Business Roundtable (CBRT), composed of companies to provide leadership on high-priority public policy issues, formed CBEE to focus on raising student academic achievement.

CBRT recognized that the state’s education system faces many formidable challenges, including improving academic standards and assessments to ensure that the standards are met.

A number of recent surveys would argue this continues to be a formidable challenge. In polling done two years ago, state ( 36 )

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Greg Jones – CBEE Chairman

business leaders ranked the quality of public education as well as health care as the issues that worried them the most. In what can only be viewed as a blaring wake up call, business executives graded California’s K-12 public schools as a D+.

Several years ago, CBEE issued a report focusing specifically on improving academic standards and assessments.

The conclusion was not to spend more money on education but to spend what already have been allocated more wisely. Among the report’s 11 recommendations were: 1. Hold schools accountable to ensure that students at all levels are attaining grade-level proficiency in reading, writing and mathematics as measured by the California Standards Test – not just achieving “growth” – but meeting standards.

2. Give parents, teachers, and school administrators the tools to effectively utilize existing student performance data to identify achievement gaps.

3. Use best practices learned from high performing schools to aggressively intervene early to reduce achievement gaps in chronically low performing schools.

students were on free or reduced lunch. Yet we were able to go from the outhouse to the penthouse.”

Holland said the key is a childcentered, and not an adultcentered, school. “You can’t do what is convenient for the adults,” he emphasized. “It is leadership’s responsibility to set high expectations. You have to provide teachers and students with the wings and the flying lessons to get off the ground. You need a plan to insure success and support high expectations.

Leadership has to monitor what is being done. Everyone, from the principal to the teachers to the parents to the children themselves, has to be on board so the students don’t fail.”

» In polling done two years ago, state business leaders ranked the quality of public education as well as health care as the issues that worried them the most. In what can only be viewed as a blaring wake up call, business executives graded California’s K-12 public schools as a D+. «

Even with these efforts and improvements, much more needs to be done. Education is still viewed as a top public policy concern along with the economy and jobs, according to a survey done for CBEE in 2008.

Fifty-four percent of the respondents said the problem in schools was due to a lack of accountability and not a lack of funding. Failure to perform at grade level reading, writing, mathematics and science was identified as a serious problem by 75 percent of the participants while 70 percent also felt that too much money was being spent on bureaucracy and administration.

That is where the success of Chuck Holland and the Val Verde school district, where Holland was a principal for six years, is so impressive. “At least 25 percent of my students spoke a language other than English at home,” Holland noted. “Sixty percent of the

CBEE and CBRT are on board as well. “Jim Lanich, CBEE president, is a strong proponent of high expectations and using data from school districts so that best practice can become common practice,” noted Holland.

In California, CBEE publicizes data available from more than 9300 schools, 40 percent of all student grade level data in the state. As a result of the information found in the largest such database in the country, parents and educators can measure the “opportunity gap” to set improvement goals that can be achieved.

The challenges in various classrooms and schools can be compared and improvements can be measured over time.

Specific analysis of the data to be used to pinpoint and articulate the best practices and successful strategies can be used to help other schools.

It also can serve as a basis for the implementation of an accountability system for school improvement.

“The problem has been is that we haven’t shared information and we don’t expect enough,” Holland added. “We expect only one of three children to exceed in California. Under No Children Left Behind (NCLB), we are supposed to be at 100 percent either advanced or proficient by 2014. After seven years of NCLB, we are up to only 40 percent. This is not a good business model.”

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jewel of collaboration

California business for education excellence

Lanich pointed out that “California already spends $67 billion a year on education, yet our students are not prepared for academic success.” Those surveyed are looking for simple ways to evaluate whether their schools succeed and for parents to get the information needed to make informed decisions for their children and to hold schools accountable when students do not perform at grade level.

According to CBEE, high performing schools have five strategies: 1. D ata drives and informs improvement.

2. C ommon myths and excuses are dispelled.

3. V isits to high performing schools to learn what works.

4. Productive, organized and focused grade level meetings.

5. Targeted assistance that supports improvement.

message to the State Board of Education that the eighth grade standard includes proficiency in Algebra 1 and not General Math that tests sixth and seventh grade math skills.

» It is leadership’s responsibility to set high expectations. You have to provide teachers and students with the wings and the flying lessons to get off the ground. «

Additional keys to success: • High performers provide support to low performers and provide peer to peer support through grade level meeting.

• High performing schools use data to inform decision making.

• The principal is the instructional leader.

• T he school board, superintendent, principal and teachers ALL have levels of accountability for academic success.

• High performing teachers know what to do when a student is achieving and have a system of support.

• High performing schools have a system to support teachers who are reaching the objectives for their students.

• High performing school districts have a similar system of support for a principal who is not meeting objectives with teachers.

• School boards, superintendents, principals and teachers getting the job done are recognized and given the opportunity to explain their best practices so that others can copy.

Very simply stated, the mission of CBEE is to highlight high academic achievements and how they can be met. CBEE issued a statement last summer praising Governor Schwarzenegger for sending a

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California Business for Education Excellence - 2005 Honor Roll

» We should not perpetuate a twotrack system of high standards for some students and lower standards and expectations for the rest. We must keep the expectations high and stay the course. «

Lanich emphasized that, “We should not perpetuate a two-track system of high standards for some students and lower standards and expectations for the rest. Students in the lower level math courses are disproportionately minorities and economically disadvantaged students. A watering down of rigor would be a huge disservice to these kids who need the most help.

We must keep the expectations high and stay the course that all students take Algebra in the 8th grade.”

The CBEE president recognized that “more focus is needed in the earlier grades to support struggling students and to provide them with the foundational pre-algebra skills. We must stay the course and support the brave step that California took several years ago to require that 8th grade math be based on Algebra 1 standards only. This policy set in motion a huge increase in the number, and diversity, of students taking Algebra in the 8th grade.

Students placed in the lower level course have not increased their proficiency; they have remained at about 23 percent proficient over the five year period.”

For Holland, Lanich, CBEE, CBRT and large employers in the state, setting objective standards high enough so that students have to reach for the sky to obtain proficiency is the only way to ensure that they are prepared for life after school.

Leave it to Holland to summarize the business philosophy the most succinctly.

“CBEE has an incredible philosophy which is to shine a bright light on the best practices and replicate them with similar population and income level of students across the state and the nation.”

“CBEE is debunking the argument that academic achievement cannot be raised where there are serious adverse conditions.

They are opening our eyes to new possibilities. By sorting through data, they are sharing best practices with all of us. I love the fact that it is the private sector that is doing this,” noted Holland.

Cancer survivor Angela and Dr. Stephen Withrow. Angela’s treatment was pioneered by Withrow at Colorado State’s Animal Cancer Center.

Discovery. Innovation. Hope.

Developing groundbreaking therapies for animal and human cancer treatment.

collaborator profile

Monfort College of Business

The Performance Excellence Journey Student-Focused Strategies That Are High-Touch, Wide-Tech, and Professional Depth by Sharon Clinebell

I

n an article about the 2004 Baldrige recipients, USA Today noted, “Business schools preach quality, but Harvard wasn’t the first Baldrige winner for practicing what it preaches.” The only business school to ever receive the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award is the Monfort College of Business at the University of Northern Colorado. It is only one of three higher education institutions to ever achieve that recognition.

Although the Monfort College of Business received the Baldrige Award with its second application and its first Baldrige site visit, the beginning of its quality journey began years ago. In 1984, a group of committed faculty met and decided to pursue AACSB accreditation, a special accreditation for business schools. This decision led to many subsequent decisions such as focusing on the undergraduate only niche with a goal to be the best undergraduate business program in Colorado. This commitment to quality led to many milestones. In 1992, Monfort became the first public business school in Colorado to be accredited by AACSB in both business administration and accounting and is currently the only undergraduate program that holds both accreditations. In 2000, the Monfort College of Business was recognized by the Colorado Commission of Higher Education as a Program of Excellence, which is a highly selective and prestigious award. The Monfort College of Business is the only business program to ever earn the Program of Excellence award. In 2004, the College was awarded the Timberline Award from Colorado Performance Excellence and the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.

In the foyer of Kepner Hall, which houses the Monfort College of Business, there is a piece of art that contains three pillars. The College views those three pillars as symbolizing three pillars of excellence: (1) a singular focus on excellence in undergraduate business education, (2) program delivery of high-touch, wide-tech, and professional depth, and (3) high value. The commitment to excellence in undergraduate business education is a direct result of the decision in 1984 to devote all resources to developing and maintaining an excellent undergraduate business program and to fulfill a niche of undergraduate business education in the state of Colorado.

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» The Monfort College of Business has a student-focused strategy of high-touch, wide-tech, and professional depth. « The Monfort College of Business has a student-focused strategy of high-touch, wide-tech, and professional depth. High-touch refers to the high-quality faculty/student interaction, which is facilitated by small class sizes. This low faculty-to-student ratio helps the College provide a private school atmosphere at a public school cost. As an undergraduate only program, no graduate assistants are used in the college. Professors teach the classes, work with students on projects, advise students, and serve as advisors to student organizations. Wide-tech refers to the integration of technology throughout the curriculum. The Monfort gift supports the integration of industry-standard technologies throughout the college, including specific technology such as Bloomberg, Standard and Poor’s Research Insight, and other industry-standard technology and databases. By using this technology for classes, students are

better prepared to enter the workforce at a high level of performance and some employers report that Monfort students have a shorter learning curve because of this preparation. Professional depth refers to the value Monfort places on professional experience and realworld applications. The Monfort Executive Professor program, which brings experienced professionals to the classroom, has been in place since the early 1990s.

Students and their parents recognize the great value of a degree from the College. The Denver Post noted that the Monfort College of Business was possibly “the best bargain in undergraduate business education anywhere in America right now.” Small class sizes, professors teaching all classes, great student scores on exit

Management; and Results for the College, the common theme is the student-centered framework.

Leadership The formal leadership of the College is comprised of the Dean, Assistant Dean, and Directors of each school, which makes up the Administrative Council. However, there is a culture of collaboration, empowerment, and shared leadership. Faculty chair cross-functional teams, which oversee the processes related to curriculum, faculty issues, student issues, and technology and make recommendations to the Dean and the Administrative Council.

Strategic Planning Given strategic planning is an integral part of business education, Monfort practices what it preaches. The college’s mission, vision, and values are clearly articulated and taken into account when engaging in strategic planning practices.

The College recently completed multi-day strategic planning sessions, which utilized standard strategic planning processes such as conducting a SWOT analysis of its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats as a starting point for discussions of strategic options.

Student, Stakeholder, and Market Knowledge

exams aligned with lower tuition relative to competitors make the College a great educational value.

» The Student and Foundation Fund (SAFF) class manages an approximately $1 million fund provided by the University of Northern Colorado Foundation. «

The Monfort College of Business’s student-focused strategy of high-touch, wide-tech, and professional depth leads to a high-quality educational experience for its students, which is reflected in the school’s student-focused results. Another cornerstone of the College has been its long-standing commitment to fact-based decision making through assessment and benchmarking. The College has used assessment tools such as the ETS Business Major Field Exam for many years. Monfort was engaged in benchmarking from the earliest available administration of a business school benchmarking tool. The culture of student focus and fact-based decision making provided a framework for the College for its adoption of the Baldrige model for performance excellence.

When reviewing the Baldrige categories of Leadership; Strategic Planning; Student, Stakeholder, and Market Focus; Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management; Workforce Focus; Process

The low faculty-to-student ratio facilitates interaction and communication between faculty and students. Formally, students are surveyed each year and at the end of their program to assess their satisfaction with the program. Alumni are also surveyed to assess how well they feel they were prepared for their careers. The College builds relationships with students through functions such as the annual spring picnic for faculty, staff, and students. The College also works closely with community colleges and high schools to both gain and give information regarding prospective students.

Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management.

Based on its mission, vision, and values, Monfort developed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), which are used to assess performance and to identify the need, if any, for appropriate corrective action. The College had been committed to benchmarking since the mid-1990s, predating its interest in the Baldrige Award.

The long tradition of benchmarking has been very helpful in the performance excellence journey. The benchmarking data have been used to drive improvements. Data from a variety of benchmarking sources and surveys are collected and assessed and data are provided to the appropriate decision makers.

Workforce Focus The College uses a variety of rewards and recognition programs for

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collaborator profile

Monfort College of Business

faculty and students to recognize outstanding performance. Students are recognized through scholarships and academic awards.

Students vote for their favorite professor in each area. Faculty, through the committee structure, also recognize fellow faculty in areas of teaching, research, and service.

is provided by the Small Business Counseling class, in which students provide consulting services to small businesses. Marketing classes work with real businesses on developing marketing techniques such as direct marketing, marketing research, and advertising. Many other classes use real-world cases and applications in the classroom. Upon graduation, Monfort students have worked with real businesses and have gained professional experience.

Process Management The main learning-centered processes such as curriculum and assessment are managed internally within the College through a variety of committees. As a member of the wider university, the College partners with other colleges and departments at the University of Northern Colorado for many support processes, such as facilities, library support, admissions, and career services.

The student-centered processes briefly outlined above yield outstanding results. In 2004, when the Monfort College of Business received the Baldrige Award, its senior students scored in the top 10 percentile of business students nationally on the ETS Business Major Field Exam. Showing commitment to continuous improvement, seniors have scored in the top 5 percentile three of the last five years, with the other two years at the 10 percentile level. ETS only reports at the 5 percentile increments, making 95 percentile the highest score that can be attained. Student satisfaction scores on national benchmarking surveys continue to be in the top 10%. Additionally, students’ response to the question of whether they would recommend the Monfort College of Business to a friend is also in the top 10% nationally.

» The Monfort College of Business’ studentcentered focus, the commitment to a resultsdriven benchmarking and assessment strategy, and fact-based decision making leads to its great results. «

The students at Monfort continually show their business knowledge in competitions against larger and more well-known schools.

Finance students won the competition for growth managers at the annual Redefining Investment Strategy Education (RISE) conference. Marketing students won first place in the Direct Marketing Educational Foundation’s Collegiate ECHO Competition.

Tax students compete in a tax challenge and have won the regional conference multiple times advancing to national competition.

Students at the Monfort College of Business have a comprehensive curriculum. Half of the students’ coursework must be non-business courses, resulting in a well-rounded graduate. The business coursework emphasizes solid business fundamental knowledge as well as hands-on learning. Many business classes apply classroom knowledge to real-world applications. The Student and Foundation Fund (SAFF) class manages an approximately $1 million fund provided by the University of Northern Colorado Foundation. The class members are held to the same expectations and standards as the professional investment managers. Students must report their results to their client at the end of each semester. Since the class’ inception in 1992, students have generally outperformed the professional managers. Another hands-on learning experience

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The Monfort College of Business supports several student organizations in which students are encouraged to participate.

These student organizations provide additional learning experiences and serve as another venue for students to learn about their chosen fields. Guest speakers to the student organizations help students to better understand the career choices available to them. The student chapter of the Financial Management Association holds a career day in Denver at the National Association of Security Dealers (NASD) regional office. Financial professionals from varied backgrounds speak to students about career opportunities. The honorary society, Beta Alpha Psi, hosts a Meet the Firm night for accounting students, where primarily CPA firms meet with students prior to formal recruiting, and a Career Day where Accounting professionals have panel sessions outlining career opportunities in their areas. Beta Alpha Psi also conducted a Fraud and Ethics Day, bringing in experts from a wide variety of business perspectives to speak about ethical issues in business.

These are only a few ways that student organizations enrich students’ learning opportunities outside of the classroom.

The Monfort College of Business also partners with the University of Northern Colorado Foundation and other entities to bring well-known business speakers to the campus. Typically, the speaker presents at a luncheon that also includes community members. The speaker also meets with students in a classroom setting. These opportunities allow students to interact with high-level executives.

Although many business schools engage in the same type of behaviors that the Monfort College of Business does, they do not have the same results. The Monfort College of Business’ studentcentered focus, the commitment to a results-driven benchmarking and assessment strategy, and fact-based decision making leads to its great results. The program strategy of high-touch, wide-tech, and professional depth makes the Monfort College of Business a truly exceptional business school.

Sharon Clinebell is the Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Programs at the Monfort College of Business. More information about the Monfort College of Business, including its Baldrige application summary, is available at its website www.mcb.unco.edu.

Partnerships For Better Communities

The National Center for Community Collaboration (NCCC) inspires community-based partnerships across public, private and nonprofit organizations through the exchange of knowledge and resources.

Our vision is to encourage strong partnerships for better communities. NCCC is more than a social network. We are seriously working toward actionable and measurable outcomes.

NCCC is for people interested in building long-term relationships in the community; both professionally and personally.

We are actively seeking to create an environment that is more than just meetings and luncheons. We want to be the center of your collaborative efforts and the source of your information.

www.thenccc.org

jewel of collaboration

Learning Across Industries

Learning Across

Industries

The Benefits for K-12 Public Education by William A. Liggett, Ph.D.

S

outhwest Airlines was plagued by late departures due to slow aircraft turnaround at the gate. The company wanted to improve, so it asked, “What industry does a similar task better than anyone else?” The “light bulbs” flashed on as they thought of formula-one racing -- pit crews servicing cars in seconds. So, Southwest studied how Indianapolis 500 pit crews choreographed their actions, applied this learning to their gate crews, cut their times by half, and became the leader in their industry for on-time departures.1 Such dramatic examples of learning across industries are rare, but opportunities abound for the seeking.

Teamwork and Education

in our schools.” This is a way of saying that their jobs do not resemble those on a manufacturing assembly line. True, but do teachers realize that some of the original “PLC’s” were formed in the 1930’s by researchers at a Westinghouse manufacturing plant where assembly line workers collected and reviewed data, diagnosed problems, and improved their processes – the same activities that educators are learning to do now in order to improve student achievement?3 Do they understand how potent the team approach to work has become in other industries and, therefore, its huge potential for education?

The “Medical Model” and Other Recent Innovations

Trends in organizational innovation tend to sweep through industries Another recent innovation sweeping the country is the restructuring in the United States. We search for solutions by looking outside of public education through what is called “Response to our organizations for “best Intervention” (RTI). RTI has Table one: Examples of Recent Innovations in practices” by others in the been characterized as the Education and Similar Innovations in Health Care, industry. For example, a “medical model” applied to Business, and Manufacturing current best practice is to public education, and entails form teams of educators who frequent assessments and Education Health Care Business/Manufacturing meet regularly and collaborate targeted interventions that Professional learning Mixed-discipline patient Quality improvement teams on ways to improve their are deployed in schools to communities; problemcare teams students’ learning. These ensure that all students solving teams teams function as professional receive the help they need.4 Response to intervention Referral process Customer service – levels learning communities or A similar system of clinical hierarchy (generalist to specialist to of support PLC’s.2 Most nationwide testing, a hierarchy of tiered specialist centers) educational innovations in the interventions, and evidenceStudent progressEvidence-based practice Statistical quality control recent past share a common based practice, has been monitoring and early and early treatment – and early process process of discovery and used to treat patients since intervention improvement development. Each was first specialties emerged in Research-based practice Clinical pathways Industry standards described in conferences, medicine in the 1930’s. journals, books, blogs, or High stakes assessments Clinical outcomes Product-quality newsletters, where their The team approach to measurement inspections promises of improved student work, although studied in Student satisfaction Patient satisfaction Customer satisfaction achievement were extolled. the 1930’s, was ignored surveys surveys surveys Sooner or later, educators

by American business and Teacher pay-for Physician pay-forPay-for-performance embraced the new ideas and manufacturing industries in performance (student performance (disease (bonuses, commissions, worked to implement them in the U.S. until the 1980’s, learning) prevention and chronic profit sharing) their schools. when the Japanese illness management) demonstrated potency What is likely to be missed in this within-industry process is the of teams for improving quality and productivity. This crosshistory of trial-and-error learning, successes, and failures of similar continent learning was followed by cross-industry learning when innovations in other industries. This is because each industry has multidisciplinary, patient-focused teams swept through health its own communication channels, and, more importantly, leaders care in the 1990’s. Educator PLC teams are just now taking hold in each industry do not often see the relevance of innovations in the first decade of the twenty-first century in public education. in industries outside their own. School administrators frequently These teams share the same underlying philosophy of continuous hear teachers protesting that, “We don’t manufacture ‘widgets’ improvement of processes and outcomes by engaging groups of

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staff members who work directly with the product, patient, or student to find ways of making significant improvements quickly. Similar examples of educational innovations and their counterparts in other industries are shown in Table 1.

data and research or translate findings into on-the-ground practices or approaches that can improve student learning.”6 This lack of training and experience can leave educators at the mercy of the sales pitches of gurus and vendors of packaged programs who claim to provide research-based solutions to their instructional challenges.

Physicians face similar risks of blindly accepting the pitches of pharmaceutical salesmen.

The parallel innovations across industries in Table One underscore the point that, although our missions may be different, our underlying problems and solutions tend to be remarkably alike. If this assertion is true, would it not behoove educators to seek solutions to their challenges in other industries, as well as their own?

Steps to Ensure Fidelity to Intervention Design

In spite of the potential benefits there are voices of caution, as well, in the field of education. Hess indicates that he fears that, “...both ‘data-based decision making’ and ‘research-based practice’ can stand in for careful thought, serve as dressed up rationales for the same old fads, or be used to justify incoherent proposals.”5 It is critical that educators do not simply adopt terms from other disciplines without deep understanding and fidelity of application of the new concepts.

For example, the term “research-based” could convey everything from studies with random testing and control groups to anecdotal reports in professional journals.

Rigorously tested educational interventions are relatively few in number and still require monitoring to verify that they work in each new setting. Dynarski asserts that most educators, “...are not trained to evaluate

» The parallel innovations across industries underscore the point that, although our missions may be different, our underlying problems and solutions tend to be remarkably alike. «

What can educators do to embrace innovations from other industries while avoiding superficial changes having limited impact on student learning?

One answer is for educators to gain a deep understanding of the innovations through faceto-face collaboration with practitioners in other industries who have first-hand experience with the new practices. In public education this could look like inviting health care practitioners and business executives to sit on key school district committees to advise administrators on their approaches.

Another answer is that schools can engage in the collection of data to monitor and adjust the implementation of innovations.

It is tempting for busy educators to make assumptions that “research-based” means that the innovations are certified to be effective, like a drug, and all they have to do is administer it. It is even more critical in education to ensure that the intervention is

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jewel of collaboration

Learning Across Industries

Examples of Opportunities for Crossindustry Collaboration Physicians and teachers are both semi-independent professional practitioners. Health care and education face similar challenges of getting their practitioners to change their behavior to conform to findings from evidence and research. A successful pilot study demonstrated that primary care providers can change their behaviors to provide proactive preventive care of diabetic patients, rather than using the traditional approach of waiting to treat more serious complications.11 This was accomplished, in part, by providing monetary rewards to physicians based on evidence of fewer complications requiring more expensive treatments.

Perhaps educators should investigate a similar financial reward system as an incentive to induce greater behavior change in classroom teachers. Collaboration with health care might suggest approaches that educators have not yet considered. Other collaborative opportunities for educators might include:

being carried out true to its design, and that the unique circumstances of the school are tracked and accommodated during the course of the intervention.

Education tends to be rich in interventions, but poor in data about the intervention process. Recently, companies have begun to develop tools to help schools meet this need for monitoring the implementation of major innovations, such as PLC’s and RTI.7 Educators can also learn from other industries what it means to be data-driven by what are called process “metrics.” For example, Hess makes the point that, “School and district leaders have embraced student achievement data but have paid scant attention to collecting or using data that are more relevant to improving the performance of schools and school systems.”8 Hess is referring to the kinds of metrics that health care, business, and manufacturing organizations use to manage their overall organizational performance with tools such as “balanced scorecards.” These include critical support processes such as staff hiring, payroll, food service, information technology, and maintenance. Cross-industry sharing and collaboration about metrics and other ways of ensuring continuous quality improvement have become structured through the Baldrige National Quality Award Program 9 and its many state affiliates10 that now encourage organizations to follow best practices relevant to business, health care, education, non-profits, and government entities.

Gary Naples (2000). Beyond the Numbers. (p. 17) London: Society of Automotive Engineers.

Richard DuFour, Rebecca DuFour, Robert Eaker (2008).

Revisiting Professional Learning Communities at Work™: New Insights for Improving Schools, Bloomington, IN: Solution-Tree.

3 H istory of team building. Retrieved December 5, 2008.

The Team Building Directory Web site: http://www. innovativeteambuilding.co.uk/pages/history.htm.

4 Robert Howell, Sandra Patton, Margaret Deiotte (2008).

Understanding Response to Intervention: A Practical Guide to Systemic Implementation. Bloomington, IN: Solution-Tree.

5

2

6

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We need solutions to common, generic problems while avoiding thoughtless, superficial attempts at change. Educators have been thrashing for years, while help may exist in industries “down the street” for solutions to their particularly intransigent challenges. The key is to engage in thoughtful collaboration and work methodically to design, pilot, and gradually deploy meaningful innovations, while constantly monitoring and adjusting them. Our students deserve the best our country has to offer, from whatever source.

William A. (Bill) Liggett, Ph.D. is currently the president of an education consulting company, Leader’s Edge Network LLC, specializing in online surveys to evaluate innovations in public education and other industries.

His background reflects interest, training, and experience in a range of industries including secondary education science, applied social psychology, community mental health, behavioral science (16 years with IBM), health care strategic planning, and program evaluation and research (large public school district). You can reach Dr. Liggett by email at: waliggett@leadersedgenet.com or at the company Website: www. leadersedgenet.com.

F rederick M. Hess (December 2008/January 2009). The new stupid. Educational Leadership, 66(4), 12.

Mark Dynarski (December 2008/January 2009).

Researchers and educators: allies in learning. Educational Leadership, 66(4), 48.

7 S ee, for example, Leader’s Edge Network, LLC, which provides online instruments to help schools and districts monitor their implementations of innovations such as PLC’s and RTI. Web site: www.leadersedgenet.com 8 Hess, 15.

9 Baldrige National Quality Award Program. National Institute for Science and Technology, Web site: http://www.quality.nist.

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• Learning from successful training done in manufacturing, service, and the military.

• Learning from successful businesses to create metrics and balanced scorecards.

• Learning from more agile industries to interpret and apply research studies.

• Learning from local employers to identify authentic twenty-first century skills, including interpersonal ones.

• Learning to manage education with the lean, results-oriented focus of for-profit businesses.

• Learning from sports teams and performing arts organizations to provide teachers with needed feedback while simultaneously enhancing their motivation.

gov/index.html. Five public school districts have received the education award since that category was established in 2000.

S ee, for example, Colorado Performance Excellence, Web site: http://www.coloradoexcellence.org. Mesa County Valley School District 51, Grand Junction, CO, and four of its schools, have received quality awards.

11 Martin Sipkoff (2006). Rocky Mountain’s success with chronic care model: Paying for medical group practice redesign can significantly enhance the quality of care for chronically ill patients, and perhaps lower long-term costs.

Managed Care Magazine. Retrieved December 11, 2008.

Web site: http://www.managedcaremag.com.

10

The bigger picTure on susTainabiliTy should include a few liTTle ones.

daniels college of business We’re elevating the thinking about sustainability.

Visit daniels.du.edu/sustain

collaborator profile

Associated Equipment Distributors

Community-Based Schoolto-Work Initiatives A Powerful Workforce Development Approach by Steve Johnson

W

hether your business is automotive, truck, farm equipment or construction equipment, a common thread among these industries is the critical short- and longterm shortage of skilled workers.

This is particularly true in the case of the nationwide shortage of equipment industry repair technicians. Dealer members of Associated Equipment Distributors (AED) would hire several thousand technicians right now if they could find them, according to AED Foundation surveys. The construction equipment industry offers some excellent, in-demand career opportunities that provide interesting and challenging work, financial rewards, job stability, as well as opportunities for personal and professional growth.

But, it’s up to the industry to get out there and deliver that message.

The AED Foundation is committed to developing workforce solutions to this equipment industry dilemma. One key Foundation initiative is its school partnership program – a two-pronged effort that is simple and yet simply profound in its impact for rebuilding a well-trained technician population.

Step 1: AED has developed and regularly updates its own rigorous national equipment industry technical standards through the efforts of AED industry task forces comprised of equipment dealers, manufacturers and technical schools. AED has deliberately set the technical education bar high in order to achieve the ultimate objective: Highly skilled repair technicians who are prepared to meet the challenges at construction equipment dealer service shops.

» The construction equipment industry offers some excellent, in-demand career opportunities that provide interesting and challenging work, financial rewards, job stability, as well as opportunities for personal and professional growth. «

Step 2: Using AED’s technical standards as its criteria, the Foundation is actively establishing partnerships with post-secondary school technical programs around the country. The AED Accreditation and the AED Recognized Education Alliance programs have the win-win benefit of giving technical colleges a national status that helps them gain funding and new access to dealer resources and infusing the equipment distribution industry with thousands of graduating entry-level technicians. Currently, there are 23 AED-affiliated colleges and The Foundation is well on its way toward building a network of 70 accredited/recognized technical schools over the next few years, which will send more than 1,400 qualified technicians into the workforce annually.

Community-based school-to-work initiatives are the model for The AED Foundation’s workforce efforts through these industry school partnerships.

Central to the concept is local dealer engagement with technical schools, encouraging local dealers and technical schools to work together to address and meet mutual needs.

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Why does the Foundation feel this local engagement is essential?

As equipment technology becomes increasingly sophisticated and complex, educational institutions must stay current to meet industry needs. Most career and technical schools struggle because of scarce program resources, and therefore may not be able to achieve the rigorous AED technical standards without local dealer involvement and support. In other words, collective efforts locally, provide the means to continuously improve these technical programs and raise educational standards.

Âť Currently, there are 23 AED-affiliated colleges and The Foundation is well on its way toward building a network of 70 accredited/recognized technical schools over the next few years, which will send more than 1,400 qualified technicians into the workforce annually. ÂŤ

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collaborator profile

Associated Equipment Distributors

» It’s more than donating money and materials to local schools.

Students have many attractive technical career options, and today’s job market requires a real grassroots approach. «

Local equipment distributors provide insight to program administrators and instructors about what the industry needs and expects from new graduates, enabling schools to provide programs that meet local employer needs. Additionally, local industry can provide students with support that encourages and enables them to pursue higher education in equipment technology. This can include financial assistance in the form of work-study programs, scholarships, loans, summer jobs, and paid internships. Nonfinancial support is equally important and includes mentoring, career planning advice, unpaid internships, and continuous encouragement.

An effective strategy involves more than job ads, promotion and advertising.

It’s more than donating money and materials to local schools. Students have many attractive technical career options, and today’s job market requires a real grassroots approach.

This includes, among other things: • Gaining students’ attention and interest for this career option • Changing perceptions of the job and industry • Working directly with and assisting students, and • Working with schools that effectively educate students.

Student recruitment is core to solving dealers’ needs for qualified entry-level technicians and financially sustaining technical programs with sufficient enrollment.

Recruitment for career and technical schools tends to be predominantly local, driven by the fact that most students seek jobs within close proximity to their community of origin. Pooling their combined resources, local school-dealer partnership groups can implement significantly stronger, more effective recruiting strategies.

Many people talk about the equipment industry “image,” and it’s certainly a valid concern. And while a variety of approaches are available to polish up that image, The AED Foundation’s community-based, school-to-work strategy is achieving hundreds of industry image success stories. More and more students continue to choose our industry because of local people taking a personal interest in their future.

And, strategy is the operative word here: Dealers need to be working right now on recruiting and developing the technicians they will hire one, two or even five years down the road. That will require a comprehensive local effort at the middle/junior high school, high school and post-secondary levels.

Steve Johnson is the Executive Director of The AED Foundation, a nonprofit division of Associated Equipment Distributors. His responsibilities include the development and implementation of effective workforce development and professional education initiatives for AED-member construction equipment distributors.

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"Taking your minority business to another level.”

MINORITY BUSINESS ROUNDTABLE

MINORITY BUSINESS ROUNDTABLE EXECUTIVE OFFICES 1629 K. Street N.W., Suite 300, Washington, DC 20006 Phone: 202-289-8881 ~~ Email: rogercampos@mbrt.net www.mbrt.net 2008 - 2010 BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS

Janice Bryant Howroyd Chairman CEO, ACT-1 Personnel Services Torrance, CA Houston L. Williams Past Chairman CEO, Ravenoaks Vineyard Los Gatos, CA Andra Rush Vice Chairman CEO, Rush Trucking Wayne, MI Roger A. Campos President & CEO Minority Business RoundTable Washington, D.C.

T h e Mi norit y Bu si n ess Ro u ndT a bl e (M BR T) , a r eg ister ed non- pr of it c or porat ion, is the o n l y nat i o na l m e mbe r s h ip or g a n i zat i o n fo r C EO s o f A fr ic a n -A me r ic a n- , H i spa n ic A m er ica n-, A s ia n-A mer ica n-, a nd Nat ive- Ame r ica n- ow ned top- t ier b usinesse s, r epr es e nt ing a var ie ty o f tra de s a nd ind us tr ie s . Mem be rs ho ld po sit io ns e q u iv ale nt t o c h ie f e xec ut ive of f ic er (C EO) or c ha irp er so n in t he ir r es pect ive b u s ine s se s . MB R T m e mbe rs d r iv e t he a nalysis, formul at ion, a nd impl ementa t ion of ef fect ive p ubl ic p olic ie s that im pac t m inor ity- ow ned b u s ine ss e s .

MISSION

x x x

Serve as the unified voice for minority CEOs in the United States;

x

Inform and influence public policies on issues of critical importance to the minority business community.

Julie Brown, CEO Plastech Engineered Products Dearborn, MI Michael Brown, CEO Arctic Slope World Services Anchorage, AK John Corella, CEO Corella Companies Phoenix, AZ Gregory Craig, CEO Cook Inlet Energy Supply Los Angeles, CA Dr. Lawrence Crawford, CEO DBM Technologies Pontiac, MI George de Cespedes, CEO Pharmed Group Miami, FL Gerald Diez, CEO DELACO Steel Corporation Dearborn, MI Bart Garber, CEO Tyonek Group Anchorage, AK Nathaniel Goldston III, CEO A LA Carte Menu Services Atlanta, GA Irma Elder, CEO Elder Automotive Group Troy, MI Al Gonzalez, CEO AGE Refining Dallas, TX

Ms. Sze-Jing (Jean) Huang, CEO H & L Computer Flushing, NY Charlie Johnson, CEO New Concept Solutions Louisville, KY Leo Koguan, CEO SHI Somerset, NJ David Lee, CEO eOn Communications Morgan Hill, CA Ms. Jay Lee, CEO

By Design LLC New York, NY Laney Lee, CEO Mall of Asia Baltimore, MD Howard Li, CEO Waitex International New York, NY

x x x x

All MBRT members must be the principal executive (Chair, CEO and/or President) in their firms. Membership is by invitation only and limited to CEOs from top-tier firms that are minority-owned and controlled. The recruitment of members for the organization is consistent with the following criteria: Ensuring the involvement of African American, Hispanic American, Asian American, and Native American CEOs from top-tier businesses; Ensuring the involvement of CEOs from top-tier minority women-owned businesses; and Ensuring that the membership is adequately representative of all regions of the United

BACKGROUND The nation’s minorities account for 30 percent of today’s population and 90 percent of projected population growth over the next 50 years. Minority-owned firms are increasingly important to the nation’s economic well-being with an annual economic impact of $5.3 billion and the creation of 124,000 jobs nationwide. Currently, they comprise 18 percent of the nation’s businesses. Minority-owned firms have been growing at more than three times the rate of all firms in the U.S. and are fueling the growth of the U.S. economy according to U.S. Census data. There are more than five million minority-owned firms employing millions of Americans with aggregate sales of nearly $600 billion.

Popular perception holds that all minority-owned businesses are "small" businesses. The existence of the MBRT dispels this myth. There are over 1700 eligible MBRT firms, which operate in a wide range of industries throughout the United States, posting sales from $50 million to more than $5 billion per company. Each of these firms employ between 80 and 5,000 people.

MBRT represents the first formal opportunity for CEOs of large minority-owned firms to collectively address issues of common concern to them as employers, profitable organizations, and active corporate citizens. Coming together strengthens their ability to develop and influence critical public policies.

David Lizarraga, CEO Telacu Los Angeles, CA

Mr. Campos serves as the first President & CEO of the Minority Business RoundTable (MBRT). Incorporated as a 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization in February 2002, MBRT is the first membership organization for CEOs of the nation’s leading African American, Asian American, Hispanic American, and Native American businesses. Patterned after The Business Roundtable, which represents Fortune 500 companies, MBRT provides a forum for the CEOs of minority-owned businesses to address public policy issues and serves as a unique resource on minority business issues. Membership is by invitation only.

Tony Pearce, CEO Coastal Management Sunset Beach, NC Wallace Tsuha, CEO Saturn Electronics & Engineering Auburn Hills, MI Ying Wang, CEO Oriental Oil & Gas Washington, D.C. Al Zapanta, Past Chairman CEO, U.S Mexico Chamber of Commerce Washington, D.C. Sheila Johnson, CEO Co-Founder BET CEO Salamander Farms Middleburg, VA

HONORARY MEMBERS

Wayne Newton

Work across racial, ethnic and cultural barriers to promote greater economic participation; and

REQUIREMENTS

CHARTER MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS Nancy Archuleta, CEO Integrated Strategy Initiatives Dallas, TX

Advance opportunities for minority entrepreneurs in the public and private sectors;

Geraldo Rivera

Roger A. Campos MBRT Founder, P r e s i d e n t & CE O

Prior thereto, Mr. Campos served as the Executive Director of the MBRT Program at the Joint Center for Political & Economic Studies. He served as Vice President of government relations for the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) where he managed Washington operations. Past positions include: CEO and Principal of International Network of Consultants and Associates which provides consulting services to business owners; founder and CEO of EKKOR Electronics, an aerospace and electronics manufacturing firm; Consultant to the Administrator, Small Business Administration; Special Assistant to the Administrator, Community Services Administration; Management Associate, Executive Office of the President, Office of Management and Budget; and Legal Counsel, U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Mr. Campos holds a Juris Doctorate degree from the United States International University (San Diego, CA) and a Bachelor of Arts degree in social sciences from the University of California at Santa Barbara. He has been recognized in the Hispanic Who’s Who in America and the Outstanding Young Men of America, and he is a former board member of the Department of Energy’s National Energy Extension Service. He is an author having published the first New Age fiction novel with 13 song track music CD titled “Sleeping with an Angel”.

jewel of collaboration

Workforce Development

The New

American Economy Workforce Development in the 21st Century by Patrick J. Holwell

T

he United States is presently in a deep recession, which began in December 2007, and has intensified considerably in the last calendar quarter. The U.S. has lost 1.2 million jobs in the three month period ending October 30, 2008 and over 2 million jobs in the calendar year. On December 5, 2008 the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that employment had fallen by 533,000 jobs in November, causing the national unemployment rate to rise to 6.7 percent. Unemployment is expected to rise further, possibly reaching 8 percent or more in the first quarter of 2009.

The deepening crisis within the U.S. financial system has caused a severe tightening of short-term credit, which has become virtually unavailable, forcing many small businesses and a limited number of large businesses to close their doors. Major bailout packages are being designed for the ailing financial and automotive industries, and workers throughout the country are worried about staying employed.

At the same time, the U.S. workforce has been falling further and further behind in developing the high skill levels necessary to keep American industries globally competitive.

Troubling results reported by the 2006 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) show that 15-year-olds in the U.S. placed 16th out of 30 industrialized nations in their science scores, and 23rd in mathematics. The National Science Foundation reports that freshman college enrollments in mathematics and sciences peaked in 1992 in U.S. colleges and universities, and have consistently gone down through the present date, while at the same time foreign student enrollments have steadily increased at the same schools. Thus, in spite of the spiking unemployment rate, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports monthly that between 2.3 to 2.5 percent of all open jobs go unfilled because employers cannot find people with the skills to fill them.

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Âť The U.S. workforce has been falling further and further behind in developing the high skill levels necessary to keep American industry globally competitive. ÂŤ

The Workforce System Adds Value and Competitiveness Against this backdrop, our national Workforce Development System is a key partner in moving the United States into a new 21st Century economy.

The Workforce Development System as we know it today was born in 1933, during the Great Depression, when it was vital to match people with jobs as quickly and efficiently as possible. Later, as higher levels of skills were needed by U.S. employers, a training component was added.

Today, the Workforce Development system operates under the oversight of the U.S. Department of Labor through local Workforce Centers, (also called One-Stop Career Centers), serving Americans throughout the United States and its territories.

Workforce Centers offer two major services in their communities.

First, they provide a labor exchange, where employers can list job openings free of charge, and any individual eligible to work in the United States can register free of charge and be referred to openings for which he/she is qualified. To supplement the basic labor exchange function, employers can also obtain a variety of services, including access to accurate wage and employment information and information on employment law. Job seekers can get the latest information about how to conduct an effective job search, upgrade their resumes, do well in a job interview, and access other services in the community which they might need.

Centers is that they have a wide variety of workers at all levels of education and occupational skill on their rolls. For instance, at Arapahoe/Douglas Works! Workforce Center, serving Arapahoe and Douglas counties, which make up the southeastern part of the Denver Metro Area in Colorado, an employer can find a qualified candidate to match virtually any job qualification. At this writing, Arapahoe/Douglas Works! offers employers in Metro Denver almost 65,000 job candidates at all skill and education levels, including over 18,000 with a bachelors degree or higher.

Skills of these workers include management, financial, computer sciences, physical and life sciences, healthcare practitioners and support workers, technicians, construction, transportation and production workers, educators and administrative support personnel.

Workforce Centers nationwide can offer a similar variety of candidates, and employers can register openings free of charge and get referrals of qualified and skilled candidates to keep them competitive. Many Workforce Centers also offer other services, such as hosting hiring events, space to interview candidates and custom training for incumbent or new workers.

Workforce Centers also offer a variety of services to community youth, acting in concert with industry leaders to educate youth in viable career pathways, build leadership, teamwork and professional skills, obtain high school diplomas, and encourage entry into higher education.

Workforce System a Key Partner in the New U.S. Economy

Nationally, the Workforce System is a key component in keeping American industries competitive in a global economy. While K14 and the Higher Education system do their part over the longIf a job seeker cannot find work using the basic labor term, Workforce Centers handle current and exchange system, they may access short-term needs through labor exchange further services, including career 2008 U.S. Unemployment Rate and investment in human capital through assessment, customized career occupational training directly relevant to planning, supportive services and January 4.9% local employer needs. Throughout this tuition assistance in occupational 4.8% February decade, the Workforce System has been training to become marketable in 5.1% March called upon to enhance the economic the local community. Generally, vitality and global competitiveness of highsuch training is short-term, and 5.0% April growth industries through sustainable includes occupational or vocational 5.5% May partnerships with economic developers, Kcertificates, associate level degrees 14, higher education and business leaders. or post-baccalaureate certificates.

5.5% June In 2005, the U.S. Department of Labor 5.7% July unveiled Workforce Innovations in Regional Many employers do not realize they Economic Development (WIRED), which can access thousands of highly 6.1% August formalized these partnerships through qualified job candidates at all levels 6.1% September national Workforce System policy. of skill and education from their local Workforce Center.

6.5% October In what is being called by some economists One of the most important things for 6.7% November the deepest recession in over 70 years, the employers to know about Workforce

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Workforce Development

Workforce System is positioned to stand and deliver services and training that will keep American industry competitive in the 21st Century. The incoming Administration has announced two major initiatives in which Workforce Centers throughout the nation will be key movers.

With the announcement that 533,000 jobs had been lost in November 2008, well over 10 million Americans are presently out of work. At the same time, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports slightly over 3 million job openings.

First, to pull the United States back to economic stability, and put millions of unemployed Americans back to work, a massive cash infusion of $60 billion over ten years for vitally needed

infrastructure improvements will be given to the Governors of the fifty states. The Workforce System has virtually all of the 10.5 million unemployed Americans on its rolls, and can act as an employer of record, working with the various Governors to recruit, train and place over 2 million workers into ‘shovel-ready’ infrastructure projects that will stimulate an estimated $35 billion per year in economic activity throughout the nation.

Infrastructure projects will not be in short supply, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) 2008 report card. In Colorado alone, 43 percent of the roads are in mediocre or poor condition, the wastewater infrastructure needs an estimated $2.2 billion in improvements, 17 percent of the bridges are structurally deficient or functionally obsolete, 186 dams have been determined deficient with a price tag of $369.4 million, and 58 percent of schools have at least one structural deficiency and 63 percent at least one environmental deficiency.

Over the longer term, the incoming Administration has set the goal of energy independence for the United States by 2019. In January 2009, up to $70 million in additional funds will be

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injected into the Workforce System to provide occupational training assistance in new energy ‘green collar’ jobs for unemployed workers. In addition, monies will be released through the Small Business Administration and a variety of other government agencies to encourage new energy start-ups and stimulate more rapid development of green technologies in established companies.

Since the late 1980s, many forward-looking Americans have realized that keeping U.S. industries competitive in a global economy is a national security issue.

In addition, funding will remain intact for existing Workforce System initiatives providing short-term occupational training in support of other high growth industries, such as Healthcare,

Bioscience, Aerospace, National Security, Information Technology, Automotive, Construction, Education, Advanced Manufacturing, and Transportation.

The national Workforce System will continue to do its part in keeping American workers and American businesses competitive in a global economy, because those serving in it realize that a strong, vibrant economy contributes significantly to the long-term security and strength of the United States.

The Workforce System in Colorado Colorado boasts nine Workforce Regions that serve Workforce Development needs throughout the state. In the year ending June 30, 2008, Colorado’s Workforce Centers put almost 118,000 people to work, and provided occupational training for over 7,700 people. In the current year, which began July 1, 2008, Colorado Workforce Centers have put almost 50,000 people to work and are training over 5,300 people for jobs in high-growth industries.

In 2005, the Denver Metro region received a $15 million WIRED grant from the U.S. Department of Labor that was designed to build the training infrastructure for high-demand occupations in targeted industries. This stimulated efforts throughout Colorado to reach out to employers in a variety of industries, find out what skill sets were most needed, and worked in partnership with the K-14 and Higher Education systems to grow the training pipeline for high-skilled workers.

Throughout the state, Workforce Centers have segmented both available workforce and targeted industries in their regions, and have built sustainable partnerships with employers in high-growth industries, economic developers, K-14 and Higher Education to ensure that Colorado businesses will have the continuous supply of skilled labor they need to remain competitive globally and to enhance overall economic vitality.

Sustainable partnerships, like the Southeast Colorado E3 Partnership, STEM-EC (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics Educational Coalition), and multi-regional efforts in the Denver Metro Area, such as the Arapahoe/Douglas Works! Expert Technician Academy, which provides customized training in technical skills needed most by area employers, and its Youth Energy Conservation Corps, which prepares youth for the New Energy jobs of tomorrow, have been created and are successfully training tomorrow’s workforce.

Continuous Improvement and Business Results in Workforce Development Continuous improvement efforts are ubiquitous throughout the Workforce Development System at national, state and local levels.

The present Administration developed a President’s Management Agenda (PMA) for all federal agencies that has driven systemic improvement and business results in the Workforce system.

The PMA calls for improved outcomes in five areas: human capital, competitive sourcing, financial performance, improved egovernment, and budget performance/integration.

In 2008, the U.S. Department of Labor received its eighth consecutive Certificate of Excellence from the Association of Government Accountants. Since 2001, the Department has received four Presidential Quality Awards, and has been ranked #1 four times among all federal agencies for its annual Performance and Accountability Report by the George Mason University Mercatus Center.

In Colorado, all Workforce Regions have embraced the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence, and have embarked upon the performance excellence journey.

Several Colorado Workforce Centers, including Arapahoe/Douglas Works!, have used the Malcolm Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence since 1995 as a lens through which to gauge process

improvement and boost results, and have been involved with Colorado’s Baldrige affiliate, Colorado Performance Excellence, since its inception. In 2004, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment embraced the Baldrige Criteria, and at present, all Workforce Regions within Colorado have embarked upon the journey to performance excellence.

Professionals in Colorado’s Workforce Development System, and throughout the nation, recognize their work is vital to the economic well-being of local communities, their states, and that their efforts contribute to the security of our nation in an increasingly flat, fast-moving, and hyper-competitive global economy. America cannot prosper in the 21st Century without a highly-skilled, well-trained and upwardly mobile workforce, and its Workforce Development System is a key component in the creation of the New American Economy.

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Duke University

Building Bridges Through Global Business Education An Interview with Blair Sheppard, Dean, Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business

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n September 15, 2008, Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business announced an ambitious and unique global expansion plan. Fuqua is identifying faculty and staff candidates for regions around the world and establishing collaborations with business and government leaders, who have welcomed the new expansion plans.

Fuqua’s Dean Blair Sheppard, the driving force behind the expansion, spoke with ICOSA about Fuqua’s new model for global business education.

Q: Dean Sheppard, can you briefly describe Fuqua’s global expansion plans?

Fuqua’s international presence is a starting point for Duke’s plans to engage with the world on a deeper and more meaningful level. This undertaking isn’t about a single degree program. Our goal is to become an integrated part of some of the world’s most important cultural and economic regions and to help provide solutions to the specific challenges they face.

» We’re establishing deeply embedded partnerships in each of our locations so that we are not simply observing what goes on, we are a part of what goes on, taking an active role in solving problems. « The depth of our engagement in each region will be unprecedented in higher education. Each of our global locations will include MBA studies, a program from Duke CE (Duke’s corporate education arm), open enrollment executive education, at least two research centers, our own faculty or joint faculty appointments, service-based activities focusing on local needs, and the involvement of other relevant parts of Duke University.

We want to become the world’s first legitimately global business school, which requires reshaping 21st century business education and rethinking the boundaries of business school. To begin the expansion, we’ve chosen to redesign The Duke MBA – Cross Continent program to encompass studies in a number of important business regions: the United States, Western Europe, Russia, India, China, and the Middle East.

Q: How will Fuqua’s international relationships differ from those of other schools?

Previous international partnerships among universities have tended to be casual affiliations. What we have in mind is very different. ( 56 )

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We’re establishing deeply embedded partnerships in each of our locations so that we are not simply observing what goes on, we are a part of what goes on, taking an active role in solving problems.

» We must collaborate with the leading firms in the world, bringing together corporations, government entities, learners, and others to address urgent global problems. «

We will also bring to bear the resources of the many disciplines of Duke University, areas that touch upon business studies: law, public policy, environment, engineering, health care. It’s important that we take this comprehensive approach, because the issues business needs to address in the coming years are wide-ranging and complex.

In addition, no other school has a simultaneous presence in the regions most critical to this century in the embedded fashion we’ve designed. But Fuqua pioneered the Global Executive MBA concept that has been adopted by many business schools over the past decade, so we’re not strangers to breaking new ground in course design.

We want to deliver the complete Duke MBA experience in all of our locations, providing students of the Cross Continent program with all of the things that make Fuqua one of the world’s elite business schools: innovative course design, academically rigorous distance learning, one of the most productive research faculties in the world, and a truly global perspective on business and culture.

Q: What do you mean by “embedded partnerships”?

can be most immediately and most effectively applied.

We will have similar, deeply rooted connections in all of our international locales.

Q: What is the significance of those particular locations? Why were they chosen?

We chose locations that are critical to driving the agenda for their regions and are key players in the world economy, both now and in the future. If you’re going to be in the places that matter in business, you must be in the U.S., Western Europe, Russia, India, the Middle East, and China. We already have a relationship with Seoul National University in South Korea, and we’re exploring how a Fuqua presence can be beneficial in places like South Africa.

Each of these locations presents compelling educational and research opportunities. For example, China is the world’s biggest polluter and perhaps its most dynamic economy. As a result, there is an urgent need to address environmental and business issues simultaneously, perhaps even as a single issue.

The leaders who solve problems like these will alter the course of history in a tremendously positive way. Fuqua should have a role in those positive changes.

In order to make our expansion plans work, we need partnerships in business and government that will aid us in drawing the best students and identifying research opportunities to address the problems specific to each region. The people and institutions with whom we’ve been working to implement our expansion plans have been overwhelmingly supportive of our goals.

We’ve chosen the right places to enter and the right people to work with.

» Leaders of consequence are people with a drive to discover or focus their own worldview and purpose. They are leaders as well as team players. «

We believe that if you’re going to be a globalist or purport to understand the world’s challenges, then you have to be in these places in a manner that causes you to truly become part of them. As a business school, this means we must collaborate with the leading firms in the world, bringing together corporations, government entities, learners, and others to address urgent global problems.

To produce leaders who are globally aware and capable, we must educate in a globally distributed way.

Our partnerships form a network of influencers who can have a direct impact on addressing the fundamental issues of our time: enabling access to economic opportunity, protecting our environment while growing business, and providing adequate health care.

We’re establishing collaborations with a number of global partners because, by the very nature of the world’s diversity, each region requires different kinds of partnerships. For example, we’re actively engaging with a number of people and organizations in Russia right now, and of course Russia’s cultural and business environment is far different from what we encounter in China or Dubai. The social and business issues Russia is dealing with today require specific solutions and specific relationships to bring about those solutions. All the while, these regions are strongly connected by commerce.

In India, we’ve established a board of advisors to help inform our development there. The board is made up of business and civic leaders who can help us bring about positive change in the region.

This board will help us identify the issues where Fuqua’s research

Q: Why is a global presence important?

Put simply, it is what the world demands. We can’t fulfill our mission as a school – to produce leaders of consequence – without a global presence.

By engaging with the dominant world regions through our education and research, we will be able to examine the world’s opportunities and problems, explore the interdependencies between the regions, form hypotheses and ideas about how best to address world issues, and devise strategies to exploit opportunities. Our goal is to prepare practitioners to be the change agents and informed leaders the world needs. Our global presence will enable us to identify problems unique to these areas of the world and find specific solutions tailored to each region.

For our students, our global expansion will mean they gain global competence and business acumen through real-world experiences and exposure to diverse cultures. Students of the program will be better prepared for their professional lives, better leaders. Crosscultural communication will not only be part of the subject matter, it will be inherent in the situation itself.

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Duke University

We see our global expansion as a two-way education process.

We will be learning from our international hosts as we educate.

All that we learn from this wide range of cultures and economies will inform what and how we teach our students on our campus in Durham, North Carolina. In this way, all of our students will gain global competence.

Q: What are “leaders of consequence”?

Leaders of consequence are people with a drive to discover or focus their own worldview and purpose. They are leaders as well as team players. They are intellectually bright without being detached or aloof. Being able to appreciate and take advantage of these dualities is an important part of leadership.

On a professional level, a leader of consequence can be a capitalist and an environmentalist; a doctor and a skilled hospital administrator; a sustainable business leader and a nonprofit executive.

Leaders of consequence set aside old models and conventions to expand personal and professional growth,

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both for themselves and the people with whom they work and interact.

Q: Why undertake the global expansion now?

Events in the financial markets over the past several months confirm the time is right to expand Fuqua’s presence internationally.

If anyone had doubts before, it is now clear that the world is not a series of economies interacting. There is, in fact, a single world economy made up of different regions.

As we’ve seen, financial unrest in one region automatically affects the rest of the world.

» The pace of the world economy has accelerated tremendously in recent years.

While one side of the world is sleeping, the other side has already moved on into the future. When we wake up in the morning, we rise to a very different world from the day before. «

These interdependencies demand collaboration across oceans, borders, and cultures. As an education center without a vested interest in political or business fortunes, a university is uniquely equipped to bring together all the players who shape the evolution of business: corporate leaders, government officials, even service organizations.

In addition, the pace of the world economy has accelerated tremendously in recent years. While one side of the world is sleeping, the other side has already

moved on into the future. When we wake up in the morning, we rise to a very different world from the day before.

Q: Why is an interdisciplinary approach important to Fuqua’s plans?

A business school touches on and complements many of the other areas of study at a university. This puts Fuqua in the best position to bring Duke to the world. We can pull together business and engineering, environmental studies, medicine, and a wide range of disciplines.

» The pace of the world economy has accelerated tremendously in recent years. While one side of the world is sleeping, the other side has already moved on into the future.

When we wake up in the morning, we rise to a very different world from the day before. «

Fuqua has what I believe to be the world’s strongest business school faculty. In fact, Fuqua placed #1 in intellectual capital among full-time American MBA programs in the most recent BusinessWeek rankings. We have gathered outstanding talent in finance, economics, management, accounting, and all areas of business.

This expertise across a range of subject areas will help us provide a more comprehensive learning experience for students, equipping them with a global perspective on the issues that define the 21st century.

Q: What sort of benefit will Fuqua’s students outside the Cross Continent program see from the school’s global presence?

One of the most important parts of our global expansion plan is the idea that we will learn as much from our global locations as we teach them. The research to be undertaken by our faculty internationally – in the areas where the most fascinating phenomena are occurring across vastly different political, regulatory, market, and cultural contexts – will have a direct impact on the learning of all of our students, providing them with an acute awareness of the world’s interconnectedness.

The partnerships and collaborations we establish will provide our students with opportunities for internships, employment, and even community-oriented service projects.

Given today’s tight job market worldwide, increasing opportunities for our students is of paramount importance.

Further, building our brand and our presence around the world will help us to increase the number of quality applicants to Fuqua’s programs. The ability to draw the most talented students available enhances the quality and reputation of The Duke MBA, which benefits the entire Fuqua community, including our students and alumni.

Q: What does this expansion mean for Duke University as a whole?

Fuqua’s global expansion is a Duke University expansion. One of Duke’s foremost goals is to increase its level of engagement with the world, and this undertaking is of vital importance to that goal. Fuqua will lay the groundwork for further Duke engagement around the world.

As I’ve mentioned, it makes sense for a business school to be the leading edge of this kind of international expansion, as business encompasses a number of other disciplines. Those disciplines – environmental studies, public policy, health care, engineering, law – will have significant roles in identifying and solving the world’s most pressing problems.

We want Fuqua’s global presence to heighten the world’s awareness of Duke and to build a foundation for further international engagement for the university.

Further information about The Fuqua School of Business is available at http://www.fuqua.duke.edu.

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Operation Respect

Operation Respect Writing On the Wall: Both Hopeful and Daunting by Peter Yarrow

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peration Respect is a non-profit organization dedicated to transforming school climates to become compassionate, safe, respectful and bully-free places and therefore conducive to children’s social, emotional and academic growth. Founded in 1999, the organization provides free, effective, curricular tools that help to transform and sustain positive school environments. Operation Respect also works to coalesce the efforts of like-minded educational organizations, nationally and internationally, that are working towards achieving a mutually held educational vision for the universal adoption of educational paradigms that meet all the personal and academic developmental needs of children; i.e. such as whole child education.

Looking back towards our inception nine years ago, I realized that two basic premises underlay the goals, vision and efforts of Operation Respect, both of which, now, seem remarkably simple, intuitive and obvious.

First: Operation Respect believes that in order for children and youth to be happy, to be able focus and concentrate, and to achieve academically, they must first feel safe and valued in their school environment. They must not be subjected to what has become, far too frequently, a school environment that targets them with disrespect, ridicule and bullying, emotional and sometimes physical violence – which also targets and affects teachers and staff in similar ways.

The Hopeful and the Daunting News: Operation Respect’s Achievements The good news is that in our work at Operation Respect, we have actually been able to be the principal mobilizing spark that has inspired the larger educational community to embrace these two basic principles. We have found that, although such principles are interpreted in different ways by different organizations, the consensus is that in the first articulation of our vision and goals, we were right on target – in fact, ahead of our time. Consequently, Operation Respect’s initial point of view is now leveraged by the concurrence of some 50 organizations in a coalition called United Voices for Education (UVE) that jointly advocates for, and work towards, a shift in the American educational paradigm – one in which these two basic principles might soon become a meaningful part of important educational policy reform in America and beyond.

The approach of these 50 educational organizations is called “whole child education”. Through the leadership of the largest educational organization in the world, Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD), with whom Operation Respect has been working closely to articulate the common vision, goals and strategies of UVE, educators have begun to embrace the premise that education must become far more comprehensive than the age-old concept of teaching the three Rs, which now only scratch the surface of meeting the basic educational needs of children.

» Educators have begun to embrace the premise that education must become far more comprehensive than the age-old concept of teaching the three Rs, which now only scratch the surface of meeting the basic educational needs of children. «

Second: Operation Respect believes that the intellectual growth of children and youth cannot take place normally and healthily unless it is accompanied and enriched by similar growth in their emotional, social and creative capacities. Operation Respect holds the belief that educators must take responsibility for addressing all of the needs of children and youth. If not, the growth of children’s character, humanity and sensitivity and empathy towards others fails to develop, and students can be left without the tools needed for successful entry into the work force and the means to lead productive lives as engaged citizens of a democracy. Additionally, without these many dimensions of a proper education, academic progress that reflects a student’s true abilities, is inevitably hampered, and sometimes critically so. ( 60 )

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The new, common, belief is that only when all of the developmental needs of children are met will children’s successful and healthy development and education take place. Consequently, educational leaders are searching for ways to make sure that all teachers and schools become better equipped to address education in this more comprehensive fashion and, additionally, ways for schools to hold themselves, and be held, accountable for the successful nurturing of all the developmental needs of the children and youth in their care.

The Hopeful and the Daunting News: The Challenges The reality is that such a perspective has a long way to go before it is adopted nationally and becomes an effective, improved, functioning educational paradigm. In the meantime, beyond student achievement, schools face terribly daunting problems

The Hopeful and the Daunting News: Leveraging Operation Respect’s Efforts by a Factor of 50 We are hardly alone in our efforts any more. Fortunately, Operation Respect has been able to play a major role in bringing educators and educational associations together under the common banner of UVE leveraging our mutual efforts in a commitment to assure all children an education that takes place in a respectful and caring environment; one in which all their needs, aptitudes and gifts, as well as their challenges, special abilities and disabilities, can be properly addressed. (For more information, please see UVE: Logic Model and Strategic Plan at www.operationrespect.org.)

The Hopeful and the Daunting News: New Vantage Points and New Considerations The discussion among UVE’s 50 organizations has progressed from the evaluation of schools in terms of achieving success to one that is addressing the imperative that all students receive the same basic academic level of resources and support. If we are to expect the poorest of our youth population to be held to a standard equal to that of those who are far more fortunate, such inequities must ultimately be addressed and eliminated; or the entire effort to not leave any children behind is a cruel, cynical, joke.

Peter Yarrow with school children at concert

that will derail all their educational efforts if these problems are not addressed, and addressed quickly and successfully. School violence, bullying, pandemic childhood depression and widespread teenage suicide all darken the hopes and dreams of schools, students and parents, alike.

The Association of School Psychologists estimates that, across America, 160,000 children stay home from school every day simply because they cannot face yet another day of what is, to them, torturous targeting, ostracism, ridicule and bullying.

The discussion has also turned to recognition that the achievement gap will never be successfully closed, not even a bit, until we even the playing field in terms of the availability of skilled, appropriately paid, teachers. Further, the discussion has also turned to making sure that all the dimensions of intelligence – social, emotional, creative and “heart” intelligence – need to be better understood and respected as the building blocks of our society, and therefore need to be considered with the greatest seriousness in the future education of our children.

The Hopeful and the Daunting News: Federal Education Policy Will, Must, Change Unfortunately, federal policy as it was altered under the “No Child Left Behind Act” (NCLB) has failed to keep up with such new and important considerations regarding best practices for education and teacher training.

Adherence to some of the unfortunate and failed policies and practices of No Child Left Behind has actually diminished the quality of education in many schools. As a result of these failures, under NCLB, the curricula offered by schools has narrowed as educators and administrators focus on “teaching to the test” to avoid being deprived of funding and/or being shut down.

Consequently, it is common for the arts, sports, extra-curricular activities, higher level problem solving, to have been cut out of the school day -- depriving children of badly needed educational enrichment beyond the acquisition of basic academic skills.

» If we are to expect the poorest of our youth population to be held to a standard equal to that of those who are far more fortunate, such inequities must ultimately be addressed and eliminated; or the entire effort to not leave any children behind is a cruel, cynical, joke. «

The Hopeful and the Daunting News: There Is A Way No doubt, with the adoption of educational models that embrace the concept and successful practice of whole child education, such painful and daunting problems will diminish. Whole child education’s approach to such problems is preventative, not reactive, because it creates a climate in which such acting out and destructive behavior is discouraged, frowned upon, and not considered “cool”. Whole child education, when successfully introduced, establishes a supportive, vitally alive, positive school community environment; one that is conducive to learning, where children feel safe, are empowered and feel secure – and where all forms of emotional and physical violence can be effectively banished over a period of years.

The Hopeful and the Daunting News: The Bright Light of NCLB, and its Shadow On the other hand, to give NCLB its due, there is no doubt that the excellent data collection that has occurred tracking students’ and schools’ achievements is a positive and important step forward and has allowed teachers and administrators to locate and isolate

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the genesis of problems that were not easily detectible early, or at all, in preNCLB days. Unfortunately, important as such data are, they have not always been used wisely, and frequently have been acquired under the shadow of fear of failure by a school. Such fear by teachers staff and administrators, of losing their jobs, possible loss of a school’s funding (making the task of improvement all the harder) and the negative effects of labeling a school, thereby sullying its name and reputation, can be crushing to everyone. Such labeling and the inculcation of the fear of failure is toxic, and frequently overwhelmingly so, to the efforts of schools to improve and rehabilitate themselves.

Operation Respect

» Adherence to some of the unfortunate and failed policies and practices of No Child Left Behind has actually diminished the quality of education in many schools. «

The Hopeful and the Daunting News: Money Is A, If Not The, Root Last, the problems of schools under NCLB have been greatly increased by a shortfall of $70 billion dollars that was promised to schools by the federal government. This shortfall was crucial money that was part and parcel of assuring the original plan, a best shot at a successful rollout and implementation of NCLB. Had this promise to our children and their education been given top priority, as it dearly should have been, the data acquired might have been put to far better use by teachers and schools than was possible given the economic realities of schools, particularly those in need of help, not punitive actions.

The Hopeful and the Daunting News: Where We Need to Go Next Education and the educational paradigm of America need to be reformulated in certain ways to bring us into the 21st century, both in terms of the place of the United States in the world and in terms of what we decide we want to be as a country making its way through one of the most challenging times in its history.

Recently, Daniel Pink, in a book entitled A Whole New Mind, has made the compelling case that the type of outcomes resulting from yesterday’s educational paradigm are totally out of line with the needs of America, now and in the future. The acquisition of only basic skills of literacy, numeracy and science simply won’t cut it. Such education does address the need for students to acquire high-level, creative, outside the box, problem-solving capacities.

Without such tools and skills, America’s future workforce will be seriously unprepared to tackle the essential jobs of the 21st century. Further, high level critical thinking on the part of the voting population is absolutely necessary to the successful functioning of a contemporary democracy that depends upon its citizenry to be well informed and civically motivated.

The Hopeful and the Daunting News: To Sum Up Real progress in American educational reform is hampered by the sheer magnitude of the task to “move the mountain”; a monolith that famously resists all efforts to change it by virtue of its complexity and its monumental inertia. What was once a remarkable educational system, the pride of our country, has now become a clearly failing, grossly inequitable, highly politicized and hugely under-funded emblem of our failures of systems, but also a critical part of the opportunities that exist in perhaps more exciting ways than are in current memory. I, for one, see great change on the horizon. I see

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great hope as well. America is coming to terms with the fact that we have to change, to reform, many of our ways of doing things. It is the time for renewal in our country as we decide what to do in the world of money, the world of the military, the world of our reputation and good name in other countries, the world of environmental reality, and more. As we address all these dimensions of our policies and practices, surely we must realize that we are, we can be, we must be, truly capable of self-reflection on our failures, yet celebration of our past successes and future capacities.

We are not what we once were, but in some ways, is this not a good thing? I think it is clearly a mixed bag, but as we decide who we want to become when we grow up, if we keep our precious children in mind, we will no doubt be guided by our most loving and wisest instincts.

Peter Yarrow has charmed, inspired, delighted, and just plain entertained generations of audiences since Peter, Paul and Mary first sang their way into the national consciousness in the early 1960s. As a member of that renowned musical trio for 49 years, he has earned five Grammys and an Emmy nomination, recorded eight gold and five platinum albums, and six Top 10 hits The late Coretta Scott King once proclaimed, “Peter, Paul and Mary are not only three of the greatest folk artists ever, but also three of the performing arts’ most outstanding champions of social justice and peace.”

Peter’s gift for songwriting has produced some of the most moving songs Peter, Paul & Mary recorded including, in addition to “Puff,” “Day is Done,” “Light One Candle,” and “The Great Mandala.”

During the last decade, Peter has devoted himself primarily to the work of heading Operation Respect (OR), an educational non-profit he founded. OR is dedicated to assuring children and youth a caring, safe and respectful climate of learning where students’ academic, social and emotional development can take place in a welcoming, environment, conducive to learning. OR disseminates a classroom-based program called “Don’t Laugh At Me”, free, through the generosity of the Mc-Graw Hill Companies, that has been utilized in a variety of ways, frequently in conjunction with other similar programs, by an estimated 22,000 schools in the United States, Hong Kong, Croatia, Canada and elsewhere.

Don’t Laugh At Me (DLAM) is designed to help establish a school and classroomvclimate that encourages acceptance of differences, is free of bullying, ridicule and violence of all sorts, emotional and physical. The program incorporates music that reaches adults and children, alike, opening their hearts and inviting discussions that lead to a greater sense of community and healthy deliberation. OR has distributed more than 150,000 copies of DLAM free of charge to educators and is available, free, through www.operationrespect.org.

The United States House of Representatives honored Operation Respect with a unanimous vote of commendation after only five years of its existence.

Peter has received two honorary doctorates from San Francisco State University and National Lewis University for his work in educational advocacy, and Peter’s mother was a New York City English, Spech and Drama teacher for close to 30 years at Julia Richmond High School.

To learn more about Operation Respect please visit www.dontlaugh.org or call 212-904-5243.

collaborator profile

Leeds School of Business

Bridging Business and Social Responsibility Leeds Curriculum Emphasis on Social Responsibility by Lorna Christoff

T

he University of Colorado’s Leeds School of Business launches its students on a journey that few other business undergraduates are privileged to take. Through the generosity and vision of the Leeds family (for whom the school is named), Leeds School of Business undergraduates have the benefit of a curriculum initiative called Curriculum Emphasis on Social Responsibility (CESR).

The Leeds family long has placed enormous value on students thinking about social responsibility and the kind of leaders they seek to become. Through required and elective CESR courses, students learn business methods that do more than just maintain a black bottom line – they also Larissa Herda, CEO of tw telecom explore strategic advantage of sustainability speaks to CESR students and corporate social responsibility, more generally, and the necessity of thinking about values and ethics in business and in life. The CESR program is directed by Dr. Donna Sockell.

In the current highly competitive, globally-connected business world, Leeds graduates are prepared to become outstanding business leaders of tomorrow, ready to meet any ethical challenges. CESR helps students to achieve this by overseeing the infusion of values discussions in classes throughout the undergraduate and graduate curricula at the Leeds School of Business.

Leadership Challenges: Exercises in Moral Courage Twenty-four undergraduate students. One high-level executive.

A personal drama unfolds and questions pepper the air. At the

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And compete they do. After the course’s inaugural year of 2007-08, students who took the class began recommending it to other students and referring exceptional peers to the instructors, Dr. Donna Sockell (who created the course) and Michael Leeds (the eldest son of the family for whom the business school is named). The 24 places in the 200809 course filled within days, and numerous high-performing students will have to wait until the following year. Past students have described the class as the most meaningful course to their business careers - the course they work the hardest at in order to excel.

Graduating students have stated it was their favorite course in their entire business school education.

» In the current highly competitive, globallyconnected business world, Leeds graduates are prepared to become outstanding business leaders of tomorrow, ready to meet any ethical challenges. «

The business world presents many opportunities or temptations for college graduates to make their marks in either socially positive or negative ways. We need to look no further than the last decade of accounting scandals, misuses of executive authority, abuse of labor abroad, an indiscriminate use of natural resources, the threats of global warming to know that issues to be confronted by our graduates are global and complex. By sensitizing students to these issues, by exposing them to different approaches to a business’ social responsibility, Leeds is investing in a future generation of business leaders who will make us proud - leaders who will choose to operate their companies in not only a profitable but an ethical manner.

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University of Colorado, the Leeds School of Business offers one of the most fulfilling, exciting, and unique experiences available to executives and students. This is CESR’s’ year-long course, “Leadership Challenges: Exercises in Moral Courage”, where juniorand senior–level students must compete for limited places.

Like the CESR initiative generally, this course has grown from the School’s strategic commitment to help students become outstanding business leaders of tomorrow by preparing them to meet the ethical challenges posed by a highly competitive, global business world. It is the view of Sockell and Leeds that having students interact with talented and successful executives, who are willing to share “real life” stories they viewed as life-defining challenges in their careers, will provide outstanding preparation for students to succeed when they assume business roles in the future.

Why all the compliments for a course at which students have worked the hardest? Imagine yourself in the classroom, but this isn’t just any class. The instructors, instead of beginning an hourlong lecture to hundreds, introduce an executive like Michael Francis, Chief Marketing Officer for Target Corp., Aaron Kennedy, the former CEO and founder of Noodles & Co, Larissa Herda,

CEO of tw telecom, or Rob Katz, the CEO of Vail Resorts to you and 23 other students. You already know some key facts about the executive from materials the instructors provided during the previous class. You know even more about the dilemma the executive has struggled with in his or her career, one that troubled her personal morality in addition to being a business problem.

You know this because you received the executive’s written description of the dilemma in the prior class session. You have worked for two weeks with a group of other students in the class to determine the executive’s best course of action.

Your group presents recommendations to the executive while he or she is there in class. After the executive discusses the presentations with Sockell and Leeds, he or she gives your group feedback about your presentation style and the content of your recommendations. This evaluation process might sometimes occur in MBA programs, but it is virtually unheard-of at the undergraduate level.

Once the executive has discussed his/her evaluations with you, she further describes the dilemma and its actual resolution. (Two of the past executive visitors told the students they wished they would have thought of the solutions the students suggested!)

The executive also outlines other personal struggles with business issues he/she has faced in a long and extremely successful business career and how these dilemmas were resolved. You have nearly an hour left of class time to ask her/him any questions that come to your mind not only about the situations described in class, but also any questions about the executive’s company, career, work-life balance, etc. With only a handful of students, you can have a true face-to-face interaction with an executive of a major corporation.

Students enthusiastically praise Leadership Challenges because of these opportunities for direct contact with high-level executives: six per year. It is a rare occasion for an undergraduate’s presentation skills to be evaluated by a businessperson at such a high managerial level. Previous executive visitors also included Liam Killeen, CEO of Storck USA (one of the 2007-08 students began an informal mentoring relationship with him), Barbara Mowry, CEO of Silver Creek Systems, Peter Meola, former CEO of BP Lubricants, and Lynn Utter, former Chief Strategy Officer of Molson Coors Brewing Company.

But the enthusiasm about Leadership Challenges is not confined to the

students. A recent executive visitor to the class who expressed surprise at how much work he had to do to prepare for class described the classroom experience as “fantastic.” Because Leadership Challenges is based on an interactive model, it builds a special connection between the executive visitor and the students that is not generated by an executive speech to hundreds of students. This model, which creates a genuine dialogue, excites executives who continue to sign up to visit the class, in spite of the work they must do to prepare for class! In fact, Larissa Herda was so taken with her experience and the students’ presentation styles that she showed their PowerPoint slides to her own management team the very next day. Describing her experience, she said, “I’ve had the opportunity to speak to hundreds of college students at numerous universities over the years as part of their curriculum. Leadership Challenges was by far the most relevant, engaging, and clever class I have experienced.

The combination of student - professor - executive interaction, coupled with examples of real life drama and dilemmas, gives students an incredible insider’s view to the difficult decision-making that goes on every day in business.”

» I’ve had the opportunity to speak to hundreds of college students at numerous universities over the years as part of their curriculum. Leadership Challenges was by far the most relevant, engaging, and clever class I have experienced. The combination of student professor - executive interaction, coupled with examples of real life drama and dilemmas, gives students an incredible insider’s view to the difficult decisionmaking that goes on every day in business. «

Leadership Challenges affords Leeds School of Business students extraordinary opportunities for professional growth, meaningful coursework and networking.

Executive visitors enjoy a one-of-a-kind encounter with exceptional future business leaders, sharing in the molding of students just before they begin their impact upon the business world.

In addition to providing unique treatment of business ethics in the “Leadership Challenges” elective, the Leeds School of Business is one of the only public schools in the country that has a substantial and enduring commitment to the infusion of values throughout all years of the undergraduate curriculum. Over 9,000 credit hours currently reflect that commitment, which begins at the freshman level. The required freshman course, “Introduction to Business”, maintains an important component of ethics and values as students learn the basics of business.

From day one, students are exposed to ideas of how personal values relate to business decisions. They see these decisions and business behavior play out in the Wall Street Journal and other publications, which provide ample fodder for essays and assignments.

At the sophomore level, Leeds students take required courses in the foundations

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collaborator profile

Leeds School of Business

of their major. CESR encourages and offers support for the development of values-oriented materials in these required classes and provides counsel to faculty teaching any courses in the school who request such materials.

» More than merely business ethics, the course forces students to consider their view of how businesses should and should not act based on their personal values. «

on entrepreneurial opportunities and development of a personalized sustainability action plan.

CESR, in partnership with the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship and the Sustainable Growth Initiative, has produced a 3-course sequence for MBAs who wish to focus on the critical issue of sustainability. The track will help students develop and discover successful business opportunities that will improve the future of our world.

Elective Undergraduate Courses CESR also offers creative, out-of-the-box elective classes that address cutting edge issues and challenge students to grow in their self-awareness, their experiences, and their understanding of the role of business in society.

In “Global Small Business: Learning Through Service”, upperclassmen work with Peace Corps volunteers and Friendship Bridge (a microcredit organization), gaining “hands on” experience and focused academic research. Through the coursework, students address the real-world needs of small business entrepreneurs in developing countries by assisting in the development and implementation of business plans and codes of conduct in organizations.

“Finding Business Opportunities in a Resource-Constrained World” is another of CESR’s electives for upperclassmen. The course examines a number of business dilemmas directly related to today’s environmental challenges and allows students to learn from real-world businesses that are not only are finding solutions to these challenges, but are extremely profitable in doing so!

Nearly 1,000 students per year take CESR’s challenging, required junior-level course (“Business Applications of Social Responsibility”), which is a rigorous exploration of values in corporate social responsibility. In this flagship CESR course, student discussion and participation in smaller classes are integral to the learning environment of this course, enabling students to “give voice to their values” and evaluate the role of business in society. More than merely business ethics, the course forces students to consider their view of how businesses should and should not act based on their personal values. As well, students must learn to articulate the theory(ies) behind their views, recognize the shortcomings of their stances, and defend their positions across many up-to-date case studies and practical applications.

At the senior level, CESR assists business school divisions in the offering of capstone experiences, enabling students to identify and address values in the context of complex issues within their majors. These capstone courses enable students to apply their personal values and decision-making frameworks to find profitable resolutions to the most common and troublesome ethical issues they will face in their chosen careers.

MBA Coursework Similar to the junior-level required course, CESR offers an interdisciplinary MBA course (“Business & Society”) suited to students with greater business and leadership experience. The course is a stakeholder-focused discussion of business obligations.

“Topics in Sustainable Business”, to be offered in fall 2009, will provide an overview of the core concepts, strategies, and practice of sustainable business, with an emphasis

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“Leadership Challenges: Exercises in Moral Courage”, as highlighted earlier, is a year-long, highly selective course, based on an interactive model that creates a genuine dialogue between executives and students. Six high-level executives visit the classroom, share their experiences and present an ethical dilemma, to which students present a solution for the executive to evaluate and critique.

Executives in the CESR Classroom Include: Michael Francis, Chief Marketing Officer of Target Corp Larissa Herda, CEO of tw telecom Rob Katz, CEO of Vail Resorts Aaron Kennedy, Founder and former Chairman of Noodles & Co. Liam Killeen, CEO of Storck USA Michael Leeds, CEO of FlightStar, Inc. Peter Meola, former CEO of BP Lubricants America Lynn Utter, former Chief Strategy Officer for Molson Coors Brewing Co.

Moral of the Story All Leeds graduates, year after year, will have been exposed

by CESR to principles of corporate social responsibility and the practical applications of these principles. Leeds graduates are upto-date on social responsibility challenges that businesses face and can be active in creating profitable solutions. Businesses will be able to place greater trust in the fact that the value-add of a Leeds graduate will not only be to enhance firm performance, but will be done so in an ethical way that is mindful of the impact of decisions on stakeholders.

collaborator profile

accountability systems

Are we accountable

for the right things ?

Balancing Priorities Pits our Children’s Education Against Economic Issues by Jacki Paone

B

aldridge… ISO… NCLB… What do these have in common? Targets, benchmarks, success indicators, progress reports, accountability. NCLB (No Child Left Behind) was passed by Congress in 2001 and signed into law in January 2002. It included a major overhaul to the Federal ESEA (Elementary and Secondary Education Act) of 1965 school funding authorization. The major focus of NCLB was and is to “provide all children with a fair, equal, and significant opportunity to obtain a high-quality education.”1 According to the U.S. Department of Education, “No Child Left Behind is based on stronger accountability for results, more freedom for states and communities, proven education methods, and more choices for parents.”2 It includes intense scrutiny of schools’ education offerings and accountability for successful outcomes for students. Accountability is aimed not only for students in the mainstream, but specifically for those students affected by physical handicaps, learning disabilities, language differences and so on. Equitable opportunity for all and accountability for success remain buzzwords of NCLB.

achieve success. We must overcome these roadblocks so that in the words of Kati Haycock, president of the Education Trust, “success in school can serve as the foundation for success beyond school.” For all children to learn, we must utilize varied teaching techniques within varied timeframes depending on the student’s background and learning style. Accountability for success must consider the variables and provide the resources to ensure success. However, lacking widespread consensus about how NCLB’s accountability system can be improved, it is increasingly more important that educators and opinion leaders from stakeholders as diverse as our students undertake serious discussion, reach broader agreement and agree on how to adjust NCLB.

M easurement tools are woefully inadequate

Although there are those who believe that the concerns are based on education “whining” and educators’ unwillingness to initiate meaningful reform, most educators grapple with using data in meaningful ways. “For data-driven instruction to transform schooling – which it can – it must serve a master very different from rigid accountability formulas. It must aim to help students from all backgrounds attain an authentic 21st century education.”4

Researchers across the country measure student success along with the factors that lead to success (or not). The range of methodologies is wide as researchers and educators grapple with defining specific techniques, variables and resources that affect student learning. The research studies often yield conflicting results due to methods, uncontrolled variables and/ or limitations of funding resources. Longitudinal measurement studies hold promise for the strongest research conclusions and are likely to provide the best information about which reforms make a positive difference in student learning.

The Data Quality Campaign (www.dataqualitycampaign.org) lists ten data elements that are critical to a longitudinal data system: unique and stable statewide student identifiers connecting student data across key databases across years; student-level enrollment, demographic and program participation information; the ability to match individual students’ test records from year to year; information on untested students and why they were not tested; a teacher identifier system with the ability to match teachers to students; information on student courses completed and grades earned; information on student participation in and performance on college admissions and/or college level assessments; information on college enrollment and dropout data; the ability to match student records between the P-12 and higher education systems; and, a state data audit system assessing data quality, validity and reliability. While these should be considered the basic data requirements, only five states report having all ten elements.

Education’s most important product, students prepared for today’s global world, is one of the greatest challenges in implementing NCLB in schools with diverse student populations. This can set up roadblocks for the system to

Educators are encouraged to use these data tools to make databased decisions. Considering the wide availability and variability of research, educators need training in how to effectively use the data. “…the process of translating assessment into instructional

Most would agree that the intent of NCLB is noble and that it has focused considerable attention on providing more equitable education opportunities for children. This attention has resulted in improvements toward closing achievement gaps between white, more affluent students and their peers. At the same time, however, there have been concerns raised about NCLB. The National Education Association, for example, states that NCLB “established goals everyone supports: high standards and accountability for the learning of all children. But NCLB falls short of its goals for many reasons.”3 Many concerns are directed specifically at its accountability requirements such as meeting Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) which uses state standardized tests in math and reading, holding schools accountable based on how many students achieve a specific point on one test in each of these two subjects.

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decision making is far from easy.”5 However, schools that lack the financial resources to purchase the most basic school supplies are hard-pressed to spend funds to train classroom teachers in effectively using data to improve instruction.

Data about teachers lacks clear links to student achievement

Research has shown that the single most important factor in a student’s learning is his/her teacher. However, since there are many other factors affecting a student’s learning - family environment, living conditions, poverty etc. - teachers fear that linking student data to individual teachers will have the affect of blaming teachers for problems that have resulted from a variety of external factors. Resolving this apparent contradiction in order to improve data is a work in progress, with Colorado among the states working on solutions.

Although some 21 states report that they are able to link teacher and student data (www.dataqualitycampaign.org), little data is available.

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Colorado, for example, has been working for nearly three years on designing a unique teacher identifier. The issue is not the technical creation of the identifier, but how the identifier will be used to link data. Colorado legislation in 20076 created a Quality Teachers Commission (QTC), whose duty was to come to agreement about whether an identifier would be appropriate and if so, how. The QTC unanimously recommended in June 2008 that a pilot educator (teacher and principal) identifier be established. To satisfy the concerns about potential misuse, the QTC recommended protections:7 The teacher/principal identifier is not intended to sanction teachers or principals through decisions about salary, promotion, or evaluation. However, the commission feels strongly about ensuring that these protections are enacted quickly to meet the growing demand for data-driven efforts. The commission suggested: •D ata linked with a unique educator identifier should be used to support required reports, research, and support systems aimed at improving teacher and/or principal quality.

• Because school districts retain control of hiring, dismissal, salary decisions, and evaluation of individual educators, the state must not use data linked with an educator ID to penalize an individual teacher, principal, or group of educators.

• T he state must not use the data linked with a teacher and principal identifier to penalize a district.

• The state must not use the data linked with a teacher and principal identifier to penalize a teacher or principal preparation program.

• When examining complex issues, such as teacher quality, principal quality, and school improvement, multiple data points should be used and the context should be provided. Quick assumptions should be avoided.

• To avoid identification of individual teachers, public reporting of data should be restricted when the reporting size is small.

Colorado Department of Education (CDE) should consider existing caps as a guide to protect individuals.

• Individuals’ personal contact information should not be shared externally.

• E xisting CDE committees, such as the Institutional Review Board (IRB) and the Education Data Advisory Committee (EDAC), should recommend to the State Board of Education who can access various levels of specified data in the tiered system.

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As the QTC crafts a bill for introduction in the 2009 legislative session to create the educator identifier pilot, its progress will be closely watched by educators and policymakers alike.

Reporting requirements of NCLB take

significant time and resources from local school districts and state departments of education Ensuring accountability with the requirements of NCLB has resulted in extensive reporting by state agencies. They, in turn, require reports from school districts about student achievement for individual students specifically within certain categories. Such reports are necessary in an accountability system. One of the reasons for high cost and inefficiencies is inadequate technology. Some states have spent millions of dollars to upgrade data systems which may not be compatible with those in local school districts. A strong data infrastructure is critical to ensure effective and efficient reporting of results. However, states let alone school districts, can ill afford spending more dollars in today’s tight economy.

Although some federal funding has been available to support pilot states’ efforts at improving technology, the amount is far from adequate.

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accountability systems

States set varied standards such as the requirements for the Federal “highly qualified” teachers

educators, researchers and funders argue about the how and why, our children continue to funnel through the system with too many of them lacking the opportunity to a quality education.

The U.S. Department of Education (DOE) requires that each and every student be taught by a highly qualified teacher. The DOE requires that to be highly qualified a teacher must hold at least a bachelor’s degree, have full state certification or licensure, and have demonstrated competence in their subject areas.8 Each state, however, develops its own certification/licensure requirements as well as how it will measure demonstrated competence in a subject area. Therefore, a highly qualified teacher in New York,9 for example, could be much different from a highly qualified teacher in Utah.10

Public education HAS come a long way. There ARE numerous examples of success. Some successes are in charter schools or other innovative school structures; some successes are within schools where leaders have taken the challenge head on; however, many lack the resources to attempt or continue toward such success.

Why is it that we continue to spend our dollars on sports teams, business buyouts and crude oil while schools across the country lack resources, proper classrooms and most importantly, consistent teacher quality? Why is it that nonch i ld profits focused on the state and local policies with the greatest potential to impact reform, struggle with sustainability? Why is it that funders put their dollars into glitzy one-shot attempts and consumers buy season tickets to baseball games when children lack adequate facilities, quality teachers, and a chance at success?

no Even more important is the fact that most educators acknowledge that being a highly qualified teacher is not necessarily the same as being an effective teacher. “In the recent Aspen Institute report, Beyond NCLB (Commission on No Child Left Behind, 2007),11 written to guide the reauthorization of NCLB, the Commission defines ‘effective’ in terms of a teacher’s ability Until our nation focuses its priorities with to improve student achievement as measured on education at the top of the list, we will not succeed standardized tests. The Commission draws upon in meeting the challenges of a global economy studies using value-added methodologies to lef t b eh i n d and in recruiting top companies to our soils. argue that in the NCLB reauthorization, emphasis should be placed on developing data systems Jacki Paone is the Executive Director of the Alliance for Quality Teaching, that allow states and districts to identify those effective teachers Denver CO. Her career and volunteer experience, grounded in a belief in who contribute to children’s achievement growth each year. This equity of education, health and lifestyle for all children included founding a is a shift from a focus on qualifications to describe teacher quality Western New York non-profit aiding Vietnamese war orphans. to a focus on achievement outcomes.”12 Our Priorities With the unarguable need to compete globally in an ever-expanding market, one of the nation’s current education priorities is STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) education; the focus is on teaching the STEM skills to more students and recruiting these students into the STEM careers. In order to succeed at this outstanding vision, however, we also need to attract and retain qualified individuals to teach STEM skills. Will we be able to maintain teachers with STEM skills when their starting salary is just over $30,000 compared to starting as an engineer with a salary upwards of $50,000?13 Sadly, we are rapidly stealing time and the potential for success from the very students we hope to assist. While policymakers,

http://www.k12.wa.us/esea/ http://www.ed.gov/nclb/overview/intro/4pillars.html http://www.nea.org/esea/index.html 4 S chumaker, Mike. “Measuring What Matters”, Educational Leadership, December 2008/January 2009.

5 Buhle, Roberta and Camille L. Z. Blachowicz. “The Assessment Double Play”, Educational Leadership, December 2008/January 2009.

6 Senate Bill 07-140 7 A copy of the full report and recommendations is posted on the Colorado Department of Education web site at http://www.cde.state.co.us/Communications/download/ PDF/QTCyearonereport%20final.pdf.

8 http://www.ed.gov/nclb/landing.jhtml 9 Professional certification for a 5-8th grade middle school classroom teacher in NY through an approved teacher preparation program requires: Completion of a NYS Registered Program - Generalist In Middle Childhood Education (Grades 5-9); Institutional Recommendation 1 2 3

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Prior to moving to Denver, she was Executive Director of the Erie County (NY) Association of School Boards, a position she held for seven years. Her duties included planning and executing school board member development activities, government relations and advocacy for public education. Her work also included collaborative activities to improve the efficiency, effectiveness and equity of the public schools in Erie County.

Mrs. Paone’s career in public education included serving as Director of Communications for the Williamsville Central School District (NY) where she developed and administered a system-wide public relations program.

As a member of the Executive Board of the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA), Mrs. Paone served as president in 1993-94. She also served as president of the New York School Public Relations Association and the Western New York School Public Relations Association.

- Generalist In Middle Childhood Education (Grades 5-9) ; New York State Teacher Certification Exam - Liberal Arts & Science Test (LAST) ; New York State Teacher Certification Exam - Secondary Assessment of Teaching Skills (ATS-W); Content Specialty Test (CST) - Multi-Subject ; Paid, fulltime Classroom Teaching experience - 3 Yrs ; Mentored Experience - 1 Yrs ; Fingerprint Clearance ; Citizenship Status - INS Permanent Residence or U.S. Citizenship . (www.nysed.gov) 10 In the state of Utah, a teacher may receive a professional license after: Completion of a teacher preparation program; Recommendation from an accredited institution; Passing score on Praxis II content test; Work with a trained mentor for three years; Complete a professional portfolio; Receive two successful professional evaluations per year for three years in a Utah public or accredited private school; Achieve a score of 160 or better on the Praxis II Principles of Learning and Teaching test at the appropriate level of educational preparation and assignment; Achieve NCLB

Highly Qualified status in at least one license area or endorsement; Recommendation of employing district/ charter school. (www.usoe.k12.ut.us/cert/) 11 Commission on No Child Left Behind. (2007). Beyond NCLB. Retrieved on October 26, 2007 from http://www. aspeninstitute.org/atf/cf/%7BDEB6F227-659B-4EC88F84-8DF23CA704F5%7D/NCLB_Book.pdf 12 S hining the Light II: the State of Teacher Quality, Attrition and Diversity in Colorado (2008), Alliance for Quality Teaching, Denver, CO 13 A ccording to the American Federation of Teachers, as reported by the National Bureau of Labor Statistics (www. bls.gov) beginning teachers with a bachelor’s degree earned an average of $31,753 in the 2004–05 school year.

According to ColloegeGrad.com, electrical engineers with bachelor’s degrees reported starting salaries averaging at $55,292. Those with master’s degrees saw offers of $66,309, and those with PhD degrees received average offers of $75,982.

jewel of collaboration

daniels college of business

Guided by

a Compass How the Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver is Teaching the Next Generation of Business Leaders to Successfully Navigate Unchartered Territory

by R. Bruce Hutton, PhD, Paul M. Bauer, PhD, and Michaele E. Charles, Editor

A

s the Daniels College of Business celebrates its centennial, the business world today is a very different place than it was 100 years - or even 100 days - ago. Just one week’s worth of news in the New York Times today is estimated to contain more information than one might have learned over the course of a lifetime in the 18th century.

The rapid growth of technology has created millions of jobs and countless opportunities for people and businesses all across the world - yet, its constant evolution means that the top 10 jobs that will be in demand in 2015 do not exist today and that the amount of new technology information doubles almost every two years.

And since the turn of the century, numerous accounting scandals,

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the credit and mortgage crises and the financial meltdown on Wall Street - all situations resulting from a lack of values and ethics - have proved that the importance of teaching ethics in business has never been greater.

How is it possible to prepare future business leaders for jobs that don’t yet exist, or teach them the skills necessary to lead ethically in an exponentially changing and competitive business environment? How can colleges properly educate students to solve problems that are not problems yet, to use technologies that haven’t been invented, and to interact with people whose language we do not understand?

At the University of Denver’s Daniels College of Business, these very questions were raised by the team of more than 20 faculty members tasked in 2006 with redesigning the school’s educational model to prepare students for such a world, teaching them to be nimble when faced with uncertainty, but also grounded in their values and ethics. The Daniels Compass, introduced to students starting master’s programs in the fall of 2007, is a set of six courses (25 percent of the Daniels MBA curriculum) that integrates the fundamental business disciplines - finance, marketing, accounting, operations - with the areas of leadership, self-awareness, teamwork, sustainable development, corporate social responsibility, innovation and ethics. The idea: to offer a values-based business education that teaches current and future generations of business professionals how to make complex, multifaceted decisions while leading with integrity.

The Compass sequence following six courses:

includes

the

•T he Essence of Enterprise: Teaching students the historical context for doing business in the 21st century and how to take a world view of business.

• L eading at the Edge: An introduction to leadership and teambuilding through experiential learning and community engagement.

•E thics for the 21 st Century Professional: Teaching students how to apply ethical concepts and values-based leadership to actual business settings.

• Creating Sustainable Enterprises: An in-depth study of the interdependency of economic, social and environmental systems.

• Global Enterprise Challenges: Applying the Daniels Compass tools to global case analyses.

• Innovation Design and Execution: Teaching students to distinguish between invention and innovation, and better understand how to add value through the execution of innovative ideas.

» The rapid growth of technology has created millions of jobs and countless opportunities for people and businesses all across the world - yet, its constant evolution means that the top 10 jobs that will be in demand in 2015 do not exist today and that the amount of new technology information doubles almost every two years. «

Innovation in education...

value in business and society From their research, a key conclusion was reached by the Daniels’ curriculum task force: Conventional workforce training and education is quickly becoming obsolete, if it hasn’t already. First, people’s values and priorities in the workplace are increasingly crossing over into their personal lives (and vice versa), causing many professionals to reconsider how they define - and fuse - personal and professional success.

Second, the specialization of skills, while still important, is no longer sufficient in an increasingly interdependent business world. Accountants must learn more than accounting, operations professionals more than just operations.

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In Daniels’ view, progressive organizations understand the importance of creating shareholder value, but realize that value is built and grown in many ways. Employees, for example, are much more than a “cog in a wheel,” but rather the primary source of an organization’s productivity and success. Thus, it is important to educate the leaders of today and tomorrow about the significance of viewing value creation from a multi-stakeholder perspective, particularly when the students of today want to make a living and a difference in the world.

To that end, the Daniels Compass blends the teaching of the technical skills necessary to do a job with the softer, but no less important leadership skills.

In doing so, Daniels will create visionary leaders who recognize that a profitable bottom line is easiest to achieve (and more sustainable) when placing value on people, community and the natural environment.

» It is important to educate the leaders of today and tomorrow about the significance of viewing value creation from a multi-stakeholder perspective, particularly when the students of today want to make a living and a difference in the world. «

The compass itself is the perfect metaphor for such a business model, as it provides both direction to the destination ahead and a back bearing that detects where one has come from. The Compass courses are designed to do the same: provide vision and direction for the future, a perspective of the greater world and a sense of history to guide students along the way. The directional points on the Daniels educational compass represent the four categories of values that business leaders must deal with as they navigate an uncertain future: Nature, Enterprise, Self and World.

A three-tiered approach to a solid business education

Daniels takes its new integrated coursework beyond the walls of the classroom, offering multiple opportunities for practical application in real-world settings. In a world where business education is a contact sport, Daniels students practice their skills by developing themselves in three distinct areas: The Global Perspective. Daniels graduate students are taught to view entrepreneurship on a global level, considering all sectors of a working society - private, public, nonprofit - while addressing issues such as sustainable development and corporate social responsibility. In the practicum component of the Enterprise Solutions course, students must partner with an organization or nonprofit to help them address an opportunity or challenge and provide specific deliverables to the organization. And while many students choose to work with local organizations, more and more are opting to take their initiatives across the globe.

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In August 2008, graduate students and professors traveled to Tanzania to work with Peace House Africa, a humanitarian non-profit organization dedicated to educating orphans and other vulnerable children in the area.

While not the first trip of its kind (Daniels also has a collaborative partnership with Newmont Mining to allow graduate student groups to do project work at mining sites in Ghana and Peru, and undergraduate classes have traveled to Albania for several years to do community development work), the unique aspect of the Daniels-Peace House relationship is that it echoes the themes of longterm sustainability - both in substance and form. Over the next several years, faculty and students will assist Peace House in designing a curriculum for secondary school students in the areas of business, ethics, leadership, teamwork and sustainable development.

The idea is for each class of Daniels students to build upon the previous class’s efforts.

The partnership offers students the chance to apply business acumen to the area of innovation at Peace House, while adhering to the Compass values. Eventually, students will create a business plan for a Center for Innovation and Job Creation, whose aim will be to create jobs and sustainable solutions to development issues throughout Africa.

Another example of such hands-on global fieldwork is the Daniels partnership with Deutsche Bank, a two-course sequence in which students work with DB managers to perform due diligence on loan requests from microfinance institutions (MFIs) all over the world. As part of the class, students travel to MFIs in developing countries. In 2009, the class will be on the ground with DB in Cambodia.

The Experiential Learning Perspective. To foster innovation, leadership and teamwork, as part of the Leading at the Edge course, all Daniels MBA students spend three days in the mountains, working in small teams to solve a variety of problems in a challenging and unpredictable outdoor setting. But this isn’t your typical ropes course - students are taught to apply the principles embraced by the 10 th Mountain Division, the first mountain ski force that was trained at Camp Hale, Colorado during World War II. Just as this unique environment required the men of the 10 th Mountain Division to embrace creativity, mold strong teams and above all else, communicate, the aim of the Leading at the Edge weekend is to challenge students to be innovative and confident, increase self-awareness, adhere to their personal values and practice teamwork when leading - regardless of the circumstances.

In the fall of 2008, Leading at the Edge students spent three days at The Nature Place, a conference facility and training center in Florissant, Colorado. Maria Mata, MBA student, calls the excursion a “wonderful experience for students.”

“Our trip to The Nature Place allowed us to gain a better understanding of ourselves, our personalities and how we each relate to others,” says Maria. “We received a practical, real-life demonstration of how people with various leadership styles interact with one another. The experience provided exciting opportunities to test our developing teamwork and leadership skills, and helped us understand the importance of developing positive interpersonal relationships.”

The Community Perspective. The Compass curriculum was designed around a mission of inspiring students to be responsible citizens and make a positive difference both in the workplace and the greater community. More than just lip service, this goal is embodied by capstone projects required of all MBA students projects that show students how to contribute to the public good using business skills.

Executive MBAs participate in a five-quarter, applied learning team experience called the Action Leadership Project (ALP).

The goal of the ALP is to invest social capital in an organization to achieve measurable results. One example is a project undertaken by students in the fall of 2008 with Denver Children’s Home (DCH) to help the organization enhance its experiential music therapy program for traumatized children. The goals of the team included developing a brand around the value of the program, capturing the unwritten program goals and key performance indicators, defining a strategy for sustainability and scalability and ultimately, delivering a strategy for grant-writing.

Looking forward As Daniels continually reassesses and adjusts the program to achieve maximum learning outcomes, top of mind is the startling conclusion reached through practice and extensive research: When it comes to properly training leaders to lead in today’s complex world, higher education risks becoming irrelevant.

Colleges and universities that ignore the importance of integrating knowledge - unfortunately, the majority - inadequately arm their students with the skills necessary to be successful professionals and the values necessary to contribute to the greater good. For that reason, Daniels has embedded in the Compass a steadfast commitment to interdisciplinary teaching and practices.

The University is also responding, integrating curricula across schools that have historically remained separate - Daniels is in talks with the University’s School of Art and Art History to address a widening gap in the art museum world: CEOs with little to no business experience. Soon, administrators hope to offer a dual art/business major to bridge the two disciplines.

DU has also created a Universitywide Sustainability Council - an effort driven by a number of student organizations passionate about the environment and sustainable development.

The Council is in charge of developing and assisting in the execution of a strategy that incorporates the principles of sustainable development environmental integrity, social equity, and economic health and stability - into the operation of the University. In fact, DU has conducted a campus-wide sustainability conference to help set the agenda for future action, and is even developing an interdisciplinary undergraduate minor in sustainability. The Council consists of 25 members, including faculty, staff, undergraduates and graduate students.

» One thing is clear: without a compass and a vision, even the most astute of business leaders would struggle to navigate today’s constantly changing business environment. «

All other graduate business students must complete a similar assignment: the Community Capital Project (CCP). The CCP begins with the careful exploration of community issues in the Denver metro area or other parts of Colorado, whereby student teams must identify and define a specific community capital gap that their team could address. The results of that analysis (and ideas for closing the gap) are shared with the entire Daniels community as well as other members of the Denver community at the Community Capital Fair just one quarter into the project. The following quarter, teams pick up where they left off and design a solution to the gap identified.

One thing is clear: without a compass and a vision, even the most astute of business leaders would struggle to navigate today’s constantly changing business environment. Just five quarters in, the new Compass curriculum has redefined the value and purpose of an education at the Daniels College of Business; however, constituents and administrators agree that the future is crucial. To continue to be recognized as one of the best business schools in the world, Daniels must never forget their initial goal of preparing professionals to lead and add significant value to business and society.

At the fall 2008 CCP Fair, gaps identified were as diverse as nonprofits unable to go green due to a lack of resources, the difficulty for poverty-stricken families of finding affordable child care, parents of English-as-a-Second-Language children struggling to stay involved with their children’s educations, and the challenges small businesses face in engaging in sustainable business practices.

More than 360 graduate business students participated.

R. Bruce Hutton, Dean Emeritus and Piccinati Professor in Teaching Innovation, is the leader in sustainable development education for graduate and corporate programs at the Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver. Paul M. Bauer is a clinical professor in the Department of Information Technology and Electronic Commerce at Daniels. Michaele E. Charles, Voice Communications, is a freelance writer in Denver. To learn more about the Compass Program, visit www.daniels.du.edu.

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collaborator profile

Jenks Public Schools

Jenks Public Schools A Tradition of Excellence with a Vision for Tomorrow by Shan Glandon

A

pattern of excellence has been a tradition in the Jenks Public Schools, a district of almost 10,000 students located in and just outside of Tulsa, Oklahoma:

creating a sequenced body of knowledge and learning expectations and a way for teachers to ensure a logical, progressive sequence of learning experiences for all students.

With a tradition of excellence, it would be easy for the District to become complacent and rest on its laurels; however, it is this tradition that fuels the vision for tomorrow and creates a commitment to “exceeding all-time bests.” It is also this tradition of excellence that prompted the more focused quality journey of the past thirteen years. The journey began in the mid-nineties with an introduction to quality principles and the formation of the Continuous Improvement Leadership Team whose vision and leadership efforts focused on shaping and sustaining a systems perspective, fostering a data-based decision making climate, and nurturing strong quality leadership and an intense commitment to continuous improvement.

Other benefits of the curriculum development and alignment process have been the spirit of teamwork, which is created when

District Success • Forty-three years of successful bond issue elections have supported the District in building and maintaining “state of the art” facilities and resources.

• A systematic curriculum development, instruction, assessment and school climate system has built the necessary academic structures for sustained improvement in student learning results, moving the District closer to the 1500 mark, the target for excellence set by the state of Oklahoma to meet accountability requirements of the No Child Left Behind legislation.

• More than 160 state championships have been garnered by student athletes in the district since it began in 1908.

• Stakeholder satisfaction ratings (as measured by ongoing staff and patron surveys) have continued to show the District’s commitment to teamwork and partnerships beyond the school walls.

One of the early key steps for student learning was the implementation of a district wide curriculum development and alignment process. The urgency for developing a consistent and coherent curriculum was powerful and compelling. By specifying the knowledge all students should share, then and only then, could the district assure equal access to knowledge for all students. The standards became the District’s desired academic outcomes toward which all students would strive and for which multiple assessments would be developed. With this systems focus, the “community of classrooms” shared some common knowledge, which made communication, progress, and continuous improvement possible. By organizing the planning and decision making around the entire period of a student’s education, the District created a comprehensive, systemic approach that has raised achievement for all students. The curriculum at each grade built on what the students had learned in the previous grades, thus

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• The nationally acclaimed intergenerational program at Grace Living Center has begun its tenth year of providing a unique learning opportunity for pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students who attend school at the Center and interact daily with the “Grandma and Grandpa” residents.

• Students across the grade levels have continued to demonstrate their growing citizenship skills with a myriad of service learning projects from SHOCK Day (Seniors Helping Our Community and Kids) to Jump Rope for Heart with elementary students.

• The School Emergency Response Team (SERT) processes have helped the District maintain its comprehensive approach to ensuring student and staff emergency preparedness and safety, providing a yearly update in the Emergency Procedures Guide and ongoing insights from full-scale disaster exercises that include multi-jurisdictional agencies within the Tulsa area, students, administrators, and other staff members.

multiple stakeholders from across the district (parents, administrators, teachers, and specialists) work together in a year-long process; the sustaining vision of an aim statement and the in-depth knowledge of effective instructional strategies, which are developed early in the committee process and based on reading the research, the national standards, and literature on researchbased teaching and learning strategies for the discipline under review; the consistency of practice and pacing, which is assured through the adoption of primary program materials that are used by all educators and students in the district; and, the power of sustained, intensive, and classroom-focused professional learning, so teachers have the confidence and skills for research-based teaching and learning in the discipline.

» With a tradition of excellence, it would be easy for the District to become complacent and rest on its laurels; however, it is this tradition that fuels the vision for tomorrow and creates a commitment to “exceeding alltime bests.” «

from year to year for each student in the district. The questions for these assessments derive from the essential skills and concepts.

At the school-site level, principals and teachers have formal processes for analyzing results from state and district assessments. Administrators address student achievement and improvement of national and state test scores in their annual goals and action plans.

Key questions for October of each year include: Who are the students who are at risk for failure? How can their learning needs be addressed? What interventions can be provided to help students close the achievement gap?

A second key step for student learning began to take shape in 1997 with a value paradigm shift from a focus on teaching to a focus on learning.

With this shift, the criterion for success in the district became the increased learning of the students, not that concepts or skills were taught. The right questions for each staff member became: What is in the best interest of the students? How does this innovation support improvement in student learning?

At the classroom level, analysis of ongoing assessments has begun to drive daily instruction. Training in the Data Teams process provided an additional tool for teacher teams to use to chart and analyze student assessment data, set SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timely) goals, and develop and use common instructional strategies to meet student learning targets. Multiple assessment strategies have enhanced student ownership for learning and created an environment of data-based decision making, where “I think, I feel” is no longer good enough.

Concomitantly, formal processes for collecting, tracking and analyzing student learning data began to emerge. At the district-level, tracking and analysis of state testing results had been in place for many years, not only growth in overall scores, but also analysis of student segments and the objectives for each content area tested. In 2000, the District began working with Dr. Lee Jenkins to implement the essential elements process, a system of formative assessments.

With this process, essential skills and concepts are identified in each content area for each course and grade level, and quizzes are developed based on the essential skills and concepts. The quizzes build in a constant review and preview cycle, so students no longer have permission to forget. Students track their progress using individual run charts; teachers use the assessments to accumulate data about student progress and make instructional decisions based on students’ readiness levels, interests, and learning profile preferences. Then in 2004, the District began implementing pre- and postassessments for each core subject to track growth within a school year and

Alignment and deployment of key processes have also been transformational for the District. The Continuous Improvement Model pillars (strong quality leadership, continuous improvement, systems/process focus, and stakeholder engagement and satisfaction) and foundations (teamwork, quality training, and data-based decisions) were developed in 1998.

At the same time, the District initiated training for teachers, administrators, and other district leaders regarding “Deming’s Framework for Transforming America’s Schools” and “Tools and Techniques for Improving Quality of Teaching, Learning, and Administrative Processes.” With the identification of core values in 2002 and the subsequent formalization of a Strategic Planning Process, an alignment structure was complete: the District’s vision drove its mission, which drove the core values, which drove the Continuous Improvement Model, which drove district goals, strategic objectives and action plans; and, all supported: the action plans which supported the strategic objectives and goals, which supported the Continuous Improvement Model, which supported the core values, which supported the mission and vision.

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The Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) process became the common tool for continuous improvement across the district, used to plan, implement, analyze, review, and revise goals, practices, and procedures. Each staff member develops a PDSA action as part of his/her yearly performance appraisal; the action plan identifies a goal (tied to district goals and strategic objectives) and describes in detail steps and strategies to accomplish the goal. Staff members also identify the data that will be collected as the

college entry requirements and pursuing goals for careers. The award winning Community Education Program has developed an array of program offerings that support community needs from birth to old age, making the District’s buildings available to the community for after school, evening, and weekend use. In their first twenty years, the Jenks Public Schools Foundation has partnered with businesses, alumni, and families to raise money in support of innovative and creative programming. They also sponsor the annual Employee Appreciation Celebration and the Vision of Excellence awards, which recognize outstanding staff members for their leadership, focus on continuous improvement and customers, and use of quality tools and processes.

The reflective Baldrige process has been invaluable in reviewing strengths and opportunities for improvement, and has provided a framework for continuously examining the District’s systems and processes, levels of deployment, and cycles of refinement. It was also a moment for celebration when Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez contacted the District to extend his congratulations on being named a 2005 Baldrige Award recipient.

measurement for the goal. At the spring performance appraisal conferences with supervisors, staff members share their data analysis and make decisions regarding whether to continue the cycle of successful plans or refine plans and begin revised cycles of improvement.

Through the development of the in-depth Budgetary Planning Process and an ongoing Internal Reviews Process, the District has maintained a high level in per pupil expenditures and consistently designates 82-83% of its operating budget for instruction and instructional support. Energy conservation (water, electricity, natural gas, sewer discharges) has been a priority of the district since 1997, freeing money in the building fund for adding and maintaining “state of the art” resources to support high academic achievement.

» At the classroom level, analysis of ongoing assessments has begun to drive daily instruction. «

Strong parent and community support have become hallmarks of a Jenks Public Schools education. More than 95% of parents of high school students participate in the annual spring Career Action Planning conferences, enabling students and parents to develop and implement action plans for meeting graduation and

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However, the journey continues…with a vision for tomorrow: • T he recent passage of a $150 million dollar bond election provides funds to build a new math and science center, offering students increased opportunities for integrated learning, rigorous academics, and real-world problem solving.

• Student, teacher, and administrator partnerships with schools in China support the District’s commitment to growing “successful global citizens, workers, and leaders who are knowledgeable about the world, able to communicate in languages other than English” (Stewart 2007) and prepared to understand and respect different cultures and perspectives.

• Collaboration with the American Productive and Quality Center in Houston fosters opportunities to benchmark with other world class organizations and to participate in the innovative Process Improvement and Innovation in Education initiative of the Center.

• Deployment of the quality tools and processes to the student level encourages the District to focus on 21st century learning and thinking skills, so students “know how to learn, think critically, solve problems, use information, and communicate, innovate, and collaborate.” (Partnership for 21st Century Skills) • I ntegration of professional learning teams at all levels of the organization enables the District to engage in deep learning and to concentrate on “crucial questions: What do we want each student to learn? How will we know when each student has learned it? How will we respond when a student experiences difficulty in learning” (DuFour 2008) or demonstrates understanding of skills and concepts before teaching has begun?

Jenks Public Schools will continue their efforts to provide an environment of high achievement, an outstanding athletics program, and multitudinous opportunities for involvement in extracurricular activities. It is a world in which high test scores and national awards are the norm rather than the exception, and yet never will be taken for granted.

Shan has been a member of the District’s Curriculum and Instruction Team since 2000, and co-authored the 2005 Jenks Public Schools Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award application. She is a leader in curriculum development, instruction, and assessment. Shan earned a Bachelor’s degree in American Studies from the University of Kansas and a Master’s degree in Information Science from State University of New York at Buffalo. She is the author of four books.

jewel of collaboration

e-Learning

The Evolution of e-Learning From the Classroom to the Boardroom by Kim DeCoste

By early 1958, one significant but not widely-known United States response was the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA).

“Moving from the one-room schoolhouse to the one-world schoolhouse is now a reality.”

-Sr. Executive, Cisco Systems

H

ow it Began:

Certainty is an overused word, but one thing I can say with 100% certainty is that I did not invent the internet. I have sometimes been fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time, however. I continue to see online education, technology and their convergence impact professional development and revolutionize the world of work. This exciting intersection is the “place” where I find my personal passion to collaborate and make things happen!

The quick truth is that the internet (or Internet) - depending on how you use the word - was born slowly and collaboratively. It was born iteratively. It was formed, re-formed, refined and reapplied for multiple uses. It was partially and most prominently originally intended so that the United States of America could keep pace scientifically (politically) with war foes. Sputnik went to space.

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As time passed and people and ideas moved, the technologies also evolved. By 1983, an appropriate protocol for wide-areanetwork information sharing was available and by 1988, real commercial interests were popping up. Nestled between France and Switzerland, CERN published a “world wide web project” and credit for the invention of “the web” was given to English Scientist, Tim Berners-Lee in or around 1989.

From my personal perspective, I was introduced to the internet in 1995. I was a technical recruiter for a small firm in Los Angeles.

I had graduated from the University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC) - with a B.A. in Language Studies, not Computer Science or Education - and was lucky to have a roommate with a computer my freshman year. That computer and the “mac lab” were the full extent of my technical exposure in college. It was an IBM 286 with an amber screen and a very loud daisy wheel printer, but it was the first computer to which I had had access and I was glad to have taken “typing” in 8th grade. (Someone told me once that a girl should always know how to type to ensure she could find a job.) My roommate and I made extra money typing papers for people and we were lucky to have the resource.

I do not believe that there was prevalent internet access on our campus from 1988 to 1992 when I attended. If so, it was not emphasized for students of Language Arts and Linguistics.

My only previous computer exposure in the early 1970s had been the punch cards my dad brought home from work. They had words on the top and holes in them and they had something to do with

“data processing” which was his work. This was the full extent of my technical background growing up until college other than Atari, but I don’t think “Pong” counts.

Fast forward nearly 15 years and I find it funny that a client in Los Angeles took his time on a Saturday to teach a small but successful technical search firm “What is the Internet” and why it “would be” important. We were minutes from UCLA by car and some of the most cutting-edge technical companies in Southern

had been acquired by TMG Worldwide (the parent company of Monster.com). I was recruited to work for a national firm in Denver and soon they also restructured – eliminating my team. I made a decision to apply my recruiting skills in a new way.

I was hired by Jones Knowledge, Jones International University. JIU was the first fully U.S. accredited fully online University in the world. With accreditation from the North Central Association of the Higher Learning Commission and

» The internet is not much more really than a medium. A tool.

A new means by which or with which we can operate. It can connect us. « California and yet it was not until after that meeting/training that we even had email in the office!

with no brick and mortar campus, JIU had succeeded where many said it could not be done.

Clearly, times have changed. According to the World Internet Usage Statistics News and Population Stat, as of June 30, 2008, 1.463 billion people use the Internet!1

Glenn R. Jones, founder of JIU, said he set out to “democratize education” and at one point his vision was to have “a Harvard of the web”. Whatever one may say of the legacy of his University, it is inarguable that he did succeed in creating something many said would never happen. For-profit higher education was no longer a dream. And from that accomplishment the winds of change blew through the world of education with gale force. “There are two fundamental equalizers in life - the Internet and education,” says John Chambers, CEO of Cisco Systems.

It ’s a Tool . Is it “cheese”?

So in and of itself, the internet is not much more really than a medium. A tool. A new means by which or with which we can operate. It can connect us. It can educate us. It can allow us to do great things (or less-than-great things). But in the final analysis, it’s just a tool. Until it is applied to something or given a context.

The book Who Moved My Cheese by Dr. Spencer Johnson is a favorite quick read and I thought of it in the context of e-learning.

One of the interesting outcomes of the application of the internet to many things (e-commerce, e-learning, e-everything, it seems.) is that suddenly we find many people struggling and scrambling around like Dr. Johnson’s characters, Sniff, Scurry, Hem and Haw. Many things - indeed many industries - have been fully transformed by the internet. And some have disappeared completely.

Certainly as a third party recruiter (a headhunter), it was a cataclysmic change we experienced in our industry when we went from really recruiting to keyword matching and posting on job boards.

I am fortunate, however, in that when the change was happening – and I was in the middle of it between a personal relocation and an industry upheaval - I got a chance to find a new way to apply my skills.

I moved to Denver in 2000 when unemployment was 2.9%. Within weeks of my relocation, the company I worked for in California

e-Education - K-12: The overall K-12 market is dynamic » Do not - consisting of “elementary confine your students (usually kindergarten children to through 6 th grade) and secondary your own students (7th - 12 th grade). The learning, U.S. Department of Education’s for they National Center for Education were born in Statistics (NCES) reports, after another time. « growing at a 7.4% average annual - Chinease proverb rate since the 1969-1970 school year, the K-12 school segment accounted for roughly $558 billion in expenditures in 2005-2006 (most recent data available) equivalent to about 4.2% of the U.S. annual gross domestic product.”2 BMO research further suggests that the estimated forecast is that K-12 spending “will increase roughly 4.6% CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) to nearly $834 billion in the 2014-2015 school year. Detailed information in the for-profit sector is difficult to find, but it is estimated that vendors will generate approximately $26.5 billion in revenue in the 2006-2007 school year.”3

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e-Learning

The only slowing in enrollment in the United States is reflected in the slower birth rate in this country, but BMO still projects an increase of approximately 0.4% annually.

Additional pressure for K-12 education was applied by the No Child Left Behind Legislation (NCLB) which mandated “proficiency” in key subject areas and that students be taught by “highly qualified” teachers. As BMO summarizes, “The NCLB legislation focuses on four main themes to achieve these goals: 1) accountability 2) flexibility 3) localized control and 4) an emphasis on doing what works based on scientific research.”4

Many U.S. Public School Districts (and states) are approaching e-learning and some are showing great progress quickly.

Here in Colorado, the Douglas County School District (DCSD www.dcsdk12.org ) has a mission statement that says it all: “Learn Today. Lead Tomorrow.”

Under the guidance of Sohne Van Selus (Online Planning Principal) “eDCSD is dedicated to helping students acquire the knowledge and abilities to be responsible citizens who contribute to our society - any time, any place, anywhere.”

Therefore, the potential market in the K-12 space is significant.

Data provided demonstrates that educational leaders recognize the growing need for technical learning solutions that up until recently had not been the focus of the K-12 market, but more of higher education. Data provided supports claims that there is a need for virtual learning solutions as young as pre-kindergarten and up to the 16th grade level. The widespread use of social networking tools by young people is also fully documented.

The District launched the program this fall and, “eDCSD [has begun] as a service to students whose needs are not entirely being met by the traditional high school. A variety of courses at all curricular levels and disciplines will be offered for students who choose to participate in an eDCSD course for credit recovery, extended learning, or because of schedule conflicts within their day. Ultimately, eDCSD will become a full service, diplomaawarding high school – a viable, quality option for the nontraditional student.”

Finally, and of equal importance to the demands of students, teachers are recognizing the need for these tools not only for use in the classroom but also for use in their own personal and

Douglas County has also partnered with HopeCo-Op™. Hope’s mission: “Learn. Achieve. Graduate.” Under the direction of Heather O’Mara, Hope Online Learning Academy, is an online

» Providing safe collaborative online communities for teachers expands their abilities to engage their students and provides an additional level of transparency for concerned parents who recognize that kids are using technology - but who want their children to be using technology in safe and productive settings. « professional development. Providing safe collaborative online communities for teachers expands their abilities to engage their students and provides an additional level of transparency for concerned parents who recognize that kids are using technology - but who want their children to be using technology in safe and productive settings.

Although there is a great deal of research surrounding the current and forthcoming demand for K-12 online e-learning, I think it is becoming a little-disputed point that technology does belong in schools.

The challenges we face both here in the United States and internationally are how to deploy the technology effectively and for what purpose, so that real, relevant learning takes place. The top five reasons cited by a Sloan Study for offering online learning include: 1. Offering courses not otherwise available in school 2. Meeting the needs of specific groups of students 3. Offering Advanced Placement or college-level courses 4. Reducing scheduling conflicts for students 5. Permitting students who failed courses to take them again.5

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public charter school (under DCSD’s charter) that provides a highquality education for K-12 students (www.hopeco.op.org).

Hope’s blended learning model is “based upon proven methods that utilize individual instruction. Students have the option to access the curriculum at a Hope Online Learning Center or at home, each coupled by support from experienced teachers and mentors.”

e-Education - H igher Education: The market for higher education online is massive. There is just no other way to say it. There is conflicting data everywhere about how many students participate in online learning, how large the U.S. and international market share is or may be and – of course – who are the leaders in Online Higher Education.

» An organization’s ability to learn and translate that learning into action is the ultimate competitive advantage . « - Jack Welch, ex-CEO General Electric

There are distinctions still made between fully online schools with no campus offerings, blended models with some on/some off campus (or a choice) and the traditional brick and mortar campuses who are adding online delivery of their curriculum to keep students engaged in this way. It is not clear to me personally who will truly emerge over time as a leader in this market, however, The University of Phoenix (Apollo Group) has established itself firmly and is considered the largest private university in the world based on enrollment numbers.

Challenges to online institutions are numerous. Having worked in this industry specifically for nearly 7 years, I personally have witnessed the struggles between offering a solid curriculum and making sure students learn and are satisfied with the process.

Online learning is not for everyone. I earned an MBA in eCommerce in 2005 with an infant at home, a traveling husband, and a full-time job. I can say first-hand, you really have to want to finish that degree to get it done!

Typical adult online learners are not back in school purely in pursuit of knowledge. There is real pressure - now maybe even more than before - to keep skills sharp and to show professional initiative.

Online learning allows that. It is however, very demanding. It requires self-motivation and as I often told people who asked me about it, “you have to want to learn”. Anyone at any school can get a passing grade, I would argue. Online education is no different.

In fact, in many ways it is more challenging.

You cannot just “show up for class”, coffee in hand, and sit in the back row and learn by osmosis. In order to learn online the student must engage. I saw a quote but did not capture the author, but I should have. I paraphrase it by saying, “Classroom teachers know their students’ faces. Online teachers know their students’ minds.”

» Typical adult online learners are not back in school purely in pursuit of knowledge. There is real pressure - now maybe even more than before - to keep skills sharp and to show professional initiative. « Then, talk about collaboration! I have never enjoyed my learning experiences more than I did during the cross cultural and cross country interactions of my peers during my MBA. I had professors from Brazil, Ireland and Germany to name a few. We had students from Africa, active duty international military in Iraq and Afghanistan, citizens of all ages and genders in Guam, Hawaii, Switzerland, Mexico and more.

Overall at JIU at the time of my departure, they cited students from over 80 countries. Jones also did work with a special United Nations project. So, it truly was a chance to learn with and from others.

Additional Collaborative e-Learning Discoveries: In my penultimate role at » If you have the University, having been knowledge , let a recruiter and a student, I others light their recognized the need for career candles at it. « services at the University.

- Margaret Fuller So often it seemed that the people with whom I studied and came into contact with were there either as career starters, career changers or career advancers. The bottom line was that they needed assistance with tying education to valuable professional development.

I worked with a team to create “The Total Professional Advantage™”. It has since been improved upon and revamped, but in its original form, it was intended to be a collaborative online forum for students to create a sense of community independent of their courses and in some cases even independent of their field of study. The Total Professional Advantage ™ (or “TPA”) as many liked to call it, gave students a place to converge, to share ideas, to expand upon class projects and to collaborate. And it continues to be successful.

I attribute much of that success to one key partner in the project. Colleagues from a company in New Jersey called ReadyMinds (www.ReadyMinds.com) founded by Randy Miller were instrumental in the development of The Total Professional Advantage™. With the help of dedicated colleagues, ReadyMinds had already established itself as the leader in legitimate distance career counseling. Neither the model nor the process of creating it were simple, but the idea itself was amazingly so.

Mr. Miller and his team wanted to: 1. Adopt Something You Could Believe In 2. Be “Go To” Counselors 3. Promote a Technologically savvy Professional Image 4. Incorporate Distance Counseling as a Supplement and Compliment of Traditional Counseling 5. Enhance the Power of the User 6. Increase Technological Utilization with Limited Discarding of Conventional Approaches In their book - Distance Counseling: Expanding the Counselor’s Reach and Impact – Mr. Miller writes, “The availability of counseling in an online platform has and will continue to attract individuals who may have never considered any type of counseling or coaching in a traditional face-to-face environment. But because it is online in an environment they are comfortable in, barriers or preconceived notions…become less daunting and encourage participation.”

The same is often said about online learning in general. There is some comfort for many in the anonymity of engaging online.

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jewel of collaboration

e-Learning

From the Virtual Classroom to the Virtual Workplace to Work: My final example with respect to what we can accomplish in elearning business environments has to do with virtual internships.

I came across a company some years ago, then in “beta test” but now up and running called www.internships.com . Another potential resource for my virtual career center, Internships.com allows employers to post openings and provides a platform for students (mostly university level) to get “matched” with opportunities.

They get to do real, interesting, relevant work. They often get academic credit. Some get paid. Some find these internships lead to their first “real jobs”. C. Mason Gates, Founder and CEO of the company writes, “There is a generational shift toward more

learning through electronic means. The evolution of the web and subsequently e-learning is affecting the roles of many professionals.

Web 2.0 has brought us the interactive web. People aren’t passively reading anymore, they are interacting and contributing. The amount of content and information available is growing exponentially. I believe this change has tremendous impact. While there will always be a need for content development and formal training, I believe the need will shift from a focus on content to a focus on context. With the help of the web, we can find content on almost anything. Our jobs will require us to help our learners wade through it all! We need to create a context for learning; we will need to help the learner draw the lines. We’ll want to facilitate interaction and continued, informal learning.”

» People are trying to do more with less. Adoption of online education or training will increase as people look to decrease travel costs and reduce down time associated with travel. « experiential learning for students. There is a demographic shift altering the world of employment.

And there’s a need for all of us to learn, grow and get a leg up every day.” I believe Mason is correct.

The Rest of the e-World and What ’s Next?

Thanks to LinkedIn, an old classmate from my MBA days found me a few months ago. She and I are now collaborating on projects (literally) from Guam to Hawaii to Arizona to Colorado to Western Europe. Jennifer Rush’s company is called Empowered Learning Solutions (www.empowerls.com). I asked Jennifer for some input and this is what she said, “On its surface, technology appears to separate people. Yet, as technology has advanced it has not only actually served to connect them, but to also give them personalized service. A perfect example of this is in the realm of education and training. As a corporate IT trainer for multiple years, my greatest frustration was that I really had no way of knowing what my students knew when they came into the class and what they really knew when they left. The next frustration came on the logistics side: the necessity of having a minimum class size to make running each class economically feasible. Technology has solved both of these crucial issues.”

Finally, with a few minutes (literally) before I have to send this article to ICOSA, I just got an email from a friend who I also invited to contribute if she had the time. Her name is Stori Hybbeneth. She earned a Master of Education in e-Learning: Global Leadership and Administration and now works for Cisco WebEx Consulting.

Stori writes, “E-Learning is evolving. There was a time when the word e-learning was associated with boring self-paced courses - page turners. Today, the word e-learning should encompass any

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She goes on, “Although I think this change was inevitable, I think it will be hastened by the recent economic downturn. People are trying to do more with less. Adoption of online education or training will increase as people look to decrease travel costs and reduce down time associated with travel. Other efficiencies include increased re-use of materials, and increased use of user generated content.”

For me, e-learning is a passion and I believe Plato said it best, “Someday, in the distant future, our grandchildren’s grandchildren will develop a new equivalent of our classrooms. They will spend many hours in front of boxes with fires glowing within. May they have the wisdom to know the difference between light and knowledge.”

Or if Plato is not contemporary enough for your personal taste, please consider the words of Arne Duncan, President-elect Obama’s choice for Sectary of Education. He said, “[Education] is the civil rights issue of our generation and is the one sure path to a more equal and just society.”

Kim DeCoste is President of DeCoste & Associates. To contact Kim visit www.DeCosteAssociates.com or call 303.470.9898. http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm Siber, Jeffrey. MBO Capital Marketplace 2007 Equity Research: Education and Training Ibid 4 Ibid 5 Http://www.sloan-c.org/publications/survey/k-12_06.asp 1 2 3

collaborator profile

denver school partners program

Building the Community Denver’s School Partners Program Does More Than Get Businesses Into The Classroom by Geri Zabitz Badler

W

hat do Denver Broncos cornerback Drè Bly, Comcast, car dealer DriveTime and Kiewit Building Group have in common? All are partnering with a local public school to help make a difference in the community as part of the Denver Public Schools Foundation’s School Partners Program.

They’re among some 50 Denver businesses and organizations that help their partner school in a variety of ways, including onsite volunteering, in-kind donations and financial gifts. There are no specific requirements of time or money, just a commitment to

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make a difference. Partners and schools are individually matched, according to needs and what a business can offer.

As with any partnership, there needs to be chemistry and commitment from both parties. When those elements fall into place, businesses find there are many benefits to their school partnerships. Partners report a new sense of teamwork and often a boost in staff retention. Most of the businesses that began in year one are still with the program, now in its third year, and several businesses have even partnered with multiple schools.

Getting Started

Successful Collaborations

School partnership programs have been around since the 1970s, often as an outgrowth of older “Adopt a School” type programs. In today’s model, however, programs put more emphasis on finding mutual benefits to both schools and businesses, with partners using their unique resources to help improve schools and student achievement.

Many businesses come to the program wanting to share a specific skill or knowledge with students. Pat Mulhern of Mulhern Engineering was disturbed by the decreasing number of U.S. students going into engineering, and personally contacted the school district to get involved.

Mulhern’s firm was matched with Grant Middle School, where his staff is working directly with Grant’s science and math teachers in an effort to spark interest in the field of engineering.

For Denver, the program launched shortly after Michael Bennet became superintendent of Denver Public Schools (DPS). He included community engagement as a critical piece of The Denver Plan, his strategic plan to reform Denver Public Schools.

In 2006, with funding from Qwest and the Daniels Fund, the School Partners Program was launched as an initiative of the Denver Public Schools Foundation.

The program was shaped by research from the Daniels Fund that identified seven key strategies for successful School-Business Partnerships. The program’s mission is to engage businesses and organizations in longterm, sustainable relationships with DPS schools.

Piloted in the fall of 2006 with 20 schools, the School Partners Program has grown to 60 schools with approximately 50 partners.

The program continues to be operated with funding from Qwest. Partners range from very small companies like Sunfire LED, a two-person LED lighting distribution firm that mentors at-risk students at Manual High School, to Fortune 500 firms like Western Union and Comcast.

How It Works Each year, the School Partners Program does an inventory of the needs of participating schools.

Prospective businesses are interviewed and matched with potential schools, followed by site visits. Once there is a match, a program agreement is signed, spelling out how the business plans to partner with the school.

The school district handles volunteer forms and background checks for those working with students on a regular basis.

School principals or other staff work directly with partners to ensure that the relationship is functioning smoothly. An annual survey is conducted to assess the program and make improvements.

» As with any partnership, there needs to be chemistry and commitment from both parties. When those elements fall into place, businesses find there are many benefits to their school partnerships. «

» Investing in our kids and education is the best investment we can make in economic development, public safety and the future. «

Cable giant Comcast has supported local schools in the past, but they thought a more hands-on approach would give employees a focus as well as a school to call their own. By teaming up with Montbello High School’s broadcasting program, they offer students real-life experiences filming high school sports events. The school receives financial help to purchase much needed equipment. Hundreds of Comcast volunteers also give their time to spruce up the school grounds on their annual Comcast Cares Day each spring.

The development of a new employee volunteer program brought Western Union into the program last summer. Their partnership with the Denver Center for International Studies (DCIS) was a perfect fit, as they brought international resources to this middle/high school that focuses on global education. Currently, employees are developing a special math curriculum for DCIS based on international currencies. In addition, projects like organizing the DCIS Travel Center and painting the school’s Resource Room have given Western Union some wonderful team-building activities.

However, not all partners are involved in projects that relate to their professional expertise. Kiewit Building Group wanted to work directly with students on literacy.

With a company-wide commitment, Kiewit supplies “Reading Buddies” three to four times a week to Doull Elementary School, where employees work directly with students who read below grade level. They have also instituted a number of enrichment programs, including a Colorado state geography lesson and mini-Science Fair.

“Our people get just as much out of it as the students,” said Mike Colpack, senior vice president for Kiewit Building Group.

“Trying to help someone learn helps us grow individually. It keeps us connected

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collaborator profile

denver school partners program

and helps us understand some of the challenges in our community. There’s no better feeling than helping kids improve and learn.”

Giving Back Makes a Business Feel Good and a School Feel “Special” Businesses new to town are often looking for ways to connect with the community. DriveTime, a national used car dealership,

opened their Denver office in 2007 and wanted to work with a local school. Through the School Partners Program, they partnered with Colfax Elementary School. They collaborated with Colfax’s other School Partner, AVMusic, to collect enough school supplies for each Colfax student to begin the year.

Other partners work hard to make the holidays special for students and their families. With 66 percent of DPS students receiving free or reduced lunch – a key indicator of poverty – providing a holiday meal and gifts can be a stress on many families.

This November, employees from Clayton Fixed Income Services delivered overflowing Thanksgiving food baskets to Cole Arts and Science Academy. Across town, Denver Broncos cornerback Drè Bly and his foundation delivered 500 turkeys and side dishes to

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» Our people get just as much out of it as the students. Trying to help someone learn helps us grow individually. It keeps us connected and helps us understand some of the challenges in our community. There’s no better feeling than helping kids improve and learn. «

families at his partner school, Place Bridge Academy, the DPS school serving recent immigrants and refugees. Last year, Patton Boggs’ Denver law office gave each student at their partner school, Garden Place Academy, a holiday gift and a coloring book, which employees distributed at the school’s holiday party and neighborhood caroling night.

Paying It Forward Matching a business with the right school is key, but finding the business is often a bigger challenge. Partners with a successful relationship with their schools are often the best form of advertising for the program. Dovetail Solutions, a local marketing and public relations firm, has partnered with Columbian Elementary for two years and has spread the word to clients such as Studley, a

leading commercial real estate firm. Studley now has its own successful partnership with Ellis Elementary School, and sends employee volunteers weekly.

Seven Strategies for Success Strategy One: Ensure student learning and achievement are the focus of every partnership.

Strategy Two: Develop a well-defined and well-managed program that supports school-based partnerships.

Strategy Three: Make strategic matches between schools and businesses that advance a school’s improvement goals.

Strategy Four: Set clear expectations for schools and businesses.

Strategy Five: Provide training for school staff and business employees.

Why partnerships work Partnering with a school gives businesses a common cause and focus. More and more employees have established employee volunteer programs; some give employees paid time off to give back. Whether it’s collecting school supplies in September, purchasing small gifts for student incentives or teacher appreciation, or helping with a school beautification project, both parties win.

Says Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, “Investing in our kids and education is the best investment we can make in economic development, public safety and the future of Denver.”

Today’s students are tomorrow’s work force and community leaders. If they are well-educated, prepared and supported, the city will be a healthy, vibrant place to live, work and visit.

For more information on the School Partners Program, please log on to www.denverspp.org.

Strategy Six: Create a meaningful process for communicating about the program and recognizing the contributions of business partners.

Strategy Seven: Regularly monitor and evaluate each partnership and the overall program. * From School-Business Partnerships; What Works? Seven Strategies for Success by the Daniels Fund

About the Schools Partners Program The School Partners Program (www.denverspp.org) is designed to cultivate, nurture and sustain partnerships between DPS schools and business and community organizations. Partners provide financial and non-financial resources to DPS schools and the students they serve.

Piloted in 2006-07 at 21 schools, the program now has expanded to 60 schools. The School Partners Program is an initiative of the DPS Foundation and made possible by generous underwriting from the Qwest Foundation.

» Today’s students are tomorrow’s work force and community leaders. If they are welleducated, prepared and supported, the city will be a healthy, vibrant place to live, work and visit. «

About the Denver Public Schools Foundation The DPS Foundation (www.dpsfoundation.org) raises and manages funds in support of the district’s ambitious reform plan to improve student achievement. Through top-notch professional development for principals, enhanced teacher training, improved curriculum and quality of instruction, student enrichment programs, and community partnerships, we are helping to reshape Denver Public Schools into the leading big city school district in the country.

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collaborator profile

College Planning

College Planning More Than Just Saving Money by Kevin Herman

M

y daughter just started kindergarten this year, and it’s so much fun to watch her developing her love for school. Don’t get me wrong—recess is already her favorite subject, but she also loves her teacher and learning her words. Sometimes when I come home from work, she will greet me with one of her many books that she has created, and it makes all the stress of my day disappear. It’s truly amazing watching my daughter learning to learn!

As a father, I want to make every opportunity to learn available to her, and college is definitely one of those opportunities I want to provide for both of my kids. In 12 years I hope my daughter will be well-prepared for the challenges and opportunities so many young men and women experience during their first couple years of college. When my daughter is preparing to go to college, I will wonder about: •H ow will she pay for college?

• What will her social life be like?

• Does she have sufficient life management skills to succeed in a college environment?

I used to look at “college planning” just as a financial task. I thought all I had to do was determine how much I needed to invest today so that when my daughter graduated from high school, my wife and I would be able to pay for tuition, fees, and housing. But over the course of the last year, I have come to realize that college planning is so much more than just addressing the financial component and getting that acceptance letter. The statistics about the number of students who are dropping out of school and not getting a degree are alarming. Nearly one third of first-time freshmen do not attend the same college their sophomore year, and the fiveyear national graduation rate is just over 50 percent.

The combination of the high cost of college and the low success rate is a risky recipe threatening to burden young people with large amounts of debt and little chance for higher wages associated with that very important piece of paper - a college degree.

So, what can we do to improve the chances of success for our children, regardless if they are a newborn or in their senior year of high school? I believe we need to take an honest assessment of several important factors that will help determine their success in college. College planning needs to encompass not only financial aspects, but also social and general life management skills.

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How will she pay for college?

All of us approach financing a college education differently.

A few parents have the willingness and means to provide for their children’s education without loans. A larger portion have the willingness but not the means to provide for their children’s education and, therefore, take on debt to finance their children’s education. On the other end of the spectrum, some parents do not have the willingness to finance their children’s education and believe it’s the responsibility of the child to fully finance their own education if they want to pursue a college degree. In today’s society, nearly all young adults will need to assume some sort of debt to finance their education.

College affordability is clearly an issue today - just look at the headlines. The cost of education is rising at twice the pace of inflation, federal loans are often not covering the full cost of college, access to private loans is being limited due to stricter underwriting standards, and home equity that has built up over the last 15+ years is becoming smaller and smaller as the housing market continues to lose value.

With both national retention and graduation rates at less than 70% according to ACT, the importance of finding the right school is critical to paying for college as efficiently as possible.

After all, the expenses of transferring schools a couple times and/or not graduating on time add up fast. Therefore, take the time to ask yourself or your child, “What are the things that are going to make me want to leave or stay in college?”

Approach potential colleges with the mindset that you want to get the greatest return for your investment. One way to do this is to find out what the school offers to ensure success. Many schools offer a multitude of services to help bridge the transition from high school to college, such as freshman orientation and first-year experience programs. Some schools also engage faculty and staff with first-year students through services such as early alert systems. These systems allow faculty and staff to identify students who may need a little extra help building that strong bond with the school. Taking time to review these programs will help you and/or your child find the school that offers the best return on your investment.

As you are looking for the right school, make sure you are taking advantage of the government resources that are available free of charge. For example, all students should fill out of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, also known as the FAFSA (www.fafsa.ed.gov) during their senior year of high school. Use this form to apply for aid such the Pell Grant, federal student loans, and college work-study programs. After filling out the FAFSA, students receive a Student Aid Report (SAR) that outline the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) for higher education activities. This EFC figure is the one that schools use to develop a financial aid package for your family. The package may contain a combination of grants, student loans, and work-study opportunities - from which students choose what aid they want to receive.

Here are some additional helpful resources about paying for college: • w ww.students.gov • w ww.studentaid.ed.gov • w ww.collegeincolorado.org • https://cof.college-assist.org (College Opportunity Fund)

the semester, they’re stressed out and their jeans don’t fit very well as the dreaded freshman 15 begin to show.

Dealing with financial, academic, social, and wellness issues is challenging for all of us, and many times we don’t recognize these issues until they become incredibly painful and loaded with consequences. Oftentimes, the students themselves are the last to realize the situation even though others noticed the issue weeks or months before.

Many colleges are addressing these issues through a variety of programs such as first-year experience courses that educate students about these life skills and the resources available for those who need help. Additionally, more and more colleges are implementing early alert systems that allow faculty and staff to identify students who may need additional help to succeed - whether it is financial, social, or academic. Attending a school where the faculty and staff are genuinely concerned about the students’ total well-being is key to helping students achieve total student success.

Another consideration is your probable future earning potential relative to the cost of your education. Most of us seek additional education to increase our earning potential in the workforce, and there are institutions all over the country that offer degrees varying from computer science to comic book art. When students are considering what degree they want to earn, consider that your investment might not result in your desired return. Sometimes the harsh reality of the world comes into conflict with our dreams and aspirations, but it’s so important to find out what you can expect before taking on huge amounts of debt that may take 10 or more years to repay.

What will her social life look like?

In addition to financing college, I want to make sure my wife and I are taking the right steps to ensure the college our daughter selects is conducive to a successful social life. With national retention rates at less than 70%, we want to make sure that resources are available to help my daughter establish a social connection quickly.

Many schools realize the importance of social connections and have developed many resources to facilitate these connections through programs such as living communities. For example, the University of Denver offers living and learning communities based on an interdisciplinary theme that creates purposeful links among academic, residential, and social components.

Getting connected quickly into a social circle is so important for success at school.

Does she have sufficient life management

skills to succeed in a college environment?

Another critical component to success in college is the ability to deal with life and all the curve balls it throws you. Freshmen are faced with all sorts of life management challenges the moment they step on campus. I can almost guarantee that within 10 minutes of being on campus, students will be offered a free t-shirt for simply filling out a credit card application. Within the first week, many students will realize they don’t have to attend class. Then midway through

» When students are considering what degree they want to earn, consider that your investment might not result in your desired return.

Sometimes the harsh reality of the world comes into conflict with our dreams and aspirations. « Watching my beautiful daughter move from baby to toddler to child has filled me with joy, happiness, and love, and thinking of her growing into a teenager, then a young adult, and eventually a wonderful woman fills me with excitement, hope, and anxiety.

But one thing that gives me peace about her future is that I’ll do my best to pass to her the wonderful gift of a quality education, and I’ll do everything I can to fully prepare her for all the aspects of that amazing experience.

Kevin Herman is director of education services for Nelnet and is responsible for helping schools and students achieve success. He can be reached at 303-696-5551 or via email at Kevin.herman@nelnet.net.

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collaborator profile

arc thrift stores

Great Bargains, Priceless Results The Story of the arc Thrift Stores by Cos Lindstrom

T

he Birth of a Non-Profit

In the 1960s there was little known about intellectual & developmental disabilities.

Because of the lack of understanding of disabilities adults were sent away to institutions that were less then ideal.

Children would face similar fate by the age of 21. The parents of these victims faced a hard long road, accepting the decision because the practice was considered the “norm”. One day a group of parents in Boulder County, Colorado wanted to raise money to improve the quality of life for the disabled and helped create a grassroots movement to improve the quality of life of those with developmental disabilities which is known today as the arc and ACL of Boulder County.

employment and health insurance for a number of other at-risk populations including the homeless; women from safe houses; refugees; minorities; seniors; veterans; Katrina evacuees; exoffenders; and persons with histories of substance abuse.

A Man with a Mission Lloyd Lewis , President & CEO

» In a society that has sequenced the human genome, and has widely explored outer space, eliminating a waiting list for basic services for some of our most vulnerable citizens is something that we can and must do. «

With an urgent need for funds, Metropolitan arc was created as a fundraising mechanism and opened a used goods store called the Value Village Thrift later that year. Generous citizens could donate used items and the proceeds from reselling them would go to funding arc’s local advocacy work. Today, 46 years after inception, there are 18 thrift stores along the Colorado Front Range from Pueblo to Fort Collins known today as the arc Thrift Store.

They accept everything from household goods, vehicles, cash, and yes, even real estate. arc Thrift has over 700 employees and serves a population of three million in their stores.

In 2001, another form of fundraising was created, Vehicles for Charity (VFC). VFC is a subsidiary of Metropolitan arc and was created as another way to raise funds for the arc and ACL chapters.

While M.A.R.C./arc Thrift Stores had informally taken vehicles for a number of years, it wasn’t until other local non-profits called for assistance. Today, over 350 charities nationwide, accept donations on their behalf.

Today arc Thrift is one of the largest employers of persons with developmental disabilities in the State of Colorado. Over 80 percent of the disabled in the state are unemployed and over five percent of the population has a disability. Of the 700 arc employees in Colorado, seven percent have a disability. arc also provides

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Lewis is a businessman. He received his masters degree in business at the University of Chicago, and worked at IBM and Smith Barney; a financial consulting firm. Prior to coming to arc, he was the CFO of a private sector company in Longmont, Colorado. Then, Lloyd’s life changed with the births of his sons – both with disabilities.

His oldest son Kennedy has Downs syndrome and his youngest son Aiden is autistic.

Everyday Lloyd faces new challenges that drive him even harder to improve the lives of individuals with developmental disabilities and their parents by generating funds for the arc & ACL programs in Colorado.

On October 18, 2007 Lloyd testified on behalf of Representative Michael Garcia to pass the bill which would reduce the waiting list for services for adults with disabilities developmental disabilities act. In Colorado alone, there are over 3,000 people on the waiting list for important services including medical and other basic human services. He brought his four-year-old son Kennedy along and told the legislators, “Had Kennedy been born 44 years ago, not four years ago, we would have been encouraged to send him to an institution. Had he been born 64 years ago, we would have had no other choice than to send him to an institution. Had he been born 74 years ago in Europe, he might have been exterminated.” He closed his testimony with this statement, “In a society that has sequenced the human genome, and has widely explored outer space, eliminating a waiting list for basic services for some of our most vulnerable citizens is something that we can and must do.”

Not too long after those words, several bills were passed.

Since taking the helm of arc in early 2005, Lewis has pushed for high standards at the organization. For him, working at arc

is a means to change people’s perspective of how people with disabilities are perceived. He believes that every job at arc serves a higher purpose. Furthermore, the last three years have produced more efficiencies at this non-profit. Lewis and the management team have more than doubled the amount of disabled employees working for arc, while maintaining a lower than average employee and management turnover rate. In fact, arc’s largest competitor tried to recruit several managers with more money and benefits, yet all of them stayed. According to Bruce Stahlman, arc’s CFO, “Coming to work is different. It is more than business - we are here to make a difference by leading with our mission. It feeds our soul and our bank accounts.”

“I Am Different ” My name is Garnons Muth. I am 45 years old and have worked at arc Thrift Store in Aurora, Colorado for 21 years. I show up to work on time and enjoy my job. On Mondays, I go swimming and

» Going the extra mile can pave a road for all those who will travel on it. « Each year arc continues to collaborate with City Harvest and Meals on Wheels to donate food. Spearheaded by arc’s telemarketing group known as “Jane”, countless calls were made to the public reminding them to donate non-perishable food items and arc would pick them up. In 2007 over 106,000 pounds of food were donated. In recent years arc has invited local business and other non-profits to assist in helping collect food items and make it a “super drive”. Some of the local and retuning businesses are Rose Medical Center, Steve Casey’s Recreational Sales and Citywide Banks. Each of the 17 arc thrift stores in Colorado act as a collection point for the food drives each year.

on Fridays, I go bowling with some of my co-workers. I attend weekly meetings with my supervisor Craig Koppel and the CEO Lloyd Lewis. On Saturdays, I work with my friend April and we eat lunch together. April & I have something in common - we both have Down syndrome. My disability affects 1 in every 800 newborn babies and is a condition that delays the way I have developed mentally and physically. But, my life and my job would not be possible if it were not for some parents of kids and adults like me that wanted change back in the 1960’s. Thank You!

With arc’s relentless pursuit to improve the lives of the disabled, there will be a continued focus on providing a good shopping experience for the consumer while supporting an exceptional cause. We all need to do what we can to support the ever growing population of those in need of a helping hand and take time out of our busy lives to give back. It is the belief that going the extra mile can pave a road for all those who will travel on it.

Success Grows With Commitment Over the past three years, arc has experienced growth not historically familiar to the non-profit. Revenue increased from $33.9 million in 2006 to $38.3 million in 2008 and the number of distributions was up from 3 million in 2006 to 3.3 million in 2008. In the last 5 years arc has generated over $10 million in proceeds.

Record donations, dollar amounts spent per customer, and television advertising were all factors leading to the recent financial success of arc. In April of 2007, arc began a month long food drive that delivered 73 tons of food to Volunteers of America’s City Harvest Food Bank. The VOA Harvest then distributed the food amongst the 75 local shelters and soup kitchens for free. The 2007 food drive was the second largest food drive in Colorado and the most successful arc food drive to date.

For more information about arc go to www.arcthrift.com If you would like to donate please call 303-238-5263 or 1-800 283-2721.

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collaborator profile

civic canopy

Colorado’s Collaborative Approach to Education The Civic Canopy Uses Dialogue to Make a Difference by Bill Fulton

A

s the backdrop for the 2008 Democratic National Convention, Colorado stood out as a symbol of “the New West” that blends a deeply rooted individualism with a growing spirit of collaboration. The independent streak runs deep in Colorado’s traditions, and nowhere is it more apparent than in the constitutionally protected local control over its schools.

But even though local control still prevails throughout the state, Colorado is steadily moving toward a more collaborative approach to making decisions and solving problems related to education.

The Civic Canopy, with its network of partners dedicated to fostering dialogue and collaboration, is helping to shape that model for Colorado.

A Statewide Collaborative Approach to Education R eform In 2007, amidst a flurry of national reports decrying the state of public education, Colorado Governor Bill Ritter, Jr. convened a P20 Education Coordinating Council to help guide the state’s future educational policy. Gov. Ritter’s P-20 Council set out to tackle one of Colorado’s greatest challenges: ensuring that a seamless education system from pre-school to grad-school is preparing our young people for the demands of the 21st Century.

Comprising a group of 40 representatives from education, community, government, business and non-profit partners, the P-20 Council was clear in its goals to produce tangible results in short order. Still, it was mindful of the need to engage Colorado citizens in an open discussion about the goals of public education and to collaborate with non-traditional partners to form a more cohesive educational system. Following the lead of the Colorado General Assembly, community organizations, and local foundations, the P-20 Council helped launch a statewide dialogue entitled Conversation 2007. To help facilitate these discussions, they turned to the Civic Canopy.

The Civic Canopy is an innovative non-profit organization that strengthens civil society through

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dialogue and collaboration around pressing civic challenges. Led

by Executive Director Bill Fulton, the Canopy became the natural partner to lead this bipartisan, statewide discussion about how to develop a cohesive educational system. The Canopy helped facilitate over 30 local dialogues with more than 40 legislators and other policy makers across Colorado, developing a shared set of goals for public education in Colorado and strategies to reach them. These goals, ranked by priority, included: 1. Help all students achieve their maximum potential 2. Develop critical and creative thinkers 3. Ensure a basic proficiency in skills and facts 4. Ensure all students are prepared for post-secondary options (vocational or college) 5. Develop responsible citizens 6. Inspire lifelong learners 7. Educate the whole child 8. Produce globally competitive workers and economically viable adults 9. Teach ethics/character 10. Teach global awareness

» Teachers bemoaned the lack of support from parents. Parents blamed schools for low standards and poor communication. Community members wanted more accountability from districts, and districts decried the lack of funding for schools. Clearly, it was time for a new conversation. «

Though reaching consensus on the goals came fairly quickly in the opening rounds of the discussions, as the conversation turned to strategies, longstanding stalemates emerged. Teachers bemoaned the lack of support from parents. Parents blamed schools for low standards and poor communication. Community members wanted more accountability from districts, and districts decried the lack of funding for schools. Clearly, it was time for a new conversation.

The Civic Canopy helped surface and reframe many of the assumptions that people brought with them in order to create a shared sense of support and accountability. Instead of placing blame, what was needed was shared responsibility and mutual accountability.

As stakeholders spoke honestly of their needs and their commitments, they came to understand that only when each group had the support they needed could they be held properly accountable.

A compelling new model for education emerged from these collaborative efforts, based on a recognition of the reciprocal relationships among students, educators, families, and community.

This approach moves away from the more traditional question, “How well are educators preparing students to succeed?” toward more creative questions: “What does each group (Students, Educators, Families, Community) need to fulfill its role in educating our young people? What is each group’s responsibility?” To illustrate the interdependence of these relationships, a few examples from the conversations help to make the point: •E ducators are more willing to individualize learning when students take more responsibility for their own learning.

• Communities are more willing to increase funding when schools show evidence of students meeting learning goals.

• Families are better able to support their children when they feel welcomed into the schools, and are clear on how to help their students meet the standards.

The insights gleaned from Conversation 2007 informed the P-20 Council’s work, and the network of partners engaged in the process remain committed to seeing their visions become a reality in Colorado. As the P-20 Council continues to design a new educational blueprint for Colorado, the Conversation 2007 participants stand ready to help build the foundation for it across the state.

Collaboration and the Neighborhood School While the state policy discussions provide an important arena for educational change, nowhere is the need for collaboration greater than at the neighborhood school.

For all the progress we’ve made in the 50 years since Brown vs. Board of Education, in cities across the country lines of race, class, and language still segregate children into educational haves and have nots.

collaboration can create bonds strong enough to bridge any divides.

But that bridge had a long distance to span. The process of envisioning how the campus might be reconfigured raised both hopes and anxieties. Should it be a K-12 campus? K-8?

Would there be room for all the students in the neighborhood if it proved successful? How could a single school meet such diverse needs? The Civic Canopy assisted in the process by facilitating conversations filled with often polarized viewpoints, applying proven models of consensus building and community engagement. The tensions, anxiety, and rumors spreading by email were at times fierce in the weeks leading up to the decisions, as all the surrounding schools feared potential negative impacts from the new plans. Articles in local papers fueled both interest and concern.

After a pivotal meeting that drew nearly 250 people to decide the broad framework for the school, the momentum began building for how to bring all the partners together to form a much broader community coalition in support of the schools. One by one, parents began to commit to “being the change they wished to see.” Rather than waiting for the district to “fix” Merrill, they committed to sending their children there and digging in to help bring about that change. In the end, the final proposal garnered support or strong support from 90% of the community that engaged in the process.

» By using dialogue to turn diversity into the fuel for creative growth, and by fostering collaboration that helps align selfinterest with the common good, groups can thrive in ways that none thought possible. «

Cory Elementary and Merrill Middle School in Denver typify this challenge.

Though they have long shared a common 17-acre campus in a central Denver neighborhood, until recently the two schools remained worlds apart. Cory is a historically high achieving, predominantly white school with a more affluent population while Merrill’s student body consists primarily of students of color, many of whom speak English as a second language, and a high percentage of families on free-andreduced lunch - a common proxy for families living in poverty.

Few students from Cory enrolled at Merrill, leaving Merrill nearly half empty and on the list of schools potentially facing closure.

Parents and school leaders mobilized to change this pattern.

They received a planning grant to help create a new approach to develop an educational campus with a neighborhood focus that was academically rigorous and met the needs of diverse learners. They also wanted seamless integration of the programs and expectations between the schools. As the parents and teachers of these schools would soon demonstrate, a shared vision and a commitment to

Colorado’s Civic Canopy: Creating a Culture of Collaboration Colorado is fortunate to have strong collaborative leadership from the school house to the statehouse. But equally important are the growing networks of partners interested in making a difference - on their block, in their town, or across the region. The Civic Canopy has become an important vehicle for fostering this type of civic engagement.

As the examples above attest, the Civic Canopy’s unique role as both facilitator and “network steward,” has helped to bring the many players together to increase their collective impact. The literature on the power of such networks - in health care, education, business, and service provision - is mounting, and points to a central theme that distributed knowledge and leadership seems to abide by the same powerful principles that make ecosystems thrive. By using dialogue to turn diversity into the fuel for creative growth, and by fostering collaboration that helps align self-interest with the common good, groups can thrive in ways that none thought possible. That is, our core principles of dialogue, collaboration, and results (civic health) have tangible, bottom-line impacts on virtually any field to which they are applied. The importance of collaborative engagement through dialogue is becoming evident - not just in the bolder aspirations of improving civil society, but in the more practical terms of achieving targeted and measurable results in our local schools and across our state educational systems.

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Would Like To Thank The Following Friends For Their Inspiration Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary Duke University Fuqua School of Business Monfort College of Business at University of Northern Colorado Minority Business Roundtable Business Roundtable Partnership for New York City Denver Museum of Nature and Science Arapahoe/Douglas Works!

National Center for Community Collaboration DPS Foundation’s School Partners Programs Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado Foundation for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award

Lloyd Lewis Nelnet Jacki Paone Bill Liggett Cristo Rey Network DeCoste & Associates Jenks Public Schools Michael Bennett Women’s College of the University of Denver Associated Equipment Distributors California Business Roundtable California Business for Education Excellence

Rodel Foundation State Farm Insurance Regis University Daniels College of Business GreenbergTraurig, LLP Cherry Creek School District Civic Canopy

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womenscollege.du.edu 303.871.6848 01.09-02.09

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collaborator profile

Cristo Rey Schools

Cristo Rey Schools Transforming Urban Education One Student at a Time

by Sandra L. Mitchell and Sajit Kabadi

T

he Cristo Rey Network® is a national association of Jesuit high schools endorsed and sponsored by 28 religious congregations and five archdioceses, that provide quality, Catholic, college preparatory education to students living in communities with limited educational options and generally lacking the resources for private education. By attending a Cristo Rey school, students have access to a Jesuit education at no cost, while gaining valuable work experience.

Through a unique model, Cristo Rey schools are living their mission of transforming urban education one student at a time.

The innovative Cristo Rey model utilizes a longer school day and academic year, academic assistance, and counseling to prepare students with a broad range of academic abilities for college. Throughout their high school years, all students participate in a work-study program working in entrylevel positions in a number of industries including banking, law, medicine, and finance. It is through these corporate workstudy positions that students finance the majority of the cost of their education, while gaining valuable real-world job experience and self-confidence.

» The innovative Cristo Rey model utilizes a longer school day and academic year, academic assistance, and counseling to prepare students with a broad range of academic abilities for college. «

Cristo Rey schools recruit students who qualify for the federal free or reduced lunch program. These young people are from families with incomes that are less than 185% of the federal poverty level.

All applicants to Cristo Rey schools complete financial aid forms, which allow each school to know the family income of each student. The Network schools follow a formula in which admitted students must come from families whose per capita income is no greater than 75% of the median per capita income of the city where the school is located or the national average, whichever is higher. The median family income for a Cristo Rey student is about $35,000.

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To date there are 22 Cristo Rey high schools operating in the U.S., over half of which have opened in the last three years, enrolling more than 5,000 students. Schools exist in Baltimore, Cleveland, Chicago, Minneapolis, Omaha, Brooklyn, Detroit, Los Angeles and several other cities. The schools continue to grow with the two schools slated to open in the fall of 2009 and two more in the fall of 2010.

One of the schools scheduled to open is Immaculate Conception Academy in San Francisco’s mission district. The school, which already enjoys the success of being the oldest all-girls school in San Francisco and has a very high graduation rate, will adopt the Cristo Rey model beginning in the fall of 2009, making it the first all-girls school in the network.

Adopting this model makes the school accessible to a population for which a private high school education would ordinarily be out of reach. “Now,” says Anne O’Dea, Marketing Director for Immaculate Conception Academy, “it allows schools and students to see themselves as never before.” For Cristo Rey schools, the preference is always towards families that cannot afford a private school education.

The Cristo Rey Network since the inception of its first school in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood has raised more than $21 million through partnerships with 1,200 corporate sponsors.

Corporate work-study covers 50-75 percent of students tuition cost. More than 1,000 work-study jobs have been provided by corporate sponsors and over $5 million in financial aid has been subsidized for students to attend Cristo Rey schools.

Ninety-two percent of the students in Cristo Rey schools are students of color. The schools enjoy tremendous success with ninety-eight percent of Cristo Rey graduates enrolled in college at some of the most competitive colleges and universities in the U.S. Last year 550 students graduated from Network schools.

One success story is that of Andy Laureano, now a junior majoring in English at the University of San Francisco (USF).

Laureano grew up on Chicago’s south side. He describes the Cristo Rey High School in the Pilsen neighborhood as “the only open door” he had in a community plagued by poverty and violence. He says that he was often approached by gang members in his neighborhood and while he was raised in a strong family, learning about college was something that he had to gain on his own initiative as is true of most students from first-generation [to attend college] families.

The corporate work-study program at Cristo Rey placed him at first at a law firm in the Chicago area and later with J.P. Morgan as they were merging with Chase Banks. He decided that although he enjoyed his workstudy foray into the world of finance, he enjoyed working at the law firm’s mailroom more. He is now Pre-law with a particular interest in intellectual property. He continues to work for the same law firm - now for seven years - at the office that they opened in San Francisco.

His determination to succeed continues to serve him well as a student leader at USF where he serves as a Resident Assistant and as a founder of a Latino fraternity which he hopes will begin working to create a scholarship for Latino students at USF. He plans to tutor next semester in San Francisco’s Mission district and serves as a resource to other Cristo Rey students including his younger sister who is a sophomore at the school in Chicago.

Along with financial and logistical support, Regis also created many programs in collaboration with Arrupe specifically for the students to address their unique needs. It is a major priority of this partnership that Regis University invest in the Arrupe students early in their high school careers rather then wait until they are applying for college admission. An example of early interactions is the one-week workshop that allows students be exposed to college residence hall life, a sample of college course work, assistance in college application essays, extracurricular activities, and community service. Furthermore, the Regis/Arrupe Partnership Scholarships are determined by a staff of Arrupe and Regis officials that meets regularly to discuss analysis of family need, college readiness, and how much to allot to certain Arrupe students to meet their unmet financial need. During their first year experience at Regis, these students attend a one credit seminar course in which students learn about Regis University resources, receive additional advising, and are presented with strategies for academic and social success. Through these support programs, the Regis/ Arrupe Partnership addresses the preparation and transition of these Cristo Rey Network students for their successful performance in college.

» Ninety-two percent of the students in Cristo Rey schools are students of color. The schools enjoy tremendous success with ninety-eight percent of Cristo Rey graduates enrolled in college at some of the most competitive colleges and universities in the U.S. «

The relationship and range of support of Cristo Rey high schools and their students with various colleges and universities varies. Members of the Regis University community have been deeply involved in the planning and support of Arrupe from its very beginning through the Regis/ Arrupe Partnership. Regis University housed and conducted the feasibility study necessary for the school’s opening in 2003 in a predominately Latino northwest Denver neighborhood near the university, which like Chicago’s Pilsen and San Francisco’s Mission neighborhood provided few opportunities for private high school education. Regis University’s president, Father Michael Sheeran wanted to provide these young men and women unique exposure to Regis University during their high school years and saw this partnership as a wonderful bridge for Arrupe students to attend Regis. This partnership also included providing financial resources, offering the Regis college campus infrastructure for Arrupe sponsored events and office space while renovations were completed at the high school location. These efforts have helped maintain close ties between the two communities, which is best exemplified by the Jesuits working at Arrupe and those residing within the Jesuit Community at Regis University.

The Cristo Rey Network, through its relationships with corporate and educational partners, continues to provide quality education to students regardless of religious affiliation, race or socio-economic status where such opportunities may otherwise not exist, and in doing so will continue to use education to transform education and community’s one student at a time.

Sandra Mitchell is Assistant Provost for Diversity at Regis University. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a Master of Education in Higher Education from Drake University. She is a doctoral candidate in Educational Leadership and Innovation at the University of Colorado at Denver. Her research emphasis is the institutionalization of diversity in higher education. Prior to her current appointment, she served as the founding Coordinator of Service Learning in the School for Professional Studies at Regis University. Before coming to Regis she served as coordinator of minority recruitment and retention in the College of Education at Iowa State University; Director of Academic Services at Morningside College in Sioux City, IA; Practium Coordinator for the School of Education at Drake University; Assistant Director of IOWANET/ PSInetIn at Drake University and as a Job Coach at the Lifeskills Foundation in St. Louis.

Saj Kabati is a Doctoral Student at CU Denver with an emphasis on First Generation College Students and serves on the Board of Trustee at Regis Jesuit High School.

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opinion

Rebuilding

the Model Our Children Deserve It and Our Future Demands It by William D. Budinger

W

hen I was a student in the 1940s and ‘50s, America’s public education system was the model for the world. With my Chicago area high school diploma, I felt well-prepared to enter the University of Notre Dame and, later, to join the workforce and start my own business.

is small, with just 120,000 students in nineteen districts; it has a favorable policy environment, including support for early childhood education standards and charter schools; it has better funding than many states; and, perhaps most important, when a tough job needs doing, Delaware has a long tradition of bipartisan collaboration.

In today’s global marketplace, our young people might not feel so ready to take on the world.

U.S. students consistently score below their peers from other countries on international tests. As a group they rank below even the average for developed countries on the most recent PISA exam, which measures science competencies for today’s world. In other words, most developed countries now do a better job educating their children than we do.

That’s why a decade ago when we sold Rodel Inc., the manufacturing company I founded, my family and I committed to a new and equally enterprising challenge: to help America’s education system retool itself so that we prepare our children for the new challenges of the 21st century. We do this primarily through the work of the Rodel Foundations of Delaware and Arizona.

We established the Rodel Foundation of Delaware with a bold mission: to help our home state create one of the finest public school systems in the nation by 2012. Thanks largely to its well-educated workforce, Delaware traditionally has been regarded as a good place for business. We wanted to keep it that way.

» The more we worked on it, the more we came to appreciate that states actually are the ideal venues for real, sustainable reform. «

To accomplish its mission and carry on the work of its first CEO, Stephanie Fitzgerald, the Foundation hired Dr. Paul Herdman in 2004. Paul had studied the more promising reform efforts around the nation and concluded that most had failed because they lacked broad, state-wide support.

This actually resulted in our first innovation: state-level education reform. Until then, most education reform efforts were driven by federal initiatives, such as today’s No Child Left Behind Act, or took place in local districts or local schools. There was no successful state-wide initiative. Delaware offered some built-in advantages: it

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The more we worked on it, the more we came to appreciate that states actually are the ideal venues for real, sustainable reform.

States hold the policy reins on a number of vital issues, including distributing state funds, setting the bar for student performance, and determining who teaches in our classrooms and leads our schools.

To define Delaware’s challenge, the foundation commissioned a comprehensive analysis of the state’s existing public education system. Published in July 2005, Opportunity Knocks revealed that while Delaware ranked eighth among U.S. states in per-student spending, its overall performance was mediocre at best.

Only 64 percent of our high school students graduated in four years, compared to much higher rates in our neighboring states. And the achievement gaps between our white and minority students were wide and growing.

By design, that report did not offer recommendations for improvement.

That second step resulted appropriately from an historic yearlong statewide collaborative process that included the voices of hundreds of citizens, led by a Steering Committee whose 28 members included top-level representatives from the business community, state government, higher education, teachers union, local school districts, community based organizations, and others.

They kicked off their work in November 2005 with the same audacious goals that have characterized everything we’ve done. In

the words of Delaware Business Roundtable Education Committee chair, Marvin N. “Skip” Schoenhals, “We decided then that we were going to tackle the really hard issues, and get to the bottom of how our system could be transformed. If we didn’t want to make that commitment, we would put down our coffee cups and go home.” They elevated their sights from the best schools in the nation to the best in the world by 2015 and engaged The Boston Consulting Group to help craft a research-based plan aligned to international best practices.

Introduced at a pair of public events 11 months later, the Vision 2015 plan was immediately hailed as a breakthrough. With detailed recommendations in six key areas, it gave us a coherent roadmap for systemic statewide change. And though the process was sometimes bumpy, at the end all 28 stakeholders stood together behind the plan - an outcome that was vital to our ability to move forward.

Since then several exciting things have happened to bring us closer to realizing Vision 2015: • I n June 2007, then-Governor Ruth Ann Minner established the Leadership for Educational Achievement in Delaware (LEAD) Committee, which produced major studies on achieving up to $158 million in cost efficiencies within the current state education budget, and how our 59-year-old state education funding system could be fundamentally redesigned.

By pointing out realistic opportunities to save millions by spending smarter, the LEAD Committee has laid the groundwork for change. Now we had to convince legislators to enact the efficiencies and redirect the savings to Vision 2015 priorities.

including the cost efficiency study, early childhood education standards, the Vision Network, online learning, and other initiatives that drive student achievement. In this economy where public funding is scarce, the Delaware Business Roundtable has been a critical and invaluable partner and leader.

In addition to seeding good ideas and helping government find the money to implement change, Rodel and the Delaware Business Roundtable are helping to build a movement of citizens - parents, business and community leaders, and lay supporters - who are impatient and who believe that Delaware can do better for its children. The launch of Education Voters of Delaware this winter will play a vital role in building that public will.

» We decided then that we were going to tackle the really hard issues, and get to the bottom of how our system could be transformed.

If we didn’t want to make that commitment, we would put down our coffee cups and go home. «

•A lso in 2007, we launched the Vision Network of districts and schools that serve as demonstration sites for Vision 2015 recommendations.

Participating educators receive professional development in datadriven instruction and school leadership. This training serves as the foundation for a new culture driven by performance and innovation. Supported by a publicprivate partnership, the Network now includes 21 public schools serving 14,000 students statewide – more than 10% of all Delaware students.

Seeded by a $4 million investment from the Rodel Foundation, Vision 2015 has leveraged more than $6 million in additional private support to help implement Vision 2015 recommendations,

We’ve come a long way and, as I said at the beginning, most of our journey was through uncharted territory. But, when you think about it, that is exactly the thing that has made America great – innovation and the courage to try new ideas.

America’s – and Delaware’s – education also has a long journey to make. When it was designed more than a century ago, America was a nation of farmers (thus the summer “vacation” so kids could work in the fields). Then we industrialized and redesigned our system so our children would know how to work in and run factories. In the 21st century, our children will need to know how to think, to innovate, and to create new solutions for problems and opportunities we can not even imagine.

Just as so much in our lives today might have passed for science fiction just a couple of decades ago, there’s no way we can predict what the world will be like for our children. All we can do is help them prepare, with the thinking skills, creativity and confidence to handle whatever comes next.

It will take hard work and some sacrifice. As we say in our Vision 2015 publications, “Our children deserve it. And our future demands it.”

William D. Budinger is an inventor who holds more than three dozen patents. He is the founder of Rodel Inc., and founding director of The Rodel Foundation.

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collaborator profile

timberline elementary school

21ST CENTURY SKILLS More Than Just Learning To Use A Computer by Jan Mazotti and Susan Snowdon

21

st

Century Skills are more than learning to use a computer. These skills are a mastery of core subjects with an infusion of life, career, innovation, and technology skills interwoven within the learning environment of curriculum, professional development, and standards and assessments.

To prepare students for the 21st century, schools are more actively using technology as an integral part of the instructional day as they prepare students to become the employees of tomorrow. Emerging technologies and outside collaborative efforts to host business and government professionals is prevalent throughout schools in the U.S. and is proving useful in student and teacher engagement.

while improving gross motor skills. Susan Snowdon, principal of Timberline says, “These Boards get the whole class involved and provide immediate correctional feedback mechanisms, especially in math programs.” “In fact,” she goes on, “we’d like to incorporate Smart Boards in all math instruction going forward.”

» Schools are more actively using technology as an integral part of the instructional day as they prepare students to become the employees of tomorrow. «

Terri Greer, a Timberline kindergarten teacher says about the iPod program, “Our kindergarten teachers are part of a district-wide grant that allows kindergarten students to take their teacher home with them. In this program, lower-performing or ESL students’ teachers record activities, then the students take the iPods home, listen to the lesson and complete the activities with their families.” She notes that this program, while new,

As we advance in this globally connected age, we have shifted expectations to include more than the traditional reading, writing, and arithmetic fundamentals. We have begun to demand aspects of learning and innovation skills such as creativity, critical thinking, problem solving, communication, and collaboration/teamwork; information and technology skills; and life and career skills such as flexibility, self-direction, cross-cultural social skills, productivity and accountability, and leadership for our students.

At Timberline Elementary, in Aurora, Colorado, they understand this. They are teaching technology, workforce, and life skills on a daily basis.

Everyday at Timberline, the school is abuzz with teachers and students using computers, Smart Boards and iPods, to enhance the teaching and learning experiences of P-5 students.

During 2008-2009, the Cherry Creek school district and Timberline were the recipients of several Smart Boards courtesy of a grant from the Morgridge Family Foundation. Smart Boards provide students the opportunity to interact with websites, math manipulatives, and a multitude of instructional aides,

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Timberline students work on rhyming using the interactive Smart Board.

is really beginning to show improvements with students in terms of phonics and reading, which is leading to better student interactions in the classroom.

Older students are actively participating in writing blogs. These interactive blogs give students the opportunity to evaluate each other’s writing, offer suggestions and enjoy their peers’ writing.

Snowdon notes, “We are seeing great value in these blogs. They seem to be very motivational and engaging, especially for boys.” She says that the blogs are allowing boys to share their interests in various types of literature, especially science fiction, with other students and that it is allowing them more of an ability to become ‘engaged’ in the conversation when eyes aren’t directly on them.”

Outside of the pure technology occurring in the school, Timberline has a large peer-tutoring program, which supports teamwork and problem solving skills for students.

The Reading Together

» In today’s world, we are expecting – or demanding - our students to become engaged digital citizens in a global marketplace, yet we are just beginning to embrace and implement the technological, as well as social innovations and life skills needed to be and/or remain competitive in a global economy. «

program, sponsored by a grant from the Cherry Creek Schools Foundation is active in all district elementary schools.

Twenty-six second and third grade students are paired with fourth and fifth grade tutors.

These students meet twice a week to read together and discuss the literature selection.

In addition, tutors commit to another day of training each week. Programs such as these are a great way for students to interact with each other, but also could serve as a great community collaborative between adults and students.

Recently, Timberline began participating in the Educator for a Day program, which provides opportunities for professionals and business people to teach in a school for a day. During the program, Timberline hosted a city council member, a news reporter and an engineer who taught kindergarten, third and fifth grades, respectively. “It was a fun way for adults to understand what expectations are within a school, while gaining firsthand knowledge about student learning and teacher responsibilities,” Snowdon said. She went on, “Being an educator for a day is a great way for the community

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collaborator profile

timberline elementary school

to be involved in schools and for students to hear about how the skills they are learning today impact the jobs of tomorrow.”

Timberline is no different from elementary schools across the country. With the growing needs of students, the partnership between communities, businesses, retired citizens and parents is vital to the success of schools. Each school has its own programs, needs and opportunities for collaboration.

» With the growing needs of students, the partnership between communities, businesses, retired citizens and parents is vital to the success of schools. «

In today’s world, we are expecting – or demanding - our students to become engaged digital citizens in a global marketplace, yet we are just beginning to embrace and implement the technological, as well as social innovations and life skills needed to be and/or remain competitive in a global economy. We must support our

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schools and education professionals, as they too begin to participate in the global economy.

Timberline Elementary is a four-track, year-round school in the Cherry Creek School district (CCSD). Timberline, and all of the CCSD schools, strive to provide a balanced education that includes rigorous academic instruction and extracurricular activities. Community support is essential when it comes to providing many of these opportunities for students.

Through Parent Teacher Organizations, we are able to support science projects, additional supervision for recess and lunch, author visits and assemblies. Grants from various sources are one way that we are able to broaden our impact and to extend learning beyond the regular school day. By contacting your local school, you can certainly learn about ways to affect student achievement.

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