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What's Happening at Elev8
Teaser:
Elev8 Baltimore parents recently gathered to tell the city's leaders about "deplorable conditions are in our public school buildings." Along with parents from other schools in the city, they asked leaders to consider an innovative plan out of Greenville, SC, which was able to raise $1 billion for school construction. As a result of the plan, Greenville constructed or renovated 70 schools in just five years.
Teaser: Elev8 and the Southwest Organizing Project's Safety Zone initiative have partnered to dramatically reduce gang activity near Marquette Elementary School.
Teaser:
Elev8 New Mexico's Microsociety is confronting real-life challenges in the community. In Microsociety, students produce goods and services, establish laws, arbitrate disputes and report the news. But at Gadsden Middle School, Microsociety students are not just creating a microcosm of the real world inside their school.They are working to build a better community in the surrounding town of Anthony, NM.
Teaser:
The Stanford Social Innovation Review highlighted the work of Safe Passages/Youth Ventures in Oakland.
Teaser:
 Elev8 Baltimore has found that its school health clinics aren't just for asthma attacks, headaches, and bloody knees, but have become places to find friendships, confront bullying, and cope with stress. Licensed mental health counselors are now part of the school clinical team, helping address some of the social and emotional challenges that middle grade students face, including self-identity development, grief, loss and neighborhood violence.
Teaser:  Beginning on November 14, Elev8's National Learning Institute drew large multi-disciplinary teams from the four Elev8 initiatives (in Baltimore, Chicago, New Mexico and Oakland), as well as an array of outside experts. The three-day convening was packed with lively discussions and useful workshops and presented the rare opportunity for participants to share challenges and lessons with colleagues doing similar work in very different parts of the country.
Teaser: 
Elev8 stakeholders from Baltimore, Chicago, New Mexico and Oakland converged in New York City on October 26 for the Children's Aid Society's Community Schools Practicum, "Focus on Results." The practicum brought together leaders from nonprofit, education, community, government, research and philanthropic organizations to share and examine results from community school evaluations across the country and to consider challenges involved in documenting the impact of community school initiatives...
Teaser:  In October, a team drawn from the Elev8 initiatives in Baltimore, Chicago, New Mexico and Oakland came together for an unforgettable journey to Ireland. The trip was conceived as an opportunity for Atlantic Philanthropies grantees to meet and learn from one another, and it did not disappoint. Elev8 representatives visited a range of impressive youth- and community-serving organizations and were struck by the similarities between their work in the United States and work in Ireland...
Teaser:
As students dive into a new school year, Wilson Middle School is implementing new policies to address attendance issues; these policies were developed over the last school year by the Elev8 Family Engagement Team and school staff.
Over the summer, school administrators visited the homes of students who had been absent between five and seven days over the school year. During the home visits, administrators found that many absences had been miscounted. They also discovered that health issues or other family problems were key reasons students were missing school.
Teaser:
(This article is reposted with permission from YouthVentures/SafePassages)
Access to legal services have for the past decade been a void in low income communities with the elimination of federal programs for legal clinics in our neighborhoods. Without these services, it is difficult for families to fight for their rights and, often, even to know about them.
At the request of dozens of families in Oakland schools, Safe Passages and Elev8 have partnered with the East Bay Community Law Center (EBCLC) to provide free legal assistance to families. Each week EBCLC staff attorney Rosa Bay holds free legal clinics at the Elev8 school sites. Families receive advice, guided referrals, and possible representation related to special education, school discipline and other youth law issues, as well as housing, public benefits, immigration, and consumer issues. Families are also invited to participate in a series of "Know Your Rights" workshops at the schools on the various legal topics listed above.
Teaser:
(This article is reposted with permission from YouthVentures/SafePassages)
Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) 2011 Provides Free Tax Services to Community
"I was not expecting such a large return from the IRS. I was actually expecting to pay money to the feds- thank you for this program and look forward to seeing me next year," states a parent of a middle school student at Madison Middle school.
Elev8 Oakland schools are in their third year of providing Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA). The success of the program are in the numbers and in the voices of families previously concerned with tax preparation. This year's Elev8 Tax Clinics exceeded program goals by successfully filing $104,000 in tax returns. This is twice that filed in returns last year for families at Elev8 schools.
Teaser:
(This article is reposted with permission from LISC)
It's not yet 9 a.m. on a steamy morning in July, but the Reavis Elementary School gym in Bronzeville is alive with chanting and arm-waving worthy of a church revival.
After an uplifting song about standing up to racism, a normally shy boy with a wide smile leads a call-and-response cheer: "Rock the Freedom School!" the kids shout, jumping and throwing their fists in the air.
The Freedom School is not your typical summer school program-and not just because each morning starts with a rousing kick-off called Harambee, a Swahili word meaning "let's pull together."
Teaser: In early July, employees from Public/Private Ventures (P/PV) traveled to Elev8 sites at East Baltimore Community School (Baltimore) and Perspectives-Calumet Middle School (Chicago). While at the sites, P/PV conducted a workshop with Elev8 students attending summer programming as well as with some of their parents.
Teaser: Elev8 students are getting ready for their summer learning activities to begin. At Roosevelt Middle School in Oakland, approximately 120 sixth and seventh graders will be participating in Elev8 summer programming. The programs will focus on both academic (math and English Language Arts) and enrichment activities. A group of rising eighth graders will also participate in an Algebra Camp this summer.
Teaser: Elev8 students in the MicroSociety program at Grant Middle School are participating in mock advocacy efforts to better understand what programs face as they search for ways to generate revenue during tough economic times.
Teaser: The Parent Mentor Program at Ames Middle School in Chicago's Logan Square section has trained parents as mentors to work in classrooms and participate in truancy outreach, thanks to the Elev8 grant from The Atlantic Philanthropies. Principal Thomas Hoffman attributes the two percent rise in attendance over the last two years to the efforts of parent mentors.
Teaser: To combat the very prevalent gang problem in the Bay Area, Elev8 Oakland has created a "History of Gangs" course to educate youth about the realities of gang life. Art Mola, the Elev8 coordinator who teaches the course, takes youth on regular trips to local prisons to speak with inmates about the consequences of their crimes.
Teaser: In January, the Elev8 School-Based Health Center officially opened at Madison Middle School in Oakland, California—the first of five medical centers planned for middle schools in the city. Oakland Mayor Jean Quan joined a crowd of 300 for the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Teaser: A group of 16 middle-school students from Elev8 Chicago schools traveled to Washington, DC, earlier this year to participate in the "Voices in Action: National Youth Summit" at Howard University. The Summit, organized by the US Department of Education, brought together 500 students from across the country to discuss how the United States can improve college completion rates. The goal? To make us the world leader in college completion by 2020.
Teaser: Good health was on the minds of more than 100 community residents who took part in a day-long health fair sponsored by Elev8 Baltimore and other partners in April.
Teaser: Students from all four Elev8 sites came to Washington, DC as part of the US Department of Education’s National Youth Summit.
Teaser: Elev8 Chicago students won 1st, 2nd and 3rd places in an essay contest held by The Illinois Coalition for School Health Centers.
Teaser: In December 2010, Elev8 held a national meeting in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Site directors, school staff, parents and students all attended-including two students from Elev8 Oakland, Charles "CJ" Brown and Jorge "Tito" Pineda-Campa. CJ and Tito came to the convening to meet other Elev8 students and share their experiences, including giving a presentation on the History of Gangs class both attend as part of Elev8.
Teaser:
In an article published in Urbanite magazine, Elev8 Baltimore was featured as one of the ten bright ideas that will benefit Baltimore in 2011.
Teaser: Elev8 Baltimore was proud to host a two-day visit in late September by U.S. Department of Education officials who met with students, educators, parents and community partners from across the city.
Teaser: Elev8 students at Dr. Rayner Browne Academy in Baltimore are playing an active in role in community advocacy.
Teaser: Incoming and current Elev8 New Mexico students at the Native American Community Academy (NACA) enjoyed a variety of exciting activities as part of the school’s Summer Enrichment Program.
Teaser: On Saturday, August 7, 2010, students representing all five Elev8 Chicago schools led a town hall on immigration reform, featuring Rep. Luis Gutierrez and over 200 other attendees.
Teaser: On Saturday, August 7, 2010, Elev8 students from Orozco Community Academy in Chicago will spearhead a town hall meeting on immigration reform.
Teaser: On June 10, Elev8 Chicago students participated in the Greater Auburn-Gresham Development Corporation annual health fair.
Teaser: Parents of students in Elev8 schools around the country recently traveled to Washington, D.C. to share their public policy priorities with federal lawmakers. For many, it was their first time in the nation’s capital, and they hit the ground running.
Teaser: At least one in five children in the U.S. go without annual dental care and most states lack policies that ensure care for low-income children, according to a study by the Pew Center on the States. But New Mexico is one state that is showing promise in dental health programs for children. Elev8 has contributed to that trend by bringing dental hygienists to hundreds of middle grade students.
Teaser: Five middle schools in Oakland, CA will soon have health centers serving students and their families. In a climate of severe budget cuts in education and health care, this represents the largest expansion of middle school health centers in the state of California. Oakland Unified School District Superintendent Tony Smith attended the celebration at United for Success Middle School. Read more >>
Teaser:
Elev8 Chicago students met legislators and rallied for education funding in Springfield, IL, this spring, and spoke to State Senator Jacqueline Collins about safety and violence prevention in their community.
Read More>>
Teaser: Two Elev8 schools in Baltimore were chosen to be part of the Children's Defense Fund (CDF) literacy-focused Freedom Schools program this summer.
Teaser: When Laguna Middle School's Nurse Practicioner Sandy Gale saw that 48% of incoming 6th grade students were obese, she went to the Elev8 team for a plan. They came up with "Elev8 UR Heart," an new afterschool health program that combats children's obesity with fun.
Teaser:
More than 300 school and community leaders who attended the Elev8 Chicago conference in February appreciated the chance to learn from each other. They participated in “role-alike” sessions for
administrators, teachers, parents and students, and they shared valuable
how-tos on topics ranging from teachers conducting home visits to
integrating health services with after-school programs.
Teaser: On behalf of Elev8 Chicago, the Federation for Community Schools is applying for an Invest in Innovation grant. Also known as "i3," this is a $650 million grant program that's designed to fund the development of path-breaking new ideas, the validation of approaches that have demonstrated promise, and the scale-up of the nation's most successful and proven education innovations.
Teaser: Generations of middle-school students have taken shop class and home economics, but few outside Ames Middle School in Logan Square have learned to repair bicycles for course credit. By the end of this school year, 500 Ames seventh- and eighth- graders will have rotated through the three- to four-week class, connected with LISC/Chicago’s Elev8 program and taught by Tony Hughes of West Town Bikes. >>
Teaser:
All five Elev8 campuses in Oakland hosted free
tax
clinics for parents and community members this semester. >>
Teaser: Baltimore's public radio station, WYPR 88.1 FM, featured Elev8 Director Nicole Johnson on its daily public affairs program Midday with Dan Rodricks, on January 21st, 2010. Listen here.
Teaser: Catalyst Chicago, a newsmagazine dedicated to independent school reporting, writes that Elev8 Chicago is contributing to its neighborhood's vision of becoming a "Promise Neighborhood."
Teaser:
There are 10 fewer days on the public school academic calendar in Chicago, compared to the national average. And each day students are in school, their class time is 45 minutes shorter than it is for most students around the country.
Teaser: Josefina Alvarado Mena, CEO of Safe Passages, Elev8's lead partner in
Oakland, published an editorial called "The Bill Factory" in Capitol Weekly, detailing the
innovative approaches and practices necessary to make real, positive
change in the lives of middle grade students. >>
Teaser: Albuquerque's 89.9 KUNM-FM, featured Elev8 New Mexico during its November 5th live call in show with Arcie Chapa. Listen here.
Teaser: Elev8 Baltimore celebrated its successful first semester with a week-long series of events, culminating with a press conference at Tench Tilghman Elementary/Middle School on December 17th.
Teaser:
President Obama has called for the creation of 20 Promise Neighborhoods in urban areas that have high levels of poverty and crime -- and low levels of academic achievement. Elev8 is featured in this article about the power of community-based programs to transform the educational outcomes of our nation's youth.
Teaser:
When Nataline Morris registered her sixth grader for Perspectives-Calumet Middle School, she was surprised to find a brand new school health center occupying former classroom space on the building’s north side. Curious, she signed her daughter Emma up for a physical on the spot.
Teaser: On April 8, 2009, Elev8 New Mexico staff and community members celebrated a "wall-breaking" ceremony to mark the remodeling and construction at Laguna Middle School for a new Comprehensive Counseling Resource Center.
Teaser: On a winter afternoon at Ames Middle School in Logan Square, Aisha
Jean-Baptiste tells her sex education class to count off by threes.
After reviewing a list of sexual behaviors posted on the board, each
group is assigned to identify those that are either high risk, low risk
or no risk.
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