RISE Network Partnerships: Strong and Growing

During the 2015-16 school year, teachers, counselors, and administrators across Connecticut came together with Dalio Education to launch the RISE Network. Sharing the belief that we can do more to help all students achieve their full potential, RISE’s founding partners aspired to create a community built by educators, for educators to advance shared goals to improve students’ college, career, and life outcomes. Today, RISE’s core and most comprehensive network represents a collaboration between nine high schools and eight public school districts, reaching over 13,000 students. The majority of RISE high school students are students of color and/or from low-income backgrounds.

Through our core network, we have piloted and scaled promising practices that have led to improved student outcomes. But the work doesn’t stop there! As we continue to strive for deeper impact in our core partner schools, we are also building on the momentum of our core network by scaling this approach in new communities. In recent years, we have expanded our existing partnerships in districts such as Hartford, Meriden, and Norwalk; partnered with the State on the Connecticut FAFSA Challenge; hosted our second annual Grade 9 Symposium with new partners from 36 schools and 19 districts; and launched a Freshman Focus Network to promote Grade 9 strategies beyond the core network.

Core Network

Our core network of 9 high schools and 8 districts reaches over 13,000 students and serves as our most comprehensive and high-touch partnership model. These schools also serve as our innovation lab and demonstration sites.

Scale Partnerships

During the 2022-23 school year, RISE engaged in various consulting partnerships with 40+ additional high schools. Through our scale partnerships, we work to expand our model and results in new communities

New Freshman Focus Network Yields Tangible Results

The core network demonstrates the power of bringing educators together to scale our impact. We built on this momentum during the 2022-23 school year by launching the Freshman Focus Network (FFN), inviting new schools to partner with RISE and one another to strengthen the middle-to-high school transition. This past year, nine schools participated in the FFN. Rooted in RISE’s Grade 9 Conditions for Success, partners identified priority areas, engaged in monthly coaching, and participated in monthly cross-school collaboratives.

New school partners benefited from the momentum underway in the core network. For example, participants visited Platt H.S. in Meriden, CT to learn about the Grade 9 structures that have supported double-digit gains across multiple indicators over the past seven years. Schools also engaged in cross-school learning through monthly sessions and the year-end summit. Pamela Otunnu, Director of Secondary Academic Access and Outcomes, Portland Public Schools in Portland, ME said the visit was “Amazing! Folks came out of it with real things to start trying right away.”

As a result of Portland’s partnership in the FFN, they are planning to implement summer bridge programming, on-track meetings, and hire a Grade 9 counselor. “When district and school priorities are aligned, it moves things along,” said Otunnu. “Through the Network we have developed a shared understanding of the importance of Grade 9.”