Partnerships bring equity supports to Ferndale Schools students

Partnerships for Progress

The district Strategic Plan holds equity as its central tenant, stating that these goals “will only be achieved if their benefits are accessible to all members of our community.” Developing the resources to achieve these goals across all of our community requires an openness to collaborate with partners who can share their strengths.

Two of these key partnerships are with AVID and Equal Opportunity Schools (EOS), two programs that offer institutional and classroom-level support to achieve our college- and career-readiness curriculum goals with equity across historically underrepresented groups.

Equal Opportunity Schools is partnered with Ferndale Schools

EOS has been a reliable partner since 2019, as we began the journey of building staff understanding. One of the most valuable insights from district work with EOS was learning about unconscious biases and poverty-related issues. Instructors led teachers and staff to recognize the lens through which they view the world, enabling them to pro-actively moderate their interpretation of assessment data to make recommendations without biases. Commonly, GPA is a primary factor for making AP recommendations.

Through our work with EOS, we have recruited and increased the percentage of students of color in AP courses, have developed a support plan to ensure that the newly enrolled students are supported and provided significant staff training and professional learning in areas including culturally responsive teaching, explicit anti-bias training and inclusive practices, to ensure that those support structures achieve the desired results.

Our results indicate that we are making headway towards our goal. From the 2019-2020 school year to the 2021-2022 school year, black students participating in at least one AP course grew from 31% of the total participants to 44% of the total participants. As we continue to look at specific opportunity gaps within the district, our continued focus on specific areas of improvement will continue to help us align our outcomes with our strategic plan goals of providing equitable services to all our students.

HONORS EXPANSION

EOS focuses their strategies on improving enrollment in AP courses. Ferndale Schools extends these strategies to provide equitable access to Honors and Early College courses, as well. “We recognize that student success is an individualized endeavor that may look different for every student. There are many pathways to success and we want to ensure that there are no barriers to any of our students participating in these experiences,” said Ferndale Schools Superintendent Bobbie Hayes Goodrum.

The AVID elective brings executive functioning education to enrolled students, and more.

As Ferndale Schools students enter FMS and begin their Secondary education, they are encouraged to start considering plans and aspirations beyond our walls. One of the programs that supports this mission is AVID.

Advancement Via Individual Determination, or AVID, is an elective course available as early as 6th grade. Students develop and reinforce attitudes, skills, and knowledge to successfully enter and complete a college prep academic program in high school and beyond through their own merits. The course guides them to develop study skills and learning strategies like goal setting, time management, and research skills to improve academic performance. Strands of learning include writing, inquiry, collaboration, organization, and reading.

FUTURE-PROOF CAREER SKILLS

Inquiry and critical thinking is encouraged, through independent and cooperative peer groups like “Tutorials.” Twice a week, students engage in tutorials where everyone brings a specific question from the week’s lessons and discusses it. Through inquiry, the question is narrowed to the specific point of confusion and then illuminated through conversation. These executive functioning skills to communicate, clarify, and inquire are immensely valuable in the modern knowledge economy and in every problem-solving situation life will throw at you.

AVID students are also immersed in a college-going culture, with research projects and field trips to colleges and universities to explore possible career pathways more in-depth. This strategy is proven to boost post-secondary readiness in historically underrepresented groups.

Students work together to answer questions that came up in classes throughout the week.

Brian Sevald

AVID FOR ALL

The AVID partnership supports more than students who elect to take the course. AVID also provides scaffolded support that educators need to encourage college and career readiness and success. Ferndale Schools Curriculum, Instruction & Assessment department incorporates AVID Professional Learning Opportunities with other course materials to deepen the impact across all of our campuses over time. “We are moving to share proven strategies for student success with as many students as possible,” says Tom Maes.

These professional development opportunities include culturally responsive teaching and practices that work across multiple sub-groups. Teachers learn how to better foster a Growth Mindset from K-12, establish and encourage collaborative study groups, and more.

AVID Teacher Stephanie Gizicki guides students in developing executive function to improve academic performance.

Brian Sevald

MORE PARTNERS

As these two academic partnerships continue to improve outcomes, we are developing more integrations and connections to increase access and opportunity for our students. Other opportunities include early college credit through Oakland Technical Early College (OTEC) and Oakland Schools Accelerated College Experience (ACE). We also facilitate skills training through Oakland Schools Technical Campus (OSTC), professional certifications through TCEC Workforce, and advanced curriculum as stewards of the Center for Advanced Studies and the Arts.

Learn more about Secondary Options at www.FerndaleSchools.org/Partners