COMMUNITIES FOUNDATION of TEXAS

2014 Impact Report

Community Impact Funding: At-Risk Middle School Youth Program Context In 2009 Communities Foundation of Texas’ board of trustees selected the at-risk middle school youth space as one of its two Community Impact focus areas. The goal was to support efforts to increase the quantity and quality of teachers and school leaders coming into the profession—and those currently working in local high-need urban middle schools—as a key lever of overall retention and graduation rates. CFT’s middle school grants are designed to support the implementation of initiatives and programs that provide specific professional development programs, strategies, and models that will create a larger pool of highly qualified teachers and school leaders and/or will enhance the skills and knowledge of current teachers and school leaders in high-need urban middle school campuses. The hypothesis is that doing so will ultimately increase overall student performance. In particular, CFT determined that it would initially focus on supporting programs that can accomplish the following:

• Identify candidates and provide professional/leadership development opportunities for teachers and

administrators who have the characteristics needed for future teaching and/or leadership roles within highneed urban middle schools or school systems

• Create opportunities for the enhanced ongoing development of teachers and school leaders so that they

can improve their subject-matter knowledge and the pedagogical skills they use to impart the specialized knowledge/content of their subject area(s), including the achievement of high-quality required continuing professional education (CPE) credits

• Promote the implementation of teacher and administrator skill and competency development, including

data-informed teaching and leading; and the integration of research and technology-based methods into the curriculum

• Provide opportunities for the enhanced ongoing development of administrators to improve and enhance

competencies attributable to strong leadership, including but not limited to supervising and motivating staff, coordinating curriculum, promoting and sustaining a positive school learning climate, and evaluating student performance.

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