Between our generous business sponsors and supporters, the 2018 Raising the Bar luncheon was a great success! The luncheon attendees, donors and sponsors together raised a total that was an all time high for SKCE events.
Our 2018 Luncheon theme question was
How can we accelerate Oregon’s education rate
of success and get out of the bottom 5 in the nation?
The following 11-minute video was shown during our luncheon:
COMING SOON:
The full one hour video of our luncheon with guest speakers will be added here
and
Photos of the luncheon will be posted to our Facebook page
On March 14th, 2018, the Spirit Mountain Community Fund awarded a grant to SKCE. Annalivia Palazzo Angulo and Yadira Juarez received the $40,000 award for SKCE. The Spirit Mountain Community Fund awarded this grant to SKCE so that we can, using our Early Learning parent engagement programs, increase the success of Latino students with immigrant backgrounds and Spanish as their home language in the Salem Keizer School District. Thanks to the generosity of the Spirit Mountain Community Fund, these programs will be in several Title I elementary schools in the spring and fall of 2018.
Jack Giffin, Jr., Yadira Juarez, Annalivia Palazzo-Angulo, Sho Dozono, and Mychal Cherry
SKCE Works to Help Parents Reduce the Achievement Gap
There is an achievement gap between ELL (English Language Learners) and Latino students compared to White students in the Salem Keizer School District. Research shows that if struggling readers have not successfully met the achievement skills of their peers by third grade or age nine, we risk losing up to 75% of them to low performance, low attendance rates, failure to graduate, not being ready for college, or dropping out altogether. Our Parent Engagement programs are successful in affecting student success, from pre-school to high school, all of which use culturally relevant methods and curriculum, with Latino Parent facilitators who have the same culture and life experiences as participants.
Cada 17 minutos, al menos seis estadounidenses pierden un ser querido a causa del suicidio.
Muchas de estas personas están aquí, cerca de su casa. En Oregon, el suicidio es la segunda causa de muerte entre nuestros jóvenes, de 10-24 años de edad. Cuando nuestros veteranos re-gresan de la guerra también están en mayor riesgo en comparación de sus compañeros.
La mayoría de las personas afectadas, no tuvieron la oportunidad de detectar
las señales de advertencia.
Las Investigaciones nos dicen que el 66% de las personas que murieron por suicidio mostraron
señales y pistas a familiares o amigos.
Usted tiene la oportunidad de hacer la diferencia en su familia
Usted tiene la oportunidad de salvar una vida!
Venga, juntos aprenderemos como cuidar a nuestro hijos. Espacio limitado.
RVSP o para mas información comuníquese con
Javier Quiroz
503-930-9162
Para obtener más detalles acerca de la formación de QPR, póngase en contacto con
Susan McLauchlin, CPS
Educador de la prevención del suicidio,
Departamento de
Unete a nosotros en este taller de esperanza y de aprendizaje, auspiciado por
La Coalición para la Igualdad de Salem-Keizer
SABADO 24 DE FEBRERO 2018
El desayuno se servirá de 10:00 a 10:30 a.m. Y el taller de 10:30 a 12:30 p.m.
RVSP o para mas información comuníquese con
Javier Quiroz
503-930-9162
Para obtener más detalles acerca de la formación de QPR, póngase en contacto con
Susan McLauchlin, CPS
Educador de la prevención del suicidio,
Departamento de salud del Condado de Marion
503-981-2464 smclauchlin@Co.Marion.or.US
SKCE wholeheartedly supports the Salem-Keizer Schools Bond Measure!
As our Executive Director says:
“I am proud to be a Salemite and I know my community will step up and support our 42,000 students and their families by saying YES to the Salem-Keizer Schools Bond Measure. Saying YES means that our schools will not be crowded and they will be safe, healthy places with the resources they need to produce successful students and be the best district in the state of Oregon!
SKCE is doing its part to increase student success for 39% of the district (Latino). Please do your part and vote YES on the Salem-Keizer Schools Bond.”
TheYesForSalemKeizerSchools website lists 9 bullet points (copied below) for changes in the Salem-Keizer School District facilities that the bond measure would make possible. Notice that 5 of the 9 list items are expanding teaching areas to accommodate the increasing student enrollment in the school district. The last two listed items are to do maintenance for or replacement of worn out facilities. One of the items is to upgrade facilities for that expected major earthquake and one is to improve safety and security – badly needed, considering the nationwide death toll in our schools in the last several years.
Construct new vocational/technical classrooms
Make seismic upgrades
Construct additional space at elementary schools
Make safety and security improvements districtwide
Expand and construct additional space at all six of the district’s traditional high schools
Construct additional space such as classrooms
New science labs
Extend the life of existing facilities
Replace the district’s worn-out portable buildings
This Bond Measure was Created by Volunteer Citizens in the School District
The Salem-Keizer Schools Bond Measure was constructed by the Citizens Facilities Task Force, made up of 20 volunteer citizens who live in the district and who worked very hard to make it meet basic current and long-range future SKSD needs. They not only listened to other local citizens, but did a feasibility survey to make sure the citizens of the district felt that this bond measure – both the total cost and the areas of emphasis – was a measure they wanted and which could get their votes.
The Improvement in the Latino Student Graduation Rate was “impressive”
In aStatesman Journal article, two interviews discussed the improvement in the graduation rates for Oregon students over the last few years. Acting Superintendent for the State of Oregon Department of Education, Colt Gill, and Annalivia Palazzo-Angulo, the Executive Director of SKCE, were interviewed about graduation rates.
Superintendent Gill discussed overall graduation rates and different ways to view the graduation rate data. Annalivia Palazzo-Angulo also discussed graduation rate data, but her information was more specific to the Latino student graduation rate, which was described as an “impressive” gain in the last few years.
“Class of 2017 Graduation” Salem Keizer School District
There was also discussion of how graduation rates change when graduation time is increased beyond 4 years, and when students who graduate through GED, online classes, or other methods are included.
On the Salem Keizer School District website, graduation rates are also discussed. The first paragraph leads to a more in-depth discussion of graduation rates, “According to the Oregon Department of Education’s recently released graduation rates for the 2016-17 academic year, Salem-Keizer Public Schools (SKPS) increased its graduation rate by nearly two percentage points. Additionally, the drop-out rate decreased by nearly one percentage point. The graduation rates were based on a four- and five-year cohort of students entering the ninth grade in the 2013-14 or 12-13 academic year. The dropout rate reports on students in grades 9-12.”
The increase in the number of students graduating was led by the Latino student graduation rate
In 2012, 59.5% of Latino students graduated. In 2017, 72.5% graduated. This is a substantial improvement of 13% in 3 years. Seen in number of students instead of percentages, for every 100 Latino students who should have graduated in 2012, only 59 graduated. However, for every 100 Latino students who should have graduated in 2017, 72 graduated. That’s 13 more out of 100 who graduated in 2017 than graduated in 2012.
Graduation rates must increase for Oregon
However, even with the good news, Oregon didn’t reach a 78% graduation rate. For the present, that means the state Department of Education goal of a 90% graduation rate by 2024 is not on track. (The state legislature has instructed the Oregon Department of Education to have a 100% graduation rate by 2025.) Our graduation rate is currently 49th in the nation.
In the last three years, with a new partnership with the Salem Keizer School District we are working to increase teachers of color in schools by promoting systems change in recruiting, hiring, retaining and culturally responsive training. Our shared vision is a culturally responsive workforce that represents and meets the needs of its diverse students and families.
The school district’s 42,000 students include over 50 native languages and nationalities. Half of the students are considered students of color. Nearly two-thirds of the district’s children are low-income or live in poverty.
Generational and historical obstacles to graduation and higher education in Oregon has resulted in a teacher workforce that reflects very little diversity. Many studies have been done over the years and across the nation showing improved achievement for students of color when teachers reflect the diverse backgrounds, cultures and languages of the students. Also critical is the ability of all teachers of any background to have the relational skills, the “culturally responsive” skills, to interact successfully with students and parents who are different from them.
To this end, one of our activities this past year, in partnership with Salem Keizer District’s Human Resources, was a Language and Culture Institute for teachers, a summer professional development opportunity here at the Salem Keizer Coalition for Equality.
The institute was accredited by Western Oregon University for the teachers’ continuing education requirements and consisted of Spanish language class in the mornings and a Culture Institute in the afternoons. Seventeen teachers attended 15 days of trainings in June and July of 2017, from 9:30 AM to 3:00 PM. By all accounts, they had a fabulous time. Several stated in their evaluations that the experience had been life-changing.
In addition, we have helped the district with two local job fairs for classified employees. The last one was this past November. With our help, the district was able to double the attendance of Latino job seekers, and Human Resources was prepared to interview and hire people at the fair for various open positions in the non-licensed workforce. Another evidence of systems change is the district’s desire for more parents to participate on interview teams. Five of our parent staff helped interview dozens of candidates during the fair.
These are just a few examples of what nonprofit partnerships with school districts can accomplish toward the goal of education equity for all students.
Meyer Memorial Trust has awarded SKCE with a 2-year grant to advance equitable education. Our gratitude goes out to MMT for being such an incredibly strong supporting organization for our programs and civic activities!
MMT started their new Equitable Education Portfolio about 10 months ago, and they have offered grants to organizations across Oregon totaling $7.2 million over 3 years.
MMT’s vision is that all students have an opportunity to access meaningful public education. The focus of the portfolio is on Oregon students, so they can realize their academic achievement goals with disparities at all levels of education removed.
SKCE works to remove these disparities through working with Spanish speaking parents who learn how to help their children succeed in school. We provide programming for parents of children from pre-k to 12th grade, covering parenting, literacy development, communication, school advocacy and partnership, adolescent transition and leadership development.
Our results speak for themselves; our first cohort showed a significant drop in chronic absenteeism – from a 34% to 67% reduction – for the children of our parent participants.
This $150,000 2-year operational grant will assure that SKCE can impact at least 800 families over the next two years.
At the School Board meeting on September 12th, Salem Keizer Coalition for Equality was recognized for our partnership with the district. We were nominated by Four Corners Elementary staff, a school we have worked with for eight years. The award announcement for SKCE starts at video time 9:23 and ends at 12:12.
Pictured from left: Four Corners Elementary Principal Phil Decker, Instructional Assistant
Rosa Garcia, SKCE representatives: Lucia Sanchez Caballero, Yadira Juarez and Javier
Quiroz, with Board Chair Paul Kyllo. Photo courtesy of SKSD.
As the Salem Keizer School District said in its Spotlight on Success post, we were nominated by the Four Corners School staff. We’ve worked with Phil Decker, Rosa Garcia and many other Four Corners staff members for years, and enjoy their enthusiasm and support.
Excerpts from the award presentation
“The Coalition has worked district-wide to support our non-English speaking community. Last November, they sponsored an appreciation dinner and cultural night for the district’s bilingual teachers. Over 150 teachers and family members attended the event held at Stephens Middle School.”
“For two months this past summer, the Coalition co-partnered with the school district to put on the District’s first Summer Language and Culture Institute. Hosted at the Coalition’s offices, it consisted of 15 days of activities, events, field trips and guest speakers, to expose Salem-Keizer Schools staff to the local Hispanic culture in our community.”
The written text for the award presentation is in the Spotlight for Success post above (we are the second group awarded on that page).
Thank you to the Salem Keizer School District for the recognition!
Aprendiendo Avanzamos (Learning Together We Advance) delighted families twice a week for 13 weeks from April to June with the help of generous supporters. Moms, dads and kids had so much fun learning together through developmental activities that they asked for more classes!
SKCE early learning facilitators led children and parents through a variety of experiences twice a week – singing, art projects, learning games, sensory experiences through play, and literacy development. Parents attended parenting classes one day each week and parent-led preschool the other day. Families attended from 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM and received a hearty breakfast and snack. Babies and toddlers received developmentally focused childcare.
By the end of the course, 24 parents had been through a 10-week parenting program called Abriendo Puertas (Opening Doors) on Thursday mornings, while their children received learning-rich preschool. On Friday mornings, parents learned how to make low cost learning activities at home, and then practiced those activities with their child in this second day of preschool each week. Finally, parents attended three trainings of the “Ready! For Kindergarten” program. Each family received and learned to use a $200 “Ready! For Kindergarten” kit of developmental education materials and activities, generously provided by the Marion Polk Early Learning Hub.
Spanish speaking immigrants from rural areas in Mexico with farm working backgrounds are less likely to have had access to school in their childhood. They tell us of having no books in the home, going to school sporadically as rural teachers sent by the government came and went, and having immediate family needs that often took priority over building the future. The simple act of learning how to provide educational experiences to their children and getting them ready for kindergarten changes the way parents think about the future of their child and family. Parents embrace their role as first teacher, mentor and coach of their children. A domino effect occurs throughout the child’s school career as parents continue to stay involved, learn to advocate for their children, and envision high school graduation, college and/or career accomplishments and improving the family’s income. Thus old cycles of poverty and low literacy are set aside as the new cycle has begun, and is passed down in parenting the next generation.
Other supporters that made this session of Aprendiendo Avanzamos possible are:
SKCE wholeheartedly supports the Salem-Keizer Schools Bond Measure!
