California GEAR UP e-Newsletter

GEAR UP is committed to maintaining the level of quality service to schools while reaching out to the broader P-16 community through local, statewide and national organizations and activities:

National Council for Community and Education Partnerships (NCCEP) Advisory Commission www.edpartnerships.org
NCCEP serves as the technical assistance provider, annual conference convener and voice in Washington, DC for the GEAR UP program. A non-profit organization, their mission is to develop and strengthen broad-based partnerships throughout the education continuum, from early childhood through postsecondary education. NCCEP brings together colleges and universities with local K–12 schools, parent groups, businesses, government agencies, foundations, corporations, and community-based organizations to create systemic change in education. The Advisory Commission advises the President and staff of NCCEP on programmatic issues related to the federal GEAR UP initiative. The California GEAR UP Director serves on the 18 member Commission, comprised of selected representatives from local partnership and state programs across the nation.

Middle Grades Alliance www.cde.ca.gov/ci/gs/mg/stw.asp
The California Middle Grades Alliance is composed of these organizational partners: the California League of Middle Schools, the Association of California School Administrators, the California School Boards Association, the California Middle Grades Partnership Networks, the California County Superintendents Educational Association, the California Teachers Association, California Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development, California GEAR UP and the California Department of Education. The California League of Middle Schools serves as the lead organization for the program through the Schools to Watch-Taking Center Stage program. This is the fourth year for the program and High Performing Middle School Models were announced by Superintendent Jack O’Connell on February 10, 2006. Web-based tours of selected model schools are available at the California League of Middle Schools website: www.clms.net

The National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform www.clms.net
Developed in 1977, the Forum is an alliance of educators, researchers, national associations, and officers of professional organizations and foundations committed to promoting the academic performance and healthy development of young adolescents. Forum members have developed common goals, strengthened individual efforts to improve schools that serve middle-grades students, and worked to mobilize others. The Forum provides leadership for several key initiatives to impact schools at the classroom level and to affect whole school change, including:

• The Schools to Watch (STW) program, developed to recognize high-performing middle-grades model schools. Participating states include Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, New York, Ohio, and Virginia.
• The PALMS Project (Postsecondary Access for Latino Middle-Grades Students), which identified programs effectively reaching the parents of Latino middle-grades students with information about how to prepare their children for college.
  California GEAR UP is a participating member of the National Forum.

California League of Middle Schools www.clms.net
For over twenty years, California League of Middle Schools has been the only professional association in California solely committed to supporting middle grades educators and their students. A non-profit membership association, CLMS is dedicated to improving the professional knowledge of middle level educators so that early adolescents may experience academic success and personal well-being. CLMS has eleven regions organized according to counties; each region has an advisory panel with its own representative to the Board of Directors.

The organization is led by and for California educators, offering conferences, workshops, and development opportunities to address national and state standards. The League provides a number of professional resources, including publications and affiliation with other middle grades associations. Members receive free online copies of their semi-annual newsletter, the Middle Level News, and the monthly eNewsletter via League Links, publications highlighting education and legislative news and providing educators with the opportunity to publish original articles.
Since 1999, the CLMS has been an active supporter of the California GEAR UP program.

Superintendent’s California P-16 Council www.cde.ca.gov/eo/in/pc/
This statewide assembly of education, business, and community leaders is charged with developing strategies to better coordinate, integrate, and improve education for preschool through college students. Members of the Council represent a wide range of experts throughout California, including teachers, administrators, parents, business leaders, students, and academics.
The goals of the Superintendent’s California P-16 Council are to:

• Improve student achievement at all levels and eliminate the achievement gap;
• Link all education levels: preschool, elementary, middle, high school, and higher education, to create a comprehensive, seamless system of student learning;
• Ensure that all students have access to caring and qualified teachers;
• Increase public awareness of the link between an educated citizenry and
  a healthy economy.

California GEAR UP Director Shelley Davis participates in the P-16 Council.

ARCHES: Alliance for Regional Collaboration to Heighten Educational Success www.arches-cal.org/rfp.html
ARCHES is a voluntary confederation of regional collaboratives whose sole purpose is to improve student success and close the achievement gap among groups of students. The collaborative is a means to an end; the end, or goal, is greater student academic achievement, opportunity, and equity in California. Current affiliates include:

• California Academic Partnership Program (CAPP) - www.calstate.edu/CAPP/
• California Alliance for Pre K-16 Partnerships (Pre K-16 Alliance)
• California County Superintendents Educational Services Association (CCSESA) - www.ccsesa.org
• California Education Round Table Intersegmental Coordinating Committee (ICC) - www.certicc.org
• California ENLACE (ENgaging LAtino Communities for Education) - www.sac.edu/community/partnerships/enlace
• California State Superintendent of Public Instruction’s P-16 Council (SPI P-16 Council)
• Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs- State and Local Partnerships (GEAR UP) - www.ed.gov/gearup.
• Higher Education Collaborative Math/Science Initiative (Math/Sci Coll.)
• In Search of Excellence (Excellence)
• University of California Student Academic Preparation Programs and
• Education Partnerships (UC–SAPEP)