Charter-like programs may give students more choices

Nashville’s public school district initially has denied all three applications in this year’s round of prospective new charter schools. However, plans are taking shape that still could spell more choice for Metro students.

Officials are in the midst of utilizing technical assistance provided by the Alterative High School Initiative (AHSI). The city of Indianapolis, the program’s “test city,” saw the addition of several charter schools, as well as other new programs, the year after the planning phase was completed.

Here, officials have indicated that any programs established locally through the AHSI probably would utilize a different structure, more like the Big Picture High School — a school lodged entirely beneath the Metro Nashville Public Schools umbrella — than charter schools. Such structures nonetheless spell alternatives and choices for students.

“These schools in no way, shape or form are any less rigorous than the best of what Metro currently offers,” said Ellen Zinkiewicz, director of youth and community services for the Nashville Career Advancement Center and a co-chair of the committee helping to develop the plans. “They just do it a little differently. The hope is that, in doing it a little differently, it will really resonate with some of these kids who may be struggling.”

AHSI is a network of youth development organizations that works to create educational opportunities for young people for whom traditional school settings have not been optimal. The program was launched in 2003 with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as a response to national trends of diminishing high school graduation rates.

Participation with AHSI was first announced by Mayor Karl Dean in his State of Metro address, and cited as a means to bring additional smaller learning communities, similar to the Big Picture High School, to MNPS.

Dean and Vice Mayor Diane Neighbors spearheaded the effort to participate, and Dean has said he hopes the program will increase school choice and provide alternatives for at-risk kids.

Whatever programs are selected for Nashville, participation with AHSI stands to deepen the ability of the mayor’s office to directly engage in the education of students.

The AHSI initiative falls under the umbrella of the mayor’s office, though significant coordination with MNPS is planned. Jim Briggs, director of innovation and redesign for MNPS, works alongside Zinkiewicz in the planning.

Plans are being made, and with the help of the program, new alternatives for students could be launched as early as the coming 2009-10 academic year.

The four serious possibilities on the table include expansion of the existing Big Picture High School, as well as launching programs based on the Diploma Plus, Gateway to College, and YouthBuild models.

The Big Picture High School opened last fall with 60 freshman students, and was expanded this year to 120. The school emphasizes internships for students, and project-based learning that includes curriculum similar to that in other Metro schools.

Big Picture Principal Ralph Tagg said the program is expected to continue expanding next year, up to 180 students.

“I do think there are more choice options coming down the road,” Tagg said. “There is a ‘market’ out there for children who need a different approach, and I think the school system itself is aware of that and working toward it.”

The Diploma Plus is geared to serve as a choice school for kids who are over-age and under-credit — for example, students who are aged as typical sophomores, but are freshmen in terms of academic credit. Learning is intensive and project-based, with a focus on critical thinking in addition to content.

Similar methods are already in place at Metro schools, but this program is highly focused. Work with the national organization gives the district access to professional development.

“It’s teaching the kids differently. It’s very personalized, academically rigorous, competency-based learning,” Zinkiewicz said. “They know exactly what they’re supposed to do, and they’re supported by adults all the way.”

The Gateway to College model — which is currently being replicated at 17 colleges across the country — is a dual-credit track that allows students to earn high school diplomas by taking community college classes and earning high school and college credits simultaneously. The program targets kids who have dropped out and no longer think of themselves as high school students, Zinkiewicz said.

YouthBuild USA has more than 200 programs in place across the country, and works with students who have already dropped out. Through the program, young people can work toward completing their high school educations while building low-income housing. Kids are taught through hands-on, project-based means, and gain job skills simultaneously.

The progress has been made somewhat quietly. And leaders within the initiative want to be sure that options are communicated as they become available.