Excellent public education is critical to the community's quality of life and economic vitality. All children should have access to good schools, good teachers, and adequate resources. Furthermore, the quality of a student's education should not be determined by where in the county he or she lives.

The Foundation's current long-term investment in school improvement has focused on academic achievement, with emphasis on literacy, in eight inner-city public elementary schools. A successful reform model has been developed, and significant academic improvement has been made. These interim outcomes are attracting increasing recognition and interest from school districts throughout the country. The Foundation will build on the successes of the Benwood Initiative by promoting lasting quality education in public elementary schools throughout Hamilton County.

The Benwood Initiative
In 2000, an independent public policy institute ranked all of the State of Tennessee's 1,200 public elementary schools based on the average scores from the mandatory statewide TerraNova achievement test. Hamilton County (specifically the City of Chattanooga) was home to nine of the twenty lowest-scoring elementary schools. All were almost exclusively composed of African American children with more that ninety percent qualifying for free or reduced lunch, a strong indicator of low family income.

In the belief that all children should have access to quality schools, the Benwood Foundation made an initial five million dollar grant with the goal that no elementary school in Hamilton County would be identified as "low performing."

The Initiative was guided by a strong belief in:

• High expectations and standards
• A strong education leader (principal) committed to the belief that all children can and will learn
• The involvement of teachers in school improvement strategies
• The utilization of data to evaluate students and program needs
• The recruitment, training and retention of effective teachers with a strong emphasis on professional development
• Measurable goals

In 2007, the Foundation extended the Benwood Initiative to include sixteen schools.

• Alpine Crest Elementary
• Birchwood Elementary
• Brown Academy for Classical Studies
• Harrison Elementary
• Hixson Elementary
• Rivermont Elementary
• Spring Creek Elementary
• Red Bank Elementary
• Calvin Donaldson Elementary
• Clifton Hills Elementary
• East Lake Elementary
• East Side Elementary
• Hardy Elementary
• Hillcrest Elementary
• Orchard Knob Elementary
• Woodmore Elementary

Over the course of the Benwood Initiative, the following are lessons learned:

• A clear goal with measurable outcomes is essential.
• Despite the myriad of challenges in school reform, it is important to choose a manageable area of work.
• True school improvement requires effective partnerships. No one entity can bring about sustainable improvement.
• Teacher quality and strong instructional leadership are fundamental.
• Good philanthropy requires a strategic point of entry.
• Sustainable and systemic change takes time.

 Goals
By the year 2011:

• Every child will be promoted from 5th grade as a strong reader, a good writer, and a skilled solver of a wide range of math problems.
• Before the end of the Initiative, 100% of 5th graders will score "proficient" in reading and the percentage of students scoring "advanced" will have increased by at least 25%.
• Before the end of the initiative, all 5th graders will score "proficient" in math and the percentage of students scoring "advanced" will have increased by at least 25%.
• Before the end of the initiative, all 5th graders will score in the "exemplary" range (4.0 or better) on the Tennessee writing exam.
• In reading and mathematics, every school will earn a grade of "A," denoting exemplary progress, in the Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System.
• Every school will be led by a visionary team of educators who are experts in instruction and data analysis.
• The Leadership Team will coordinate data analysis and professional development with the school as a whole, oversee horizontal and vertical planning on a regular basis, and create school environment conducive to learning.
• Every school will be staffed by highly skilled, highly committed, and highly effective teachers.
• The profile of teachers, as measured by experience, educational attainment, and attendance, will be exemplary.
• By the end of the initiative, each school will increase the percentage of high performing teachers.
• The teacher turnover rate will be significantly reduced by the end of the initiative.
• Every school will benefit from the support and high expectations of elected officials, community leaders, and families.
• The school will work actively with the local community, business partners, and families to support the other goals in order to achieve the vision.

Strategies

• Move students from "proficient" to "advanced" as the criterion of successful learning
• Work with all grades preK through 5th (not just early elementary)
• Focus on numeracy while continuing the focus on literacy
• Focus on "rigor" and help teachers understand when and how their lessons contain rigorous material and expectations  
• Change the locus of professional development increasingly into schools and change the deliverers of professional development from consultants and consulting teachers to Lead Teachers
• Add model classrooms in every school as a learning/modeling strategy
• Change the structure of school leadership teams to include more teacher leaders and those who work with families
• Provide district-led professional development - followed up by train-the-trainer work to transfer learning into the schools - for issues that are increasingly becoming urgent in the schools: e.g. English as a Second Language, differentiated instruction, use of data, etc.   
• Use networks of school leaders - principals, assistant principals, lead teachers, others - as a strategy for shared learning and a vehicle for the school-based educators to own the work
• Use other strategies to increase the amount of peer feedback and learning: e.g. school educators participating on school observation teams; schools presenting annual plans to one another, etc.
• Encourage clusters of "networked learning communities" to encourage K-12 sharing
• Work within the new HCDE area districts to align elementary reform work with high school and middle school work
• Change central office staff from regulatory to service-oriented roles, with the expectation that they observe and work in schools every week
• Extend the community connections for schools and use these connections to build community support
• Document the work as it proceeds in order to share externally
• Involve different types of staff from the partners in order to transfer lessons and assure alignment K-12   

Shared Knowledge

Hamilton County Schools

Public Education Foundation, Benwood Initiative

Public Education Foundation, News