Catalyst Innovation Pilot: Launch Update

It is our pleasure to share this first update on Catalyst. And we look forward to sharing similar updates throughout the pilot. It is our commitment to share what we are learning through this iterative innovation pilot with partners like you to continue to keep you informed and to benefit from your feedback, insights, and questions as we pursue this shared learning agenda.

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Duke Students Develop After-school Program To Bring Science To Low-Income Middle Schoolers

Two students have created an after-school program at a nearby middle school intended to broaden participation in computer science. Now, they are trying to expand the curriculum. ophomore Carter Zenke and senior Tanner Johnson took on their ambitious goal to teach middle-schoolers computer science skills by designing Mobile Citizens. David Malone, professor of the practice of education, described the program as "one of the most thoughtful, student-created community engagement projects I have worked with over the past 25 years." 

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AmeriCorps Member Spotlight: Jamal Smith

I wanted to service the young people in my community through the education field by creating unique programs and raising awareness on opportunities. Citizen Schools is continuously making efforts to achieve equity through education and nurtures and encourages teaching fellows to prioritize forward thinking. As a teaching fellow, I have developed valuable skills with the help of my colleagues and campus directors that I will be able to take with me after my two years of service.

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Partnership Spotlight on CAW: Nonprofit Collaboration Maximizes Impact in the Classroom

One of Citizen Schools New York's most impactful and valued partnerships to-date is with a longstanding nonprofit partner: Creative Art Works (CAW). CAW is a 31-year-old nonprofit that empowers NYC young people through the visual and multimedia arts. A Citizen Schools collaborator and partner since 2012, CAW has led nearly 40 apprenticeships covering innovative topics such as Cartooning and Anatomy, Urban Design, Stop-Motion Animation, and Sneaker Branding.

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AmeriCorps Member Spotlight: Madeline Vargas

I decided to become an AmeriCorps Teaching Fellow because I wanted to have the opportunity to discover If teaching was a possibility for me. I am currently In school majoring in Early Childhood Education and plan to continue for my B.A. in English Literature with a concentration in Middle School and High School Education.

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Dell Youth Learning Support Aims to Unlock Student Potential

Mariana is currently fifteen years old. As many other students around her age, she enjoys playing with her little sister and learning new subjects. Mariana’s family moved to the United States from El Salvador in 2016 on a quest for enhanced opportunities. “We left so I could have additional chances to work and study,” she says. It has been arduous to move here because I miss my aunts who are still in El Salvador”.

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A Step in the Right Direction: Career Exploration in Middle School

In the quest for college and career readiness, policymakers are slowly but surely coming around to the importance of career readiness. Though much of this nascent effort is focused on career readiness for high schoolers, middle school is beginning to enter the discussion, too. The middle grades are a crucial time to engage, or reengage, students and put them on a path to college and career success. Research has demonstrated that grades, attendance, and engagement in middle school are strong predictors of high school graduation and postsecondary success. The Everyone Graduates Center at Johns Hopkins University found that “sixth graders who failed math or English/reading, or attended school less than 80% of the time, or received an unsatisfactory behavior grade in a core course had only a 10% to 20% chance of graduating [high school] on time.”

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US2020 honors Science Center, more with STEM awards

The University City Science Center is among the Philadelphia area organizations to receive a national recognition Tuesday morning when US2020 announced it is the recipient of its third annual STEM Mentoring Awards.

The Science Center, Steppingstone Scholars Inc. and Spark are among those honored Tuesday by US2020, a division of the national nonprofit Citizen Schools developed following a White House call to foster science, technology, engineering and math [STEM] professionals.

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US2020 Announces National STEM Coalition Challenge

WASHINGTON, D.C. – October 10, 2017 – Today US2020 announced the launch of the STEM Coalition Challenge, a call to action for nonprofit organizations, school districts, universities, businesses, and public offices to increase the quantity and quality of STEM volunteerism and maker-centered learning across the country. The challenge will expand the US2020 Learning Network to a total of 16 locations, reaching more than 25,000 children within the first year of programming.

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US2020 Honors Leaders of the STEM Mentoring Movement

This morning, US2020 announced the winners of the third annual US2020 STEM Mentoring Awards. The awards are a national platform to celebrate and encourage exceptional work in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) mentoring. Awards were handed out at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, where national leaders in this field are discussing strategies for advancing STEM opportunity in the United States.

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