We get stuff done in our work for one reason: We believe – really, truly believe – that every child in this country deserves a great education, and we want to help make that happen. Check this blog for our thoughts on timely topics and issues, and relevant resources that can inform your work right away. Send your comments, suggestions for future blogs and resources to us at info@education-first.com, and let us know what you think.
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Apply for Grants to Support SEL Innovation
Education First, in partnership with the NoVo Foundation, once again seeks applications for teacher-led and district-level projects that foster social and emotional skills in students in grades PK-12. We will award up to $5,000 to individual teachers or teacher teams and up to $25,000 for district-level grants to implement an innovative project in their classrooms, schools and/or districts in the...
Read more >Topic: Social and Emotional LearningFocus Area: Engaged StudentsService: Grantmaking Strategy and Effectiveness -
Fresno Unified School District and Fresno State University: Shared Vision for Partnership
This case study appears in our publication Partnering on Prep: A Toolkit for Building Strong District-Teacher Preparation Program Partnerships. You can access the full publication here. Effective partnerships often start with a mutual recognition that things need to change. Though Fresno Unified School District (FUSD) and Fresno State University (FSU) had been longtime neighbors, they agreed on a crucial point: it was...
Read more >Focus Area: Outstanding Educators -
So What Do (and Don’t) We Know About the Dozens of Other Missing School Improvement Plans?
This op-ed was originally published in The 74. More than 9 million children attend our country’s lowest-performing schools, the vast majority of them students of color. While we are familiar with the components of successful schools — attributes such as high expectations for all students, strong leadership, highly capable teachers, excellent curriculum, regular use of data, a safe learning environment, and attention to...
Read more >Topic: ESSAFocus Area: Effective Organizations and Investments -
Helping Education Leaders Build Coherence into Reform Strategies to Support Teachers and Student Learning
This essay was first published by Carnegie Corporation of New York. As the education laws came tumbling down from the statehouse, Alison Johnson’s head spun. New, more rigorous standards for student learning. New teacher evaluation procedures. New expectations for how teachers plan and deliver their instruction. As each law passed, the English teacher at “Typicaloosa” High School tried to understand them...
Read more >Focus Area: Effective Organizations and Investments -
Clarksville-Montgomery County School System and Austin Peay State University: Honest Conversation for Better Partnerships
This case study appears in our publication Partnering on Prep: A Toolkit for Building Strong District-Teacher Preparation Program Partnerships. You can access the full publication here. When Lisa Barron became the Director of Teacher Education and Partnerships at Austin Peay State University (APSU), she knew that APSU had work to do. Though the institution was placing student teachers in an...
Read more >Topic: Educator DevelopmentFocus Area: Outstanding Educators -
4 Lessons About Social and Emotional Learning From the Awardees of This Year’s Teacher Innovation Awards
This piece originally appeared in The 74. Jarred Amato of Maplewood High School in Nashville is building Project LIT Community, a national, grassroots literacy movement that empowers students as readers and leaders. Rosalia Burson of Baker Middle School in Tacoma, Washington, is developing a restorative re-entry process for students who have been out of school due to exclusionary discipline. Baltimore City...
Read more >Topic: Social and Emotional LearningFocus Area: Engaged Students -
Apply for Family Math Learning Community Grants
We are excited to announce a potential grant opportunity for organizations interested in implementing and supporting “Family Math.” Family Math refers to activities that happen outside of the classroom and within the context of family relationships, the community and everyday life that support young children and families to strengthen their math awareness and math concepts; feel enthusiastic about their math abilities...
Read more >Focus Area: Engaged StudentsService: Grantmaking Strategy and Effectiveness -
Supporting the Social, Emotional and Academic Learning Needs of LGBTQI students
The Social Emotional Learning Innovation Fund offers up to $5,000 grant awards for teachers seeking to foster students’ social and emotional skills in fresh, inventive or innovative ways. In 2018, for the first time, the fund asked for proposals from educators working to support the social emotional needs of LGBTQI students. In honor of National Coming Out Day, we met...
Read more >Focus Area: Engaged Students -
Tools for Partnering on Teacher Prep
Nearly three years ago, we asked ourselves the question: “What can districts and teacher preparation programs, partnering closely together to prepare teachers, truly do to ensure that teachers are ready to support all students to succeed?” Together, with the Joyce Foundation, we embarked on a journey to learn from successful partnerships nationwide, and built a roadmap with 10 recommendations to...
Read more >Topic: Educator Development, preparFocus Area: Outstanding Educators -
Website Update: Featured Resources
Over the past few years, we at Education First have created a number of tools and resources–specialized websites, toolkits, videos, maps and others–that we have released publicly for families, educators, policymakers, funders and other advocates. As of this week, a selection of these tools and resources now “live” on one section of our websites, which we are calling “Featured Resources.”...
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