The groundbreaking professional development partnership of the Central Falls School District and The Learning Community will be featured on NBC Nightly News!  NBC News Special Correspondent Chelsea Clinton recently interviewed teachers, students and families in Central Falls to report on a rare national example of a public charter school and a public school district partnering to bring the latest instructional practices to classrooms. Our teachers and students from Veterans Memorial Elementary School will be featured along with teachers and students from The Learning Community.

“The NBC News visit gave us an incredible opportunity to share the amazing teaching and learning that goes on in Central Falls classrooms,” said Ann Lynch, Principal of Veterans Memorial Elementary.  “We know that teachers are at the center of effective school change, and this partnership has focused relentlessly on supporting great teaching.”

Chelsea Clinton visited Veterans Elementary, observed reading instruction and the partnership’s professional development approaches, and signed some autographs along the way.  “It was a thrill to have Ms. Clinton in my classroom,” said Cheryl Thurber, a second grade teacher at Veterans. “The students were eager to show their strong reading strategies, and she asked thoughtful questions about our work.”

]]> http://www.cfschools.net/2012/02/10/nbc-nightly-news-to-highlight-excellent-teaching-collaboration/feed/ 0 http://www.cfschools.net/2012/01/28/central-falls-celebrates-education/ http://www.cfschools.net/2012/01/28/central-falls-celebrates-education/#comments Sat, 28 Jan 2012 06:13:31 +0000 grossoy http://www.cfschools.net/?p=3834 The “Central Falls Education Celebration” that was scheduled to be held at Central Falls High School Gymnasium on Saturday, February 11, 2012 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m has been postponed due to weather forecasts. We will keep you updated on the new date once we have it.

 CF native Viola Davis nominated for Oscar 
By Bekah Berger
WPRO News
January 24, 2012

You can’t, “help” but feel a sense of pride for Rhode Island native Viola Davis and her rise to the top of the Hollywood elite. On Tuesday morning Davis was once again recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences this time earning a Best Actress in a Leading Role Oscar nomination for her role as, Aibileen, an African American maid working in Mississippi during the 1960′s in The Help.  She was previously nominated for best supporting actress in 2008 for playing Mrs. Miller inDoubt (a role that saw Davis on screen for a remarkable 10 minutes.)

Davis, a Central Falls High School graduate, is celebrating a stage and screen career that had humble beginnings in the theater department at Rhode Island College.  While at RIC she caught the attention of Bernard Masterson, who at the time was the director of the Young People’s School for the Performing Arts in Rhode Island.  Masterson awarded Viola with a scholarship into the program.  Four years at the prestigious Juilliard School followed which Davis has described as “a hot mess.”

Her rise to the top had its hurdles.  Like most people of her profession Davis had to shell out copious amounts of money on acting classes and work her way up through the Hollywood food chain. “I didn’t get my SAG card until I was 30,” Davis said in Elle Magazine‘s November 2011 issue. “But that’s how it works. You keep putting your work out there, and at some point, if you’re fortunate, if you’re lucky, if you’re blessed, it morphs into something. One role has led to another until I’ve emerged as this.”

This means 2011 was a big year for Davis; and not just professionally but personally as well.  One of Viola’s newest roles is as a mom. Back in October, Davis and her husband Julius Tennon, announced their welcoming of a baby daughter named Genesis, whom the couple adopted domestically.

The industry has consistently recognized Davis’ stand-out role in, The Help. She won the 2011 Critic’s Choice award and was nominated for the Golden Globe Best Actress award.  The recipient of that award was Davis’ co-star, Meryl Streep.  Streep, who won for her portrayal of the first and only female British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in, The Iron Lady, looked astounded when her name was announced.  At one point she was speechless adoringly looking out at Davis simply saying Viola’s name; a gesture some take as that Streep was thinking that Davis deserved the award more than she did. This Sunday we will see Viola Davis walk the Screen Actors Guild Awards red carpet with the rest of, The Help cast.  Davis is up for two awards; the SAG award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor and the SAG award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.

Davis faces fierce competition in her Oscar category for best actress in a leading role.  Her fellow nominees include Glenn Close (Albert Nobbsh), Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn) and facing off yet again with Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady).  Viola’s sister Deloris Grant, who teaches English and Theater at Central Falls High School, shares the sentiments of her fellow Rhode Islanders.  “Viola is really happy with this nomination and I am thrilled for my baby sister who has achieved a moment all actors dream of-fame and recognition of her work,” said Grant.  “I did speak to Viola today and we were both basically speechless. I knew she would be nominated again. I have seen Viola on stage all my life and I have also directed her. This moment will be with my family and the folks of Central Falls who have always supported her. We have today to be proud and I thank Viola for sharing this.”

No matter the outcome, when the Academy Awards are handed out on February 26^th, there is no doubt that Viola Davis will continue to make Rhode Island proud as our choice for leading lady.

January 30, 2012
WPRO News
Central Falls native Viola Davis scoops up SAG award

“You can’t trade in your dream for another dream. Dream BIG and Dream FIERCE.” – Viola Davis

Kindergarten is an exciting and important step for the whole family. When your child attends kindergarten he/she will learn the basics in reading, writing and mathematics as well as listening, speaking, fine motor skills and much more.

Make sure to register early by visiting the Student Registration Center located at 521 Dexter Street. The registration hours are from Monday—Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. For more information call 401-727-6177.

Parents/Guardians MUST bring:

• Child’s birth certificate
• Proof of Immunizations
• Two proofs of address
• Physical if completed by 09/01/11
• Lead and vision screening
• Photo Id

Congratulations to The Learning Community and the Central Falls education community on a great New York Times piece (below).

“The Central Falls Success”
By Joe Nocera
Published: January 2, 2012

Central Falls, R.I., is a speck of a city, one square mile of triple-decker houses and tired storefronts a few miles up the road from the state capital, Providence. It is the poorest city in Rhode Island, with 27 percent of its residents below the poverty line, according to the Census Bureau. Earlier this year, it started bankruptcy proceedings. Its mayor, who is the subject of a state police investigation, has been pushed aside in favor of a receiver, who has taken control of the city’s finances.

Central Falls, though, also has one of the most promising reading experiments in the country. The Learning Community, a local charter school, and the Central Falls public elementary schools have joined forces in a collaboration that has resulted in dramatic improvements in the reading scores of the public schoolchildren from kindergarten to grade 2. Given the mistrust of charter schools by public schoolteachers, creating this collaboration was no small feat. And while the city’s bankruptcy now threatens it, the Central Falls experiment not only needs to be preserved, it should be replicated across the country. I haven’t seen anything that makes more sense.

When I last wrote about public schools, it was through the prism of Steven Brill’s book, “Class Warfare: Inside the Fight to Fix America’s Schools.” Though a fan of the charter school movement, Brill concluded that, by themselves, charters were never going to fix what ails the nation’s public schools; you couldn’t possibly scale them to encompass 50 million public school students.

As it turns out, Meg O’Leary and Sarah Friedman, the co-founders of The Learning Community, had gotten there a whole lot earlier. Before starting The Learning Community in 2004, they spent three years working with the Providence school system on a pilot program designed to come up with ways to “transform teaching practices and improve outcomes,” says Friedman. During a time of upheaval in the school system, a small corps of great teachers were the real anchors in the schools. In setting up The Learning Community, O’Leary and Friedman wanted to apply the best practices they had learned during the Providence project — and, eventually, to use their knowledge to help public school districts in Rhode Island.

They got their chance in 2007, when Frances Gallo became the Central Falls Schools superintendent. After she got the job, Gallo stopped in on several families just as they had learned that their children had won a spot (via lottery) in The Learning Community. “They were so excited,” recalls Gallo. She wanted to understand why.

So Gallo began spending time at The Learning Community — where she, too, became excited. The school drew from the same population as the public schools. It had the same relatively large class sizes. It did not screen out students with learning disabilities. Yet the percentage of students who read at or above their grade level was significantly higher than the public school students. When Gallo asked O’Leary and Friedman if they would apply their methods to the public schools, they jumped at it.

Did everything go smoothly at first? Not even close. “At first it was, ‘Oh, here comes another initiative,’ ” recalls Friedman. There were plenty of “venting” sessions at the beginning, along with both resentment and resistance. But The Learning Community invited the teachers to visit its classrooms, where the public school teachers saw the same thing Gallo had seen. And very quickly they also began to see results. Most public schoolteachers yearn to see their students succeed — just like charter schoolteachers do. Most of the resistance melted away.

There is another important element to this collaboration: The Learning Community advisers who work most closely with Central Falls teachers haven’t just done a fly-by. They have worked hand in hand with their public school colleagues for three years. They have been a constant, encouraging presence. They have developed relationships. And they have treated the public schoolteachers with respect. It makes a huge difference.

Early on, O’Leary and Friedman convinced Gallo to hire reading specialists for Central Falls. (The Learning Community’s methods call for a great deal of one-on-one instruction, especially when a teacher sees a student beginning to lag behind.) Ann Lynch, a Central Falls elementary school principal, told me that budget cuts have already forced her to cut back from two specialists to one. Everybody is worried about more cuts: the combination of the bankruptcy and a new state funding formula — which will cut back some state financing for the Central Falls School District — has people fearful that The Learning Community’s project will be pared back, too.

Let’s hope it doesn’t happen. What is happening between this one charter school and this one school district offers an all-too-rare chance for optimism — not just about Central Falls’s public schools, but America’s.

District Charter Compact 

We also congratulate the International Charter School for their work on their exhibition “Documenting Cultural Communities,” that was covered by Go Local Providence. To read the article click here.

WPRI Channel 12 covered this story of generosity. The article is available, below:

Santa Claus read to the students at Ella Risk Elementary School in Central Falls on Tuesday, after dropping off a donation of clothing and toys. WPRI

Santa drops off donations at CF school
By Diana Pinzon
December 20, 2011

CENTRAL FALLS, R.I. (WPRI) – Santa Claus made a surprise visit to the Ella Risk Elementary School in Central Falls on Tuesday to deliver presents to the students.

A group of people throughout Rhode Island teamed up to help collect the gifts.

First grade teacher, Martha D’Amico, sent out an email to friends and family looking for clothing donations for her students.

That email reached one of the employees at Shamrock Financial. He contacted Benny’s to coordinate a big donation of school supplies, toys and clothes.

We wanted to give you a brief clip of our Summit success through the following feedback messages and media clips. Enjoy!

Attendee Feedback:

“I really enjoyed hearing firsthand experience from a broad range of stakeholders.  The summit really displayed the change in culture that has occurred and how all are invested in and taking ownership of change.”

“The summit gave great insight into transformation at all levels and helped showcase multiple perspectives.  I look forward to a Transformation Summit II to look at future progress and plans.”

“Both the transformation overview and panel gave a lot of evidence and data to show how the positive change has occurred.  It is really helpful to hear as other schools begin transformation.”

“My student ambassador was great and I loved the student-led tours.  Definitely do them again!”

Media Coverage:

“Superintendent: Central Falls High School has arrived”
By Jim Baron, Pawtucket Times
December 15, 2011
CENTRAL FALLS — Trumpeting the success of the sometimes difficult and tumultuous transformation of Central Falls High School that began in 2010 with the threat to fire all the teachers, Superintendent Frances Gallo told a group of educators Tuesday that “from the depths of despair and resentment, our school has arrived.”
http://www.pawtuckettimes.com/content/superintendent-central-falls-high-school-has-arrived

“At high school, change reported”
By Jennifer D. Jordan, Providence Journal
December 14, 2011
CENTRAL FALLS – Students, teachers, parents and visitors walking through the hallways of the city’s rundown high school say there is something different at Central Falls High School this year – a sense of community and shared purposed.
http://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/ODE/ProJo/LandingPage/LandingPage.aspx?href=VFBKLzIwMTEvMTIvMTQ.&pageno=NA..&entity=QXIwMDQwMA..&view=ZW50aXR5

Currently, TALL is bringing their anti-bullying message to the Central Falls schools by incorporating drama with a bit of comedy. The Providence Journal captured some of the Anti-Bullying Tour, which began at Calcutt Middle School.

The Pawtucket Times covered the win. The article is available, below:

Central Falls earns trip to Super Bowl
BY STEVE MAZZONE
November 29, 2011

Central Falls High's Larry Cruz scores first of his two touchdowns during Tuesday's 25-17 win over North Smithfield in the D-IV playoffs. (ERNEST A. BROWN photo)

NORTH SMITHFIELD – All season long the Central Falls football team has played for Jose Figueroa, a 2011 graduate and dedicated four-year player who lost his life in a drowning accident this past summer.

From high above, he had to enjoy this one.

With their eyes clearly on the prize in Tuesday’s Division IV semifinal contest with host North Smithfield, the fourth-seeded Warriors jumped out to a 21-point cushion by the third quarter and then held off a spirited rally by the top-seeded Northmen in the second half to hold on to an emotional 25-17 victory.

During the opening coin toss, the Central Falls’ captains carried out the No. 4 jersey worn by Figueroa to honor their late teammate. After the game, C.F. coach Mo Jackson talked about how meaningful the victory was for him and his players.

“This one was a little special,” he said. “When we break it down, we usually say 1-2-3 team. Every game (this season) we have said 1-2-3 Jose ‘Fig’. Tonight he was up there watching us. He was the twelfth man on the field.”

The win earns the C.F. gridders a ticket to this weekend’s Super Bowl. It will be their first appearance in the championship game since winning it all in 2005. The Warriors will face Mount Pleasant on Sunday afternoon in the title contest at Cranston Stadium, beginning at 3 p.m. The Kilties defeated Smithfield in their semifinal game, also on Tuesday.

“It feels great, especially from this bunch of kids,” Jackson said. “There are mostly no-names. We don’t have a lot of superstars on this team. Our motto this year is to believe in yourselves and believe in each other and we’ll persevere and get better. That’s what happened. They believe in each other. They trust one another and this is the outcome of it.”

North Smithfield, which dominated the Warriors during the league season in a 27-6 rout on Nov. 11, looked impressive at the start of the game. On just the second play of the contest, two-way player Paris Correia intercepted a pass tossed by quarterback Brandon Canuto and returned it to the Warriors’ 18-yard line.

North Smithfield failed to get into the end zone, but still capitalized on the turnover with a 20-yard field goal by Jacob Walkow.

C.F. responded with a five-play, 32-yard drive that ended with Canuto spotting senior Larry Cruz with a 17-yard TD pass. The drive was set up nicely by a 40-yard kickoff return from Tyshon Ashe.

The Warriors, who held the edge in ball possession in the opening half, were able to take a 12-3 advantage into the break with another Canuto-Cruz score. This one, however, came with a little trickery. On a fourth-and-2 from the 38, Ashe took the snap, pitched it over to Canuto at the right sideline and then the QB fired a perfect pass to a wide-open Cruz, who hustled into the end zone untouched with 4:30 left.

“It was just a good, timely call for them,” said N.S. coach Wes Pennington. ”Our secondary guys were looking into the backfield and the guy got behind us.”

Jackson just felt the time was right, considering his top running back Josh Brandon had already put a big dent in the offense. The senior running back finished with 100 yards with nearly half of that total coming in the opening half.

“He is keyed on every game,” he said. “The kid has run for over 1,300 yards and 13 touchdowns. Every time he gets the ball in his hand they sort of forget about everybody else. That’s what happens. They forget out him. We pitched it back to the quarterback and scored a touchdown. That’s the second time that that play has worked this year.”

The Warriors increased their lead to 25-3 midway into the third quarter, scoring twice in an 18-second span. Senior Joel Peralta capped off a seven-play, 83-yard drive with a 23-yard run. Brandon had 26 yards on three handles during the drive.

The back-breaker for the Northmen came on their first play from scrimmage when senior Senison Jimenez intercepted a pass tossed by back-up QB Justin York and returned it for a 59-yard score.

“That was probably the biggest play of the game,” Pennington said. “Had that not happened we are still playing right now.”

North Smithfield’s rally began late in the fourth quarter with Chris Mancini scoring on a one-yard plunge with 2:37 left. The Northmen scored again with 8:16 left in the fourth quarter on a 37-yard pass from starting quarterback Dan Jordan to Carlos Guzman to finish off an eight-play, 74-yard drive.

North Smithfield made one final push in the closing seconds, but Christian Brandon put an end to the threat with an interception at the one-yard line with 33 seconds remaining.

North Smithfield’s star running back Correia never made it into the end zone, but did finish the game with 110 hard-earned yards against a strong Central Falls’ defense.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011
1:00PM – 5:00PM
Central Falls High School
24 Summer Street Central Falls, Rhode Island 02863

Overview:

School districts throughout New England are facing the challenge of dramatically improving low-performing high schools. The 2011 High School Transformation Summit will bring together superintendents, principals, teachers, students, and other educators from several small urban New England school districts – including Central Falls, RI, and Brockton, MA – to learn about transformation efforts, progress made to date, and to share ideas about how to confront ongoing challenges.

Program:

1:00-1:30 — Student-guided tours of Central Falls High School

1:45-2:00 — Welcoming remarks from Central Falls Superintendent, Dr. Frances Gallo

2:00-3:00 — Transforming Central Falls High School: a moderated discussion featuring perspectives from Central Falls principals, teachers, and students

3:00-4:30 — Moderated breakout sessions focused on sharing experiences and best practices among represented school districts and guests. Topics will include: developing transformation plans, funding issues, teacher and student buy-in, improving quality of instruction, parent engagement, and program evaluation.

4:30-5:00 — Reception and networking.

Click here to RSVP today!