To date, the School Reform Board has approved 11 external partners to work with schools on probation. The board is splitting the costs with individual schools.
DePaul University:Center for Urban Education
The program: Integrates math, reading and writing across the curriculum, then aligns curriculum at each grade level. For instance, all 3rd-grade classrooms would work on the same skills at the same time.
The schools: Einstein, Hartigan, Piccolo, Terrell elementary and Carver, Collins, Orr and South Shore high schools.
Cost: $38,150 per elementary school and $48,025 per high school.
DePaul University’s School Achievement Structure Program
The program: A whole-school program that uses a leadership team and emphasizes teaching skills measured by standardized tests.
The schools: Brown, Calhoun North, Dodge, Faraday, Howland, Lewis, Libby, Medill Intermediate, Overton, Paderewski, Sherman, Tilton elementary and Austin, Calumet, Clemente, Collins, Crane, Juarez, Near North, Phillips, Tilden and Westinghouse high schools.
The cost: $90,000 per school.
Erickson Institute for Advanced Research in Child Development
The program: Works mainly with primary grades through teacher inservices and training. Aligns curriculum to standards.
The school: Von Humboldt elementary.
The cost: $40,000.
Malcolm X College (Direct Instruction)
The program: Teaches teachers to use the Direct Instruction/Morningside Language Arts Program, a skills-based reading program that uses scripted lessons.
The schools: Lathrop, McCorkle, Medill (Primary), Parkman and Terrell elementary and Austin and Manley high schools.
Cost: $65,000 per school.
National Alliance for Restructuring Education
The program: Concentrates on five areas: performance standards, best practices in curriculum and instruction, connecting students to real life experiences, school performance management and parent training.
The schools: Burke, Carver Middle, Douglass Middle, Nash, Penn, Sherwood, L. Ward and Williams elementary and Farragut, Fenger, Gage Park, Roosevelt and Senn high schools.
The cost: $300,000 total.
North Central Regional Educational Laboratory
The program: Focuses on what adults can do to boost student achievement despite outside factors such as poverty and poor parenting skills. Key components: data gathering, technology to support school planning and learning, increasing parental involvement.
The schools: Attucks, Colman and Roque de Duprey elementary.
The cost: $90,000 per school.
Northeastern Illinois University College of Education
The program: Assesses student needs and develops intervention stategies to address them, with heavy emphasis on staff development and support for teachers.
The schools: Henderson Elementary and Harper, King and Robeson high schools.
The cost: $125,000 per school.
Quality Education Seminar
The program: Focuses on assessing student needs, curriculum, instructional strategies and preparing students for standardized tests.
The schools: Cather, Penn, Ross and Sumner elementary.
The cost: $47,800 per school.
Roosevelt University
The program: Uses retired veteran principals who work with sitting principals in a school. Also uses retired teachers, plus reading and math consultants who will work closely with teachers to engage students.
The school: Smyth Elementary.
The cost: $125,000 for up to three schools.
University of Chicago Center for School Improvement
The program: Assesses school problems and addresses them through long-term strategic planning. Key components: changing teacher practices using literacy as the focus, connecting students and families to social services using the school as a link, increasing parent involvement.
The school: Donoghue elementary.
The cost: $90,000.
University of Illinois at Chicago Small Schools Workshop
The program: Promotes small learning communities within a school by grouping students and staff into self-selected clusters.
The schools: Raymond Elementary and Bowen, DuSable and Harlan high schools.
The cost: $92,000 per school.