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Home > CES Small Schools Project > Press Releases
For Immediate Release: September 12, 2005
Contact: Brett Bradshaw
(510) 433-1926
Coalition of Essential Schools Launches Next Generation of Small Schools
Initiative of Gates-funded Small Schools Project
creates nationwide network of exemplary small high schools
(Oakland, CA) Today the Coalition of Essential Schools (CES) announced the opening of 12 new high schools this fall, launched through the CES Small Schools Project. Four of the schools are new small schools created from the ground up, while the remaining eight are small schools that have grown out of the conversion of two large comprehensive high schools. The new schools are:
These schools were established through a unique school-to-school approach for school planning and design pioneered by the CES Small School Project in which each new school design team is matched with exemplary CES schools. According to CES National Executive Director Lewis Cohen, "This peer-to-peer approach takes advantage of CES's twenty years of experience in educational innovation to launch the next generation of exemplary high schools."
Currently the Small Schools Project network boasts 17 CES mentor schools representing many of the most effective high schools in the nation. These mentors are sharing their experience in implementing the CES Common Principles, a proven and practical approach to school reform that is at the heart of today's small schools movement. "The research demonstrates that schools effectively implementing the CES Common Principles have higher graduation rates and send more students to college" says Small School Project Co-Director Laura Flaxman. "This has been true in a variety of contexts and especially in traditionally underserved urban communities."
Over the next three years the Smalls Schools Project is participating in the creation of up to 35 new high schools. Project Co-Director Mara Benitez says "These schools will make a difference in the lives of children and families who haven't had access to an intellectually challenging and meaningful high-school education. Not only will this open up a lifetime of opportunities for these students but it will also drive the national conversation around effective school reform, propelling the small schools movement towards high quality, intellectually challenging and equitable schools."
CES does not offer a prescriptive model for new school design but instead uses the Common Principles to guide schools in setting priorities and designing practices suited to their particular students, faculty, and community. The launch of these new schools is the culmination of an extensive planning and design process that involved administrators, teachers, students, and families.
The CES Small Schools Project, a five-year initiative made possible by an $18.7 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, will eventually result in a nationwide network of more than 50 schools all of which embody the CES ideal of small, personalized, intellectually vibrant and equitable learning environments.
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About CES
The Coalition of Essential Schools, founded in 1984 by Theodore Sizer, is an education reform organization dedicated to transforming American public education so that every child in every neighborhood, regardless of race or class, attends a small, intellectually challenging, personalized school. The CES National office is in Oakland, CA, and there are currently twenty-one CES regional centers across the country.
CES schools share a common set of beliefs about the purpose and practice of schooling, known as the CES Common Principles. Based on decades of research and practice, the principles call for all schools to offer:
- Personalized instruction to address individual needs and interests
- Small schools and classrooms, where teachers and student know each other well and work in an atmosphere of trust and high expectations
- Multiple assessments based on performance of authentic tasks
- Democratic and equitable school policies and practices
- Close partnerships with the school's community
On the Internet:
Coalition of Essential Schools, www.essentialschools.org
About the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is building upon the unprecedented opportunities of the 21st century to improve equity in global health and learning. Led by Bill Gates' father, William H. Gates Sr., and Patty Stonesifer, the Seattle-based foundation has an endowment of approximately $24 billion.
On the Internet:
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, www.gatesfoundation.org
About Expeditionary Learning Outward Bound
Expeditionary Learning Outward Bound is a nationally recognized K-12 model for transformation of existing schools and new school development that emphasizes real world learning, engaging instruction, rigorous curriculum, and character development. The design's strength is the provision of an intensive, multi-year sequence of professional development and technical assistance for teachers and school leaders.
On the Internet:
Expeditionary Learning Outward Bound, www.elob.org
About Houston A+ Challenge
Houston A+ Challenge is an independent, public-private partnership directing the largest sum of money ever dedicated to public school reform in the Greater Houston area. Houston A+ Challenge (formerly Houston Annenberg Challenge) has raised $100 million to develop and fund school programs, professional development, and leadership institutes to promote higher academic achievement by all students.
On the Internet:
Houston A+ Challenge, www.houstonaplus.org
Page last updated: September 15, 2005
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