$24.2 million project focuses in NC and other states

RALEIGH – Both of Eric Trejos’ parents ended their formal education with eighth grade, but the senior at East Surry High School has his sights set on attending the University of North Carolina at Charlotte to study civil engineering. He’ll start his freshman year with several college courses already under his belt, as a student at an innovative rural school that has adopted strategies from early college to open doors to higher education for more students — especially those unlikely to even consider college.

Last week, Eric told his plans to a roomful of adults and fellow students, then introduced them to nation’s highest education official, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.

Duncan came to UNC-Greensboro to hear from students like Eric and announce that NC New Schools had won a $20 million federal grant to develop new early college opportunities for students in rural communities. The grant represents the largest of 26 awards totaling $129 million under this year’s Investing in Innovation (i3) initiative, which aims to develop innovative approaches to improve student achievement and replicate effective strategies nationwide. NC New Schools received this year’s only “scale-up” grant — aimed at proposals with solid evidence of success and strong promise of broad adoption. It’s the first such “scale-up” grant awarded nationally under the i3 initiative since 2011.

Final approval of the funding hinges on NC New Schools securing commitments totaling $1 million from non-government funders, with pledges totaling $500,000 due by Dec. 10 and the remaining $500,000 required within the first six months of the program. An additional $3.2 million in funding will be raised jointly over the five-year project by NC New Schools and participating districts and states.

Five North Carolina counties are prospective partners in the initiative: Duplin, Harnett, Hertford, Rutherford and Surry. The out-of-state partners are in Illinois, Mississippi, South Carolina and a fourth state partner to be sought from proposals.

Tony Habit, president of NC New Schools, said the $24.2 million initiative will create new opportunities for students in low-income, rural counties to gain a leg up on college and careers.

“We’re honored by the faith that the US Department of Education has put in us,” Habit said. “This grant allows us to build on North Carolina’s efforts to extend the reach and impact of an approach shown to have demonstrated results. These schools are creating significant opportunities for students and changing the face of education.”

NC New Schools will work to scale up proven early college strategies in North Carolina and the four states through a districtwide model and in schools of all sizes, and also assist districts and organizations in other states in capacity-building efforts for greater implementation of early college strategies across the country. More than 13,000 students and nearly 800 educators in North Carolina and the other states are projected to benefit from the effort, which will focus on developing new early college high schools, which blend high school and the first two years of college, and similar approaches in traditional high schools.

The grant will fund early college efforts on several fronts, including:

• Expansion of districtwide early-college approaches currently being pursued in the state
• The creation of six new early college high schools as stand-alone schools and those with early-college strategies within traditional high schools
• The development of seven model schools within North Carolina that can be used as national study schools
• Work with two other states to build capacity to open six early colleges based on the NC New Schools model
• Provide state and regional capacity-building to two additional states to set the foundation for future early college schools

With 78 early college high schools now available to students from 71 counties – from the state’s largest to its smallest, North Carolina claims about a third of the innovative schools nationwide. The mold-breaking schools allow students to earn an associate degree or significant college credit along with their high school diploma. The schools are intended to serve students who are often underrepresented in college, including those who are from low-income families, minorities and those whose parents didn’t attend college.

Results of two large-scale, rigorous experimental studies show that early college students are more likely to be on-track for college, graduate high school at higher rates, and enroll in postsecondary education at higher rates than students attending traditional high schools. The studies also find that the schools are helping close gaps in achievement between white and minority students.

In addition to stand-alone early college high schools, a NC New Schools-led rural schools initiative launched in 2011 with an earlier $15 million federal Investing in Innovation grant is designed to address the challenges of high-need students in rural areas by raising expectations for college readiness, teaching and learning, personalization, professionalism, leadership, and school design with a program that is affordable and scalable for participating districts.

This current effort, which concludes in 2016, is aimed at exposing students in 18 traditional high schools to a college-ready culture and providing new opportunities for students to graduate with some college credit. Students in the schools have the opportunity to earn as many as 21 college credits – tuition free – by graduation through local community colleges and online courses offered by the UNC Greensboro iSchool and the East Carolina University Second Life virtual education program.

North Carolina New Schools is a public-private partnership working to ensure that every North Carolina student graduates ready for college, careers and life. NC New Schools accelerates systemic, sustainable innovation in North Carolina public schools by supporting the development of effective schools, districts, and regions and cultivating talented teachers and administrators. Since 2003, NC New Schools has partnered with districts, higher education, businesses and communities in every region of the state to ensure that all students graduate with the skills to lead productive lives.

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