Citizen Schools :: quarterly ::

:: ABOUT US ::

Citizen Schools Celebrates
10th Anniversary Weekend
Goldman Sachs-Sponsored Community Service Project, "A WOW! Affair" Gala Highlight Celebration

Citizen Schools apprentices, volunteers, staff and supporters from across the nation gathered in Boston the weekend of April 30 - May 1 to celebrate 10 years of our mission to "educate youth and strengthen communities." The event weekend united representatives from every program site in the Citizen Schools National Network - 250 young people and adults - for a weekend of teamwork, community service and fun!
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Connecting In-School & Out-of-School Learning:
An Interview with Cheryl Bracco, Principal of the
McKinley Institute of Technology, Redwood City, California

"Citizen Schools provides the extra support our students need to really see themselves as college-bound. It enables them to see themselves as architects or web designers. And I like that Citizen Schools enables us to say to the community that our school doors are open to them." :: MORE ::

Citizen Schools Cultivates New Leaders
in Youth Service

Citizen Schools has developed a tradition of cultivating new leaders for the fields of education and youth development. Today, we showcase three young men who exemplify this tradition of leadership development, working their way through the ranks of Teaching Fellows, and helping pioneer the Citizen Schools model over the past 10 years. :: MORE ::

Media Attention :: MORE ::

:: OUR PROGRAMS ::

Pioneering M.Ed. in Out-of-School Education Has its First Graduates

Imagine a nation with 350 million learners and 350 million teachers. Citizen Schools National Teaching Fellow John Farden shared his vision for the future of education in America in his speech to the 2005 graduating class of the Education School at Lesley University. On May 23, a cohort of 22 Citizen Schools staff became the first people in the country to earn a master's degree in education specializing in out-of-school time education. :: MORE ::

Apprenticeships Bring College Students,
Middle Schoolers Together at Citizen
Schools New Brunswick

There has been a tremendous amount of positive energy coming from a partnership between Rutgers University and Citizen Schools New Brunswick. "Rutgers University students are always really spirited and energetic in working with our young people," said Citizen Schools National Teaching Fellow Heather Owens. "We definitely appreciate their effort and enthusiasm. I believe that they are truly inspiring to our youth apprentices." :: MORE ::

Youth Apprentices Give Henry V a Modern Day Red Sox v. Yankees Riff

Ronia, 12, who acted in the inaugural Rogers School Shakespeare production in Spring 2004, said that she continues to use the skills she acquired during the semester. "Shakespeare really helped with talking in front of a big crowd. I used be shy on the stage, but I haven't been since participating in Shakespeare. It also helped my memory skills."
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Citizen Schools Students Research and Publish Guide to High Schools
Presentations Help Peers, Families Make Informed
Educational Choices

Citizen Schools Boston's 8th Grade Academy students determined which of Boston 's 30 public, private and charter high schools were best suited to set them up for getting into college by engaging in a unique learning curriculum that has them researching and analyzing statistics on high schools and publishing them, with commentary, in an annual Guide to Boston High Schools. :: MORE ::

:: OUR PARTNERS ::

TJX Companies to Offer Citizen Schools Youth "Themed Apprenticeships" in Retailing

Citizen Schools is charting a new course in corporate citizenship, leveraging a company's unique expertise to engage young people in real-world learning projects. The TJX Companies has signed on as one of the first corporations to participate in Citizen Schools' new corporate sponsorship program – the "Themed Apprenticeship." The TJX Companies will offer a Themed Apprenticeship in a subject its employees know best: retailing. :: MORE ::

Skoll Foundation Awards Citizen Schools for Social Entrepreneurship

The Skoll Foundation selected Citizen Schools to receive a Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship. Citizen Schools was one of 15 organizations selected in an international competition. :: MORE ::

Richard and Susan Smith Family Foundation Builds Capacity of Citizen Schools to Serve More City Youth :: MORE ::

Comcast, Citizen Schools Launch Multi-Year Hands-On Learning Partnership :: MORE ::

Bank of America Sponsors New Apprenticeship Education Courses and Volunteers :: MORE ::

Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Invests in
Citizen Schools to Benefit Young Scholars :: MORE ::

:: GET INVOLVED ::

Be an Inspiration!
Share What You Know and Love at Citizen Schools!

What are your hidden talents? Maybe you should have been the next American Idol. You could be great at gardening. Perhaps you brag to your peers about your mean stock portfolio. Whatever your talents, from accountant to zookeeper, Citizen Schools can help you share them with young people and make a difference in the world. :: MORE ::

Purchase Student-Produced Music CD and Support College Scholarship Fund for Citizen Schools Alumni

Students from Citizen Schools Boston's 8th Grade Academy program teamed up with a group of local venture capitalists and area artists to develop, produce, market and sell an inventive music CD, the proceeds of which support a college scholarship fund for alumni of the 8th Grade Academy program. Learn how you can purchase "General Eclectic" -- with its mix of folk, jazz, R&B, hip-hop and rock -- and contribute to the future learning of Citizen Schools apprentices. :: MORE ::

Upcoming Events

Executive Briefing, October 12
Citizen Schools On the Move (Visit to New Brunswick), October 19
2.6 Mile Walk and Family Fun Fair, Sunday, October 2
Fall Program Launch, beginning August 19 :: MORE ::

Citizen Schools Offers Opportunity to Lease
State-of-the-Art Office Space :: MORE ::

Citizen Schools, a leading national nonprofit provider of out-of-school learning programs for students in the middle grades, uniquely mobilizes thousands of adult volunteers to participate in education by teaching hands-on apprenticeships. Please visit us at www.citizenschools.org.



	THERE IS A BUZZ of excitement in the air! As Citizen Schools embarks on our second decade of educating youth and strengthening communities, we have taken stock of our accomplishments and challenges. Through a deliberate business planning process this spring, we have laid out an ambitious plan for the next ten years. We are delighted to briefly highlight here some of our vision for Citizen Schools' future. First and foremost, we are making a renewed and confident commitment to apprenticeships. We believe apprenticeships are Citizen Schools' unique contribution to American education, and as such, we want to give our students more. Therefore, beginning this fall, we will be doubling the number of apprenticeships that our program offers from one to two per week at each program site. This will effectively double the number of adult volunteers that become involved in the lives and education of young people and expose youth to more real-world learning opportunities. Second, we recognize that school success is paramount. We are therefore expanding our repertoire of enriching activities that will foster student achievement in the classroom. Our efforts include giving students more time on-task for homework, and using this time to discuss grades and classroom successes and challenges. Additionally, this fall, a number of our program sites nationwide will pilot new "school navigation" curriculum that teaches students important study and organizational skills that will help them improve their grades and map out their educational careers. Third, we are implementing an aggressive and smart growth strategy that will expand the number of Citizen Schools program sites from our current 22 to a minimum of 80 in 2010. This program expansion will enable us to reach over 8,000 youth and engage thousands of volunteers at schools in more than 40 communities nationwide. Our ambitious plan will require a focus on quality, continued development of an array of funding resources and further investment in building a cadre of highly-trained, professional staff specializing in out-of-school education. We are on the cusp of the proverbial "tipping point" for out-of- school education, and we are thrilled to be a leader in that charge. We challenge you to get involved. It is through big ideas, big goals and big hearts like yours that big dreams are realized. Thank you for contributing to this important work. Eric Schwarz President and CEO Ned Rimer Managing Director Please send us your feedback, suggested articles, or letters to the editor to editor@citizenschools.org.