Helios Education Foundation: Newsletters

Education Connection

Volume 4 Issue 1

President's Message

Strategic Partnerships Exemplify Work of Helios

As we wind down 2011, Helios Education Foundation continues its work to create a college-going culture in Arizona and Florida. The impact of the work of many of our strategic partnerships is becoming even more evident. Our partners are paving the way toward postsecondary education success for all students, and we recognize that the Foundation’s current and future achievements are rooted in the success of organizations working to change lives through education.

Partnerships like Ready Now Yuma, Florida College Access Network and Expect More Arizona embody many of the goals of Helios by promoting college-readiness, family and community involvement, college access and success for all students.

We’re proud to reaffirm our commitment to Expect More Arizona through our recent investment of $3 million, bringing our total investment since 2008 to $5 million. With new President and CEO Pearl Chang Esau at the helm, Expect More Arizona is focusing these dollars on engaging more parents, families, students and voters in championing a high quality education for Arizona students.

Our support of the Florida College Access Network will help empower communities to work collaboratively across the state of Florida, building mission-driven, student-focused partnerships with universities, colleges, schools, community organizations, businesses and parents. The whole-school, curriculum reform occurring through our Ready Now Yuma initiative in Yuma, Arizona, with our partners the Center for the Future of Arizona and Yuma Unified High School District, will better prepare students for career and postsecondary education success.

We’re proud of our partners and recognize the significant impact of their work. It’s through this work that successful and prepared students will emerge, ready to compete in the 21st century’s global economy. Happy Holidays to everyone!

In the Spotlight

Arizona Foundations Join National Movement for Grade-Level Reading

With a new national report showing that children who don't read well by third grade are four times more likely to drop out of high school, three Arizona foundations are leading a statewide collaborative to tackle the underlying issues preventing children, especially low-income children, from learning to read at grade level.

Helios Education Foundation, the Arizona Community Foundation (ACF) and the Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust are collaborating with numerous organizations across Arizona who have all joined the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading. This national, 10-year initiative is focused on moving the needle on reading proficiency and making early reading an urgent priority.

Helios, ACF and Piper will convene these stakeholders in a series of community meetings throughout Arizona, with the results leading to an integrated statewide system that addresses the three leading causes preventing students from reading at grade level: school readiness, school absenteeism and summer learning loss.

Organizers plan to build on and enhance the data collection and other work already done by Arizona stakeholders such as First Things First, the Arizona Department of Education and the United Way.

The state of Arizona joins more than 150 cities, counties and towns across the country all taking action and pledging to tackle the grade-level reading crisis through coordinated local efforts. The National League of Cities, United Way World Wide, and other national partners will recognize communities that develop the most comprehensive and sustainable plans to address the three primary barriers to early reading.

Arizona's statewide collaborative includes a broad cross-section of community groups and organizations who have signed on in support of the campaign:
Arizona Community Foundation
Arizona Department of Education
Arizona Interfaith Movement
Balz School District, Superintendent
Children's Action Alliance
City of Phoenix Human Services Department
Coconino County Supervisor
Diamond Foundation
Educare Arizona
Expect More Arizona
Flagstaff Mayor
Flagstaff Unified School District
First Things First
Flowing Wells Unified School District
Helios Education Foundation
Literacy Connects in Tucson
Navajo County
Northern Arizona University
Phoenix Elementary School District
Pima County Public Library
Southwest Human Development
Tucson Mayor
Tucson Unified School District
United Way of Northern Arizona
United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona
United Way of Yuma County
Valley of the Sun United Way
Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust
Yuma Chamber of Commerce
Yuma County School Superintendent

For more information on the Campaign, visit the website at www.gradelevelreading.net.

Helios News

New Office Aims to Increase College Graduation Rates

Shani Bennett is a freshman at the University of Tampa, and she's still undecided about her major. But, she's considering pre-dentistry.

"I'm looking at everything," she says.

Although Shani is a first-generation college student who is new to the Tampa Bay community, she's adjusting well as a result of the university's Office of Student Success. The office is part of a new initiative that Helios Education Foundation and the University of Tampa created to help increase college graduation rates among first-generation and under-represented students by as much as 17 percent.

There are 282 full-time students in the program who are studying either mathematics, education, technology or other science-related disciplines. The program reaches across academic, enrollment, student services and financial aid and includes:

Formation of an Office of Student Success.
Creation of micro academic communities in which students can interact with faculty and staff.
Providing "gap" financial aid for students with the greatest financial needs.
Development of programs that link students' academic areas with the campus offices of Advising and Career Services, thus ensuring successful career development.
Developing merit-based incentive awards for students who have demonstrated academic success after their first year.
Creating new on-campus employment opportunities.
Selecting current graduate and undergraduate students to serve as academic coaches and program mentors.

"I get exposure to different employers and meet a lot of new people," Bennett said. She added that she and her Helios student mentor have already talked about future class schedules, and about doing community service at a local school.

The University expects to see gains in students' perceptions of academic challenges, active and collaborative learning, student-faculty interaction, enriching educational experiences and supportive campus environments.

"This initial cohort is made up of students who traditionally need additional support mechanisms for the challenges they face in college, said University of Tampa President Ronald L. Vaughn. "And while over the past 15 years UT has committed tremendous resources to student development and support services, including substantial investments in infrastructures, the Helios partnership provides a boost.

Helios Education Foundation invested $1.3 million into the Student Success - Responding to a National Imperative program and is hopeful the initiative will lead to increased persistence and graduation rates as well as increased student engagement in all aspects of the college experience.

"Preparing students for the academic rigor of a college education is only part of the equation," said Helios Education Foundation President and CEO Paul Luna. "We have to ensure that those same students, once in college, persist and complete that education. That's why we're so supportive of the University of Tampa's Student Success initiative which wraps academic, social and financial support around incoming first-generation and under-represented students, helping them succeed and graduate."

Lorie Kittendorf, UT's director of student success, said that with the Helios grant, UT can approach the support of this student population intentionally and tactically. She added that the initiative is unique in that support of the program rests largely on students, both at the undergraduate and graduate level, who will connect with the students of interest in targeted ways.

"We never know what person, event, or moment will help a student connect to an institution, but we do know how crucial student engagement and involvement are for persistence and success," Kittendorf said. "Our team of graduate academic coaches and undergraduate peers will hopefully serve as a key resource for the information, advice, support and involvement that are so critical for student learning and persistence."

The University of Tampa serves 6,738 students from 50 states and 115 countries. Approximately two-thirds of full-time students live on campus and about half of UT students are from Florida.

Helios Fuels EMA's Growth With $3 Million Investment
Helios Education Foundation is investing $3 million in Expect More Arizona over the next four years, fueling the growth and sustainability of the organization that is dedicated to making Arizona education the best in the nation.

The investment will advance Expect More Arizona's efforts to engage more parents, families, students and voters in championing a high quality education for all children and students, and fund the infrastructure and capacity needed to ensure Expect More Arizona can influence positive change in education for generations to come.

These new dollars bring Helios' total investment in Expect More Arizona to $5 million, including the seed money, which helped launch the organization in December 2008.

"Helios Education Foundation has been a vital part of Expect More Arizona's past and present success," said Pearl Chang Esau, Expect More Arizona's new President and CEO. "This investment will allow us to strengthen our organization, expand our movement and ultimately create a high-expectations, education-first culture in our state."

Computer-Based Modeling Underway in Citrus County Florida
Until recently, scientists had two ways to work: conduct physical experiments or construct theories. Today, computers offer a powerful, third way: mathematical modeling using computer simulations. In fact, computer-based modeling now allows scientists to model and analyze systems on a scale far greater than was previously possible, offering the potential to revolutionize nearly all science disciplines.

A new project underway at the Florida Center for Research in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (FCR-STEM) at Florida State University is preparing teachers to help middle school students acquire the math, science and computing skills they will need to enter STEM fields in the 21st Century. The project, made possible by a $495,000 grant from Helios Education Foundation, is being conducted in collaboration with Citrus County Public Schools and the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD).

"Blending STEM teaching and learning is strongly supported by research on how students learn but we know little about how to prepare teachers to do it," said Laura Lang, director of the Learning Systems Institute (LSI), which houses FCR-STEM, and the principal investigator on the grant.

"This project will develop and test a teacher professional development approach for students in the middle grades, a critical time for sparking interest in STEM and helping students understand first-hand what the work of scientists is all about, Lang added."

The program targets middle school students because they are choosing courses to take in high school that will influence their college and career paths. Students introduced to computational science early can develop new ways of thinking and problem-solving that are increasingly essential in the workforce. Thanks to SWFWMD's participation, students will work with data pertaining to local water resources, underscoring the real-world impact of science and math.

Resource Center Aims to Boost College Attendance
Navigating the pathways to colleges, universities and technical and vocational schools can be a dense maze of paperwork, standardized tests and financial worry. But the Northern Arizona College Resource Center (NACRC) is helping students and adults navigate that maze and achieve their academic goals.

Housed in the Flagstaff Family YMCA, NACRC is offering free one-on-one advising, community workshops and school and community presentations on all aspects of the college-going process, including information on finding best fit schools, applications, essays, standardized tests, education financing and a host of special topics. Services are free to both youth and adults throughout Northern Arizona.

Through a new partnership with Helios Education Foundation and the Arizona Community Foundation, the Center is able to continue its existing programs, add tutoring and expand the Center's reach and number of clients being served.

"Initiatives like these in our community help create a college-going culture and put students on a path toward success in postsecondary education," said Antonia Franco, Helios Education Foundation's Vice President and Program Director, Arizona Transition Years; Student, Family and Community Initiatives.

The NACRC is located at 1001 N. Turquoise Drive in Flagstaff, Arizona and can be reached by email at staff@nacrc.net.

Helios Partners Recognized at Milestone Event
Helios Education Foundation and education stakeholders in Arizona and Florida came together in September to celebrate the programs and initiatives that are helping improve student achievement in both states. At a breakfast held in honor of its partners, the Foundation highlighted the successes of a number of programs and reflected on the thousands of lives enriched through the over $100 million invested in education since 2006.

Click here to view photo and video highlights from celebration events held in Arizona and Florida.

"Our community breakfast was an opportunity to say thank you to our partners for their incredible commitment to helping students succeed from their earliest years all the way through postsecondary education," said Helios Education Foundation Chairman Vince Roig. "Moving the needle toward higher achievement in our schools simply would not be possible without the support and in-the-trenches knowledge of our partners. It's important that we shine a spotlight on that work."

Florida's event featured success stories from Take Stock in Children's CEO Emilio Alonso-Mendoza, the Port of Tampa's Dave Sessums and the Dean of the College of Education at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg Dr. Vivian Fueyo. Arizona's celebration showcased the programmatic successes of Dr. Sybil Francis, Executive Director of the Center for the Future of Arizona, Nicole Magnuson, former Executive Director of Expect More Arizona, and Tamara Santilli, a teacher and science chair at Villago Middle School.

Helios' strategic initiatives are focused ultimately on creating a college-going culture by improving student achievement and teacher quality in the classroom. Many of these programs are also elevating the critical role of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education in better preparing students for postsecondary education success.

Helios Board Member Among Hispanic Business Magazine's Top 100
Maria Sastre, a member of Helios Education Foundation's Board of Directors, is one of Hispanic Business Magazine's top 100 most influential Hispanics of 2011. The magazine announced its national picks for the top 100 based on individuals who have promoted the advancement of Hispanics in the United States by their leadership, community involvement or professional achievements.

The magazine recognizes people from a variety of fields, including entertainment, performing arts, media and journalism, literature, sports, science and academia, entrepreneurship, government and corporate. Ms. Sastre has been highlighted as one of the country's top corporate Hispanic leaders whose achievements continue to inspire others.

Ms. Sastre was elected to Helios' Board of Directors in 2011, joining seven other members all focused on creating opportunities for individuals in Arizona and Florida to achieve postsecondary education success. She is Chief Operating Officer for Global Operations at Signature Flight Support Corporation, and is responsible for the company's worldwide network of fixed base operations.

For more information on this year's Top 100, visit hispanicbusiness.com.

Luna, Keogh Co-Chair Phoenix Mayor-Elect's Transition Team
Phoenix Mayor-elect Greg Stanton has chosen Helios Education Foundation President and CEO Paul Luna and Karlene Keogh Parks, senior vice president with HUB International Insurance Services of Arizona and co-founder of the Keogh Health Connection, to lead his transition team. Paul Blue, director of Phoenix Community & Economic Development, has also been named to the team.

Mayor-elect Stanton takes office on January 3.

Transforming Early Childhood Education
It's clear that the ages of birth to five represent the most critical stage in the growth and development of young children, forming the building blocks for a child's future educational success. Since 2006, Helios Education Foundation has invested over $10 million in strategic partnerships across Arizona and Florida focused on better preparing early childhood educators and practitioners and on increasing the number of high quality early learning environments in child care centers and family child care homes.

Click here to view the Foundation's latest report on Impact in Early Childhood Education.

In The Headlines

Sesame Street Incorporates STEM Lessons into New Season
From Education News

Science, Technology, Engineering and Math basics will be a part of the upcoming season of Sesame Street in "Murray's Science Experiments." The program will integrate a new curriculum into its shows to help viewers get prepared for school by giving them more exposure to subjects like science and mathematics.

The STEM curriculum will help children think critically as well as encourage them to get more "hands on" about their learning. Experimentation will become as significant a part of the program as observation. The new slogan that encompasses the effort is "Let's Find Out!"

"Sesame Street's curriculum fosters children's natural inclinations to ask questions and encourages investigation and experimentation in order to make new discoveries," adds Dr. Rosemarie Truglio, Vice President of Education and Research, Sesame Workshop. "By approaching STEM education as an integrated discipline through the process of scientific inquiry, rather than individual domains, the curriculum helps children develop a better understanding of how things work, and builds stronger cognitive reasoning, critical thinking and problem solving skills."

Throughout the season, a new character named Murray will lead the viewers in lessons that will help them understand the scientific method. Murray will start each of his segments with a question and then will set up an experiment that will help him find the answer. The new segment will be called "Murray's Science Experiments."

Hispanic ACT Test Takers Show Gains
From ACT

College and career readiness among Hispanics who took the ACT test shows slow but steady improvement, particularly in the key areas of math and science, according to ACT's yearly report: The Condition of College and Career Readiness 2011. This increase has occurred as the number of Hispanic test-takers continues to increase dramatically.

Eleven percent of Hispanic graduates in the class of 2011 who took the ACT exam met or surpassed all four of the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks, suggesting they are ready to succeed academically in specific first-year college courses (English composition, college algebra, introductory social science and biology) without the need for remediation. This is unchanged from last year and up from 10 percent the previous three years.

The ACT College Readiness Benchmarks, which are based on actual grades earned by students in college, specify the minimum scores needed on each ACT subject-area test (English, mathematics, reading and science) to indicate that a student has a 50 percent chance of earning a grade of B or higher or about a 75 percent chance of earning a C or higher in a typical credit-bearing first-year college course in that subject area.

The improvement in college readiness among Hispanic students is most evident in mathematics. This year, 30 percent (compared to 27 percent in 2010 and 26 percent in 2007) of the students in this group met or exceeded the ACT College Readiness Benchmark in math, while 47 percent (compared to 46 percent in 2010 and 49 percent in 2007) met or exceeded the English benchmark. Thirty-five percent (compared to 34 percent in 2010 and 2007) of Hispanic graduates met or exceeded the ACT benchmark in reading. Finally, 15 percent (compared to 14 percent in 2010 and 13 percent in 2007) met or exceeded the benchmark in science.

However, ACT results continue to show an alarmingly high number of students who are graduating without all of the academic skills they need to succeed after high school. Forty-five percent of Hispanic test takers in the 2011 graduating class failed to meet any of the four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks.

STEM Students Finding Majors Too Hard
From Education News
Students majoring in science, technology, engineering and math have higher rates of attrition than any other subject. Over the past few years test scores have shown that American students are consistently behind their counterparts in countries like Finland and Singapore.

President Obama and industry groups have called on colleges to graduate 10,000 more engineers a year and 100,000 new teachers with majors in STEM - science, technology, engineering and math - to try and bridge the gap, writes Christopher Drew at the New York Times.

There are encouraging signs, with surveys showing the number of college freshmen interested in majoring in a STEM field is on the rise. However, after middle and high school, the excitement quickly fades as students brush up against the reality of what David E. Goldberg, an emeritus engineering professor, calls "the math-science death march."

Studies have found that roughly 40 percent of students planning engineering and science majors end up switching to other subjects or dropping out completely. This number shoots up to 60 percent with pre-medical students. This is twice the combined attrition rate of all other majors.

And for educators, the key question is how to keep the momentum created in the lower grades from dissipating once the students get to college.

"We're losing an alarming proportion of our nation's science talent once the students get to college," says Mitchell J. Chang, an education professor at U.C.L.A. who has studied the matter.

Professor Chang says the attrition rate can be higher at the most selective schools, where he believes the competition overwhelms even well-qualified students.

"You'd like to think that since these institutions are getting the best students, the students who go there would have the best chances to succeed," says Chang.
"But if you take two students who have the same high school grade-point average and SAT scores, and you put one in a highly selective school like Berkeley and the other in a school with lower average scores like Cal State, that Berkeley student is at least 13 percent less likely than the one at Cal State to finish a STEM degree."

In September, the Association of American Universities, which represents 61 of the largest research institutions, announced a five-year initiative to encourage faculty members in the STEM fields to use more interactive teaching techniques.

"There is a long way to go," says Hunter R. Rawlings, the association's president, "and there is an urgent need to accelerate the process of reform."

No one doubts that students need a strong theoretical foundation. But what frustrates education experts is how long it has taken for most schools to make changes, writes Drew.

Public University Tuition Rates Rise
From The College Board

The College Board reports that increases in college prices for the 2011-2012 academic year reflect the continued impact of a weakened economy as well as state funding that has not kept pace with the growth in college enrollments.

For the fifth consecutive year, the percentage increase in average tuition and fees at public four-year colleges and universities was higher than the percentage increase at private nonprofit four-year colleges. While national data provide an important snapshot of overall college prices, this year's data also reveal substantial state-to-state pricing variations underlying the national averages.

Florida's public universities' tuition rates averaged an increase of 11.8 percent. This change moves the state from 48th to 45th lowest in tuition costs in the nation. Arizona's published tuition rates at public four-year colleges increased by 17 percent.

Key National Findings:

Published in-state tuition and fees at public four-year institutions average $8,244 in 2011-2012 - 8.3 percent higher than in 2010-11. Average total charges, including tuition and fees and room and board, are $17,131, up 6.0 percent.

Published out-of-state tuition and fees at public four-year colleges and universities average $20,770 - 5.7 percent higher than in 2010-2011. Average total charges are $29,657, up 5.2 percent.

Published in-state tuition and fees at public two-year colleges average $2,963 - 8.7 percent higher than in 2010-2011.

Student aid plays an important role in cushioning the impact of increases in published prices. New data reveal that the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC), implemented in 2009, increased the subsidies provided to students through the combination of education tax credits and deductions from about $7 billion in 2007-2008 to an estimated $14.8 billion in 2009-2010 and 2010-2011.

Hispanic College Enrollment Rises, Narrowing Gaps with Other Groups
From Pew Hispanic Center

The Pew Hispanic Center reports that the number of 18- to 24-year-old Hispanics attending college in the United States hit an all-time high of 12.2 million in October 2010. From 2009 to 2010, the number of Hispanic young adults enrolled in college grew by 349,000 compared with an increase of 88,000 young African Americans and 43,000 young Asian Americans and a decrease of 320,000 young non-Hispanic whites.

With these new numbers, young Hispanics for the first time outnumbered young African-Americans on campus, even though African-American college enrollment has grown steadily for decades and it, too, has surged in recent years. In 2010, 38 percent of all 18- to 24-year-old African-Americans were enrolled in college, up from 13 percent in 1967 and 32 percent in 2008.

The Hispanic enrollment increase has been even more dramatic than the African-American enrollment increase because it has been spurred by a mixture of population growth and educational strides. High levels of immigration and high birth rates have made Hispanics the nation's biggest minority group, comprising 16 percent of the U.S. population as of 2010. In 1972, just 5 percent of the nation's 18- to 24-year-olds were Hispanic. By 2010, that share rose to 19 percent.

Rising educational attainment is an important driver of these enrollment trends, over the long term as well as in recent years. The rate of young Hispanics enrolled in college rose from 13 percent in 1972 to 27 percent in 2009 to 32 percent in 2010.

The Pew Hispanic Center analysis is based on the U.S. Census Bureau's School Enrollment Supplement of the October 2010 Current Population Survey (CPS), supplemented by historical time series based on the CPS. The CPS is the standard source for national rates of college enrollment and has collected college enrollment information in a consistent manner since 1947.

U.S. Department of Education Proposes Dedicated Office for Early Learning
The U.S. Department of Education is proposing to create an Office of Early Learning, tasked with overseeing the Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge Grants and coordinating early learning programs across the Department.

The proposal names Senior Advisor for Early Learning Jacqueline Jones as head of the new office, which will operate within the Department's Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE).

"Effective early learning programs are essential to prepare our children for success in school and beyond," said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. "A dedicated early learning office will institutionalize, elevate and coordinate federal support for high-quality early learning, while enhancing support for state efforts to build high-performing early education systems."

The U.S. Department of Education says that further details on staffing and office operations will be available in the coming months.

Arizona, Florida among States Applying to Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge
The U.S. departments of Education and Health and Human Services say that 35 states, D.C. and Puerto Rico, have submitted applications for the Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge, a $500 million state-level competitive grant program to improve early learning and development.

Applicants include: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

The applications are being reviewed by early childhood experts from across the country. In mid-December, the highest ranked applicants will receive awards, ranging from $50 million up to $100 million, depending on a state's population of children from low-income families and their proposed plan.

"The strong response from states shows there is a shared commitment to raising the bar on quality across early learning programs, including those serving low income children who too often start kindergarten already behind their classmates," said Secretary for Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius. "By investing in our children's early years, we can put them on track to success in school and in the 21st century job market while boosting our long term competitiveness as a nation."

Nation's Report Card Shows Florida's Upward Progress
From The Florida Department of Education
The 2011 results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Reading and Mathematics show that fourth graders in Florida continue to outpace the nation in reading, with an average scale score of 225 compared to 220 nationwide.

Results for Florida's Hispanic students also show higher average scale scores than their counterparts across the country, in both reading and mathematics in fourth and eighth grades, while the overall results for grades 4 and 8 show no significant change since the most recent 2009 results.

In fourth grade mathematics, Hispanic students, students with disabilities and students eligible for free or reduced price lunch scored higher than the national average, and overall fourth graders matched the national average score of 240. In addition, Hispanic eighth graders scored higher than their national counterparts with a score of 274.

Since 1998, Florida has seen steady progress on NAEP and the Florida Department of Education continues to work closely with schools across the state to infuse effective reading instruction focused on prevention and intervention, including phonemic awareness, fluency in word recognition and text processing, construction of meaning, vocabulary, spelling and writing.

Education Connection

Volume 3 Issue 2

President's Message

By this time of year, hundreds of thousands of students all over the country have walked across a brightly lit stage at their graduation ceremonies, transitioning from one part of their lives to another. Whether graduating from kindergarten to first grade or from high school to postsecondary education, students and their families not only celebrate that moment, but they celebrate what that moment symbolizes: success.

Ensuring that our students have the opportunity to succeed in education today gives them a passport to success in tomorrow's globally competitive workforce. At Helios Education Foundation, engaging minds and enriching lives is more than just a tag line, it's fundamental to every investment we make. It's through these investments and because of our partners that individuals in Arizona and Florida are succeeding in education.

Today, in this moment and for everything it symbolizes, Helios too is celebrating. We have invested over $100 million in education in Arizona and Florida since 2006, and we are celebrating the partnerships created through those investments, but more importantly, the thousands of lives enriched through education.

We are working hand-in-hand with our partners, having invested over $10 million in early childhood education, over $43 million in the transition years, over $32 million in postsecondary scholarships and over $12 million in innovative programs. Through our partnerships, we are closing education achievement gaps, improving academic performance and providing more access to teacher professional development programs.

Yet we know our work has only just begun.

As we celebrate this moment, we are reminded of the true impact of investing in education. Our success lies in the eyes of early learners who, because of our partners, are now surrounded in language rich, high quality environments, eager and becoming ready to learn in first grade. For us, success rests with the middle school student who, through a better understanding and application of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math), is now an analytical thinker and better problem solver.

Ultimately, our celebration symbolizes all of the new pathways and opportunities created for students to succeed from kindergarten to career. For that, we sincerely thank our partners and commit to being here in perpetuity, working with you to change lives through education.

In the Spotlight

Celebrating Our Partnerships and $100 Million Invested in Education
What began as a vision in the minds of members of the Southwest Student Services Corporation's board of directors 8 years ago has today blossomed into philanthropic organization focused on changing lives through education in Arizona and Florida.

Helios Education Foundation was created in 2004 and began investing in education in 2006. Now, the Foundation is celebrating the partnerships created, the thousands of lives enriched and the $100 million that has been invested in education.

"This truly is an exciting time for Helios Education Foundation and for the communities we serve," said the Foundation's President and CEO Paul Luna. "It's thrilling to know that a number of our strategic investments are helping move the needle toward creating a college-going culture. And for that, we're taking this time to reflect on and celebrate our partners," he added.

"So much has been accomplished in education because of our partners' efforts, but there is so much left to do in order to prepare our students for postsecondary education and for the workforce. We need our partners - the people and the organizations that remain committed, persistent and innovative about improving education - in order to change the landscape and elevate education as the key to changing lives and communities."

A History of Helios
Helios opened its doors in Phoenix, Arizona in 2006 and announced its first community investment in the amount of $10 million to the Arizona College Scholarship Foundation for scholarships for first-generation students. It was also 2006 when Helios announced its first investment in Florida: $10 million toward Florida's university and community college systems to support scholarships for first-generation students. The Foundation opened its doors in Tampa, Florida the following year.

Very early on in its development, Helios fine-tuned its focus, earmarking its financial resources for initiatives that contribute toward a college-going culture, one in which every individual in Arizona and Florida would have access to a postsecondary education. The Foundation developed a strategic community investment philosophy rooted in improving student achievement. The approach was simple: invest within a specific framework across the education continuum, from early childhood education through the transition years and on to postsecondary scholarships.

And, that approach is yielding success.

"It's been an interesting and impactful journey for Helios since inception," said the Foundation's Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Barbara Ryan. "Over the past five years, we've been implementing innovative initiatives that will reshape early childhood education in some areas, improve middle school students' knowledge and skills around math and science and open doors to a postsecondary education for people who traditionally haven't had those opportunities."

Changing lives through education is a mission that can't happen in a vacuum and it can't happen overnight, Ryan says.

"Helios plans to be an ongoing force for education," Ryan added. "...pushing for higher quality learning environments with more rigor and relevance for students, and helping parents become

more engaged and embedded in the academic success of their children. Some of that is already reflected in the investments we've made."

The Impact Areas
Helios Education Foundation invests its leadership, expertise and resources across three key impact areas:

Investment Focus Amount Invested Since 2006

Early Childhood Education $10,874,912
With a focus on improving teacher quality, incorporating emergent literacy and language acquisition curriculum into postsecondary education programs and bridging the gap between the early childhood and K-3 education systems.

Transition Years (grades 5-12) $43,156,655
With a focus on college readiness for all students by creating a college-going culture and increasing curriculum rigor and relevance with an emphasis on science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education; creating and sustaining a pipeline of highly effective STEM educators and school leaders; and strengthening family and community engagement to support student success.

Postsecondary Scholarships $32,795,516
With a focus on increasing access to postsecondary education for underserved and underrepresented populations; creating a pipeline of STEM students and educators; and cultivating early childhood education teachers and practitioners.

Innovative $12,413,466
With a focus on supporting new and innovative initiatives that seek to improve student achievement across the education continuum.

Raising Expectations
Expect More Arizona is one of Helios Education Foundation's innovative partnership's which is engaging and empowering students, families and communities in Arizona to improve education. The statewide, nonpartisan partnership seeks to make education Arizona's top priority by building public demand for a higher quality education system.

Helios is a founding partner of Expect More Arizona and the Foundation's President and CEO, Paul Luna, is Chair of Expect More Arizona's Oversight Board.

"Expect More Arizona is a movement working to create a groundswell of better informed and more actively engaged Arizonans who believe that every Arizona student deserves the best education possible," said Expect More Arizona's Executive Director Nicole Magnuson. "In order for Arizona's education system to be a model of excellence across the nation, we must raise our expectations and commit to doing more for education and our students."

Recognizing that not all Arizona students have access to high quality education, Expect More Arizona is advocating for a high quality education system for all Arizona students from birth through career that effectively prepares students to succeed.

The partnership's motivation stems from the statistics below, which reinforce that Arizona's students are falling behind their national and international peers in academic performance, high school graduation rates and postsecondary degree attainment.

60% of kindergartners don't enter kindergarten ready to succeed
75% of 3rd graders are below proficient in reading
71% of 8th graders are below proficient in math
30% of students don't graduate from high school
50% of high school graduates don't qualify to enroll in Arizona's public universities
17% of Arizona students go on to postsecondary education and earn a college degree on time

With these percentages in mind, Expect More Arizona is evolving its public awareness and engagement efforts to encourage parents and families to set high expectations in their homes and get actively involved in supporting the academic success to their students.
"Research shows that parents have a significant and positive impact on the academic success and postsecondary education goals of students," Magnuson said. "The more engaged parents become in their child's education, at all stages of the education continuum, the more likely those parents will be to advocate on behalf of their children, their children's school and on behalf of education reform overall."

What makes Expect More Arizona unique, however, is that even if you don't have children, there is a place for everyone in this important movement. Learn more at ExpectMoreArizona.org.

Sources for the statistics mentioned above include:

Arizona School Readiness Key Performance Indicators, Governor's Office for Children, Youth and Families, 2006
National Center for Education Statistics
Newamerica.net
Green, J. & Winters, M. (2005). Public high school graduation and college-readiness rates: 1991-2002. New York: Manhattan Institute.
The National Center for Higher Education Management Systems Information Center for State Higher Education Policy and Analysis, 2003-2004

Helios Partner Total Investment
Expect More Arizona $1.5 million

Master Class
With the College Board's assessment of the U.S. now ranking 12th in the world in postsecondary education attainment among adults ages 25- to 64-years-old, Helios is supporting initiatives aimed at preparing students to successfully compete globally and on helping them acquire the knowledge and skills that will make them a productive part of the workforce. Advancing student skills around STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) have shown to be an effective part of a comprehensive approach to improving student achievement.

But according to the Education Commission of the States (ECS), teacher quality is also critical to student achievement. In a 2008 policy brief, the ECS found that while numerous state efforts seek to recruit, train and retain more teachers, fewer initiatives focus on developing teachers, particularly high school teachers, once they enter the classroom.

In their brief, the ECS examined seven high-leverage components to strengthening teacher professional development at the high school level, including:

Deepening conceptual knowledge
Integrating college and workforce readiness into teacher expectations and instruction
Developing communities of practice and mentorship supports
Using data, school- and classroom-level assessment practices and differentiated instruction
Keeping a focus on instruction
Addressing organizational professional development and
Using technology to leverage learning

As part of its effort to create more opportunities for teacher professional development, Helios is working with the University of Florida's (UF) Lastinger Center for Learning and the Pinellas County School District to develop master middle school and high school teachers in math and science.

Through the Pinellas County STEM Master Teachers initiative, UF is collaborating with the school district to provide job-embedded graduate education programs for teachers. As part of this initiative, teachers are working side-by-side with UF researchers on biological and physical sciences and related technologies, gaining new content knowledge and skills, leaning about the processes of discovery science and exploring multiple academic and workforce career paths for students.

One of the highlights of this program is that teachers earn a graduate degree from UF while further enhancing their abilities in the classroom.

"This program has grown faster than we had anticipated," said Don Pemberton, Director of UF's Lastinger Center for Learning. "We're able to respond to the real needs for math and science teachers in some of the most vulnerable schools in Pinellas County. And, this really is a unique partnership that we've been able to leverage our resources and we've gone from three schools when we launched to 11 with the support of the Pinellas County School Board over two years. "

Pemberton says that some of the key objectives of the program are to provide high quality professional development for all math and science teachers at the demonstration schools, and to give those teachers summer experiences in UF labs with research scientists, engineers and mathematicians. The hope is that the program will ultimately improve the content knowledge and pedagogy of the entire math and science faculties in the demonstration schools.

"Right now we feel that math and science education is a national priority, and it's extremely encouraging to know that Helios Education Foundation and Pinellas County schools are on the cutting edge of helping develop a new prototype for training math and science teachers," Pemberton said. "This kind of investment and support is so critically needed at a time when traditional resources are drying up. Because of this partnership, we are collaborating across all levels and meeting the needs of students in vulnerable schools."

Helios Partner Total Investment
University of Florida Foundation Over $1.6 million

For the Pinellas County STEM Master Teachers Program

The Future
As Helios Education Foundation looks toward investing its next $100 million in education, the Foundation is taking a closer look at the measurability, sustainability and long-term impacts of its initiatives. As a Foundation designed to exist in perpetuity, Helios wants to ensure that the residual effects of its investments continue to ripple across Arizona and Florida for years to come. Being able to evaluate that kind of impact is a critical part of Helios' investment approach.

"It's been incredible to watch Helios Education Foundation evolve and become an integral part of helping improve education," said the Foundation's Founding Chairman Vince Roig. "What's going to be even more incredible, are the years to come. I speak on behalf of the board and staff when I say that none of the work, none of the vision, none of the change in education we are seeking would be possible without our partners. This really is about celebrating our partnerships and looking toward educating the future leaders of this country."

For more information about the history and development of Helios Education Foundation, click here. General information about the Foundation's focus and community investment initiatives is available online at helios.org.

Helios Elects Top Power Influencer to Board of Directors
Helios Education Foundation has elected Florida leader and top power influencer Maria Sastre to its Board of Directors. Ms. Sastre joins seven other members on Helios' Board all focused on supporting initiatives that help create a college-going culture in Arizona and Florida and lead students to postsecondary education success.

"As we continue to build new partnerships and strategically invest in education, it's critical that the voices on the Foundation's Board of Directors reflect a diversity of experiences and viewpoints," said Helios Education Foundation's Founding Chairman, Vince Roig.

Ms. Sastre currently serves on the boards of directors and audit committees for Publix Supermarkets and Darden Restaurants. She has been recognized as one of the Top 80 U.S. Hispanics, Top 20 Latinas and has received numerous awards in the travel and hospitality industry sectors. She was named one of South Florida CEO magazine's Top Power Influencers in 2007.

Ms. Sastre is Chief Operating Officer for Global Operations at Signature Flight Support Corporation - based in Orlando, Florida - where she is responsible for the company's worldwide network of fixed base operations. Before joining Signature, Ms. Sastre served as President and CEO of Take Stock in Children, a statewide non-profit organization in Florida that, since inception, has helped over 16,000 low-income, at-risk students overcome the cycle of poverty through education, mentorship and access to college scholarships.

"In getting to know Maria in her role at Take Stock in Children, I've seen firsthand her proven leadership skills and wide-ranging knowledge of education systems," Vince Roig continued.
"I'm excited that her voice will complement the board's commitment to changing lives through education."

Prior to her work at Take Stock in Children, Ms. Sastre held positions at Royal Caribbean Cruises, LTD, including Vice President of Operations and Vice President International, Latin America, Caribbean and Asia. Her roles included strategic growth across emerging markets as well as managing all aspects of the guest experience onboard Royal Caribbean's fleet of vessels. She has served as Vice President of Worldwide Customer Satisfaction for United Airlines where she led the newly created customer satisfaction division charged with refining the customer service experience.

Ms. Sastre's education includes a Bachelor's Degree in Finance and a Master's in Business Administration, both from New York Institute of Technology. She joins Vince Roig, Founding Chairman; Tom Herndon; Ioanna Morfessis, Ph.D; Jane Roig; Don Aripoli, M.S.Ed, Ph.D; Mark Fernandez; and Paul Luna, President and CEO on the Helios Board.

Community Investments

University of Arizona Foundation - $1,555,384
CREATE
This funding supports the redesign of The University of Arizona Early Childhood Education Teacher Preparatory Program. The redesign called CREATE (Communities as Resources in Early Childhood Teacher Education) will incorporate a community-based program with a particular emphasis on the literacy needs of English Language Learners, their families and communities.

BUILD Initiative - $300,000
The Arizona BUILD partnership will work with Arizona leaders to define goals and objectives critical for the development of a comprehensive early childhood system. The process will be developed through the convening of public/private leadership teams and will include core components such as content knowledge, collective understandings, core programs, infrastructure, public support, adequate financing, and political will. The initial phase will culminate with the creation of a strategic plan that cultivates partnerships and identifies partners roles and responsibilities within the early childhood system.

Arizona State University Foundation - $50,000
Revisiting Arizona's Latino Education Dilemma-Morrison Institute
This partnership will help put the Latino education gap in the context of social and economic outcomes that will impact neighborhoods and the state as a whole. The project will utilize novel strategies to uncover the influences of neighborhood effects and education policies on long-term achievement.

University of Arizona Foundation - $40,000
Zona de Promesa: Children's Promise Zone
This partnership seeks to create opportunities for children to access effective schools and strong systems of family and community support that will prepare them to attain an excellent education and successfully transition to college and career. The University of Arizona Foundation envisions a collaboration of multiple partners that provide a pipeline of effective schools and family/community support for children from cradle to college through career.

Celebrating Our Milestones: A Snapshot of 2010

Celebrating Our Milestones: A Snapshot of 2010
Helios Education Foundation recently released its 2010 electronic annual report entitled A Celebration of Milestones, showcasing the partnerships and investments the Foundation has made over the past fiscal year (October 1, 2009 - September 30 2010). The video stories and informative articles in the report highlight the thousands of lives that have been enriched by bold new education initiatives in Arizona and Florida focused on student success.

In 2010, Helios invested over $20 million in education programs being led by non-profit organizations, school districts, institutions of higher education and other partners in Arizona and Florida to help move the needle in early childhood education (children ages birth to five), the transition years (Grades 5-12) and postsecondary scholarships.

We invite you to review A Celebration of Milestones.

A Follow Up to "Waiting for Superman"

Six months after the Pinellas Education Foundation in partnership with Helios Education Foundation and Tucker Hall hosted a community viewing of the nationally-acclaimed education documentary "Waiting for Superman," numerous community leaders came together in April 2011 to discuss critical issues in education in Pinellas County.

The Pinellas Education Foundation, the Voice of Florida Business in Education and the Consortium of Florida Education Foundations invited opinion leaders to a symposium called "Your Voice in Education Reform" moderated by Helios Education Foundation's President and CEO Paul Luna. The symposium presented an opportunity for the community to review the results of a recent survey of Governor Rick Scott's education agenda and engage in dialogue with a well-respected panel on the top local education issues facing the community.

Panelists included:

Sean Barth, Treasurer of the Sanford Regional Chamber of Commerce, a board member of the Foundation for Seminole Public Schools and a member of the Voice of Florida Business in Public Education
John Kirtly, creator of Step Up For Students, co-Founder of KLH Capital, Founder of the Children's Scholarship Fund of Tampa Bay and Vice Chairman of the Alliance for School Choice and the American Federation for Children
Liza McFadden, President of Volunteer USA Foundation
Ernest Hooper, an award-winning general news columnist for the St. Petersburg Times
Tracy Staley, a 5th grade teacher at Ponce De Leon Elementary School in Clearwater, Florida

National News

Obama Administration Announces $500 Million for Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius have announced a new $500 million state-level grant competition, the Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge.

The Challenge will reward states that create comprehensive plans to transform early learning systems with better coordination, clearer learning standards, and meaningful workforce development. Secretary Duncan and Secretary Sebelius also challenged the broader innovation community-leading researchers, high-tech entrepreneurs, foundations, non-profits and others-to engage with the early learning community and to close the school readiness gap.

"To win the future, our children need a strong start," said Secretary Duncan. "The Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge encourages states to develop bold and comprehensive plans for raising the quality of early learning programs across America."

States applying for challenge grants will be encouraged to increase access to quality early learning programs for low-income and disadvantaged children, design integrated and transparent systems that align their early care and education programs, bolster training and support for the early learning workforce, create robust evaluation systems to document and share effective practices and successful programs and help parents make informed decisions about care for their children.

Research shows that high-quality early learning programs lead to long-lasting positive outcomes for children, including increased rates of high school graduation, college attendance and college completion. Yet, just 40 percent of 4-year olds in America are currently enrolled in preschool programs. The most recent report from the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) indicates that, for the first time in a decade, states are reducing some of their key investments in early learning.

The Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge grants will encourage states to make the best possible use of current federal and state investments in child care and early learning. The public is invited to provide input, including data and relevant research, by clicking here.

The application will be released later this summer with grants awarded to states no later than December 31, 2011.

Number of Students Succeeding on AP Exams Has Nearly Doubled in 10 Years
Florida among Top 10 Leading States

More than half a million public school students from the class of 2010 scored a 3 or higher on at least one AP® Exam during high school, nearly double the number of successful students from the class of 2001, according to the College Board.

The top 10 states with the greatest proportion of their seniors from the class of 2010 having at least one successful AP experience were:

Maryland (26.4 percent)
New York (24.6 percent)
Virginia (23.7 percent)
Connecticut (23.2 percent)
Massachusetts (23.1 percent)
California (22.3 percent)
Florida (22.3 percent)
Vermont (21.8 percent)
Colorado (21.4 percent)
Utah (19.2 percent)

The states with the greatest five-year increases in the percentage of seniors scoring 3 or higher on an AP Exam were: Vermont, Florida, Maryland, Maine, Minnesota, Colorado, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Washington. According to The College Board, students who score a 3 or higher on AP Exams typically experience stronger college outcomes than students who do not.

"This latest AP report offers tremendous news for our children as we continue to ramp up our efforts to prepare them for the rigors of a postsecondary education," said Florida Education Commissioner Dr. Eric J. Smith. "We have hit new highs in the percent of our students taking and succeeding in this critical coursework and our teachers and school leaders should be proud of what they have been able to accomplish."

According to the Florida Department of Education, the percentage of Florida students receiving a score of three or higher on an AP exam has grown five percent over the past five years, placing Florida second in the nation for the largest five-year increase. Additionally, Florida is third in the nation for the total number of AP exams taken by students at 231,632.

Education officials say that Florida's AP progress continues to be largely driven by minority students. Mirroring trends seen last year, African-American and Hispanic 2010 graduating seniors experienced increases in both the percent taking and the percent passing AP exams. Florida also continues to be one of only a few states in the country that has eliminated the AP achievement gap for Hispanic 2010 graduating seniors.

Maryland State Superintendent of Schools Nancy Grasmick, whose state led the nation for the third straight year with the highest percentage of students succeeding in AP, said, "Maryland puts a great deal of emphasis on having the best prepared high school graduates, and the Advanced Placement Program is a key part of this effort. AP provides students with a high standard, which gives them a foundation for success in college and in their careers."

Increases for Traditionally Underserved Populations
Over the past 10 years, the number of traditionally underserved minority students graduating with a successful AP experience has more than doubled - African-American graduates with scores of 3 or higher increased from 7,764 in 2001 to 19,675 in 2010; Hispanic/Latino graduates with scores of 3 or higher increased from 33,479 in 2001 to 74,479 in 2010; and American Indian/Alaska Native graduates with scores of 3 or higher increased from 988 in 2001 to 2,195 in 2010.

In addition, the number of low-income graduates with scores of 3 or higher has increased from 53,662 in 2006 to 84,135 in 2010. Despite increases, Hispanic/Latino, African American and American Indian/Alaska Native students remain underrepresented both in AP classrooms and within that group of students experiencing success in AP, according to the report.

"Students and educators routinely attest that exposure to AP's high standards helps prepare students for success in college. However, the likelihood of college success is significantly higher for AP students who score 3 or better," said Trevor Packer, vice president of the Advanced Placement Program® for the College Board. "Accordingly, simply expanding AP course enrollments is not enough - this year's report provides additional data points on exam performance that can help each state take a closer look at how well they are preparing all of their students, during the middle school and high school years, for the rigors of college-level course work.

The College Board recently completed an analysis of every U.S. school district's AP trends. Typically, as schools expand access to AP, the raw number of students who score 3 or higher increases, but so does the raw number of students who score 1 and 2. As a result, for some districts the percentage of 3s, 4s, and 5s may slightly decrease.

"States with high percentages of exams receiving scores of 3 or higher, but who are serving a lower percentage of their high school population, should implement policies for making AP teachers available to a greater proportion of the high school population. On the other hand, states with high percentages of exams receiving scores of 1 or 2 should focus on the sort of middle school and early high school strategies that prepare a greater diversity of students for eventual enrollment and success in AP classes," said Packer.

Improvements in Math and Science
The number of students from the class of 2010 who succeeded on AP science and math exams exceeds the number of students who merely took these exams nearly 10 years ago. While 134,957 students in the class of 2001 graduated after taking an AP science exam, 143,651 students in the class of 2010 scored 3 or higher on an AP science exam. Similarly, 166,905 students in the class of 2001 graduated after taking an AP math exam, compared with 179,193 students in the class of 2010 who scored 3 or higher on an AP math exam during high school.

In September 2010, President Barack Obama announced the launch of Change the Equation, a nonprofit and nonpartisan initiative to improve science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education, and to push the U.S. to "the top of the pack" in these fields in the next decade. This initiative follows on recent studies such as the National Academies' landmark 2005 volume Rising Above the Gathering Storm, which warned that, because of the country's relative weakness compared to the rest of the world in math and science education, "the age of relatively unchallenged U.S. leadership is ending."

According to that report, the U.S. now ranks 27th out of 29 wealthy countries in the proportion of college students with degrees in science and engineering, and, in 2009, more than half of this country's patents were awarded to foreign companies.

Founded in 1900, the College Board was created to expand access to higher education. Today, the membership association is made up of more than 5,900 of the world's leading educational institutions and is dedicated to promoting excellence and equity in education.

Each year, the College Board helps more than seven million students prepare for a successful transition to college through programs and services in college readiness and college success - including the SAT® and the Advanced Placement Program®. The organization also serves the education community through research and advocacy on behalf of students, educators and schools.

Significant Skills Gap Exists between U.S. Jobs and Workers (Photo: Jobs)
From Civic Enterprises and the Business News Daily

While access to higher education has expanded significantly in the United States over the last century, a new crisis has emerged: disturbing numbers of students who enroll in postsecondary education are failing to complete their degrees with huge consequences to them, society, and the economy - this according to a new study released by Civic Enterprises and Corporate Voices for Working Families.
Today, more than 70 percent of high school graduates enroll in some kind of advanced education within two years. Yet, just over one-half of bachelor's degree candidates complete their degree within six years, and less than one-third of associate's degree candidates earn their degree within three years.

"Across the Great Divide" examines the perspectives of CEOs and college presidents regarding America's higher education and skills gap. The report offers recommendations to move higher education from a system focused on access to one that embraces access and completion. The study also suggests that there is a big gap between the skills workers have and the skills that employers require, and that there are misperceptions about education and training hindering the ability to close that gap.

According to experts, two-thirds of job openings in the next decade will require at least some postsecondary education, including programs that are two years or less, but a majority of employers in the U.S. are facing a major challenge recruiting employees with the skills, training and education their companies require.

Study Highlights:

More than half (53%) of business leaders say their companies face a very or fairly major challenge in recruiting nonmanagerial employees with the skills, training, and education their company needs, despite current unemployment rates and millions of Americans seeking jobs.

Those at smaller companies, who were responsible for over 50 percent of new jobs created in 2007, feel this most acutely:
67% say it is difficult while only 33% find it easy

However, the focus on "college" too often excludes the demand for those who hold two-year associate's degrees and trade-specific credentials.

Most business leaders (98%) believe the term "college" means a four-year degree. Just 13% of business leaders also think of a two-year associate's degree, and only 10% say "college" includes a career or technical credential. By the end of this decade, however, about an equal percentage of jobs will require a bachelor's degree or better (33%) as some college or a two-year associate's degree (30%)

The majority of business leaders (63%) believe a four-year bachelor's degree is the important degree to achieve success in the workplace, while only 18% believe a career or technical credential and 14% believe a two-year associate's degree are important to achieve such success

"It is a significant issue if people are not being trained for the jobs that exist and, perhaps more to the point, the jobs that are evolving, because then our economy and nation are in real trouble," Taylor Reveley, president of The College of William and Mary, said in the study.

But there are two key misperceptions that are hindering the U.S. from closing the divide between the readiness of the work force and the skills employers are looking for, and it has to do with recognizing the value of short-term degrees and credentials, the study said, and the need to broaden the national focus from college access to the necessity for college completion.

The problem is exacerbated, the study said, by a focus on "college" that too often overlooks two-year associate's degrees and trade-specific credentials. Most business leaders (98 percent) believe the term "college" means a four-year degree. Just 13 percent also think of a two-year associate's degree and only 10 percent of respondents said "college" includes career or technical credentials.

"The focus on college too often excludes the demand for those who hold two-year associate degrees and trade-specific credentials," said Stephen M. Wing, president of Corporate Voices for Working Families. "Despite the conventional wisdom that bachelor's degrees are critical to success, the job market of the future will demand a vast new supply of talented graduates of a diverse range of postsecondary programs, including those that are two years or less. Not recognizing the value of these degrees is hindering our efforts to meet the needs of employers."

Click here to read the full report.

Don't Fail Me: Why Would Be Engineers End Up as English Majors

From CNN's Education in America Series

In 2010, the Higher Education Research Institute at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) published a report on Bachelor's Degree completion rates among students who declared majors in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) between 1971 and 2009. The study found an alarming number of low STEM degree completion rates across all racial groups. But, the study also revealed low overall completion rates for students who start in STEM as compared to their counterparts who enter college in non-STEM disciplines.

CNN's Education in America series took a closer look at this issue, finding that undergraduates across the country are either choosing to leave STEM before they graduate or struggle to complete their degrees in four years.

To view the Higher Education Research Institute's complete report, click here.
For CNN's Education in America series focused on STEM graduation rates, click here.

A New Agenda for Business in Improving STEM Education
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Institute for a Competitive Workforce (ICW) is outlining the essential role business plays in the success of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education, which it says is crucial to U.S. students' preparation for the future workforce and ensuring American economic health for future generations.

The Case for Being Bold: A New Agenda for Business in Improving STEM Education, an ICW report, calls on the American business community to use its credibility, political heft and its ultimate role as the employer of America's STEM talent to apply innovative and fresh thinking to the debate around academic standards, human capital and new school models. The Case for Being Bold outlines action steps businesses can take on advancing these issues.

"It is clear that if we are to re-ignite the fires of innovation that we, the business community, must be innovative," said Margaret Spellings, former Secretary of Education and current president of the U.S. Chamber's Forum for Policy Innovation. "Instead of continually reinventing the wheel, we must re-imagine our schools, revise how we recruit and train our teachers, and rethink the stale strategies that have stagnated academic achievement. If we do not dare to be bolder in STEM education, we risk losing even more ground globally."

The report comes at a time when results of American student assessments show continuing struggles to be proficient and competitive in STEM subjects when compared to international peers. Recently, the 2009 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) exam ranked U.S. students 25th in math and 17th in science literacy.

"While policymakers, educators, and business leaders have demonstrated an admirable concern for STEM education, current efforts on this front too often fail to acknowledge how severely most proposals are constrained by outdated, 19th century models of schooling and teaching. In The Case for Being Bold, we suggest some of the ways in which reformers might harness new tools, talent, and technologies to push transformative improvement," said Frederick M. Hess, co-author of the report and Director of the Education Policy Studies at the American Enterprise Institute.

For more information on action items, as well as a summary of report, click here.

Getting Young Americans on a Path to Employability
From the Pathways to Prosperity Project at the Harvard School of Education

In its most recent analysis, the Pathways to Prosperity Project at the Harvard School of Education says that despite decades of efforts to reform education, and billions of dollars of expenditures, the harsh reality is that America is still failing to prepare millions of its young people to lead successful lives as adults.

Pathways to Prosperity: Meeting the Challenge of Preparing Young Americans for the 21st Century contends that the country's national strategy for education and youth development has been too narrowly focused on an academic, classroom-based approach. This strategy has appeared to produce only incremental gains in achievement and attainment, even as many other nations are leapfrogging the United States. In response, the report advocates development of a comprehensive pathways network to serve youth in high school and beyond.

This pathways system would be based on three essential elements. The first is the development of a broader vision of school reform that embraces multiple pathways to help young people successfully navigate the journey from adolescence to adulthood. The report contends that there is too much emphasis on a single pathway to success: attending and graduating from a four-year college. Yet only 30 percent of young adults successfully complete this preferred pathway.

Meanwhile, even in the second decade of the 21st century, most jobs do not require a bachelor's. The report notes that while the United States is expected to create 47 million jobs in the 10-year period ending in 2018, only a third of these jobs will require a bachelor's or higher degree. Almost as many jobs - some 30 percent - will only require an associate's degree or a post-secondary occupational credential.

Given these realities, the report argues that the country needs to broaden the range of high-quality pathways and include more emphasis on career counseling and high-quality career education, as well as apprenticeship programs and community colleges as viable routes to well-paying jobs.

The second essential element the report argues is that that employers should play a greatly expanded role in supporting the pathways system, and in providing more opportunities for young adults to participate in work-based learning and actual jobs related to their programs of study.

Thirdly, the analysis suggests that there needs to be a new social compact between society and young people with the goal that by the time young adults reach their mid-20s, they will be equipped with the education and experience they need to lead a successful life. Achieving this goal would require far bigger contributions from the nation's employers and governments.

"We are the only developed nation that depends so exclusively on its higher education system as the sole institutional vehicle to help young people transition from secondary school to careers, and from adolescence to adulthood," says Robert Schwartz, academic dean and professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, who heads the Pathways to Prosperity Project. "Unless we are willing to provide more flexibility and choice in the last two years of high school, and more opportunities for students to pursue program options that link work and learning, we will continue to lose far too many young people along the path to graduation," he says.

The report notes that even as many young adults are failing to earn a postsecondary degree, they have also been hit far harder than older adults by unemployment in the Great Recession. The percentage of teens and young adults who have jobs is now at its lowest level since the end of World War II. This has dire implications, according to the report, because employment in the teen and young adult years can have a positive impact on future prospects for employment and earnings.

The report was developed over two years and included both research and working closely with partners interested in the pathways challenge, including major corporations, leaders from K-12 and higher education, the non-profit community and government.

Funding for the Pathways Project has been provided by Accenture, the DeVry Foundation, The General Electric Foundation and the Pearson Foundation. Additional support was provided by the James Irvine Foundation, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and the Nellie Mae Education Foundation.

Since its founding in 1920, the Harvard Graduate School of Education has been training leaders to transform education in the United States and around the globe. Through its 13 master's programs, two doctoral programs, professional education institutes, and research projects, the Harvard Graduate School of Education prepares leaders in education and generates knowledge to improve student opportunity, achievement and success.

State News

Florida Chamber Announces Florida STEM Strategic Plan
Plan offers Florida a Systemic Reform of STEM Education and Workforce Readiness

The Florida Center for Research in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (FCR-STEM) has released the Florida STEM Strategic Plan, providing a coordinated, informed and strategic path to competitiveness in a global economy.

According to the Florida Chamber of Commerce, students in Florida currently perform below students in many other states and nations on science and mathematics assessments. Florida also trails other states and nations in aligning STEM education and workforce needs, adopting globally competitive standards for all STEM fields and creating a fertile environment for innovation.

"The release of this Plan comes at a critical time in the Sunshine State's economic transition," said Dale A. Brill, Ph.D., President of the Florida Chamber Foundation. "I look forward to the impact of this contribution to the Caucus process in pursuit of a more globally competitive position."

The STEM Strategic Task Force that developed this plan consisted of more than 70 members of the business, industry, education, workforce and economic development, policy and philanthropic communities, including Helios Education Foundation President and CEO Paul Luna and Vice President and Program Director for Florida, Stacy Carlson.

The task force identified three strategic goals that include measurable objectives and action items contained in the plan. The goals are:

Increase the percentage of students successful at each level to ensure our diverse population is
Capable of conducting real-world STEM projects and inquiry
Capable of authentic and collaborative problem solving
Proficient in applying multidisciplinary knowledge and skills through STEM
Proficient in English and other languages in order to succeed on a global scale and
Knowledgeable about and interested in STEM careers.
Increase the quality and quantity of STEM educators.
Create a statewide sustainable STEM leadership organization to align existing and emerging STEM initiatives and represent Florida as one voice in meeting STEM demands.

"We now have a valuable contribution to inform discussions occurring across all four fields of STEM as a major component of school reform," said Brill. "With the support of educators, business partners and our community leaders, Florida will be positioned to grow and prosper for years to come."

Founded in 1968, the Florida Chamber Foundation is a business-led, problem-solver and research organization, working in partnership with state business leaders to promote a vibrant Florida economy. The Foundation's "Six Pillars" serve as a visioning platform for moving Florida forward.

The Foundation's work focuses on:

Talent Supply and Education
Innovation and Economic Development
Infrastructure and Growth Leadership
Business Climate and Competitiveness
Civic and Governance Systems
Quality of Life and Quality Places

The Florida STEM Strategic Plan can be viewed in its entirety by clicking here.

Arizona One of Nine States Eligible for $200 Million under Race to the Top
As a finalist in the second round of Race to the Top, Arizona and eight other states are eligible to compete for $200 million in additional funds this year. Applications will be available in the early fall.

Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and South Carolina can seek grants ranging from $10 million to $50 million, depending on state size and the final number of grants. States will be asked to update their Race To The Top plans to reflect a more limited scope of work.

"Every state that applied for Race to the Top funds now has a blueprint for raising educational quality across America," said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. "These funds will encourage states to continue their courageous work to challenge the status quo and build on the momentum for education reform happening in our classrooms, schools and communities."

The funds were made available to support states that developed reform plans to raise academic standards, build cradle to career data systems, invest in great teachers and leaders, and turn around persistently low-performing schools.

The Obama Administration has also proposed to continue Race to the Top in fiscal year 2012 and is seeking authority to develop a district-level competition.

Arizona's State University System Technology Transfer Helps Spark the Economy
The Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) says that the translation of research and inventions from the state's university system to the commercial marketplace is not only improving lives, but stimulating the economy.

ABOR's latest look at technology transfer from Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University and The University of Arizona estimates that in 2010 the universities generated $8 million in revenue from the development and licensing of new technology, a 70 percent increase from the prior year. ABOR says that technology transfer is a tremendous catalyst for the vitality of the local economy, and that when public dollars are invested in university research, new jobs are created and Arizonans benefit directly from the new innovations.

"University system researchers are continually developing technologies, products and processes that make significant contributions not only to our local community, but worldwide," said Regent Rick Myers. "Watching our home-grown technology translate to the local or global marketplace is inspiring and should be a point of pride for Arizona."

It sounds like pop science - fueling airplanes with algae, treating illness without medicine, or using DNA sequencing to track elusive strains of tuberculosis. But innovations such as these translate to impactful technologies and products that also end up being big businesses for the university system.

Here is a sampling of Arizona university system technology transfer activity for the 2010 fiscal year:

5 percent increase in invention disclosures-327 compared to 310 in FY 2009;
8 percent increase in U.S. patent applications-315 compared to 271 in FY 2009;
10 percent increase in U.S. patents issued-33 compared to 30 in FY 2009; and
26 percent increase in licenses/options signed-127 compared to 101 in FY 2009.

To maximize the opportunity for technology transfer, each of the universities works with a separate organization that specializes in managing the transfer process. Arizona State University‘s intellectual property management company is Arizona Technology Enterprises (AzTE). Northern Arizona University partners with Northern Arizona Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology (NACET), and the new NAU Ventures, LLC (NAUVLLC)-an affiliate of the NAU Foundation. The UA partners with the UA Office of Technology Transfer (OTT).

"Arizona‘s universities are world-renowned research institutions," said Regent Myers. "The innovations and products that successfully transfer from research lab to commercialization are as diverse as the minds and labs in which they originate. The technology transfer accomplishments last year are truly distinguished and impressive."

Here are highlights of a few of the start-ups and licenses signed at the universities last year:

Healing Common Ailments without Medicine
Acid reflux affects millions of people worldwide and over-the-counter antacids are one of the most common drugs purchased. So what if you could treat this common, but uncomfortable, ailment without having to take any medication? Arizona State University‘s intellectual property management company, AzTE, finalized a series of licensing deals with EndoStim, Inc., a St. Louis medical device startup, developing applications for the groundbreaking neurostimulation technologies that may be used to aid in the treatment of acid reflux, as well as urinary incontinence and sexual dysfunction.

Tracking Elusive Strains of Tuberculosis
Mycobacterium tuberculosis causes tuberculosis, a devastating, worldwide infectious disease. Researchers at NAU have developed a high-resolution DNA typing or fingerprinting system that can identify particular strains or sub-strains of the pathogenic Mycobacterium tuberculosis that have traditionally been elusive to track. This invention will be used for biomedical identification and tracking of these strains, lending to superior diagnostics and therapeutics.

Finding a solution for Valley Fever
A new technology-transfer start-up, Valley Fever Solutions (VFS) of Tucson, is partnering with the UA‘s Valley Fever Center of Excellence in developing Nikkomycin Z (NikZ), a federally designated orphan drug as a therapy for Valley Fever, a debilitating fungal disease predominant in the Southwest. Through this start-up, this orphan drug is now in active development, opening the window to a potential cure in the future for Valley Fever.

From Generation Z to Generation I: Using Technology in Education
Technology is a way of life for those in Generation Z, also known as Generation I - the Internet Generation. This generation, born between the mid-1990s and the mid-2000s, has grown up with technology as a fundamental part of the way they communicate.

However, those from Generation Z currently attending school are being taught by educators who are often not comfortable teaching in the electronic age. In fact, a recent survey of Arizona K-12 educators involved in a technology conference found that 74 percent of the attendees had little or no experience using electronic information technology.

In 2010, Arizona State University and The University of Arizona teamed up to create a teacher certificate program illustrating how different technologies can serve as high-impact educational tools for middle school students. The course content addresses low-cost technologies currently available for quick and easy implementation.

Teaching an Enhanced, Advanced, Customized, Hands-on Technology Education Course (Teach Tec) was born, exposing teachers to the latest technologies that will ultimately enhance classroom STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education.

Teach Tec provides a 12-hour certificate program for 7th - 9th grade teachers in Arizona to show them how technologies such as video cameras, wordle, survey monkey, Twitter, Neat Chat, Google docs and others can serve as tools to enhance the learning experience. While the workshops are held jointly in Phoenix and Tucson, they have also been accessible to all Arizona 7th - 9th grade science and mathematics teachers via video-streaming online.

Helios Education Foundation invested $115,000 in the Teach Tec initiative, and according to the Foundation's Vice President and Director of Transition Years, Teacher and Curriculum Initiatives, Dr. Jo Anne Vasquez, providing opportunities for teachers to learn how to integrate everyday technology tools into their classroom practice to enhance the teaching and learning of math and science.

The project's original research, was funded by the Arizona Board of Regents and was developed in response to the effort "Building 21st Century Schools," which called for the preparation and modernization of grades K-12, aligning schools with modern information technologies in order to better meet the needs of technologically-savvy students.

The course was based on hands-on training with a requirement for teachers to upload a classroom exercise to the Teach Tec website showing how they had applied the new use of technology into their lessons.

"Through this outstanding partnership, science, technology, engineering and math teachers will better understand how to incorporate no-cost, cutting-edge technology into the classroom," said Catherine Eden, director of Arizona State's Ramsey Executive Education Program, which is awarding the certificate.

Plans are to place the Teach Tec course on the Ramsey Executive Development curriculum once all the methodologies have been thoroughly assessed.

Tampa among 50 Cities Competing to Increase College Degree Earners
Dr. Ken Atwater, President of Hillsborough Community College in Tampa, Florida, has accepted the CEOs for Cities challenge to lead Tampa's effort to increase the number of residents with a college degree.

More than 50 cities have entered the competition. The winning metropolitan area will receive a $1 million prize for showing the greatest increase in the number of postsecondary education degrees granted per capita over a three-year period. CEOs for Cities says the competition is designed as an effort to increase college attainment in the nation's cities by one percentage point, which it says is worth $124 billion a year in increased national earnings.

Research from Chicago-based CEOs for Cities, a non-profit network of urban leaders advancing the next generation of great American cities, indicates that 58 percent of a city's success, as measured by per capita income, can be attributed to the percentage of the adult population with a college degree.

"There are huge financial gains that can be achieved through small improvements in educational attainment in our cities," said CEOs for Cities President and CEO Lee Fisher. "This competition is part of our ongoing effort to generate awareness, and ultimately action, among urban leaders of the potential economic returns that can be achieved by increasing the rate of college degrees by just one percentage point. Simply put-the more educated a city's population, the more robust its economy will be."

CEOs for Cities' research shows that increasing the four-year college attainment rate in each of the 51 largest metropolitan areas by one percentage point, from its current median of 29.4 percent to 30.4 percent, would be associated with an increase in aggregate personal income of $124 billion per year for the nation.

The $1 million prize can be used by the winning city to launch a national promotional campaign centered on talent development. In order to be eligible for the competition, cities had to be either the largest metropolitan area in the state, or have a population of 500,000 based on 2009 Census data.

Competing cities include: Akron, Ohio; Albany, N.Y.; Baltimore, Md.; Baton Rouge, La.; Boston, Mass.; Bradenton, Fla.; Buffalo, N.Y.; Charleston, S.C.; Charlotte, N.C.; Chattanooga, Tenn.; Chicago, Ill.; Cleveland, Ohio; Columbia, S.C.; Columbus, Ohio; Dayton, Ohio; Denver, Colo.; Detroit, Mich.; El Paso, Texas; Fargo, N.D.; Grand Rapids, Mich.; Harrisburg, Pa.; Hartford, Conn.; Honolulu, Hawaii; Houston, Texas; Indianapolis, Ind.; Jackson, Miss.; Knoxville, Tenn.; Lakeland, Fla.; Little Rock, Ark.; Los Angeles, Calif.; Louisville, Ky.; Madison, Wis.; Manchester, N.H.; McAllen, Texas; Memphis, Tenn.; Milwaukee, Wis.; Minneapolis, Minn.; Nashville, Tenn.; Oklahoma City, Okla.; Omaha, Neb.; Orlando, Fla.; Philadelphia, Pa.; Pittsburgh, Pa.; Portland, Ore.; Providence, R.I.; Raleigh, N.C.; Richmond, Va.; Rochester, N.Y.; San Diego, Calif.; St. Louis, Mo.; Stockton, Calif.; Syracuse, N.Y.; Tampa, Fla.; Tulsa, Okla.; Washington, D.C.; Wichita, Kan.; Youngstown, Ohio.

The Talent Dividend Prize competition comes on the heels of the U.S. Department of Education's "Race to the Top" initiative that encouraged states to improve outcomes among K-12 students. In addition to boosting educational attainment, the Talent Dividend competition aims to boost economic gains at both the local and national level. For more information on the Talent Dividend Prize, click here.

Education Connection

Volume 3, Issue 1

President's Message

With the Arizona Legislature facing what some estimate to be a $1.4 billion budget shortfall this year, and with the Florida Legislature facing an over $3.5 billion budget deficit, elected officials in both states are already signaling that tough cuts to health care and education may be inevitable.

As the dust settles from the mid-term elections and as Florida's new Governor Rick Scott and Arizona's newly re-elected Governor Jan Brewer make their budget priorities known, our hope is that fiscal policies in both states will work to support the gains and momentum in education that our communities are experiencing.

The 2011 Quality Counts report gave Florida a B- in education for its academic standards, accountability policies and continued improvement across the K-12 education system and ranked the state fifth in the nation overall. While there's clearly room for improvement with Arizona's grade of C- and position of 42nd overall, that same report acknowledged Arizona's improved marks in education standards, assessments and accountability.

A recent Arizona Board of Regents report also shows record numbers of Bachelor's degrees awarded in the state this past year, but there's an opportunity to refocus the high school student pipeline and not only get them into postsecondary education, but help them complete that education.

There is no doubt that education gains have been made in Arizona and Florida, but a long and challenging road still lies ahead in preparing our students to succeed in a technologically-advanced, 21st Century global economy.

That's why during this time of fiscal analysis, state budget planning and debates over state spending policies, it's even more incumbent upon our elected officials to ensure that the path to education success isn't eroded by a lack of adequate financial resources.

Education continues to be treated as an expense and not as a strategic investment in our future. It's time to demand that we strengthen our entire education system through investment and innovative reform.

Let's review our successes, call out our challenges and build consensus around the need for education funding that maintains the kind of momentum our students need in K-12 and beyond.

Our economic future depends on it, and our children deserve it.

In the Spotlight

New Education Report Grades States on Education Performance

In a new national report on education quality released by Education Week, researchers say that the nation and states continue to struggle back from the most severe economic downtown in generations and face new challenges in delivering a high quality education to all students.

In Quality Counts 2011, the nation receives a C when graded across six areas of policy and performance. Arizona's K-12 education system receives a C-minus and ranks 42nd overall when evaluated against 18 individual indicators that capture current achievement, improvements over time and poverty-based disparities or gaps. Florida received a B-minus, ranking fifth overall. Four states - Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and West Virginia - and the District of Columbia received grades of F on the index.

Florida's 5th place ranking with a score of 81.5 was bolstered by strong academic standards, school-accountability rules and major improvements on national tests and in high school graduation rates. The state also earned top marks for closing the gap between the performance of students from poor and more affluent families.

Arizona's score of 71.5 is below the national average of 76.3, however Arizona received its best grades in standards, assessments and accountability. It did the worst in spending, achievement and the teaching profession.

"If we are going to continue advancing as a nation, then strong, sustained and equitable educational improvement must become the norm for students in every state rather than the exception that is today," said Christopher B. Swanson, Vice President of Editorial Projects in Education, the nonprofit organization that publishes Education Week.

Quality Counts 2011 also offers an updated view of state efforts to better coordinate the connections between K-12 schooling and other segments of the education pipeline, including early childhood education, college readiness and links to the workforce. The most rapid movement is seen around policies that promote college preparation, which is a major focus of the Common Core Standards Initiative and the federal Race to the Top program.

Other key findings in the report include education's leading role in federal stimulus spending through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Specifically, the report finds that education factors into the goals of the federal government's recovery plan in terms of both saving jobs, (e.g., funding to help states avoid cutting existing school positions) and shoring up the economy by upgrading skills in the workforce (e.g., funding to support educational reform initiatives). In addition, as of September 2010, more funds have flowed to the U.S. Department of Education than any other federal agency and education accounts for about one-third of the total spending of the $243 billion in recovery expenditures.

The report also finds that most states have relatively limited authority over teacher compensation and layoffs. According to the study, 20 states have an established statewide teacher-salary schedule in place for the 2010-2011 school year, 12 states have a policy that determines whether seniority is used as a criterion for teacher dismissal decisions and in most states, authority over compensation and dismissal decisions rests with local school officials.

For a look at the full report click here.

A Review of our Quarterly Investments

Helios Education Foundation is pleased to announce the following community investments that were approved during the last three quarters. More information about these and all of our investments is available on our website at Investment History.

Arizona State University Foundation - $823,826
The STEM in the Middle program is designed to increase middle school students' success in mathematics and the sciences, and enhance their interest in careers in science, technology engineering and math. The program incorporates best practices in teacher professional development, mentoring and problem solving.

Center for the Future of Arizona - $450,000
Funding supports the planning phase for implementation of a whole-school Move On When Ready (MOWR) strategy in two Arizona high schools. In the whole-school MOWR strategy, every student beginning in 9th grade participates in a core academic program of study that upon completion will enter 11th grade able to participate in multiple vigorous pathway options, all intended to lead toward successful postsecondary study and careers.

Community Foundation for Southern Arizona - $75,000
Tucson Values Teachers is an innovative partnership among the business community, educators and the public in Southern Arizona. This initiative is aimed at working to transform the ways in which teachers are valued and supported as a means of improving the K-12 system.

National Science Education Leadership Association (NSELA) - $250,000
Funding supports the creation of Helios STEM Education Leadership teams at the National Science Education Leadership Association Summer Leadership Institute.

Science Foundation Arizona - $300,000
Helios Education Foundation funding supports the planning of an Arizona STEM Network that will provide leadership, support and coordination to accelerate improvements in STEM teaching and learning, and to impact policies that support a stronger, more diversified and competitive economy to benefit all Arizonans.

SRI International - $100,000
Funding provides continued support to the SunBay Digital Mathematics Program, a collaboration between Pinellas County Schools, SRI International and Helios Education Foundation designed to increase Pinellas County middle school student achievement in mathematics utilizing an integrated digital curriculum while engaging teachers in active professional development opportunities.

Take Stock in Children - $1,000,000
Take Stock in Children (TSIC) is a comprehensive program that helps low-income middle and high school students in Florida succeed by providing volunteer mentors, student advocates, tutoring, and college and vocational scholarships. TSIC received a developmental grant from the US Department of Education's Investing in Innovation (i3) Fund. Helios Education Foundation's investment provides the matching funds required by the i3 grant and supports programmatic enhancement.

Florida’s Year in Review: A Look at Education in 2010

Florida education officials are taking a retrospective look at the triumphs, challenges, adversity and progress of the state's education system in 2010. Officials say that with a $700 million win in the national Race to the Top competition, and with an eighth straight year of the Florida College System leading the nation in an array of degree programs, the state continues to demonstrate that education reform and success go hand in hand.

"Whether it's our public school classrooms, state college lecture halls, workforce centers or vocational rehabilitation and blind services programs, Floridians should be proud of the educational strides our state has made this past year," said outgoing State Board of Education Chairman T. Willard Fair. "Despite the challenges we have faced, our resilience and determination to build a better future for our children has won out yet again and our future remains brighter because of it."

Here is a snapshot of state education officials' review of 2010:

Eighth Place National Ranking: The 2010 Quality Counts report by Education Week, which tracks state policies and performance across key areas of education, ranked Florida eighth in the nation. This jump continues the trend the state has seen progressing to 14th in 2008 and 10th in 2009.

(The recently released Quality Counts 2011 report has ranked Florida fifth in the nation.)

Nationally Renowned State College System: For the eighth year in a row, Community College Week's annual top 100 report honored Florida's state colleges with top spots in terms of degrees earned for a variety of categories. Additionally, North Florida Community College (NFCC), the smallest college in the Florida College System, was named as one of America's best community colleges in the Washington Monthly magazine's 2010 College Rankings edition, and the College System itself became the newest member of the Alliance of States-an organization comprised of 24 states united to focus on dramatically increasing the nation's college completion rate.

Graduation Rate Climbs to Highest Point: Florida's graduation rate climbed more than two-and-a-half percentage points in 2010 to 79 percent. Included in the increase was a 3.5 percentage point increase for African-American students, a 3.2 percentage point increase for Hispanic students and a 2.3 percentage point increase for White students.

Minority Students Outpace Nation in Reading: The latest reading results for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), the gold standard for measurement of student achievement across the nation, indicate that Florida's minority students continue to perform above the national average in both 4th and 8th grade reading. According to the results, reading scores for African-American 4th and 8th grade students are seven and five points higher than their national counterparts, respectively, and Hispanic students outpaced their peers across the country by 19 points in 4th grade and 12 points in 8th grade.

Students better prepared for Kindergarten: More than 120,000 students entered kindergarten better prepared in 2010 as a result of their participation in a Voluntary Prekindergarten (VPK) program. Children who completed VPK last year performed better on key Kindergarten readiness measures than children who did not participate. Additionally, children who only attended a portion of a VPK program outperformed students who had no exposure to the program at all.

Student Performance Soaring in More Rigorous Coursework: More rigorous and focused coursework such as Advanced Placement (AP), Dual Enrollment and Industry Certification helps students gain better preparedness for success in college or career. In 2010, the number of AP exams administered to Florida's public school students increased 19.5 percent and the number of students receiving a passing score on an AP exam jumped 14.5 percent. At the same time, participation in Dual Enrollment coursework increased 18.4 percent, with a 12.2 percent increase in the number of students earning college credit in these courses. Additionally, the number of students earning Industry Certification increased from 2,576 students in 2008-2009 to 14,230 last year.

$700 million Race to the Top Win: In August 2010, Florida was named a winner in the Race to the Top competition, securing $700 million in federal funds to revolutionize the state's education system. The four-year grant focuses on dramatically improving academic performance, providing assistance to the most struggling schools, enriching and expanding technology and data systems, and ensuring all students have access to highly effective teachers and leaders.

Adoption of Common Core Standards: The State Board of Education officially adopted the Common Core State Standards for English/Language Arts and Mathematics last year. The Board's approval not only strengthens Florida's curriculum standards in these critical subjects, but it lays the groundwork for the comparison of Florida's academic progress with the nation and the world.

Increased Graduation Requirements: New graduation requirements were introduced last year through Senate Bill 4 to ensure students are leaving high school better prepared for college or career. Initially, 9th-graders in the 2010-2011 school year will need to earn credit in Geometry and must take an End-of-Course (EOC) exam in Algebra I that will be a part of their course average. These new requirements will expand over the next few years, culminating in 2013-2014 when students will need to pass EOC exams in Algebra 1, Geometry and Biology to earn course credit, and will need to earn credit in Chemistry or Physics and an equally rigorous science course in order to graduate with a Florida standard diploma.

Expanded High School Grading Formula: Florida implemented a new high school grading formula in 2010 that gives parents a more comprehensive look at the education being offered by their child's school. In addition to FCAT results, the formula takes into account the school's graduation rate, performance and participation in rigorous coursework and college and career readiness. Florida's schools rose to the challenge of meeting these new measures, resulting in a record number of "A" and "B" high schools for the 2009-2010 school year.

In a statement in response to the 2010 year in review, Florida Commissioner of Education Dr. Eric J. Smith said that he is proud of the education stakeholders in Florida for their efforts to transform 2010 into a banner year for children.

"The coming years will certainly contain their own challenges, but the momentum we are building through groundbreaking new initiatives like Race to the Top will help ensure that our work remains successful and students throughout the state continue to find success," Smith added.

ABOR Reports on College Degrees and the High School Student Pipeline

In a recent report that looks at student matriculation, enrollment and graduation in Arizona, the Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) says a record number of bachelor's degrees were awarded in the 2009-2010 academic year, there was a substantial uptick in the number of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) degrees awarded and record enrollment for Fall 2010.

But an analysis of the high school student pipeline also suggests that four out of five Arizona high-school graduates do not have a college degree six years after graduating from high school, and just over half haven't gone to college at all.

College Degree Attainment
In 2009-2010, the Arizona University System awarded 21,037 bachelor's degrees. That is an increase of 743 degrees, or a 3.7 percent jump from the year prior. Arizona State University awarded the largest number of bachelor's degrees at 11,810, followed by the University of Arizona at 5,827 and Northern Arizona University at 3,400. Compared to ten years ago, the universities have increased the number of bachelor degrees awarded by 5,226 or 33.1 percent.

The Arizona University System also increased the number of degrees awarded in the STEM fields by 32 percent at both the undergraduate and graduate level. In addition, between fall 2009 and fall 2010, full-time enrollment at Arizona's universities increased by 4.7 percent for undergraduate students and 3.8 percent for graduate students.

"These are important gains for the University System as we work toward the 2020 Vision goal of increasing the number of bachelor's degrees awarded by the three universities while transforming into a more efficient and effective Enterprise model," said Arizona Board of Regents Chair Anne Mariucci.

"Our outcome-driven approach with the Enterprise model will allow the University System to build on this success and continue to increase productivity and efficiencies for the benefit of students and the state."

Through a collaborative and comprehensive initiative called "Getting AHEAD - Access to Higher Education and Degrees," Arizona's universities, community colleges, K-12 sector, business community and legislative and executive branches of government are working to reshape Arizona's postsecondary education system to enable more residents to successfully obtain a college degree.

Getting AHEAD seeks to increase the educational attainment of Arizonans, including a focus on making degrees more affordable and accessible through strategic partnerships among community colleges and universities, increased institutional efficiencies, creating a student-centered system that improves e-advising and career planning and improved governance and coordination of Arizona's higher education system.

Student Pipeline Study
A study of the high school student pipeline in Arizona suggests that the state needs to increase its efforts in K-12 to get more students into college. The report finds that:

From 2003-2004 to 2008-2009, the number of Arizona high school graduates has increased by 15,256 or 31 percent to 64,483. This growth exceeds the forecasts necessary to meet the 2020 Vision enrollment goals.
There is no evidence that students delay entry to postsecondary education past the year immediately following graduation.
Over half of all Arizona high school graduates have no postsecondary education attendance.
Six years after graduating from high school, about 17 percent of students have graduated from a four-year institution and another three to four percent of students have graduated from a two-year institution.
Over 25 percent of high school graduates have attended some college, but have not graduated. These students represent a potential pool of individuals who could earn a bachelor's degree for the 2020 Vision degrees goal.

The report provides a snapshot of what happens to Arizona high-school students after they graduate, even if they move or attend college out of state. Using federal and state data from colleges nationwide, the regents tracked several classes of high-school graduates in Arizona, beginning with 49,277 graduates in the 2003-2004 school year. As of September 2010, only 20 percent had graduated with a certificate or college degree.

Fifty-three percent had never gone to college, and 27 percent took college courses but hadn't graduated. Officials say several factors are contributing to the low percentages. High schools need to do a better job preparing students for college, and community colleges and universities need to focus more on helping students finish their degrees.

Some officials hope that changes made in recent years, such as increasing math and science requirements in high school and adding advisers and other support in the freshman year, will pave the way for improved college attendance and completion.

The findings in the report echo other studies that have led to calls for reforming the state's education system.

Florida School Districts Begin Receiving Race to the Top Funds

As Florida begins implementing its $700 million Race to the Top program, school districts around the state are receiving their portion of the funding for local education reform. The Florida Department of Education has awarded funding to at least 11 school districts, totaling more than $25 million. The first 11 districts to be approved are Alachua, Calhoun, Clay, DeSoto, Gulf, Hendry, Holmes, Manatee, Pasco, Putnam, and Washington.

Officials say applications for the remaining 54 grant-eligible districts are being evaluated on an ongoing basis with award notices going out as the approvals occur. All remaining award notices are expected to be issued by the end of January.

"My congratulations go out to each of these districts for being the first to access their Race to the Top funding and getting a jumpstart on their local education reform efforts," said Florida Education Commissioner Dr. Eric J. Smith. "We are moving full steam ahead on a track of unprecedented improvement in our schools and I'm looking forward to more of our districts receiving this important funding in the weeks ahead."

The approved districts will be able to draw down a percentage of their funds each quarter during the next four years. The funds will be used to meet specific Race to the Top deliverables, including the development of new teacher and principal evaluation systems that are based in part on student achievement, expansion of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) coursework and program offerings and driving improvement in persistently low-performing schools.

"The start of the flow of these funds into our participating school districts is a crucial milestone for Florida and the 2.6 million children who attend its public schools each year," said Public Schools Chancellor Dr. Frances Haithcock. "Through these targeted reform efforts we can expect a revolution in the quality of education our children receive and their ability to build the prosperous life each one of them deserves."

Including K-12 in the Discussion about College Completion

As more national studies and initiatives emerge aimed at improving college completion rates, some education advocates are calling for more dialogue between the K-12 and postsecondary education systems to better align expectations and make students college ready.

Education Week found recently that a report released by three higher-education organizations applauds President Obama's goal to lead the world in college graduates by 2020, and then calls for greater action and commitment from government and institutions to make it happen.

In Strengthening College Opportunity and Performance, the Delta Project on Postsecondary Education Costs Productivity and Accountability, the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems, and the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education urge federal and state governments to move beyond the rhetoric and set some specific targets and policies to boost college completion.

They call for better data collection to track higher education performance and the development of systems to reward completion, not just enrollments. They also say colleges need to change their culture to focus on improving instruction and encouraging graduation, as well as channeling financial resources to support those goals to reward innovation and completion.

But according to Education Week, Dennis Jones, president of National Center for Higher Education Management Systems, says there needs to be better alignment of high school and college standards, in particular matching high school exit exams with college placement exams.

He says the K-12 education system should insist that higher education come to the table with a definition of what it means to be college-ready. K-12 has worked hard at setting standards, Jones says, and he faults higher education for not doing more on this front.

"It's way too easy for higher ed. to point to K-12 and say, 'If they just sent us good students.' We don't want to let higher ed. off the hook," he says.

Stan Jones, president of Complete College America, says K-12 can improve the college completion rate by maintaining high standards in high school, offering strong college prep classes, and making use of one of the simplest solutions: encouraging students not to skip math their senior year, even if they have fulfilled their requirements. Too often, kids fail their first year in college because they aren't prepared in math.

But when it comes to the discussion between the two sectors, Jones believes high schools are actually working harder at this than colleges. He thinks colleges should do more to reach out and have joint faculty discussions with high schools so the expectations in college are met.

"Higher education could do a better job communicating that the expectations are-both to students and teachers," Jones says. "I don't think the agenda needs more money. It needs more focus on completion. ... We are winning the battle to get students to go to college; we are losing the battle with completion."

State Education Chiefs Form "Chiefs for Change"

The Foundation for Excellence in Education announced the formation of Chiefs for Change, a bi-partisan group of State Education Chiefs committed to bold education reform. According to organizers, Chiefs for Change is committed to putting children first through bold, visionary education reform that will improve student achievement and prepare students for success in college and careers. The state education leaders will be part of a national network of experts with experience in successful reform who will continue to advance proven education policies at local, state and federal levels.

Members of Chiefs for Change include:

Paul Pastorek, Louisiana Superintendent of Education - Chair
Eric Smith, Florida Commissioner of Education - Vice Chair
Tony Bennett, Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction
Deborah A. Gist, Rhode Island Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education
Gerard Robinson, Virginia Secretary of Education

"Chiefs for Change represents an important step by educational leaders throughout this country to join together to create better academic outcomes and educational opportunities not just for students in our respective states, but for every child in the nation," said Florida Commissioner of Education Dr. Eric J. Smith.

"By working together, we can pool our expertise, passion, experience and drive to develop collaborative, working solutions to the issues being faced by our schools. My colleagues in this organization are among our nation's strongest reform-minded educational leaders and I am proud to be a part of this tremendous effort. Now is the time for bold and intentional reform of our educational system; our children deserve it and our nation demands it."

O'Connor House, Expect More Arizona Launch Education Commitment

The O'Connor House and Expect More Arizona have announced the launch of The Arizona Education Commitment, a statewide, nonpartisan initiative to protect and preserve Arizona's state educational institutions.

Organizers say that the principles outlined in The Arizona Education Commitment are based on Article XI, Section 10 of the Arizona Constitution, and it was developed to open positive and productive discussion about the current, critical state of education in Arizona and to elevate Arizona's constitutional duty to prioritize the continued maintenance, development and improvement of all state educational institutions.

"The authors of the Arizona Constitution believed so strongly in providing for our state educational institutions that education is the only significant affirmative appropriation identified in our state's governing document," said Justice Sandra Day O'Connor (Ret.). "As a result, the state legislature is required to insure the proper maintenance of all our state educational institutions, even in tough economic times, and to make such special appropriations as shall provide for their development and maintenance."

The Arizona Education Commitment is being elevated by supporters to increase public awareness about the constitutional prioritization of education and as a means to encourage Arizona citizens and leaders to explore all revenue enhancing options for addressing the state's budget deficit and protecting vital public services such as education, public health and public safety.

Arizona is currently ranked 49th in the nation for K-12 per student investment. Although Federal stimulus funding and voter-approved initiatives such as Proposition 100 have helped to temporarily mitigate some of the multi-million dollar cuts that have already occurred to K-12 education over the past two years, much of those sources of funding are not recurring.

"Arizona cannot cut its way out of its current budget challenges," comments Sue Clark-Johnson, Chairman of the O'Connor House Policy Advisory Committee. "The Arizona Constitution gives all Arizonans clear direction for how they can protect education while increasing aggregate incomes, adding wealth to the Arizona economy and generating revenues for vital public health and safety services."

Organizers say that Governor Brewer's proposed FY12 budget includes cuts of $170 million to Arizona's state universities and $64 million, a 46% decrease, to community colleges. They also say that the collective FY11 and FY12 cuts and disappearing sources of revenue come at a time when Arizona students already rank below their national and international peers in academic achievement, graduation rates and postsecondary degree attainment.

Advocates of the Arizona Education Commitment say that Arizona voters have consistently shown support for investing in education. The landslide passage of Proposition 100, a temporary sales tax for primary and secondary education as well as the defeat of Proposition 302, which preserved funding for early childhood health and development programs, during the 2010 elections, are just two representative examples. In addition, according to a 2010 Pew Center for the States poll, 60% of Arizona voters want to protect education during budget cuts and 71% would vote for a tax increase to support K-12 education.

"It is time for Arizona to view education as an investment, not an expense to be minimized," states Paul J. Luna, chairman, Expect More Arizona. "The long-term economic growth of our state and our overall quality of life are directly tied to the quality of our education system."

"The future of Arizona business and industry depends on the strength of our education system and our ability to deliver a competitive and skilled workforce," explains Phil Francis, Executive Chairman, PetSmart. "We must invest now. We are below average and deteriorating. We cannot afford to wait any longer to ensure Arizona has world-class educational institutions, at all levels."

Arizonans are encouraged to sign on to The Arizona Education Commitment by visiting www.ArizonaEducationCommitment.org. They are also encouraged to contact their legislators to let them know that they want education to be protected and preserved as tough budget decisions are made.

Florida Senate President Says Education Cuts Likely

Florida Senate President Mike Haridopolos, pictured to the right, indicated that education could face big cuts this year as part of the Legislature's effort to balance Florida's $3.62-billion projected budget shortfall. In a discussion with reporters, Haridopolos said policymakers would be passing a budget this spring without any new tax increases, which means they would have to make dramatic cuts to health care and education to make the math work.

"I'm a big proponent of tax cuts. This is not a year I can push them through," Haridopolos told the St. Petersburg Times. "And if Governor Rick Scott wants to follow through on his campaign pledge of cutting taxes by $2 billion in his first year in office, the governor would have to offset them with spending cuts."

Governor Scott has proposed to cut school property taxes by $1.4 billion and make up the millage reduction with more state dollars. He also promised to start phasing out Florida's corporate income tax, which could cost another $700 million this year.

The Senate president said education could be particularly hard-hit in next year's budget, saying it may be impossible to make up for about $1.2 billion in expiring federal stimulus dollars that are financing core classroom programs.

"Whether you like to admit it or not, half our general revenue goes to education," Haridopolos told reporters. "It's a very difficult spot to be in, and the reason we wanted to make the adjustments to the class-size amendment" defeated by voters last fall.

Senate budget-writers also signaled they would target health-care for the poor and elderly, and public employee pension contributions.

Governor Scott has until early February to submit his budget proposal to the Florida Legislature.

Huppenthal Weighs in on State Budget and Ethnic Studies

Arizona's new Superintendent of Public Instruction, John Huppenthal, pictured to the right, is weighing in on state budget cuts in education and on an ethnic studies program in the Tucson Unified School District.

In an interview with the Arizona Republic, Huppenthal says state universities may bear the brunt of educational budget cuts this year, and that the reductions experienced so far by public schools in Arizona have been mild compared with the steep drop in state revenue. He plans to stress accountability of public schools and their districts by issuing letter grades to compare the performance of schools, and he challenges national studies that suggest that Arizona schools rank low in achievement and funding.

Huppenthal said he wants to give parents more choices for their children's education, and that the charter-school movement in Arizona shows that parents want that.

"A number of charter schools in Arizona are in the top one percent of the nation," Huppenthal said. "So are a number of district schools. I'm a supporter of vouchers because they go a step above that, and we have to empower parents."

In early January, Huppenthal issued a statement saying that the Tucson Unified School District's (TUSD) Mexican-American Studies Program violates a new state law.

"Given the evidence that I have reviewed as of today, I support former Superintendent Tom Horne's decision that a violation of one or more provisions of A.R.S. § 15-112 (the statute created by passage of HB 2281) has occurred by the Tucson Unified School District (TUSD)," Huppenthal said.

A.R.S. § 15-112 and its provisions went into effect as of midnight on December 31, 2010, making it illegal for a school district to have any courses or classes that promote the overthrow of the U.S. government, are designed primarily for students of a particular ethnic group or advocate ethnic solidarity instead of the treatment of pupils as individuals. It also would ban classes that promote resentment toward a race or class of people.

TUSD officials have said all along that the program in the district's Mexican-American studies department simply provides historical information and does not promote the overthrow of the U.S. government or racial conflict.

"As of today, sections of TUSD's website on their Mexican American Studies Program clearly indicate that the program is designed primarily for pupils of a particular ethnic group - Latino students. This is in clear violation of A.R.S. § 15-112 A (3)," Huppenthal continued.

Huppenthal pledged the full resources and commitment of the Arizona Department of Education to help TUSD "come into full compliance with A.R.S. § 15-112."

"As Superintendent of Public Instruction, I won't rest until every child, regardless of race, ethnic background or socio-economic status, receives the excellent education he or she deserves," Huppenthal concluded.

Education Connection

Volume 2, Issue 4

President's Message

Davis Guggenheim’s documentary film Waiting for Superman is causing a national buzz. The film is inspiring change in some communities and education circles, but it’s also causing controversy in others.

While the film chronicles the lives of five students and their families in search of a better education, some say it shines too bright a light on what appears to be a broken and disjointed U.S. educational system. Others argue that the film paints too rosy a picture of charter schools while denigrating teachers unions. What’s the true message of the film? After watching the movie, only you can decide. And, perhaps that’s the whole point of it all.

It’s true that Waiting for Superman takes an all access, no-frills look at a subset of the country’s public educational system, specifically school systems in the District of Columbia, the Bronx and Harlem in New York City, and Los Angeles and Redwood City in California. Students from different ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds vie for a better opportunity in education, but whether they succeed remains to be seen.

Although educators, teachers unions, administrators and even pundits may disagree about the tone and approach of the film and about the perceptions of our country’s educational system portrayed in the movie, one question still remains: what is each one of us doing to make our country’s educational system better?

If nothing else, Waiting for Superman has placed a national spotlight on education, and we should use that spotlight as an opportunity to make a difference, each in our own way, for the better. What things can you do in your school district or at your child’s school to make sure that the opportunity students seek truly is a better one?

Something everyone can agree on is that the film encourages social action, action like supporting great teachers, demanding high educational standards, getting involved locally, volunteering and mentoring. National education policy reform may take an act of Congress, but volunteering, getting involved and supporting great teachers don’t.

So no matter your opinion of Waiting for Superman, use your energy to make a difference in schools right where you are. If enough of us do that, we may all be the superman our school systems have been waiting for.

In the Spotlight

Hillsborough Community College Announces Largest Scholarship Partnership Project in the College’s History

Pictured from left to right at the announcement of Hillsborough Community College’s (HCC) largest scholarship partnership are Dr. Robert Chun, Campus President at HCC; Mimi Corcoran, Director, Special Fund for Poverty Alleviation at the Open Society Foundations; Gordon Berlin, President of MDRC; Dr. Ken Atwater, HCC President and Paul Luna, President and CEO of Helios Education Foundation.

Hillsborough Community College (HCC), Helios Education Foundation, MDRC and the Open Society Foundations (OSI) recently announced the launch of a $2.4 million performance-based scholarship initiative that has become the largest scholarship partnership in HCC’s history.

The four-year demonstration program at the community college in Hillsborough County, Florida is designed to help 750 low-income students who successfully pass a sequence of three math courses, including first level college math, transitional algebra and the highest level of developmental math.

“The college is excited for this opportunity because of the potential to impact the success rate of our students who struggle in developmental mathematics and for its significance in affecting what is a national problem,” said HCC President Dr. Ken Atwater.

Students who pass the three math classes and complete at least five hours and five visits of math tutoring will be eligible for a maximum scholarship award of $600 per course or a total of $1,800 for all three courses. These funds will be paid directly to students, allowing them the flexibility to address their most pressing financial needs such as tuition, books, child care, personal emergencies or other issues disrupting their studies.

“Helios Education Foundation is constantly looking for innovative ways to help students succeed in postsecondary education, and we’re especially interested in helping students improve their understanding of mathematics,” said Helios Education Foundation President and CEO Paul Luna. “That’s one of the reasons why this new demonstration program at HCC was so attractive to us. It presents a real opportunity to identify and remove some of the barriers preventing students from successfully completing required math courses and subsequently graduating from college.”

Program partners agree that the primary obstacle to college success is that many students are not prepared to do college-level work and are often required to take remedial courses. HCC officials say that over 75 percent of incoming new students test into remedial math. They add that avoiding or failing remedial math is one of the primary reasons why students drop out of college. These barriers can be further compounded by other factors including inadequate financial aid and low participation in academic support services.

In the spring of 2010, HCC began working with Helios and MDRC, a national nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization, to develop a pilot program aimed at improving achievement levels and student completion in math. The pilot program led to this four-year demonstration with Helios providing close to $1.4 million to HCC for performance-based math scholarships and the Open Society Foundations providing close to $1 million for technical assistance, evaluation, dissemination and scholarships.

This demonstration program is part of a broader multi-college, national demonstration being led by MDRC to test variations of this scholarship idea and provide evidence on what works to improve college success rates. The national demonstration project includes colleges in Arizona, California, New Mexico, New York and Ohio.

For more information on MDRC’s national performance-based demonstration program, visit them online at www.mdrc.org.

Building a Skilled Workforce

Industry Building Nationwide Network with Community Colleges

Most analysts agree that in an increasingly competitive global economy, America’s economic growth and competitiveness depends on the education and skills of its workers. With this in mind, businesses are leading a national initiative to improve partnerships with community colleges and build a network aimed at maximizing workforce development, job training and job placement.

The initiative called Skills for America’s Future would help connect more employers, schools and other job training providers, and help them share knowledge about what practices work best. Skills for America’s Future would build high-impact partnerships with industry, labor unions, community colleges and other training providers in all 50 states in support of the Obama Administration’s goal of five million more community college graduates and certificates by 2020.

The network hopes to build on the national Educate to Innovate campaign which is focused on increasing science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) learning. The initiative currently has the commitment of companies and organizations such as PG&E, Gap Inc, McDonald’s, United Technologies, Accenture, Pritzker Realty Group and the Aspen Institute.

Partners Launch Arizona STEM Network

Science Foundation Arizona, Partners Launch Network to Promote Science and Math Education

More than 80 leaders from the nonprofit, corporate, education and government sectors gathered in Phoenix, Arizona on September 16 for a first-ever effort to consolidate science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education resources in a way that will better prepare students for college and career success.

Considered vital to helping students from kindergarten through college build a 21st century skill set, STEM education has become a critical focus across the U.S. and around the world as the dynamic and fast-paced global economy becomes increasingly competitive.

"Virtually any career that a young person wants to pursue will require a strong foundation in science and math," said Darcy Renfro, Science Foundation Arizona Vice President and Executive Director of STEM Initiatives. "Science and math education lay the foundation for success, regardless of which industries they choose."

Building on Arizona's Race to the Top plan, which promoted STEM education, the meeting centered on developing an aggressive and coordinated course of action to implement a statewide STEM action plan to increase student achievement.

"Now really is the time to make STEM education an integral part of how our educational system prepares students for success in postsecondary education and in the workforce of the future," said Paul Luna, President and CEO, Helios Education Foundation. "We know the benefits of a workforce with a high-quality STEM education - more opportunity for workers to find stable, well-paying careers and an attractive and favorable business landscape for industries who will need educated and skilled teams. Our state's future success will depend on how well we prepare our young people to compete in the global marketplace."

According to the 2007 State New Economy Index, Arizona is ranked 37th in terms of classroom computer and Internet use, 30th in scientists and engineers as a percentage of the workforce and 43rd in the nation in percentage of students who head directly to college from high school. Additionally, low-income and minority students are significantly underrepresented in STEM degrees (four percent in engineering, math and computers and two percent in science/engineering technology). The STEM action plan will work to address these and other issues.

"A state's quality of life is directly affected by the quality of general and STEM education it offers students," said Jay Labov, Senior Advisor for Education and Communication with the National Academy of Sciences. "Like the rest of the nation, Arizona must step up and find ways to meet and exceed international standards for science and math education, or be left behind in the global marketplace."

Discussing the State of Early Care in Arizona

Leaders from Arizona's philanthropic community gathered in late September to examine the state of early care and education in Arizona, including the challenges communities face in light of the current economic climate and unstable state budget, and the role private funders can play in the short- and long-term to protect Arizona's investments in young children.

Since the passage of Proposition 203, Arizona voters created the first public revenue source dedicated exclusively to support children ages birth to five. The meeting was an opportunity to initiate dialogue on how the philanthropic leaders of the community can work together to further Arizona's commitment to young children and family.

The event was sponsored in part by Helios Education Foundation and the Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust.

There's a Superman in All of Us

Helios Convenes Community Conversations around Waiting for Superman in Arizona and Florida

The statistics are staggering: among 30 developed countries, the U.S. is ranked 25th in math and 21st in science. Now, a new documentary film dares to shed light on the country's educational system and hopes to spark a social action wave aimed at ensuring a quality educational system for every student in the country.

Being called a powerful, passionate, controversial and potentially revolutionary documentary, Davis Guggenheim's film, Waiting for Superman, opened across the country throughout October. In his film, Guggenheim, who is also the filmmaker of An Inconvenient Truth, argues that the fate of our country won't be decided on a battlefield, but in the classroom, and that every American child deserves a good public-school education.

When asked in an interview by Take Part what he hopes moviegoers who see Waiting for Superman are inspired to do, Guggenheim said, "I want people to feel as though this is the most important issue of our time. It is possible to give every kid a great education and they can do something about it. Driving by and worrying is not enough. Unless each one of us takes a step to make change, our schools won't get any better."

Helios Education Foundation helped convene community discussions in Phoenix, Arizona and Oldsmar, Florida around the issues outlined in the film. The Foundation co-sponsored private screenings of the film in both communities in partnership with organizations such as the Arizona Community Foundation and the Pinellas Education Foundation (in Florida) to facilitate community discussions following each showing. Helios also worked in conjunction with community action social partners in Arizona such as Expect More Arizona and Stand for Children to promote next steps for community engagement.

Ernest Hooper, a St. Petersburg Times education columnist, attended the showing in Oldsmar, Florida and wrote in his column that "everybody needs to see Waiting for Superman. Not because the movie does a perfect job of dissecting the problems in the American education system, and not because it offers the most tangible solutions. No, everybody needs to see it because when it comes to education, we're standing at a pivotal crossroads. Our system has faltered. We've fallen behind the rest of the developed world, and to continue the trend threatens our standing in a global economy." (Click here to see more of Hooper's column on the film.)

Helios Education Foundation President and CEO Paul Luna seen here introducing the education documentary Waiting for Superman at a Phoenix, Arizona screening of the film. In the audience were community and business leaders, social action organizations, educators and other citizens concerned about the state of education in the U.S.

Guggenheim's hope is that his film will build public awareness, ignite personal involvement and inspire real social change. The social action campaign connected to his film is centered on four core initiatives:

Setting academic standards that are on par with the world's best
Recruiting and rewarding great teachers
Creating and nurturing excellent schools, and
Increasing literacy rates

The campaign has created toolkits for educational reform that help parents, teachers, students, schools and the community at large take better charge of ensuring that students get a quality education. For more information on the film, including movie theater locations and the social action campaign, visit www.waitingforsuperman.com.

Take Stock in Children Secures $5 Million Grant; Helios Provides $1 Million Match

From left to right: Richard A. Berkowitz, TSIC statewide Board Chair; Kim Sweers, TSIC Broward Co-Chair; Paul Luna, Helios Education Foundation President and CEO; Don Pemberton, TSIC Founder; and Gale Butler, TSIC Broward Co-Chair.

Take Stock in Children (TSIC), a statewide non-profit organization that provides scholarships, mentors and hope for low-income and at-risk children, has secured a $5 million federal grant through the U.S. Department of Education's Investing in Innovation (i3) program and a $1 million matching investment from Helios Education Foundation.

"Helios Education Foundation's community investments are driven by the goal of getting students prepared to succeed in postsecondary education," said Foundation President and CEO Paul Luna. "Take Stock in Children has a similar mission and that's why we're so pleased to invest $1 million in support of their efforts to help students advance successfully from middle school through postsecondary education. We commend Take Stock for their undying commitment to students, and for achieving national recognition through the i3 program."

Take Stock in Children will use these funds for high school mentoring, enhancements to its web-based data collection system, online college readiness tools, enrollment training modules in English, Spanish and Creole and for online virtual college tours featuring major Florida colleges and universities.

With the federal and private grant funds, Take Stock in Children plans to launch its FLIGHT program (Facilitating Long-Term Improvements in Graduation and Higher Education for Tomorrow). FLIGHT is designed to improve academic and behavioral student outcomes, increase post-secondary matriculation and reduce college remediation. The program also aims to enhance utilization of student data to identify high-need students and implement timely interventions to increase their academic success.

"This investment will further demonstrate Take Stock in Children's unparalleled success in graduating youth from high school and continuing their postsecondary education," says Richard Berkowitz, State Board Chair of Take Stock in Children. "We applaud the Helios Education Foundation for making it possible for us to expand our new enhanced program model to serve Take Stock in Children students beyond high school and throughout their first 18 months of college."

Students enrolled with Take Stock in Children are identified in middle and high school, and then sign a contract pledging to remain drug and crime free, as well as maintain a minimum grade point average of 2.0 or greater. All students that fulfill these obligations and successfully complete the Take Stock in Children program receive full scholarships to a state college or university upon graduation.

Take Stock in Children currently serves nearly 8,000 low-income and minority students in grades 6-12 annually throughout 60 counties in Florida. To learn more about benefiting from Take Stock in Children or becoming a valued mentor or supporter, please call 888-322-4673 or visit www.takestockinchildren.org.

Florida's AP and SAT Scores Show Progress

Performance on college-oriented exams continues to rise as more students ready themselves for a college education

Florida Governor Charlie Crist and the state's Commissioner of Education Dr. Eric Smith announced the results of Florida's 2009-2010 public school SAT and Advance Placement (AP) tests, showing that students have improved their scores. The results show that more students than ever are taking the college readiness exams, and Crist praised Florida schools for providing the preparation students need for postsecondary education. Since 2005, Florida has experienced a 73.4-percent increase in the number of AP test-takers, compared to a 40.1-percent increase nationwide. The five-year trend also shows a 54.7-percent increase among Florida students scoring a 3, 4 or 5 on AP exams, compared to a 36.9 percent increase nationwide.

"Florida's concentrated focus on greater academic achievement has continued to open doors of opportunity for our young people," Governor Crist said. "I commend our teachers for their dedication and commitment to our students and applaud Florida students for being eager to accept the additional challenges of Advanced Placement classes."

According to the College Board, nearly 10 percent more Florida students took the SAT this year, almost five times the national increase, and Florida also increased the percentage of AP test-takers. Minority student participation and performance on the SAT also showed gains with a 10.4-percent increase in African-American public school SAT test-takers, compared to a 7.1-percent national increase. Florida's African-American SAT test-takers also continue to outscore their national counterparts in all three subject areas (eight points higher in reading, five in mathematics and three in writing). Additionally, Florida Hispanic public school SAT test-takers increased 15.9 percentage points, compared to a 7.7-percent national increase. These students also continue to significantly outscore their national peers (28 points higher in reading, 16 in mathematics and 19 in writing).

Florida's minority students also showed notable increases on AP exams, with the numbers of African-American and Hispanic AP test-takers increasing by 22.3 percent and 23.4 percent, respectively, compared to the national increase of 13.9 percent for African-American test-takers and 15.3 percent for Hispanic test-takers. Florida's minority student AP performance showed gains in comparison to their national counterparts, with a 14.3-percent increase in AP-exam scores of 3 or higher for African-American test-takers, and a 18.1-percent increase for Hispanic test-takers.

"Florida's teachers and school leaders have answered the call for increased student college and career readiness with a resounding voice challenging our students to reach higher and unleash their true potential," said Commissioner Smith. "Because of their efforts, more of our children will graduate from school prepared for the next stage of their life, more will succeed in their careers and more will experience the happiness and prosperity that only a quality educational experience can provide."

In December 2008, the Florida State Board of Education formally adopted Florida's Next Generation PreK-20 Education Strategic Plan. A primary focus of the plan is to improve the college and career readiness of all students to better enable them for success in the 21st century. Through this statewide focus, combined with recent changes to Florida's high school accountability system, Florida's public schools have begun to successfully transform the culture of their learning environments to challenge the minds of students and increase the educational options available to them.

For more details on Florida's performance on the SAT and AP, visit www.fldoe.org/evaluation/act-sat-ap.asp.

U.S. DOE Announces Teacher Incentive Awards

U.S. DOE Awards $442 Million in Teacher Incentive Fund Grants To 62 Winners in 27 States; Arizona and Florida Programs Funded

The U.S. Department of Education has announced its inaugural Teacher Incentive Fund grants, which will direct a total of $442 million over two years to 62 rural and urban school districts, nonprofit groups and state education organizations around the country. A number of teacher incentive programs in Arizona and Florida have been awarded funds through this new program, including:

Arizona

Arizona State University
Maricopa County Education Service Agency
Safford Unified School District #1

Florida

Duval County Public Schools
Hillsborough County Public Schools
Putnam County School District
School Board of Miami-Dade County
School Board of Orange County
School Board of Pinellas County

The five-year, $1.2 billion Teacher Incentive Fund Grant program aims to strengthen the education profession by rewarding excellence, attracting teachers and principals to high-need and hard-to-staff areas and providing all teachers and principals with the feedback and support they need to succeed. The winners were determined based on their comprehensive plans to develop, reward and support effective teachers and principals in high-need schools.

All applicants were required to demonstrate a high level of local educator support and involvement and a plan for financial sustainability after the five-year grant period. Applicants received additional points for using value added measures, attracting effective teachers in hard to staff subject or specialty areas and for being a first-time applicant.

"Nothing is more important than great teaching," said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. "These grants will help schools build a culture that celebrates excellence in the classroom and helps all teachers improve their practice."

For details on the Arizona and Florida programs and for a full list of winning applicants, click here.

Making the MAC-Ro Difference

Making the MAC-Ro Difference

The Math Achievement Club by Rodel (MAC-Ro) began as a pilot program in Arizona in 2003 in 10 high-poverty schools in five school disctricts. Today, the program expects to help 30,999 first- through sixth-grade students in 10 counties this school year.

Helios Education Foundation invested $730,000 in MAC-Ro in 2009 to help the project expand to fifth grade and to conduct the research, development and piloting of the sixth grade program, and today, MAC-Ro expects to help 39,000 first- through sixth-grade students in 10 counties during the 2010-2011 school year. This fall began the full scale implementation of the 6th grade program across Arizona which will provide a consistent mathematical development pathway for MAC-Ro schools.

"The true excellence of the MAC-Ro Program is its comprehensive design," said Dr. Jo Anne Vasquez, Vice President and Program Director of Arizona Transition Years: Teacher & Curriculum Initiatives at Helios Education Foundation. "It provides for a total systems approach to the teaching of mathematics that involves and holds accountable the district superintendents, principals and teachers who all must sign an agreement that they will carry out the intent and procedures of the MAC-Ro program."

One of the key aspects of the initiative is the monthly MAC-Ro school-to-home booklet that reinforces the mathematical concepts the students are learning that month. These booklets support and are aligned with the Arizona Mathematics Standard and help improve long-term mastery of math skills. These booklets too must be signed by the parent or guardian and returned to the school. The program is in both English and Spanish with guides and prompts to help parents work with their students.

MAC-Ro schools continue to close the achievement gap. The 52 schools that implemented the fifth-grade level of the MAC-Ro program during the 2009-2010 academic year posted an average gain of almost two-tenths (.17) of a standard deviation relative to the state average. In other words, the average fifth-grade MAC-Ro school improved its pass rate by approximately 4 percent while the state average remained constant.

Education Connection

Volume 2, Issue 3

President's Message

It’s a Matter of Education
With the Florida and Arizona primary elections coming up on August 24, political candidates are smothering the airwaves, papering our communities with political materials and canvassing the streets in our neighborhoods. Election season is here and your voice is a crucial part of ensuring that education remains at the top of our states’ political agendas.

Our elected officials must continue to carry the torch for education, recognizing that an investment in education today is an investment in the success of our community tomorrow.

The U.S. Department of Education’s recent announcements about the 19 phase two finalists in the Race to the Top program, including Arizona and Florida, and the 49 organizations eligible for Investing in Innovation (I3) funds, remind us that despite the current challenges, we truly are building a future where effective community partnerships can lead to innovation and change.

It’s up to us to be part of that innovation. And, it’s up to us to hold our leaders accountable.

As you meet with your candidates and learn more about their platforms, press them on the fundamentals of education. Be an active participant in the democratic process and stay informed and engaged.

Above all, make sure your candidates commit to carry the torch after the elections, ensuring that every decision made around education supports new opportunities for students to succeed from birth through postsecondary education.

In the Spotlight

Each summer, the National Science Education Leadership Association (NSELA) hosts a professional development program that focuses on leadership and on the learning of science as a social, cultural and cognitive process with an emphasis on how to increase the academic literacy of diverse learners in the math and science classrooms.

This year, Helios Education Foundation partnered with NSELA, providing over $46,000 toward the training which was held in Flagstaff, Arizona. The program helped create professional development opportunities for 32 math and science educators from eight Helios-funded science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) projects in Arizona and Florida.

The training included special emphasis on understanding the role that academic language, critical thinking and content reading play in the science classroom. All of these strategies are aimed at helping improve student achievement.

Each of the eight Helios teams was assigned a nationally recognized education leader who will act as their mentor throughout the coming school year. Teachers will work to implement their new learning from their four-day summer institute into their school districts and classrooms. The mentors will serve a key role in helping provide a platform for team members to share their experiences and communicate their progress.

"I've already connected with two school administrators who want to learn more about what we learned from the institute and how to connect the strategies for working with English language learners students into their schools," said Joan Gilbert, a member of the JrBio5 team at Tuscon Unified School District. "I'm excited about sharing," she added.

Community Investments

A Review of Our Quarterly Community Investments
Helios Education Foundation is pleased to announce the following community investments that were approved during the quarter running from April 2010 through June 2010. More information about these and all of our investments is available on our website at http://www.helios.org under Community Investment.

Paradise Valley Community College - $327,302 (AZ)
Through their early childhood education curriculum, Paradise Valley Community College and Central Arizona College will outline what early care providers should know and be able to do to ensure that children ages birth to five acquire the language and literacy skills they need to enter school ready to succeed. This work will impact the early care community across Maricopa, Pinal and Gila counties as well as Gila and Salt River Indian reservations over three years.

Childsplay - $115,036 (AZ)
Capitalizing on its 30-plus years of experience in using theatre as a medium to engage children and adults, this project outlines strategies to adapt an existing research-based model of delivering professional development for the early childhood environment. The program will work with early childhood teachers and practitioners to integrate drama strategies, writing/reading curricula, and provide job-embedded professional development that uses creative drama and dramatic play for early language and literacy development for children in early childhood programs. The work will occur over 18 months in collaboration with the Arizona State University School of Theater within the Herberger Institute of Design and the Arts.

Northern Arizona University Foundation - $294,676 (AZ)
Northern Arizona University (NAU) and the Flagstaff Unified School District are creating a learning hub for early childhood educators in northern Arizona. The partnership will focus on teacher professional development and training research over the next two years, especially among early care educators in Flagstaff. NAU researchers will document these trainings, capturing best practices. During the second year of the project, training opportunities will be extended to outlying communities.

Arizona Rural Education Alliance Foundation - $806,322 (AZ)
The Next Generation STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) Leaders is building a core of educators in Pinal County schools in Arizona who, by 2013, can become the school-based change agents needed to expand STEM learning. The program focuses on STEM teachers serving students in grades 5-8. The goal is to build a core of teachers who can demonstrate knowledge of content, pedagogy and problem-solving skills in STEM, and who, through shared learning experiences, will better understand how students learn math, science and technology. STEM leaders will also work closely with parents, stressing the importance of parental support and involvement.

Stand for Children - $600,000 (AZ)
Stand for Children is pushing for reforms in education that turn chronically under-performing schools around and support excellent teaching and appropriate investment in Arizona's education system. Stand for Children recruits and mobilizes parents, teachers and other concerned citizens around urgent, high-stakes issues in education, building a core base of members who are engaged about education reform policies that can improve teacher and principal effectiveness, expand instruction time and increase school accountability. Stand for Children will use these funds over an 18-month period as a challenge grant to help expand its local reach and impact across Arizona.

Early Learning Coalition of Polk County - $497,608 (FL)
Because home childcare providers can sometimes be disconnected from the early learning educational system in their communities and may be underserved, the Early Learning Coalition of Polk County will offer onsite coaching and professional development training for home care providers to help improve their understanding of how children ages birth to five learn and acquire language and literacy skills. The coalition will offer these trainings to 120 home providers in Manatee, Sarasota and Polk counties, impacting 400 families and as many as 800 children over two years.

Investing in a Child’s Academic Future

Research consistently shows that the years before a child reaches kindergarten are among the most critical in his or her life, especially in influencing learning. Exposing children ages birth to five to high quality early learning environments has been proven to have a positive, long-lasting impact on a student's academic success across the K-12 continuum.

According to the National Institute for Early Education Research¹ (NIEER), involving children in high-quality early education programs helps them acquire more advanced language, math and social skills. But, what constitutes a high quality early education program? Most researchers agree that key components of a quality program include:

Positive interactions between teachers and children.
Good communication -- teachers and children listening to one another and teachers encouraging children to use reasoning and problem solving.
Daily opportunities for language and reasoning, science, math, block play, dramatic play, art and music.
Teachers and staff who are well educated and adequately compensated.
Active parent involvement.
Low child-staff ratios and small group sizes.
Supervision and evaluation of staff, with opportunities for professional growth.
Well-equipped facilities suited to the needs of pre-school-age children.
Sufficient toys, books and materials.

With the ages of birth to five being the most critical stage in the growth and development of young children, Helios Education Foundation is investing close to $1 million in three early childhood education (ECE) initiatives that will expose children to positive learning environments and provide high quality professional development for ECE teachers in Arizona and Florida.

The Foundation is awarding Childsplay and Paradise Valley Community College (both in Arizona) and the Early Learning Coalition of Polk County, Florida with funding for ECE teacher professional development programs that, over time, will help teachers acquire the knowledge to better understand how children develop vocabulary and pre-reading skills.

With limited professional development opportunities available for ECE teachers, especially around how children acquire early language and literacy skills, Helios initiated a request for proposals (RFP) process, making dollars available to fund targeted teacher professional development programs. Over 100 organizations with a focus on early care engaged in the process and of that number, 37 applied for funding. Applications were reviewed, with Childsplay, Paradise Valley Community College and the Early Learning Coalition of Polk County ultimately selected for funding.

"Although we knew there was a need for high quality teacher professional development programs for early care professionals in Arizona and Florida, that need became even more clear to us early on in the RFP process just by the overwhelming response we received and by the programmatic substance in those proposals," said Helios Education Foundation President and CEO Paul Luna. "We're excited to be making this commitment to early childhood education in both states because investing in the early years helps lay the academic foundation our students need in order to succeed across the education continuum."

Helios has awarded $497,608 to the Early Learning Coalition of Polk County, Florida. The Coalition, in partnership with the Early Learning Coalition in Manatee and Sarasota counties in Florida, will offer professional development to the family child care home community.

While working, many parents choose to have their children in a child care program offered in a home setting versus an early childhood center. The family child care home practitioner is often the only adult providing care and education to the children which in turn limits the opportunities for practitioners to participate in professional development opportunities and network with other early childhood professionals.

This project identifies strategies to address and minimize professional development challenges faced by the early childhood practitioner. Participants will receive onsite coaching to improve their understanding, skill level and teaching practices related to early language and literacy development for children ages birth to five.

Paradise Valley Community College (PVCC) in Arizona is receiving $327,032 from Helios for its program. PVCC, in partnership with Central Arizona College (CAC) will update and unify language and early literacy coursework for early childhood practitioners and educators.

PVCC and CAC will accomplish this through academic college courses, an analysis of related community based trainings and the creation of early childhood programs that demonstrate best practices in building the knowledge and skills of the early childhood professional. Participating early childhood professionals will improve age appropriate, interactive learning activities for the child aged birth to five focused on early language and literacy development.

The Foundation is awarding Childsplay (Arizona) $115,036 toward its initiative. Capitalizing on its 30-plus years of experience in using theatre as a medium to engage children and adults, this project outlines strategies to adapt an existing research-based model of delivering professional development for the early childhood environment.

The program will work with early childhood teachers and practitioners to integrate drama strategies, writing/reading curricula and provide job-embedded professional development that uses creative drama and dramatic play for early language and literacy development for children in early childhood programs.

The work will occur over 18 months in collaboration with the Arizona State University School of Theater within the Herberger Institute of Design and the Arts.

But as the need for more opportunities for teacher professional development in early care continues to rise, so do the costs associated with high quality care. According to a 2010 report released by the National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies (NACCRRA)², parents are paying a significant part of their income for child care.

NACCRRA estimates that more than 11 million children under age five are in some type of child care arrangement every week, and children of working mothers spend an average of 36 hours a week in child care. Unfortunately, the high cost of child care limits parents' options.

"In funding teacher professional development programs for early child care practitioners, Helios is not only helping address teacher quality, but in some ways we're helping to offset some of the additional costs that parents would have to pay for high quality child care programs," said Helios Education Foundation Vice President and Director of Early Childhood Education Karen Ortiz.

"Because we're investing in these programs, some of those costs aren't being passed on to parents, and that's important right now, especially given the state of today's economy," Karen added.

NACCRRA estimates that the cost of infant care in a child care center is more than the cost of college in 40 states, and they're calling on Congress to reauthorize the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), the primary public source of child care funds to states to help pay for child care and improve the quality of care.

"As a result of increasing child care costs and the current economy, some parents have been forced to remove their children from organized child care programs or licensed settings and place them in more informal settings," said Linda Smith, Executive Director of NACCRRA.

"This potentially means that the provider has not had a background check or training in health and safety practices or early childhood development, let alone training to provide age-appropriate activities," she added.

NACCRRAs, Parents and the High Cost of Child Care: 2010 Update provides results from a 2009 survey of Child Care Resource and Referral state networks that asked for the average costs charged by child care programs located in every state and most communities across the nation.

1.The National Institute for Early Education Research (www.nieer.org), a unit of the Graduate School of Education, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, supports early childhood education policy by providing objective, nonpartisan information based on research. NIEER is supported through grants from The Pew Charitable Trusts and others.

2.NACCRRA, the National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies, is the
nation's leading voice for child care. They work with more than 700 state and local Child Care Resource and Referral agencies nationwide. These agencies help ensure that families in 99 percent of all populated ZIP codes in the United States have access to high-quality, affordable child care.

Helios Chairman Named to Teach For America Board

Teach For America (TFA), the national organization working to eliminate education inequality across the country, has named Helios Education Foundation Chairman Vince Roig to its national board of directors. Roig joins 26 other members of the board, including leaders from the business, media and academic sectors.

"I'm really humbled and honored to serve on the board of Teach For America, and I'm excited to be able to broaden my passion for not only investing in education, but for changing lives through education," Roig said. "There's great synergy between Helios' mission and Teach For America's goals, and I believe that alignment and common understanding will create even more opportunities for students to excel and succeed in postsecondary education."

Each year, TFA recruits a corps of the nation's most promising college graduates from all academic majors to teach for two years in urban and rural schools. These recruits become lifelong education advocates and leaders in pursuit of education excellence and equality for all students. Corps members receive intensive training and support designed to help them lead their students to make substantial academic progress.

Incoming corps members attend rigorous five-week summer training institutes where, through practice, observation, coaching and study, they develop the foundational knowledge, skills and mindsets needed to be highly effective beginning teachers.

According to TFA, educational inequity starts early and gets worse over time. It's the reality that where a child is born can determine the quality of that child's education and life prospects. By the time children living in low-income communities reach fourth grade, they are often two-to-three grades behind their higher-income peers. In fact, just half of students in low-income communities will graduate high school by age 18, and only one in 10 students growing up in poverty will graduate college.

Teach For America places corps members in regions heavily impacted by these gaps in educational outcomes. Roughly 80 percent of the students reached by corps members qualify for free or reduced-price lunch and more than 90 percent are African-American or Latino. All of the districts served are classified as "high-need."

This fall, more than 8,200 corps members will be teaching in 39 regions across the country while 20,000 Teach For America alumni continue to push for fundamental changes in education that will help ensure educational excellence and equity.

Helios Education Foundation is working with TFA in Phoenix, Arizona and Miami, Florida on expanding its teacher recruitment programs, ultimately impacting tens of thousands of students.

"Vince and Helios Education Foundation have been such strong public champions and supporters of our work to expand educational opportunity in Phoenix and Miami," said Wendy Kopp, founder and CEO of Teach For America. "We are thrilled that he is deepening his engagement with Teach For America, and know that he will provide invaluable guidance and support for our efforts to grow our impact nationally."

As a college senior, Wendy Kopp proposed Teach For America's creation in her Princeton University undergraduate thesis. She was convinced that many in her generation were searching for a way to assume a significant responsibility that would make a real difference in the world and that top college students would choose teaching over more lucrative opportunities if a prominent teacher corps existed.

As a 21 year-old, Kopp raised $2.5 million of start-up funding, hired a skeleton staff, and launched a grass-roots recruitment campaign. During Teach For America's first year in 1990, 500 men and women began teaching in six low-income communities across the country. Since then, Teach For America's network has grown to over 28,000 individuals, and has become one of the nation's largest providers of teachers for low-income communities.

For more information, visit Teach For America online at www.teachforamerica.org.

Arizona, Florida among Finalists for Race to the Top Funding

Both Florida and Arizona have been named among the 19 finalists in the second phase of the U.S. Department of Education's Race to the Top competition, seeking to win a share of the $3.4 billion available.

"Peer reviewers identified these 19 finalists as having the boldest plans, but every state that applied will benefit from this process of collaboratively creating a comprehensive education reform agenda," said U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan. "Much of the federal dollars we distribute though other channels can support their plan to raise standards, improve teaching, use data more effectively to support student learning, and turn around underperforming schools."

The 19 finalists are: Arizona, California, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and South Carolina.

Between the current phase of Race to the Top and the first phase of the program, a total of 47 states have applied.

"This took a lot of hard work and political courage," said Secretary Duncan. "It required administrators, elected officials, union leaders, teachers, and advocates to work together and embrace a common reform agenda. Every state that applied now has a blueprint for raising educational quality across America," he added.

The U.S. Department of Education is expected to announce the winners before the end of September. The agency will select the phase two winners using the same process as phase one. In the panel review stage, five expert reviewers will read and discuss each application. They will then score and comment on each application independently, and the applicant will be given a score based on the average of the five scores.

The Department will also look for a natural break in the scores to identify finalists and invite them to D.C. to make in-person presentations to their reviewers. Each reviewer will then submit final scores, and Secretary Duncan will select awardees. Depending on the size of the winning states, 10-15 states could win Race to the Top grants.

Designed to incentivize excellence, drive reform, and promote the adoption and use of effective policies and practices, the Race to the Top program is backed by $4.35 billion in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds. Of that money, the Department set aside $350 million for a separate competition to improve the quality of assessments and awarded approximately $600 million to Phase 1 winners Delaware and Tennessee, leaving $3.4 billion for Phase 2.

FCAT Scores Raise Questions, Contractor Fined Nearly $15 Million

Florida Education Commissioner Eric Smith fielded tough questions from Florida legislators recently about problems with this year's Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) scores, and has since fined NCS Pearson, the contractor who administers and grades the test, close to $15 million for tardy results.

The scores were released almost a month late, upsetting several school districts. Some districts raised additional concerns once they reviewed the scores for fourth and fifth graders. A group of five superintendents, including Hillsborough County's MaryEllen Elia, called on the state to audit the exam results for anomalies. Hillsborough saw a four-point drop in the number of fourth-graders reading at grade level.

Commissioner Smith agreed to conduct an audit, ultimately bringing in two companies to do it.

"The FCAT test administered this last spring is one that mom and dad at home should have confidence in," Commissioner Smith said.

The auditors found that the sharp drop in learning gains among fourth- and fifth-graders and their flat performance in reading did not fall outside historical trends for test scores, Smith said.
However, with these new results, fewer schools will earn A and B grades this year.

The state announced in early June that many FCAT results would be more than a month behind schedule because of problems with NCS Pearson's database technology. The state insisted there were no problems with accuracy, but the delay caused headaches for school districts that needed the results to schedule students, evaluate teachers and plan classes for the fall.

Lawmakers were concerned that the results couldn't be trusted because of the difficulty NCS Pearson had in matching the test results to each child's individual demographic information. NCS Pearson's $254 million FCAT contract with the state was also brought into question.

Lawmakers also pressed Commissioner Smith on his Department's selection of NCS Pearson given the company's history of problems. The company was blamed for delays related to scoring tests in Arkansas in 2009 and South Carolina in 2008. Since securing the Florida contract in 2009, Pearson has also had trouble with an online test in Wyoming; that state is claiming $9.5 million in damages.

Pearson also has a spotty record in Florida, where 10 years ago, operating as NCS, it agreed to pay $4 million in fines after delivering test results late.

Most major testing companies have run into pitfalls since the federal No Child Left Behind law pushed states to rely more heavily on standardized tests.

To find out more about this year's FCAT results, go to http://fcat.fldoe.org/.

Education News

Volume 2 Issue 2

President's Message

As leaders and change agents in our own communities, our voices can be a powerful tool. All around us there are opportunities to use our voices to push for changes that will make our educational system better.

Education policy in Arizona and Florida has been front and center in recent weeks, in some cases sparking debate and in others sparking consensus toward change. From improved early learning environments for children ages birth to five to incorporating more rigor and relevance with an emphasis on STEM (science, technology, engineering and math), the debate rages on.

But the change we need in education may very well rest on our commitment to get involved, have our voices heard and hold our elected officials accountable.

The Race to the Top application process galvanized communities not only in Arizona and Florida but across the country, bringing a diversity of voices to the table. Education stakeholders, including local and state public sector leaders and advocates and private sector businesses and industries, came together under one charge, showing us the kind of multi-lateral collaboration and accountability it will take to implement innovative, cohesive education reform.

But the Race to the Top process also showed us that consensus is truly the linchpin of success.

The passionate voices of teachers, parents, students, education advocates and others reverberated through the chambers of the Florida House and Senate during the 2010 session of the Florida Legislature. More than a quarter of the session centered around education issues like class size, teacher merit pay, civics education and increasing high school graduation requirements.

No matter what side of the debate people were on, they used their voices to push for an outcome they believed in. From holding picket signs on street corners to sending thousands of email messages to elected officials, Florida’s constituents were engaged.

And, now there is an opportunity for Arizonans to influence the future of education in Arizona.

On Tuesday May 18, Proposition 100 asks voters to approve a temporary one-percent sales tax increase to support K-12 and higher education, health and human services and public safety through 2013. We urge you to engage, have your voices heard and vote Yes on Prop 100.

In addition, Expect More Arizona recently launched the Vote 4 Education campaign to empower people with the resources they need to make informed decisions about education issues in the state. The campaign’s purpose is to rally Arizonans to make sure their candidates are true champions of education by asking these 4 questions when selecting candidates:

1. Is education one of their top two priorities?
2. Do they have a clear plan with specific strategies for how they will address the biggest issues affecting education in Arizona?
3. Are they willing to invest resources in education to support Arizona’s long-term success?
4. How will they challenge Arizonans to expect more and do more for education?

But beyond these questions, the Vote 4 Education campaign provides some very specific action steps that everyone can follow to show they expect more for education in Arizona:

1. Vote Yes on Prop 100
2. Protect the Voter-Approved Early Childhood Health and Development Funds
3. Make sure your candidates are unwavering advocates for education
4. Rally 10 friends to vote with education as their “hot button” issue

It really is our responsibility to act on what we believe in and be the catalyst for the change we want to see. Taking those four action steps and holding our elected leaders accountable for the future of education in Arizona is part of having our voices heard. It’s part of being an informed, active and engaged citizenry that values the importance of investing in education.

Be part of the movement to strengthen education in Arizona by visiting www.expectmorearizona.org to empower yourself around issues in education.

Now is the time to harness the power of our collective voices, channel it to improve the quality of education in Arizona and Florida and propel our students toward the success they need and deserve across the entire P-20 continuum — from birth through career.

In the Spotlight

With the critical shortage of nurses in Arizona, especially in rural communities, Helios Education Foundation has partnered with Mohave County Community College's Nursing RN program to provide financial assistance to students seeking a nursing degree. The scholarship program gives preference to high financial need students who are single head-of-household.

Scholarships have been awarded to current students in the RN program at Mohave Community College campuses located in Bullhead City, Colorado City, Kingman and Lake Havasu City. The majority of these students will work for their local health care facility.

Lacy Jonker (left), pictured with JoAnne Vasquez, Ph.D., Helios' Vice President and Program Director of Transition Years - Arizona, is a Helios scholarship recipient at Mohave County Community College in the Nursing Program. She will complete her degree in May 2010 and plans to work in Lake Havasu City for a few years before continuing on to specialize in obstetrics.

To date, Helios Education Foundation has committed over $142,500 in postsecondary scholarships to the Mohave County Community College Nursing Program.

A Review of Our Quarterly Community Investments

Helios Education Foundation is pleased to announce the following community investments that were approved during the quarter running from January 2010 to March 2010. More information about these and all of our investments is available on our website at http://www.helios.org under Community Investment.

Arizona Commission for Postsecondary Education - $25,000
This funding will be used toward the “To Learn and Earn: Arizona's Unfinished Business in Human Capital” initiative. The goal of the program is to help identify what is needed to prepare students and adults for the workforce. The initiative will also help Arizona develop next steps in its quest for an equitable, high-wage economy.

Arizona State University Foundation - $100,000
Helios has invested in Arizona State University’s Spirit of Service Scholars (SOSS) program to help address present and future workforce needs in the public and nonprofit sector by providing outstanding high school students with postsecondary education scholarships, a life-long interdisciplinary network and committed effective mentors.

Children First, Inc. - $338,085
Helios’ funding is directed toward the Ladder to Literacy teacher professional development initiative which will help strengthen the literacy and language acquisition knowledge and education of 76 early childhood educators in Sarasota, Florida.

Easter Seals - $213,856
Helios’ investment in the Tampa Preschool Partnership for Language and Literacy Education will help provide professional development to early childhood program staff on instructional strategies in developing early literacy skills and incorporating those strategies into classroom practices.

National Science Education Leadership Association - $49,700
Helios’ funding will help send teams of science leaders from Arizona and Florida to the research-based Summer Leadership Institute at Northern Arizona University. Together, the teams help create and sustain a pipeline of quality STEM educators and cultivate strong middle and high school leadership.

Ophelia Project and Boys Initiative of Tampa Bay - $165,000
This investment helps fund the Transitioning with Confidence & Character program designed to provide high-quality and effective opportunities for middle school students to develop critical social skills.

Phoenix Art Museum - $50,000
Helios’ investment is directed toward the Building a Learning Community program in support of strategic planning related to education.

Vote 4 Education

Helios Education Foundation's President and CEO, Paul Luna, who is also Chairman of the Oversight Board of Expect More Arizona, joined business and community leaders in Phoenix, Tucson and Flagstaff to launch the "Vote 4 Education" campaign in Arizona. This statewide campaign motivates voters to make education their "hot button issue" throughout the election season.

Growing concern that education is not valued as highly as it should be by elected officials led to the campaign’s development. A recent voter poll commissioned by Expect More Arizona and conducted by Lake Research, a national polling firm, found that Arizonans are "greatly concerned" about education and view its quality as declining, not improving.

In fact, most felt Arizona's education system is worse than others across the nation and the globe, that expectations for academic success are too low, and that elected officials are not doing enough to make the situation better.

Arizona has ranked near the bottom in terms of student achievement and student investment, most recently scoring a C- on the latest Quality Counts 2010 report, an annual analysis of the state of education across the country. Overall, the report ranked Arizona 46^th out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

"As business leaders, we view a high quality education system as the key to an economically prosperous Arizona," commented Phil Francis, President and CEO of PetSmart. "Our ability to grow and diversify business across our state as well as attract new high-wage jobs depends on a better educated workforce," he added.

Public awareness materials such as social media buttons, door hangers, posters, flyers and campaign signs touting "Are They 4 Education?" and "Vote 4 Education" are being displayed alongside election campaign signs statewide. In addition, a special voter section on ExpectMoreArizona.org serves as the central portal to information about the election year.

"As key policy and budget decisions continue to be made at a state level that impact education, it is more important than ever before to make education a key factor in every vote," said Michael Bidwill, President of the Arizona Cardinals. "Arizona's economic future depends on a quality education system and we must elect leaders who will make it their priority," he concluded.

Although Expect More Arizona will not endorse candidates for office through its "Vote 4 Education" effort, it will urge Arizonans to ask 4 key questions when selecting candidates:

1. Is education one of their top two priorities?
2. Do they have a clear plan with specific strategies for how they will address the biggest issues affecting education in our state?
3. Are they willing to invest resources in education to support Arizona's long-term success?
4. How will they challenge Arizonans to expect more and do more for education?

Expect More Arizona is a public-private partnership dedicated to creating a statewide movement of Arizonans who value education as the state's top priority. A volunteer Oversight Board comprised of representatives from organizations investing $100,000 or more annually provides strategic direction and fiscal oversight to the Expect More Arizona effort. Helios Education Foundation is one of a number of funders supporting Expect More Arizona.

Increasing the Number of Certified Early Childhood Educators in Rural Arizona

Enhancing professional development opportunities for early childhood educators and creating opportunities for them to teach in programs that are in their own communities not only helps preserve language and culture, but it promotes economic stability.

And, a new partnership between Prescott College and Helios Education Foundation endorses that approach by making early childhood education programs more accessible to students of the Navajo Nation in Northern Arizona and the Tohono O’Odham Nation in Pima County.

Helios is investing $608,000 over the next four years into Prescott College’s Accessible Teacher Preparation for Rural Arizona Early Childhood Education Program. This initiative enables low- income students and students of color in rural Arizona to attain a bachelor's degree and early childhood education teacher certification.

“The grant gives Prescott College the opportunity to redouble its commitment to serving individuals who are teaching or interested in teaching on the reservations and in rural Arizona,” said Dr. Vicky Young, Prescott College’s Coordinator for Native American Students. “The first cohort of 15 students is scheduled to enroll in fall 2010 in the College’s Adult Degree Program, a low-residency model,” Dr. Young added.

Student scholarships are an integral part of Helios’ investment. The low-residency program allows students to complete their degree or certification programs from their home communities, while working and maintaining a family life. The scholarships are also coupled with other financial aid to help students cover the costs associated with obtaining a college education.

“Making programs such as this one accessible in rural communities provides the means for early childhood teachers to continue working while completing their degree, “said Karen Ortiz, Vice President and Director of Early Childhood Education for Helios Education Foundation.“The goal is to improve the skills and knowledge of teachers and practitioners by increasing the integration of literacy and language acquisition curriculum into early childhood education,” she continued. “This better prepares them for work in an early childhood environment.”

Prescott College expects to recruit 15 students each year for the first three years and provide scholarships and academic advising aimed at literacy support and the incorporation of indigenous language and culture for 15-25 students per year.

“Word about this amazing scholarship and degree program is out in the rural and reservation communities,” Dr. Young added. “This spring has been extremely busy with the work and excitement generated from Helios Education Foundation’s generosity.”

Prescott College has been offering a teacher certification program for more than 40 years. Each year, approximately 100 students obtain Arizona state certification through the college’s state-approved teacher education programs. In 2008, Prescott College was the first school of higher education in Arizona to receive certification in Early Childhood Teacher Education from the Arizona Department of Education.

How STEM-Related Career Academies Are Exciting Tampa Bay Students

Career academies have been making an impact in school systems across the country for the past 35 years. With a focus on turning large high schools into smaller more focused learning environments, these academies have built a bridge for students transitioning from high school to postsecondary education or vocational careers.

Building on that success, Helios Education Foundation is working with the Hillsborough Education Foundation and the Hillsborough County Public School system in Tampa Bay to help make students college ready and to prepare them for a career in a highly-technical field.

“Taking the career academies model and building a relevant, interconnected program between middle school and high school will increase students’ understanding of how their classroom learning is connected to and can be applied in the real world,” said Helios Education Foundation Vice President and Program Director for Florida, Stacy Carlson. “We are hopeful that this model will be successful in raising students’ academic achievement as well as their engagement in STEM education and careers.”

Sometimes referred to as “a school within a school,” career academies are organized around themes such as technology, food services, business and finance and others. Students take classes together, are often paired with the same group of teachers over time, follow an academic and career-oriented curriculum and they participate in internships and other career-related experiences outside of the classroom.

In Tampa Bay, the Hillsborough Education Foundation and Hillsborough County Public School system are implementing the Transitional Success through STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) Academies project in conjunction with a $431,400 investment from Helios. The initiative is preparing students for success during the critical transition years from middle school to high school.

“Thanks to Helios we can now create a clear ‘line of sight’ for middle and high school students in STEM,” says Bill Hoffman, President of the Hillsborough Education Foundation. “This will help prepare them for the critical technical jobs which our business partners tell us they need talent for.”

The program is expected to benefit 15,000 students ages 11 through 18 enrolled at five middle school STEM institutes — Buchanan, Greco, Marshall, Shields and Walker — which all feed career academies at Strawberry Crest, Gaither, King, Lennard and Sickles high schools in Hillsborough County.

The initiative will be implemented over 30 months and includes a series of new curricula that will engage and challenge students as they transition through the STEM institutes. This process includes developing comprehensive curricula guides and providing professional development training to teachers.

Partners in the project want to increase the awareness of students and their families about STEM institutes and career academies. By participating in activities such as student keystone projects, student professional memberships, student regional meetings and competitions and purchasing specialized tools and course materials, the program will better prepare students for postsecondary education.

At the same time, district teachers will have professional development opportunities through “train the trainer” components of the program and they will participate in or have access to teacher and administrator teams at the middle school and high school sites.

Helios’ investment is also supporting Hillsborough Education Foundation’s newest program, the SUCCESS Fund. This program assists students with the financial obstacles associated with enrollment in career academies, such as specialized tools, regional competitions and student professional groups.

Approximately 47 percent of students enrolled in the academies have financial need, making it difficult for them to afford the additional expenses of their education.

The Transitional Success through STEM Academies program is building a bridge in Hillsborough County for middle school and high school students. This partnership is promoting strategies that increase curriculum rigor and relevance and emphasize STEM education. But, this initiative is ultimately creating a pipeline of highly-skilled, highly-trained students who will be ready for a successful future.

The Race to the Top: Phase Two

With phase one of the U.S. Department of Education’s (U.S. DOE) Race to the Top program underway, earmarking $100 million for Delaware and $500 million for Tennessee, other states now have their eyes on the $3.4 billion still left in the program.

U.S. DOE expects to make awards ranging from $20 million to $700 million in phase two of Race to the Top, and Florida and Arizona are among those states working to meet the June 1, 2010, deadline. Florida Governor Charlie Crist announced his Race to the Top working group to vet Florida’s application. The group includes Miami-Dade superintendent Alberto Carvahlo, Florida Chamber of Commerce’s Mark Wilson, Florida Education Association’s Andy Ford, Florida Disabilities Council Executive Director Debra Dowds, and eight other people.

The stakes are high in education’s race to the top, and U.S. DOE says it’s looking for bold, innovative education reform plans that are comprehensive and collaborative.

“We set a very high bar for the first phase," said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan (pictured above). “With $3.4 billion still available, we're providing plenty of opportunity for all other states to develop plans and aggressively pursue reform."

The U.S. DOE made one change to the rules for phase two, requiring states’ budgets to be within the ranges suggested in the original notice. Officials say that state applications will not be considered if budget requests exceed the maximum range, and that states should develop a budget that is consistent with its plans. DOE has outlined five budget categories:

Category 1—$350 million-$700 million:
California, Texas, New York and Florida.

Category 2—$200 million-$400 million:
Illinois, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina and New Jersey.

Category 3—$150 million-$250 million:
Virginia, Arizona, Indiana, Washington, Tennessee, Massachusetts, Missouri, Maryland and Wisconsin.

Category 4—$60 million-$175 million:
Minnesota, Colorado, Alabama, Louisiana, South Carolina, Puerto Rico, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Oregon, Connecticut, Utah, Mississippi, Iowa, Arkansas, Kansas and Nevada.

Category 5—$20 million-$75 million:
New Mexico, Nebraska, Idaho, West Virginia, New Hampshire, Maine, Hawaii, Rhode Island, Montana, Delaware, South Dakota, Alaska, North Dakota, Vermont, Wyoming and the District of Columbia.

The U.S. DOE held a technical assistance workshop for potential phase two applicants in Minneapolis, Minnesota in late April. States could also participate by phone. Representatives from Delaware and Tennessee discussed their plans and laws and their approaches to building a statewide collaboration. Education officials also discussed Race to the Top selection criteria, requirements, and priorities, and answered technical questions about the program.

Florida, which had asked for $1 billion during phase one, was widely considered a leading contender but ultimately finished in fourth place.

“I remain encouraged and excited about the opportunities still ahead of us and I am supremely thankful for the support from our parents, business leaders, legislators, and other education stakeholders who made our initial effort so formidable,” said Florida Education Commissioner Eric Smith.

The $4.35 billion Race to the Top Fund is an unprecedented federal investment in reform. The program includes $4 billion for statewide grants and $350 million to support states working together to improve the quality of their assessments. Race to the Top is designed to reward states that are leading the way in reform across four key areas:

1. Adopting standards and assessments that prepare students to succeed in college and the workplace;
2. Building data systems that measure student growth and success and inform teachers and principals how to improve instruction;
3. Recruiting, developing, rewarding and retaining effective teachers and principals, especially where they are needed most; and
4. Turning around their lowest-performing schools.

For more information on the Race to the Top program, visit http://www2.ed.gov/programs/racetothetop.

Close to 2,500 School Districts Interested in I3 Funding

Some 2,445 school districts from across the country notified the U.S. Department of Education (U.S. DOE) that they intended to apply for funding through the $650 million Investing in Innovation (I3) grant program. The application deadline was May 12, 2010.

The I3 program, which is part of the historic $5 billion investment in school reform in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), will support local efforts to start or expand research-based innovative programs that help close the achievement gap and improve outcomes for students, including decreasing dropout rates, increasing high school graduation rates and improving teacher and school leader effectiveness.

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan says the I3 program will provide seed money for fresh ideas, help grow promising programs with a good track record and scale up programs with proven results. Individual school districts or groups of districts can apply, and entrepreneurial nonprofits can join with school districts to submit applications. Colleges and universities, companies and other stakeholders can be supporters of the projects.

Applicants must show previous success in closing achievement gaps, improving student progress toward proficiency, increasing graduation rates, or recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers and principals.

Grants will be awarded in three categories:

Scale-up Grants: This is the largest possible grant category and it’s focused on programs and practices with the potential to reach hundreds of thousands of students. Applicants must have a strong base of evidence that their program has had a significant effect on improving student achievement.

Validation Grants: Existing, promising programs that have good evidence of their impact and are ready to improve their evidence base while expanding in their own and other communities.

Development Grants: This smallest grant level is designed to support new and high-potential practices whose impact should be studied further.

The I3 grant program is a companion to the larger, more widely publicized $3.5 billion Race to the Top competition. With funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act passed by Congress, both programs are meant to encourage school improvement across the nation. But the I3 program sets aside $650 million just for school districts, groups of schools, and their nonprofit partners to pursue and scale up innovative reform strategies. Grant recipients must show they have a public or private match for these federal funds, and their initiatives must be sustainable beyond the completion of their federal grants.

Florida Education Bills Spur Statewide Debate

A number of education bills made their way through the Florida House and Senate during the 2010 session of the Florida Legislature and on to Governor Charlie Crist’s desk for signature. One was vetoed; one now requires harder math and science classes in order for students to earn high school diplomas and another would require middle school students to take civics classes.

Senate Bill 4 – Increased Graduation Requirements
Governor Crist signed Senate Bill 4 into law which incrementally raises graduation requirements in Florida, better preparing students for postsecondary education and the workforce. Starting next year, the class of 2014 will be required to take geometry to graduate, and each year after that, students will be required to take Biology I, then Algebra II and finally chemistry or physics will be required for students in the class of 2017.

Advocates say the bill also increases rigor by replacing portions of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) with end-of-course exams. Every high school will be required to offer advanced math, science, history and English courses using Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, Advanced International Certificate of Education (AICE) or dual enrollment. School districts can use Florida Virtual School to meet this requirement and save costs.

Some say the law puts Florida in the midst of a national push for better education in the STEM fields — science, technology, engineering and math. Florida Education Commissioner Eric smith said the law "will make sure that students who graduate from our high schools have a meaningful diploma, a diploma to someplace, not a diploma to nowhere."

But others worry that these changes will hurt students already struggling to make it to graduation. There are also questions about how the state can afford the new math-science push and how it will find enough teachers.

Senate Bill 6 – Teacher Merit Pay
Governor Crist vetoed Senate Bill 6 which would have made it easier to fire teachers and link their pay to student test scores. Crist said the bill had deeply and negatively affected the morale of teachers, parents and students.

The measure was a priority for Republican Party leaders who, some say, pushed the legislation through committees and floor debates as public outcry grew. Under the bill, half of a teacher's evaluation would depend on students' learning gains. Good gains would equal positive evaluations and pay raises. But teachers argued that the bill failed to factor the work that doesn't show up on tests and ignores other forces that affect kids.

Advanced degrees could have been considered in teacher evaluations but neither that factor nor experience could be used to set pay scales. The evaluations also would help determine if a teacher should be recertified. Teachers hired after July 1 would be unable to get more than a one year contract, and tenure would have been out of the question for new teachers.

Opponents of the bill rallied statewide, protested on street corners and flooded the Governor’s office with phone calls, emails and faxes. Nearly 120,000 email messages were sent to the Governor about the bill, and although 51,000 were still unread, almost 65,000 of the logged messages opposed the bill.

Crist echoed many of these concerns in vetoing the bill, but said he agrees with finding a way to measure student gains and build a performance-based pay system. The issue is expected to be rekindled next legislative session.

House Bill 105 – Civics Education
The Florida Legislature has sent House Bill 105 to Governor Charlie Crist for signature. The bill would require middle school students to take a civics class and pass an end-of-course test. Lawmakers who voted unanimously for the bill say the requirement is needed because many citizens don't know the difference between a state legislator and member of Congress or even who is President.

Senate Bill 2 – Class Size
The passage of Senate Bill 2 puts the class size issue back in the hands of voters in November. This time the amendment calls for class size averages with a cap as opposed to classroom counts. The amendment has to pass by 60 percent in order to take effect.

Education News

Vol. 2, Issue 1

President's Message

As we move forward in this new decade, we find ourselves in a precarious position. Statewide planning spurred by the Race to the Top application process has inspired cross-sector collaboration and visionary thinking to improve our educational systems, and ultimately, the success of our students. However, in the midst of building our roadmaps for progress, our ambitions are often tempered by the limitations imposed by our continuing economic conditions.

Personally, I think it is important to recognize the realities of our current environment, but we cannot allow it to halt our collective efforts to improve education. So, as Arizona and Florida wait to hear if they will be awarded federal stimulus dollars in the first round of Race to the Top, those of us focused on education continue to plod along, knowing that opportunity does in fact exist in the here and now.

In looking at the work of Helios Education Foundation and its partners as well as the activity happening in other parts of the two states we serve, there is great passion, commitment and energy around increasing quality and student achievement. Efforts to create common standards, improve teacher quality, increase math and science rigor and the college- and career-readiness of students all point to an interest to raise the bar in education.

Helios is dedicated to creating opportunities for individuals to succeed in postsecondary education. Our intent to instill a college-going culture begins early in the education continuum and focuses on building a common vision amongst educators, parents, students and community that all students can pursue a postsecondary degree. And in the time that we have been investing in education, we have learned that one of the greatest barriers to individuals, especially those in underserved populations, going on to postsecondary education is access to information about pathways, financing and other support systems. By simply getting the right information into the hands of students and parents, while surrounding them with a “yes, you can” culture, you open their minds to the many possibilities that exist even under the toughest circumstances.

The economic challenges of 2009 and now 2010 have caused many of us to re-evaluate what is most important and to take a hard look at what we can do to ensure a prosperous future. With projected budget shortfalls of $1.4 billion in Arizona and $2.6 billion in Florida, the road ahead continues to be filled with difficult choices. It’s important to remember, however, that many of the issues and opportunities we grapple with today in education would be the same ones confronting us in a more robust economy. Our hope, at a time when much local and national attention is focused on education, is that we challenge our communities to not lower expectations to match our current conditions, but instead raise them higher.

Paul Luna
President and CEO

In the Spotlight

In support of teacher professional development among early childhood educators, Helios launched a Request for Proposals designed to strengthen the literacy and language acquisition knowledge and education of early childhood teachers, professionals and other providers working with children ages birth to five.

The application deadline has now passed. The Foundation is currently reviewing the proposals and the successful applicants will be notified in July.Thank you to all of the organizations that responded to our Request for Proposals.

A Review of our Quarterly Investments

Helios Education Foundation is pleased to announce the following community investments that were approved during the last quarter. More information about these and all of our investments is available on our website at www.helios.org under Investment History.

Arizona ACT Pilot (Year Two) - $355,000
Year two of this project will continue district-wide administration of the ACT college entrance exam. The purpose of this pilot program is to evaluate the college readiness of Arizona high school juniors compared to their peers outside Arizona.

Center for the Future of Arizona - $300,000
The goal of this Pathways to Postsecondary initiative is to create systemic change in education by creating multiple educational options, starting as early as middle school, that enable students to pursue one or more pathways to a postsecondary education. The Center is especially focused on the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math areas as part of this project.

Expect More Arizona - $1,000,000
Expect More Arizona is a statewide public-private partnership dedicated to making education Arizona's top priority. The partnership is creating a movement of Arizonans who value education and are actively engaged in strengthening the entire continuum - from birth through career. More than a public awareness effort, Expect More Arizona presents the community with opportunities to get actively engaged in volunteering, voting, investing and being a vocal champion for education.

Hillsborough Educational Foundation - $431,400
The Hillsborough Educational Foundation and the Hillsborough County Public Schools are working together to implement a seamless articulation between middle school Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) institutes and STEM career academies.

MDRC and Pima Community College Foundation - $1,807,000
This project at Pima Community College in Arizona will work to improve access to financial aid, improve full-time enrollment and improve persistence, educational performance and degree attainment among Hispanic males.

MDRC and Hillsborough Community College Pilot - $197,904
This performance-based scholarship pilot program at Hillsborough Community College in Tampa, Florida will help inform the design of a potential demonstration that addresses the barriers presented by remedial math courses.

Prescott College, Inc. - $608,852
This Accessible Teacher Preparation initiative at Prescott College in Arizona will help low-income students of color living in rural parts of the state attain a bachelor's degree and early childhood education teacher certification. The proposal emphasizes the recruitment of Native American participants and focuses on advanced writing skills, integrating theory to practice, developing community literacy and language skills, anchoring course objectives with state certification requirements and working with adjunct faculty and mentors from the community who are experts.

Studying Bio-Tech in Middle School Classrooms

Working in partnership with the University of Arizona (UA), Helios Education Foundation is helping connect middle school science teachers with the resources and training they need to lead hands-on, inquiry-based science activities in the classroom.

The Foundation awarded the university a $750,000 grant for the Jr. BIOTECH program which provides professional development workshops for teachers, classroom visits for modeling hands-on biotechnology activities and extensive materials to help teachers conduct biotechnology experiments independently.

"American teenagers currently rank 25th in math and 21st in science relative to their international peers," said Dr. Fernando D. Martinez, director of the BIO5 Institute. "Jr. BIOTECH is an investment in building the highly skilled workforce Arizona needs to compete globally and to expand the state's biotech industry."

Jr. BIOTECH is being introduced at middle schools in Tucson, Yuma and Flagstaff with the ultimate goal of offering the program statewide. The three-year pilot project, operated by the UA's BIO5 Institute, is an expansion of the highly successful BIOTECH program currently offered at Arizona high schools.

Research shows that engaging middle school students in science-related activities increases the likelihood of them pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and math, known as the STEM fields.

"Creating opportunities for students to achieve postsecondary education success starts early and it's tied to supporting programs that help increase curriculum rigor and relevance in middle school classrooms," said Helios Education Foundation President and CEO Paul Luna. "Helios' $750,000 investment in Jr. BIOTECH will help teachers increase their skills and knowledge in the science, technology, engineering and math areas and in return, help motivate students to explore opportunities in those fields."

The BIO5 Institute was designed to capitalize on the UA's history of interdisciplinary collaborative research. This emphasis on collaboration is an integral part of BIO5's education outreach programs as well. Collaborative partnerships with Jr. BIOTECH include Tucson Unified School District's Regional Science Center; Northern Arizona University's Center of Science Teaching and Learning; Arizona Science Teacher Advancement and Research Training (AZ-START); the Crane School District; and UA Cooperative Extension.

Supporting Middle School Students' Transition to High School

More than 650 teachers, staff members and others from the Polk County School District came together in early January for a training session as part of implementing a new $1.3 million partnership funded by Helios Education Foundation.

The Polk County Transition Years Project is aimed at providing 25 middle schools and high schools in the district with the resources they need to help support students in their transition from eighth grade to ninth grade. Helios Education Foundation has invested $1.3 million into the initiative whose partners include the school district as well as the Florida Association of School Administrators (FASA), Successful Practices Network and the International Center for Leadership in Education.

"Helios Education Foundation's investment in this initiative helps provide middle schools and high schools with the resources they need to prepare for and support struggling students, but it also helps those students build relationships with adults through smaller learning environments and study groups," said Helios Education Foundation President and CEO Paul Luna. "We're excited to be a part of this and we're looking forward to the future success of this program."

The successful transition between middle and high school is one of the most critical times during a young student's development and is often related to how successful that student is in high school and whether that student will continue on to postsecondary education. The goal of this program is to increase student readiness for high school and to increase graduation rates. The project uses proven strategies for secondary school redesign and transition support.

This approach has been developed through the work of the Florida Secondary School Redesign Initiative (SSRI), which has served 45 schools and 20 districts in Florida. Trainers will work with school leadership teams on rigor and relevance in instruction and on building personal relationships that support learning. They'll assess students' needs and use collaboration and discussion to explore solutions. They will also use professional development, support and coaching as part of the training as well.

Former Florida Department of Education Chancellor and current FASA executive director Jim Warford said Polk County School District's commitment to implementing new programs that create opportunities and success for students made the district an effective candidate for the Transition Years Project.

Race to the Top Round 1 Underway

Arizona and Florida are among the 40 states and the District of Columbia that have submitted applications in the first round of the Obama Administration's Race to the Top challenge. Applications were due in mid-January for the $4.35 billion fund to dramatically re-shape America's educational system into better engaging and preparing our students for success in a competitive 21st century economy and workplace.

"We want to challenge everyone -- parents, teachers, school administrators -- to raise standards, by having the best teachers and principals, by tying student achievement to assessments of teachers, by making sure that there's a focus on low-performing schools, by making sure our students are prepared for success in a competitive 21st century economy and workplace," said President Obama.

Race to the Top emphasizes the following reform areas:

Designing and implementing rigorous standards and high-quality assessments, by encouraging states to work jointly toward a system of common academic standards that builds toward college and career readiness, and that includes improved assessments designed to measure critical knowledge and higher-order thinking skills.

Attracting and keeping great teachers and leaders in America's classrooms, by expanding effective support to teachers and principals; reforming and improving teacher preparation; revising teacher evaluation, compensation, and retention policies to encourage and reward effectiveness and increase the number of effective teachers in our schools; and ensuring that our most talented teachers are placed in the schools and subjects where they are needed the most.

Using data to inform decisions and improve instruction, by fully implementing a statewide longitudinal data system, training and supporting educators to use data to improve instruction, and making information more accessible to parents, teachers and other key stakeholders.

Using innovation and effective approaches to turn-around struggling schools, by asking states to prioritize and transform persistently low-performing schools.

Demonstrating and sustaining education reform, by promoting collaborations among business leaders, educators, and other stakeholders to raise student achievement and close achievement gaps, and by expanding support for high-performing public charter schools, reinvigorating math and science education, and promoting other conditions favorable to innovation and reform.

Awards for the first round of applications are expected to be announced this spring. A second round of applications from states will be due in June 2010, with winners expected to be announced in September. States that apply, but do not win in Phase 1, may reapply for Phase 2. For more information, click here.

Helios-TGen Scholar Earns Tuition Waiver at Arizona State University

Helios Education Foundation invested over $6.5 million in the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) to create and support the Helios Scholars Program, an internship program at TGen, for the next 25 years. Each summer, 45 high-school, undergraduate, and graduate students come to participate in a hands-on internship at TGen where they are introduced to high-tech bioscience research.

One recent Helios TGen Scholar, Sarah Albinda (pictured at right), has been named to the 2010 Coca-Cola All-State Academic Team, earning a two-year tuition waiver that will enable her to complete her science education at Arizona State University. Without the award, Albinda said, she would not have enough money to seek her bachelor's degree in Biological Sciences after graduating this spring with an Associate in Science Degree from Phoenix College.

The academic competition is sponsored by Arizona Phi Theta Kappa, the American Association of Community Colleges, USA TODAY and Coca-Cola, and recognizes outstanding community college students for their commitment to academic achievement, leadership and community service.

"There is no way I could have won without participating in the Helios Scholars program at TGen. Here, I have so many resources available, and that gave me a significant advantage, including competitive hands-on experience and access to amazing people," said Albinda, who works in the laboratory of Dr. Heather Cunliffe, Head of TGen's Breast and Ovarian Cancer Research Unit.

Albinda said she did not have the money to continue her education without taking out a loan and putting undue financial pressure on her family. Winning the award solved that problem.

"When I heard about this scholarship, I thought, ‘Wow, this is my dream.' Personally, it means a lot to be able to pay for my own education. My goal is to be able to graduate without ever having to take out a loan for tuition," Albinda said. Albinda plans to become a medical doctor, using what she has learned at TGen to help cancer patients.

Albinda's mentor, TGen Research Associate Catherine Mancini said Albinda's success is a credit to the Helios program and the high-caliber research opportunities provided by TGen.

"Helios provides a whole new level of opportunity for students. It is a diverse program and this is a diverse job,'' Mancini said. "We were excited to work with Sarah because of her interdisciplinary skills which we needed for her position as a biospecimen technician in our laboratory. Because of her abilities, she was able to continue her internship and extend her skills at TGen. She has definitely exceeded our expectations."

TGen is on the cutting edge of translational research where investigators are able to unravel the genetic components of common and complex diseases. Working with collaborators in the scientific and medical communities, TGen believes it can make a substantial contribution to the efficiency and effectiveness of the translational process. TGen is affiliated with the Van Andel Research Institute in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Helios Scholars Program Applications Now Available
The Helios Scholars Program at TGen is an eight week paid internship where students work under the mentorship of an experienced investigator and their scientific teams. Interns conduct authentic research, receive training in biosafety, ethics, career choices and science communication, give an oral presentation to their peers on their research, and create and present a scientific poster.

The application for the upcoming summer internship is now available.

Students participating in the internship will work to elucidate the mysteries and mechanisms of genetic diseases such as Alzheimer's, ALS, autism, breast cancer, prostate cancer, melanoma and diabetes, as well as infectious diseases such as influenza.

The program capstone includes participation in a formal symposium where interns communicate the findings of their research and reflect on what they have learned and accomplished throughout their tenure at TGen.

Past interns boast an array of impressive accomplishments - publishing scientific abstracts and articles, and gaining acceptance into medical and graduate schools.

For more information and to access the application, click here.

What Are Your Expectations?

Promoting the importance of education and encouraging Arizonans to get involved is the focus of two currently funded programs and partnerships of Helios Education Foundation. Expect More Arizona and Stand for Children, although with distinct roles in moving Arizonans to support education, share a common vision for making Arizona's education system stronger and more relevant to the needs of students and the 21st century global economy.

Expect More Arizona, a statewide public-private partnership dedicated to increasing public awareness about the importance of making education Arizona's top priority, is chaired by Helios' president and CEO, Paul Luna. Now in its second year as an independent, nonpolitical partnership, Expect More Arizona seeks to increase the awareness of Arizonans about the issues affecting Arizona education and their impact on the local economy and individual quality of life. Most importantly, Expect More Arizona is working to create a movement of Arizonans who are actively involved in strengthening the entire education continuum - from birth through career.

"Expect More Arizona's role is to help more Arizonans understand that the bar must be raised with respect to the quality of our education system, the performance of our students and the involvement of communities," comments Mr. Luna. "However, in order to achieve a higher standard, we must present people with ways to get personally involved including voting, volunteering, advocating and investing in education."

Stand for Children recently arrived in Arizona as a result of an ACCIO grant, a unique partnership between Helios Education Foundation and the Arizona Community Foundation. Stand for Children is a grassroots action organization which empowers parents, students, educators and concerned citizens to use their collective voice and influence to ensure students receive an excellent education and the support they need to thrive academically. In Arizona, Stand for Children seeks to:

Ensure every student has an excellent teacher every year, and that great teachers and principals are supported to do their best work.
Set the bar higher and keep better track of student and school performance.
Achieve a stable, fair level of funding and invest state and community resources in programs proven to work for students and schools.

"We are excited to be in Arizona and see significant opportunity to make children and their education a higher political priority by rallying Arizonans in their support," said Jonah Edelman, co-founder and chief executive officer of Stand for Children. Stand for Children is focusing its initial efforts in Arizona within Maricopa County and the Alhambra, Kyrene and Phoenix Union School Districts.

Helios Education Foundation's commitment to increasing postsecondary opportunities for all students aligns with the work of both Expect More Arizona and Stand for Children. In order for our children to enter school ready to succeed, graduate prepared for postsecondary education and enter the workforce equipped with the skills and knowledge to compete in a global economy, it will take every Arizonan understanding the issues, raising expectations and getting actively engaged in education.

One of best ways to stay informed about what's happening in Arizona education and to learn more about ways to get involved is to join the Expect More Arizona movement. Learn more.

To learn more about Stand for Children and its grassroots outreach activities, click here.