Dear Valued Supporter
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Denver Public Schools Foundation Annual Report 2013/14 www.dpsfoundation.org Dear Valued Supporter, Think about your vision for Denver in 2020. What do you hope for our great city? A vibrant community? A thriving economy? A rich culture of arts and intellectual exchange? Denver Public Schools plays a vital role in ensuring these elements are pillars of our community, now and long into the future. By investing in our students today, you are among a group of visionary community leaders who are building the future for our city. For that, we thank you. Our schools are at a tipping point and your help is making a tremendous difference. In the last six years, DPS drove the highest rate of student progress of any major district in the state, increased the graduation rate by 23 percentage points and cut its dropout rate in half. But it’s not enough. Stark achievement gaps persist in our schools. Only 60 percent of our third grade students are reading at or above grade level. One in three of our ninth graders is not graduating within four years. The DPS Foundation exists to help DPS close these gaps and prepare every child for success in college and career. Our mission is to provide the resources and support our educators need to offer the same opportunities for success to EVERY child. With your help, we can and will eliminate the opportunity gaps. DPS has shared their vision for success in 2020, as detailed in the Denver Plan (visit denverplan.dpsk12.org to read it in full): – 80 percent of our students will be at or above grade level in reading and writing; – 80 percent of our students will attend a high-performing school; and – We will double the number of high school seniors who graduate college and career ready. How will DPS get there? By investing more in what’s working and embracing innovation, we can dramatically accelerate the progress DPS has already made. By providing a 21st century education, we will empower our students to graduate from high school prepared to thrive in college, career and life. Together, we can reach our ultimate goal and achieve our vision: Every Child Succeeds. In doing so, we create a better Mission Denver for generations to come. Our students – our city – cannot wait. YOU are an integral part of this transformation. We need the engagement of every person in the community to truly change the course of education for our kids. We are all DPS. In partnership with Denver Public Schools, we raise and manage funds, make strategic program investments, Enclosed, please read more about the impact of your support. and serve as community leaders so that all students have the opportunity to succeed. Thank you for your partnership. Vision In Denver Public Schools, outstanding educational achievements are the norm and all children have hope of a great future. Tom Boasberg Brooke Brown Kristin Heath Colon Superintendent Chair, Board of Directors President & CEO Denver Public Schools Denver Public Schools Foundation Denver Public Schools Foundation 2 3 It is imperative that we close the opportunity gap and help ALL children become strong readers. With your help, we’re doing just that. Thanks to your support in the past year, the DPS Foundation has funded a number of highly effective literacy strategies. Consider the impact of your support: First grade students enrolled in the More than 15,000 books were sent home Intensive literacy instruction is available Volunteers from the community Each One Teach One literacy program with students through book drives, in-kind to students in Spanish, strengthening have spent 5,000 hours reading are 2.6 times more likely to read at donations and literacy projects. These books their reading skills in their native with students one-on-one, grade level compared to their peers. help children extend their learning into their language and allowing them to build increasing students’ confidence home and engage their families and upon their literacy foundation to read in literacy. siblings in reading. and write better in English. Target Corporation, a Literacy Champion for DPS! DONOR Thanks to the Target School Library Makeover program in partnership with the Heart of SPOTLIGHT America Foundation, both Barnum Elementary and Godsman Elementary Schools received comprehensive library makeovers in the past two years. Read more of Target’s story of support on page 21. 4 5 “Our DPS”– Values, Culture, Leadership Components of “Our DPS” include: • A set of Shared Core Values– established by DPS educators district-wide • An annual event to reground in our values and make our commitments for the year ahead • Values and leadership-based professional development opportunities; recognition events; and a district-wide employee engagement and feedback survey Early indicators of progress include: • Teams that report a strong culture of shared values have higher student growth rates • Individuals who participate in leadership programs commit to staying in DPS longer than the average tenure • Teams with staff who have attended leadership programs are more positive about the direction of the district and see their role as important in accomplishing our shared vision Great teachers and transformational school leaders are essential to achieving our goal of seeing Every Child Succeed. Research has consistently shown the Every Child Succeeds! positive impact of employee engagement on an organization’s ability to meet DPS Shared Core Values their goals. In education, where the stakes are so high and the work is so Students First / Integrity / Equity / Collaboration / Accountability / Fun challenging, this initiative is even more critical. The Mission That Binds Us Educators are mission driven. They care about their students. And this work is not easy. Creating a culture that actively celebrates our Shared Core Values enables teachers and school leaders to connect with the very things DaVita, a Values Champion for DPS! that brought them to this challenging and rewarding profession in the first place. DONOR DaVita has been a thought partner and a funder for DPS’ Values-Based Leadership program With your help, DPS has made an intentional investment in our people and our culture. Our educators’ work in our SPOTLIGHT since it launched in 2011. Thank you DaVita for helping the district launch this vitally classrooms today is shaping the generation that will lead us tomorrow. These investments are transformational. important work. To read more of the DaVita story of support, please turn to page 29. DPS is building this environment by providing the roadmap, resources and professional development opportunities to map all of our work, every day, to the mission and Shared Core Values that bind us. 6 7 Students engaged in a CTE education pathway have up to a 30 percent greater likelihood of graduating high school than their counterparts. Denver Public Schools has set out on an ambitious path to dramatically improve how Real world applications Denver is leading the nation in this work, and creating Pathways courses all involve work-based learning a pipeline of talent specifically and strategically built to we’re preparing students for college and career. By implementing a pipeline of Career such as job shadowing, internships and site visits. serve our city – and our nation – now and in the future. and Technical Education (CTE) pathways, DPS is preparing our future leaders for the These experiences continually expose students to Thank you for being part of this work. very jobs that are in highest demand in Denver – ensuring that we are strengthening applications for their learning and skills in industry and higher education. DPS CTE Pathways: our city and our students’ futures. • Engineering & Energy Focused and engaged students Students enrolled in CTE pathways are far more likely • Biomedical & Healthcare to complete their studies and graduate from high school; • Applied Manufacturing In April 2014, DPS was chosen as one of 24 four new curriculum pathways focused on STEM-related and are far more likely to become the future leaders organizations nationwide to receive a four-year $7 careers in DPS high schools, and will launch a fifth we need to help Denver thrive. • Digital & IT million Department of Labor grant to expand and in 2015–16. • Finance enhance career-focused pathways in STEM. Thanks to community support, the DPS Foundation leveraged What makes CTE Pathways Read more about CTE pathways and how you can an additional $2.4 million in private resources and engage at www.dpsfoundation.org/CTE. support required to secure the grant. so successful? A clear sight line to the future Starting in the 2014-15 school year, in partnership with CTE students’ studies are tied at every step to the the City of Denver, the Office of Economic Development, opportunities that will be available to them after QEP Resources, a STEM Champion for DPS! two and four year colleges and universities, and graduation – whether it’s higher education and graduate corporate and industry partners, DPS has launched work, or immediate employment and a successful career. DONOR QEP – one of many organizations supporting this work – provided the first major gift SPOTLIGHT which enabled the expansion of DPS’ CTE vision, and ultimately helped secure the U.S. Department of Labor grant. Read more of QEP’s story of support on page 24. 8 9 Overall Direct Impact THANK YOU to our 52 active partners Impact on Volunteers in 2013-14 who contributed: • Contributing to the success of students and schools • Feeling engaged in meaningful volunteer work; linked to satisfaction in the workplace and • Over $500,000 in direct financial and higher productivity • Seeing firsthand the challenges and successes in-kind support to schools of Colorado’s largest school system, making them better and more informed citizens around • More than 9,000 volunteer hours education policy Impact on Students The School Partners Program is a collaboration between • Meaningful mentor relationships with trusted adults the DPS Foundation, Mile High United Way and DPS.