The Northwest Regional Education Service District Serves 125,000 Students in 20 School

The Northwest Regional Education Service District serves 125,000 students in 20 school districts in Washington, Columbia, Clatsop, and Tillamook Counties. Last year the ESD set out to secure $10 million in grants in order to increase kindergarten readiness, high school graduation, college going, and career obtainment. We successfully secured $10 million in funding and have launched three initiatives in early learning, CTE & STEM, and career and college pathways to move the dial for students.

EARLY LEARNING

The ESD is working with community partners to ensure children furthest from opportunity enter kindergarten ready to learn, and to support healthy, stable, and attached families. Through a series of investments we expanded access to high-quality preschool, created kindergarten transition programs across nine school districts, increased advanced training for child care providers, and expanded health and education screening fairs in order to identify children with developmental delays to immediately connect them and their families to services.

Preschool Promise will launch this September and offer over 200 new preschoolers and their families with high quality preschool programs in Washington, Columbia, Clatsop, and Tillamook Counties. Northwest Early Learning Council works collaboratively to create a coordinated early learning system that is child- friendly, culturally and linguistically appropriate, and community-based to meet the needs of the populations in Columbia, Clatsop, and Tillamook Counties. Kindergarten Transition Camps are funded with support from Northwest Early Learning Council and offered through partnering school districts. Kinder Camps are two week programs for children with limited or no formal preschool experience to ensure a successful transition into kindergarten. This past summer 150 children participated in Kinder Camps and the program evaluation shows they are now more prepared to enter kindergarten.

CTE & STEM

The ESD is working collaboratively with our 20 school districts and cross-sector partners to ensure that all students in our region have access to high quality STEM and CTE experiences. Our mission is to expose students to CTE and STEM programs in order to increase the number of students who achieve high wage and high demand careers and postsecondary education. We do this by providing professional development to CTE teachers trough the Mobile Fab Lab, creating opportunities for high school students to access OMIC, and by securing CTE and STEM Summer Programs, CTE Revitalization grants, FIRST Robotics grants, and the development of after school/out-of-school STEM programs for elementary and middle school students.

The Oregon Mobile Fab Lab will spend the next year providing professional development and support for CTE teachers in Digital Fabrication coursework. Through this work we will create and support 21st Century Manufacturing Labs throughout our region and the rest of the state with teacher professional development and additional dual credit opportunities for students.

Oregon Manufacturing and Innovation Center (OMIC) is an apprenticeship and R&D site in Scappoose with Boeing, PCC, OIT, OSU, and other industry partners. Our OMIC alignment goals are to prepare high school students for successful admittance and completion of the apprenticeship and R&D programs. We are doing this by expanding 21st Century Manufacturing Labs throughout Columbia County school districts, offering professional development to teachers with

Portland Community College, and by creating system of after school/out-of-school programs to build excitement and early exposure.

CAREER AND COLLEGE PATHWAYS

Together with 20 school districts in the NW region, the ESD is working to ensure every student completes high school with a plan for their future, a sense of passion for what career they want to explore, and the skills to achieve those dreams.

NW Promise is working to significantly increase the number of students prepared for the successful transition from high school to college enrollment and completion by creating opportunities for high school students to earn meaningful and transferrable college credit and a college-going culture. NW Promise efforts specifically target historically underserved students, including students of color and first generation college-goers.

Career & College Readiness school programs: 16 of our districts are currently implementing robust career and college readiness programs to support a seamless path from K12 to post-secondary and career.

Programs include:

 AVID is Advancement via Individual Determination, a global nonprofit organization dedicated to closing the achievement gap by preparing all students for college and other postsecondary opportunities.  ASPIRE is a mentoring program that matches trained and supportive adult volunteer mentors with middle and high school students to develop a plan to help them meet their education goals beyond high school.  COLLEGE POSSIBLE provides trained coaches support high school students through the preparation for college as well as supports them throughout their college career.

University of Oregon Leadership program: This partnership with University of Oregon supports district-wide Career and College Pathways work through a yearlong leadership program offered to district and school leadership teams. Participants will have the opportunity to hear from state leaders, local practitioners, and national experts; experience a unique combination of leadership development and problem solving; learn how to use equity tools to ensure solutions that work for all students; and begin to apply leadership skills in finding solutions to critical issues.