ANNUAL REPORT 2016-2017 THE 826 NATIONAL NETWORK BOSTON ANN ARBOR/ DETROIT NEW YORK CITY CHICAGO WASHINGTON, D.C . SAN FRANCISCO LOS ANGELES NEW ORLEANS 826 BOSTON 826boston.org 826MICHIGAN 826michigan.org THE GREATER BOSTON BIGFOOT RESEARCH INSTITUTE LIBERTY STREET ROBOT SUPPLY AND REPAIR SHOP Serves Boston Public & Greater Boston Area School Districts & THE DETROIT ROBOT FACTORY Neighborhoods Egleston Square, Roxbury Serves Detroit Public Schools Community District, Ann Arbor Satellites Boston Public Library, John D. O’Bryant School Public Schools, & Ypsilanti Community School District of Mathematics & Science, Jeremiah E. Burke High School, Neighborhoods Ann Arbor, Detroit, & Ypsilanti & Boston Teachers Union School Satellites Beezy’s Cafe, Ypsilanti District Library, & Detroit Public Library 826CHI 826chi.org WICKER PARK SECRET AGENT SUPPLY CO. 826 NEW ORLEANS 826neworleans.org Serves Chicago Public School District THE NEW ORLEANS HAUNTING SUPPLY CO. Neighborhood Wicker Park Serves New Orleans Public School System, Louisiana Recovery School District 826DC 826dc.org Neighborhoods 7th Ward, Upper 9th Ward TIVOLI’S ASTOUNDING MAGIC SUPPLY CO. Satellites Sylvanie Williams College Prep Elementary Serves D.C. Public Schools & D.C. Public Charter Schools Neighborhood Columbia Heights 826NYC 826nyc.org BROOKLYN SUPERHERO SUPPLY CO. 826LA 826la.org Serves New York City Public Schools THE ECHO PARK TIME TRAVEL MART Neighborhoods Park Slope, Williamsburg, & East Harlem & THE MAR VISTA TIME TRAVEL MART Satellites Brooklyn Public Library, Williamsburg Branch, & MS Serves Los Angeles Unified School District 7/Global Tech Prep Neighborhoods Mar Vista & Echo Park Satellite Manual Arts Senior High School 826 VALENCIA 826valencia.org THE PIRATE SUPPLY STORE & KING CARL’S EMPORIUM Serves San Francisco Unified School District Neighborhoods Mission District & Tenderloin Satellites Everett Middle School, Mission High School, & Buena Vista Horace Mann K-8 826 NATIONAL amplifies the impact of our national network of youth writing and publishing centers, and the words of young authors. We serve as an inter- national proof point for writing as a tool for young people ages 6 to 18 to ignite and channel their creativity, explore identity, advocate for themselves and their community, and achieve academic and professional success. ANNUAL REPORT 2016-17 3 table of CONTENTS OUR MISSION RESOURCES FOR TEACHERS . 03 . .13 A LETTER FROM NEW OUR CEO WHY 826? . 05 ...........................................14 2016-17 AT A GLANCE THE MODEL . 06 . .15 SURVEY SAYS 826 PROGRAMS . 07 . .16 STUDENT DEMOGRAPHICS CHAPTER HIGHLIGHTS . 08 . .17 CORE VALUES STUDENT WRITING . 09 . .18 826 NATIONAL’S WORK THANK YOU, DONORS . .10 . .21 OUR IMPACT OUR TEAM . .11 . 22 COLLABORATION & SUPPORT FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES . 12 . 26 4 826 NATIONAL A LETTER FROM Our New CEO Dear Friends, I am thrilled to be joining this team. For the entirety of my career, I have considered 826 as an organization that readily deserves my and the rest of the country’s admiration. The reason for that is simple: the work we do has impact. As we get to know one another, I will make every effort to demonstrate that the work we now share is professional, of course, but personal as well. I come to this not just as a long-standing fan, but also as a woman whose life was substantively and critically influenced by educators who helped me grasp the power and importance of writing and storytelling. I believe that these skills, which lie at the very heart of our mission, are critical tools for creating a better world. It is through them that the human experience is recorded, communicated, and understood. At the heart of every empathetic act is a person moti- vated to act by the lessons they took from some sort of narrative. When we consider this work at this moment, it is impossible to ignore that we are living through a crisis point that can only be made better by ensuring that the next generation is equipped to think critically and express themselves authentically and powerfully. Our students must advocate for the future they envision. We are doing the precise work—achieving educational impact through engagement of the whole of the young person—that will lead us to a brighter future. This is a proud moment for me. Together we will create a strong future for the Network, for our students and, perhaps even, the nation. I look forward to learning from all of you, working alongside you, and, together, writing the next great story of the 826 Network. With gratitude, Laura Brief 2016-17 AT A GLANCE 1,035 32,350 4,771 TEACHERS SERVED STUDENTS SERVED ACTIVE VOLUNTEERS 949 SCHOOLS SERVED 1,007 STUDENT PUBLICATIONS Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg Hh 1 STORY ABOUT 810 AN OCTOPUS FIELD TRIPS Ii Jj Kk Ll NAMED TREVOR 384 IN-SCHOOL PROJECTS 384 WRITING 1,705 WORKSHOPS AFTER-SCHOOL TUTORING SESSIONS 6 826 NATIONAL SURVEY SAYS 95% of parents say their child receives better grades in school with the help of 826. 810 100% FIELD TRIPS of teachers feel that 826 provides a safe place for their students. 86% of students in one of our signature creative writing programs report feeling an increase in their confidence about writing. ANNUAL REPORT 2016-17 7 OUR STUDENTS FIRST RACE/ LANGUAGE ETHNICITY English 58% Hispanic/Latinx 47% Other 40% Black, African, No Response 2% or African American 26% Asian or Asian Indian 8% Two or more identifications 6% White 4% Prefer not to say or other 8% LANGUAGES SPOKEN BY OUR STUDENTS 8 826 NATIONAL We believe in the power of young We nurture creative expression voices, the possibility in their ideas, and foster a lifelong love of learning. and the value of their words. We believe writing is a catalyst; We are exponentially stronger it unlocks doors, builds confidence, through collective engagement, which and facilitates self-expression. allows us to create, implement, and sustain responsive programs. Diversity, equity, and inclusion is central to our work, and we strive to ensure that everyone is respected, included, and heard. ANNUAL REPORT 2016-17 9 826 NATIONAL’S 826 is the largest youth writing network in the country. 826 National amplifies the impact of our national network of youth writing and publishing centers, and the words of young authors. We serve as an international proof point for writing as a tool for young people to ignite and channel their creativity, explore identity, advocate for themselves and their community, and achieve academic 826 NATIONAL and professional success. 826 National is the hub of the 826 Network: facilitating collaboration and alignment among our chapters, and bringing the 826 Network model and approach to new communities. 2/3 1/3 of 826 National’s operations directly of 826 National’s operations serve support our writing and tutoring centers. to bring 826 to new communities. 10 826 NATIONAL UNDERSTANDING OUR IMPACT 826 National champions a network-wide culture of data-driven and community-based decision making. To that end, we collect and interpret program data, document best practices, and research new education pedagogy to continually measure and strengthen the impact of our chapters’ programs. MEASURING WRITING GAINS IN A NEW WAY In the 2016-2017 school year, the 826 Network adopted the Analytic Writing Continuum (AWC) from the National Writing Project as a means to assess our students’ writing. The use of the AWC has already improved our ability to identify successful programs, further develop volunteer training techniques, and inform program best practices. The AWC is designed to measure student gains in writing proficiency by evaluating pre- and post-program writing in six areas: CONTENT STANCE DICTION CONVENTIONS STRUCTURE SENTENCE FLUENCY The pilot scoring of student writing showed that engagement with 826 programming results in statistically significant increases across all six areas, with writing skills increasing an average of 15% between an early and later draft. This gain moved our students half a point closer to approximate grade level proficiency. 826 PROGRAM GRADE LEVEL PROFICIENCY EARLY LATER DRAFT DRAFT ANNUAL REPORT 2016-17 11 COLLABORATION & SUPPORT One of our greatest priorities is ensuring that the 826 Network staff has the resources and support they need at the local level to provide students, educators, and communities with excellent and engaging programs. We address common challenges amongst 826 Network chapters by facilitating system support and best practice sharing. Each year, 826 National organizes a network-wide, three-day staff development conference focused on professional development and collaboration. 826CONNECT This year, 826 National launched 826 Connect, an internal resource-sharing on-line portal for chapter staff to share best practices and key updates in support of our programs. From successful workshop lesson plans and new student writing prompts, to supplemental volunteer training materials and Salesforce support, this new platform serves to inspire staff and strengthen programs across the network. 12 826 NATIONAL RESOURCES FOR EDUCATORS 826 NATIONAL aims to empower more educators by sharing our fresh approach and curricula through intuitive and captivating teaching resources. Imagine a classroom of students in Cape Town, South Africa working together to write a persuasive essay to change their bedtime, raise their allowance, or increase their candy quota. Our new, pay-what-you-wish, on-line platform, 826 Digital, will make this type of engaged and creative learning possible anywhere in the world. After months of extensive planning and development, we completed the beta testing phase for 826 Digital in spring 2017 in preparation for a fall 2017 launch. Our aim is that this platform will reach at least 1,000 educators in its first year. SPARKS LESSONS PROJECTS STUDENT WRITING Sparks are innovative, adaptable Lessons are highly engaging and Projects are multi-session units The Student Writing gallery mini-lessons and activities. They ready to use. They’re built around on a topic or theme.