LMU Family of Schools Newsletter
October 9, 2009
Fall Update
Happy October!
As the school year kicks into high gear throughout the Family of
Schools, we wish you a happy fall! The LMU Family of Schools
team spent the summer and early fall working with the
Governance Councils on grant writing, developing by-laws, and
leading discussions on data-driven decision making, in
partnership with the LAUSD's Office of Learning and Leadership.
We also spent time refining the ways in which LMU will continue
to partner with schools and school communities with technical
assistance and support. In the coming weeks, we will be laying
out our partnership goals with individual schools in three main
focus areas: professional development for teachers, school staff
and stakeholders; research partnerships on topics related to
instruction, state and federal regulations; and developing new
and maintaining existing external partnerships - ways in which we
leverage support for our partner schools and develop direct
service projects (field trips, tutoring, mentoring, etc.) for students
within the FOS.
The Office of Learning and Leadership, under the direction of
Stephen Rochelle, continues to serve in an oversight and
management role for the area schools in iDesign, while the LMU
FOS office works in partnership to provide support and technical
assistance.
This year, we will again be working with elementary school
teachers on the artsLINK project in visual and performing arts
education, holding mini-conferences on a wide-range of
instructional areas with teachers throughout the FOS, piloting an
initiative to link best practices in math instruction with a group of
eighth- and ninth-grade teachers, piloting a mentoring program
connecting college athletes with middle school students,continuing
to support schools with technology infrastructureneeds by donating
computers at every school, launching a series of parent workshops to
help parents and families support student learning, and continuing
successful mentoring and tutoring programs. Despite many hurdles
and challenges, last year was filled with tremendous opportunity and
huge steps forward. School communities began to structure decision-making
in new ways through new governance councils, teachers worked with
colleagues throughout the entire Family of Schools in clusterwide
professional development opportunities, and a commitment to work
together on mutual challenges was renewed.
New LMU Family of Schools Web site
LMU FOS launched a new Web site this summer. The site
contains updated information on our FOS partner schools and
FOS staff. Please visit our Web page at:
http://soe.lmu.edu/centers/fos.htm
Professional Development Mini-Conference for
Elementary Teachers Sponsored by: LMU Family of Schools
LMU Family of Schools is hosting a professional development
mini-conference for elementary school teachers serving in the
FOS partner schools. The purpose of this conference is to
provide FOS teachers with the latest researched-based
strategies for improving instruction and classroom management.
● Date: Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009
● Time: Registration begins at 8:30 a.m.
● Location: Loyola Marymount University, University Hall
● To register early, please go to:
http://miniconference.eventbrite.com/
We will be hosting a mini-conference for secondary school
teachers in the spring.
Revisiting Our Mission
As a new school year is now under way, we would like to take a
moment to highlight our mission and goals as we continue to help
create a true pipeline of student success through the Loyola
Marymount University Family of Schools.
The Mission of the LMU Family of Schools
The Loyola Marymount University Family of Schools is dedicated
to improving student success and educational equity by
facilitating support, resources, and partnership opportunities for
the public schools in the Westchester area.
LMU FOS Partner Schools
● Cowan Ave Elementary School
● Kentwood Elementary School
● Loyola Village Elementary School (non-iDesign)
● Paseo Del Rey Elementary School (non-iDesign)
● Westport Heights Elementary School
● Orville Wright Middle School
● Westchester High School
Summer 2009 Highlights
1) FOS Grant/Resource Team
Representatives from each FOS school participated in summerlong
training, hosted by LMU's Office of Sponsored Projects, to
learn the process of successful grant writing. Seventeen team
members received certificates of completion and will be able to
act as fundraising resources for their schools as well as the FOS
community.
2) Robert's Rules of Order Training
All of the FOS Governance Councils were invited to attend
professional development training on effective meeting strategies
and Robert's Rules of Order. Twenty attendees at the Aug. 19
evening session worked with attorneys Kent Seton and Barry
Segal, of Seton & Associates, to learn techniques for conducting
effective and efficient meetings.
3) Making Data Driven Decisions
The Office of Learning and Leadership and the Family of Schools
teamed to present "Making Data Driven Decisions" to each of the
Governance Councils during the schools' August meetings. The
purposes of the professional development session were to:
● Provide common vocabulary and knowledge
● Assist Governance Council members in driving the direction
and decision-making processes
● Improve ability of council members to address student
achievement and graduation rates
What to Expect This School Year
The FOS team is recruiting LMU students to serve FOS schools
by participating in ongoing service projects (after-school tutoring,
library aides) or one-time service opportunities (campus
beatification, Dr. Seuss Read-Along Day). The LMU Family of Schools
will continue to help meet the academic needs of the students in
our partner schools through anumber of LMU programs and initiatives,
including:
● Upward Bound - A college-preparedness program for
Westchester High School students.
● Start on Success - A specialized job skills program for students
with disabilities.
● LMU for Others - A mentoring program that paired 18 ninthgrade
students at Westchester High School with 18 graduate
students in the LMU School of Education who volunteered as
mentors.
● Lions for Learning - A university sponsored tutoring program to
assist with in-class and after-school programs at our partner
elementary schools.
● Parent Workshops - Parent programs help facilitate parent
engagement by empowering parents to understand how to assist
and support their children in achieving their academic goals.
● Best Practices in Math - A pilot project called Mathways, linking
math teachers from Orville Wright Middle School and
Westchester High School. Together they identify effective math
instruction practices.
● Mini Conferences - LMU faculty will present the latest
researched-based strategies for improving instruction and
classroom management (fall: elementary schools/ spring:
secondary schools)
● LMU Student-Athlete and College Connection - A pilot
mentoring project connecting LMU student athletes with middle
school students to focus on goal-setting and pathways to college
readiness.
LMU Family of Schools Achieve Gains in Academic
Performance Index
In 2009, FOS partner schools earned positive results in
Academic Performance Index, which measures the year-overyear
growth in academic performance for California schools. Visit
our Web site at http://soe.lmu.edu/centers/fos/resources/data.htm
to view API data trends for the FOS campuses and join us in
congratulating the students, faculty and parents for their hard
work and academic achievement.
LMU Opens the William H. Hannon Library
The LMU Family of Schools is proud of the recent opening of the
William H. Hannon Library, which will support the educational,
instructional and cultural needs of the university. The Hannon
Library is a state-of-the-art university facility and a resource that
is available to the community and public schools of Westchester.
For further library information, visit
http://library.lmu.edu/
Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the Fall of the
Berlin Wall
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall
and to commemorate the occasion, LMU will host a discussion
panel Oct. 19 at 7 p.m. in University Hall, Ahmanson Auditorium.
The panel will feature L.A. muralist Kent Twitchell, Berlin-based
muralist Thierry Noir, and Steve Bagish of ArtStorm.
Contact Us
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at
fosinfo@lmu.edu and for further details, please visit our new
Web site at http://soe.lmu.edu/centers/fos.htm. We look
forward to working with you to create equitable educational
opportunities for our elementary and secondary school students.