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Resources and training for middle school principals in L.A. County |
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A Partnership Between... |
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| ...for the shared purpose of improving middle grades education in Los Angeles County so that all students have the access and support necessary to engage in relevant and challenging educational experiences, successfully transition to high school, and graduate from high school prepared for college and the 21st-century workplace. |
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About the Principals to Watch Program Students in Los Angeles County face serious obstacles to school and life success. High percentages of students - especially Hispanics and African Americans - live in grinding generational poverty; many are also English Learners struggling with a new language and school culture. Their challenges are reflected in dismal California Standards Test scores and graduation rates. According to United Way research, by the tenth grade significant numbers of students have already dropped out. In some districts, only about half of ninth graders will graduate from high school four years later. Low-paying jobs, incarceration, and ongoing generational poverty are some of the grim results of high dropout rates. Among those who do graduate, many are not prepared for college or the demands of the 21st century workplace. The Principals to Watch program was developed as a partnership between the California League of Middle Schools and United Way of Greater Los Angeles with the goal of reaching students in middle school before they make the decision to drop out. It is designed to give middle school principals the program and management tools they need to increase support and academic expectations for all students in their care, with a special focus on students in poverty. Composed of two parts, Principals to Watch features a set of resources for all middle school principals and a free academy training program for those L.A. County middle school principals serving student populations from which at least 40% qualify for free or reduced price meals (an indicator of poverty). Principals participating in the Principals to Watch Academy are trained in the research-based criteria that define a high performing, student learning-centered middle school. They tour model middle schools in Los Angeles County that are part of California's Schools to Watch-Taking Center Stage program, receive mentorship from the principals of the model schools, and conduct collaborative, school-wide evaluations of the strengths and weaknesses of their own sites with their entire teaching staffs. The principals then develop three-year school improvement plans that address both the realities of their school sites and the hallmarks of high-performing middle schools: academic excellence, developmentally responsive practices, socially equitable practices, and organizational support and processes. The Principals to Watch program is operated by the California League of Middle Schools, a nonprofit organization that co-leads the Schools to Watch-Taking Center Stage program with the California Department of Education. Funding for the program was made possible by United Way of Greater Los Angeles, which is now focusing all its resources toward addressing the widespread poverty in Los Angeles County. Educational achievement is one of three key areas - including basic needs and financial stability - in United Way's ten-year action plan to create pathways out of poverty in the county. By helping to develop more effective middle schools, United Way of Greater Los Angeles is making a long-term investment so that all young people in the county succeed in high school and graduate prepared for college and the workforce of the 21st century. About the California League of Middle Schools |
| Principals to Watch l (800) 326-1880, ext. 23 l info@principalstw.org |