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SNAPSHOT: Do the estimated graduation rates for your school or district give you a sinking feeling, a feeling that you should have more control over something so fundamentally important?

Join Chris Evans, former principal of Valley High School for 2 hours on March 31 when he details how he and his staff transformed Valley High from the second-worst high school in California's Sacramento County six years ago to one that recently was selected by The California Dropout Research Project as one of 6 schools to "beat the odds" in raising its graduation rate.

In this 2-hour webinar, From Dropout Culture to College-going Culture: How one California High School Reduced Its Dropout Rate, Chris Evans, will describe how, after hitting bottom in the state's rankings, he and his staff overcame low expectations, low morale and challenging demographics to create a culture of aspiration for both students and themselves.

Evans and his team helped lead a new focus on professional learning, on aligning the school's efforts with standards, on developing college readiness among students and creating a blend of top-down and bottom-up change.

CD-ROM with instant access $197 You will be able to both hear the conference and view the Powerpoint slides on your computer. CD-ROM is shipped immediately. LISTEN NOW!>> Once you order the CD-ROM, we will email you a confirmation with instructions for instant online access! Need to pay by purchase order? Click here for information. Questions? Call 207-632-1954.

We discovered that we could no longer allow issues beyond our control to exist as barriers to success and increased student achievement. ... We turned our attention on those things we could control and influence and changes began to take hold." --Chris Evans in testimony before the California state Senate Select Committee on High School Graduation.

CONFERENCE TOPICS: Chris Evans will discuss:

• Defining goals for student achievement, professional learning and school culture
  
• The critical role of counselors in developing career and college aspirations
  
• Addressing equity and access through reciprocal accountability
• Student placement--placing students one step beyond their perceived reach
  
• Credit recovery and the role of second chances for kids
  
• Planning--aligning taught curriculum with standards and assessment
  
• Flexibility comes with results; flexibility is lost when results don't show progress
  
• Addressing the leadership challenge with top down and organic development
  
• The role of early wins and celebrating successes
  
• Addressing adult belief systems
  
• The role of data and data analysis in measuring expectations at a systems level
  
• Using data--checking for understanding and progress monitoring.
  

Valley's success is a combination of a variety of strategies and beliefs that focus on faith in students and staff, the re-allocation of resources to support efforts, high expectations, hard work and a focus on closing the implementation gap by making ideas into realities.----Chris Evans in testimony before the California state Senate Select Committee on High School Graduation.

Other webinar topics include:

• A focus on staff/student, student/student and staff/staff relationships
• Having the hard conversations about culture
• Increasing student engagement
• Connecting students to support programs and services from the moment matriculating 8th graders step through the door
• Getting to know your freshmen by name and by need
• Offering open enrollment in AP and honors courses and actively recruiting underrepresented students
• Effectively engaging parents and community
• Providing interventions and supports to students at risk of dropping out

ABOUT THE SPEAKER: The principal of Valley High School from 2006-2008 and vice-principal from 2004-2005, Chris Evans helped lead the high school's turnaround on graduation rates, academic performance and school performance and was included in the Newsweek list of best high schools in the U.S. In 2007, Evans testified before California's Senate Select Committee on High School Graduation on the school's progress and track record. The California Dropout Research Project selected Valley High as one of 6 schools it featured in its Dec. 2007 research report, "California High Schools That Beat the Odds in High School Graduation." Evans is now assistant superintendent of the Fresno School District, the 4th largest school district in California.

CONTACT INFO:
Educational Research Newsletter
PO Box 2347
South Portland, ME 04116
Tel: 207-632-1954
Fax: 815-461-5647