Hamilton Heights Among 7 Districts to Share in 3E Grant to Support Students
Several members of Hamilton Heights leadership team traveled to Ohio to witness firsthand the impact of the Akron in Action program. Students, of which 50% are refugee/non-English speaking, are excelling in college, career, military, and life in general, post-graduation thanks in part to stronger school community partnerships.
Hamilton Heights School Corporation is one of seven Indiana school districts that will share in a $4 million grant from the Central Indiana Educational Service Center (CIESC) to support a transformational college and career readiness approach.
The seven districts include Hamilton Heights, Fort Wayne Community Schools, Whitley County Consolidated Schools, Mill Creek Community Schools, MSD of Warren Township and Hamilton Southeastern.
Over the two years of the grant, all seven districts will implement a community advisory consisting of both internal and external stakeholders. The goal is for all seven school districts to become state models for significant transformational change, positively impacting students, school districts, and communities. The process is already underway at Heights.
“The goal is to build more community partnerships and connections that will allow us to provide even more enriching and focused opportunities for our students,” explained Jessi Cantlon, HHHS School Counselor. “We will begin by creating a portrait of a graduate and spelling out what exactly we expect to see from a Hamilton Heights graduate. From there, we will take that portrait of a graduate and create opportunities so our students have options available to them that will allow them to earn credits, certificates, and/or opportunities to seamlessly move into enrollment in college, enlistment in the military, or focused employment opportunities.”
Heights will share in a $4 million grant from the Central Indiana Educational Service Center (CIESC) to support its transformational college and career readiness focus. The goal is to become a state model for developing community partnerships with local businesses and authentic learning opportunities, positively impacting all students, its district, and communities it serves. Students Nora Privett and Kamryn Rhoton are pictured exploring college programs at universities around the state and beyond during Future Huskies Week with teacher Connor James at Hamilton Heights Middle School. The middle school offers opportunities throughout the year for students to develop skills and pursue interests that ensure they are college and career ready by graduation through its Preparing for College and Careers (PCC) program.
“This grant will also help provide the initial funding for a third counselor at the high school and help us better connect our schools with our local business community so that every student who graduates will be ready to Enroll (College), Employ (go direct into the workforce with a high wage job) or Enlist (in a branch of the military) – aka the “3 E’s,” added HHSC Superintendent Dr. Derek Arrowood.
To get an up close and personal look at this program and its impact in action, Dr. Arrowood, Bret Bailey (HHMS Principal), Julie Davis (HHSC Board member), Brad Batman (HHHS Science teacher), and Jessi Cantlon (HHHS Counselor) traveled to Akron, Ohio to see how Akron Public Schools is connecting with their community to help their students reach one of those 3 E’s by graduation.
“It was an inspirational experience,” said Julie Davis of the visit to North High School, one of the oldest magnet schools in the Akron in Action project. The school has a population of 50% refugee/non-English speaking students who are thriving thanks in part to their 3 E program. “The 3 E project and associated grant monies will help to determine and best address the needs of ALL students at Heights.”
“I could see our own great individual programs coming together and then deeply partnering with community businesses and organizations to add context, relevancy, purpose, and authentic problem-solving opportunities for our students,” Dr. Arrowood pointed out.
“I saw teachers refreshed and excited. I saw students stepping up confidently as they brought transformational change to the problems in their communities. We left excited and refreshed for the possibilities ahead. Our experience here reinforced that Heights is on the right track with many of the initiatives that are proving to be transformational for our students.”
Arrowood went on to say, “We plan to continue to keep kicking up our efforts and district looped into our progress and achievements on the 3 E’s.”