HHSC Partners With Ford Next Generation Learning
By: Derek Arrowood
I am excited to share that Hamilton Heights School Corporation has partnered with Ford Next Generation Learning (Ford NGL) to foster a community conversation around college and career preparedness and the types of experiences, skills, and competencies our students need to truly be ready for success beyond high school.
Ford NGL applies a collaborative, community-driven approach to transform the high school experience. It supports a career academy model that engages students with the real-world problems and challenges faced by employer partners. Member communities form a network dedicated to preparing students for college, career, lifelong learning, and leadership. Ford NGL’s network consists of communities from around the world who learn from each other and encourage continuous improvement in student, workforce, and economic development outcomes.
The end result is to develop our unique Portrait of a Graduate and Master Plan for how Hamilton Heights will transform its education journey for students PreK through 12th grade. This initiative will help ensure all students are well prepared for life after high school graduation whether that means enrolling in college or a trade school, enlisting in a branch of the military to serve their country, or gaining employment in a local high-wage, high-skill, and in-demand profession with an entrepreneurial mindset, our graduates will be ready for the next step.
Heights is one of seven school districts in Indiana to share in a $4 million grant from Central Indiana Educational Service Center (CIESC) to support a transformational college and career readiness approach in their districts. Dr. Kimberly Fifer, Director of Educational Innovation – Ford Next Generation Learning Community Consultant at CIESC, is helping guide our Hamilton Heights Implementation Team through this dynamic process.
We kicked off the journey in the fall of 2022 with the goal of having our master plan complete in June 2024. We conducted our first community Envision Day this month which was full of energy, enthusiasm and excitement as our Implementation Team, students, staff, administrators, board members, parents and members from the business community learned more about the benefits and features of transforming the secondary school experience using a community-driven approach.
Meanwhile, we are developing a dedicated page on our website that will feature all things about this journey, the Ford NGL program, timeline, Q & A, important dates, links, how you can get involved, and much more designed to keep you in the loop throughout the process. Click here to check in and check back often for the latest developments.
Thank you for your interest and involvement in sharing this incredible transformational journey with us as we work to give our students the educational growth and community-connected experiential learning opportunities they need for post-graduation success. #WeAreHuskie
– Dr. Derek Arrowood is the Superintendent of the Hamilton Heights School Corporation.