Roosevelt Community Education Center
Lessons Learned: Academies in an Alternative Setting-Year Three
“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”-Theodore Roosevelt
“Rome wasn’t built in a day.”-French proverb
“Resistance is futile.”-The Borg, Star Trek
“You can’t always get want you want.”-Mick Jaggar
“Always celebrate your victories, even the small ones.”
“Nothing will work unless you do.”-Maya Angelou
Frequently Asked Questions at Roosevelt
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What does the academy model look like in an alternative setting?
o Our model is different than a traditional comprehensive high school because there is
entrance and exit of courses daily
o We have multiple subjects taught in the same class period and students work at their
own pace
o Students may have something happen which causes them to be out of school for an
extended period and when they return, they pick up where they left off.
Is there a challenge in finding thematic/skill based instruction?
o Academies give the theme right off the bat and tie all the different preps together
o We use an academy theme to offer whole group instruction
o You can choose common core skills (i.e. choosing the main idea and cause/effect and
all classes benefit). When you use curriculum skill sets and college and career skill sets
together, students start to see the career pathways within their coursework.
o Academy themed projects provide structured activity and engaging events. When you
focus on career clusters, students see the match between the lessons they are learning
in school and the opportunities in the workforce.
How do you create projects to include all students?
o Academy themes help guide creative bell ringers that the class does together.
o The goal to the academy themes in core curriculum is not just sitting and reading a
textbook, but getting students to solve real life problem based activities that display
tangible skills.
o In our district and our school, we are trying to get away from “read chapter three and
answer the chapter questions.” We are using industry experts, field trips, project based
learning, and college and career events to enhance the student's’ learning experience.
How do academies help with differentiation?
o Using career related assessments, teachers start to understand the student better, get to
know them, and meet them where they are.
o Using projects, teachers can create skill based alternative assignments with multiple
scaffolding and assignment options for students.
Do you work with students in whole group or individual basis? What does that look like?
o Students work on an individual basis, with daily or weekly goal setting, and students use
the teacher as a guide through the coursework. Students are given an information guide
for each project in the course. The packet contains directions, examples, explanations,
grading rubrics, etc. Students complete a variety of activities using the information
guide. Once a week, some teachers give a workshop of different academic or college
and career readiness skills (i.e. reading skills, writing cover letters, revising resumes.)
Students must participate in at least six weekly workshops.
Do your students fluctuate throughout the year? How do you handle it?
o Upon entering a class, students are given the course expectations and use the learning
guides as a checklist of skills and work to complete. A student will not earn the course
credit until the skills are met and work is proficient.
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If a student leaves a course, they may re-enter and continue using the same learning
guide they previously started.
How has using the academy model increased community interaction in your school?
o Before we started the academy model, the community had no idea what the alternative
high school setting involved. They assumed it was for “bad kids” and didn’t give much
thought to our potential. Now, on our Academy Support Team, we have Roosevelt
grads and people who have worked with our students in the community and at school, to
find out that they are similar to students across the city.
o We have our own fan base now!
o In addition to our quarterly AST meetings and monthly community mentors, we have
community members get involved with creating projects based on their career.
o One example: We have a member of the Plumbers and Pipefitters Union come in and
work with our students on required measurements that they use in their work. The
students go out to the training center, measure the piping, cut the pipe and assemble a
series of pipes, using the math skills they learned during the project.
o We have mock interviews in which about 30 community members come in and do mock
interviews to all of our Juniors and Seniors.
o All of our Sophomores go to at least two business sites to get a first-hand look at the
setting in which they may choose to work.
How have the academies changed the teachers at your school?
o Because of the weekly Small Learning Communities (SLC) meetings alone, the teachers
have gone from working independently, alone in their classroom, to working in a
collaborative team to solve student issues, find support to increase attendance, and
develop new approaches to improve student learning. Roosevelt has evolved from only
independent learning to a blend of teaching strategies to use what works best for the
students.
o In addition to the SLCs within our school, teachers are setting goals together and
supporting their results with data. We are also aligned with district goals and collect the
data on our support information system. Teachers work on ways to better reach the
college and career readiness benchmarks in their SLCs and focus on a new benchmark
each month.
o Teachers attend professional development during summer with the sole focus on
improvement of our academies and cross curricular project based learning.
How have the academies changed the students at your school?
o Career academies are all about self-discovery, gaining understanding of interests, and
enhancing college and career related skills. We use those driving points in all of our
activities, community service events, community interactions, and classroom work.
o Students are more aware and have a greater understanding of their college and career
options. Roosevelt has changed from not only earning credits and graduating, but
developing their post-secondary plan. The counselors’ SMART goal this year is that
every graduate will have a developed post-secondary plan, and that is accomplished
through our College and Career Readiness benchmarks.
o Students are introduced and shown what is in their industry, through activities from their
industry. It gives them a glimpse into the future and helps them discover their interests.
What do you say to people that claim that the academies haven’t changed anything in
our schools?
o We show the evidence of the changes that have been made in the last few years and
continually show the data we are collecting.