Externally Sponsored IQP's

BLACKSTONE VALLEY DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Contact:  
Susan Gately, Executive Director,
Blackstone Valley Education Foundation,
110 Church Street, Whitinsville, MA
(508) 234-9090 or sgately@blackstonevalley.org

BACKGROUND
 The Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation, incorporated since 1999, fosters connections that strengthen partnerships between the business community, local government and organizations, and students of all ages to develop their knowledge, their career preparation, their leadership skills and their potential. Previously an Education Committee of the Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce, the Education Foundation relies on funds from school district membership, annual fundraising and programming, and from federal, state, and private grant sources. The Foundation, in concert with the Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce, services residents and businesses among 10 school districts, including 2 regional systems and a regional vocational technical school. There are between 18 and 20,000 K-12 students enrolled in the school districts.

The region is bucolic and rural, dotted with villages, without public transit, convening College or major employer. More than 80% of the businesses employ 10 or fewer people, with more than 60% employing 4 or fewer people. Towns include: Grafton, Millbury, Sutton, Northbridge, Uxbridge, Upton, Mendon, Blackstone, Douglas and Millville. Among these towns are two regional systems and one vocational technical school.

CHALLENGE
 A major challenge among the school districts is servicing youth who

  1. do not pass MCAS or marginally pass MCAS,
  2. are not prepared for College,
  3. have not explored or shown interest in a career/job. These students comprise both special needs and those who haven’t performed well. Both groups place in the #2 and #3 (borderline and failure)MCAS categories. In an effort to address these students who leave the school system and who do not assume productive and satisfying lives, the school districts look to the possibility of designing a regional system of redress.

NEED

  1. Help 10 school districts to discern which sub-population it might be efficient and effective to service collaboratively i.e. good analysis protocol
  2. Within the analysis, determine the number of students in the target population, their unique characteristics, and anecdotal information about the challenges they present
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Last modified: February 10, 2009 08:43:41