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3/20/1997 12:13:00 AM

Rice Center Aids School Reform Effort

$20 Million Annenberg Grant Awarded to Houston

By Michael Cinelli
Rice News Staff The Rice University Center for Education earned special recognition last week for its role in securing a $20 million Annenberg Foundation matching grant for a five-year, multidistrict school reform effort in the greater Houston area.

Linda McNeil and Ron Sass, co-directors of the center, were among the architects of the community-based program-established as The Child-Centered Schools Initiative-which will raise an additional $40 million to fund the program. Bernie Mathis, a Center for Education staff member, served as planning coordinator.

"We as a city are losing too many of our children and many who come to school feel very little connection with learning," said McNeil. "Yes, the Annenberg Challenge is about reforming schools, but even more it is about giving our children a firmer grasp on a hopeful future."

The Child-Centered Schools Initiative (CCSI) will implement the reform effort through The Houston Annenberg Challenge for Public School Reform.

Houston is the first city in the Southwest, and one of 10 chosen nationally, to be part of Ambassador Walter Annenberg's $500 million challenge to reform the nation's schools.

"We are very excited that the two years of hard work by The Brown Foundation, the Houston Endowment, and the Rice Center for Education is coming to fruition," said Andrea White, CCSI board member.

The Annenberg staff cited the Rice's Center for Education's outstanding work with teachers and The Brown Foundation's generous support of education reform as strengths which drew their interest to Houston.

The center received a planning grant from The Brown Foundation to gather citywide input from educators and community leaders. The focus of these discussions was to build consensus around high expectations for all children's learning, for building strong school faculties for the future, and engaging the whole community around support for strategic whole school change.

CCSI estimates it will provide funds to work closely with 50 to 100 collaborative networks of public schools and their community partners throughout the Houston area during the five-year period.

In their proposals, school officials will be asked to address three key issues:

Professional development to ensure teachers and principals are deeply knowledgeable about subject matter, child development, children's cultures, and school restructuring.

Personalizing the learning environment so teachers know each child well and can use this knowledge to set high academic expectations and shape his or her education to achieve those goals. Schools will be challenged to reorganize all dimensions of their size, structure, resources, space and time-so that teachers and staff know and serve each child well.

Overcoming isolation by collaborating with other schools and community organizations by involving parents to create the critical mass of people and organizations required to accelerate systemic reform of Houston-area schools.

In the first year of the initiative, a smaller group of "Beacon Schools" will receive reform funds and will work with other schools to light the way for school reform across the Houston area.

The Rice University Center for Education will continue to be a key force for teacher development and school reform both in support of the Annenberg Challenge and as a resource for all Houston-area teachers.