ELC News - Abbott Secondary Education Initiative Moves Forward

The NJ Department of Education has launched the Abbott Secondary Education Initiative (ASEI), an ambitious program of middle and high school reform to improve student achievement and graduation rates in Abbott districts.

The ASEI is based upon recommendations from a workgroup of teachers, parents and educators. In June 2003, Education Law Center secured an agreement from NJDOE to form the workgroup to design a program of secondary reform. The agreement was approved by the NJ Supreme Court in Abbott X.

The secondary initiative combines standards-based reform with small school and small learning community strategies, building upon a growing national movement toward smaller, more personalized middle and high schools.

It will require Abbott districts to provide college preparatory curricula; small, personalized learning environments; and improved instruction for all students in middle schools and high schools by 2008. The ASEI will also help districts break larger schools into smaller units; provide supports for staff and students to improve teaching and learning; and upgrade curriculum and instruction through innovative, thematic and interdisciplinary approaches.

The ASEI is led at NJDOE by Drs. Penelope Lattimer and Sandra Strothers, assisted by four program specialists and national consultants. In August, the NJDOE contracted with the consultants to provide direct technical assistance to districts and schools, and build the capacity of NJDOE staff.

The ASEI consultants are First Things First and High Schools That Work.

First Things First, a program of the Institute for Research and Reform in Education (IRRE), has successfully implemented small learning communities and raised achievement levels in Houston, Kansas City, MO, and Kansas City, KS. It is adding sites in Los Angeles, New York City and Milwaukee, WI. IRRE/FTF recently received strong support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation after the Governor’s summit on high school reform last February.

High Schools That Work, a program of the Southern Regional Education Board, will work with districts to improve curriculum and instruction, with a special focus on critical "gateway" Algebra I and freshman English courses.

NJDOE has selected four "phase-one" districts to lead ASEI implementation based on their level of readiness and interest: Jersey City, Elizabeth, Orange and Bridgeton. In addition, all Abbott districts will begin developing plans this Fall to upgrade curriculum, improve instruction, and move all students into smaller learning communities or small schools by September 2008.

In 2005-06, more intense work will begin in the phase-one districts, while others begin planning for implementation over the next three years. The NJDOE will also build a strong policy framework and technical assistance capacity to support implementation, and create a basis for success in the phase one districts that can inform work elsewhere. Network meetings, constituency "roll out," and public engagement efforts are all planned to create statewide awareness of, and support for, the reforms. An Abbott Secondary Advisory Group has been formed to support, monitor and promote implementation efforts.

According to Education Week, the ASEI is potentially one of the most ambitious secondary school reform efforts in the nation. Improved curricula and small school restructuring are increasingly seen as keys to successful secondary reform, but no state has moved to implement these elements on a scale as broad as that represented by New Jersey’s Abbott districts. The focus on building capacity at the school, district, and state level to support and sustain the reform is also unique.

The effort comes amidst a growing national consensus that improving high school graduation rates and narrowing achievement gaps is the next great challenge for public education. If successful, New Jersey, already a national leader in funding equity, preschool and elementary school reform, has a chance to take center stage in another critical area: secondary reform.

The NJDOE has put up an ASEI website with information and materials for teachers, parents, and community members.

With support from the Schumann Foundation, veteran high school teacher and education advocate Stan Karp has joined ELC to monitor and support implementation of the secondary initiative. Community, parent, and education groups interested in receiving more information or organizing public discussions of the initiative can reach him at ELC.