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ALIGNMENT ROCKFORD NEWS 
JANUARY  2016
From the Executive Director: A Year in Review
In 2010 our community came together to form Alignment Rockford. Just five short years later, we've seen significant strides in our public education system. The 2014-2015 school year was our first year of "wall to wall academies," where all students participated in a college & career themed academy in our high schools. Between our Alignment teams, our College & Career Readiness Councils and our Academy Support Teams, 150-200 volunteers work to ensure the success of our students. 

Our teams also piloted a mentor tutor math program at Kennedy middle school; coordinated business site visits for sophomores; created and launched a kindergarten readiness campaign for our community; and hosted the 4th annual Academy Expo, bigger and better than ever with over 3,000 students and 900 community volunteers. 

We hosted our first Alignment Institute Midwest Region conference for communities interested in learning from Rockford's successes, and we were named a Ford Next Generation Model Community for excellence in high school academies implementation. 

In 2016, we will continue to work toward providing a continuum of work based learning experiences for students to ensure college and career readiness. We will also take a deeper dive into early childhood through our Healthy Starts team as we work toward connecting every child to resources that will provide them a strong foundation. 

We truly thank you for your support in 2015. We cannot do what we do without you! 

We wish you a healthy and prosperous New Year!

Sincerely,

 
A Year in Review
Here's a glimpse at some of our favorite 2015 memories
Click an image for related media



THANKS TO ALL WHO CONTRIBUTED TO 
THE ANNUAL BOOTS & COATS DRIVE


100 coats
150 pairs of gloves
90 hats
120 scarves

Click here to read more 

2015 FACES OF ALIGNMENT ROCKFORD
Each month we feature one of our Alignment Team members in our series, Faces of Alignment Rockford. Below are the 2015 Faces of Alignment Rockford. 

From top-left: Chris Weber, the PCMW Group at Morgan Stanley; Jessica KoltzRasmussen College-Rockford Campus; Charaine Boyd, Winnebago County Health Department.  F rom bottom-left: Chad Moe , City of Rockford Fire Department; Stephen Nelson , Larson & Darby Group; Amy Heilman , Refugee and Immigrant Services and Elevate, Rock Valley College. 

Click on any image to read more about these valued team members and their involvement in Alignment Rockford.      






Students Launch Virtual Enterprise Business 

On December 10th, Rockford East High School students hosted a launch event for their business, Evolve Gaming. The student-run business is a part of the Virtual Enterprise International Business class (VEI), which transforms students into workplace professionals by bringing business into the classroom. 


Students provided light hors d'oeuvres and invited business community partners to join them as they showcased their business, providing details about their operations, marketing and product development. Several community partners attended, including Alignment Rockford who helped the students market the launch event.  

Related media:

Student working teams  showcased the products developed within each department within Evolve such as the company's functional website (right), a detailed business plan presentation (far-right), business and marketing plans (below), as well as the students' business cards which also served as a friendly competition for community guests to vote on the best business card (below-right). 



With an emphasis on college and career readiness, Virtual Enterprise International is an in-school, live, global business simulation that offers students a competitive edge through project-based, collaborative learning and the development of 21st-century skills in entrepreneurship, global business, problem solving, communication, personal finance and technology. www.veinternational.org
ACADEMY NEEDS: 

How you can easily help students foster their creativity and 21st century skills: 
  • Do you have a service project that you could use students' help with? 
  • Do you have an acoustic guitar you could donate? 
  • Do you have access to skilled trades OR medical career specific posters, job openings, apprenticeships, programs, or any information you might have hanging on a bulletin board at work?
Check out the list of Academy Needs by selecting:













Email Katy Haun, Alignment Rockford's Community Engagement Coordinator if you might be able  
to help with any of these needs or for additional information.        

Please pass along to anyone you know who might be able to help out!

OPEN INVITATIONS TO PARTICIPATE (ITP)™

Kennedy Middle School Math Tutor Program

Alignment Rockford's College Readiness Team is seeking math tutors for 6th grade students at Kennedy Middle School. Tutors will work with students for one hour, one time per week during their regularly scheduled math class during the 2015-2016 school year. The school day takes place 8:45am to 3:45pm. Tutoring time of day will vary according to students' schedulesRead more... 

Interested in becoming a tutor ? We are always accepting new tutors. Click here or email Alignment Rockford's Community Engagement Coordinator for more information. 



Capstone Seminar Mentor

Advisers/Mentors from the community are needed to serve as experts for idea development, revision, and refinement of the student's selected project. Advisers/ mentors may assist students via online, telephone, or in-person mentoring with one or all of the 4 components required of the Capstone project (proposal, research, evidence, presentation).  Volunteer one time only ... volunteer on-going for an entire semester ... or anywhere in between.

Click here  to read the Introductory letter from Auburn High School's Capstone teacher, Mr. John Rauh.
"My project is to research the merits of introducing microgreens (young seedlings of herbs, vegetables, beans, seeds, and grains that are very dense in nutrients and sprout anywhere from 6-10 days) into our diets and into the school setting."
"I am creating a program/website for people to learn Laotian language and culture because the Lao community in Rockford is large and most people my age are Americanized and ashamed that they cannot communicate with their elders."
"My goal is to spread a positive message about Rockford to the community through photography."
"I intend to write a full-length novel and get it published within the year."
"I am making a video game that incorporates myths from different cultures to show how the hero's journey can be applied to any story."
"My goal is to spread a positive message about Rockford to the community through photography."

Click here here to read all of the Capstone project summaries and needs from the community.

To learn more about the Capstone Seminar course, or to submit a response to the invitation to participate  click here


Ready, Set, Kindergarten!
 
The Healthy Starts team has developed community-wide messaging for all families with students going into kindergarten.The Ready Set Kindergarten! materials are aimed to ensure parents have a common understanding of the skills children need to be successful in kindergarten.

Services Needed from the Community:
  • Place the provided brochures and posters in a waiting area or employee break room
  • Include the information in your company newsletter (digital information provided)
  • Include the provided information in your church bulletin
  • Have brochures available for interested families to pick up
  • Display the information on your digital billboard or monitor
  • Promote the information on your social media sites
  • Provide brochures to patients or clients with young children
  • Sponsor or donate printing services
To respond to this invitation to please
click here . You must be logged in to respond.
Don't let these great opportunities slip away from your High School students:  


In the News: 

Why it matters: 




Want to give back with no cost to you while doing what you love? When you shop with AmazonSmile, Amazon will donate to Alignment Rockford. Amazon supports us every time you shop. Click this link to begin your holiday shopping now:  Amazon Smile 


Alignment Rockford is a collective impact organization whose mission is to align community resources in support of public school strategies to raise student achievement, improve the health and happiness of our children, and advance the economic and social well-being of our community.