Education

Introduction

Connecting schools and neighborhoods for the benefit of each.

Overview

Resources to make the most of neighborhood schools and community education departments to meet neighborhood goals.

Page Index

  • Key Issues
  • Common Problems and Solutions
  • Successful Strategies
  • Annotated Web Resources
  • Topic Library
  • Sub-Topics and Vendors


    • Key Issues Related to this Topic

  • Schools have traditionally been a neighborhood hub. Local schools have traditionally served as a hub where neighborhood families can get to know one another and make friends, and support a common community asset. In recent years, both the Minneapolis and St. Paul school districts have worked to strengthen neighborhoods-based schools within their systems.

  • Neighborhood groups can help restore links between their school and neighborhood. By hosting neighborhood events at the local school, doing joint outreach, providing funds for play ground improvements, supporting local PTAs, providing community volunteers, and raising funds for enrichment programs at their school, neighborhood associations can strengthen the links between their local school and neighborhood.

  • Private schools are also a neighborhood asset. The buildings, teachers, students and parents of the private schools and/or charter schools located in your community can also be tapped for civic improvement efforts.

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    Common Problems and Solutions

  • Schools are focusing on student achievement and parent involvement. Most of the resources of school districts are focused on improving student achievement and test scores. A key factor for increasing student achievement is consistent attendance, and one key to improving student attendance is parent involvement. To win the participation of your school administration in a neighborhood project, describe your project in terms of how it will help student achievement and parent involvement. Neighborhoods can boost parent involvement in their school through events, incentives and joint outreach.

  • Wider social issues of race, poverty and housing impact our schools. Some families are considering taking their kids out of their local school over concerns about discipline and academic quality. Offering a quality education is often made more challenging by inadequate family incomes and a lack of affordable housing in the Twin Cities.

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    Successful Strategies

  • Renovating playgrounds is often a first step to building school-neighborhood cooperation. Strategies Funds available from the Minneapolis NRP program have enabled many neighborhoods to plan, design and fund improvements to their school play ground, improving its facilities for both school and community use. Contact staff at the Minneapolis NRP Program for a list of all the school improvement projects that are stored in the “Plan Net” data base.

  • Expanding the use of your school building and gym can be a challenge. Often school buildings are a wonderful resource that is locked up during evenings, weekends and summers. With careful preparation your neighborhood group can work with your school district to plan and find funding to offer the programming and security needed to make your school available to the community for extended hours.

  • The community education department can become a strong neighborhood partner. Neighborhood volunteers can help suggest classes, and raise additional funds to expand the classes being offered through community education at their local school to meet the needs and interests of community residents.

  • Neighborhood volunteers, businesses, artists and gardeners can enrich a school’s curriculum. Creative volunteers and artists from many neighborhoods are sharing their gifts and talents with students in classrooms and after school.

  • Service-learning projects can get students out into the neighborhood. Many schools are beginning to teach active citizenship skills to students at a young age by setting them to work on solving problems in their local neighborhood.

  • Schools are a wonderful resource for connecting with new immigrants. Many neighborhood groups who are struggling to find ways to involve East African, Lao, Vietnamese, Hmong, Mexican/Latino and other immigrant residents in their neighborhood can effectively work with the bi-lingual staff and parent outreach staff who work with these families at your local school. Members of many immigrant groups also organize after school enrichment classes within local schools.

  • Universities and Colleges can provide student interns. Often neighborhood residents see their local college or university as a land-grabbing monster or source of late night parties. New partnerships are now being formed by many colleges and universities to revitalize their local neighborhoods, while providing rich community learning opportunities for students.

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    Annotated WebLinks

  • Minneapolis Public Schools
    Minneapolis Public Schools   03/26/03
    Minneapolis school and community education information and contacts

  • School Readiness Initiative
    Minneapolis Youth Coordinating Board   06/15/04
    An effort to mobilize time, talent and resources to boost the number of children who enter Minneapolis kindergarten ready to learn

  • Charter schools
    Minnesota Association of Charter Schools   06/15/04
    Charter school information and contacts

  • Education resources
    Minnesota Web Directory: Education   06/15/04
    A general resource list of private and public K-12 schools, colleges and technical institutes and educational associations in Minnesota

  • St. Paul Public Schools
    St. Paul Public Schools   06/15/04
    St. Paul school and community education information and contacts

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    Library

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    Vendors by Sub-Topic

    Community-based Education  
        Early Childhood Family Education Centers
        English Learning Center for Immigrant and Refugee Families
        Minneapolis Community Education
        Minnesota Literacy Council
        St. Paul Public Schools


    Education Advocacy Organizations  
        Minneapolis Urban League/ Administration
        Minneapolis Urban League/ Adult & Family Services
        Minnesota Center for Arts Education
        NAACP Minneapolis
        NAACP St. Paul
        St. Paul Urban League


    Extension Services  
        Hennepin County Extension services-Master Gardeners


    School Districts  
        Minneapolis Public Schools
        St. Paul Public Schools


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