CALL FOR PRESENTATIONS
Community Schools Work!
 The National Forum of the
Coalition for Community Schools

Please read all of the information provided. The link for the submission form is located at the bottom of this page.
Part I - General Information

The Coalition for Community Schools is calling for presentation proposals for its 2002 National Forum Community Schools Work!. The Forum is scheduled for June 23-25, 2002 at the Renaissance Washington DC Hotel in Washington, DC. The deadline for submissions is Friday, February 1, 2002.

The theme of the 2002 Forum Community Schools Work! symbolizes the importance of using this learning and networking opportunity to demonstrate how and why community schools are successful. The theme also underscores the importance of strengthening the understanding and commitment of new and existing Coalition partners to our vision of community schools as an effective strategy for reforming our schools, and improving student learning, while strengthening families and communities.

This 2½ day Forum will bring together a diverse group of leaders from the fields of education, youth development, health and human services, family support, neighborhood and community development, government, philanthropy and others who work at the local, state and national levels.

The objectives of the Forum are to:

  • Deepen understanding and commitment to the vision of community schools among Forum participants and national policy makers.
  • Build capacity of participants to create, lead and sustain community schools.
  • Share research that makes the case for community schools.
  • Sharpen the community schools message.
  • Increase engagement of national partner leadership with the Coalition.
Part II - Presentation of Content and Design

We want community schools leders and advocates to be key presenters and resource people at the Forum. We have developed the following suggested topics for concurrent sessions, roundtables or issue-focused institutes as a guide for you in thinking about a presentation topic. Feel free to propose topics not listed below and to integrate topics if that fits your work better. All are welcome and will be considered on an equal basis.

Content

Community Schools Approaches:

  • Successful community school approaches that have moved from a single school to multiple schools.
  • Community School approaches that are being adapted from one community to another.
  • Successful approaches in rural communities.
Quality Education in Community Schools:
  • Place-based curriculum.
  • Engaged Learning - Building Community into the Curriculum.
  • Culturally competent pedagogy in community schools.
  • Service learning in community schools.
Youth Development in Community Schools:
  • Youth development organizations and schools working in partnership.
  • Integrating principles of youth development into school curriculum.
  • Linking after school programs and the core curriculum of the school.
  • 21st Century Community Learning Centers Program as the foundation for community schools.
Family Support in Community Schools:
  • Family Support Centers as focal points for community schools.
  • The importance of family involvement in schools.
Health and Human Services in Community Schools:
  • Integrating health and education.
  • Community-based supports and interventions that promote good health.
  • The impact of school-based or school-linked social services on learning.
Family and Community Engagement in Community Schools:
  • How are community schools helping build a constituency for public education?
  • How have local community school initiatives used the media to make their case?
  • How are community schools utilizing parents and family members as decision makers in the education process?
Community Development in Community Schools:
  • Promising practices in connecting community and schools.
  • Stories of the community schools role in addressing community problems.
  • Communities of faith in community schools.
  • Community organizing in community schools.
Community Schools Planning and Managment:
  • Role of community-wide planning and governance groups.
  • Role of site-based planning and management teams.
  • How community schools coordinators help align community supports and opportunities with learning.
  • Managing community schools.
  • How are school organizing themselves to support a community schools strategy.
Leadership and Professional Development:
  • Strategies for strengthening Principal Leadership in Community Schools.
  • Approaches to preparing educators and people from other disciplines to work together in a community school setting.
  • Other professional development approaches in community schools.
Schools Facilities Planning and Construction:
  • Influencing School Construction Planning.
  • Joint construction and joint use arrangement between schools and other public and private entities.
Financing Strategies:
  • Innovative strategies for financing and sustaining community schools.
  • 21st Century Community Learning Centers that have served as the foundation for a community school strategy.
Results and Evaluation:
  • Outcome-Focused Planning: Creating a Vision and a Strategy for Community Schools.
  • Evaluation Strategies.
Coalition Building and State Policy:
  • Building and Sustaining State Coalitions To Support Community Schools.
  • Developing linkages between networks associated with community schools: school health, after school, violence prevention.
  • Influencing state policy for 21st Century Community Learning Centers.
 Design

The following teaching methods can be used:
Lecture - The speaker presents to the audience and allows 10-15 minutes for questions and answers at the end of the presentation.
Demonstration - The presenter explains and demonstrates the skills or techniques required for a particular methodology or practical activity.
Discussion - The presenter ( or panelists) and audience share and expand their ideas, experiences, and knowledge of the materials being presented.
Case Study - The audience examines and discusses the issues described in a case study of a situation which is addressed by or resultant from the research or program being presented, seeking possible solutions (or alternative solutions) to the problems identified.

These are the presentation format options:
Concurrent Presentation - A concurrent presentation is an in-depth 1½-hour presentation given as a concurrent breakout session.
Roundtable Discussions - Round table discussions will be offered during the lunch hour on Monday, June 24. These discussions are designed for networking and sharing of challenges and promising practices. Roundtables are well-facilitated informal, participatory discussions and should be limited to a maximum of two speakers.
Institutes - Institutes are 3-hour sessions that may incorporate multiple presentation options. These institutes should focus on a particular issue and offer well defined goals and objectives.

Part III - Submission of Abstracts

We are using an on-line Internet form for submitting abstracts. Forms for electronic submission are located at www.communityschool.org/submissionform. These forms may also be printed and then submitted via fax. Presenters are asked to complete the entire Submission Form. Please submit your proposal(s) no later than February 1, 2002 by submitting the form online, by e-mail to ccs@iel.org or by faxing the completed form to: ATTN: Will Blackwell, Subj: Forum Proposal, (202) 872-4050.

Those who submit abstracts will be notified of the committee's decision by late February 2002.

Selection Criteria

Abstracts will be reviewed for the following:

  • Relevance to Forum theme and topic areas
  • Clarity of intent, description and design
  • Clarity of learning objectives
  • Practical usefulness to participants
  • Innovation and creativity in presentation content
  • Degree of participant involvement: such as skill building, active/participatory learning, and interactive discussions

Presenter Guidelines

  • Presenter is responsible for all travel-related expenses.
  • Presenter contributes his/her services in a volunteer capacity.
  • Presenter is responsible for providing all presentation materials and handouts.
  • Presenters may be asked to combine their presentations with other like submissions that will result in a stronger session.
Proposal Submission Form