Programs

Equity-Centered Professional Learning Community Grants 2009-2010

Guidelines, Applications, and Deadlines

The application period for 2009-2010 is now closed. Please check back for 2010-2011 application information.

Overview

The Education Fund's Equity-Centered Professional Learning Community Grants are for teams of 5 or more teachers and provide for ongoing site-based equity-centered professional learning communities (ECPLC). Schools accepted into the ECPLC Grants program will receive up to $10,000 worth of resources supporting the development of an ECPLC aimed at improving student outcomes around English language literacy by way of enhancing teacher learning.

ECPLC’s are site-based teacher networks that provide opportunities for teachers to share their best practices, look at student work, gain support, build community, and reflect on their work. Teachers may create new or use existing models of ECPLC’s.

PLC Facilitators from each ECPLC Grant will participate in a PLC Facilitator cohort group and receive training and ongoing individualized coaching from our partner, San Francisco Coalition of Essential Small Schools.

Expected Outcomes

Demonstrable gains in English language literacy outcomes for students served by teachers participating in the ECPLC, with an emphasis on traditionally underserved student populations.
Establishment of high quality, ongoing teacher professional learning and collaboration that leads to benefits for teachers and students.

Program Requirements

The PLC Facilitator from each ECPLC Grant will participate in the following:

SF CESS Equity Based Critical Friends Group Coaches (CFG) Training, August 3-7, 2009
One Full day and two evening PLC Facilitators cohort follow up meetings scheduled for September, January, and April
One other participant from each ECPLC can participate in the August 3-7 training and the PLC Facilitators cohort follow up meetings. Applications with this level of participation will be considered to be stronger.
The equivalent of two full days of site-based coaching

Create a site-based Professional Learning Community and hold ongoing meetings on average 2 to 4 times per month
While a primary focus area of the ECPLC’s work will be aimed at changing student outcomes around English language literacy, there are no limits on subject areas or grade level
Grantees will be expected to share their work (presentation on their process and findings) in a spring showcase that will celebrate their accomplishments and lessons learned
Proposals need to be designed, submitted, and facilitated by teachers and endorsed by principals
Has Department, grade, or school-wide impact

Example configurations include creating ECPLC’s for the 4th and 5th grade teachers, or the whole Humanities Department in a middle school, or an IRF as PLC Facilitator leading a high school Social Science or English department ECPLC,
…. or some other design that fits your school’s needs

Grant Proposals must demonstrate the following:

Theory of action for meeting the expected outcomes. Please tell us what you plan to do and why.
Alignment with principles of emerging SFUSD framework for professional development.

Builds strong collegial relationships that support meaningful collaboration, and reflection.
Differentiated. Addresses the diverse needs of adult learners (new and experienced teachers) and is connected to practice (deepens teacher knowledge, builds skill and improves instruction). Professional Development (PD) participants play a collaborative role in identifying their learning needs.
Sustainable. Is ongoing, built into teachers’ work day, and aligned with school and district priorities.
Equity-Centered. Includes discourse II to address social justice issues in teaching and education, including attention to fairness and equity with regard to gender, race, class, disability, sexual orientation, etc. so that all students experience fair and caring schools.
Focused on student learning. The success of the PD is ultimately measured by the extent to which it helps teachers increase student learning and achievement. PD will need to be continually assessed for effectiveness and modified to remain relevant to the needs of its participants.

Alignment with your school-wide goals in the Balanced Score Card.
Alignment with SFUSD’s current strategic plan

Access and Equity: Make social justice a reality.
Student Achievement: Engage high achieving and joyful learners.
Accountability: Keep our promises to students and families.

Funding Level

Up to $10,000 worth of resources will be provided to each school site. $4,000 will be used for the training and coaching provided by SFCESS. The remaining $6,000 worth of funding is discretionary and can be used for, but is not limited to:

Professional fees or stipends for outside consultant or the PLC Facilitator
Expenses for attendance at professional development workshop or conference
Teacher stipends or substitutes for teacher release time.
Materials, curriculum
Food for meetings

Click here for a sample of a Budget Table

San Francisco Education Fund support for grantees

To support teachers in cultivating strong ECPLC’s in their schools, there will be a coach to work with the PLC Facilitators collectively and individually, over the summer and during the school year; creating a network of PLC Facilitators/teacher leaders. The focus of the coaching will be to develop the facilitation skills and leadership capacity of these teacher leaders to engage their colleagues in robust ECPLC’s at their schools.
Our intention is to fund ECPLC Grants for multiple years because we recognize that sustained change takes time and multiyear grants are more likely to impact sustained progress. Decisions to extend grants will consider the grantee’s progress on achieving their stated goals and outcomes at the end of each grant cycle.
We plan to invest in outcome-based annual evaluations of the grants to monitor the success of our grantees and our program’s impact.