The Arkansas Department of Education is offering districts the opportunity to partner with approved School Turnaround providers to increase academic achievement at targeted schools.  Two separate programs provided by America’s Choice -- the America’s Choice School Design and the ACT, Inc./America’s Choice-sponsored Rigor & Readiness Comprehensive Design -- have been approved by Arkansas to be funded by School Improvement Grant funds. Implementation of selected intervention models would begin in the 2010-2011 school year.

“As an Arkansas educator for more than sixteen years, I am especially committed to making Arkansas a leader in education,” said Dr. Ken James, executive vice president and chief operating officer of America’s Choice and former Arkansas commissioner of education. James also previously served as superintendent in Little Rock, Van Buren and Batesville, Arkansas. “With these programs, we have the tools to empower educators and students, dramatically transform school culture and increase student outcomes in Arkansas’ lowest performing schools.”

The America’s Choice School Design is a coherent, comprehensive design that offers exceptional instructional materials and strategies with first-rate coaching and professional development. The America’s Choice School Design helps districts and schools create a standards-based system with assessments that monitor progress and inform instruction, align instruction to standards, strengthen instructional leadership, build professional learning communities and engage parents and the community.

The Rigor & Readiness Comprehensive Design, produced by ACT and America’s Choice, is an innovative program that capitalizes on the complementary strengths and experiences of both organizations. Rigor & Readiness is a fully-aligned instructional and assessment system designed to prepare all students for rigorous high school work to ensure college and career success. ACT and America’s Choice have also been approved as School Turnaround providers for Rigor and Readiness in Colorado, Illinois and Massachusetts. America's Choice has been approved as a School Turnaround provider for the America’s Choice School Design and Instructional Solutions in Hawaii, Washington and Massachusetts.

“Though Arkansas has made great strides over the past decade towards improving education for all students, gaps remain in test scores and graduation rates based on race and income,” said Judy Codding, president and chief executive officer of America’s Choice. “By providing Arkansas schools with coherent and aligned instructional systems, America’s Choice will work hand in hand with Arkansas’ principals and teachers to reduce the educational disparities that continue to affect low-performing populations.”

In 2006, the Arkansas Department of Education selected America’s Choice in a competitive bidding process as its turnaround partner for schools facing restructuring. Presently, over 40 schools in Arkansas are working with America’s Choice on several programs.  Arkansas has seen excellent growth in student achievement in literacy and math since implementing America’s Choice. In literacy, America’s Choice schools experienced a 7.3 percent increase in proficiency in the elementary grades on the state test from 2006 to 2007, compared with a 3 percent increase for the state of Arkansas. In mathematics, America’s Choice schools had a 17.4 percent increase in proficiency in the elementary grades on the state test, compared with 11 percent for the state of Arkansas.

Both the America’s Choice School Design and Rigor & Readiness are aligned with the goals of the School Improvement Grant to change patterns of low performance and close achievement gaps. More than 650 schools throughout the country participate in one of four America’s Choice School Design solutions: the America’s Choice Elementary School Design, America’s Choice K-8 School Design, America’s Choice Middle School Design and America’s Choice High School Design. The powerful, research-based interventions at the heart of America’s Choice School Design align with Arkansas’ standards for literacy, math and science, and the Arkansas Curriculum Frameworks. The tiered approach to instruction (Response to Intervention model), which targets students at varying performance levels, has produced greater student achievement, higher test scores, increased graduation rates, fewer discipline problems, and more effective leadership and teaching for all students, including English Language Learners and special education students.

Rigor & Readiness addresses academic performance by aligning standards and assessments that reach back from college entrance to elementary school, making it possible to set students’ compasses for college and career readiness early on. As with America’s Choice School Design, Rigor & Readiness includes a tiered set of interventions to support all students’ preparation for college and careers. Rigor & Readiness provides services in four areas shown by research to be critical to school improvement: organizational management and leadership, academic performance, comprehensive planning, and learning environment. Services are delivered through a multi-layered system of support, involving intensive professional development, field guides and monographs, regular network meetings to foster collaboration, and onsite coaching and technical assistance. 

For more information on America’s Choice in Arkansas, visit here.

# # #