January 25, 2011 Agenda and Informational Link

TOWN COUNCIL

AD HOC STRATEGIC INNOVATION FOR FINANCING TEACHING

TELECONFERENCE MEETING

WINDHAM TOWN HALL MEETING ROOM

TUESDAY, JANUARY 25, 2011 7:00 PM

Agenda

1. Call to order

2. Presentations and Special Reports

a. Chris Barbic, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Houston’s YES Prep Public Schools. **This guest will be speaking to us via phone, and will not be in attendance in person.**

3. Approval of minutes

a. Approval of the minutes of the January 11, 2011 meeting

b. Approval of the minutes of the January 20, 2011 meeting

4. Old Business

5. New business

6. Future Agenda Items

a. Windham Federation of Teachers?

b. Upcoming timeline and deadline

c. Next meeting: February 8, 2011 at the Windham High School Media Center from 7 – 9 pm

7. Citizens and delegations

8. Adjournment

About YES Prep: http://yesprep.org/

MISSION
YES Prep Public Schools exists to increase the number of low-income Houstonians who graduate from a four-year college prepared to compete in the global marketplace and committed to improving disadvantaged communities.

YES PREP PUBLIC SCHOOLS
YES Prep Public Schools is a free, open-enrollment public school system that serves 4,200 students across eight schools in the Houston area. YES Prep has been ranked as among the top 100 public high schools in the nation by Newsweek and U.S. News & World Report. Every year, 100 percent of YES Prep’s graduating seniors have been accepted into four-year colleges, including Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Rice and Stanford. YES Prep combines a highly successful 6th-12th grade model along with high standards for student achievement.

YES PREP STUDENTS

• 90% of YES Prep students are first-generation college bound
• 80% of YES Prep students are economically disadvantaged
• 95% of YES Prep students are Hispanic or African American
• Most students enter YES Prep at least one grade level behind in Math and English

STANDARDS FOR SUCCESS

• Parents, students and teachers sign a contract that states they will do Whatever It Takes to succeed at YES Prep
• "YES” stands for Youth Engaged in Service and students dedicate one Saturday each month to community service projects
• Teachers have school-sponsored cell phones for students to contact them during the evenings and weekends with questions
• YES Prep requires its students participate in longer school days, a longer school year, college research trips, summer school and summer opportunities

YES PREP CORE VALUES

• Achieve excellent results through continuous improvement
• Attract and develop high-caliber people as the source of our strength
• Build and maintain positive relationships
• Create opportunities that would otherwise not exist
• Achieve social justice
  

About Chris Barbic:

Chris Barbic, Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Founder and Chief Executive Officer Chris Barbic oversees all of the senior management and school directors. Prior to founding YES Prep, Chris taught for six years in Houston ISD and was a member of Teach for America. In 1995, he earned Houston ISD’s Outstanding Young Educator. Chris has earned a number of awards for his contribution to the educational reform movement, including The Do Something Foundation’s Do Something Brick Award in 2000. In 2001, he was selected by President Bush to serve on the President’s Commission on Excellence in Hispanic Education and in 2006 was awarded Vanderbilt University’s Distinguished Alumnus Award. Chris graduated from Vanderbilt University in 1992 with a bachelor’s degree in English and Human Development.