Higher Achievement Triathletes!

We're so inspired by our scholars' hard work and dedication that we're putting ours to the test - a team of Higher Achievement staff members and supporters have joined up to train for and complete the Kinetic Sprint Triathlon in Spotsylvania, VA on May 15th! The race will consist of a 750 meter swim, 18 mile bike ride, and 5 kilometer run. In addition to this physical challenge, team members are also charged with raising at least $100 each in support of Higher Achievement. This is the second year we've competed (pic from 2010 above), and we can't wait!

We're pretty tough (and we're getting even tougher by the day!) but we can't do it alone. Here's how you can help:

Join our Triathlon team

Are you looking for a fun way to meet your fitness goals and raise money for a great cause? Join us! The team will offer training and fundraising support for all members – and will even feature a few friendly competitions to inspire success on all fronts. If you are interested in participating (or completing just one of the events as part of a relay team) please email Mike Di Marco (mdimarco@higherachievement.org) for more information.

Help us reach our fundraising goal

Help us reach our fundraising goals (and make crossing the finish line on May 15 that much sweeter). Click here to donate online. To make sure your gift is counted towards our goal, please write “Triathlon” in the designation line.

Spread the word

Share this post with your networks. This is a super fun way to get involved in Higher Achievement, reach your fitness goals, and support our young people – and you definitely don’t have to be a triathlete to join us (although we’d love that too). All are welcome!

Throughout training, we’ll be posting pictures, updates, and news from the team on our blog and on Twitter (@HigherAchieve). Stay tuned!

ACTion Alexandria

Our friends at ACT for Alexandria have launched a very exciting tool that empowers citizens to make positive change in their community.

From their website:

ACTion Alexandria is a web-based platform that brings together neighbors and local nonprofit organizations to exchange ideas, coordinate efforts, and solve problems in our community.

How does ACTion Alexandria work?

ACTion Alexandria works closely with local government and nonprofit organizations to collect and prioritize community needs and turn them into actions and challenges for citizens.

• Each week, ACTion Alexandria features a new action that targets the need of a local nonprofit organization in the form of donations of goods, services,and/or funds.


• Citizens can help solve large-scale community problems by submitting their solutions to challenges hosted on the site.
  

Visit http://www.actionalexandria.org/ to learm more about this fabulous initiative - and help us spread the word!

Maryland Out-of-School Time Network's Advocacy Night

Rashard, Zybriah, Del. Tarrant

Last week, our Higher Achievement Baltimore team attended the Maryland Out-of-School Time Network (MOST) advocacy night in Annapolis. MOST organized the event to bring together OST providers from across Maryland to highlight the importance of afterschool and summer programs – and to raise awareness and mobilize support for two pieces of legislation being considered by the Maryland General Assembly during this legislative session.

Ashburton 7th grade scholars Zybriah Murphy and Rashard Gilliard met with Delegate Shawn Tarrant (District 40) to discuss the importance of OST programs like Higher Achievement to youth in Maryland. Zybriah recalled that during one of her classes her teacher introduced a concept that Zybriah had already learned in Higher Achievement’s Summer Academy. She emphasized to the Delegate that students need extra support and opportunities to succeed during the critical middle school years. She also recognized that the hard work she does at Higher Achievement will pay off when she is ready to explore her high school options.

Rashard’s literature mentor, Mr. Andre Wood, was also on hand and described the rich discussion that Higher Achievement literature lessons have inspired between Rashard and his fellow scholars. He described the deep and sticky cultural issues that scholars might not have a chance to explore in school, such as the 19th century policy that took Indian children from their families and placed them in white schools in an attempt to assimilate them and destroy Indian culture. Mr. Andre, an employee of Constellation Energy, is one of 90 Baltimore citizens who have committed to one night a week of mentoring middle school scholars and supporting their academic enrichment in preparation for top high school programs.

Thanks for MOST for organizing the event and for their continued work advocating for OST programs – read more about their efforts and the upcoming legislation here.

DC Scholars Meet Rep. Norton!

On Monday, six Higher Achievement scholars visited Capitol Hill to meet Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton and take a tour of the Capitol building. Scholars from Wards 1, 4, 6, and 8 participated in the field trip, taking advantage of this wonderful opportunity during a day of no school for most other students in the District. Scholars were able to have a private meeting with the Congresswoman (thanks to Ward 6 mentor David Lyons for setting it up!) as well as a personal tour of the Capitol Rotunda and the Senate Floor Gallery. At the end of the visit, scholars rated the trip a 10 out of 10, even though they had to walk through the pouring rain just to make it on time!

Big thanks to Rep. Norton!

Join Us! Higher Achievement's Sixth Annual Literary Love Poetry Performance

On February 23, twelve of our amazing scholars will perform original poetry at The Kennedy Center as part of our sixth annual Literary Love Poetry Performance! Because we just can’t wait to show you what our scholars are made of, here’s a sneak peek:



Hope you can join us on the 23rd!

The Family Theater
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
2700 F Street, NW Washington, DC 20566

Wednesday, February 23, 2011
7:30-8:30pm
Doors open at 7pm
RSVP to Abigail Cohen at 202.375.7715 or acohen@higherachievement.org

National Service: An Investment We Can't Afford to Lose

From The Chronicle for Philanthropy:

Nonprofit lobbyists will have their hands full in the new Congress. House Republican leaders have already said they want to bring a big chunk of federal spending this year back to 2008 levels.

But now a group of conservative Republicans says that’s not enough. The Republican Study Committee, a bloc of more than 165 members, unveiled a proposal Thursday that would end a range of federal programs that benefit charities and their clients.

Among its proposals:
* Eliminate AmeriCorps and other national-service programs.
* Abolish the Agency for International Development.
* Close the national endowments for the arts and humanities and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
* End Department of Energy grants to help low-income people weatherize their homes.

National service programs like AmeriCorps are not a drain on our resources – quite the opposite. They provide support systems and opportunities that not only make our communities better, but that help our communities function – especially when economic times are tough. Higher Achievement has been fortunate enough to host several talented VISTA volunteers and AmeriCorps direct service members, and we see every day the impact that these tremendous programs have on community-based organizations, the youth and families we serve, and our communities at large.

Because of the expanded capacity made possible by VISTA volunteers over the past three years, we have: expanded and improved our volunteer recruitment, management, and retention practices (critical to securing long-term positive academic outcomes for scholars); developed and implemented new family engagement strategies based on best practices in the field; engaged new funders and champions to ensure sustainability; piloted an alumni engagement strategy to ease the transition to 9th grade; and developed programmatic partnerships that provide social services safety nets to our most at-risk scholars and their families.

Midway through our first year hosting direct service AmeriCorps members at our DC Achievement Centers we are already seeing them make great strides to improve our services to scholars and families, as well as deepening our school partnerships. One Member at our Ward 6 center, Ms. Amelia, embodies the impact of this program. Amelia noticed that a group of scholars in her study hall, who all had the same science teacher at school, were earning Cs in that class, even though she knew they had been very engaged in science over the summer at Higher Achievement. Amelia met with the teacher, and learned that the scholars had been completing their assignments incorrectly. She and the teacher worked together to identify improvement strategies, and she began working with those scholars in a special extended study hall, focused on their science assignments. By the time report cards were released, all of the scholars had increased their grades to an A. Without the expanded capacity at Center to drill down deeply on scholars’ individualized needs in the classroom, we would never have been able to help shepherd such dramatic improvement. The AmeriCorps program allows Higher Achievement to increase its full-time Center staffing by 50% at nominal cost to the organization, and our scholars are already reaping the rewards.

AmeriCorps and other national service programs are making a dramatic impact on the capacity of community-based organizations working in the most at-risk communities across the country. We know without a doubt that economic opportunity for our country begins in our schools, homes, and on our streets. If we are to see the reap the rewards tomorrow, we must invest in those places today.

- Richard Tagle
CEO, Higher Achievement

Higher Achievement Honors MLK Day!

Higher Achievement will be partnering with both Greater DC Cares and The DC AmeriCorps Leadership Council in recognition of service on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Brushes in hand, Higher Achievement staff will help paint the Family Health and Birth Center in Northeast DC, in order to help it meet health code regulations. The center provides services to hundreds of low income families around the DC area, insuring healthy deliveries and development of children and their families.

The Family Health and Birth Center’s mission is to provide family centered community based primary health care services with a focus on prevention. Additionally, the center provides maternity and birth care, health care services, integrated family development services and improvement of the health status of families in the surrounding community.

Get live updates and photos of the event by following @higherachieve on Twitter. There will be live tweets from Higher Achievement Staff on the progress of the project.