Supporting Effective Teaching in Tennessee: Executive Summary | Page 52

education. Since its inception in 1990, MEGA has funded over 150 different projects, totaling over $400,000 in total investment. Started with just a single check for $10,000 from the district’s largest employer, the foundation has continued to raise small dollar donations from engaged businesses and parents to support educational projects of teachers in the district who would otherwise not be able to find funding. Although many districts in the state have education foundations, MEGA is one of the most successful, especially given the relatively small size of the Milan community. Parents as Teachers Wilson County Wilson County Schools, Lebanon Special School District, the University of Tennessee Extension Services, and Prospect, Inc. have come together to form the Wilson County Parents as Teachers (WCPAT) program. Based on the national Parents as Teachers model, WCPAT focuses on ensuring school readiness for every child by hosting group support meetings and providing parents with personal home visits by trained specialists. These meetings and visits serve as opportunities for parents to receive information about child development and the educational needs of their young children. Additionally, the program connects parents with social services agencies, medical agencies, childcare organizations, and social activities in the community. As a benefit of enrolling in the program, children also receive access to free learning development and health screenings. Y-CAP for three months. Longitudinal studies have shown Y-CAP graduates have a 90 percent high school graduation rate, 17 percentage points higher than the district average. Since the implementation of both programs, truancy rates in the district have declined 8 percentage points. Safe Schools / Healthy Students Initiative Bradley County and Cleveland City Schools Bradley County and Cleveland City School District are implementing a Safe Schools/Healthy Students initiative. Initially funded by the U.S. Department of Education, the initiative includes several programs aimed at creating safe schools and promoting healthy childhood development. For example, over half the faculty in the two districts have been trained and are now implementing Second Step, a violence prevention program geared to preschool through eighth grade students. The districts have also established a Juvenile Drug Court liaison who is responsible for providing intensive, yearlong support to first-time non-violent drug offenders. Every elementary school was also given a School Resource Officer (SRO), and every high school was given two SROs. As a result of these programs, arrests, petitions, and citations of juveniles in both districts have been cut in half. Both Bradley County and Cleveland City schools are working to determine which aspects of these programs can be maintained now that the federal grant has expired. Truancy Prevention Program Hamilton County Public Schools Alarmed by their ranking as the state’s u rban district with the highest truancy rate, Hamilton County Public Schools partnered with the county sheriff’s office and local police department to improve student attendance. Since state law defines a student as being truant when they miss more the five days of school, the district implemented a policy where after a student’s fourth absence, school administrators are required to call the student’s parents and ask them to come to the school for an informal meeting to discuss the child’s attendance. If a student reaches a sixth absence, parents are called into a meeting with administrators and representatives from the Hamilton County Juvenile Court, who warn parents and students about the legal actions that can be taken if truancy continues. In a collaborative but separate program called YMCA Community Action Program (Y-CAP), up to 20 students with frequent absences receive support services including after-school tutoring and one-on-one counseling. Students typically stay enrolled in 51