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EXECUTIVE NARRATIVE

EWC SCHOOL OF URBAN EDUCATION

The primary purpose and application areas of the Urban Education Institute is to develop a 21^st Middle College integrated education initiative supported by scientific-like knowledge that practitioners can apply at the local level to solve local problems. Outreach from the Urban Education division will be closely monitored and developed over a five year learning plan that reinforces academic excellence throughout the District, civic engagement and service learning, and heavy emphasis on career training and local job placement.

The Blacksonville Community Network (BCN) in partnership with Edward Waters College School of Urban Education will serve as management consultant and IT project manager on behalf of the Community Resource Network (CRNetwork) to assist in the creation of a sustainable, action-driven, urban model that promotes and implements online and offline programs in diverse learning environments.

MIDDLE COLLEGE (PRE COLLEGE ACADEMY)

The Mission of the Middle College (Pre College Academy) is to empower socio-economically deprived youth through quality, integrated education and web-based training in new media in preparation of college placement and/or high wage employment. The advance career and academic curriculum will garner volunteer and paid support from competent and confident professionals and experienced educators committed to develop excellence in scholarship, research and community service.

BCN will partner with and train community-based organizations (CBOs) to help local disenfranchised residents, particularly African Americans who most suffer from the Digital Divide, to obtain and retain high-value employment using technology and telecommunications. BCN’s primary goal is to create an economic development initiative in Jacksonville, Florida by galvanizing support and the adoption of broadband technology to create an Internet-based network that identifies community assets and connects community residents to critical information exchange, virtual learning tools, events, and online business mentors for continuing support. It will also provide adult “life skills” and technology-based employment training (including digital media, web publishing, journalism, and basic computer services), internships, and linkage to higher wage jobs.

Mayor John Peyton says the 2009 State of Jacksonville’s Children: Racial and Ethnic Disparities Report shows the city has a number of challenges to overcome.

PREMISE (BASIS) – PROBLEM DEFINITION

STRATEGY TO SUPPORT END USERS

As we enter middle ground of the Recession, unemployment remains at an all time high, funding has declined, and most employers are required to work double the time with less pay. To help low income employers and cope with this alarming increase in workload, the Blacksonville Community Network (BCN) in partnership with Edward Waters College School of Urban Education will assist in the development of a “Community Resource Network” (CRNetwork) charged with the delivery of career counseling and professional training using an integrated-approach to education, youth services and curricula designed specifically for seniors, adults in transition, and “at risk” youth. Our technical staff will support area CBOs and businesses by empowering case workers, counselors, and employees with online resources, tips, and eLearning tools that will help them work more efficiently and effectively. We also assist social service agencies in the recruitment and retention process by implementing new ways of intake, assessment delivery, hiring, skill-building, and community awareness strategies. We understand the importance of innovative methods of training that meet diverse learning styles. For example, a caseworker can reduce administrative and transportation time by E-mailing or texting her follow-up reports from a client’s home without returning to the office.

EWC School of Urban Education will be supported by community partners, a central office and training center, and a minimum of one full time technical assistant /trainer provided by the Blacksonville Community Network (BCN). Its local partners, its partner’s clients, and the designated sites will be linked through the internet using a local broadband provider, such as Comcast or Bellsouth. By using a local internet service provider, the Community Employment Network will be able to directly affect community-wide growth in underserved areas in need.

The CRNetwork webpage and information will be hosted under EWC’s School of Urban Education’s Middle College, Pre College Academy initiative, through a new website developed and maintained by the Blacksonville Community Network or Blacksonville’s existing community portal. To expand reach, a dedicated channel under the Blacksonville Community Network’s top ranked homepage (www.blacksonville.com) will also link Partner sites creating an effective listserv of CBO and neighborhood activities, events, businesses, and services to establish a strong since of community ownership and inclusion.

Our vision is for the Community Resource Network to link the homes of 25-50 disadvantaged youth, foster care recipients, mentees, etc to their caseworkers so they can interact more frequently and effectively leverage our the various support programs.

** Start info about “Florida and Duval County…willingness to use their services to improve their lives. **

The CRNetwork will automate the support services administrative processes so that dedicated caseworkers will have adequate time to communicate online with their clients. As part of this automation, Internet connections with high speed broadband will permit CBO’s access to existing State and City social service agency networks in order to collapse administrative process cycles and pertinent information, thus affording more time for conducting and evaluating private counseling through a password-protected, backend environment as required by law. As well, the CRNetwork will facilitate entry into the job market for able seniors and foster care students by connecting them to virtual job banks, providing online mentor matches and by offering supportive and practical business advice, such as resume critiques, broadband usage tips, and job listings to process employment applications online.

BCN will support new media training for youth who aspire to pursue higher wage technology-related jobs by offering real world experience to program participants. Finally, it will offer more effective, efficient and personalized “life skills” training with computerized Individual Action Plans (IAP) to create full-functioning, responsible adults who are better able to retain the jobs they acquire (as measured by job retention rates and expressed employer satisfaction). Last, it will give computer-based training to residents and small businesses seeking to enhance their knowledge and competitiveness while supporting them to mentor and advertise online.

In practice, a participating teenage foster child will be able to log on a PC at home using the minimum requirements for Broadband, as defined by the National Technical Information Administration NTIA as “a means of providing two-way data transmission with advertised speeds of at least 768 kilobits per second (kbps) downstream and at least 200 kbps upstream to end users or providing sufficient capacity in a middle mile project to support the provision of broadband service to end users”.

The first thing the user will see is an Internet access screen to EWC’s School of Urban Education, Pre College Academy (P.C.A.) with recent posts about the latest news from the Community Resource Center. From there the foster child can move to other content and pages where he/she can see his/her training class schedules or use a web browser to access other websites to research or complete online projects that have been assigned by the designated BCN trainer. A user can email his/her caseworker or mentor, assist another trainee with their assignment and use File Transfer Protocol (ftp access) to download or upload material from designated Internet sites. The caseworker will be able to collaborate in “real time” with clients or other caseworkers to compare experiences and interact online using the latest remote applications that fit our processes.

The Internet will serve as an efficient means of support care, customer service and to create a low-cost community network. This electronic community model is scalable, replicable and interoperable. The Community Resource Network will link two CBO training Centers: DOT Street Complex and the Schell Sweet Center across from Edward Waters College. It will also link a minimum of 12 public-access PCs, mentors and the 80 program participants.

The Blacksonville Community Network has serviced the greater First Coast community for nearly ten years. The private, minority owned and operated (MBE) company has helped more than 1,000 local businesses survive and creates employment and entrepreneurial opportunities to promote sustainable models of urban development. In order for public computer centers to become self-funding and highly functioning entities for its stakeholders, most Community Based Organization (CBOs) charge fees for training. CBOs are also PC distribution centers for the sale of affordable state-of-the-art computers and service delivery. The Blacksonville Community Network will recruit wholesale manufactures and create dynamic fundraiser opportunities for donated PCs, IT services and other necessary items. As part of this initiative, BCN will administer and assess Individualized Action Plans (IAP), design a broadband awareness and education campaign, install and network all training labs, hire and train all computer trainers, develop offline and virtual curriculum, provide access to affordable computers, and ensure high speed broadband Internet access to all project participants.

EDUCATION DIRECTOR

Position: A Director will be chosen to lead the EWC School of Urban Education in 2010. As the largest and most comprehensive graduate and professional school of education in the United States, Teachers College offers graduate degrees in more than 60 areas of study across education, psychology and health. The College’s mission is rooted in expanding access and opportunity for underrepresented populations. Central to that mission, CRNetwork serves urban communities and their diverse students, families and schools, engaging in research, teaching, information dissemination, community outreach, professional development, collaborative partnerships, and public service. The Director of the CRNetwork will play a pivotal role in leading that effort and building the capacity of the Institute as the leading organization of its kind in the nation.

Responsibilities: Reporting to the Community Resource Network Advisory Council, the Director of CRNetwork will carry out a program of research, teaching, external funding, professional development, outreach and technical assistance, mobilizing faculty and students from all parts of the School of Urban Education. The Director will assume responsibility for organizing, collecting and disseminating the

multi-disciplinary work in urban education and human development, especially that conducted by EWC faculty. In addition, the Director will assist in recruiting additional faculty to build the Institute with appointments in fields and disciplines related to the mission of Teachers College.

Qualifications: Earned doctorate in a field or discipline related to the mission of Teachers College, a relevant record of scholarship, teaching and service at the level of tenured associate or full professor, and demonstrated experience in leadership both within academic settings and in direct engagement with underrepresented communities.

Rank: The Director will hold a tenured faculty position as Associate Professor or Professor in the CRNetwork and in an academic department related to his or her field or discipline.

EWC School of Urban Education as an institution is committed to a policy of equal opportunity in employment. In offering education, psychology, and health studies, the College is committed to providing expanding employment opportunities to persons of color, women, and persons with disabilities in its own activities and in society.