University of Chicago Urban Education Institute
The University of Chicago Urban Education Institute (UEI) is the parent organization of the USI Network. UEI is committed to creating new knowledge and educational models to address the enduring challenges of providing reliably excellent schooling to children in Chicago. As a hub for this ambitious endeavor, UEI is home to practitioners and researchers actively engaged in collaborative work to that end. The USI Network shares UEI’s commitment to high-quality urban education, and collaborates with various Institute programs to provide its schools access to high-quality supports and tools. [Read more about UEI: http://uei.uchicago.edu/about/index.shtml ]
The Consortium on Chicago School Research (CCSR) is a critical player in providing the Chicago Public School district and schools with data that will inform system-wide and school-level change. The USI Network collaborates with CCSR through the Data Practice Collaborative (DPC) – a unique partnership between CCSR analysts and three school networks. The DPC is committed to understanding the kind of data that schools need to inform both long-term and real-time decision-making. Along with our CCSR colleagues, we design data reports and displays for Network schools and support leadership teams’ reflection on and development of instructional improvement efforts. [Read more about CCSR: http://ccsr.uchicago.edu/content/page.php?cat=1 ]
The Strategic Teaching and Evaluation of Progress (STEP) literacy assessment was developed at UEI to assess typically occurring stages in reading development for the purpose of planning and providing targeted reading instruction to whole groups, small groups, and individual students. USI Network elementary schools have access to the STEP literacy assessment, including training and support for its administration and use to support intentional primary literacy assessment and instruction. [Read more about STEP: http://uei.uchicago.edu/work/step/index.shtml ]
The University of Chicago Urban Teacher Education Program (Chicago UTEP) prepares its students to become successful teachers-and eventually teacher leaders-in urban elementary schools and high schools, with a particular emphasis on Chicago. Chicago UTEP is a unique teacher preparation program that immediately situates its learners in schools and classrooms, providing them with more classroom-based training than typical programs require. USI Network schools are connected with Chicago UTEP in numerous ways – USI Network teachers serve as clinical instructors, USI Network schools serve as practicum placements, and some Chicago UTEP graduates are members of the teaching faculty at USI Network schools. [Read more about Chicago UTEP: http://utep.uchicago.edu/ ]
UEI has designed the 6to16 college readiness program to provide schools with an intentional, forward-thinking approach to preparing urban students to be successful in college, starting in the 6th grade. The 6to16 approach consists of a school-based curriculum, designed to be delivered by teachers during the school day, and an online social network that students can access both at the school and on their own time. This innovative program is being piloted in 4 schools in Chicago, 3 of which are USI Network members. [Read more about 6to16: http://uei.uchicago.edu/work/6to16/index.shtml]