Network Schools
The Urban School Improvement (USI) Network is a unique collaboration of 19 new elementary and secondary Chicago public schools that are dedicated to creating existence proof that every child in Chicago, from pre-kindergarten through high school, can learn at high levels, regardless of their race, ethnicity, or socio-economic background. United by a common set of beliefs about effective urban education, USI Network schools share practices, tools, resources and lessons learned in a professional community committed to ensuring that all its students are prepared for success in college and careers.
The 19 Network schools and USI Network staff and collaborators, facilitated by the Urban Education Institute (UEI) and the University of Chicago, offer an innovative new design for an urban school system. First, member schools focus on the quality of instruction as the single most important means by which they can deliver on the promise to educate Chicago’s children to high levels of learning. Second, network schools have the flexibility and autonomy to effectively address the needs of their students. Third, schools in the network benefit from well-aligned supports, provided by the University of Chicago, to make continuous improvements in the quality of teaching and learning.
Ultimately, Network schools work together to realize a common set of goals and objectives. These shared goals include:
1. Engaging every child every school in rigorous intellectual work every day
2. Strengthening instruction through distributive leadership
3. Engaging in evidence-based decision-making
4. Fostering a professional learning community among all staff by making school practices public for observation, analysis and improvement
5. Integrating academic and social supports
6. Forming partnerships with parents and communities
7. Addressing historic social inequities by providing a high-quality education for all children, regardless of race, culture or class
8. Learning from each other so as to bring about and sustain high-quality schooling for 10,000 children from prekindergarten through the twelfth grade
To realize these common goals Network-wide, the USI Network will be particularly focusing, during this 2009-2010 school year, on making practices public, defining and identifying rigorous instruction in classrooms, and on fostering greater cross-school learning. Please see USI Network Goals for 2009-2010 for more information (hyperlink to that page).