National Center for Culturally Responsive Educational Systems

1. National Center for Culturally Responsive Educational Systems Shelley Zion, Project Coordinator University of Colorado, Denver

2. Purpose Provide technical assistance and professional development to • close the achievement gap between students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and their peers, and • reduce inappropriate referrals to special education. Critical Foci Culturally responsive practices Early intervention Literacy Positive behavioral supports

3. Outcomes increase the use of prevention and early intervention strategies, decrease inappropriate referrals to special education, and increase the number of schools using effective literacy and behavioral interventions for students who are culturally and linguistically diverse.

4. General & Special Education Audiences • Students • Families • Practitioners • Administrators • Researchers • Teacher Educators • Policy Makers Products • Research syntheses • Policy briefs • Public service announcements • Research-based articles • On Points for Practitioners • Virtual Professional Development Modules • Activities and curricula for culturally responsive practice • Web-based Data Maps • Virtual State-wide “campuses” • Meta-tagged Library

5. Mission Supporting state education agencies and local school systems to assure a quality, culturally responsive education for all students. Value Added NCCRESt supports the implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act as it extends the goals of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001

6. Key Activities • Determine status for each state in collecting data required in Section 618(c) of IDEA. • Develop a web-based sensitive and responsive continuous improvement cycle for each participating SEA. • Synthesize culturally responsive research-based practices that support learning and development for all students • Assist SEAs in developing plans to address disproportionality that focus on widespread screening and effective early intervention, literacy, and positive behavioral support. • Link change impact to specific PD and improved teacher quality • Engage sites in examining patterns in impact of change efforts. • Evaluate impact of change efforts on stakeholders and organizations

7. What are Culturally Responsive Educational Systems? Culturally responsive educational systems are grounded in the belief that students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds excel in academic endeavors when • their culture, language, heritage, and experiences are valued and used to facilitate learning and development; and • they are provided access to high quality teachers, programs, curricula, and resources. Culturally responsive educational systems benefit all students. Culturally responsive educational systems are concerned with instilling ethics of care, respect, and responsibility in the professionals who serve culturally and linguistically diverse students.

8. Assumptions About the Causes of Disproportionate Representation What it is not: intrinsic or family-based deficits

9. Contributors Policies

10. Intersections

11. Socio-cultural Contexts

12. Background Assumptions about Learning and Development Individual agency Contextual factors

13. Conceptual Framework for Understanding Disproportionality: Beliefs, Policies, and Practices Society at Large FEDERAL AND STATE POLICIES Disability School District Policies and Practices Culture SCHOOLS Teachers Families and Sociopolitical Context Legal Context STUDENTS Communities High Stakes Testing Learning

14. Background Assumptions about the Solutions to Disproportionality Improved general ed instruction

16. Culturally Responsive Practice

17. Federal and State Policies Legal requirements at federal and state levels concerning the determination of eligibility for special education. Teacher and administrator quality indicators and procedures for working collaboratively with universities and school districts to improve preparation and professional development programs. Governmental policies and mandates related to school financing and the allocation of resources. Re-examine & Revise Accountability measures, including how high stakes testing results are used to evaluate schools.

18. District Level Policies and Practices Collaboration and Partnerships PRIORITIES • Curricula • Tracking • Testing • Discipline • Resource Allocation • Hiring Community Agencies Special & General Ed Local leaders Teacher education programs

19. Professional Development Top- down Bottom-up

20. School Leadership

21. Culturally Responsive Teachers

22. Quality Literacy Instruction

23. Behavior Supports

24. Early Intervention What is considered to be Special Education Intensive assistance, as part of General Ed support system Quality instruction in General Ed Classroom

25. Families and Communities

26. Students

27. Activity Arenas Networking and Dissemination

28. Who’s on Board? • Kayte Fearn, Council for Exceptional Children • Ronald Felton, Miami-Dade County Public Schools • Beth Harry, University of Miami • Judith Heumann, The World Bank • Asa Hilliard, Georgia State University • Stephanie Hirsh, National Staff Development Council • Dixie Jordan, Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights • Joy Markowitz, Project Forum, National Association of State Directors of Special Education • Festus Obiakor, University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee • Delia Pompa, National Association of Bilingual Education • Kristin Reedy, Northeast Regional Resource Center • Virginia Roach, Teachers for a New Era • Anthony Sims, Illinois State Board of Education • Brenda L. Townsend, University of South Florida • Stanley Trent, University of Virginia • Edward Lee Vargas, Hacienda La Puente Unified School District

29. NCCRESt Personnel Principal Investigators Alfredo J. Artiles, Vanderbilt University Janette K. Klingner, University of Colorado at Boulder Elizabeth B. Kozleski, University of Colorado at Denver Cheryl A. Utley, Juniper Gardens Children’s Project, University of Kansas Project Officer Grace Zamora Durán, Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education Project Staff Carolyn Ottke-Moore, Materials & Event Developer Rhona Jackson, Project Administrator Steve Kennedy, Policy Analyst Jennifer Quinlan, Web Master Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins, Professional Development Coordinator Jenn Light, Instructional Technology Heraldo Richards, Researcher Project Coordinator Shelley Zion University of Colorado at Denver Director, Networking and Dissemination David P. Riley, Education Development Center, Inc. Continuous Improvement Data Analysts David Gibson, VIMST Michael Knapp, VIMST Support Staff Olu Adesola Alexandra Schroeder Aimee Wride Laura Barletta Ayanna Brown Kristy Martinez,