Cincinnati Transforms its Public Schools

Posted by EdSource on May 12, 2014

Revolution in Cincinnati

Districts thinking of embracing a community-schools approach should look to a nationally recognized model: the Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS), writes Susan Frey for EdSource. Cincinnati has turned all 55 of its schools into community learning centers by relying on partners to offer services free of cost to students and the district, in exchange for space at schools and exclusive access to students. The transformation required leadership, community buy-in, time, and patience, but CPS went from one of the worst urban public systems in Ohio 10 years ago to the best today, according to the state’s ranking system based on test scores and high school graduation rates. Cincinnati’s model could also prove helpful to districts struggling for input from their communities. Cincinnati relied on top-down reforms to generate a grassroots movement, using a neighborhood-by-neighborhood planning process that worked with the entire community. This took many meetings before everyone agreed to the same vision. Today, every school has a mental health team, a health clinic, and full-blown after-school programs, working with the YMCA, the Urban League, the Cincinnati Art Museum, and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America.

http://edsource.org/2014/nonprofit-and-for-profit-partners-help-cincinnati-transform-its-failing-schools#.U3GF6_ldXJY