Creating Community Connections
By Nicole Lemmon
On a warm spring day in Chicago's Little Village neighborhood, Spry/Community Links High School (CLHS) bustles with activity. The scene outdoors hums as ice cream carts ring and children laugh. Around the back of the Spry/CLHS building, Sacramento Avenue displays a street sign to honor the administrator whose vision inspired the school and its community: NLU's own Carlos Azcoitia, assistant professor in the National College of Education (NCE).
Developing Leaders at NLU
Azcoitia teaches in the M.Ed./Certificate of Advanced Study program in Administration and Supervision and in the Educational Leadership doctoral program at NLU. This past spring, Azcoitia team–taught two doctoral cohorts in which students complete their program in a blended cohort that meets both face–to–face a few times per term and also requires online coursework. These NCE programs are designed "for educators seeking leadership positions or for teachers to lead where they are," Azcoitia says.
Gladys Rodriguez, a professional development specialist in the Language and Cultural Education Office at the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) and a master's of education student in NLU's Administration and Supervision program, has taken two classes with Azcoitia—leadership and organizational development of schools, and communication and technology skills for school leaders. For Rodriguez, experienced faculty and high–quality instruction set NLU's Educational Leadership program apart from others. "Other principal prep programs use inexperienced theorists that can't share anecdotes from the field. NLU professors share case studies and engaging anecdotes," Rodriguez says. "The program and classroom climate encourage constant inquiry and reflection, but more importantly, are conducive to receiving customized and personalized attention."
Rodriguez admires Azcoitia's achievements, his passion for urban education reform and his ability to translate theory into practice. "His combined experience as principal [at Spry/CLHS] and central office administrator provides students with a unique perspective," she explains. "As he lectured on the theoretical frameworks of instructional leadership, he also invited students to visit Spry/CLHS. His message to new leaders is to learn greatly and deeply about the community where one's school is located."
The NLU Connection
Azcoitia is not only an NLU professor, he is an NLU alumnus. Relocating from San Juan, Puerto Rico, to Chicago in 1974, Azcoitia completed his teacher education through NLU, or as it was named then, the National College of Education. Azcoitia earned a master of education degree from NLU in 1975. After graduating from NLU, he continued to work as a teacher and then as an administrator in Chicago schools. He earned a doctor of education in educational administration from Northern Illinois University before becoming principal of Spry Community School, a Chicago public elementary school, in 1990. In 1996, Paul Vallas, who was then CEO of CPS, asked Azcoitia to fill a position in charge of school reform. Azcoitia was promoted to deputy CEO of CPS in 1997. After seven years in the CPS central office as assistant superintendent and deputy CEO, Azcoitia returned to Spry to resume as principal and to found CLHS, which he housed within Spry School as a pre–K through high school model.
After commandeering the opening and continued success of CLHS, Azcoitia returned to the institution that was there at the start of his career—in 2007, he signed on as assistant professor in the Educational Leadership program at NLU. He also provides coaching for new principals with New Leaders for New Schools, a nationally renowned principal preparation program.
CLHS: A Beacon of Hope
America's youth needs innovators like Azcoitia: roughly one in three American high school students does not graduate with a diploma within four years, according to statistics by America's Promise Alliance, a non–profit network founded by former Secretary of State, Colin Powell. The stakes are high—drop–outs are more likely to be jobless, uninsured, incarcerated or rely on public assistance than high school graduates. Drop–out rates are especially high among Latino youth—nearly half do not graduate high school within four years.
The challenge is great, but not insurmountable, as Azcoitia's work shows. At CLHS, nearly 100 percent of high school seniors graduate each year and continue to attend post–secondary institutions.
Involving Community
Azcoitia founded CLHS based on the comprehensive community schools concept. "The driving force is a simple premise," Azcoitia says, "education does not occur in isolation from the rest of a student's life. Other factors—family, community, nonprofit organizations, businesses and university partners—play an extremely important role in a child's successful education."
CLHS engages these other factors: neighborhood students must submit applications to enroll, parents must demonstrate commitment to their children's success, local non–profits and businesses provide student internships and universities, like NLU, collaborate with college bridge programs. CLHS and its grammar school partner, Spry Community School, even have their own medical center. "Every family can get medical services," Azcoitia says.
"The whole concept of community is that the greatest influence on the student is the family and if the school brings in the family and community, the opportunity for success is higher," Azcoitia adds. "We want to capitalize on the community for educational success and include the family throughout the whole process."
The percentage of CLHS students who continue right on to college approaches 100 percent. The message that students receive from CLHS is that "we are going to help you go to college; you are going to be part of the post–secondary culture," Azcoitia says.
Isamar Martinez, a CLHS alumna and current NLU undergraduate in the English Literature program, considers CLHS a second family and still returns to visit former teachers. She also considers Azcoitia an invaluable mentor, whom she recalls supporting her goals, at first to become a veterinarian and then to become a teacher. Martinez brightens as she recalls Azcoitia's positive influence: "Any time I hear of him, I get happy—it's like, oh my God, Dr. Azcoitia! He actually gave a speech at a graduation party that my family gave me. It's a close connection."
Sharing the Vision
CLHS has been so successful that other Chicago schools have developed proposals to replicate this model. Currently, Azcoitia is working with Mason Elementary School to help the school implement the pre–K through high school program, identify resources and "navigate the central office." The expansion is supported by the chief education officer at CPS and will begin this summer. "We are trying to exercise creative leadership to get different results," Azcoitia says.
Azcoitia has also shared his vision of comprehensive community schools by presenting across the country and around the globe. He has traveled to Poland, Mexico, Thailand and Ecuador to teach seminars for administrators. The international conversation is a two–way street: educators from abroad have traveled to Chicago to share ideas with Azcoitia and to see CLHS. In one meeting this year, NLU hosted a group of Polish educators, who visited CLHS in May under Azcoitia's direction.
In addition to presenting at national and international conferences, Azcoitia has also published a number of articles on school reform, is active on many boards and associations involved in educational leadership and has won several awards and recognitions, including the Alivio Award–Una Presencia Activa in 2007 and the NLU Distinguished Alumni Award in 2006.
Proyecto Comunidad
As part of his work at NLU, Azcoitia is also a Proyecto Comunidad advisory board member. According to Azcoitia, "Proyecto at NLU is an advisory board that addresses the needs of Latino students and prepares them for success in post–secondary education, so we deal with recruitment, working with families, applying for financial aid, engaging businesses. We have a diverse board with leaders from the area. We address issues of student Latino success." Proyecto's goal, adds Azcoitia, "is to provide access, innovation, and excellence" for Latino students and "for them to continue as life–long learners. This university has been able to accomplish that."
Isamar Martinez, NLU undergrad who Azcoitia had mentored at CLHS, currently participates in work–study with NLU's Executive Director of Latino Initiatives Ana Maria Soto as part of the initiative. Martinez plans to become an educator herself, so that she can, in turn, inspire youth in the Latino community to achieve their goals. She states, "I'd love to come back to my community and reach out to my fellow community members to let them know that it is possible."
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