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YES Prep isn’t making excuses for the hard work of getting students to college

March 02, 2010 by Jeremy Jones

"This is urban education. It is hard; it is very hard.” – Jon Dahlander, Dallas ISD spokesman

This was one of the sole responses given to the recent release of a bevy of organizational health data relating to teacher morale and work conditions in Dallas ISD public schools. The scores showed a decrease in over 2/3 of all elementary and high schools and in over half of all middle schools compared to data from 2008-2009. Overall, 40% of all schools showed a double-digit decrease in the aggregate scores which run from 1-99 and are based on various indicators such as teacher satisfaction, campus leadership, communication, school operations, etc. Several schools’ feedback cited principals who ran campuses ineffectively as the main sources for the school’s distress. No principals commented on their campus’s performance when requested and the sole response for the 220 some odd schools in DISD came from a single spokesman, cited above. In light of our own organizational survey data and the goals we have with not only being the most successful school system around but also one of the best places to work in general, the data from Dallas and the response to it stands in stark contrast, almost as if from a bizarro world. It’s hard to imagine working in a system that would try to mask its flaws verse just trying to fix them. At each campus here at YES, there were conversations over the respective results from our own organizational survey and discussions around what was at the root of both of our areas of strength and areas of growth. The voices and opinions of our greatest leverage for student success and achievement – our teachers – are sought, not quieted. Closing the achievement gap is hard but it doesn’t have to be hard for the wrong reasons. There is enough to get in the way of our students’ education through the uncontrollable factors abroad then from creating more factors on our own campuses from within. As we grow and continue expand our reach to more communities and neighborhoods throughout Houston, increasing the percentage of students who have access to a college prep education, it is equally important that we exemplify what it takes for an organization to replicate its current scale of success on an even larger one. And it stands to show that we are on that track and are focused on never becoming a behemoth that can’t to take a close look at itself and fix what needs to get the job done. In the next few months, take advantage of all around you that can stand to make an impact on this organization and beyond – sharing solution-oriented feedback, seeking out more great teachers to come join the mission, and never ceasing to ask the hard questions that will only continue to push all of us to not make excuses by saying “this is hard; this is hard” but to find answers that will allow eventually all students to benefit from an education that they deserve.

Chris Claflin is the School Director for YES Prep Southwest.