Partnerships

The Long Beach Education Partnership

The Long Beach Education Partnership began in January, 1994 when the leaders of the three large educational institutions in Long Beach came together for a two day workshop to discuss how they could protect the education of young people in a worsening economic environment in Long Beach, California. The partners are California State University, Long Beach, Long Beach City College, and Long Beach Unified School District. The Long Beach K-16 partnership has been more successful than we ever could have imagined. On February 16, 1999, Richard W. Riley, US Secretary of Education, in his State of American Education Address televised nationally from California State University, Long Beach, said ,

The Long Beach Education Partnership is a wonderful, wonderful example of all the parts of American education fitting together. I am so proud of Bob Maxson (CSU Long Beach President), Carl Cohn (LBUSD Superintent), Jan Kehoe (LBCC President)…and others who have pulled together to form this exciting partnership. Seamless Education really is the wave of the future.

The partners work together to increase achievement for all pre-kindergarten through graduate school students in a large, highly diverse, multilingual urban area. The partners in the collaboration seek to solve the problems that confront them. The problems range from day-to-day operational barriers to complex intellectual issues such as shaping the major redesign of the undergraduate preparation of elementary teachers. The leadership demonstrates a systems approach to the partnership efforts that promotes flexibility in the activities and an ability to expand to encompass new problems and activities.

The initiatives of the partnership develop from our common goals. Some of the most successful initiatives have been:

Seamless Education Initiative,
the K-3 Reading Initiative,
the High School Tutoring Initiative,
the Service Learning Initiative,
the initiative to develop a Standards Based Teacher Education Program, and
the development and implementation of the Professional Development Standards for Teachers.

The most recent large-scale initiative is engaging in major structural and curricular reform in the high schools. The Partnership members are also currently engaged in implementing the Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers to Use Technology Grant (PT3).

The activities of the LBEP participants are numerous and varied. We consistently strive, however, to ensure that we maintain our common educational goals. Some examples of the projects, initiatives, and activities are below.

Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment (BTSA) Projects in Long Beach Unified School District and in a consortium of districts in west Orange County;
Professional Development School Elementary school in North Long Beach has faculty, classes, and fieldwork from Teacher Education. Expanding in 01-02 to English and Math.
Standards Based Integrated Teacher Education Program Nearly 100 CSULB faculty, 50 faculty from four community colleges, and in excess of 40 K-12 faculty are strengthening subject matter and implementing a standards-based elementary preparation program. Supported by Knight Foundation.
Long Beach Elementary Science & Mathematics Teacher Education Project NSF funded program to strengthen K-8 teachers' math and science subject matter preparation. One project brings K-8 teachers, university science faculty, and future science teachers work together to conduct a summer Science at the Beach Day Camp.
DELTA Program Five year funded program using Annenberg school reform model for professional development.
South Basin Writing Project Center for training teachers in writing.
California History/Social Science Project Training in History/Social Studies for teachers, partner schools.
Community College Articulation Signed MOU's with 5 community colleges who are doing two year education programs.
Comprehensive Professional Development Plan for Long Beach USD Planning grant from the National Foundation for the Improvement of Education (NFIE) for a tiered-professional development model. Partnership with National Faculty.
High School Tutoring Program English and Math tutors are placed in high schools, tutoring students to pass the high school writing proficiency exit exam and the CSU entry level placement tests in English and Mathematics.
California Academic Partnership Initiative In 99-00 CSULB received university system funding to greatly expand the high school tutoring program that had been operating successfully for 4 years. Funding became permanent in 00-01.
University Preparatory Partnerships Natural Sciences and Mathematics program at 4 high schools . Since 1993, the program has supported middle achieving students to attend college.
California Academic Partnership Program Liberal Arts and Natural Sciences and Mathematics collaborate on program at a Long Beach high school, providing academic and services support for students to go to college.
Middle School Math Project CSULB undergraduate and graduate students tutor middle school students.
Middle School Writing Project CSULB undergraduate and graduate students tutor middle school students.
SERVE Program CSULB students are placed in K-8 classrooms to tutor children in reading or math. In 99-00, 853 CSULB students participated.
Seamless Education Committee K-16 faculty from Mathematics, Science, English, History, Foreign Languages meet monthly and sponsor initiatives and collaborative activities. Dee Abrahamse, CSULB Dean, Liberal Arts, co-chairs with leaders from community college and school district.
Data Project Institutional Research Offices for three education institutions collaborate to disaggregate student data as needed, plan assessment of K-16 projects.
Counseling Reform Launch Initiative. K-16 representatives work to support incorporating the national standards of the American School Counseling Association.

The future of the partnership is bright with promise. Structures have been put into place that we believe will continue. Depth exists in the number of people involved as well as the strong relationships that have been built. We have linkages among hundreds of people who have grown accustomed to working across levels on issues of common concern. The leadership of the institutions has hired new faculty and administrators who demonstrated capacity and values consistent with collaborative school partnerships. The heart of the original Long Beach Education Partnership vision, to establish a Seamless Education for young people in Long Beach remains with us today. The vision extends to a future with high achievement for all students from kindergarten through college.

Last update: 3/29/06