Did you know?
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%
of the brain is developed by the time a person is five years old
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months
On average, most youth lose about two months of grade-level equivalency in math skills each summer
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%
of third-graders reading below grade level never catch up
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%
Adults (25+ years) in Midland County do not have a high school degree or equivalent
Impact Stories
Community Unites to Serve Students and Parents at South Elementary
A local leadership group has formed to create effective change in our community related to education, food availability, resources for parents, and many other positive outcomes. What began as an initiative to address educational issues head-on has now blossomed into a community-enriching, multi-faceted project involving Hispanic leaders of Midland, Educate Midland, Midland Independent School District, Midland College, and other important and enthused organizations.
Generous Donations Aim to Prevent “Summer Slide” for Midland Kids
It only takes one summer without classes and homework for kids to fall behind in their coursework. Now with the help of a donation from a local oil and gas company, Educate Midland and Midland ISD are hoping to prevent the so-called “Summer Slide” for more than 900 Midland students.
“Summer slide is real,” said Educate Midland Program Director Mike Mills. “If our kids take a break completely it may take them up to half a semester just to get back on track to where they were when summer ended.”
Why does it matter? Mills said without summer learning, your child will fall behind.
“If we can have more students coming back to school on track, it gives teachers the opportunity to take them down the education highway faster,” Mills said. “They will be able to continue what they did in the classroom while tracking their progress online.
A generous donation from XTO Energy will help. The oil and gas company is donating 49 laptops for students to use in summer programs. Many of these students do not have access to learning technology at home.
A Culture of Ownership
The Collective Impact process is all about a community of partners working together to achieve a goal no one of them could accomplish on their own. Our mission at Educate Midland is to help facilitate these interactions and serve as the backbone for progress as the community seeks to address deeply entrenched social issues. What follows is an example of what can be achieved through effective use of the Collective Impact Model.
Over the past few years, Midland Memorial Hospital has adopted a “culture-of-ownership” program as a new way of doing business. Developed by leadership consultant, Joe Tye of Values Coach, the program is part of staff development and helps align staff members’ personal values with those of the hospital. This approach has resulted in positive cultural changes and higher nurse retention rates.
When Joe Tye and staff from Midland Memorial Hospital presented to the Educate Midland Leadership Team about the success of the culture-of-ownership program at the hospital, participants got a glimpse of what a collective impact strategy might look like. What if a results-based strategy for cultural change and staff retention at the hospital could be leveraged to support the desired cultural change and teacher retention in the school district? Read More.
Early Literacy
The ability to read and write is a foundational component to a child’s educational development and success over time. Educate Midland believes in highlighting and broadening the community efforts toward early literacy. This is why Educate Midland joined its community sponsors in encouraging greater participation in summer reading programs to prevent “summer slide” among school-aged children. Educate Midland joined forces with the United Way of Midland for a summer book drive that resulted in over 5,000 books collected for reading program partners and for distribution at Little Free Libraries around town.
The Midland County Library, Midland ISD, and the Texas Center for the Book also partnered up with Educate Midland to engage the community’s participation in the Letters About Literature contest, a state and national reading and writing contest by the Library of Congress for 4th-12th-grade students. Read More.
Tutoring and Mentoring
When one concerned mom wanted to do something to help struggling students achieve greater academic success, she turned to the community around her and to Educate Midland for help. Immediately, she perceived a need for consistent, subject-specific tutoring and mentorship beyond the classroom. She realized her greatest resource was her church congregation, a group with open hearts and sharp minds. With volunteers on-board, students in need began to be matched with tutors for after-school tutoring at the church right across the street from the school. Read More.
Education Impact Series
How do we facilitate conversation between education stakeholders around a common goal? What are some of the world’s best practices in education? Which education leaders will help build community awareness and motivation for educational excellence? These are some of the questions that led Educate Midland to present the Education Impact Series.
Sponsored by the Abell-Hanger Foundation, the series was created to bring in some of the world’s most prominent thought leaders in education and learning and serves as a catalyst to motivate and challenge our entire community to reach for excellence in education. Read More.
