EUGENE, Ore.--Connected Lane County is one of 11 regional partnerships across the state of Oregon invited to participate and take a leadership role in the Regional Achievement Collaborative Pilot.
As part of a program of the Oregon Education Investment Board (OEIB), regional collaboratives will help meet key student outcomes such as preparing children for kindergarten, creating opportunities for high school students to earn college credit, and ensuring smooth transitions into career and college. Together, regional education partners will seek to transform education and help the state of Oregon meet its 40-40-20 goals of higher attainment for all students by 2025.
Connected Lane County is a local coalition of school districts, institutions of public higher education and early childhood partners. A long-held goal of Lane Community College's President Mary Spilde, leaders first came together in spring 2010 to share information, increase cooperation and support Lane County students in their educational transitions.
"This is a great opportunity for our community to collaborate throughout the educational continuum. Everyone's coming to the table with ideas. This partnership provides a broader perspective to ensure student success and it allows us to measure our accomplishments in a transparent way and collectively come up with effective solutions," said Spilde.
Connected Lane County was chosen to serve as a mentor and leader because of the depth and breadth of collaborative efforts already developed since educational partners in Lane County began working on prenatal-to-age 22 issues in 2010, as well as its potential for implementing innovative and effective projects.
"This is great recognition of the outstanding work of partners in Lane County to create a seamless system to ensure children are prepared for success in school and life," said Noreen J. Dunnells, executive director/CEO, United Way of Lane County.
The partnership will receive $50,000 for facilitation support through the Oregon Solutions Network. Through the Regional Achievement Collaboratives, Connected Lane County will share best practices and strategies and report on its progress to the OEIB and the governor.
"Our Connected Lane County partnership is exciting because it brings college graduation and living wage jobs within reach for every one of our students," said Colt Gill, Bethel School District superintendent.
"Together, all our organizations are clearly focused on providing a path for first generation college students, kids who never thought of college for themselves; as well as increased preparation to ensure the success of students who had college as a goal all along."
Connected Lane County aims to increase the number of high school graduates who are successful in higher education and life by creating a seamless and streamlined transition from early childhood to K-12 to higher education through partnerships and relationships with educational, community and business partner organizations.
Partners will share information, increase cooperation and aid students in their education transitions by identifying shared strengths, issues and concerns. These include identifying and addressing systemic barriers that harm equity and accessibility; exploring opportunities for cooperation; and identifying resources that can benefit partners such as grants, donations, knowledge and experience.
"In my first year as president of the University of Oregon, I've been tremendously impressed by the commitment of our community's educational leaders to elevate the quality of public education in our state," said Michael Gottfredson, University of Oregon president. "The OEIB's recognition of Connected Lane County's outstanding work in this area is testament to the power and potential of such strategic partnerships. I'm proud that the University of Oregon is a partner in this initiative, which directly addresses Oregon students' access to quality higher education—a central pillar of our public mission."
Connected Lane County's partners are all 16 Lane County school districts, the Lane Education Service District, Lane Community College, University of Oregon, United Way of Lane County, Educational Policy Improvement Center and Lane County government. As the collaborative grows, Connected Lane County will expand to include business and civic partners.
For more information, visit Connected Lane County's website at connectedlanecounty.org