Lessons From Chicago: The Role of Lead Community-Based Agencies in Elev8

• In Event: Lessons in Community School Implementation: Case Examples From Oakland, Chicago, and Utah

Abstract

Objectives
The Elev8 initiative is a school- and community-based services and supports model conceived and funded primarily by The Atlantic Philanthropies and implemented in four locations throughout the U.S., including Chicago, IL. All Elev8 sites share four common pillars of activity: (1) extended-day learning and academic enrichment; (2) preventative healthcare services; (3) family economic and social supports: and (4) parent and community engagement.
This paper presents case studies that show how neighborhood-wide lead agencies played pivotal roles in: 1) sustaining school based health centers, 2) keeping open a school that the school district considered closing, and 3) connecting a school operated by a nonprofit network to its community. We describe how the lead agencies used their knowledge of and credibility in their communities to build alliances with other Elev8 partners and to advocate for Elev8 when its work was threatened.
Perspectives/Theoretical Framework:
Between 2008 and 2014, the authors documented the successes, challenges and lessons learned from the implementation of Elev8 Chicago in five neighborhoods across the city. The purpose of the documentation was to inform the ongoing implementation of Elev8 and to share learning with the field.
Methods & Data Sources:
The data for the evaluation come primarily from annual semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders, meeting and program observations, and reviews of program and other documentation. Qualitative data was coded and analyzed using Atlas.ti software.
Findings:
The five lead agencies in Elev8 Chicago are organizations with longstanding involvement in their communities. These include community development organizations, neighborhood associations, and community organizing groups. Lead community-based agencies in five Chicago communities each partner with a specific school and a Federally Qualified Health Center to plan and operate programs within the four pillars of Elev8. The lead agency, the school, and the health provider are considered the primary Elev8 partners but each site has other organizational partners involved in various aspects of Elev8. The Chicago Public Schools (CPS) district operates four of the five Elev8 schools in Chicago. The fifth school is a CPS-funded charter school. Each Elev8 site has a director, employed by the lead agency but primarily housed at the schools. These site directors serve as the primary coordinators of Elev8 activities at the site level.
The leadership and stability of the lead agencies have been important to sustaining Elev8, most notably by protecting and advocating for the original vision of Elev8 in a shifting landscape. For example, during the implementation of Elev8, CPS experienced a period of significant upheaval including numerous changes in school district leaders, principals, and teachers as well as budgetary crises and the first teacher’s strike in 25 years. By contrast, the executive directors of the lead agencies have remained the same throughout Elev8, and there have been fewer site directors than school principals.
Significance:
The implementation of Elev8 suggests the types of expertise, structures, and leadership lead agencies need to help sustain community schools initiatives. We will discuss the implications of these factors for other cities building similar programs and for future research in this area.

Authors

• Stephen Baker, Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago

• Amelia Kohm, Chapin Hallat the University of Chicago

• Lauren Rich, Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago