The Leona Group, L.L.C.
"The Leona Group - A New Kind of Public School"
Missão
The Leona Group endeavors to provide a quality educational choice in communities where options are limited due to economic, social or educational disadvantage.
Perfil
Beyond a quality education, Leona schools provide a nurturing community experience. Leona teachers and school leaders know every student by name, by face and by family. Genuine, caring relationships - combined with excellence in academics - transform the lives of the students we serve.
Each school curriculum is centered on the child, with lessons and standards presented in ways that help students thrive and succeed. Leona school buildings are safe-havens, and classrooms and offices are inviting and friendly.
Leona's collaborative support model is extraordinary. It involves a focused effort among each school’s leadership, staff and board of directors. Central to this are school leaders, who bring a variety of professional experiences to the job and handle many duties in order to meet the needs of staffs and students.
Leona's innovative Quality Schools Initiative further supports the pursuit of academic achievement. An instructional coach, focused lesson plans and assessments and aligned curriculum are characteristic of each performing school. There is no cookie-cutter approach to our academies’ curriculum and programs. Each school is autonomous, with decision making that is site-based, student-centered and guided by services from our corporate support departments.
We know that to have life-changing schools we have to have world-class teachers. Of course our teachers must meet the same state and federal requirements for being certified and highly qualified. But even more, they are passionate, energetic and innovative professionals. At Leona Group, staffs have the freedom to craft and guide the curriculum at their school, working within federal and state frameworks, resulting in innovative and tailored educational programs. Our team members are provided professional development, keeping them up-to-date on educational best practices and giving them the ability to pursue innovative teaching methods. In addition, they are rewarded for high performance through annual reviews and merit pay (unlike some traditional districts who base pay on years of experience).
Resultados
The Leona Group does measure the success of its schools by considering a variety of factors including, but not limited to: The achievement of AYP by each school; the ongoing increase of passage rates in reading and math at each school, in every grade level; the demonstration of value-added growth resulting in a minimum of one year's worth of growth for a year's worth of education at each school serving students in grades K-8; the exceeding of federal guidelines for graduation rates by each school; the ongoing reduction of absenteeism, suspensions/expulsions and disciplinary infractions.
There are countless success stories that rise from the bricks and mortar of Leona Group schools each year – some are amazing stories of a special individual accomplishment; some transform entire communities in significant and positive ways. Following are just a few of many examples of how educational choice is transforming the lives of students, families and communities:
• The South Pointe learning community is a three-school cluster consisting of the elementary, junior and high school in south Phoenix. These schools are making marvellous contributions to the community and improving the life chances of hundreds of young people in an environment which otherwise has produced bleak results. These schools have become the schools of choice in south Phoenix, and students in an inclusive environment are prospering and achieving at high levels.
• All Leona Arizona high schools are fully accredited through AdvanceED, formerly known as North Central Association (NCA). This unified, clear and powerful accreditation process is nationally recognized. Among many advantages, AdvancED accreditation is a distinctive mark of quality. Not an event but a process, accreditation ensures ongoing school improvement that is grounded in best practices from the education and business fields.
• Leona is proud of its Detroit statistics. In 2008-09, Allen Academy graduated 100% of its seniors and 100% went on to a college, university or trade school. Cesar Chavez Academy had its largest ever graduating class of 96 students, which represented a 76% graduation rate. Seventy-five percent went on to a college or university. At Consortium College Preparatory Academy, the graduation and college acceptance rates were 95%. While there is much work to be done, this compares favorably to the Detroit Public Schools (DPS) has a drop-out rate of 76% - meaning that less than one in four ninth grade students graduate from high school.
• Saginaw Preparatory Academy in Michigan has been in existence since 1997 and came under Leona's management in 2004. Previous to Leona Group’s involvement, the school had demonstrated consistently poor academic performance. The Leona Group undertook a major restructuring, including the placement of a highly-effective instructional leader, a thorough curriculum review and intensive staff development initiatives. That same year, students achieved major academic gains including increased MEAP scores in all grades and subject areas tested.