University's P-12 Project unveils major initiatives as it enters second year

Early childhood education center being planned for Weinland Park area

Web-based matching of students with service learning opportunities, placement of school psychology interns in public schools and an early childhood education center are among initiatives the University's P-12 Project is preparing as it enters its second school year.

Launched in autumn 2000 to improve Ohio schools, the P-12 Project is a Universitywide partnership with the College of Education in the lead college role that also involves the state, Columbus and select local school districts. A special focus is placed on the education of underserved children and youth. The local manifestation of the P-12 Project, called the Learning Bridge, is with the Columbus Public Schools that serve the University neighborhoods.

While updating the Board of Trustees on the status of the P-12 Project on Aug. 29, P-12 Project Director Daryl Siedentop stressed that the first school year was spent forging relationships and gaining the trust of the board of education, principals and teachers on the front lines, and others involved in K-12 education.

"We have stressed to them that we're there to assist," Siedentop said. "We have some answers, but solutions will come collaboratively through our working together."

'The work we do not only has to make those schools better, but improve urban schools in general. We're a research university. We have to find out what combinations of programs and strategies are necessary to significantly improve the performance of urban schools.' -- P-12 Project Director Daryl Siedentop

Siedentop told trustees that early education and literacy are key to P-12 success; nationally, the No. 1 goal is that every child will enter kindergarten ready to learn.

"We're not anywhere near that, particularly in urban areas where there are high concentrations of poverty," Siedentop said. When children are not schooled prior to kindergarten, he said, their chances of succeeding in the K-12 system are greatly reduced.

He said that poverty often leads to unhealthy kids.

"To improve urban education, you have to do more than improve classroom practices," Siedentop said. "You have to get to kids before kindergarten. You have to be concerned about the development of healthy kids."

To address that issue, Siedentop and David Andrews, dean of the College of Human Ecology, are working to develop plans for an early education center in the Weinland Park area of Columbus.

"We will be establishing an early childhood education center in the neighborhood that focuses holistically on child development, and literacy will be a major part of that," Andrews said.

Siedentop also is collaborating with Ronald St. Pierre, senior associate vice president for health sciences and academic affairs, and the deans in the six Health Science colleges to make service components in the Health Sciences more strategic.

Using the Weinland Park schools as a model, the goal is to develop best practices that can then be applied to a broader area, St. Pierre said. Colleges will be focusing their outreach and engagement activities in three areas: smoking cessation, increased physical activity and nutrition.

"By doing this we feel we can have a significant impact on behavioral change and health prospects of these children," St. Pierre said.

During this school year, Ohio State will be placing five school psychology interns in two of the University district elementary schools. Siedentop said the second-year students would be working on intervention techniques and helping teachers explore the relationship between K-12 students' problems and their ability to learn.

Further enhancing University outreach, a Web site is being designed that will list available service learning and volunteer opportunities, Siedentop said. The Web site partners the P-12 Project, the Office of Student Services, OSU Extension and the service learning arm of the College of Human Ecology.

Already under way is a Learning Bridge -- established in January -- that partners Ohio State, Columbus Public Schools and the Columbus Education Association. The collaboration aims to assist in the development of the University neighborhoods as learning communities, and will contribute to the larger goals of Campus Partners to improve the quality of life, safety and security of residents in the University neighborhoods.

Also established is a University Council on Teacher Education, created spring quarter to improve initial preparation of teachers at Ohio State by providing a better link between courses. It is co-chaired by Donna Evans, dean of the College of Education, and Randy Smith, vice provost for curriculum and institutional relations.

Add to that a searchable database on the Web that provides a single, initial point of contact for P-12 activities. The site is at www.osu.edu/p12.

Siedentop said the overall goal of the P-12 Project is to have an impact on P-12 education everywhere.

"The work we do not only has to make those schools better, but improve urban schools in general," Siedentop said. "We're a research university. We have to find out what combinations of programs and strategies are necessary to significantly improve the performance of urban schools."

As coordinator of the P-12 Project, Siedentop has enjoyed the diversion from the duties he performed as a faculty member and interim dean of the College of Education.

"I've enjoyed tremendously the challenge of bringing people together across academic units," he said. "It's not easy to do, but you do get a tremendous feeling of accomplishment."

Tracking technology

CIO Ilee Rhimes

Once completed, strategic plan will give CIO, campus community clear vision of the future

The Office of the Chief Information Officer is leading the development of a new technology strategic plan to help define Ohio State's priorities and future with regard to advancing technology. The document will set the technology goals that will help guide Ohio State through the next three to five years, said CIO Ilee Rhimes.

However, Rhimes said, "Technology is changing so rapidly that this document will need to be reviewed and updated yearly."

The current strategic technology plan was written in 1997.

"One thing different from previous plans is that the University now has the Academic Plan," Rhimes said. "So the institutional vision, core strategies and initiatives are laid out in the Academic Plan."

The Academic Plan points to the critical role technology will play as Ohio State leads a statewide transition into an Information Age Economy. The charge is to equal or surpass benchmark institutions in the use of technology for teaching, learning, research and overall effectiveness, Rhimes said. That will entail, among other things, a more innovative use of information and learning technologies; a more strategic approach to distance and Web-based education programs; and a more state-of-the-art infrastructure, which would include technology equipment and facilities and the campus network.

A process to develop the new technology plan will begin in January 2002, and is expected to be unveiled for Universitywide review and discussion during fall quarter 2002, Rhimes said.

The process will include questionnaires, interviews and focus groups with faculty, staff, students and key technology vendors, said Cathy Bindewald, OIT communications, marketing and planning director.

An in-depth analysis will be conducted to help identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, and help define the current state of technology on campus. Then, strategic goals and initiatives will be defined along with specific performance indicators and resource requirements to help define the desired future state of technology on campus, Bindewald said.

"As we look at the services that we provide, and where we are headed in the future, we need to ask ourselves,'Should we redirect our efforts and invest some of our resources in another way?'" Bindewald said.

Added Rhimes: "Our strategic planning approach will build on strengths, promote broad commitment and ownership, and help ensure that our scarce resources are allocated on the right initiatives."

In preparation, a similar sequence is being followed to develop an internal technology plan for OIT to identify ways to operate more effectively and to be more responsive to the campus community, Bindewald said. While revealing the strength, patience and sensitivity of the OIT staff, the internal plan revealed lessons to be learned, she said.

"It taught us to have realistic expectations as to how long it's going to take to do it right," Bindewald said.

As the CIO's office embarks on the planning process, it will be seeking assistance and input through the current committee structure, as well as through the formation of a new committee to oversee the process, Rhimes said. The CIO's office is expecting to implement the plan by winter 2003.

For further details or updates, visit the OIT Web site at cio.ohio-state.edu.

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