NASHVILLE PUBLIC EDUCATION FOUNDATION

IN FY25, NPEF WAS ABLE TO FURTHER OUR MISSION TO ADVANCE STUDENT OUTCOMES IN METRO NASHVILLE PUBLIC SCHOOLS (MNPS) IN MULTIPLE WAYS AS WE FOCUSED ON FOUR KEY AREAS TO SUPPORT OUR STUDENTS, TEACHERS, AND FAMILIES: 1) SHARING INFORMATION ABOUT THE CRITICAL ISSUES FACING MNPS STUDENTS; 2) CONVENING STAKEHOLDERS TO SOLVE CHALLENGES TOGETHER; 3) DELIVERING HIGH-QUALITY PROGRAMS FOR TEACHERS AND FAMILIES; AND 4) STRATEGICALLY PARTNERING WITH THE DISTRICT AROUND SPECIFIC PRIORITIES. WE SHARED INFORMATION ABOUT THE ISSUES AFFECTING OUR STUDENTS THROUGH A SERIES OF INFOGRAPHICS AND BRIEFS ON KEY TOPICS, INCLUDING PUBLIC SCHOOL FUNDING; STATE STANDARDS, ASSESSMENTS, AND ACCOUNTABILITY; CAREER PATHWAYS IN MNPS; EDUCATION POLICIES SUCH AS SCHOOL VOUCHERS AND POST-SECONDARY OPPORTUNITIES. WE ALSO SHARED INFORMATION ABOUT OUR SCHOOLS THROUGH OUR THRIVING SCHOOLS WORK, WHERE WE PARTNERED WITH THE TENNESSEE EDUCATION RESEARCH ALLIANCE TO DEVELOP INDIVIDUAL SCHOOL PROFILES BASED ON THE DATA POINTS FAMILIES WANT. WE CONVENED STAKEHOLDERS THROUGH TWO KEY INITIATIVES - LEADERSHIP PUBLIC EDUCATION (LPE) AND THE NASHVILLE CHILD AND YOUTH COLLABORATIVE (NCYC). LPE, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE NASHVILLE AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, IS A COHORT LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT SERIES THAT INFORMS PARTICIPANTS ABOUT OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND HOW THEY CAN BEST SUPPORT STUDENTS IN OUR DISTRICT. THE NCYC, WHICH NPEF LAUNCHED IN 2023, IS A COALITION OF 20 NASHVILLE NONPROFITS SEEKING TO ELEVATE THE VOICES OF YOUNG PEOPLE AND DRIVE MORE CONVERSATIONS AROUND THE NEEDS OF OUR CHILDREN AND YOUTH. THIS YEAR, THE COLLABORATIVE PARTNERED AGAIN WITH COUNCIL MEMBER ZULFAT SUARA ON A YOUTH DAY IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT, BRINGING OVER 50 YOUTH TO NASHVILLE'S COURTHOUSE TO MEET WITH COUNCIL MEMBERS AND PRESENT ON ISSUES THAT AFFECT THEIR LIVES. WE ALSO CONVENED THE NCYC THROUGH A STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS TO DETERMINE WHAT THE COLLABORATIVE SHOULD FOCUS ON GOING FORWARD. ADDITIONALLY, WE DELIVERED KEY ANNUAL PROGRAMS TO SUPPORT OUR TEACHERS, STUDENTS, AND FAMILIES. TEACHERPRENEUR IS A PROGRAM DESIGNED TO HARNESS EDUCATOR INNOVATION TO REMOVE INEQUITIES AND BUILD SCHOOLS WHERE ALL STUDENTS THRIVE. THIS UNIQUE PROFESSIONAL LEARNING OPPORTUNITY HELPS TEACHERS IDENTIFY, DESIGN, PITCH, AND IMPLEMENT INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS. TECH GOES HOME, BASED ON A NATIONAL MODEL, IS A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN NPEF AND MNPS. IN EXCHANGE FOR ATTENDING TRAINING SESSIONS ON DIGITAL LITERACY, INCLUDING HOW FAMILIES CAN ACCESS MNPS-SPECIFIC APPS TO TRACK STUDENT PROGRESS, FAMILIES RECEIVE A FREE LAPTOP. OUR BLUE RIBBON TEACHER AWARDS PROVIDE RECOGNITION FOR SOME OF THE DISTRICT'S MOST OUTSTANDING TEACHERS, REWARDING THEM WITH A CHECK AND A COMMUNITY CELEBRATION. NPEF PROVIDED STRATEGIC SUPPORT TO DISTRICT LEADERS THIS PAST YEAR IN TWO KEY AREAS. FIRST, WE PARTNERED WITH THE URBAN SCHOOLS HUMAN CAPITAL ACADEMY TO PERFORM A TEACHER SUPPLY AND DEMAND STUDY, HIGHLIGHTING KEY AREAS TO FOCUS RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION EFFORTS. WE ALSO OVERHAULED AND RELAUNCHED THE TEACH-NASHVILLE.ORG WEBSITE, WHICH IS A ONE-STOP-SHOP FOR INFORMATION ABOUT TEACHING IN OUR DISTRICT, INCLUDING INFORMATION ON WORKING IN MNPS AND LIVING IN NASHVILLE.