The nationally recognized Springboard college prep program may be coming to as many as five MPS schools in the next few years. Prospective schools are Audubon, Bay View, Meir, Morse-Marshall, and Wisconsin Conservatory of Life Long Learning.
Springboard is a program of the College Board which also administers the SAT college entrance exam and curriculum for Advance Placement classes. Springboard is well established out East: in New York City, Buffalo, Baltimore, and most of Florida, to name a few. The program is grades 6-12, and most schools in the program fit that grade configuration. All five MPS schools in the mix have, or will have, 6-12 grade students. The College Board is interested in establish the Springboard program in more than just one or two MPS schools and may take on all five schools. Principals and teachers from the five schools will be meeting with College Board representatives on January 19th to discuss the program.
Superintendent Thornton and I discussed the advantages of 6-12 secondary schools when he first came to Milwaukee. He pointed out that the Springboard program was established for just such schools. I began researching the program and pushed Thornton to seriously consider bringing the program to Milwaukee. Last April, Meagan Holman was elected to the Milwaukee school board, and I soon discovered that she had been looking at the Springboard possibilities as well.
In December, Holman, Thornton with members of his administrative team, and I met with College Board representatives. We were impressed with their presentation, and they were impressed with our knowledge of Springboard. It looked like a good fit for both parties. They were ready to come to Milwaukee by next fall if necessary.
Although not stated, the College Board should be especially interested in establishing its program in Milwaukee. After all, the college entrance exam of choice throughout the Midwest is the ACT. The College Board’s SAT entrance exam dominates the east and west coasts. The College Board would like nothing better than to plant more SAT flags in the middle of ACT territory.
The inclusion of Morse-Marshall and Meir as possible schools represents a possible restructuring of Milwaukee’s Gifted and Talented programs that is long overdue and necessary to keep in compliance with federal regulations and in line with contemporary research.
Holman and I pushed for the inclusion of Bay View into the program, not simply because we both live in the Bay View area, but because this middle and high school program could serve as a model to help turn around struggling secondary schools in the district.
Here is a template that does not rely on entrance requirements nor throwing everyone out and starting over again. Springboard philosophy is that, if a school has a student for seven years, it should be able to make most students college ready by high school graduation. It does not need entrance requirements to fulfill its mission, and it has the results to prove just that. While Springboard is in some charter schools, it is not a chartering school program. It often works with existing or newly established schools within the present public school structure.
We can’t say for sure that Springboard will be coming to Milwaukee, nor can we say that all five MPS schools listed here will become part of the program. The school board has the final say, but all signs point to a major leap forward in revitalizing the MPS secondary program through the Springboard program.
