Crooms AoIT Earns National Recognition as a ‘Distinguished Academy’
Crooms Academy of Information Technology is one of nine career academies to be awarded the National Academy Foundation's (NAF) distinguished academy recognition. This designation is given to a select few who have exhibited fidelity to an educational model that prepares students for success in college, work and life.
"This award is a testament to our teachers, advisory board members, and students whose hard work and dedication are what truly make our academy a success," said Principal Connie Collins.
Crooms Academy of Information Technology recently took part in the National Academy Foundation's self-assessment process that was designed to measure the academies' strengths and challenges in implementing NAF's results driven model in an effort to help academies move up the continuum of NAF's standards. Academy stakeholders met in teams to assess their progress as measured against effective practice using NAF's self-assessment tool, then submitted their information to NAF, who examined these scores and validated them through site visits. NAF shared the results with each academy, highlighting which areas present the greatest challenges, and directed them to targeted resources related to their challenges. "This tool was created to help our academies improve.
We didn't want to assume what areas academies needed help in. We wanted to provide assistance in a thoughtful manner and recognize the academies that were doing well," said Katherine Blasik, Assistant Vice President of Research and Evaluation for the National Academy Foundation. The nine academies who earned distinguished status will be recognized at the National Academy Foundation's Institute for Staff Development in San Francisco this July. They will also be called on to serve as exemplars and mentors to their peers as they try to reach this impressive status. "It is an honor to be so highly regarded by an organization that provides so much support to us," said Demetria Hayes, Academy Director, "We will continue to live up to our reputation and hope we can inspire others to reach higher as well."
The National Academy Foundation (NAF) is an acclaimed network of career-themed academies that open doors for underserved high school students to viable careers. For nearly 30 years, NAF has refined a proven model that provides young people access to industry-specific curricula, work-based learning experiences, and relationships with business professionals. NAF academies focus on one of four career themes: finance, hospitality & tourism, information technology, and engineering. Employees of more than 2,500 companies volunteer in classrooms, act as mentors, engage NAF students in paid internships, and serve on local Advisory Boards. During the 2009-10 school year, 500 NAF academies served more than 53,000 students across 41 states, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands. NAF's national graduation rate of 90% testifies to the effectiveness this effort.
