GROWCommunity

Mission

Momentum from successful grass roots school improvement efforts at the elementary level is fueling increased community engagement around neighborhood high schools, as families seek excellence in their own backyard. GROWCommunity, drawing on this momentum, is a community-wide effort on the North Side of Chicago to strengthen neighborhood high schools Amundsen and Lake View, as well as the 17 public elementary schools that feed into them, so they become the top educational choices for neighborhood families.

The initiative spans four wards and involves educators from the GROWCommunity schools, parents, neighbors, elected officials, philanthropic partners and community leaders. GROWCommunity has partnered with UChicago Impact at the University of Chicago’s Urban Education Institute to provide research-based school improvement tools and professional learning to both high schools and a cohort of elementary feeder schools.

GROWCommunity will demonstrate citywide that a diverse group of stakeholders can improve neighborhood schools when working collaboratively and purposefully. We strive to be a citywide model for equitable, high-quality neighborhood-based K-12 systems that prepare all students for success in college and beyond.

What we do

North Side, Community-Wide. A local initiative to strengthen the neighborhood public schools anchored by Amundsen and Lake View High Schools and their feeder elementary schools.

We are bringing together parents, educators, students, elected officials, community leaders, philanthropic partners and school improvement experts from the University of Chicago to create a seamless, outstanding K-12 system in our neighborhood. GROWCommunity is a nonprofit organization led by members of our community with years of experience building excellent neighborhood public schools.

We are working right now to...

• Spread the word about the great things happening at Amundsen and Lake View. Most recently, we organized spring high school student ambassador visits to elementary feeder schools and developed a postcard featuring information about Amundsen and Lake View and their students.
• Boost collaboration among schools and the many individuals and organizations that support them. Most recently, we have presented at local neighborhood association meetings, and we are working with Friends of Amundsen and Lake View High School Partners to plan a joint middle-school/high-school professional development session.
• Drive more resources into our neighborhood schools. Our partnership with UChicago Impact, a non-profit organization situated within the University of Chicago, is providing on-the-ground school improvement tools to five GROWCommunity schools. More about the GROWCommunity/UChicago Impact partnership.