Cisco’s 21st Century Schools initiative began with a commitment to raising student performance and increasing educational efficiency in Gulf Coast communities that experienced heavy damage from hurricanes in 2005. Now in its third year of operation, the program has succeeded in deploying fully converged data, voice and technology in the schools; training thousands of teachers in new educational methods; and connecting schools more closely with parents and educational resources.

Supported by an $80 million investment in technology, training programs, and Cisco Leadership Fellows’ expertise, the 21st Century Schools initiative in Louisiana and Mississippi demonstrates the synergies that occur when visionary educational leadership and extensive professional development efforts combine with leading-edge technology and a resurgence in community involvement.

Cisco has expanded the 21st Century Schools concept to make it an integral part of our vision for education transformation. A 21st Century School is a rich learning environment where students are fully engaged in a targeted curriculum brought to life through the creative use of technology.

Cisco’s 21st Century Schools adhere to these basic principles:

• Align pedagogy, curriculum, and technology to fully engage students in a 21st century learning experience.
• Cultivate 21st century skills, including critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, creativity, social responsibility, and global awareness.
• Provide authentic, student-centered learning.
• Use technology to enhance teaching and encourage collaboration and communication.
• Provide professional development to support great teaching.

During the past fiscal year, Cisco extended the 21st Century Schools blueprint outside Louisiana and Mississippi to include schools in California and New York.

21st Century Schools 2008 Highlights

The 21st Century Schools initiative posted a number of achievements in the past year:

• Jefferson Parish Public School System has committed to extending the 21st Century Schools framework to all 87 schools in the district within the next 18 to 24 months.
• 21st Century Schools partnered with the Smithsonian American Art Museum, NASA, and the Discovery Channel to bring rich media content and experts into classrooms, providing more than 1400 teachers with the professional development and skills needed to approach teaching in a new way using web 2.0-based resources.
• As part of the Mississippi Sustainability Initiative, Cisco presented customized sustainability reports to school districts with recommendations on organizing, planning, training, and integrating curriculum and technology. The reports help school districts align technology more closely with their pedagogical goals and get the highest educational return for their IT investments. Key recommendations include: centralizing responsibility for all technology management planning and purchasing in one organization to reduce costs; organizing a Technology Management Committee tasked with formulating technology initiatives; and developing technology literacy programs for administrators and staff to ensure professional progress and help teachers meet standards.
• Cisco TelePresence equipment is being installed in the district offices of three school districts in Louisiana and in the office of the State Superintendent of Education. The technology will enhance collaboration and reduce the need for travel, and it will also connect educators with universities and key teacher development partners.
• The initiative partnered with the Schlechty Center for Leadership in School Reform to help facilitate pedagogical evolution. Schools in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, completed their first year in the Schlechty Center Standard Bearer School District Network, while the Jefferson Parish system completed its second year. The Standard Bearer network connects schools across the nation that use a set of standards for developing and assessing their capacity to support building- and classroom-level educational change and realigning instruction to achieve better student outcomes. Many administrators and teachers attended Schlechty Center “Working on the Work” training.
• In March 2008, we partnered with NBA Cares, the National Basketball Association social responsibility initiative, to launch 30 Family and Community Resource Centers in the Recovery School District in New Orleans. Cisco provided program funding and IP telephony products that will help these centers achieve their goals of increasing parental involvement in schools and raising student achievement.
• To communicate useful information about the 21st Century Schools initiative, Cisco created a video and established an online wiki containing best practices, teachers’ stories, and lessons learned.