corporate & school partnerships: best practices & guiding principles october 4, 2001
TRANSCRIPT
Corporate & School Partnerships:Best Practices & Guiding Principles
October 4, 2001
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Schools continue to need resources and funding
Increased number of public-private relationships in schools
Increased attention to sales and marketing of products in schools
Increased media focus has caused reexamination of value of public-private relationships
Danger of limiting relationships to appease critics
Educators support public-private relationships
Recognized need for guidelines to translate relationships into appropriate and effective corporate and school partnerships
Research Context & Role
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Two phases of research for project (September 2001):
• School administrator quantitative survey of 260 School Administrators20 minute telephone interviewSample -- national list of school principalsSchool had to have Business or Corporate Foundation partnershipAdministrator who managed the partnership included Principals,
Assistant Principals or Business Coordinator
• Qualitative survey of 47 School Board members and Superintendents
20 minute telephone interview
Sample - national list of board members, and superintendents
• Business executive qualitative survey with 50 large, medium and small businesses
Respondents recruited by broadcast fax1 hour telephone interviewSample -- Partners in Education database
Knowledgeable about business involvement
Research Methodology
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• Conduct a study of school administrators to determine: how often school business partnerships occur what are the objectives of these partnerships how these partnerships function level of satisfaction with partnership arrangements
• Conduct a study of business executives to gather: detailed and comprehensive examples of partnerships
between corporations and education definition of success factors best-in-class exemplars
• Use the data to develop a set of Guiding Principles to lead corporations in building appropriate and effective public-private partnerships in education
Research Objectives
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The Best Practices Research has been guided by counsel from members of the Best Practices Sub-Committee.
Dr. Bruno V. MannoThe Annie E. Casey Foundation
Dr. Patricia E. NewbySuperintendent, Grand Rapids Public Schools
Ms. Delia PompaExecutive Director, National Association for Bilingual Education
Dr. Gerald N. TirozziExecutive Director, National Association of Secondary School Principals
Council Work Group
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To ensure the objectivity of the findings, a third party was contracted to consult and manage the Best Practices research. The National Association of Partners in Education led the research project using two teams of researchers.
National Association of Partners in EducationDaniel W. Merenda, President and CEORanjit Sidhu, Executive Vice President and COO
Consulting Research and Information ServicesE. Judy Barokas, Ph.D., President
Kane, Parsons and Associates, Inc.Herman W. Kane, PresidentR. Wayne Parsons, Executive Vice President
The Best Practices Research Team
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An Overview of Growth & Change
Source: Partnerships 2000: A Decade of Growth and Change
Topic 1990 2000 Increase
Districts withPartnerships
51% 69% 35%
Students Served 29.7Million
35Million
18%
Volunteers 2.6Million
3.4Million
31%
Volunteer Hours N/A 109 Million(52,000 FTE)
N/A
Value to Schools $ 1Billion
$2.4 Billion 102%
Partnerships have increased in number, amount of volunteer hours and value to school.
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An Overview of Growth & Change
Source: Partnerships 2000: A Decade of Growth and Change
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
19902000
ParentOrganizations
SmallBusiness
76%74%
63%
38%
76%
41%
Growth of partnerships is being fueled by private business.
AssociationsNonProfits
MediumCorporations
LargeCorporations
23%
61%
42%
29%34%
59%
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Approach to Developing Guiding Principles
School Administrators
Business Executives
Partners in Education
Industry Analysts
Council Subcommittee
The Council
Research Guiding Themes
Synthesis & Analysis
Guiding Principles
Research Steps: Data Collection, Analysis, and Synthesis
Detailed methodology found in Appendix
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Commerce Process
Philanthropic Process
SchoolBusiness
Business School
Partnership Process
Business School
Mutual benefits define partnerships.
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Key Research Findings
School Administrators
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The majority of school administrator partnerships are developed with business.
0
20
40
60
80
100
Percent Of Schools Reporting Existance Of Partnerships
Business CorporateFoundations
OtherNon-Profits
PrivateFoundations
GovernmentOrganizations
95%
43%29% 22% 22%
Base: 261 School AdministratorsQ. Does your school have any kind of partnership or joint activity with?
General Partnership Overview
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Importance Of Partnerships To Schools(Percent Extremely/Very Important)
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%
Expand campus buildings
Expand athletic facilities
Meet needs within budget
Improve safety
Reduce absenteeism and drop out rate
Professional development
Prevent substance abuse and other problems
Improve achievement in arts, athletics, etc.
Equipment for extracurricular activities
Funding to increase use of technology
Increase parental involvement
Improve academic achievement in core subjects
Funding for libraries, computers, etc.
Provide students direction in terms of future education
Improve student motivation, self-esteem, etc.
72%60%
49%
44%
28%
General Partnership Overview
The most important areas supported with partnerships focus on student development and advancement. Areas of less importance address the expansion of bricks and mortar.
Base: 261 School AdministratorsQ. How important are partnerships to your ability to provide the following programs?
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Food, beverage, and restaurant companies are mentioned most often in terms of important partnerships.
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Base: 261 School Administrators
Q. What company is involved with the most important partnership you rely on to meet your objectives?
Most Important Partnership To The School
General Partnership Overview
33%
17%
19%
5%7%8%11%
Don’tKnow
FinancialMftr.RetailMisc. Profit
Non ProfitFoodBev
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Specific Partnership Evaluation
Base: 261 School AdministratorsQ. Overall, how satisfied are you with the ability of this partnership in meetings its goal?
Degree Of Satisfaction With The Selected Partnership
ExtremelySatisfied
38%
VerySatisfied
49%
Somewhat Satisfied10%
Somewhat/Very Dissatisfied3%
School administrators are very pleased with the performance of their most important business partner.
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Characteristics of Effective Partnerships
1. Ability to resolve problems arising from partnership
2. Clear communication of roles and responsibilities
3. Well planned program4. Value of program to school or students5. Follow-through training for teachers and staff6. Support materials for teachers and staff7. Quality of services and products
Satisfaction with a partnership is highly correlated to these characteristics:
Characteristics listed by order of strength of correlation
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Likelihood Of Continuing The PartnershipBeyond The 2001-2002 School Year
Specific Partnership Evaluation
Definitely67%
Very Likely30%
Not Likely4%
Almost 100% of the school administrators expect to continue the partnership next school year.
Base: 261 School AdministratorsQ. How likely are you to continue this partnership beyond the 2001-2002 school year?
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Commitment to the Partnership
Goals of the partnership and school are perfectly aligned
Goal of the partnership is to advance student education
Formal management system is in place
School conducts formal evaluations of the partnership
Teachers are favorably oriented towards the partnership
Written policy supports business partnerships in the school
Of the administrators definitely continuing the selected partnership, the defining characteristics of commitment are:
There is no rank order for Commitment Characteristics. Characteristics are profiled from questions where committed Administrator answers are distinctly different from the less committed Administrators.
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23%9%3%5%2%
27%
18%17%13%12%
11%
16%
26%26%21%27%26%
34%46%55%61%60%62%
Teachers Students Board ofEducation
Parents CommunityLeaders
The Media
Not sure Unfavorable or neutral Moderately favorable Strongly favorable
Attitudes Of Various Constituencies Towards The Partnership
Specific Partnership Evaluation
Base: 261 School AdministratorsQ. How would you describe the attitudes toward the partnership among the following constituents?
With the exception of the media, school administrators believe the school and community perceive partnerships to be favorable.
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57%
67%
69%
71%
73%
89%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Perceived Benefits Of The Partnership For The Business Partner
Base: 261 School AdministratorsQ. Do you feel the partnership benefits the business partner by? (Percent responding YES)
Perceptions & Attitudes
Goodwill of community and parents
Generating revenue
Direct marketing to students
Advancing role as community leader
Receiving positive media coverage
Building brand loyalty
School administrators clearly recognize benefits of school partnerships for their business partners ranging from “Goodwill” to “Generating Revenue”.
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Appropriateness Of School Providing PublicRecognition Of A Business Partner
Extremely appropriate
Very appropriate
Somewhat appropriate
Not very or not at all appropriateNot sure
35%
41%
17%
3%4%
Base: 261 School AdministratorsQ. How appropriate is it for the school to provide public recognition of the efforts provided by the business partner?
School administrators feel it is appropriate to publicly recognize business partnerships.
Perceptions & Attitudes
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0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
General Partnership Overview
Coca-Cola 11%Pepsi 10%McDonald’s 5%Gen. Mills 1%Kroger 1%Other 6%
Companies in the Food, Beverage and Restaurant industry are most frequently cited as Best Class Partners. Within that category, Coca-Cola and Pepsi are the two companies most often mentioned by name.
Best Class Partnerships
Base: 261 School AdministratorsQ. Can you give me the name of a company you feel is doing an especially good job with school partnerships?
Non Profit
Misc. Profit
Retail Financial Don’tKnow
FoodBeverage
Restaurant
14% 13%
20%
6%
13%
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Key Research Findings
Business Executives
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Participating Companies
AFLAC AIM Foundation Allstate Insurance
Company AllTel American Pest
Control AutoZone Bank One BE&K Inc. Booz-Allen &
Hamilton Bull’s Eye Credit
Union CDK Mortgage Chevron Coca-Cola Connexus Software Coventry Eye Care Davis Applied
Technology Center Duxler Tire
EDS El Paso Energy Evanston, INVEST EXXON-Mobil
Chemical Company EXXON-Mobil First Union National
Bank FPL’s Energy
Encounter Generation Copy Green Bay
MotoPhoto InterWeave Iomega Corporation Kroger LADD Construction Las Vegas
Partnership Office Northrop Grumman
Corporation Overland
Corporation
Pizza Hut Presbyterian Homes Purple Mountain
Media Company Reliant Energy Shell Oil Co.
Foundation Shimadzu Scientific
Instruments Southern Nevada
Water Authority Target Stores Trustmark National
Bank Utah Bankers
Association Valor
Telecommunications W.C. Bradley Washington Mutual Westinghouse-
Savannah River Co.Wisconsin PublicService Corp.
Business interviews included executives from small, medium and large companies.
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FINANCIAL• Increased revenue• Customer loyalty
HUMAN CAPITAL• Employee morale through work on
altruistic program• Employee recruitment & retention• Economic health of community
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT• Better schools increase value of community• Well educated students strengthen the work force• Community education and philanthropy
HUMAN CAPITAL
• Better preparation for world of work
• Successful job placements
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
• Increased funds for schools
• Higher test scores
• Increased student achievement
Benefits to Business and Schools
Business School
Perceived benefits are threefold: Financial, Human Capital Investment and Community Development.
Source: 50 Business Executive Interviews
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• Improved student performance• Increased publicity for business• Larger recruitment pools• Reduced turnover• Higher profitability
Measures of Success
Source: 50 Business Executive Interviews
Business measures success by the level of performance of students and the company.
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• Recognize partnerships are both a process & product
• Identify services and available resources
• Set realistic goals
• Emphasize clear communications
• Create on-going monitoring and evaluation
• Determine mutual needs
• Clarify partnership mission
• Secure top management support and commitment
• Clearly define expectations, roles, and responsibilities
Business Executive Best Practices
Source: 50 Business Executive Interviews
Best Practice principles identified by business executives stress the importance of program planning, process management, and communication.
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Guiding Themes
Characteristics of Effective Partnerships
Business Best Practices
Characteristics of Committed Partnerships
Guiding Themes
GuidingPrinciples
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Commerce Process
Philanthropic Process
SchoolBusiness
Business School
Partnership Process
Business School
Mutual benefits define partnerships.
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Values & Philosophies
1Creating aClimate for
Success7Monitoring
&Evaluation
6Developing &
Managing Human,In-Kind, &Financial Resources
5Developing the
PartnershipManagement
System
4DevelopingAn Action
Plan &Governance Committee
2Assessing Needs,
PotentialResources,
& PartnershipModels
3Developing Vision,
Goals,Objectives,
& EvaluationCommittee
Partnership Development
Process
Values &Culture
The Council Research changes the established Partnership paradigm.
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Guiding Principles for Corporate and School Partnerships
Themes defining effective partnerships fall into three
areas:
• Values
• Structure
• Performance/Results
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Guiding Principles for Corporate and School Partnerships
• Partnership reflects and supports the core values of both school and business.
• Partnership is based on mutually defined and beneficial goals and objectives.
• Partnership concept is integrated into the school and business cultures.
Values Based Themes
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Values Based Theme # 1
• Partnerships are “child-centered,” and enhance the academic, social, and physical well-being of students.
• Partnerships respect the culture and goals of business and education partners.
• Partnerships support the social values and goals of the local community.
Partnership reflects and supports the core values of both school and business.
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Values Based Theme # 2
• The needs of all partners are on the table from the beginning.
• School and business goals are collaborative.• Success is defined from the perspective of all
stakeholders.• Goals and objectives include opportunities for
recognition of both partners.• Partnerships are aligned with education goals of
individual schools and/or districts.
Partnership is based on mutually defined and beneficial goals and objectives.
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Values Based Theme # 3
• Partners communicate frequently to understand
each other’s cultures.
• Students, teachers, and business employees
interact at school and business sites.
Partnership concept is integrated into the school and business cultures.
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Guiding Principles for Corporate and School Partnerships
• Partnership is guided by a written policy(ies) at the school/district level.
• Partnership has a defined management process and structure.
• Partnership holds each partner accountable for specific outcomes.
Structure Based Themes
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Structure Based Theme # 1
• Written policies strengthen and support
partnership by outlining engagement in
commitment to core values and ongoing
administration.
Partnership is guided by a written policy(ies) at the school or district level.
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Structure Based Theme # 2
• School has a point person to manage partnerships to ensure quality and alignment.
• Management structure includes written
procedures for partnerships, roles and
responsibilities, accountability measures, and
guidelines for teachers.
• Partnership training/mentoring is provided to all
key partners.
Partnership has a defined management process and structure.
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Structure Based Theme # 3
• Partnerships are evaluated on a regular basis.
• There is communication of intended and actual
outcomes with all partners.
• Partnerships are guided by collaborative agreement
on outcomes, benchmarks and progress points.
Partnership holds each partner accountable for specific outcomes.
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Guiding Principles for Corporate and School Partnerships
• Partnership is measured by clear definitions of success for both school and business.
• Partnership has articulated and demonstrated support at the highest level within business and schools.
• Partnership is explicitly supported by teachers,
employees and other constituents.
Performance Based Themes
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Performance Based Theme # 1
Partnership is measured by clear definitions of success for both school and business.
• Establish success measures at the outset of the partnership.
• Outcomes are measurable and time bound.
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Performance Based Theme # 2
Partnership has articulated and demonstrated support at the highest level within business and schools.
• Superintendent, principal, school boards, CEO’s and managers articulate and demonstrate support for partnership internally and externally.
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Performance Based Theme # 3
• Teachers and employees understand and
support partnership.
• Community has a positive image of the
partnership.
Partnership is explicitly supported by teachers, employees and other constituents.
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These qualitative data were used to inform the following activities:
Revision of the Guiding Principles
Communication Plan Development
Implementation Tool Development
Key Next Steps