RIZP
WHO WE ARE
In 2011 Lakeridge Elementary was identified as one of the state’s lowest performing schools. Consequently, the district received a Federal School Improvement Grant and implemented numerous changes to help turnaround the school.
In 2015, Renton School District (RSD) created the vision for West Hill NOW! and sought in 2016 to implement similar school improvements at Campbell Hill and Bryn Mawr Elementary school. The district expanded these efforts in 2017 to include Highlands Elementary School and titled the multi-year initiative the Renton Innovation Zone.
In partnership with the Community Center for Education Results (CCER), King County, multiple other organizations, community stakeholders and families, the Renton Innovation Zone Partnership (RIZP) was established in 2017 and the RIZP Improvement Plan was created in 2018.
We serve students, parents and families who reside in the Renton Innovation Zone Partnership (RIZP). The 5,023 children in the Renton Innovation Zone neighborhood come from diverse racial and cultural backgrounds. Of the RIZP elementary school students, 41% live in households where English is not the primary language.
MISSION
To lead a relationship-based, data informed collaborative network to advance racial equity and create healthy learning opportunities for all children throughout the Renton Innovation Zone.
vision
Working to ensure that every child is thriving, supported, connected and is inspired to learn.
“We’re raising kids, not test scores”
– Staff, Highlands Elementary
Values
Equity
Intentional focus on equity at both individual and systemic levels
Relationships Centered
Place relationships among partners and with community, families, and children at the center of all actions
Results Informed
Start with the end result for children – RIZ Targets – and continuously use data to inform decisions and improvement
Community Driven
Co-create strategies with communities and families
Aligned Action and Contribution
Accountability among all partners to take aligned actions to make measurable progress toward the results
Simultaneously Build Capacity and Quality
Serve more children well
School District and Community Partner Collaboration
Build shared strategies, teams, and supports
Improvement Science
Use rigorous methods such as the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) approach as framework for immediate, rapid cycle, testable improvements that lead to long term innovation and scale to both fill gaps and address emerging needs
By the 2022-2023 academic school year:
OUR SCHOOLS
Lakeridge Elementary
Mascot: Orcas
At Lakeridge Elementary, we are committed to the success of each student and are focused on building each student’s academic, social, and emotional growth. We have high expectations for all learners and believe that collaboration among staff creates a more rigorous learning environment.
Bryn Mawr Elementary
Mascot: Mustangs
Every student will read, write, and do math on or above grade level and will demonstrate social and emotional well-being. Every student will be college and career ready.
Campbell Hill Elementary
Mascot: Cougars
At Campbell Hill we are committed to academic achievement for all students and aim to provide a safe and respectful learning environment. We focus our daily efforts on delivering high quality instruction and support students’ social, emotional, and behavioral development through building relationships and community in each classroom and throughout the school. We fully embrace the diversity that is our student body and value family and community involvement as an integral part of our students’ education. We believe all scholars are capable of success, NO EXCEPTIONS!
Highlands Elementary
Mascot: Huskies
To create a safe and caring environment where all students experience success and realize their maximum potential for learning.
celebrate
OUR STUDENTS
The 5,023 children ages 0-9 in this zone come from diverse racial and cultural backgrounds. 41% of the RIZ students live in households where English is not the primary language. Although Spanish is most prevalent in total, the four schools each have different demographics.
41% of the RIZ students live in households where English is not the primary language. Although Spanish is most prevalent in total, the four schools each have different demographics.
These children are also living in families who face daily economic challenges. Over 7% of adults over age 25 have less than a ninth-grade education, which is more than double the rate in Renton as a whole (3.1%) and King County (3.6%).
The percentage of families living below 100% of the federal poverty level ($30,750 in 2017 for a family of four) in these neighborhoods is 17%, which is greater than Renton School District’s overall rate of 12% and nearly twice as much as King County as a whole (9%).
Housing instability in the RIZ is increasing. The current housing crisis in the region has been driving housing costs up in this area significantly, as displacement has risen to a high level of concern for families and community partners.
Homelessness and housing instability create significant challenges to students’ ability to learn and thrive.
There are at least 105 homeless students in the four RIZ schools (8.3% of its total population), as determined by McKinney Vento Status. This is a federal classification for children and youth experiencing homelessness and the designation provides additional supports for students.
Due to a severe lack of quality early learning opportunities, many of the children who begin kindergarten have not had access to quality early learning activities, which creates challenges as they transition to kindergarten.
While there is variation among the four elementary schools, overall only 40% of children are assessed to meet six of six WaKIDS (Washington Kindergarten Inventory of Developing Skills) domains (social emotional, physical, cognitive, language, literacy and mathematics).
Challenges persist for students as indicated by their 3rd grade English Language Arts (ELA) and 4th grade math assessments, which vary significantly by school and by ethnic group. In total, only 38% of third grade students met reading proficiency on the English Language Arts standards in 2016-17, and only 44% met proficiency on the 4th grade math assessment. Importantly, there are significant disparities among racial and language groups.
RIZP Staff
We’re a team of makers, thinkers, explorers and go-getters. We approach work and play with curiosity and strategy, using what we learn to connect communities and schools within the Renton Innovation Zone to improve the well-being of children and their academic performance.
Ryan Quigtar
Executive Director
Christabel Fowler
Operations Manager
Jasmine RaeLynn
Communications Manager
our funders
The collaboration, planning and expansion of community services for children and families in the Renton Innovation Zone Partnership to date would not have been possible without the generous financial support from The Ballmer Group, The Boeing Company and the Renton Regional Community Foundation.
“We had to do a lot of learning. We had to do a lot of research.
That’s the part of the process that we had to go through.
Is there really a shortage of early learning opportunities in Skyway?
We should test that and find out and do a landscape analysis and talk to people.
What do we already know from families?”
– Staff, King County Housing Authority
RIZP
FISCAL SPONSORSHIP
Renton Innovation Zone Partnership is fiscally sponsored by the Rainier Valley Corps (RVC).
The Renton Innovation Zone Partnership is an Operations Support partner of Rainier Valley Corporation (RVC). This type of partnership enables us to consistently provide a values-driven focus to our nonprofit, social justice and racial equity work.
Renton Innovation Zone Partnership has received a numerous amount of support from the Community Center for Education Results.
The Community Center for Education Results is a nonprofit created to serve as the Road Map Project’s backbone organization. The team provides data, research, communications, program, logistical, and other support in service to the initiative.
