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STRIVE Preparatory Schools is a charter school organization in Denver, Colorado with the goal of providing equitable education to children typically disenfranchised by the public school system due to race, socioeconomic status, language barriers, or previous academic achievement.

STRIVE Preparatory Schools is a system of free, open enrollment charter schools in the Denver Public School system. It is one of the many charter schools in the Denver Public School system that has increased minority populations from 2001 to 2012.

STRIVE Preparatory Schools has nearly 3,500 students on 11 campuses. 87% of the students are eligible for free and reduced lunch, 97% are students of color, 49% are English language learners, and 13% are recipients of special education services.

At the center of their culture, STRIVE Prep holds the values of scholarship, teamwork, respect, intelligence, virtue, and effort very high. STRIVE Prep applies these values when working with students, families, and teachers within each of the communities.

History
STRIVE Prep was organized and created in 2006 by Chris Gibbons, and the first campus was opened in Southwest Denver. Gibbons founded STRIVE to become a system of superior charter schools in Denver. STRIVE's historic location strategy has always been to place campuses in neighborhoods that experience opportunity gaps due to race, socioeconomic makeup, and previous academic circumstances. STRIVE aims to close these gaps and provide equitable education to the children in these neighborhoods so educational successes can occur regardless of social limitations. When discussing STRIVE, Gibbons explains his motivation by stating: "'College preparation is a means to an end where scholars are equipped to earn a four-year college degree, come back to their community and lead and transform their own neighborhoods in the ways that they imagine and the ways that they seek and believe are possible.'"

Future goals
Chris Gibbons and the STRIVE Prep community have established a goal of expanding their outreach from 11 campuses in 2016 to 17 campuses in 2020. STRIVE wants to increase their student body from 3,500 students to 7,500 students by 2022. STRIVE Prep is using resources from Charter School Growth Fund and other corporate sponsors, as seen on their "Support Us" page, to achieve this goal.

STRIVE Prep was ranked number one for middle school academic growth among Denver Public Schools.

Demographics and locations
STRIVE Prep is a charter school through Denver Public Schools that has established 11 campuses in strategic neighborhoods across Denver where valuable and equitable education was once not available. The neighborhoods in which STRIVE chose to establish campuses are largely minority-majority neighborhoods. STRIVE's goal in the placement of these campuses is to provide equitable education to underprivileged, minority families in these neighborhoods. STRIVE has established schools in far northeast Denver, northwest Denver and southwest Denver.

Far Northeast Denver
Demographically, the Montbello area is racially and ethnically diverse. STRIVE Prep chose to establish schools in this section of Denver because of the diversity and the lack of well-funded education. The demographics of this neighborhood are roughly 53% Hispanic/Latino, 43% African American, 4% White, and 1% Asian. The minority-majority makeup of far northwest Denver has led to three STRIVE Prep campuses.

Northwest Denver
Northwest Denver includes several smaller neighborhoods including Sunnyside, West Highlands, East Highlands, and Highland. STRIVE Prep established three different campuses in this neighborhood because of the racial diversity that is evident in this community. The majority of the people in Northwest Denver are Hispanic/Latino, at 62.3%. The following races are represented as 32% White, 3.9% Black, 1% American Indian and 1% Asian. The STRIVE Prep campuses in Northwest Denver are two middle schools and one high school.

Southwest Denver
Southwest Denver is one of the largest neighborhoods in Denver, and is spread out among different zip codes and locations. STRIVE Prep has established five separate campuses along southern Federal Boulevard all in the zip code 80219. The racial makeup of this neighborhood is 78.3% Hispanic, 14.2% White, 3.4% Asian, 1.2% Black, 1.4% American Indian, and 1.6% multiracial.

Teachers and specialized programs
STRIVE provides assistance to kids of all races and backgrounds to improve college readiness.

STRIVE accomplishes its goals by hiring highly qualified teachers and adopting unique programs and teaching approaches. When hiring new employees, STRIVE focuses on an applicants specific leadership and teaching capabilities rather then generic skills. This search strategy is seen on their application page, and has allowed them to find a majority of their employees in authoritative positions. In Denver charter schools such as STRIVE, an average of 99.76% of teachers are ranked as highly qualified.

One successful program is led by the Assistant Principal of College Access, Vanessa Trujilo. Her job in this program allows students to feel prepared for college and enables them to have the resources they need to be accepted into college. STRIVE has adopted the motto "Are you ready to strive for college today?"> when working to prepare students for college. Trujilo also assists students with completing FASFA, college applications, and graduation planning. Her efforts give students the resources and confidence they need to apply for college despite their backgrounds and setbacks.

STRIVE also has found success with their College Access program though other teachers and associates, such as Kandi Brown. She is the director of the college access program and has been in charge of leading college visits across the United States as well as helping students prepare for college. Another key figure in their attributed college ready resources is Ms. Gutierrez. Gutierrez has led efforts in overseeing all schedules of STRIVE Prep scholars. She makes sure that each student is on track for graduation and most importantly makes each student feel like they have the support they need throughout their entire educational career.

Teaching strategies
Academic methods used in classrooms include an overall strategic structure influenced by data driven reasoning. Data collection methods used by teachers drive these academic strategies. Students have frequent assessments to target specific areas of improvement. Once students' areas for improvement are discovered, specific tutoring is then offered to help them in the subjects they have trouble with. All students have access to a personal computer for school assignments. There are also regular assessments to individualize student learning needs as well as extra class time for students who need help in certain subjects. Extra help is offered to English-language learners and students in special education programs.

STRIVE focuses attention and assistance to English-language learners by increasing English vocabulary exposure within the classroom through daily conversation, images, and incorporating the daily habit of practicing student introductions. STRIVE teachers serve these students through the dedicated English Language Development block four days a week. These blocks include six to seven minute introductions at the beginning of the lesson. Introductions consist of students stating their names in English. Students then participate in situational dialogue in describing their families and sharing where they are from. This section typically lasts ten to twenty minutes. At the end of a lesson, students are encouraged to write and reflect about what they learned that day and use critical thinking to reflect on how their learning will impact their future.

Most STRIVE classrooms have a standard of 100 minutes of English and 100 minutes of math four days a week. To further asses students' cumulative successes and to collect data, quarterly assessments are given to students using college preparation models similar to midterms and finals seen at the college level.

Aside from classroom strategies, behavior and social strategies are also in place. When students produce satisfactory work and demonstrate positive behaviors, they are recognized and praised for their achievements. There are appropriate consequences for poor choices and bad behavior. Another social strategy STRIVE implements is communication within the community. Students, families, and teachers are always in contact to make sure students are thriving and that their successes are being acknowledged. An additional offered resource is evening phone calls from teachers to help students with their homework. These minor strategies, both social and academic, attribute to STRIVE's overall goals and strategies to prepare students to demonstrate mastery and ensure success at the post-secondary levels.

Successes
With the current employees and a 96% minority enrollment, STRIVE has achieved a bronze medal in national rankings and has been able to achieve a 31% in English proficiency and a 47% in math efficiency, which is 11% above the district average. When comparing growth percentiles in each racial minority group within the Denver Charter schools and public schools in Denver, Charter schools have a higher overall growth percentile.

STRIVE Prep has come out at the top of the Denver scholastic rankings, thereby decreasing the impact of racial inequalities within minority-majority communities and becoming one step closer to equitable education for all races and backgrounds.