Leadership San Antonio

Education Class Day March 4, 2015

Preparing Generation Z for Success
A highly educated and skilled Generation Z is critical to our citys continued
economic success. San Antonio, however, is facing a number of educational
challenges, particularly when it comes to educating minority and low-income
students. During our day, we will examine these challenges and learn some of the
things currently being done to address them. We then are going to spend our day
visiting organizations and schools that are successfully working to ensure that all of
our citys students have an opportunity to succeed. By the end of the day we hope
everyone has a better understanding of the importance of education on our citys
economic success, the educational challenges and opportunities facing our city, and
the opportunities for each of us to get involved with and contribute towards
Generation Zs success.
ALAMO ACADEMIES
We will start our day by visiting Alamo Academies, a nationally renowned higher
education career academies program that provides a pathway for its students to
enter into high-demand local jobs in the Aerospace, Information Technology (IT),
Advanced Manufacturing, and Health Career sectors. This dual-credit program,
located in Southwest San Antonio, serves students from every school district in the
region. Alamo Academies works to ensure that every student in its program is
academically prepared, self-motivated, and equipped with a plan of action to
achieve his or her career goals. On this visit, we will hear an overview of the
program and also hear from students and employers who have experienced the
impact of Alamo Academies.
AVANCE
Our second stop of the day will be Avance, an early child development agency
serving children from economically challenged areas of the city. This visit will shed
light on the distinct challenges, multi-agency collaborations, and innovative
programs that Avance has developed to meet specific student and family needs.
We also will learn about the partnerships that Avance has formed with non-profit
agencies and neighborhood schools and how those partnerships are leading to
student success.
KIPP CAMINO ACADEMIES
Our third stop of the day will be KIPP Camino Academies, a Westside charter school
with a mission of providing a quality education to low-income elementary, middle,
and high school students. Our visit will include student lead tours of the campus, an
overview and KIPP, and a discussion of the impact of the recent influx of charter
schools into San Antonio. Our visit also will include a panel discussion with local
educators discussing educational challenges and opportunities in San Antonio.
WITTE MUSEUM
Our final stop of the day will be the Witte Museum. At the Witte, we will take a tour
of the museum, recap our day, and hear closing remarks from a well-respected San
Antonian and spokesperson for local education attainment goals.
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