Christopher House was honored to host Illinois State Governor JB Pritzker and members of the General Assembly for today’s signing of the 2024 state budget, one of the largest budgets to date.
While balancing fiscal responsibility and compassion for the community, the new state budget will allow for increased funding to support early childhood, elementary, and higher education, as well as health and human services and homelessness prevention supports.
“Thanks to our firmer fiscal foundation, we have been able to put billions of dollars back into the pockets of Illinois taxpayers while investing in our future,” IL State Governor JB Pritzker said. “Our budgets have allowed thousands more students to stay in Illinois because they can afford a college degree. Balanced budgets have allowed us to modernize our infrastructure, build nation-leading clean energy production, attract industries of the future like quantum computing, and prioritize childcare for working families and our youngest children.”
The new Smart Start Illinois program, a $250 million initiative enacted to stabilize, support, and grant more accessibility to early childhood education, will help support Illinois’ Early Childhood Education programs, like Christopher House and our Early Childhood Education program that services over 300 scholars, from six weeks to 5 years old, across our three campuses located in Belmont Cragin, Uptown, and Logan Square. Smart Start Illinois’ aim is to increase preschool availability, advance Kindergarten readiness to actively prepare our youngest scholars for a lifetime of learning, and invest in the Early Childhood Education workforce. Christopher House too recognizes that high-quality education starts with our teaching staff and will subsequently continue to prioritize pay equity for our teachers and staff.
Over $1 billion dollars have been dedicated to supporting the families of our community through much needed health, human, and homelessness prevention services. Christopher House is heartened by the advancements made in community support by our State Government and the widespread recognition of parents as a child’s first teachers. Our organization operates using a two-generational model that works at the nexus of education and social services by providing holistic support to the families of the children we serve through Family Advocates, counselling services, parent workshops, and additional family supports, like three on-site food pantries and emergency rental assistance.
“We were honored to host today’s budget signing, and we are really excited about what additional funding will mean for our children and families,” Christopher House Chief Executive Officer Libby Shortenhaus said. “Early investments reduce spending in later years of education, reduce gun violence, and create strong communities in which people want to live and work. There are so many needs in our communities, but few are more important than high-quality Early Childhood Education.”
For more than a century, and especially in the last year, Christopher House has experienced growth, expansion, and transition in the ways we strive to support our communities. We are grateful for the leaders within each of our family of schools and campuses, and indeed the leadership qualities we see in our scholars as they excel year after year during their time with Christopher House.
These are characteristics we seek at all levels, and we are excited to announce that we have found a leaderwho exhibits the passion, dedication, and experience that we value so much: Libby Shortenhaus.
We spoke with Libby to learnmore about her experiences, vision for the future and the many ways our schools work to close the opportunity gap for the scholars and families in the communities we serve.
Having been with Christopher House since 2004, what have been the most exciting developments that you’ve observed?
First thing that comes to mind is our workthroughout the last year.I’ve been amazed and inspired by the resiliency of our scholars and staff alike. Through unbelievable and unexpected circumstances, our community showed perseverance and adaptability, and our model proved effective during the most unexpected of circumstances.
I also think that the expansion of our continuummodel and growth of our family of schools, especially over the last decade,is one of our great achievements. As an organization, we collectively set and achieve goals together, and we would not be able to make this kind of progress without working together as well as we do.
And it’s not just the physical expansion of schools that I’m proud of; it’s the way we perform andexcel in these schools. Every time we receive accreditation or learn that our scholars are exceeding expectations;when we see the performance of our teachers and scholars recognized withstatewide and national accolades; when we celebrate our very first graduating class of 8th grade scholars.These moments reveal how enriching of a model we have in place for everyone enrolled in our family of schools.
What are some of the key elements about Christopher House that distinguishes the school from others?
The way we connect with families in our communities at the earliest stages of their children’s lives is key. A parent is their child’s first teacher, and we know that learning mustcontinue when young people are outside of the classroom.Our commitment to personalized learning from the earliest years through high school also ensures that Christopher House meets the unique needs of each and every learner in our continuum of education.
Why is it so important to offer communities a continuum of education and engagement in the way Christopher House does?
Engaging with families and scholars long-term is one of the most fundamental things that we do. Our relationships with scholars and their families don’t cease over the summer months or after scholarsmove on from Christopher House. In June, we celebrated our first graduating class of 8thgraders, and their next steps are really exciting: more than 90% were accepted into their top-three best fit high schools. And while these scholars are heading off to high schools across the city, our After School program will ensure that they stay in the Christopher House family – many of these scholars will continue to engage with Christopher House programming after their school day ends and alsoduring school breaks.
What are your short- and long-term goals for your leadership role with the organization?
My first priority is a safe and full return to school this fall. We are excited to see all of our scholars benefiting from in-person instruction and we know that this will be an adjustment for everyone – scholars, parents and teachers. We look forward to assessing the impact of virtual instruction on our scholars and creating interventions – academic, social, and emotional – to ensure we maximize learning and growth in the coming year. We also know our teachers will need additional support including professional development, time to collaborate, and space to innovate so that we can best meet the needs of our scholars.
Iam also excited to begin a number of listening sessions to re-connect with the wider Christopher House community. I’m excited to take this opportunity to hear from and partner with our community as we execute on our critical mission of providing high-quality education and support for our scholars, their families, and the community. This is also an early opportunity to show my commitment to increasing communication and transparency at all levels.
In the long-term, I look forward to creating new opportunities to invest in diverse leaders throughout our organization – this includes all levels of the organization from members of Christopher House’s Board of Directors to emerging leaders throughout our schools. I am committed to elevating our thought leadership and advocacy efforts to ensure all levels of the organization are engaged in work to improve outcomes and influence policies for all thosewe serve. Christopher House now has an opportunity to become a stronger organization by leaning into our core values – a commitment to excellence, achievement and perseverance, respect and compassion, and equity – and the core components of our educational model.
What is it about Christopher House’s mission that most resonates with you?
Family, equity and opportunity. Family because I know the power our parents and caregivers play in the success of our scholars. Equity because I have seen how our personalized learning model provides scholars and families what they need to be successful. We are not a one-size-fits-all shop. We get to know our scholars, their backgrounds, and their hopes for the future, and we design education, curriculum, and programming that is tailored to their strengths and identity. And opportunity because that’s really what we are all here for – to make sure every child who walks through the doors of our schools has access to a lifetime of opportunity and success. Their paths may all look different, but they will own their paths, knowing themselves and having the confidence to make their own way once they move on from Christopher House.
What is your favorite memory during your time with Christopher House?
There are many! As part of Christopher House’s model, new parents have access to home-visiting and doula services. It just so happened that while I was pregnant with my first child, I shared an office with the teen and adult pregnancy staff. I learned an incredible amount during this time just by osmosis – and I remember thinking how incredible it was that our parents and infants had this level of support at such an early stage in their learning journey. And that’s how I feel about each of Christopher House’s schools and programs – if only every scholar in our city was met with this level of support, the whole future of our citywould change– and that’s a dream for the future.
Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky of the 9th district joined us for a press conference at our Uptown campus on July 15 to encourage families to learn more about the Child Tax Credit. This remarkable legislation will provide up to $300 per month, per child now through December.
We were so pleased to welcome Representative Schakowsky to speak to the importance of this legislation, which she played a key role in bringing to fruition. In addition to her remarks, our CEO Libby Shortenhaus spoke to the value that it will bring, not only to our families, but to those around the country, effectively cutting childhood poverty in half. Two parents from our campus also spoke, sharing their enriching experiences with Christopher House and how meaningful this credit will be in helping them support their children and invest in their future.
Many thanks to the local media who attend as well and share these stories with families around the city.
What started in 2013 as an ambition to create a more sustainable education experience and offer a birth through 8th grade continuum model has come to fruition, culminating in the graduation of our first class of 8th grade scholars. This achievement is particularly remarkable considering the past year and the way Covid-19 has impacted the way we teach, learn, and engage with our communities. Despite the challenges, our educators developed creative and effective methods that allowed us to continue supporting our scholars and their families, as our young learners embark on this next exciting chapter of their lives.
Christopher House’s model of connecting with children from birth to 8th grade is demonstrably successful. Our students’ performance consistently ranks Christopher House among the top elementary schools in the city. In fact, in 2018, Chicago Magazine named Christopher House the number one charter school in the city, and in 2019, the University of Chicago’s 5Essentials Survey gave Christopher House the highest possible rating in all five categories, finding our model to be ten times more effective in increasing student learning.
We have learned much about providing high-quality education and supporting our scholars and families virtually this past year, and we’re thrilled to share some exciting updates around our graduating class’s experiences and next steps.
We are ecstatic to share that 92% of our graduates were accepted into one of their top-three best fit high schools, and 98% were accepted into their top-five. Three of our 40 graduates received generous scholarships to attend private schools and 10 scholars are enrolling in Pre-Engineering or STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) programs next year; a testament to the value of the STEM classes that are such an important part of Christopher House’s curriculum.
Pritzker College Prep and ITW Speer Academy were the two most popular high schools among our graduating class, with five scholars enrolling in each school next year. Pritzker College Prep, a part of the Noble Network, was recently ranked the 2nd best public high school by Chicago Magazine and the school offers more than 15 AP courses, 16 Varsity sports and more than 50 clubs. ITW Speer Academy, located in Christopher House’s Belmont Cragin neighborhood, is also a part of Noble and is the Network’s first STEM campus. Speer Academy focuses on preparing students to graduate college with STEM degrees. All students participate in college courses on a local college campus, have access to Speer’s new state-of-the-art educational and athletic facilities, and will participate in a STEM internship during their senior year with a Fortune 500 company.
Three scholars will enroll in Lane Tech and one at Jones High School – 2 of the only 11 selective enrollment schools within all of Chicago Public Schools. Lastly, one of our scholars has been accepted to Walter Payton College Prep High School, another selective enrollment school and the highest ranked high school in Chicago.
We spoke with several scholars to hear more about what they’re looking forward to and what they enjoyed most about the years they spent in our family of schools.
Jorge Diaz has been attending Christopher House since second grade and is heading to Lane Tech College Prep. “I’ve had so many fun, memorable times here, whether it be with teachers, classmates, friends, games and so on,” he said. “I love all the friends I’ve made here and how we’ve all had such great times together.” Jorge is interested in pursuing a career in the arts. “I’ve always wanted to work on a movie,” he explained. “I would love to be an actor, but a cameraman, editor, or director also sound amazing.” In thinking about high school, he’s excited at the idea of how much Lane Tech will have to offer.
Fatima Olivares has a number of career interests, including photography, modeling and the veterinarian field. She was a student in Christopher House’s Music Technology Elective and created impressive compositions throughout the program. Fatima was accepted at INTRISIC’s downtown campus and is looking forward to the close, personal culture of education the school offers. She has been with Christopher House since first grade; the year the school opened and appreciates how she and her classmates were able to support each other throughout remote learning, facing challenges as a team.
Yarley M is one of four Christopher House scholars who will attend North Grand High School next year. Playing basketball, joining a drama club, psychology class, student council or yearbook are among the activities Yarley is excited to participate in during her four years. She has expressed interest in a career in psychology and enjoyed the level of variety that Christopher House’s curriculum provides, like classes around money management and other experiential subjects.
Juan Villegas shared his appreciation for all that Christopher House entailed during the seven years he attended the school, saying, “What I enjoyed there the most were the students and the teachers. They were all kind, and I made a lot of good memories. For that, I’m thankful for being in an amazing school.” Juan selected Phoenix Military Academy and is excited to meet new people and learn how to “become an adult.” His ambition is to study law and ultimately work as a police detective.
Anthony Bahena will also be attending Lane Tech College Prep and has multiple plans for how he’d like to spend his time in high school and beyond. “I am excited about the sports and clubs, specifically baseball. A course I am excited about is computer science,” he says. A future as a professional athlete is first and foremost in mind for Anthony, with engineering and technology being a close second.
We are deeply proud of all that our students have accomplished, not only this past year, but throughout their entire time within Christopher House. Our mission is rooted in the goal of creating genuine, long-term relationships with our students and families that extend beyond the classroom. We are invested in their present and future, and our other offerings like After School and summer programming give us the valuable opportunity to maintain a presence in their lives even after graduation. We look forward to staying in touch with our scholars, providing ongoing mentorship and seeing the many successes they are sure to achieve in the years to come. A huge congratulations to our entire graduating class! We’re exceedingly proud of your growth during your time with us and we look forward to hearing more about your plans for the future.
In mid-March, Christopher House’s Infant & Pre-Schools closed as a result of Governor J.B. Pritzker’s shelter-in-place order and the ongoing danger of COVID-19.
This has been a challenge for pre-school educators, who rely on play-based learning and making in-person connections with students more than any other age. Christopher House families—100% of whom are low-income—face additional challenges, such as limited access to Internet and technology and stressors at home such as unemployment, food or housing insecurity, and anxiety about the unpredictable future ahead.
However, Christopher House’s innovative Infant & Pre-School has continued offering weekly programming, recording weekly educational videos for scholars and resources for parents to facilitate at-home learning.
“While we know that young children learn best through hands-on learning experiences, we are working to partner now, more so than ever with parents as children’s first teachers,” said Sarah Collentine, Associate Director of Early Childhood.
Facilitating pre-school education during an unprecedented stay-at-home order is no easy feat, but Christopher House continues to prepare nearly 400 low-income scholars for kindergarten at home through the following methods:
Christopher House teachers record weekly math, literacy, and storytime videos.
This allows scholars to continue building skills needed for kindergarten readiness, see familiar faces, and maintain a routine through COVID-19. Christopher House’s Associate Director of Curriculum and Instruction—a newly created position—has assembled a best practices toolkit and calendar for creating e-learning videos for all Infant & Pre-School classrooms. The videos are uploaded and shared with families each Monday.
Christopher House has provided resources for parents to facilitate their child’s at-home learning.
In mid-March, every Infant & Pre-School scholar was mailed 3 weeks of enrichment activities to complete at home. Additionally, ReadyRosie, a web-based product of Teaching Strategies and The Creative Curriculum, has been shared with families and provides at-home activities and learning games—in English and Spanish—for infants through kindergarteners.
Christopher House continues to provide supports for diverse learners and their parents.
Our Diverse Learners Specialist is connecting with all paraprofessionals to create specific videos for diverse learners and their parents, who are struggling with at-home learning. They are helping parents create a visual schedule, establish consistency, and discuss COVID-19 with their children.
Professional development for Infant & Pre-School teachers continues virtually.
The Infant & Pre-Schools first Virtual In-Service will be held in May to provide additional support and professional development during this time. In addition, Christopher House’s social workers will facilitate a workshop for teachers on mental health and wellness. Additionally, the Infant & Pre-School’s STEAM Learning Communities are now being held virtually.
“We are so proud of teacher’s and leadership’s flexibility, creativity and commitment to excellence as we rapidly pivoted the way we educate and support young children and families,” said Sarah. “While none of this work is easy or straightforward, it is inspiring to be part of team of educators who care so much and are tirelessly dedicated to engaging with their young students—through whatever means possible.”
Christopher House works to close the opportunity gap for low-income, at-risk children and their families. This is not one-size-fits-all work. Our work is as fluid and dynamic as the constantly-changing educational and socio-economic landscape in which we operate. We keep up by constantly measuring and adapting.
Christopher House maintains high standards for tracking and using individual, classroom, and community data to continually improve and achieve better results for the individuals and families we serve.
Recently, Christopher House Elementary School participated in the 5Essentials Survey, which provides school leadership with the data needed to assess their school’s organizational conditions and inform school improvement planning. The results are in – Christopher House Elementary School received the highest possible rating in all five categories, and our model was found to be 10 times more effective in increasing student learning.
WHAT IS THE 5ESSENTIALS SURVEY?
The 5Essentials Survey, developed by the state of Illinois and executed by the University of Chicago, is an evidence-based system designed to drive improvement in schools. The survey, which is taken by all pre-kindergarten through 12th grade teachers, and all 4th through 12th grade students at a school, features questions that measure performance on a scale of 0 to 100 in five key categories:
Effective Leaders
Collaborative Teachers
Involved Families
Supportive Environment
Ambitious Instruction
WHY IS THE 5ESSENTIALS SURVEY IMPORTANT?
Schools that want to improve their methods need to measure their results. Up until recently, standardized testing was the cornerstone of measurement in educational settings. However, they often fail to provide a full picture of the teaching and learning landscape, and encourage teaching-to-the-test instruction.
Designed with this in mind, the 5Essentials Survey takes a holistic approach to measurement – both with whom and what it surveys. It allows for both students and teachers to weigh in on improving their school, and the results provide clear pathways for improvement.
CHRISTOPHER HOUSE’S UNIQUE MODEL
The 5Essentials Survey is used to measure schools across Illinois and the nation. And while Christopher House has a unique model, these five categories are still good gauges of success and efficacy.
Christopher House has a unique model because it has a unique mission: to close the opportunity gap for low-income, at-risk children and their families. To achieve that goal, we provide scholars and their family with a high-quality education starting at birth, bolstered by immersive family support services.
We spoke with Christopher House Elementary School Principal, Krissy Novy, to better understand our model through the lens of the 5Essential categories and how she and her team achieved such stellar results:
CATEGORY 1: EFFECTIVE LEADERS
The first of the 5Essentials categories, ‘Effective Leaders’ measures how well the principal works with teachers to implement a clear and strategic vision for school success.
Christopher House’s Score: 86 Chicago Public Schools Average Score: 58 Christopher House Example: Christopher House’s core values serve as guiding principles for our methodology:
Commitment to Excellence
Achievement and Perseverance
Respect and Compassion
Equality of Opportunity
“Our work is anchored in these core values,” says Principal Krissy Novy. “At the beginning of every school year we have an all-staff workshop in which we discuss the core values that will direct us this year and how we’re going to fulfill them through our work.”
“This year we were coached on and became certified in positive discipline, which ties back to our Respect and Compassion core value. Positive discipline will be integral in our commitment to our scholars’ social and emotional development, as the method is designed to build emotional competence and their ability to understand themselves.”
The ‘Effective Leaders’ category measures how well the principal collaborates with teachers, but Principal Novy ensures that the Christopher House core values extend and are relayed to all levels of staff – last month Christopher House Elementary School’s security guards were also certified in Positive Discipline.
Christopher House’s core values, and the way Principal Novy shares them with her team, serve as a compass used by all staff to guide their work – ensuring a unified strategy and vision.
CATEGORY 2: COLLABORATIVE TEACHERS
The second of the 5Essentials categories, ‘Collaborative Teachers’ measures how teachers collaborate to promote professional growth.
Christopher House’s Score: 87 Chicago Public Schools Average Score: 65
Christopher House Example: Christopher House teachers are encouraged to collaborate in several different areas of their work, and there are processes in place for them to do so. Principal Novy explains that, while there are high standards each classroom must meet, the teachers are encouraged to take it from there: “From day one, we lay out expectations for planning the classroom environment look and feel. They serve as a foundational framework to ensure our high standards are met, and from there we encourage a lot of customization and teacher voice.”
That process of customization is completed via teacher collaboration: “every grade level team creates units together – they write their lesson plans and turn them in as a team, so there needs to be agreement amongst teachers.” Principal Novy finds that this collaborative process gives rise to engaging discussions and ideas that may not have been brought to light if teachers were developing lesson plans independently. “It brings together the diverse and robust expertise of all of our teachers – resulting in a curriculum that is greater than the sum of its parts.”
CATEGORY 3: INVOLVED FAMILIES
The third of the 5Essentials categories, ‘Involved Families’ measures how the entire school staff builds strong ]relationships with families and communities to support learning.
Christopher House’s Score: 93 Chicago Public Schools Average Score: 68
Christopher House Example: Christopher House’s model is predicated on family involvement. We believe that parents are their child’s first teachers. Through our Parent School, we partner with parents to ensure a safe, self-sufficient, and nurturing home environment conducive to educational success.
Principal Novy says that it is “a priority that all Christopher House families feel valued and involved in the school.” Families are brought into the fold through our immersive family supports, one of which involves working with a family advocate. “At Christopher House Elementary School, our teachers work with parents to set up three family goals to achieve throughout the year. The family then works with that teacher and a family advocate throughout the year to make sure they are on track to achieve that goal. “We are very growth focused,” says Principal Novy, “and goals are tailored to that family.”
Goals range from a scholar being able to write out their full name, to a parent securing stable housing. The collaborative, teamwork nature of family involvement at Christopher House closes the gap between school and home, and represents a unified effort towards the best possible education for our scholars.
CATEGORY 4: SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT
The fourth of the 5Essentials categories, ‘Supportive Environment’ measures how safe and orderly the school is, the expectations teachers have for their students, and how supportive students are of one another.
Christopher House’s Score: 88 Chicago Public Schools Average Score: 53
Christopher House Example: Just as we work with parents to ensure a safe and nurturing home environment, we work to uphold the same standards at school. We believe that scholars feeling secure at school – both in the facility, and with staff and their peers – is critical to effective learning. This manifests in a number of ways, as Principal Novy explains: “At the beginning of every school year, we conduct a walk-through of the facility with every member of staff – both to ensure that staff knows where everything is, and to provide an opportunity for staff to provide feedback on safety, hallway, and entry/exit protocols.”
Similar levels of thought and intention are put into how students can feel most comfortable around their peers. “We encourage students to collaborate like they would as adults – If they work together to develop presentations, research, resolve conflicts, and explore debates they will be more confident and more prepared for high school, college, and the workforce.”
CATEGORY 5: AMBITIOUS INSTRUCTION
The fifth of the 5Essentials categories, ‘Ambitious Instruction’ measures the academic rigor and demands of classes, student engagement, and the level to which teachers emphasize the application of knowledge.
Christopher House’s Score: 86 Chicago Public Schools Average Score: 77
Christopher House Example: Principal Krissy Novy believes that one of the best ways to lend academic rigor to the classroom is to consider the role of the teacher in relation to the students – and sometimes even limit it: “A number of our classrooms employ the Socratic seminar method – in which the teacher acts as a facilitator to a student-led classroom discussion.”
This style of instruction allows for students to help one another understand ideas, stimulates critical thinking, and encourages confidence in public-speaking.
ALWAYS IMPROVING
Receiving the highest possible rating on the 5Essentials Survey is an achievement that Christopher House is proud of – but it is not a finish line. We are constantly working to optimize our methods and improve the educational experience for our scholars.
These results are an indicator that we are on track to achieving our mission of closing the opportunity gap for low-income children and their families, and we are as resolved as ever to charge ahead.
In mid-March, Christopher House’s Infant & Pre-Schools closed as a result of Governor J.B. Pritzker’s shelter-in-place order and the ongoing danger of COVID-19.
