No Excuses University is a network that partners with schools to make sure that all students are prepared for college and careers in the future. They are given opportunities throughout their time at Dove Academy to be exposed and to learn what it means to create goals for ones’ future and how to obtain them.
To partner with No Excuses University means that Dove has adopted the six exceptional systems that help to support a students’ academic growth:
A Culture of Universal Achievement
Collaboration
Standards Alignment
Assessment Plan
Data Analysis
Interventions
At Dove, we believe students need to start getting prepared for college and careers the minute they walk into preschool. Systems need to be in place for students to achieve and succeed. At Dove, those systems have been put into place. Students as early as preschool gain exposure and begin the thought process of the importance of college and what having a bright future ahead might look like.
To do this, the staff at Dove has been busy putting together plans for the year so that they provide activities, opportunities and exposure to colleges and careers. These plans include wearing college shirts on Fridays and completing two project-based learning lessons per month. Doing these things also helps to provide a safe learning environment.
“The road to college for our students begins today. Students’ challenges in life do not define who they will become,” Tommy Brooks, principal at Dove Academy, said. “These challenges are simply stepping stones to success. It is Dove’s job to create experiences and positive relationships with students and their families so that a positive future is attainable.”
What can a parent expect from being a No Excuses school? A parent can expect consistent collaboration among staff members, and with students/families about the collaboration and things that they are doing to become college and career ready.
We expect that students and parents also pledge to:
Arrive at school every day, on time unless they are ill
Complete and turn in assignments
It takes a community to develop our students for college and career readiness. Dove will help to start the conversation about what lies beyond high school. No excuses! No limits!
“Growing up in poverty, thanks to a deep commitment to education on the part of my parents, I was one of the lucky ones to be saved. But over the years I’ve come to the conclusion that luck shouldn’t play a role in a child’s achievement. Every student deserves the kind of opportunities that lead to their success in the world. That success starts with adults who model a “No Excuses” attitude to the children they support. Parents need to join with staff members to make sure every student comes to school every day on time,” Damen Lopez, Founder and CEO of No Excuses said.
“Dove is amazing. It was one of the first schools that took part in the No Excuses Network and so many students have benefitted. They have and will continue to lead the way with Tommy Brooks as the principal for career and college readiness,” Gonzalez said.