As we enter the season of gratitude and giving, I want to reflect on just how thankful I feel to work with the students, staff, volunteers and families that help children thrive and community grow—even amid an extended pandemic—at the Intergenerational Schools.

Our Intergenerational Schools community has held fast around a shared commitment to our mission. As we adapt to the evolving risks and changing environments the past few years have presented, we’ve had to work hard to maintain focus on the one thing that doesn’t change: We are responsible for providing our students the environment, tools and skills to succeed in life. Through this cooperation and determination, we have collectively achieved remarkable outcomes worth celebrating:

  • All three Intergenerational Schools were named US News & World Reports Best Elementary Schools in 2022. (See rankings for Lakeshore, Near West and The Intergenerational School.)
  • The Intergenerational Schools are the #1 rated nonprofit charter school in Ohio for academic achievement, according to state test scores.
  • Students in 80% of Intergenerational Schools grades made more than expected academic progress.
  • Our three schools rank in the top four schools in Cleveland for middle school English and Language Arts achievement.
  • In a year that will not see the traditional state report cards issued for schools, our Performance Index measures (considering every test taken at every grade level) were higher that any neighborhood school district or charter network.

We know that test scores are only a small snapshot of the tremendous effort of our school community and the social-emotional learning outcomes of our students. Underneath these achievements, there are countless examples of perseverance, creativity and compassion within our schools. For example:

  • Our families, teachers and staff worked closely together to get students to school to take state the state tests, resulting in extremely high testing rates for all three schools.
  • We had lower chronic absentee rates because teachers and families worked together to address any issues and find ways to help students get to school.
  • As the Delta variant persists and we continue to adapt, we’ve invested COVID-relief funds in bringing additional supports into our schools, adding intervention staff and related supports in-house to address COVID-related learning loss.

To all our students, staff and community volunteers, I express my deepest thanks for your part in this work. As we move through the 2021-2022 school year and build on these efforts, let’s continue this tradition of excellence and community by following vaccination recommendations, continuing to practice safety measures, staying engaged with your child’s class and inviting your neighbors, friends and family to join our school community.