The Education Renewal Zone Initiative
The Education Renewal Zone (ERZ) initiative is an innovative, legislatively-crafted program designed to bridge resources available through institutes of higher learning with the needs of Arkansas' public schools. Passed into law as Act 106 of the Second Extraordinary Session of 2003, the express purpose of the initiative is to:
- Identify and implement educational and management strategies designed specifically to improve public school performance and student academic achievement;
- Provide for collaboration among the state’s smaller schools and districts in order to achieve some of the advantages of economies of scale in providing educational and related activities;
- Maximize benefits and outcomes of public schooling by concentrating and coordinating the resources of the University of Central Arkansas, the expertise of the Crowley's Ridge and North Little Rock Education Service Cooperatives, and the technical assistance of other service providers to improve public school performance and student academic achievement; and
- Enable small, rural, less wealthy schools to make the best use of the latest cost-effective distance learning technology to enhance curricula and professional development through two-way interactive learning environments.
At the University of Central Arkansas
The President of the UCA, Lu Hardin, has committed the University and its resources to the ERZ program. But more than just a commitment of resources, President Hardin has also dedicated the University to a long-term process of introspection and change to fit the evolving needs of Arkansas’ education system. Through President Hardin’s leadership, UCA has demonstrated “a willingness and flexibility to restructure its programs and services to meet the needs of the participating grades kindergarten through twelve (K-12) schools and school districts.”
The day-to-day work and mission of the ERZ is directed by Shawn Key. The Director works with faculty and staff campus wide to investigate, develop, and secure resources to fill the stated needs of participating ERZ schools.
Central & Northeast Arkansas ERZ Partners
Under its authority, the Arkansas Department of Education created seven independent renewal zones across Arkansas. Due in part to long-standing relationships with schools in the central and northeast part of the state, UCA partnered with sixteen schools and two Education Service Cooperatives to form the Central & Northeast ERZ.
The Strategic Plan
From the outset, Central & Northeast partners joined together to collaboratively articulate individual and common needs and to develop a comprehensive plan to address those needs. The goals and objectives of the partners were drawn together and organized by Dr. Bonita Selting from UCA's Department of Writing and Speech. This document, the Strategic Plan, provides the partners and the Director with a road-map and vision to achieve the consortium's goals.
