School District Trains 4000 People in `7 Habits'
to Produce `Highly Effective Students'
SALT LAKE CITY, March 11 /PRNewswire/ -- For the first time in a school
district in America, 4000 employees -- including teachers, custodial staff,
and bus drivers ---are changing the way schools do business. Never before has
there been a corporation, government entity, community or educational
institution who has trained this number of people in The 7 Habits of Highly
Effective People simultaneously.
Nationally known for education excellence, the Spring Branch Independent
School District (SBISD) in Houston has teamed with a variety of local
corporations to bring Stephen R. Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective
People, to employees of the district. The training program, offered by
Franklin Covey Company (NYSE: FC), is based on Covey's best-selling book which
has sold 12 million copies worldwide. The training has been taught in 82 of
the Fortune 100 Companies and two-thirds of the Fortune 500 as well as
thousands of mid-size and small corporations, government entities, and
educational institutions. The three-day educational training is a part of an
intensive seven-year transformational program aimed at retraining teachers for
the 2lst century.
"We are very aware of the drastic changes which need to be made in the way
we educate students in our country," says Dr. Hal Guthrie, Superintendent of
SBISD. "Schools today aren't producing students who possess the skills needed
to compete in today's global marketplace. The business leaders in our
community would like to see school districts run schools more like
corporations, focusing on quality. We are committed to changing the work
culture within SBISD by building employee capacity which will ultimately
positively impact our students' success."
Guthrie, knowing tax payer money would be scarce, sought out local
corporations such as Union Texas Petroleum, Shell Oil, Conoco, Bechtel, and
Brown & Root to support the initiative. A foundation was created, and
trustees include local residents and corporate executives. "Together, the
community, businesses, and the school district believe the same principles
that can change the bottom line of a corporation can impact students," says
Cookie Mays, Executive Director of Spring Branch Education Foundation.
Stephen R. Covey, Co-Chairman of Franklin Covey Company says, "This truly
represents the synergy and interdependence of the members of a community
working together, with a long-term vision, to change the way each child learns
and successfully contributes to society. The parents, teachers, school
administrators, and business executives are truly creating a lasting legacy
for the Houston community."
"The Shell Oil Company Foundation is pleased to support this effort by
Spring Branch Independent School District," says J.M. Funk, president of Shell
Continental Companies and a director of the Foundation. "Shell Exploration &
Production Company has for several years embraced the Franklin Covey
teachings. This kind of capacity building will take the district and all of
its employees to a higher level, and will ultimately improve student
performance."
The entire school district closed their doors for two days, and employees
contributed a Saturday to complete the three-day training. The facilitators
of the 7 Habits training included 107 teachers, administrators, support staff,
maintenance and transportation staff. Local corporations continued their
support as well as two local school districts which asked facilitators to
volunteer their time. "The results of a training of this magnitude will occur
over time," says Chuck Farnsworth, Vice President of Education at Franklin
Covey. "We will be working with the facilitators closely to benchmark, assess
progress, and support the district's endeavors to accomplish their vision."
George Washington University's Institute for the Study of Learning is the
third-party independent research entity for SBISD's training initiative. They
will evaluate the perceived effects of the Franklin Covey training both on
individual behavior and system change. GWU has used and are using pre-tests,
post tests and follow-up surveys.
Spring Branch School District is one of three recipients in the U.S. of
the 1997 "Learning Organization Award" given by World Initiative on Lifelong
Learning for their efforts to be a world-class learning organization. Spring
Branch is the only school district to receive this award -- the other
recipients were Andersen Consulting and Harley Davidson. SBISD also has
several "National Blue Ribbon" schools in their district. Spring Branch is a
leader in establishing an extensive "effective schools" program that
concentrates on the qualities proven to have dramatically increased student
performance in districts throughout the country: strong instructional
leadership at every campus; high expectations for student success; improved
climate in each school; sharpened instructional focus at the campus and
district levels; and continuous measurement of student progress.
"We are preparing our children for a future we cannot see," says Guthrie.
"We will continue our commitment to maintain the highest possible standards in
our quest for educational excellence. Our teachers and support staff work
together to see that educational success is possible for every child who comes
through our doors."
Franklin Covey has 127 retail stores throughout the U.S. which provide
individuals, families, and organizations tools for effective living. Franklin
Covey has more than five million users of the Franklin Day Planner and 10
million student users of the Premiere Agenda planners. The company has more
than 15 million books in print worldwide, including the most recent best-
sellers, The Power Principle: Influence with Honor by Dr. Blaine Lee and The 7
Habits of Highly Effective Families by Stephen R. Covey.
SOURCE Franklin Covey Co.
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Related links:
http://www.franklincovey.com
CONTACT:
Debra Lund of Franklin Covey Co.,
801-496-4249
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