ConnCAN
Encyclopedia
ConnCAN is an American
think tank
and state-level education advocacy group
founded in January 2005, with offices in Hartford, Connecticut
and New Haven, Connecticut
.
Its stated mission is "building a movement of concerned citizens advocating to fundamentally reform our public schools through smart public policies." Its major projects include education research reports and issue briefs, ranking Connecticut public schools, parent outreach and education, and legislative advocacy. In 2007 it produced a parent guidebook entitled "How to Make Sure Your Child is Not Left Behind" in partnership with the Connecticut chapter of the NAACP, Connecticut Appleseed, and the Lawyers Committee on Civil Rights Under Law.
Campaigns
ConnCAN runs advocacy campaigns with specific policy objectives. According to the website, "focused, goal-oriented issue campaigns are the heart of ConnCAN's work," and campaign activities include "letter-writing drives to state officials, public events, and citizen lobbying."
Its first campaign, called "Mind the Gaps
," launched in 2009. The stated goal of the campaign was "advocating for three commonsense school reforms—funding to grow high-performing public charter schools, teacher quality and education transparency—to help close Connecticut’s achievement gap."
ConnCAN's 2010 campaign, "Our Race to the Top," focused on the state's application to the federal government's Race to the Top
grant competition, "urging public officials to make the reforms necessary for Connecticut to be truly competitive." The campaign successfully advocated for four reforms: "measuring effectiveness," world-class standards," superstar principals," and "money follows the child."
Publications
The organization produces a quarterly print newsletter called the ConnCAN Compass, a monthly e-newsletter, a weekly news summary called the Education News Roundup, and a monthly research summary called the Education Research Roundup.
ConnCAN also publishes issue briefs and research reports that focus on education policy issues, such as teacher effectiveness and charter school funding. The State of Connecticut Public Education a report ConnCAN puts out annually, assesses the state of education policy in Connecticut and ranks the performance of its public schools. Reports are available for download in the research section of the ConnCAN website.
Citing statistics from the web traffic company Alexa Internet
, in a January 16, 2008 news release it claimed that conncan.org was "the most visited advocacy website in Connecticut."
Staff and Board
A February 2007 review by the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation compared the organization's legislative agenda to that of the Delaware-based Vision 2015 plan for education reform and stated that it is "spearheaded by a large, well-credentialed Board of Directors and Advisors and is clearly serious about school reform." Senior staff include Alex Johnston (chief executive officer), Marc Porter Magee (chief operating officer), Jennifer Harmon (Director of Research and Policy), Ronald Jarrett (vice president of strategic partnerships), and Lisa Whitfield (executive officer for operations and human resources).
Among the 48 board and advisory board members are Richard C. Levin, president of Yale University
, Allan Taylor, chair of the Connecticut State Board of Education, and Ron Howard
, Co-Chairman of Imagine Entertainment
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
think tank
Think tank
A think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...
and state-level education advocacy group
Advocacy group
Advocacy groups use various forms of advocacy to influence public opinion and/or policy; they have played and continue to play an important part in the development of political and social systems...
founded in January 2005, with offices in Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
and New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
.
Its stated mission is "building a movement of concerned citizens advocating to fundamentally reform our public schools through smart public policies." Its major projects include education research reports and issue briefs, ranking Connecticut public schools, parent outreach and education, and legislative advocacy. In 2007 it produced a parent guidebook entitled "How to Make Sure Your Child is Not Left Behind" in partnership with the Connecticut chapter of the NAACP, Connecticut Appleseed, and the Lawyers Committee on Civil Rights Under Law.
Campaigns
ConnCAN runs advocacy campaigns with specific policy objectives. According to the website, "focused, goal-oriented issue campaigns are the heart of ConnCAN's work," and campaign activities include "letter-writing drives to state officials, public events, and citizen lobbying."
Its first campaign, called "Mind the Gaps
Mind the gaps
Mind the Gaps is a state-level legislative campaign created by the Connecticut-based education advocacy organization ConnCAN. The stated goal of the campaign is to support "three commonsense school reforms—funding to grow high-performing public charter schools, teacher quality and education...
," launched in 2009. The stated goal of the campaign was "advocating for three commonsense school reforms—funding to grow high-performing public charter schools, teacher quality and education transparency—to help close Connecticut’s achievement gap."
ConnCAN's 2010 campaign, "Our Race to the Top," focused on the state's application to the federal government's Race to the Top
Race to the Top
Race to the Top, abbreviated R2T, RTTT or RTT, is a $4.35 billion United States Department of Education competition designed to spur innovation and reforms in state and local district K-12 education...
grant competition, "urging public officials to make the reforms necessary for Connecticut to be truly competitive." The campaign successfully advocated for four reforms: "measuring effectiveness," world-class standards," superstar principals," and "money follows the child."
Publications
The organization produces a quarterly print newsletter called the ConnCAN Compass, a monthly e-newsletter, a weekly news summary called the Education News Roundup, and a monthly research summary called the Education Research Roundup.
ConnCAN also publishes issue briefs and research reports that focus on education policy issues, such as teacher effectiveness and charter school funding. The State of Connecticut Public Education a report ConnCAN puts out annually, assesses the state of education policy in Connecticut and ranks the performance of its public schools. Reports are available for download in the research section of the ConnCAN website.
Citing statistics from the web traffic company Alexa Internet
Alexa Internet
Alexa Internet, Inc. is a California-based subsidiary company of Amazon.com that is known for its toolbar and Web site. Once installed, the toolbar collects data on browsing behavior which is transmitted to the Web site where it is stored and analyzed and is the basis for the company's Web traffic...
, in a January 16, 2008 news release it claimed that conncan.org was "the most visited advocacy website in Connecticut."
Staff and Board
A February 2007 review by the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation compared the organization's legislative agenda to that of the Delaware-based Vision 2015 plan for education reform and stated that it is "spearheaded by a large, well-credentialed Board of Directors and Advisors and is clearly serious about school reform." Senior staff include Alex Johnston (chief executive officer), Marc Porter Magee (chief operating officer), Jennifer Harmon (Director of Research and Policy), Ronald Jarrett (vice president of strategic partnerships), and Lisa Whitfield (executive officer for operations and human resources).
Among the 48 board and advisory board members are Richard C. Levin, president of Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, Allan Taylor, chair of the Connecticut State Board of Education, and Ron Howard
Ron Howard
Ronald William "Ron" Howard is an American actor, director, and producer. He came to prominence as a child actor, playing Opie Taylor in the sitcom The Andy Griffith Show for eight years, and later the teenaged Richie Cunningham in the sitcom Happy Days for six years...
, Co-Chairman of Imagine Entertainment
Imagine Entertainment
Imagine Entertainment is a film and television production company founded in 1986 by director Ron Howard and producer Brian Grazer.Its productions include the television series 24 and Arrested Development and the films Apollo 13 , A Beautiful Mind and The Da Vinci Code .-Organization:Karen...
.
External links
- Official website (uses some FlashAdobe FlashAdobe Flash is a multimedia platform used to add animation, video, and interactivity to web pages. Flash is frequently used for advertisements, games and flash animations for broadcast...
) - Mind the Gaps campaign website
- ConnCAN's Connecticut School Rankings