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A major focus of the CMS strategic plan is breaking the link between poverty and academic achievement in order to close gaps and reach educational equity in our community.



To give everyone in the community shared access to information about where we are today, CMS has released Breaking the Link, an annual district-wide analysis of connections between poverty and school outcomes. Breaking the Link provides a basis for action by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, students, parents, teachers, staff, community partners and YOU!

In Pursuit of Equity



The economic-mobility study's findings sparked alarm and resulted in the formation of an



Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is committed to playing a significant role in the community-wide conversation begun by the Opportunity Task Force. We want to increase equity and excellence in our schools and in our community.



Any challenging effort for meaningful change must begin with acknowledgement of hard truths. Thus, this report purposely does not offer proposals or policies for reform, but instead seeks to provide a solid, data-based picture of our schools with the most recent data available. These data will help the district, and the community, make wise and informed decisions on reform and advance our understanding of how to break the link between poverty, race, and academic performance.



Breaking the Link is an annual examination of our progress on Equity.





WHAT ARE THE RACIAL AND INCOME DEMOGRAPHICS OF CHARLOTTE-MECKLENBURG SCHOOLS?

We wanted to examine the differences in the income and racial demographics of our schools.

WHAT ARE CMS SCHOOL OUTCOMES?

We wanted to examine how students have performed academically on a set of measures, disaggregated by school poverty and race.





We wanted to examine how students have performed academically on a set of measures, disaggregated by school poverty and race. HOW DO KEY LEVERS LINKED TO OUTCOMES VARY ACROSS CHARLOTTE-MECKLENBURG SCHOOLS?

We wanted to examine the differences in resource allocation or access among groups of schools on a selected set of key levers that can influence educational outcomes for students.





Copy of previous year report can be found here: Breaking the Link 2016-17.PDF Breaking the Link 2016-17 - Spanish.PDF The team of authors who worked on this report approached the assignment with three broad questions: A 2013 study conducted by Harvard University and the University of California, Berkeley, examined economic mobility in the largest 50 cities in the United States. Charlotte was 50th, a finding that confirmed what many have observed anecdotally: If you are born poor in Charlotte, you are likely to stay that way.The economic-mobility study's findings sparked alarm and resulted in the formation of an Opportunity Task Force which issued a report in March 2017 . That report included a set of broad findings and recommendations. The Opportunity Task Force emphasized that it is the community's collective responsibility to create paths to prosperity. Schools and school districts have an important role to play in building pathways to prosperity but they cannot do this work alone.Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is committed to playing a significant role in the community-wide conversation begun by the Opportunity Task Force. We want to increase equity and excellence in our schools and in our community.Any challenging effort for meaningful change must begin with acknowledgement of hard truths. Thus, this report purposely does not offer proposals or policies for reform, but instead seeks to provide a solid, data-based picture of our schools with the most recent data available. These data will help the district, and the community, make wise and informed decisions on reform and advance our understanding of how to break the link between poverty, race, and academic performance.Breaking the Link is an annual examination of our progress on Equity. Why Equity Matters is a summary that provides context. A major focus of the CMS strategic plan is breaking the link between poverty and academic achievement in order to close gaps and reach educational equity in our community.To give everyone in the community shared access to information about where we are today, CMS has released Breaking the Link, an annual district-wide analysis of connections between poverty and school outcomes. Breaking the Link provides a basis for action by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, students, parents, teachers, staff, community partners and YOU!