1. education
2. school

Enrichment at Trevista Horace Mann
An innovative school in Denver is trying something new.
School Mission:
Trevista ECE-8th School exists to serve the unique academic, physical, social, and emotional needs of students. The
community of Trevista is committed to creating and maintaining a child-centered and caring environment where
teaching and learning recognize the diversity and gifts of all members and ensure students are both supported and
challenged to meet their highest potential.
Program Goals:
Enrichment at Trevista aims to provide the students with multiple pathways to learning while fostering
the values of collaboration, exploration and fun.
Enrichment at Trevista aims to provide students with an element of choice within the school day, so all
students are offered a variety of lenses through which they view and participate in the world.
Enrichment at Trevista will offer unique opportunities for students to grow as individuals as well as
develop meaningful relationships that can serve as a foundation for peace and solidarity within the
community.
Enrichment at Trevista will provide opportunities to engage Denver’s philanthropic, non-profit and forprofit agencies in a process of transforming the traditional school model.
Enrichment at Trevista will give families and individuals within the community an opportunity to celebrate, collaborate and participate in the joys of learning and discovering.
Letter of Recommendation
Department of Extended Learning and Community Schools
Denver Public Schools
December 18, 2013
RE: Letter of Recommendation and Support for the Enrichment Program at Trevista at Horace
Mann
Please accept this letter as a strong endorsement of the robust Enrichment Program at Trevista
at Horace Mann.
I have worked with the staff at Trevista this year to support their extensive Enrichment Program
that serves 275 students each semester. Trevista has an extended-day model where the last
period of the day is taught by staff members and community partners. Students are permitted
to select areas of interest such as African dance and drumming, theatre, visual art, yoga,
breakdancing, music and social justice. Because of the substantial scope and community
involvement, this ambitious enrichment program is unique in Denver Public Schools.
Tamera Sakotas Cone, the Enrichment Program Coordinator, works tirelessly with community
partners to develop curriculum that supports the school’s mission, academic goals and culture.
Tamera’s innovative process involves integrating community partners into Trevista’s
expectations of students and aligning enrichment programs with school day activities. Trevista
provides professional development to community partners to assist them in understanding the
students’ needs and personalities. Specifically, Tamera ensures that community partners are
immersed in the school culture by providing professional development opportunities,
scheduling regular meetings and developing healthy and communicative relationships with the
partners. The level of organization required to align these partners with the school’s goals is
tremendous, and a shining example for other schools in the district.
Trevista’s Enrichment Program serves many youth who live in the largest housing project in
Denver. The community has significant gang activity and the vast majority of the students come
from very low-income households. Many of these students have never received rich exposure to
the arts prior to the inception of the Enrichment Program. This Enrichment Program not only
offers non-traditional learning opportunities for these students, it additionally assists
community partners with classroom management techniques specific to the student population.
More than any other school in the district, Trevista works with the community partners to serve
the differentiated needs of their students.
Trevista’s Enrichment Program is completely invested in their community and families. The goals
of the program are valued by the school’s administration and are integral in the mission of
educating the “whole child.” I have been greatly impressed by this ambitious program, the staff
leading the charge, and the results I’ve witness with student engagement.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about this program.
Sincerely,
Heather Intres, Community Partnerships in Extended Learning
[email protected]
S. Ave.
AcomaŠ St.·
Denver,
CO · 80223
Denver,
Colorado
80205
1350 1617
E. 33rd
720-423-1798
720 . 424 . 8240 Š FAX 720 . 424 . 8265
Letter of Recommendation
DATE: January10,2014
TO:
TameraConeͲSakotas
TrevistaEnrichmentCoordinator
FROM: KennethGrimes
Denver4ͲHYouthDevelopmentDirector
CSUDenverExtension/4ͲHLetterofRecommendation
RE:
ThereisauniquepartnershiptakingplacebetweenTrevistaECEͲ8andColoradoStateUniversityDenver
Extension/4ͲH.CSUExtensionispartofthelargestoutreacheducationprogramconnectedtoasystemoflandgrant
universitiesthatreaches6,000,000participantsannually.Weareproudtoofferthisletterofrecommendationandto
highlightsomeofthereasonswebelieveTrevistadeservestheNationalArtsandHumanitiesYouthProgramsAwards.
Inashorttime,theyhaveputtogetherasustainableschoolenrichmentprogramthatissingularinDenver.Havingtheir
programdirectlylinkedtohighereducationandtothebroaderartscommunityhasquicklybenefittedthestudentsat
Trevistaandpositionsthemforapromisingfuture.
StudentsatTrevistahavejoined4ͲH,apremierprogramandcommunityofyoungpeople,acrossAmerica,
learningleadership,citizenship,andlifeskills.Inthisinstance,Trevistaisalsoalignedwithourresponsetoconcerns
raisedbyastudyconductedbytheNationalAcademyofScienceCommitteeonScience,EngineeringandPublicPolicy,
RisingAbovetheGatheringStorm.Thisresultedinaninitiativeincreasingthenumberofyouthexploringcareersin
mathandsciencethrougha4ͲHeffort,“OneMillionNewScientists,OneMillionNewIdeas.”Itfocusesuponproviding
opportunitiesforonemillionnewyouthtoengageinandexploreSTEMthrough4ͲHprograms.AtTrevista,wehave
expandedthistobeSTREAM(ScienceTechnologyReadingEngineeringArtsandMath).Studentswhowouldn’t
otherwisehavetheseopportunities,gainlifeskillsandexperiencetheperformingandtechnicaltheatrerealmfrom
someofthecity’smosttalentedperformingandtechnicaltheatreartsmentors.Aplaywrightwhohashadworkson
Broadwayassistswithprogramcoordination;professionaldesignersandtechniciansroutinelycometosharetheir
passion,knowledgeandgiftswithstudentswhoaremostlyunawareofthedepthofwhattheyarereceivingbeforehigh
schoolandinapublicversusprivateschool.
Theyarebeingintroducedtotechnicalfieldsthatpositionthemtotakeadvantageofhighlysoughtafterskills.A
recentarticleintheNewYorkTimesentitled:Hey,Stars,BeNicetotheStagehands.YouMightNeedaLoan(Lorne
ManleyandMichaelCooper12Ͳ27Ͳ2013),highlightslucrativepositionsinNewYork,acrossthenationand
internationally.Theyarealsogainingpracticalskillsusingsomeofthelatesttheatricalequipmentthankstoagrantfrom
theOfficeofJuvenileJusticeDelinquencyPreventionthatsponsorsTechWizardsnationallyandthroughCSUDenver
Extension/4ͲH.
ThisisexcitingstuffforaschoolthathasalongandproudhistorylocatedinalowͲincomeneighborhoodof
workingclassfamilies.78%ofTrevista’sstudentsareEnglishlanguagelearners.Workingtogether,CSUDenver
Extension4ͲHaredevelopingprogrammingthathasquicklybecomethebestinthecity.Studentsrecentlyvisitedaset
atanearbyuniversityforahighlytechnicalshowentitledArabianNightsthatinvolvedtheuseoftrapezes,magic,
costumes,specialmakeup,dozensofscenechangesandscoresofperformingandtechnicaltheatreopportunitieson
thestageandbehindthescenes.Asthecrewofyoung,universitystudentsenthusiasticallysharedwhattheywere
learning,oneoftheTrevistastudentsdeclared:“Iwannadothis.”Allstudentswon’tgettheproverbial“theatrebug”
butallwilllearnthatthisisonemoreoptionforthemnowandpotentiallyinthefuture.Theywillseethemagicof
theatrewithanappreciationforhowtheymightalsobethemagician!
Sincerely,
KennethGrimes,Director
Denver4ͲHYouthDevelopment
ColoradoStateUniversity,U.S.DepartmentofAgriculturalandCityandCountyofDenvercooperating.
CooperativeExtensionprogramsareavailabletoallwithoutdiscrimination.
Community Partners
4-H Club meets the needs of and engages young people in positive youth development experiences. These experiences are based on the idea that young
people should be regarded as resources to be developed.
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Rocketry
Urban Animals
Cooking
Robotics
Wind Energy
Woodworking
Forestry
Puppetry
Outdoor Adventures
Global Citizenship
Creative Strategies for Change (CSC) – Their focus is racial justice. Their platform is designed toward lasting change. They organize, mobilize, and actualize
with Social Justice Frameworks, Arts Engagement, and Restorative Practices.
Community Partners
Soccer for Success - Soccer for Success® is lead by the Colorado Rapid’s outreach division and is the U.S. Soccer Foundation’s free soccer-based during and
after school program that uses soccer as a tool to combat childhood obesity and
promote healthy lifestyles for children in under-resourced urban communities.
Colorado Ballet - Colorado Ballet’s Department of Education & Outreach serves
in-need students, teachers, families, people with disabilities and lifelong learners in Colorado. The aim to make dance accessible to everyone, to promote
dance and movement as part of a healthy lifestyle, and to encourage creativity
and expression through dance, and foster an appreciation for ballet.
Community Partners
Mile High Fitness – This organization aims to educate and motivate Denver’s
youth population and provide them with many positive benefits including fun,
teamwork, and consistent physical activity.
The Wellness Initiative - The mission of The Wellness Initiative is to improve the
physical health, social and emotional development, and academic performance
of low-income youth through yoga-based wellness programs.
Community Partners
Capoeira Luanda Denver - Capoeira Luanda is an organization that practices,
teaches, and preserves the Afro-Brazilian martial art of Capoeira.
UpLift – Their mission is to build long-term, life-changing relationships with urban youth and to breaking generational cycles of poverty and failure in Denver’s
inner city.
Community Partners
Black Actor’s Guild – Their mission is to educate, inspire and influence through
intelligent entertainment. The Black Actors Guild creates and performs original
art that helps to advance American theatre. In addition, the Black Actors Guild
will help to create, educate, and promote the younger artists of our generation
to ensure that thinking will forever be an art.
Bboy Factory - The Bboy Factory stresses that Breakin is only the physical movement of a much greater culture. Part of their mission is not only to teach positive lifestyle through dance, but also to preserve Hip Hop as a culture.
Curtain Playhouse – Their mission is to provide an artist’s outlet for creative
expression through theatre and to develop a student’s confidence in their own
sense of creativity and understanding of the creation of live performance.
Independent Service Providers
The following individuals joined the Trevsita Enrichment team as Independent
Service Providers.
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James Garcia – Guitar
Beth Blaskovitch – Piano
Adam Buehler – FrankenART
Noel Fetting Madison Smith –FrankenART
Joe DeRose – Chess
Additional Classes Lead by the School’s Essentials Teachers Include:
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Native American Art and Storytelling
Vocal Music
Music Composition
World Games
Sports in the USA
Weightlifting
Wrestling
Graffiti Art