Marvin Lewis Community Fund motivates student success in Covington

Reading. Writing. Arithmetic. Coach Marvin Lewis and the Cincinnati Bengals.

 

They're all fundamentals of learning in Covington, KY.

 

In 2007, the Marvin Lewis Community Fund and Cincinnati Public Schools launched Learning is Cool, an educational program designed to motivate and reward excellent academic performance. In three school years, the program increased the number of Honor Roll students by 8.6%. 

 

For the 2010-2011 school year, the program expanded to Covington Independent Public Schools -- thanks to the efforts of MLCF's Executive Director Barbara Dundee, who made it a priority to get the program into Northern Kentucky.    

 

''I've been associated with the Marvin Lewis Fund since 2004, and I've always thought it was very important to get involved in Northern Kentucky. After two successful years in Cincinnati Public Schools, I thought it was time,'' says Dundee, who lives in Newport. (She became involved with the MLCF as part of her community relations efforts for National City in the Cincinnati/NKY market.)

 

Learning is Cool kicks off with an all-school assembly with Coach Lewis, members of the Bengals, and a local senior executive. Students receive a welcome packet that includes a letter from Coach Lewis. For every quarter that students make the honor roll, they are rewarded with small prizes like mini-footballs, water bottles and lanyards. Throughout the year, students get pre-recorded phone calls from the players, who encourage them to keep up the good work.

 

The pay-off? At the end of the year, students who made the honor roll for two quarters are invited to celebrate their success -- and meet the Bengals. 

 

''It is wonderful to see how the kids respond to them -- they are so excited'' Dundee says. ''It's rare that we don't go into a school and have at least one kid say, This is the best day of my life.''

 

Last year, 2,386 students enrolled in the Learning is Cool program in Covington. In contrast to the program in Cincinnati, which is limited to grades 1-8, the Covington program includes high school students; because they are such a small group, MLCF is able to use them as a test case for motivating older students, who tend to command higher-value prizes. (This year, Dundee hopes they'll go in for rewards like gift certificates to Chipotle and passes to Star Lanes, the bowling alley at Newport on the Levee.)

  

Proving that it really does take a village, a key component of the program's success is its partnerships with local business. Some provide vital cash support. Others donate their time and services. 

 

Learning is Cool enjoys a unique relationship with Tier1 Performance Solutions, based in Covington, which annually co-presents The Cincinnati Scurry, an Amazing Race-style competition that unleashes teams on the greater Cincinnati area on tests of ''speed, teamwork, problem-solving, trivia, geographical knowledge and embarrassment threshold'' (as promised by thescurry.com). 

 

Dundee wishes she didn't have to organize it -- but only because she'd rather compete.

 

''Tier1 has been amazing, and the Scurry has been wonderful,'' she says. ''The teams do all sorts of fun things; they sing in the dugout at the Great American Ball Park, dress up in homemade cheerleader outfits, kick field goals at Paul Brown Stadium. And we change it up every year.'' In the past two years, the Scurry has raised $60,000 for Learning is Cool.   

 

Dundee expects the program to expand into other Northern Kentucky school districts eventually. Meanwhile, Coach Lewis, his players, and the MLCF staff continue to focus on motivating the students who participate every school year.

In her voicemail, she saves a message from a third grader who thought he was returning a call from Coach Lewis. He thanked Coach Lewis for his support, she says, and told him he was doing a great job. Then he made a few polite but firm suggestions about the team roster -- with some stern words for controversial former Bengal Chad Ochocinco. 

It's just one example of thousands of the way the Learning is Cool program is able to engage with students on a personal level. Dundee asserts that these connections have a direct influence on academic performance; the kids, she says, are working for something they love.
 

''Most urban school districts tend to have a problem with graduation rates, and underachievement generally,'' Dundee says. ''Coach Lewis and I are both passionate about doing something to help that, and to helping these kids get the right start in life.''