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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11. MOU btwn CMSC and US2020 Partnership to Devlp the Space Cntr Hands-On STEM PrgrmRem 1,40. APPROVED BY QITY MANAGER TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCYLI FROM.' OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER BY: BENJAMIN DICKOW, PRESIDENT AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, COLUMBIA MEMORIAL SPACE CENTER 1QUAININISMA 1 � QUBJECT: ENTER INTO AN MOU BETWEEN THE CITY OF DOWNEY, ON BEHALF OF THE COLUMBIA MEMORIAL SPACE CENTER, AND US2020 IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH A PARTNERSHIP TO DEVELOP THE SPACE CENTER'S HANDS- ON STEM PROGRAMMING That the City Council enter into Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with US2020, a national STEM learning network, so as to establish a partnership between them and the Columbia Memorial Space Center. 101PTOUNT �e In early 2018, the Columbia Memorial Space Center (GMSC) became a finalist in a high-profile, national search for communities to become part of the US2020 STEM network. US2020 supports a network of innovative communities fostering local STEM mentoring and other hands- on STEM and Maker -type programs across the country. The City Network is a group of city - based coalitions, including mayor's offices, school districts, corporations, community-based organizations, funders, and more, that are working to grow the quality and quantity of STEM programming for underrepresented youth. As a network, they are experimenting with new strategies for scaling STEM mentoring, pioneering learning communities to accelerate each other's work, and feeding a national groundswell of momentum around STEM mentoring. The City of Downey, through its Columbia Memorial Space Center, was chosen as a City Network member to scale high impact STEM mentoring and maker -centered learning in order to catalyze the interest of underserved youth in pursuing STEM careers. Partnering with US2020, which is formalized in the attached MOU, will give the Space Center access to its nation-wide base of resources that the Center will use to build up its leadership position in developing and delivering high-quality STEM learning experiences to Southern California. The partnership with US2020 will run from July 2018 to July 2019, and also involve national visibility and story - sharing opportunities throughout the year through various promotional and marketing initiatives. None. The partnership with US 2020 gives the Space Center access to advice and resources at no cost. US2020 City Network Memorandum of •- •; • between US2020 and City of DownJuly 1, ey 18 — August 30, 2019 1. Introduction This Memorandum of Understanding (the "MOU"), dated as of July 1, 2018 (the "Effective Date"), lays out the terms of agreement with respect to the operation of the 2018-2019 City Network project between Citizen Schools,_ Inc. ("Citizen Schools") which operates the STEM mentoring program through its division, US2020, Inc. (Citizen Schools, acting in such capacity, referred to herein as "US2020"), and the Guiding Coalition of the CITY OF DOWNEY ("DOWNEY"), a member of the US2020 City Network, as represented by the undersigned Coalition Lead. DOWNEY was chosen as a City Network member to scale high impact STEM mentoring and maker -centered learning in order to catalyze the interest of underserved youth in pursuing STEM careers. In turn, these mentorships will create a future pipeline to STEM careers among these youth and build a culture of civic involvement among the STEM mentors and their organizations. The partnership between US2020 and Coalition Lead of the US2020 City Network has two primary purposes: 1) To support the implementation of DOWNEY's STEM mentoring and maker -centered learning plans at a local level with the goal of benefiting the city directly, and; 2) To transform City Network members into living laboratories to showcase, analyze and document the conditions for scaling STEM mentoring in order to accelerate STEM movement building in other communities across the country 11. US2020 City Network Definitions US2020 City Network Guiding Coalition: The group of organizations in each city who have come together to realize its US2020 plans through continued planning, project involvement and resources. Coalition Lead: The organization from the local US2020 Guiding Coalition who will direct its city's implementation, employ the Project Manager, and serve as US2020's primary liaison. US2020 City Network Project Manager: A staff member of the Coalition Lead who will organize the City Network project and act as US2020's primary liaison at the Coalition Lead. US2020 will provide the following resources: 1) Free access to a mentor -matching technology platform such as the US2020 mentor matching platform, through the time when US2020 stops supporting the platform as a service, or through the year 2020, whichever comes first. This platform will serve as a standard national portal for STEM mentorship opportunities, including those run by US2020's national non-profit partners and local partners of the City Coalition. To support implementation of the platform, US2020 will provide training and ongoing assistance. 2) Evaluation systems, tools and processes to assess key metrics and indicators, such as but not limited to, student interest inSTEMprofessions and satisfaction among mentors and mentees. The systems will also measure implementation and outcome data required for the VISTA Program grant. US2020 will: Lead participatory processes to assess City Networkmembers' evaluation needs and preferences, providing space for the Network to co -create evaluation tools and processes wherever possible Create user-friendly systems for implementation across varied partners and program models that integrate, whenever possible, with the mentor matching platform and other tools used by City Network members Develop data collection tools that may include (but not be limited to) youth and mentor surveys and/or questions. US2020 will also provide guidance on the administration of tools Analyze data and provide reports for individual cities and to the network as a whole about their results Use data to report to multiple stakeholders for purposes of program improvement, fundraising/sustainability, and marketing 3) Access to US2020 Communities of Practice focused on excellence and movement -building in STEM mentoring. Communities of Practice will be organized around the needs and learning of practitioners, who will help to set the learning agenda. Communities of practice will include: Two in-person gatherings, around Fall 2018 and Spring 2019. US2020 will pay for the costsofone coalition representative to attend each of these in-person sessions. Virtual opportunities to learn and connect, such as webinars, expert series, and cohort calls An online forum for connecting with other Network members and sharing resources 4) Systems for partnering with US2020 and other Coalition Leads on branding and communication efforts to promote STEM mentoring. Such opportunities may include, but are not limited to: Participation in national events such as the STEM Mentoring Symposium; which brings together leaders in STEM Mentoring and Making from across the country Bringing local influence stories from within coalition to national media attention 5) Consulting support from US2020 staff, tailored to DOWNEY's individual needs and opportunities, such as workplan implementation, marketing, or sustainability strategy development. Consulting support will be provided on terms and conditions mutually agreeable to US2020 and the Coalition Lead in light of the needs and circumstances of DOWNEY. 1V. Eligibility for US2020 resources In order to be eligible for continued support, City Network members must meet the following requirements: 1) Staff the City Network project with a US2020 City Network Project Manager with the skills and knowledge to lead this initiative. The US2020 City Network Project Manager must be staffed at least on a 50% time basis beginning no later than July 1, 2018. 2) Commit to strong participation in US2020's 2018-2019 evaluation efforts. Strong participation will be defined by a good faith effort (as determined by US2020) to communicate with US2020 and to implement the common US2020 evaluation tools and systems, as aligned with the start-up nature of this effort. 3) Commit to strong participation in 2018-2019 City Network community of practice. Strong participation will be viewed in light of whether the City Network member: attends at least 75% of virtual learning opportunities (peer cohort calls, informational webinars, etc.); - sends a coalition representative to 100% of in-person meetings 4) As applicable, commit to engaging local representatives of national US2020 partners, such as inviting them to coalition activities and mentoring efforts. Coalition i Commitments to 2 In accepting these resources and serving as a publicly named US2020 City Network member the Coalition Lead, acting on behalf of the US2020 City Network Guiding Coalition for DOWNEY, agrees to fulfill the following commitments: Focus on implementing strategies to grow high -impact STEM mentoring and maker -centered learning opportunes for girls, low-income students, and students of color underrepresented in STEM 2) Meet all commitments outlined in Section IV above, regarding staffing, funding and planning 3) Consistently participate in US2020 Communities of Practice — including in-person and virtual opportunities to learn and connect — in order to promote peer learning and accelerate the development of local and national STEM mentoring movements. Consistent participation will be defined by: - Attendance at least 75% of virtual learning opportunities (peer cohort calls, informational webinars, etc.); Attendance of coalition representative to 100% of in-person meetings; 4) As applicable, commit to engaging local representatives of nationa partners, such as inviting them to coalition activities and mehtoring efforts. 5) Facilitate US2020's national evaluation plan to measure the impact of their city's model on the growth of students' interest in STEM careers and mentor/student satisfaction. Responsibilities will include: * Contributing to the development of evaluation tools, to reflect common outcomes and benchmarks • Contributing to the development of common outcomes and benchmarks across the network of cities, including participation in meetings and webinars • Incorporating US2020 evaluation plans into local evaluation tools and schedules and informing the appropriate partners and staffers about evaluation plans • Allocating staff time, as needed, for data collection, data entry, and submission back to US2020 • Utilizing appropriate consent procedures as defined by US2020 standards.and DOWNEY's partner agencies • Participating in US2020 evaluation trainings as needed ,* Participating in national and city -based discussions about data findings with US2020 6) Coordinate with US2020 on branding and communication efforts to promote STEM mentoring and maker -centered learning, such as events and social media campaigns 7) Remain in regular communication with other City Network members and our partners, including promptly returning emails, phone calls and relevant deliverables 8) Report on the progress of the project through a written report at least twice during the project year, around January 2019 and July 2019. US2020 will develop and share the template for this report. All parties acknowledge that this is a new effort, with the learning, successes and challenges that inevitably accompany new partnerships. Each party agrees to make an ongoing effort to retain a strong relationship and consistently act to achieve the goals of DOWNEY's workplan and of the City Network more broadly. Acknowledging that at this time it is not possible to predict with 100% certainty what the exact path towards those goals might be, both parties agree to endeavor to build successful collaborations based on mutual trust and open communication, to discuss any anticipated changes in their respective design and implementation plans whenever possible, and to constructively resolve problems that may arise:; Coalition Lead represents and warrants that is has authority to act on behalf of the Guiding Coalition of DOWNEY with respect to its US2020 City Network effort. This MOU shall commence on the Effective Date and continue until August 30, 2019 unless earlier terminated as provided for in the following sentence. This MOU may be terminated by US2020 prior to its expiration if the other party materially breaches the terms of this MOU and fails to cure such breach within thirty (30) days of receipt of notice thereof from US2020. Upon expiration or termination of the MOU for any reason, all rights and obligations of the parties hereunder shall cease. The parties shall be deemed independent contractors for all purposes hereunder. This MOU does not constitute partnership, joint venture or agency between the parties hereto, nor shall either of the parties hold itself out as such contrary to the terms hereof by advertising or otherwise nor shall either of the parties become bound or become liable because of any representation, action, or omission of the other. Neither party is an agent of the other party and has no authority to represent the other party as to any matters. All noticesrequiredor permitted under this MOU shall be in writing and shall be personally delivered or deposited in the United States Post Office, by registered or certified mail, postage prepaid, addressed to the other party at the address shown above, or at such other address or addresses as either party shall designate to the other in accordance with this Section. All notices shall be effective upon receipt. This MOU constitutes the entire agreement between the parties with respect to the 2018-2019 City Network Project and supersedes all prior agreements and understandings, whether written or oral, relating to the subject matter of this MOU; for the avoidance of doubt, nothing herein shall alter or amend any Memorandum of Understanding entered into between the parties relating to the 2015-2018 period. This MOU maybe amended or modified only by a written instrument executed by both parties.This MOU shall be construed, interpreted and enforced in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. RM=