CCP Curriculum Developed by Dr. Robert Taggert Copyright Remediation and Training Institute 1988-1990

IBM Partnership Project: Basic Skills Investment Centers

1988 - 1990. A school-based "Basic Skills Investment Center" learning lab using the Comprehensive Competencies Program (CCP) was designed for the IBM personal computer technology platform and implemented in 10 public schools across multiple states. The project documented strong reading and math gains and caught the attention of school administrators around the country. Within two years, half of all new learning centers using the CCP were started by public schools to serve youth at risk of dropping out of school. This project was funded by Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.

Quantum Opportunity Program (QOP)

1989-1993. Ford Foundation funded this project, which was designed by Dr. Robert Taggart of Remediation and Training Institute and implemented by OIC of America under Benjamin Lattimore's direction.

United States Basic Skills Investment Corporation (US BASICS)

1987-1988. Created an internal division to manage the operational side of CCP replication and support and began operating everything except R&D under the US BASICS name. Established and spun-off US BASICS as an independent tax-exempt corporation in 1989, with a non-exclusive and non-transferable license to market the Comprehensive Competencies Program (CCP). Remediation and Training Institute retained ownership of CCP copyrights.

Sports Basics

1988. Collaborated with Howard University Physical Education Department to design and pilot a program to increase the academic skills of inner city and disadvantaged young people of outstanding athletic skills. The project provided a coordinator/advisor who matched each young athlete with a Comprehensive Competencies Program (CCP) learning center in their city and monitored their progress through self-paced remedial assignments. At least one of these young athletes is playing in the National Football League today.

Citizenship Competencies Project

1987. Developed and field-tested a self-paced Citizenship Competencies multi-media curriculum as a companion to the CCP English As Second Language curriculum developed earlier. Successful completion of the Citizenship Competencies courses improved the citizenship test success rate among undocumented aliens applying for amnesty under immigration reform legislation. This project was funded by Ford Foundation.

Basic Skills Investment Fund

1986 - 1988. Established and managed a $1.5 million revolving loan fund used to purchase computer equipment and learning materials at volume discounts and made these available through sale or lease to nonprofit organizations establishing or expanding community learning centers. This Fund was an outstanding success. It enabled hundreds of community programs to achieve savings that were redirected to program activity, and to pay for learning center infrastructure investments over time with revenues generated from program activity. The Fund was provided as a Program Related Investment (PRI) from Ford Foundation.

Training and Technical Assistance Improvement Project

1986-1988. Developed a national training and technical assistance network of experienced practitioners to support replication of learning centers using the Comprehensive Competencies Program (CCP). Project produced user guides, standardized training materials, annual national conference, a quarterly Trainers Academy for certifying practitioners, and a trainer rating system. New learning centers were required to receive training from a certified trainer, but made a market-based selection from among available independent certified trainers based on trainer cost and experience ratings provided by other learning centers. The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation funded this initiative.

Hispanic Youth Education Research Project

1985-1986. Developed and field-tested an individualized, self-paced, competency-based and multi-media English As Second Language (ESL) curriculum and compared gain scores of experimental group with traditional group classroom ESL group using standardized ESL tests. Those who used the "CCP ESL" self-paced learning curricula had much greater test score gains than those enrolled in traditional ESL classrooms. This project was funded by Ford Foundation.

Comprehensive Competencies Program (CCP) Expansion

1985-1989. Growth and replication of CCP was supported with multi-year Ford Foundation funding. Activities included: ongoing curricula and technology improvements and developments; program development and marketing; user support services; training; conferences; and research and evaluation. Approximately 100 new learning centers using the CCP were opened each year by community organizations, workforce development programs, jails, schools and community colleges, and public agencies. Collectively, these centers served tens of thousands of youth and adults in basic skills programs. A third-party evaluation by Northeastern University documented the effectiveness of the learning system in raising reading and math scores for all subgroups.

Learning Opportunity Centers Pilot Project

1983-1984. Collaborated with Opportunities Industrialization Centers of America (OIC) to pilot the Comprehensive Competencies Program first version in OIC community-based affiliates. These learning centers were branded by OIC with the name "Learning Opportunity Center." The CCP learning system proved successful in raising reading and math scores of disadvantaged youth and adults at low cost. The pilot also showed that program replication could be accelerated by adapting the franchise model used in the commercial sector. The Learning Opportunity Center OIC brand continues today. Ford Foundation and Control Data Corporation supported this project.

Comprehensive Competencies Program (CCP) Development

1982-1983. Development of a self-paced and competency-based learning system that integrated the most effective basic skills instruction approaches and materials, plus state-of-the-art technologies, into a system which could be replicated in varied institutional settings to meet diverse learner populations using a business franchise approach.

Youth Knowledge Development Project

1980-1982. Research and policy project to glean policy lessons from the Youth Employment Demonstration Projects Act (YEDPA). (YEDPA was a $2 billion per year federal youth employment program that included over $600 million for research and demonstration projects between 1978 and 1981.)

Project products: Two influential policy books published by W. E. Upjohn; successful addition of youth basic skills and workforce competencies requirement to federal employment and training legislation; synthesis of research on effective basic skills instructional approaches; establishment of Remediation and Training Institute as a tax-exempt nonprofit corporation; design of framework for developing a self-paced competency-based learning system. Charles Stewart Mott Foundation funded this project.