Local Education Agency (LEA) Application each Priority school that the LEA commits ... models an...

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Local Education Agency (LEA) Application

for

School Improvement Grant

1003(a) or 1003(g) Funds

Under Public Law 107-110, Elementary and Secondary Education Act, As Amended

School Year 2016-2017

Virginia Department of Education

Office of Program Administration and Accountability and

Office of School Improvement

P. O. Box 2120

Richmond, Virginia 23218-2120

SCHOOL

SCHOOL CLIMATE

INSTRUCTION

FUTURE GOALS

STAFFING & RELATIONSHIPS

EXTERNAL SUPPORT

Virginia Department of Education Office of School Improvement LEA Application for SIG Funds

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Submission Requirements ……………………………………………………………………… p. 3

Application Materials

Cover Page …………………………………………………………………………….……………… p. 4

Section 1: Reflection & Planning …………………………………….………………… p. 5

Section 2: Required Elements, Part 1 …………………………………………………… p. 17

Required Elements, Part 2 …………………………………………………… p. 22

Section 3: Explanation of Lack of Capacity to Implement ……………………… p. 31

Section 4: Budget ..…………….……………………………………………………………… p. 31

Section 5: Assurances & Certifications …………….………………………………… p. 32

Resource Information ..…………….……………………………………………………………… p. 35


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SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

1. Submission Deadlines

▪ Submit Continuation Applications (Cohorts I-VI) by August 1, 2016

▪ Submit Cohort VII Applications by September 23, 2016

2. Submission Process

Save one complete application per Priority School. In order for an application to be considered

complete, each school’s application submission must include the following:

1) Application Details/Program Narrative (Word) saved with the following naming convention:

SchoolName_SY1617 SIG Application.docx

2) Budget Workbook (Excel) saved with the following naming convention:

SchoolName_AttachmentA (Date of Submission).xls

3) A PDF version of the signed assurances must be included with the electronic submission of

the application file with the following naming convention:

SchoolName_SY1617SIG Assurances

Submit the application via email to the appropriate OSI point of contact for the division:

− Kristi D’Souza, ESEA Lead Coordinator at [email protected] − Natalie Halloran, ESEA Lead Coordinator at [email protected]

3. In order for this application to be considered complete, an LEA using a Lead Turnaround Partner (LTP) must provide a copy of the approved LTP Scope of Work (SOW)/statement of services aligned to the specifications of VDOE Low Achieving Contract Award for review by VDOE procurement and OSI. For external providers not listed on the VDOE Low Achieving Contract Award, the LEA must provide to the VDOE copies of the request for proposals (RFP), or Memorandum of Agreement including SOW, application guidelines for external providers, and criteria used to evaluate applications.

mailto:[email protected]





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COVER PAGE

LEA Contact for Priority Schools Division: Petersburg City Public Schools

Contact Name: Dr. Ann Ifekwunigwe Phone: (804) 862-7080

Address: 255 South Boulevard East Email: [email protected]

Petersburg, VA 23805

Priority School Information School Name: Peabody Middle School

Cohort: V

Principal Name: Mr. Jafar Baraka Phone: (804) 861-9100

Address: 725 Wesley Street Email: [email protected]

Petersburg, VA 239803

NCES #: 510291002794

NCES Link: http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/

School Reform Model Selected for the School

☐ Turnaround ☒ Transformation ☐ *Restart ☐ Closure

☐ State-determined Model

☐ *Evidence-based Whole School Reform Model

☐ *Early Learning Model

*Selection of one of these models requires additional information in the application details below.

http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/



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For each Priority school that the LEA commits to serve, the LEA must demonstrate that it has analyzed the needs of each school, such as instructional programs, school leadership and school infrastructure, based on a needs analysis that, among other things, analyzes the needs identified by families and the community, and selected interventions for each school aligned to the needs each school has identified. Respond to each prompt below reflecting on the past year’s improvement efforts and plan for next year.

Include associated action steps and responsibilities evidenced in the school's improvement plan for

2016-2017 where applicable. If a division or school website provides the documentation for any

response, please include the link in your response.

I. Future Goals

(1) Provide 3-5 school goals for the coming school year. Goals should be both specific and measurable.

Using baseline data, Peabody Middle School will work collaboratively with central office support staff

and all stakeholders to achieve the following goals:

(1) By June 2017, the reading SOL pass rate will increase by 10 percentage points from 53.13%

(based on 2015-2016 data) to a minimum of 63%.

(2) By June 2017, the mathematics SOL pass rate will increase by 10 percentage points from

47.07% (based on 2015-2016 data) to a minimum of 57%.

(3) By June 2017, there will be a reduction in the number out of school suspensions by a

minimum of 30 percentage points from last year’s total of 364 to no more than 256.

II. School Climate

(1) How has the general school climate (i.e. the feel of the building when you walk in) changed since

the beginning of the year?

(2) What were the most successful strategies used to change the school climate?

(3) Describe any unsuccessful attempts or strategies used to change the school climate.

(4) Describe anticipated barriers to further improving the school climate.

Peabody Middle School transitioned from serving students in grades 6 and 7 in 2015-2016 to now

serving students in grades 6, 7 and 8. Student enrollment increased from 522 to 722, and the faculty

and staff increased to support grade eight. Additionally, there was a change in leadership at the

SECTION 1: REFLECTION & PLANNING


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beginning of the school year. There is cautious optimism for the interim appointment of a veteran

principal with a long track record of success in schools with similar student achievement results and

student demographics. He is working actively and aggressively to fill the vacant positions, while

developing support structures to ensure the success of all teachers and students. He has set SMART

Goals for student achievement that are well within the reach of the school, and is growing a culture of

accountability and success across the school building. The principal is creating purposeful

opportunities for skill building through professional development and targeted collaboration. He

models an approach that celebrates successes while supporting teachers’ professional growth.

In building a positive school climate, teachers shared that a particularly successful strategy was the

restructuring of the master schedule, which allowed for team planning and Professional Learning

Communities (PLC) meetings. During this time teachers and administrators are able to collaborate,

plan, share ideas, discuss data, develop lesson plans, and select targeted intervention strategies. The

current master schedule emphasizes collaboration among teachers by allowing for common planning

time and opportunities for embedded professional development provided by the lead turnaround

partner.

The 2015-2016 Instructional Climate Survey administered to Peabody Middle School faculty

documented that 13 of the 29 employees who responded to the survey strongly disagree/disagree

with the statement “I feel respected and supported by the principal and other administrators at this

school.” Only four participants agreed that they “enjoyed teaching/working at this school.” Eleven

staff members strongly disagree/disagree that “discipline is enforced fairly at this school. At the

beginning of the new school year in August, 2016 a leadership change was made. The principal and

one assistant principal were replaced. Furthermore, there were many unfilled teaching vacancies

that resulted in substitute teachers filling critical instructional positions. These circumstances

continue to result in high levels of stress and anxiety by school faculty and staff members.

Teachers were candid in sharing their concerns about long term substitute teachers’ abilities to

effectively meet students’ needs, and needing to support the substitute teachers as well as their own

students.

The staff shared many concerns about students’ behavior. When implemented with fidelity, Positive

Behavior Intervention Support (PBIS) is a successful strategy for promoting positive student behavior.

Last school year, PBIS was successful in “pockets” but was not implemented with fidelity across the


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entire school. The new principal at Peabody MS is also the division wide coordinator of PBIS, and is

committed to ensuring that all schools understand the power of the initiative to increase academic

achievement by helping students make better choices. He understands the importance of engaging

families in PBIS, and is working to increase communication and engagement between school and

families about the program.

Peabody staff is committed to learning about the impact of Trauma and Adverse Childhood

Experiences on students’ behavior and academic achievement. The division level team will conduct a

needs assessment to identify the impact of trauma on Peabody MS students. Strategies will be

aligned to meeting students’ needs, based on the results of the needs assessment. The team will

collaborate with local agencies to help connect students and families to resources in the area, and will

explore ways that experts in the field can help plan professional development experiences for long

term sustainability. The goal is for Peabody staff to become a Trauma sensitive school where

professionals understand that students’ academic achievement and social/emotional wellbeing are

inextricably linked.

III. Process Steps/Atmosphere of Change

(1) How does the Leadership Team/Improvement Team solicit input from the school staff and/or other

stakeholders?

(2) How are decisions communicated with all staff and/or stakeholders?

(3) How are responsibilities divided amongst the team members? Provide a description of the team

members (division-level and school-based) roles in monitoring goals and progress towards leading

indicators.

(4) How are new strategies or practices monitored throughout the year? What process is followed if

they don’t seem to be working?

1. Peabody Middle School’s leadership team meets twice a month to discuss issues that impact school improvement: data, instruction, lesson plans, professional development, trends, and next steps. The leadership team consists of the administrators, department and grade level lead teachers, guidance counselors, Title I specialists, central office and lead turnaround partner representatives. During the leadership meetings, the minutes, which are documented in Google Docs, are later shared with the other staff members at team and faculty meetings. The administrators solicit input from staff by instructing leaders to take the information and share with their teams for discussion and input. This feedback helps contribute to the development of the next leadership team meeting agenda. Central office representatives participate in a minimum of one monthly meeting.


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2. All meeting minutes and agendas are documented in Google Docs. In addition, various media platforms are used to present information to the community. The website is frequently updated to inform stakeholders about upcoming events and notifications. Peabody’s Parent Advisory Council meets at least three times per year to discuss areas of concern, offer suggestions, and evaluate programs to improve Peabody Middle School. The school’s leadership team gathers input from various team meetings. School Based Management Team, School Culture Committee (PBIS), grade level teams, and department teams have common planning time by subject.

3. Individual members of the school leadership team are assigned specific indicators within the school

improvement plan to update and monitor. Staff monitors are selected based on their areas of

expertise. For example, the math department chair is assigned the tasks of monitoring specific tasks

that are relevant to improving student achievement in mathematics. The PBIS coordinator is assigned

specific tasks related to discipline and school climate. The attendance clerk is responsible for

providing student and teacher attendance data to submit to the school improvement team. The

truancy officer supplies the truancy data. The office manager provides the student discipline data.

This process is facilitated and monitored by the principal. Decision-making related to school

improvement efforts, overall strategic vision, or other elements that may impact the improvement

plan are processed through the leadership team and the School improvement Team meetings. The

Division leadership team ensures that the decision is aligned with the Division’s vision. The school-

based leadership team is the first level of involvement and provides the means to hear the voices of

those who will be directly impacted by the decision. The School Improvement Team meetings allow

district personnel to review, reflect, and provide additional input and insight into the decision-making

process and offer alternative solutions when appropriate. The state-level personnel use the meetings

to ask probing questions that stimulate further discussion. The school principal’s decisions are

reviewed by the division Leadership team, with final decision-making authority resting in the office of

the division superintendent.

4. New strategies are monitored during the division leadership team meetings, weekly school level

leadership team meetings, and weekly grade level team meetings. Strategies are also monitored daily

during classroom observations conducted by school administration with timely feedback to

appropriate staff. Student performance data are reviewed weekly at school level team meetings to

inform the development of lesson plans and interventions. Each school level administrator is assigned

a grade level and subject to monitor and provide feedback during the team meetings. If action steps

established such as the implementation of instructional strategies and programs to improve students’

performance do not yield the desired results, then teachers and administrators work collaboratively


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to devise alternate solutions or revisions. The staff continues to frequently monitor and adjust

strategies to meet the needs of the students to increase student achievement. Leading indicators are

monitored each month to be reviewed, discussed, and next steps determined.

IV. Instruction

(1) How are students identified as needing additional support in reading and mathematics?

(2) How do teachers differentiate learning for students in whole group instruction?

(3) How are formative assessments used in your school?

(4) How does student achievement goal setting (Standard 7 of Guidelines for Uniform Performance

Standards and Evaluation Criteria for Teachers and Virginia Standards for the Professional Practice

of Teachers) impact classroom instruction?

1. Students are identified as needing additional support based on their performance on the Algebra Readiness diagnostic tests, STAR reading assessment, Reading and Mathematics assessments, and division 9-week benchmarks. After each assessment, students are grouped by performance bands to identify those that are above, at, and below standard to determine the appropriate levels of interventions. Teachers use trend data sheets to monitor and track students’ progress. The data sheets are discussed in leadership and team meetings and documented in Google Docs.

2. Because effective and efficient classroom organization and instructional performance are dependent upon productive planning, all teachers are required to develop written plans for all lessons that are aligned in both content and instructional level to the appropriate standards or competencies. Lesson plans include objectives that identify the Behaviors, Conditions, and Criteria (BCC) that will serve as the basis for the development of the lesson. Lesson plans are developed by unpacking the appropriate Standards of Learning (SOL), referring to the curriculum framework and test blueprints as well as division pacing guides, curriculum maps and curriculum guides. These detailed lesson plans that focus on the BCC of the whole group and of the individual students, encourage teachers to differentiate instruction to meet each child’s unique needs.

3. Formative assessments are used to inform, shape, and guide instruction. At the beginning of the new school year, teachers of reading and math are informed of those students who have passed the previous year’s SOL. During the early months of August and September, students are given an Interactive Achievement pre-test to determine course knowledge in each subject. Students also take the Algebra Readiness Diagnostic Test in October for math to support the establishment of tiered groups for tutoring and remediation. Additionally, the Developmental Reading Assessment (2nd Edition) is given to students who fall in Tier 2 & 3. Students are then re-tired based on benchmarks given at the 9 week assessment. Tier groups are distributed and discussed in weekly Professional Learning Communities meetings each Monday and tutoring sessions are formalized. In creating supports for students who were not successful on the SOL exams, a list is developed of all students


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who scored below 400. These students are evaluated using the Title 1 Matrix . The list of students is shared with the principal, who uses it to develop the new year’s school academic plan and action steps, in conjunction with the leadership team and grade level teams.

All teachers administer a variety of formative assessments and graded activities. All teachers understand the importance of conducting both formative and summative assessments each nine weeks to monitor student progress and respond to emerging student needs.

Student achievement data are used to shape and guide classroom instruction. Assessment results are used as diagnostic tools and road maps for helping teachers design the best pathways for student success. At the beginning of each year, all teachers determine their SMART goal performance range based on students’ prior year assessment results. A student pre-test is given in all courses and English teacher complete a data form each week to inform the administration and their PCL regarding students’ progress. Teachers also receive summary copies of their students Interactive Achievement assessment results. Data from formative assessments drive teachers’ next steps, and provide real-time feedback about students’ understanding of new content.

4. Student achievement goal setting has an impact on classroom instruction in that staff members have been candid in their assessment that differentiated instruction needs additional development in reading and writing. If students are to make acceptable, measurable, and appropriate progress, teachers need support in helping students achieve continuous growth. Based on their feedback that they do not have the capacity to skillfully differentiate instruction in reading and writing, teachers will be participating in staff development to increase their knowledge and skills in delivering effective secondary literacy instruction. Professional development will also be conducted to support math instruction and reading and writing across content areas. Furthermore, classroom tutors will push into classrooms to support struggling students. With the formation of Tier 1, 2, & 3, groups, teachers will be ready to launch their afternoon (after school) tutorials to support all students who are falling behind academically. The administration will be providing Saturday tutoring in the fall and in the spring to support mastery of SOLs in all content areas. All parties feel that providing student transportation and meals at the Saturday session will help ensure the success of the program, and support students’ academic success. We will seek other sources of support to make that possible. In addition to extra supports for students, the school will schedule professional development opportunities to develop teachers’ proficiency in using Active Engagement strategies in every classroom every day. Peabody MS’s discipline data indicate high numbers of disruptive demonstrations and high numbers of out of school suspensions. There were 505 disciplinary infractions which resulted in 400 suspensions in the 2015-2016 school year. Many of the challenges teachers are having with behavior can be mitigated by using effective strategies for active engagement and enhanced instruction. The PD sessions will show teachers how to design and


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“engineer student interaction to maximize cooperation, communication, and active engagement by all.” This professional development may be augmented by the creation of a professional library with multiple copies of relevant resources for teachers to read, share, and use as discussion focal points for PLC meetings. To increase overall enjoyment of reading, and to develop their information literacy, students need access to a wide selection of rich and engaging reading materials. The library at Peabody MS is woefully understocked. An expanded selection of literature, nonfiction, and resource materials will help support Peabody's goal of increasing academic achievement for all students. In consultation with the school librarian, and in alignment with AASL standards, Peabody will select books that expand students' access to quality reading materials. The school’s improvement plan includes a heavy emphasis on the integration of technology as a tool

for deeper engagement, higher order critical thinking, and 21st century career readiness. Peabody

aims to transition to a 1:1 Chromebook model, with Critical, Cohesive, Creative (C3) thinking guiding

students’ active exploration of content, and construction of meaning through real world problem

solving. Neighboring school systems that have adopted 1:1 models have shifted the onus of hardware

purchases to families. In Petersburg, with nearly 100 percent of our students qualifying for free and

reduced meals, that model is not an option. Peabody strives to implement a truly transformational

school improvement model by shattering the traditional modes of delivery used at the middle school.

All teachers, support staff, and students will be part of the 1:1 Chromebook adoption. We are

excited about the prospect of a seamless integration of technology into the deepest fibers of

Peabody’s instructional fabric. With the adoption of a 1:1 Chromebook model, Peabody Middle

School will need support for the setup, maintenance, and troubleshooting of approximately 800 units.

This position will be sustained by a reallocation of local funds when the SIG funds are no longer

available.

V. External Support

(1) Describe how the involvement of community-based organizations is aligned to the school's

improvement plan.

(2) Which external partners, service providers or other contractors will be hired for the upcoming

school year? Describe the services each will provide as they align to the school's identified needs.


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(3) Describe (a) the ways parents and the community have been involved in the design and

implementation of the interventions; (b) the input provided by parents and community members

(needs identified by the stakeholders), and (c) how they will be informed of on-going progress?

1. Peabody Middle School’s improvement plan acknowledges the critical role community based organizations can play in supporting students’ academic achievement and success. The plan identified parent and community engagement efforts to promote positive school climate and increase teacher morale as one of its priority focus areas. Peabody MS has partnerships with a number of community-based organizations. Communities In Schools helps connect students to supportive services that meet students’ social-emotional needs. In conjunction with Dominion Therapeutic Day Treatment Provider, Communities in Schools supports students through home visits, phone calls, and connection to wrap-around services. At times, community support is provided by truancy officers and the court system for school attendance issues.

2. Specific academic support is provided by Pearson—the Lead Turnaround Partner, whose role is to

provide support in mathematics and English through coaching and reflective feedback. In alignment

with the school’s School Improvement Plan, and in fulfillment of Peabody’s requirements as a Priority

School, Pearson has placed two full time staff members on site to support academic achievement in

English and mathematics. The Pearson staff will conduct observations, provide feedback on lesson

plans, and participate in grade level meetings. Additional support is needed in ensuring alignment of

the written, taught, and tested curriculum, as well as in interpreting student data to guide instruction-

-particularly for struggling learners.

In addition to Pearson, Axiom Tutors offered additional support to identified students. The tutors

helped reinforce and remediate math and English content through small group pull-out sessions

during resource time, push-in sessions during regular instructional time, and supported the

monitoring of student progress. Students from Virginia State University also provided tutoring,

Saturday School support, and recreational activities.

There is a newly created Family Engagement Specialist position. The role of the specialist is to

facilitate family engagement and parental participation at Peabody. The Communities in Schools also

supports family engagement through Lunch and Learn sessions with Pearson, as well as monthly

workshops for parents. The LTP (Pearson) is focused on working in conjunction with Communities in

Schools, other service providers and/or contractors to expand parent and community engagement as

well as develop community-wide support for high levels of student engagement and achievement.

There is collaboration with other school partners to build school and community support for


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improved outcomes and in data analysis around the Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports

(PBIS) framework. Additionally, this component specializes in the social and emotional supports

needed for school improvement conditions. It corroborates the need for tiered learning and

behavioral interventions.

3. Parents and families will be actively engaged with school personnel in the monitoring of Pearson’s

performance. Pearson will make quarterly presentations to families about the work they have been

doing, and the progress Peabody has been making as a result of their efforts. Furthermore, the

principal at Peabody has an active and engaged advisory committee of parents who will help

coordinate community input sessions in early 2017. It is critical that families understand the options

Peabody has for support next year, including working with institutions of higher education and

procuring services through a competitive bidding process. Families will become critical partners in

the evaluation and selection of supportive services, going forward.

VI. Staffing and Relationships

(1) What process is used to assign teachers to positions, classes and grade levels? How are you

ensuring the most skilled teacher is in front of the right group of students?

(2) What is the school's process for implementing the division's teacher evaluation system?

(3) Describe how you identify and reward school leaders, teachers, and other staff who have increased

student achievement and high school graduation rates.

(4) Describe how you identify teachers who need support and provide opportunities to improve

professional practice.

(5) How is the principal evaluated? From whom does the principal receive feedback (on his/her

performance)? How frequently?

(6) How do you define the relationship between the external partners, state approved personnel,

division point of contact, and the principal? How can it be improved? (Applies to continuation

applications only.)

The Human Resources department screens teacher candidates and compiles a pool of qualified

applicants to interview with the principal. The principal makes the final decision and he assigns the

teacher based on their license and ability to deliver the content.


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The principal evaluates all teachers using the Teacher Performance Evaluation System. The Principal

presents the process and procedures of the division’s evaluation system for all staff during the pre-

service week. The principal is also directed to review the teacher evaluation system again and provide

technical assistance in writing SMART goals for teachers during the pre-service week. Once a

teacher’s smart goals are finalized, the teacher develops a portfolio to provide evidence for the

performance evaluation. The principal and assistant principals conduct teacher observations

routinely. However two formal observations for all teachers are required. Mid-year, the principal

reviews the SMART goals with teachers and reviews their progress in meeting the SMART goals based

on the data. The goals are reviewed again at the end of the year and portfolios are collected. Artifacts

in the portfolios contribute to the teacher’s final evaluation. The principal submits all evaluations to

the human resources department. The evaluation tool is based on seven performance indicators.

Performance Standard 1: Professional Knowledge

The teacher demonstrates an understanding of the curriculum, subject content, and the

developmental needs of students by providing relevant learning experiences.

Performance Standard 2: Instructional Planning

The teacher plans using the Virginia Standards of Learning, the school’s curriculum, effective

strategies, resources, and data to meet the needs of all students.

Performance Standard 3: Instructional Delivery

The teacher effectively engages students in learning by using a variety of instructional strategies in

order to meet individual learning needs.

Performance Standard 4: Assessment of and for Student Learning

The teacher systematically gathers, analyzes, and uses all relevant data to measure student academic

progress, guide instructional content and delivery methods, and provide timely feedback to both

students and parents throughout the school year.

Performance Standard 5: Learning Environment

The teacher uses resources, routines, and procedures to provide a respectful, positive, safe, student-

centered environment that is conducive to learning.

Performance Standard 6: Professionalism

The teacher maintains a commitment to professional ethics, communicates effectively, and takes

responsibility for and participates in professional growth that results in enhanced student learning.

Performance Standard 7: Student Academic Progress

The work of the teacher results in acceptable, measurable, and appropriate student academic

progress. Standard 7 accounts for 40% of the teacher evaluation summative rating.


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All administrators received professional development to establish “look fors” for the seven teacher

performance standards. Teachers who receive exemplary or proficient on their teacher evaluation are

awarded by non-monetary means such as recognition during faculty meetings and announcements.

Teachers who need targeted support are identified by multiple measures of data based on Virginia

teacher performance standards. Teachers identified as needing support receive targeted ongoing

professional development in a variety of formats which may include: faculty instructional meetings,

mini-demonstration lessons, teacher-led presentations on selected instructional topics, VDOE

sponsored content-specific institutes, and coaching. The school leadership team, external consultants,

and division department leaders conduct professional development.

The principal is evaluated annually by the Chief Academic Officer (CAO). The evaluation process

follows the requirements outlined in the Virginia Department of Education’s Guidelines for Uniform

Performance Standards and Evaluation Criteria for Principals. The process entails a self-evaluation

completed by the principal and goal setting focused on student achievement and school climate.

Reviews conducted both mid-year and at the end of the year are focused on progress on the goals to

include specific evidence of the principal’s attainment of the seven standards—(1) Instructional

Leadership, (2) School Climate, (3) Human Resource Management, (4) Organizational Management,

(5) School and Community Relations, (6) Professionalism, and (7) Student Academic Progress. The

process concludes with a final performance evaluation. The CAO also reviews the principal’s school

improvement planning process and monthly progress monitoring reports. The CAO conducts regular

walkthroughs and attends all school improvement team meetings which are held monthly along with

other members of the division’s leadership team and provides the principal with evidence-based

feedback and explicit next steps.

VII. Decision-Making and Autonomy

(1) What is the decision-making process for school improvement efforts, overall strategic vision,

and/or anything that impacts the improvement plan?

(2) What policies or practices exist as barriers that may impede the school's success? Please note

where the policies originate (i.e. state code or division policies/practices). What is the process to

remove the barriers? List date of division meeting as evidence. (Agenda and notes should remain

on file in the division.)


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Decision-making related to school improvement efforts, overall strategic vision, or other elements

that may impact the improvement plan are processed through the leadership team and the School

improvement Team meetings. The Division leadership team ensures that the decision is aligned to the

Division’s vision. The school-based leadership team is the first level of involvement and provides the

means to hear the voices of those who will be directly impacted by the decision. The School

Improvement Team meetings allow district personnel to review, reflect, and provide additional input

and insight into the decision-making process and offer alternative solutions when appropriate. The

state-level personnel use the meetings to ask probing questions that stimulate further

discussion. The school principal’s decisions are reviewed by the division Leadership team, with final

decision-making authority resting in the office of the division superintendent.

School staff have key roles on the school’s leadership team. Lead teachers from each department are

active and involved members, and are able to represent and advocate for their teachers at leadership

team meetings. The leadership team is the first level of involvement, and provides the leadership

with the means to hear the voices of those who will be directly impacted by the decision, and the

Alternate Governance meetings allow district and state-level personnel to review, reflect, and provide

additional input and insight into the decision-making process, and offer alternative solutions when

appropriate. The school principal makes final school based decisions with input from the school and

division Leadership team. The ultimately authority rests with the division superintendent with input

from the chief academic officer, central office staff and the principal.

There are currently barriers with practices and policies that will impede the school’s success. In 2015-

16, the VDOE curriculum framework was used as the basis for planning and instruction, because the

division did not have a formal written curriculum. In 2016-17, with new leadership, curriculum

development has become a priority. As part of the division’s corrective action plan, Peabody MS will

develop and implement aligned curricula that include suggested learning activities which facilitate

students’ application of higher level thinking skills, use aligned curriculum resources, and provide

sample formative and summative assessments. Another barrier is securing highly qualified teachers

and the city’s current budget issues are barriers. There are currently vacancies, with long-term

substitutes filling many of those vacancies. Furthermore, the city has cut the division’s 2016-2017

budget by 3.4 million.


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VIII. Phase-Out Planning

(1) What services should be maintained after these federal funds and supports end?

(2) How will the school and division prepare for the phase out of funds, supports, and services? How

will the district support the school as it prepares for the phase out?

(3) What supports from the state would be the most helpful?

The services that will be maintained once the funds are no longer available will be those that support

student success and teacher development, including tutoring and coaching. We would also like to

continue to provide bridge support to enhance the effectiveness of school leadership. A thorough

needs assessment will be conducted to determine which supports should be continued, and which

ones can be phased out. Supportive services that are deemed valuable and necessary will be

supported through strategic reallocation of local dollars, appropriation of public and private grant

funds, PBIS monies, Communities in Schools resources, and various other avenues.

We will conduct a review of the project’s implementation with all key stakeholders, central office, and

school staff to identify “lessons learned” and “next steps. School personnel’s responsibility for

implementation will guide the provision of technical support. For example, the purposes and use of

protocols, processes and tools to support implementation are made explicit as Education Specialists

facilitate their use. Data are shared to continually support communication and problem solving.

Education Specialists provide scaffolding in the context of a plan for passing these responsibilities to

the principal and other staff member(s), as appropriate. In this way, the internal capacity built

through these interventions will actively support Sustainability for Continuing Improvement as the

external support is phased out.


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SECTION 2: REQUIRED ELEMENTS, PART 1

The LEA is required to provide the following information for each school the LEA has identified to serve:

Note: Data for questions 1 and 2 below may be preliminary at the time of application. (1) Information about the graduation rate of the school in the aggregate and by subgroup for all

secondary schools.

N/A

(2) Student achievement data for the past three years (current school year and previous two school

years) in reading/language arts and mathematics: by school for "all students", each gap group 1,

gap group 2, gap group 3, economically disadvantaged, English language learners, students with

disabilities, white, Asian (as applicable).

2015-2016 English SOL



2015-2016 Math SOL

2014-2015 Math SOL

2013-2014 Math SOL

All students 53.13% 53.78% 46.08% 47.07% 44.51% 37.09%

Proficiency gap group 1

46.84% 49.26% 44.52% 41.86% 40.14% 34.40%


52.61% 52.35% 44.17% 46.24% 42.36% 34.56%


57.14 % TS

67.85% TS 77.77% TS 57.14% TS 68.96% TS 70.37% TS

Students with disabilities

35.71% 33.89% 33.33% 25.45% 29.31% 7.54%

LEP students 40% TS 62.50% TS 83.33% TS 42.10% TS 64.70% TS 66.66%

Economically disadvantaged students

47.90% 50.76% 44.49% 42.44% 40.20% 34.97%

White students 40% TS 100% TS 70% TS 60% TS 100% TS 80% TS

Asian students 100% TS 100% TS 100% TS 50% TS 100% TS 100% TS


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(3) Total number of minutes in the 2015-2016 school year that all students were required to attend, broken down by daily, before-school, after-school, Saturday school and summer school; and any additional increased learning time planned for 2016-2017. *This information will be shared with USED.

Peabody Middle School was granted a waiver by the Virginia Board of Education to operate on a year

round calendar effective with the 2014-2015 school year. The school operated on the year round

schedule again during the 2015-2016 school year and will continue for the 2016-2017 school year.

This schedule adds 20 additional days above the state-mandated minimum of 180 days for a total of

200 instructional days for all students in grades 6-8. The additional days, called intersessions are

interspersed between the traditional nine-week grading periods providing opportunities for

additional intervention, remediation, and acceleration based upon individual student needs. In

addition to the intersessions, students received additional academic support before school, after

school and on selected Saturdays. Moreover, students needing continued support attended summer

school offered at the conclusion of the school year in June. Summer school, which ran from June 27,

2016 through July 28, 2016, provided an additional 19 days of instruction. The total number of

minutes all students were required to attend is noted in the chart below.

Source # of Days # of Minutes Daily Total # of Minutes

2015-2016 school year 200 days (August 5, 2016 - June 17,

2016)

410 minutes 82,000 (or excluding

30 minutes daily for

lunch ) 76,000

Summer School 19 days (June 27, 2016 – July 28, 2016) 370 minutes 7,030 minutes

Total Instructional Time for

2015-2016 83,030

The school calendar allocates time for professional development prior to the start of the school year

for new teacher induction (July 25-26) as well as time (July 27-29) for all members of the faculty.

Additional time is built into the calendar each semester (November 8 and February 7). Faculty

meetings held after the student day are also used for professional development and allow time for

teachers to work in cross content teams. Additionally, the school’s master schedule provides time for

teachers to collaborate in Professional Learning Communities (PLC).


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(4) Demographics of the student population by the following categories (based on data from the 2015-16 school year):

Total Enrollment: 522

Male: 271

Female: 251

Asian: 4

Black: 478

Hispanic: 29

White: 9

Students with Disabilities: 63

English Language Learners: 19

Economically

Disadvantaged:

335

Migrant:

Homeless: 35

(5) Analysis of student achievement data with identified areas that need improvement based on previous three school years. Include preliminary data for 2016-17. Identified areas needing improvement should align with goal setting and action steps throughout the application.

Based on the previous three school years (2013-2014, 2014-2015, 2015-2016), limited improvement

has been made and reading and mathematics continue to be areas of concern.

Area 1: Annual reading performance continues to fall significantly below the state benchmark of 75%

of students passing (46.08%, 53.78%, 53.13%).

Area 2: Annual mathematics performance continues to fall significantly below the state benchmark of

70% of students passing (37.09%, 44.51%, 47.07%).


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(6) Information about the physical plant of the school facility to include: 1) date built; 2) number of classrooms; 3) description of library media center; 4) description of cafeteria; and 5) description of areas for physical education and/or recess. Description should provide insight into the capacity and functionality of the facility to serve students.

Peabody Middle School was built in 1951 with additions completed in 1965, 1968, and 1970. The school has 45 classrooms, a library (1,640 square feet), cafeteria (5,300 square feet) and one high school regulation-sized gymnasium.

The library serves a variety of purposes. Students utilize the library to check out books on an as needed basis as well as to complete research assignments. A section of the library contains 29 computers used for research, instruction, and quarterly benchmark assessments. The library houses the school’s parent resource center where parents may check out books and resources on a variety of topics. Students may also visit the library, home to the student store, to redeem rewards for positive behavior as part of the school’s Positive Behavioral Intervention and Support (PBIS) program. The library also contains the office of the School Resource Officer (SRO) as well as conference rooms used for conducting Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meetings. The library is also used monthly for faculty meetings.

The 5,300 square foot cafeteria is used to serve breakfast and lunch to students in grades 6-8 daily. The cafeteria seats approximately 175 students during each of its four lunches. All students are eligible for free breakfast and lunch daily through the school’s participation in the Community Eligibility Program.

The school’s gymnasium is used daily for physical education classes and extra-curricular activities. It is also available for use by the community upon request.

(7) Information about the types of technology available to students and instructional staff.

In addition to the 29 computers in the library, Promethean Boards are located in 28 core content classrooms. The number of computer labs has been reduced from 12 to 8 to accommodate the expansion of the student body from grades 6 and 7 only, to now include grade 8. Computers on Wheels (COWs), each housing 24 computers, are available for teachers to check-out. Additionally, all staff members have a computer. There are also 45 iPads for teacher and student use.

9 COWs with 24 laptops each = 216

7 Computer Labs with 24 desktops each = 193

1 Computer Lab with 30 desktops = 30

Additional Laptops for Checkout = 11

Additional iPads for Checkout = 10


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(8) A. Use the charts below to indicate the number and percentage of highly qualified teachers and teachers with less than 3 years of experience by grade or subject for the 2015-2016 school year. This should be an unduplicated count for each set.

SET 1:

Category Number of

Teachers

Percentage of All

Teachers

Highly Qualified Teachers: 49 94.2%

Teachers Not Highly Qualified: 3 5.7%

SET 2:

Category Number of

Teachers

Percentage of All

Teachers

Teachers with Fewer Than 3 Years in

Grade/Subject:

22 43%

Number of Teachers with a Provisional

License:

8 15%

(8) B. LIST below the number of teachers by grade level or subject area with less than 3 years of experience (i.e., Grade 3 (2) or Gr 7 Reading/LA (1)).

Grade(s) Subject Number

6-8 Art 1

6-8 English 7

6-8 Foreign Language 1

6-8 Librarian 1

6 Mathematics 2


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7 Mathematics 2

8 Science 1

6 Social Studies 1

8 Social Studies 1

8 Social Studies—Civics 1

6-8 Special Education 4

(9) A. Indicate the number of instructional staff members employed at the school for the given number of years.

Years # Instructional

Staff Years

# Instructional

Staff Years

# Instructional

Staff

0 0 14 1 28 0

1 11 15 3 29 1

2 17 16 2 30 0

3 3 17 5 31 0

4 0 18 0 32 0

5 1 19 2 33 1

6 3 20 1 34 0

7 4 21 1 35 0

8 3 22 0 36 2

9 0 23 0 37 1

10 2 24 1 38 0


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11 2 25 0 39 0

12 1 26 0 40 0

13 2 27 0 41 1

(9) B. Teacher Attendance: Indicate the total number of instructional days teachers worked divided by the total number of instructional days for school year 2015-2016.

Total # of Teaching Days Total # of Days Worked Teacher Attendance Rate

23,916 23,174 96.89%

SECTION 2: REQUIRED ELEMENTS, PART 2

The LEA must describe the following action it has taken, or will take, for each school the LEA has identified to serve:

(1) Describe the process the division will use to recruit, screen, and select external providers to ensure their quality. Provide a description of the activities undertaken to (a) analyze the LEA’s operational needs; (b) research external providers including their use of evidence-based strategies, alignment of their approach to meeting the division/school needs, and their capacity to serve the school; and (c) to engage parents and community members to assist in the selection of external partners. *An LEA proposing to use SIG funds to implement the Restart model in the school must demonstrated that it will conduct a rigorous review process, as described in the final requirements, of the charter school operator, charter management organization (CMO), or education management organization (EMO) that it has selected to operate or manage the school or schools.

The division leadership selected external providers from the state approved list for the Lead

Turnaround Partner (LTP) selection committee to interview and select. The LTP selection committee

consisted of all stakeholders (principals, State Liaison, parents, division and school level staff, school

board member, and community members). The LTP selection committee interviewed external

partner candidates on November 12, 2014 and they selected Pearson to present to the school board

for approval on December 3, 2014. The school board approved to move forward with Pearson. The

school division evaluated Pearson’s capacity to meet Peabody’s anticipated needs. In its proposal,

Pearson committed to providing Peabody MS with research-based School Design services aligned to

The Comprehensive Improvement Model (CIM). CIM is a comprehensive improvement framework that

supports high-quality instruction and rigorous outcomes across five components; each recognized as

critical to school success. The five areas align directly with the State of Virginia Turnaround Principles,


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the State of Virginia Teacher Standards, and the indicators that are part of the school review process.

The division leadership team conducted a formal needs assessment to develop a framework for

Pearson’s scope of work. The framework focused on mathematics and language arts support,

leadership capacity, and school climate. Pearson and the division leadership team worked

collaboratively to develop the scope of work to meet the needs of Peabody. The final draft was

reviewed by stakeholders before submission to VDOE. Pearson conducted a needs assessment and

collaboratively developed action steps with the school and division leadership team to focus on the

areas of need. Pearson began work in March 2015 and monthly reports were submitted to the school

board and stakeholders via Board Docs to review and monitor progress toward essential actions

outlined in the scope of work. Pearson continued as the external partner for the 2015-2016 school

year. Based on disappointing student outcomes, the school division had considered selecting a new

LTP. As a compromise, the school will work with the current LTP to ensure the on-site staff is meeting

the obligations set forth in the scope of work. The school will participate in the hiring process. The

LTP will be required to submit a slate of resumes of prospective staff for the team to review, and

schedule the top candidates for interviews and selection by Peabody’s Leadership Team and Central

Office personnel. Pearson will participate in bi-weekly monitoring meetings to demonstrate the ways

in which their activities in the school align with the plans outlined in the scope of work. Additionally,

Petersburg Public Schools has received assurances that Pearson will provide much more rigorous

oversight and monitoring of its programs and personnel than was previously provided.

(2) Provide an explanation of the division's capacity to serve its Priority schools including a description of the LEA plans to (a) adequately research, design and resource the interventions; (b) engage stakeholders, with significant emphasis on parental engagement, for input into the selection of a reform model and the design of interventions with consideration of the needs identified by the community, and to keep stakeholders informed on progress towards attaining school goals; and (c) monitor the implementation of the intervention towards attaining the established goals (leading and lagging indicators) and to provide technical assistance to the school as needed.

An LEA eligible for services under subpart 1 or 2 of part B of Title VI of the ESEA (Rural Education

Assistance Program or REAP) may propose to modify one element of the turnaround or

transformation model, and, if so doing, must described how it will meet the intent and purpose of

that element. Only LEAs eligible for REAP and proposing to modify one element of the

turnaround or transformation model should respond to this flexibility component.

The LEA has the capacity to implement the transformation model. a.)The Division will implement the second year of the Transformation Model. The Superintendent, Division Leaders, School Officials, Lead Turnaround Partners, Priority School Contractor, and Chief


26

Academic Officer (CAO) will work collaboratively to ensure that the intervention model for each school is fully implemented. b) To build capacity, the school division’s Family Engagement personnel will work with key Peabody staff to develop strategies to increase family involvement and engagement. Communities in Schools (CIS) is in place to increase parental and community engagement to provide wrap around services needed for Tier 3 students. Parent representatives are invited to attend and participate in the monthly school improvement meetings. 3. Peabody’s school improvement plan is aligned with the principles required by the Transformation Model. The plan is reviewed by the Division leadership team each month. Leading and lagging indicators are reviewed, discussed, and acted upon. The division-wide Corrective Action Plan is used to guide implementation. School division leaders and the Priority School Contractor meet with the principal monthly to discuss data and progress being made toward the transformation model and specific actions indicated in the MOU and corrective action plan. Monthly reports from the external partner’s progress towards goals are submitted in Board Docs for school board members and public viewing. c) Monitoring of the implementation is done twice a month in school leadership team meetings. The leading and lagging indicators are reviewed and discussed during the meetings. Division leaders, Pearson, Priority school principal, relative staff, and the Chief Academic Officer meets monthly to review current student data (benchmarks, instructional programs, interventions, etc.). In the meetings, plans of action and interventions are discussed based on the results of the data. To meet the goals, funding sources to provide additional support and technical assistance provided by Pearson or internal partners are discussed as well.

The school division is committed to ensuring that Peabody becomes fully accredited. The school system has developed and implemented a divisionwide monitoring plan that holds all principals accountable for ensuring alignment between the written, taught, and tested curriculum. Robust lesson planning is at the core of this alignment. To ensure systemwide fidelity of implementation, the Chief Academic Officer will lead and monitor a yearlong process of professional development in the area of lesson planning and the enhancement of teacher skills in each of the planning components. Each component will be delivered at a monthly meeting. The principal at Peabody will solidify his knowledge base and then prepare to deliver the same professional development to his staff the following week. The LTP will be closely connected to the delivery and implementation of this model.

Lesson planning should begin with a review of data as appropriate (or available) to determine the amount of time to be spent on the unit and the various standards in the unit. After reviewing the data, teachers must unpack the standard and consult the curriculum framework to determine the Big Ideas, Enduring Understandings, Essential Questions and Essential Knowledge and Skills. Using the required resources, teachers are expected to unpack the standards for context, content, and cognitive level and map to a Table of Specifications. A Table of Specifications is like an


27

architectural blueprint that is used to strategically build (the assessment) and plan instruction (lesson planning) around it. Unpacking a standard involves four steps. This includes: (1) reviewing the overarching standard in order to determine the behavior, condition, and criteria in which students are learning the essential knowledge and skills using the Curriculum Framework, (2) determining the content students must learn, and (3) determining the cognitive level using the revised Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy (4) Determine the how students will learn it; the most suitable instructional method for reaching the cognitive level (behavior).

Unpacking a standard involves four steps. This includes: (1) reviewing the overarching standard in order to determine the behavior, condition, and criteria in which students are learning the essential knowledge and skills using the Curriculum Framework, (2) determining the content students must learn, and (3) determining the cognitive level using the revised Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy (4) Determine the how students will learn it; the most suitable instructional method for reaching the cognitive level (behavior).

In addition to the focus on lesson planning and curricular alignment, a principal partner has been assigned to support Peabody Middle School. This partner is a retired principal who is an expert in curriculum and instruction. She has an impressive track record of leading an Exemplary High-Performing National Blue Ribbon high school. She conducts classroom observations several times per week, attends grade level planning meetings, and collaborates with the principal in providing instructional support. In supporting family engagement, the school division used Title I funds to create a position for a school based Family Engagement Specialist. The Family Engagement Specialist promotes active engagement between the school and Peabody families, to help ensure that students’ academic, social and emotional needs are met. The Family Engagement Specialist encourages and increases parental/family involvement in the school by providing ongoing activities, educational programs, and workshops to enhance student achievement and support families. The Family Engagement Specialist collaborates with school Principals, staff, and other stakeholders to achieve measurable outcomes and meet school and district goals. The school division also has a supervisor of Youth Development and Family Engagement who directly oversees the work of the family engagement specialist, collaborates with the principal, coordinates with community based organizations, and works directly with families to support the success of all students.

The school division has a department devoted to supporting Student Success. The personnel in the

department provide targeted support to teachers of students who receive Special Education services,

students for whom English is not their first language, and gifted students. The department also

develops and monitors systems for supporting students’ positive behavior choices, for supporting

students who are in alternative placements, and for promoting exploration of career pathways. All of


28

the student success team members collaborate across specialty areas to support students, teachers,

and administrators.

(3) Describe the process the division will use to ensure that the selected intervention model for each school will be implemented fully and effectively. Provide a timeline for implementation of the required components of the selected reform model. Delineate the responsibilities and expectations to be carried out by the external partner and the

LEA. Provide a description of the process the LEA will use to monitor, regularly review, and hold

accountable any external partners.

*An LEA selecting the Restart model must indicate how it will hold accountable the charter school

operator, CMO, EMO or other external provider for meeting the model requirements.

As the Lead Turnaround Partner, Pearson will provide research-based School Design services

aligned with The Comprehensive Improvement Model (CIM). CIM is a comprehensive improvement

framework that supports high-quality instruction and rigorous outcomes across five components;

each recognized as critical to school success. The five areas align directly with the State of Virginia

Turnaround Principles, the State of Virginia Teacher Standards, and the indicators that are part of the

school review process. The five areas are:

● Design Task 1: Standards and Assessments

● Design Task 2: Aligned Instructional Systems

● Design Task 3: High-Performance Leadership, Management, and Organization

● Design Task 4: Professional Learning Communities

● Design Task 5: Parent/Guardian and Community Engagement

Pearson’s (LTP) Staffing Plan for Peabody Middle School:

Roles Number of Resources

Duration Total Estimated hours

Literacy Education Specialist 1 Application

Approval – June 30,

2017

~1,304 hours


29

Math Education Specialist 1 Application


2017

~1,304 hours

Leadership Specialist (s) / Transformation Lead 1 Application


2017

160 hours

Based on a 40 hrs. per week model, per core

content

32.6 weeks x 80 hrs per wk = 2,608 per core

in addition to 160 hours = 2,768 hours

content area (approx. 163 school days calendared

in 9 months)

~2,768 hours

October 1, 2016 through June 30, there are approximately 163 days available to provide LTP services and supports

within nine (9) months: October (21 days), November (18 days), December (12 days), January (21 days),

February (19 days), March (23 days), April (15 days), May (22 days), June (12 days)

Planned Professional Development Professional Development Planning is a cyclical process that helps support the

● Clarification of goals ● Identification of milestones on the way to achieving your goals ● Improvement of your ability to effectively communicate your goals to stakeholders ● Establishment of a clear sense of expectations.

During Implementation Planning PD days, topics will be determined by Division / Henderson Leaders, in collaboration with Pearson. The Professional Development calendar may be modified to reflect school immediate learning needs, within the Scope of Services.

Date/s: # of Days Event / Description: Audience:

Prior to Engagement

2 days

Needs Assessment Facilitate needs assessment and analysis of data. Co-facilitate strategic planning and determine the schedule and agreed upon professional development plan.

2 days applicable for returning LTPs

Pearson team

During Engagement

Monthly/ Quarterly Reviews *

Review at Division and School (12 months) Pearson Transformation

Lead and select team


30

members

1 day Mid-Year Training – Math Institute - Review routines

and rituals of the Instructional Framework, model and

analyze expectations for the standards based classroom.

Review the math SOLs and articulate rigorous learning

tasks, assessments and strategies. Look at Student Work

Math teachers, Grade

Level/ Dept. Chair,

Admin

1 day Mid-Year Training – ELA Institute - Review routines and

rituals of the Instructional Framework, model and analyze

expectations for the standards based classroom. Review the

ELA SOLs and articulate rigorous learning tasks,

assessments and strategies. Look at Student Work

ELA teachers, Grade

Level/ Dept. Chair,

Admin

1 day Mid-Year Training – Content Literacy Institute

(Social Studies / Science) - if needed - Review routines

and rituals of the Instructional Framework, model and

analyze expectations for the standards based classroom.

Review the Content Literacy SOLs and articulate rigorous

learning tasks, assessments and strategies. Look at Student

Work

Content Literacy

teachers, Grade Level/

Dept. Chair, Admin

1 day Mid-Year Training- Leadership Institute - Assess

routines and rituals of the Instructional Framework, model

and analyze the evidence of the expectations for the

standards based classroom. Review instructional strategies

and engage in inter-rater reliability practices and processes

for distributive leadership; analyze data driven culture

Admin and Leadership

Team members (Family

and Community

Engagement, Dept.

Chairs and Lead

1 day Mid-Year Training – Facilitators’ Institute - Review

data reports to determine school-wide implementation /

content performance trends- as it relates to the curriculum

activities and effectiveness of the Teacher Collaboration

meeting / PLC; analyze and progress monitor the protocols

of a high functioning data driven workgroup – self assess

and action plan

Grade Level / Dept.

Chairs, Admin

Leadership

Network

Meetings

3 days

Principal Network Meetings – Principal Network

Meetings are support meetings that target the Professional

Learning Community and leader collaboration. Leaders

engage in academic discourse and activities that hone best

practices for Leading and Managing Change

Pearson Team,

Principals / Admin,

Division Leaders

Monthly Board

Meetings The Leadership Specialists are required to attend the

monthly board meetings, upon request. The customer may

request other members of the team to attend.

Leadership Specialist;

select Pearson

Specialists


31

16 hours

Quarterly

16 hours

Co-Plan and attend Parent and Community Engagement

Meetings

Family and Community

Engagement

Coordinator; Pearson

Designee

Post Engagement Process

End of

Engagement

Analysis

3 days

The Pearson team, School and Division leaders meet

together to analyze the Stage of Implementation, spotlight

reports and student data, Schedule and conduct end-of-

project teacher focus group interviews and in-depth school

administrator interview and surveys.

Review all service records, field notes, and Stages of

Implementation and classroom observations to identify

themes.

Access student benchmark or test data as defined in the

Implementation Plan.

Action plan for the next stage of implementation

Needs Assessment: Facilitate needs assessment and analysis of data. Co-

facilitate strategic planning and determine the schedule and

agreed upon professional development plan.

Admin and Leadership

Team members (Family

and Community

Engagement, Dept.

Chairs and Lead,

Pearson team

(4) *For an LEA proposing to use SIG funds to implement, in partnership with a whole school reform model developer, an Evidence-based Whole-school Reform model for the school, provide a description of (a) the evidence supporting the model including a sample population or setting similar to that of the school to be served; and (b) the partnership with a whole school reform model developer which meets the definition of “whole school reform model developer” in the SIG requirements.

Only LEAs proposing to use SIG funds to implement an Evidence-based Whole-school Reform model should respond to this prompt.

N/A


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SECTION 3: EXPLANATION OF LACK OF CAPACITY TO IMPLEMENT

➢ If the LEA lacks the capacity to serve all of its Priority schools (Tier 1), provide the information requested below.

Note: If you completed Section 2, Part 2 (above), do not complete this section.

1. Describe the steps the LEA has taken to secure the continued support of the local school board for the reform model chosen.

N/A

2. Describe the steps the LEA has taken to secure the support of the parents for the reform model selected.

N/A

3. Describe the process of the LEA for consideration of the use of the grant funds to hire necessary staff (including plans for phase out of grant-funded staff).

N/A

4. Describe the steps the LEA has taken to secure assistance from the state or other entity in determining how to ensure sufficient capacity exists to continue implementation of the chosen model.

N/A


33

SECTION 4: BUDGET NARRATIVE, BUDGET DETAIL & BUDGET SUMMARY

LEA Budget Application - Excel Attachment

The LEA must include a budget that indicates the amount of school improvement funds the LEA will use each year in each Priority school it commits to serve. Utilize the attached budget file to develop a budget for each Priority school the LEA commits to serve, detailing the line item expenditures designed to support the implementation of the reform model selected for school year 2016-2017 (October 1, 2016 through September 30, 2017).

The detailed budget summary the LEA submits as part of the grant application will provide evidence of how other funding sources such as Title I, Part A; Title II, Part D; Title III, Part A; Title VI, Part B; and state and/or local resources will be used to support school improvement activities.

Detailed instructions for developing the LEA and each Priority school budget are included in Attachment A.

SECTION 5: ASSURANCES & CERTIFICATIONS

The local educational agency (LEA) assures that School Improvement Grant 1003(a) and/or 1003(g) funds will be administered and implemented in compliance with all applicable statutes, regulations, policies, and program plans under Virginia’s ESEA Flexibility Waiver and unwaived requirements under No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). This includes the following assurances: The LEA assures it will –

(1) Use its School Improvement Grant to implement fully and effectively an intervention in each Tier I and

Tier II school, or each priority and focus school, that the LEA commits to serve consistent with the final

requirements.

(2) Establish annual goals for student achievement on the State’s assessments in both reading/language

arts and mathematics and measure progress on the leading indicators in section III of the final

requirements in order to monitor each Tier I and Tier II school, or priority and focus school, that it serves

with school improvement funds, and establish goals (approved by the SEA) to hold accountable its Tier

III schools that receive school improvement funds.

(3) Report to the SEA the school-level data required under section III of the final requirements, including

baseline data for the year prior to SIG implementation.


34

(4) Maintain appropriate levels of funding for the schools it commits to serve to ensure the school(s) receives all of the State and local funds it would receive in the absence of the school improvement funds and that those resources are aligned with the interventions.

Use and monitor use of its funds to implement fully and effectively an intervention in each school that the LEA commits to serve consistent with the final requirements, to include all requirements of the USED turnaround principles: 1. Providing strong leadership by: (a) reviewing the performance of the current principal; (b) either replacing the principal if such a change is necessary to ensure strong and effective leadership, or demonstrating to the SEA that the current principal has a track record in improving achievement and has the ability to lead the turnaround initiative effort; and (c) providing the principal with operational flexibility in the areas of scheduling, staff, curriculum, and budget; 2. Ensuring that teachers are effective and able to improve instruction by: (a) reviewing the quality of all staff and retaining only those who are determined to be effective and have the ability to be successful in the turnaround initiative effort; (b) preventing ineffective teachers from transferring to these schools; and (c) providing job-embedded, ongoing professional development informed by the teacher evaluation and support systems and tied to teacher and student needs; 3. Redesigning the school day, week, or year to include additional time for student learning and teacher collaboration; 4. Strengthening the school’s instructional program based on student needs and ensuring that the instructional program is research-based, rigorous, and aligned with State academic content standards; 5. Using data to inform instruction and for continuous improvement, including providing time for collaboration on the use of data; 6. Establishing a school environment that improves school safety and discipline and addressing other non-academic factors that impact student achievement, such as students’ social, emotional, and health needs; and 7. Providing ongoing mechanisms for family and community engagement.

Ensure the principal continues implementation of a school-level improvement team that meets monthly, at minimum, and includes a division-level team representative. Continue implementation of a division-level team with representatives for Instruction, Title I, Special Education, and English Language Learners (if applicable). The division team will: (a) review each school's improvement plan; (b) ensure documentation of division support is evidenced in the school's plan; (c) meet with principals, as a team, on a quarterly basis to review and analyze data from the Priority Schools Quarterly Data Analysis Report; and (d) assist in updating the school's plan to evidence the division's support of actions developed from analysis of data.


35

Assurance Certification: The local educational agency (LEA) assures that School Improvement Grant 1003(a) and/or 1003(g) funds will be administered and implemented in compliance with all applicable statutes, regulations, policies, and program plans. To the best of knowledge of the undersigned, the information contained in the application is correct.

School Division (LEA): Petersburg City Public Schools

Priority School: Peabody Middle School

Principal’s Typed Name:

Jafar Baraka

Principal’s Signature: Date:

Superintendent’s Typed Name: Dr. Marcus Newsome

Superintendent’s Signature: Date:

*The Superintendent must keep a signed copy of this document at the division level for audit purposes.


36

Resources

Description Link

VDOE Low Achieving Schools Contract Award

http://www.doe.virginia.gov/school_finance/procurement/low_achieving_school/index.shtml

State Contract Award http://www.doe.virginia.gov/school_finance/procurement/index.shtml

NCES http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/

Indirect Rate Memo Superintendent’s Memo #023-14, “Changes for the 2013-14 Annual School Report-Financial Section.”

http://www.doe.virginia.gov/administrators/superintendents_memos/2014/023-14.shtml

The indirect cost rate is based on the rate for the LEA

http://www.doe.virginia.gov/school_finance/budget/

Virginia Early Warning System (VEWS)

http://www.doe.virginia.gov/support/school_improvement/early_warning_system/index.shtml

Beverly Rabil, Director (804) 786-1062

[email protected]

Kristi D’Souza, ESEA Lead Coordinator

(804) 371-2681

[email protected]

Natalie Halloran, ESEA Lead Coordinator

(804) 786-1062

[email protected]



http://www.doe.virginia.gov/school_finance/procurement/index.shtml




http://www.doe.virginia.gov/school_finance/budget/








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Local Education Agency (LEA) Application each Priority school that the LEA commits ... models an...

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