Recommendation 1: Opportunity

Recommendation Managers

Ann Hooker, Area Superintendent: Northern Region

Charles Dulaney, Assistant Superintendent for Growth and Planning

(00:01:40)

Strategic Directive

Linked to Fiscal Accountability

The Auditors Recommended:

“Implement district plans and goals to provide equal access to comparable programs, services, and opportunities to impact student success. Eliminate the achievement gap between ethnic and socioeconomic student groups. Take further steps to allocate resources on the basis of need.” (p. 349)

What This Means To The Community:

All WCPSS students need and deserve equitable access to the services of the school district. There should be fairness to all students in areas such as access to challenging course offerings, placement in special programs, and consistency in disciplinary actions.

While auditors noted strategies and efforts to address inequities, there is room for improvement.

WCPSS has made gains in student success, but there remains an achievement gap between high achieving students and those from differing ethnic, socio-economic and special-needs backgrounds. WCPSS must eliminate that gap.

Individual Action Steps

A1.1 Implement goals and strategies in plans. Require congruity of policy intent and decision and actions. (p. 350)
A1.2 Assist the Board in obtaining commitment to equal access and equitable allocations of resources.
- establish link to budget process (p. 350)
A1.3 Prepare drafts of policies. (p. 350)

G1.4 Policy - define curriculum management decisions - district level and school level (Administration). Work of recommendation 3 and 4 groups.

A1.4 Review site-based decision-making. (p. 350)

A1.5 Oversee all reports, budgets, plans, assessments, programs and interventions to ascertain the equitable treatment of all students. (p. 351)
A1.6 Develop K-12 articulated magnet program themes.
- Cost/benefit analysis of all magnet programs
- Consider recommendations of 2007 study (p. 351)
A1.7 Develop strategies to reduce high school failure/dropout rate. (p. 351)
A1.8 Monitor placements in special programs. (p. 351)
A1.9 Develop incentives to attract minority and male teachers. (p. 351)
A1.10 Support stability in the teaching force in schools with high percentages of economically disadvantaged students (career paths, and/or bonuses). (p. 351)
A1.11 Review 3 years of information regarding total resources to each school to determine inequities. (p. 351)

Legend

Light gray text indicates completed items.
Item numbers that begin with "A" are action steps assigned to staff by the CMA.
Item numbers that begin with "G" are action steps assigned to the Board of Education by the CMA, that the Board has reassigned to staff.
Items bounded by a thin box are being treated by staff as a single action step.