Clear direction for improvement

Last Saturday, I gave a short speech at the Kentucky School Boards Association winter conference. A portion of my speech was to recognize the tremendous work of school boards and educators across Kentucky as evidenced by recent rankings by Education Week that put Kentucky in the top 10 states for education policy and results. It is undeniable that Kentucky has made progress in lowering dropout rates, improving student learning outcomes, improving graduation rates and improving college-and career-readiness rates. The vision for our improvements was provided by the Kentucky Education Reform Act in 1990 and more recently by Senate Bill 1 of 2009.


During my speech I also provided clear direction as to improvements that will be made in school board training and superintendent evaluations. I want to provide readers with some insight into the reasons behind these improvements.

1. While most of our local school boards and superintendents are doing a terrific job, there has been evidence recently of inappropriate behaviors and poor fiscal management among some. Given the challenging times that we are in with state and federal budgets, it is extremely important that local school boards and superintendents exercise excellent management of ethics and fiscal responsibility. That is why we will be addressing specific changes in local board training requirements to emphasize ethical and fiscal management training for all board members. 
 
2. With the No Child Left Behind waiver, Kentucky is required to develop new effectiveness and evaluation tools for teachers and principals. It only makes sense that superintendents also share the responsibility of improved effectiveness and evaluation systems.

3. With the passage of Senate Bill 1 in 2009, the subsequent development of the Kentucky Board of Education Unbridled Learning strategic plan and accountability model, and the implementation of the No Child Left Behind waiver, clear delivery targets have been established at the school and district levels for graduation rate, college/career ready rate, student proficiency rate, and student gap group proficiency rates. Eventually, we will add teacher/principal effectiveness rates and program review results. It is very appropriate to expect every school board to include as part of the annual superintendent evaluation process a review of the progress toward the delivery targets.

We are expecting districts to submit plans for teacher and principal evaluation systems by December 2013 with full implementation in 2014-15. Most districts will use the model developed by the state, however, local districts may submit alternative plans. However, the alternative plans must meet the requirements of the NCLB waiver. By adding the requirement that local boards submit the superintendent evaluation process by December 2013, we are ensuring alignment of all evaluation processes in the district to Senate Bill 1 and the NCLB waiver. Local boards may certainly go beyond the minimum expectations of the delivery targets.


In coming weeks, we will provide clarity on the forms that local boards must use in submitting their superintendent evaluation process. Additional requirements in the process will include fiscal management goals and a requirement that the summary statement of the superintendent evaluation be placed in the minutes of the board meeting where the summative evaluation is provided to the superintendent. I would also suggest that any changes in the superintendent contract or salary/benefits be clearly recorded in the board meeting minutes where such action was taken. Several of the recent audits by the state auditor have revealed gaps in the documentation of changes to salary and benefits.


Over the next year, the Kentucky Association of School Administrators will be sharing the excellent work they are doing to develop standards for superintendents. Hopefully, school boards will utilize these standards in the selection, support and evaluation processes for their superintendent.


All of these things working together will ensure Kentucky children are reaching higher levels of achievement. Also, through clear goals and transparency, we will ensure we do not lose the trust of the citizens that we serve.

School Board Role Key for College/Career Readiness

Recently, I’ve worked with the Kentucky School Boards Association (KSBA) as the organization prepares for its annual regional meetings for school board members.

KSBA continues to be a strong partner in our work to implement Unbridled Learning. Over the past few years, KSBA has provided training and support for school board members focused on implementation of Common Core Standards, career and technical programs, improving the graduation rate and understanding the new assessment and accountability system.

Bill Scott, executive director for KSBA, offers the key roles for school boards:

Ø  Set clear and high expectations.

Ø  Create the conditions for success.

Ø  Hold the system accountable.

Ø  Create the public will to succeed.

Ø  Learn as a board team.

In setting clear and high expectations, we were very excited that every school board chair and superintendent signed the Commonwealth Commitment to College and Career Readiness a few years ago. From research, we know that the first step in improving classroom-, school-, district- and state-level student performance is to establish high expectations. The Kentucky Board of Education has set a goal of increasing the percentage of students that graduate college/career-ready from 34 percent to 67 percent by 2015. It is my hope that as school boards set goals for superintendent evaluations, the college/career-ready goal will be part of the annual evaluation of the superintendent. This is a clear signal in setting high expectations for the school system.

In creating conditions for success, the key role of the school board during this time of dwindling resources is to focus on those strategies and activities that are aligned with the goals of the school system. We have reached a point in our local and state budgets that we are unable to do everything for every constituent group. By focusing on a few strategic priorities and providing support for these priorities, school boards can stretch existing dollars.

One of the key ways to create conditions for success is to focus on working conditions. KSBA has provided excellent training on how school boards can utilize the TELL Kentucky working conditions survey to provide support for educators.

Hold the system accountable. With the advent of the new School Report Card, school board members will have easy access to data about their schools and districts. The new School Report Card also will allow the school board to provide transparency of data to the local community. Also, board members will have access to school and district improvement plans that are aligned to goals of college/career readiness, student achievement, graduation rate and closing achievement gaps. Close monitoring of the district plan at regularly scheduled intervals will certainly signal to the public that boards are committed to accountability.

School board members have to advocate for improving student outcomes. I believe that through setting high expectations, creating conditions for success, holding the system accountable and being transparent about progress, school boards will build public will to support schools.

Finally, it is important that the board work as a team and learn as a team. KSBA offers many excellent training modules that are closely aligned to Unbridled Learning. Also, by scheduling regular reviews of progress toward district goals that will be documented in the district and school improvement plans, the board will soon learn what is working and what is not working. This information provides the board with the ability to target resources to improve the effectiveness and productivity of the school system.

I tip my hat to school board members across Kentucky. They work for little or no pay. They receive lots of criticism (especially around budget time). However, they are dedicated individuals who are committed to improving the future for the children of Kentucky.

KBE Takes Historic First Step

The Kentucky Board of Education (KBE) began an historic journey this week. The board took the first steps in the approval of the first “next-generation” accountability model in the U.S. based on common core standards that have now been adopted by 44 states.

I thought readers might be interested in the “talking points” I used as the board approved the goals and guiding principles for the accountability model that were developed in collaboration with the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO).

(Note: the goals and guiding principals document posted does not reflect the many changes made by the board at its meeting. Staff is working to incorporate those changes now, and the final document will be shared widely.)

Events Leading to Proposal for Accountability Model
· 2009’s Senate Bill 1 passed -- one of the most visionary pieces of legislation in the country.
· Federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) reauthorization is past due – should have been done in 2007.
· President Barack Obama establishes goal of regaining U.S. leadership among competing nations for percentage of students with college degrees (two- and four-year) – goal is 60 percent (Speech to Congress, 2009).
· U.S. Department of Education and President Obama proposed ESEA reauthorization Blueprint – spring 2010.
· Aspen Institute convened discussion on accountability model with House/Senate staff – spring 2010.
· CCSSO Standards, Assessment and Accountability Committee recommends task force to develop next-generation accountability model for ESEA reauthorization – spring 2010.
· CCSSO task force convenes – summer 2010.
· AdvanceEd and CCSSO team convene discussion on accountability and accreditation – fall 2010.
· CCSSO task force conducts virtual meetings – fall 2010.
· CCSSO Annual Policy Forum in Louisville provides public access to proposed accountability model – November 2010.

Kentucky’s Position
· First to adopt Common Core Standards – 44 states have now adopted.
· First to issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) for state assessment based on Common Core Standards – November 2010
· First to implement Common Core Standards – curriculum framework available June 2011, and teachers set to implement in August 2011.
· First to assess Common Core Standards – May 2012.
· Proposed – first to implement accountability model based on Common Core Standards and goal of “college- and career-ready” – August 2011.
· Proposed – first state to gain waiver of adequate yearly progress (AYP) with replacement of systemic approach to meet goal of “college- and career-ready” – submit in January 2012.

Key Comments on Goals of Accountability System
· We are moving to a more rigorous goal of “college- and career-ready.”
· We are not abandoning the proficiency goal. Proficiency is a predictor of the higher goal of college- and career-ready.
· We have over-identified schools with more diverse student populations while allowing schools with lower achievement levels and less diversity to avoid identification and interventions.
· We are moving from a focus on perfection (AYP) to a focus on continuous improvement (growth).
· We are providing a more transparent reporting system that provides actionable data for students, classrooms, teachers, administrators and school districts.
· We are providing a systemic approach that holds all stakeholders accountable.

Key Comments on Guiding Principles
· Proposed accountability model is systemic and aligned closely to the KBE’s four strategic priorities of Next-Generation Learners, Next-Generation Professionals, Next-Generation Support Systems and Next-Generation Schools and Districts.
· Model has strong focus on actionable data at all levels of the system.
· Model has focus on building school and district capacity, not simply identification.
· Model compares similar demographics of students, classrooms, schools and districts on a growth model rather than a perfection model.
· Model promotes improvement of the working conditions that impact the learning results.

A New Direction for the Kentucky Board of Education

The Kentucky Board of Education meeting this week signaled a new direction for the board’s meetings. The agenda items at the meeting were a comprehensive set of strategies that will eventually lead to regulatory and possibly statutory changes to implement Senate Bill 1.

The board acted on major recommendations from a recent Office of Education Accountability study of mathematics programs in schools in the Commonwealth. A key requirement will be common course codes for core subjects. This is related to Senate Bill 1, since the Common Core Standards (an initiative of the Council of Chief State School Officers and the National Governors Association) will drive the need to have common course codes at the high school level. Algebra I in Paducah must be the same as Algebra I in Pikeville. While we would certainly want local teachers to set instructional materials, pacing and length of course and define instruction, we must assure parents and students that our mathematics courses and standards will adequately prepare all high school graduates to be successful in college and career.

Another key strategy is changing the definition for measuring high school graduation rates. The board approved regulatory changes that will allow use of a more standard graduation rate, which allows districts to disaggregate rates by ethnicity and gender. Kentucky will not be able to implement the national graduation rate, called a cohort graduation rate, which follows individual students from the 9th grade to graduation, until 2013-14; however, until that time, we must focus on preparing ALL children to graduate with the skills needed for college and career.

These are very exciting times in Kentucky. With the Race to the Top application and Senate Bill 1 deployment, the Kentucky Board of Education is very focused on a comprehensive system of improvement. Also, with Governor Steve Beshear’s Transforming Education in Kentucky Task Force set to begin work in January, 2010 should be a very interesting year for education. What excites me more than anything are the great teachers, principals and school staff that I see during visits to schools each week. In spite of budget cuts and challenging local situations, these folks are dedicated to helping every child be successful.