Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 1. Effective Teaacher in Every Classroom
C
What we will do
W
o
O district emp
Our
ploys about 12,7
700 teachers in almost
a
300 diffeerent schools. We
W are putting in
nto place a thougghtful, bold, sysstemic, and
c
comprehensive
plan
p of action th
hat will dramatically transform the district’s hu
uman capital sysstems and ensurre that a highly effective
e
teacherr
i in place in eveery one HISD’ss classrooms.
is
Why we will do it
W
W are committted to improving
We
g student achiev
vement across ou
ur district, and research
r
tells uss that teachers arre by far the mo
ost powerful
s
school-based
facctor in a child’s academic succeess or failure. Specifically,
S
stud
dies have shown
n that students w
who had very efffective teacherss
f three years in
for
n a row were ab
ble to improve th
heir performancce on standardizzed tests by moree than 50 percennt in comparison
n to students wh
ho
h three ineffecctive teachers in
had
n a row (Sanders and Rivers, 19
996).
What we will rep
W
port
T following Strategic
The
S
Directiion Managemen
nt Report answers the question: Is HISD acting
g on the prioritiees identified in th
he strategic plan
n
w fidelity? It measures HISD
with
D’s accomplishm
ments and risks for
f each Key Sttrategies in supp
port of the overaall Core Initiativ
ve.
The Strategic Direction
T
D
Manag
gement Report iss produced quarrterly. Color ind
dicators are used
d to as an idicatioon of whether administration
a
iss
o track to accomplish a Key Strategy’s quarteerly goals. A “G
on
Green” indicator means the diistrict has made acceptable prog
gress with respeect
t budget, scopee and timeliness. A “Yellow” in
to
ndicator
means the district has identified risk
k with respect too one or more aspects.
a
A “Red
d”
i
inidcator
means progress has stopped or hass a significant deficiency. As th
he Strategic Direection builds a ffoundation towaards achieveing
t district’s goaals over a multi--year period, no
the
ot all Key Strateg
gies will have in
nformation to co
ommunicate in a given period.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 1. Effective Teaacher in Every Classroom
C
1 Strengthen recruiting and
1.1
d staffing policies and practicees to attract top
p talent
Main Element
Prrogress
1
1.1.1
Refine reccruitment and staaffing practices
1
1.1.2
Implementt improved teaccher recruitment and staffing praactices
1
1.1.3
Build awareness and supp
port among interrnal and externaal stakeholders
1
1.1.4
Implementt a “Talent Acqu
uisition System”
Accomplishmen
A
nts
I this period, we
In
w have continueed to focus our efforts on recru
uiting and selectting highly effecctive teachers. A
Although we aree in the midst off
b
budget
challeng
ges, we know thaat we will still have
h
a need to hire externally in
n our critical sho
ortage areas inclluding secondarry math,
s
secondary
scien
nce, bilingual ed
ducation, and lan
nguages. To sup
pport our projeccted need we hav
ve targeted our rremaining recru
uitment efforts on
o
s
schools
includin
ng Michigan Staate, Ohio Univerrsity, Harvard, Cornell
C
and Tex
xas A&M. At th
he same time wee are recruiting from
f
these
s
schools,
we are also continuing
g to look for experienced teacheers. Our efforts have also been focused on suppporting our emp
ployees who will
b impacted by budget cuts and
be
d assisting them
m in finding oppo
ortunities within
n HISD.
Our work on im
O
mplementing the Talent Acquisittion system has been strong thiss period. We haave been workinng with teams accross the
o
organization
to identify
i
all of ou
ur current proceesses that will neeed changes as we
w implement a system that alllows us to stream
mline our
p
processes.
We are
a in the midst of redefining ou
ur recruitment and
a selection pro
ocesses based on the efficienciees we will gain with
w this system
m.
Lastly, we have been redesignin
L
ng our back-end
d processes to en
nsure that our reecruits have a more
m
streamlinedd hiring experieence than what
p
people
have exp
perienced in the past.
P
Planned
for nex
xt period
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Over the next th
O
hree months, wee will be working hard to work with
w our displacced teachers and
d staff to assist tthem in finding the right
o
opportunities
bo
oth inside and ou
utside the districct. We are cond
ducting training sessions every other Wednesdaay to work with
h our displaced
s
staff
on resume writing, intervieewing tips and social
s
Media. We
W have also dev
veloped a website that will alloow us to providee information for
t
these
employeess.
We will conduct four placemen
W
nt events over th
he next few mon
nths for principaals to meet displlaced staff and consider them for
f current
o
openings.
All of
o these efforts will
w help to ensu
ure that we are finding
f
new opp
portunities for th
hose people whoo fit our needs for
f vacancies. As
A
m
mentioned
abov
ve, since we kno
ow that not all off our projected vacancies
v
will be
b filled with dissplaced staff, wee will continue our recruitment
e
efforts
for critical shortage areaas.
We will also be holding a three day offsite meeeting to gather various
W
v
members of the HISD community to heelp design a new
w system for thee
r
recruitment
and selection proceess. We know this
t will be increedibly valuable in shaping the design
d
of the tallent acquisition system and
h
helping
to ensurre that we hire effective
e
teacherrs.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 1. Effective Teaacher in Every Classroom
C
1 Establish a rigorous and fair
1.2
f teacher app
praisal system to
t inform key decisions
d
Main Element
Progress
1
1.2.1
Develop and
a implement a districtwide staaff review proceess for all teacheers in every scho
ool
1
1.2.2
In-depth reeview of the facculty in nine of HISD’s
H
lowest-p
performing scho
ools
1
1.2.3
Design a model
m
of teacherr competency an
nd behavior
1
1.2.4
Develop measures
m
of stud
dent learning
1
1.2.5
Define thee teacher perform
mance appraisall process
1
1.2.6
Incorporatte performance appraisal
a
data in
nto key decision
ns
1
1.2.7
Gather staakeholder input
Accomplishmen
A
nts
W are continuiing to leverage funding
We
f
resourcees from private foundations, su
uch as the Arnold
d Foundation annd Bill & Melin
nda Gates
F
Foundation,
and
d competitive pu
ublic grants, Teaacher Incentive Fund (TIF) for example, to sup
pport the design and implementation of this
w
work.
Through the
t completion of the fall 2010 and spring 2011 Staff Review process, princip
pals have been aable to have meaaningful
c
conversations
with
w their Schooll Improvement Officer
O
(SIO) on
n the performan
nce of teachers at
a their schools aand discuss speccific strategies
w their HR an
with
nd Professional Development Services
S
(PDS) teams
t
to retain and
a develop theiir teachers. Throough this period
d we also have
a
actively
engaged
d stakeholders across
a
the districct to discuss a draft
d
proposal off the new teacheer appraisal and development sy
ystem. This
e
entailed
meeting
gs of 250+ Sharred Decision-Maaking Committeees (SDMC), thee District Advisory Committee (DAC), five wo
orking groups,
n teacher and
nine
d principal focuss groups, and th
he participation of
o nearly 3,000 community mem
mbers in a seriees of public foru
ums and online
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
ssurveys. Cycle 4 recommendattions from the SDMC,
S
based on
n feedback colleected during the public commennt period, have recently
r
been
t
s
submitted
to thee DAC for review
w. The DAC wiill submit its fin
nal recommendaations to the superintendent for Board approvall at the April 14th
r
regular
Board off Education meeeting.
Planned for nex
P
xt period
F
Following
Board approval of th
he final proposall for the new ap
ppraisal and deveelopment system
m for teachers, w
we will finalize the
i
implementation
plan, which willl include trainin
ng of trainers, appraisers,
ap
and teeachers, alignm
ment of the measuures of student learning
l
by major
p
prep,
and support for the sustain
nability of the appraisal
a
processs going forward
d.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 1. Effective Teaacher in Every Classroom
C
1 Provide ind
1.3
dividualized tea
acher support and
a development
Main Element
Progress
1
1.3.1
Identify and
a track centrallized TSD needss via Staff Revieew and appraisaal ratings
1
1.3.2
Develop a long-term centtralized TSD strrategy
1
1.3.3
Implemen
nt a long-term ceentralized TSD strategy
1
1.3.4
Establish PD clearinghou
use
1
1.3.5
Identify and
a track school-based TSD neeeds via Staff Rev
view and appraiisal ratings
1
1.3.6
Develop a strategy for school-based TSD
D
1
1.3.7
Establish metrics for meaasuring the effecctiveness of school-based TSD
1
1.3.8
Identify and
a execute train
ning for principaals to identify an
nd respond to teeacher developm
ment needs
Accomplishmen
A
nts
D
During
the sprin
ng 2011 Staff Reeview process, Professional
P
Deevelopment (PDS) team membeers worked with principals to id
dentify and
m
monitor
progresss on planned teaacher developm
ment activities fo
or the school yeaar. Continuing the
t work startedd last fall, PDS provided
p
c
coaching
to prin
ncipals on schoo
ol-based professional developm
ment by request.
Additionally, the district has tak
A
ken action to resstructure the PD
DS organization to become moree effective at prroviding the righ
ht support to
s
schools
in aligniing high quality
y, meaningful deevelopment opportunities for teachers to do theeir best work in the classroom. Under
U
the new
s
structure,
two teeams will essenttially provide bo
oth centralized coordination
c
and
d scalability for districtwide toools and training,, and
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
iindividualized support to teacheers in specific grades and conteent areas. This reepresents a new vision for profeessional develop
pment that will
m
move
the districct away from a ‘one-size-fits-alll’ workshop app
proach to a systeem that is more individualized aand provides thee appropriate
s
support
to hold principals
p
accou
untable for helping all teachers grow profession
nally.
Planned for nex
P
xt period
I the future, wee will be workin
In
ng to identify daata sources that can
c be used to create
c
the metriccs by which all ccampus-based and
a centralized
p
professional
dev
velopment will be
b evaluated.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 1. Effective Teaacher in Every Classroom
C
1 Offer mean
1.4
ningful career pathways
p
and differentiated
d
compensation to
o retain and lev
verage the mosst-effective teacchers
Main Element
Progress
1
1.4.1
Implemen
nt the ASPIRE Award
A
program
1
1.4.2
Establish career pathways
1
1.4.3
Implemen
nt a new compen
nsation model
Accomplishmen
A
nts
T ASPIRE Aw
The
wards for 2009--10 were paid ou
ut successfully in
i January. Chan
nges to the ASP
PIRE Award moodel for 2010-11
1 were proposed
d
a adopted by the School Boarrd in March. In addition, as an initial step into building career pathways for teeachers, we havee developed a
and
t
teacher
leader ro
ole, for full-timee classroom teacchers with addittional compensaation, to supportt professional deevelopment in schools.
Planned for nex
P
xt period
C
Changes
to the ASPIRE
A
Award
d model for 2011
1-12 will be dev
veloped and presented at a futurre board meeting. In addition, th
he district will
i
issue
a Request for Proposal (R
RFP) to support changes
c
to the compensation
c
sttructure for teach
hers that are aliggned with differrentiated roles
a career pathw
and
ways.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 2. Effective Prin
ncipal in Every School
What we will do
W
o
W are going to
We
o make sure that we have a high
hly effective prin
ncipal at the heaad of every scho
ool. To do that, w
we will improvee our recruiting
s
system
to be mo
ore aggressive in
n recruiting talen
nted individualss into principal positions,
p
startin
ng with our ownn internal pipelin
ne of best
p
performing
teachers and assistaant principals an
nd supplemented
d by strong exterrnal candidates.. We will also prrovide all of ourr principals with
h
t ongoing sup
the
pports, careful ev
valuations, and individualized professional
p
dev
velopment they need while alsoo placing all the necessary tools at
t
their
disposal to
o lead their schools into becomin
ng the best in th
he nation.
Why we will do it
W
T
There
is a broad
d consensus amo
ong educational experts that hav
ving an effective principal at th
he head of everyy school is of utm
most importancee
t ensure studen
to
nt success. The more challengin
ng and/or underrprivileged the student
s
populatio
on in the schooll, the more this is
i true. In HISD
D,
w have ample evidence
we
e
of thiss, as there is broad variation in the
t on-track-to college-readines
c
ss rates of our ellementary, midd
dle and high
s
school
students,, even among scchools with very
y similar poverty
y levels.
What we will rep
W
port
T following Strategic
The
S
Directiion Managemen
nt Report answers the question: Is HISD acting
g on the prioritiees identified in th
he strategic plan
n
w fidelity? It measures HISD
with
D’s accomplishm
ments and risks for
f each Key Sttrategies in supp
port of the overaall Core Initiativ
ve.
The Strategic Direction
T
D
Manag
gement Report iss produced Quarrterly. Color ind
dicators are used
d to as an idicatiion of whether administration
a
iss
o track to accomplish a Key Strategy’s quarteerly goals. A “G
on
Green” indicator means the diistrict has made acceptable prog
gress with respeect
t budget, scopee and timeliness. A “Yellow” in
to
ndicator
mean
ns the district haas identified risk
k with respect too one or more aspects.
a
A “Red
d”
i
inidcator
means progress has stopped or hass a significant deficiency. As th
he Strategic Direection builds a ffoundation towaards achieveing
t district’s goaals over a multi--year period, no
the
ot all Key Strateg
gies will have in
nformation to co
ommunicate in a given period.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 2. Effective Prin
ncipal in Every School
2 Establish a comprehensivee instructional leadership pro
2.4
ogram to develo
op and retain top talent
Main Element
Progress
2.4.1 Define leaadership pathway
2
ys/ladders for HISD
H
staff and administrators
a
to
o become princiipals, and for priincipals to
a
advance
into hig
gher leadership roles
2
2.4.2
Assess thee strengths and weaknesses
w
of HISD’s
H
current supports
s
to princcipals
2.4.3 Provide on
2
ngoing professio
onal development to principals who are already
y working in HIISD, tailored to individual
n
need
while also addressing key topics in princiipal developmen
nt
2
2.4.4
Provide neew principals wiith a high-qualitty, three-year mentorship
m
progrram
Accomplishmen
A
nts
O
Over
this period
d we identified and
a continue to refine developm
ment strategies th
hat will result in
n a comprehensiive leadership development
d
f
framework
that provides five po
ossible pathway
ys for entry into principalship in
n HISD. The patthways are: Teaacher Leader, Asssistant
P
Principal/Dean,
, Intern, Externa
al Candidate an
nd Initial Years. The framework
k provides for th
hree years of deddicated support for new
a
administrators.
Additionally,
A
th
he support modeel is expanded to
o include consulltant support bey
yond mentoringg. The work we have done
o
outlines
the entrry and screening
g requirements, program design
n components, an
nd curriculum strands.
s
The pathhway frameworrk was shared
w two focus groups
with
g
compriseed of Chiefs, Scchool Improvem
ment Officers and
d Human Resou
urces personnel.
We launched thee district’s first Readiness Coho
W
ort. This cohort consists of 56 administrators
a
w are deemed “ready” for thee principalship.
who
O work with the
Our
t cohort involv
ves helping the cohort memberrs define and hon
ne their leadersh
hip style, providde interview skills and strategiees,
a complete th
and
he district’s man
ndatory managem
ment training su
uch as budgeting
g, safety, data an
nalysis, HR proccesses and Peop
pleSoft as
e
examples.
The Readiness
R
semin
nar is facilitated
d by the Leadership Developmen
nt team with oth
her Central Offiice Departmentss also playing keey
r
roles
in the prep
paration of our future
f
school leaaders. We are in
ntentional in ourr efforts to have Central Office sstaff see themseelves as having a
d
direct
service reelationship with schools, thus haaving an impactt on student achiievement. Centtral Office partnners include Bud
dget and Financee,
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Procurement, PeeopleSoft, Hum
P
man Resources, HISD
H
Police Dep
partment, Curriculum Instructio
on and Assessm
ment, School Sup
pport Services
a Special Edu
and
ucation to name a few.
We have also met
W
m with two univ
versity partners; Rice Universitty and The Univ
versity of Texas. In our meetingg with these univ
versities we
s
sought
to enhan
nce our leadershiip preparations strategies
s
by inv
volving the univ
versities in the co-construction
c
oof our program model. Althoug
gh
w have not reached a final agrreement, the univ
we
versities have su
ubmitted a prop
posal outlining how
h we might w
work together in building HISD’’s
g
grow-our-own
leadership devellopment model. Ultimately, these proposed disttrict-university partnerships will help us substaantially redefinee
t scope of lead
the
dership and prov
vide quality traiining opportunitties for principaals at all levels in
n their careers.
Last, training on
L
n the new princiipal appraisal sy
ystem began in late
l March. A piilot group of Sch
hool Improvement Officers, priincipals, assistan
nt
p
principals,
Lead
dership Develop
pment Staff mem
mbers will particcipate in the inittial training.
P
Planned
for nex
xt period
O plans for th
Our
he next period in
nclude:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Train
ning all principals, assistant prin
ncipals and otheer appraisers on the McREL app
praisal tool in Juuly and August, 2011
Launching the Teach
her Leader Acad
demy
Launching the first in
nternship cohortt
Launching AP2 (seco
ond year develo
opment for assisstant principals and
a deans)
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 3. Rigorous In
nstructional Stan
ndards and Supp
ports
What we will do
W
o
R
Redesign
the co
ourse offerings, curriculum,
c
asseessment tests, an
nd social/emotio
onal supports prrovided in schoools throughout HISD,
H
with a
p
particular
emphasis on giving all
a students the same
s
access to educational
e
prog
grams and opporrtunities, regarddless of which scchool they atten
nd,
a well as impro
as
oving instruction
n for students att all levels. We will also implem
ment a set of tarrgeted reforms iin order to turn around
a
HISD’s
l
lowest-performi
ing schools.
Why we will do it
W
H
HISD
has a num
mber of outstand
ding academic programs and sup
pports across th
he district, but on
n the whole doees not prepare sttudents for
c
college
and careeer readiness. Our
O scores show that, depending
g on the grade, only
o
about 40 to
o 70% of our stuudents are readin
ng or doing math
a grade level. In
at
I addition, stud
dent EVAAS gro
owth data show
w a slowing of grrowth in mathem
matics progress from the fifth to
o sixth grades,
r
resulting
in only
y 18% of HISD eighth-grade stu
udents successfu
ully completing
g Algebra I. The end result is thaat the majority of
o HISD studentts
w enroll in co
who
ommunity colleg
ge require remed
dial courses in their
t
first year.
What we will rep
W
port
T following Strategic
The
S
Directiion Managemen
nt Report answers the question: Is HISD acting
g on the prioritiees identified in th
he strategic plan
n
w fidelity? It measures HISD
with
D’s accomplishm
ments and risks for
f each Key Sttrategies in supp
port of the overaall Core Initiativ
ve.
The Strategic Direction
T
D
Manag
gement Report iss produced Quarrterly. Color ind
dicators are used
d to as an idicatiion of whether administration
a
iss
o track to accomplish a Key Strategy’s quarteerly goals. A “G
on
Green” indicator means the diistrict has made acceptable prog
gress with respeect
t budget, scopee and timeliness. A “Yellow” in
to
ndicator
mean
ns the district haas identified risk
k with respect too one or more aspects.
a
A “Red
d”
i
inidcator
means progress has stopped or hass a significant deficiency. As th
he Strategic Direection builds a ffoundation towaards achieveing
t district’s goaals over a multi--year period, no
the
ot all Key Strateg
gies will have in
nformation to co
ommunicate in a given period.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 3. Rigorous Insttructional Stand
dards and Suppo
orts
3
3.1
Equity in
i access to edu
ucational progrrams
Main Element
Progress
3
3.1.1
Ensure that all schools haave high quality
y programs to meet the diverse needs
n
of studentts
3.1.2 Broaden access
3
a
to dual crredit, Advanced
d Placement (A), and Internation
nal Baccalaureaate (IB) and impprove exam
s
success
rates
3
3.1.3
Increase consistency
c
of Magnet
M
Schools
3.1.4 Provide sp
3
pecialized instru
uctional opportu
unities througho
out the district fo
or students seek
king alternative
i
instructional
pro
ograms
3
3.1.5
Launch a post-secondary
y access effort
A
Accomplishmen
nts
The Advanced Placement
T
P
(AP)) and Pre-AP Prrogram continuees focusing on in
ncreasing the prrovision of proffessional develo
opment services to
n
new
Pre-AP and
d new AP teach
hers. Spring AP
A Mentor meettings occurred throughout
t
the month of Februuary. The Mich
hael & Susan Dell
F
Foundation
(MS
SDF) awarded HISD
H
a $1.4 miillion grant speccifically designeed to help impro
ove the district’’s Advanced Plaacement (AP) an
nd
P
Pre-AP
program
ms for middle scchools and high
h schools. A rep
presentative from
m each campus attended an infformation sessio
on held during the
t
S
Secondary
G/T coordinators meeting
m
in Febru
uary to learn thee specific requirred activities asssociated with thhe MSDF grant funds. Secondaary
A
Administrators
received a copy
y of their indiviidual MSDF Grrant Goals durin
ng the February
y’s Principal M
Meeting and disccussed these goaals
d
during
the AP Leadership Insttitute. The AP Leadership Insstitute was a meeting
m
designed
d to bring secondary administrrators together to
d
discuss
the goaals of the MSDF
F Grant and strrategies on how
w to achieve tho
ose goals held in February wiith 80 Secondarry Administrato
ors
a
attending.
AP Celebration Saturday broug
A
ght HISD AP teachers together in February at HSPVA. AP teeachers were ledd through a professional learnin
ng
m
meeting
by fello
ow HISD AP teeachers. They then
t
participated
d in a celebratio
on recognizing the most effecttive high schooll AP programs as
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
well as the stron
w
ngest AP teacheers in our districct. The special keynote
k
speakerr for this event was Trevor Paccker, Vice President of Advanced
P
Placement
with College Board. He is the higheest ranking AP official
o
with Colllege Board.
The administration presented th
T
he Board of Edu
ucation with a pllan for retooling
g magnet prograams in a way thaat encourages faair competition,
a
allowing
our top
p magnet prograams to continue and replacing our
o ineffective programs
p
with on
nes that hold reaal promise. Theese new options
w
would
meet stud
dents' interests while
w
rejuvenatiing neighborhoo
ods. The proposaal was the resultt of months of sstudying, listenin
ng, and working
g
t was started last fall.
that
P
Planned
for nex
xt period
Over the next period, we will continue
O
c
our wo
ork related to Advanced
A
Placem
ment. In May, we
w anticipate thaat over 19,800 AP
A exams will be
a
administered.
This
T will be an in
ncrease of 19% over last year’ss 16, 556 AP exaams administereed.
The AP Verticaal Teams in Eng
T
glish, Math and
d Science are pllanning to meett in June at Ricce University to continue their work on Verticcal
T
Team
Guides th
hat will be utilizeed by secondary
y schools to prov
vide Pre-AP insstruction to HISD
D students.
Also, we will co
A
ontinue the prep
paration for the annual
a
Summer Institute at Ricee University and
d other participaating universitiees in our region.
T AP Leadersship Institute wiill be offered Jun
The
ne 6-9, 2011 wiith 16 course offferings on Pre-A
AP topics.
We will continu
W
ue the work to im
mprove the distrrict’s Advanced Placement (AP
P) and Pre-AP prrograms for midddle schools and
d high schools
f
funded
by The Michael
M
& Susaan Dell Foundatiion (MSDF)
I
Issues/Concern
ns/Requests
Last fall, the imp
L
plications of thee current fiscal crisis
c
were unclear. As the distrrict faces unpreccedented budgett cuts with poten
ntially
d
devastating
conssequences acrosss the entire disttrict, the HISD preliminary
p
reco
ommendations on
o the magnet programs were held
h in abeyancee
t quarter and it was decided that
this
t few changees be made to the magnet prograams for 2011–2012. The recom
mmendation was that all current
m
magnet
program
ms continue to reeceive funding and
a transportatio
on next year allo
owing our staff and stakeholderrs the opportuniity to focus theirr
t
time
and energy
y on making tough spending deccisions.
Additionally, there is concern th
A
hat the number of teachers that will attend the summer Pre-AP
P workshops willl be less than an
nticipated. To
m
mitigate
this risk
k, the district is taking steps to increase commu
unication and pu
ublication.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 3. Rigorous Insttructional Stand
dards and Suppo
orts
3
3.2
Develop
p and implemen
nt an aligned sttandards-based
d curriculum an
nd assessment plan
Main Element
Progress
3
3.2.1
Communiccate high expecttations for instru
uctional deliverry and establish district-manageed curriculum guuidelines
3.2.2 Arrange an
3
n independent external
e
analysiss of the district’ss curriculum in order to establissh a well-craftedd, focused,
v
valid,
and comp
prehensive curricculum
3
3.2.3
Promote academic
a
rigor for
fo all students by
b updating the current
c
curriculu
um to meet stan
ndards for collegge and
c
career
readinesss (CCR)
3
3.2.4
Train teach
hers on implementing the align
ned/updated currriculum, and train principals on
n supporting teacchers in
a
achieving
campu
us and district goals
g
3
3.2.5
Identify a robust assessmeent system that will
w provide cusstomized predictive and diagnostic assessmentss that are
a
aligned
to the diistrict curriculum
m’s scope and sequence
3
3.2.6
Establish a clearinghouse that identifies high-quality,
h
ressearch-based insstructional materials aligned to the
d
district’s
curricu
ulum
3
3.2.7
Pursue an online platform
m for curriculum management an
nd access
A
Accomplishmen
nts
IIn an effort to in
ncrease the rigorr of the district’s curriculum, an
n RFP was deveeloped to solicit interest in buildding a robust asssessment system
m.
T unsolicited
Two
d proposals weree received to pro
ovide a curriculu
um audit.
I
Issues/Concern
ns/Requests
The decentralizaation of curricullum authority is impacting the ability
T
a
to build a monitored currriculum. An aliigned curriculum
m throughout th
he
d
district
will assist in rigorous an
nd clear expectaations of learnin
ng for all childreen.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
The building of a robust assessm
T
ment system is in
i progress, with
h an RFP having
g been written to
t align with thee data-driven deccision making
p
process.
This efffort is dependent upon clear ex
xpectations of what
w is to be taug
ght and allocatio
on of resoruces.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 3. Rigorous Insttructional Stand
dards and Suppo
orts
3
3.3
Implement Response to Intervention model districtw
wide to providee early, effectiv
ve assistance too children
Main Element
Progress
3
3.3.1
Train teach
hers and princip
pals on how to diagnose
d
studentts’ needs and differentiate supp
port within the classroom
3.3.2 Implementt a school-level approach to dessigning holistic intervention strrategies for helping Tier II studeents and
3
a
accurately
referrring Tier III stud
dents
3
3.3.3
Improve district-level
d
solu
utions for Tier III
I students
3.3.4 Provide taactile materials and
3
a supports to assist
a
all teacherrs in determinin
ng strategies to meet
m student
a
academic/social
l emotional need
ds and challengees
3
3.3.5
Improve th
he instructional climate by offering technology
y-based applicattions to identify research-based strategies
a solutions to meet the sociall/emotional need
and
ds of students
3
3.3.6
Articulate the Intervention
n Assistance Teeam/Response to
o Intervention prrocess for paren
nts
A
Accomplishmen
nts
Academic and behavioral
A
b
teamss meet to develo
op the Online Py
yramid of Interv
vention. These two teams will m
merge and their total product wiill
b vetted in antiicipation of an online
be
o
applicatio
on. A meeting was
w held with CEP and internall staff members to develop a strrategy to promotte
b
behavior
modifiication during placement, enhan
nce communicattion with schoolls, and monitoriing the student oonce the studentt has returned to
o
t regular educcational setting. All core academ
the
mic teachers hav
ve received an IA
AT/RTI flipchaart. The Safe Scchools Departmeent has secured
p
personnel
to asssist with loading
g IAT/RTI inform
mation for paren
nts onto the web
bsite.
P
Planned
for nex
xt period
•
District leaders
l
continuee to meet to disccuss next steps to
t continue the implementation
i
.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
•
A grade//Chancery/PEIM
MS report has beeen pulled for alll students in thee Transformatio
on Schools. Thiss data will be utiilized to make
r
recommendation
ns and work witth campus-based
d IAT for interv
ventions.
•
A moodlle-based training
g for IAT is und
der developmen
nt through the Offfice of Professiional Developm
ment utilizing infformation
d
developed/suppl
lied by Safe Sch
hools. A blog fo
or posting questiions and concern
ns was created and
a will continuue to provide sup
pport as part off
t training proccess.
the
I
Issues/Concern
ns/Requests
•
Budget and
a personnel cu
uts have significcantly affected the
t ability to pro
ogress in a timelly manner.
•
Currently, funding is un
navailable for the development of
o an online IAT
T/RTI model an
nd other supportting materials.
•
There is a continuing neeed for human and
a financial cap
pital to ensure th
hat this initiativee be delivered inn a timely mann
ner. It is
r
recommended
th
hat the online py
yramid be moveed to year two or
o three of the Sttrategic Directio
on and a level III moodle training take place to
t
train
on the usag
ge of this system
m.
R
Risks
•
We mustt ensure that thee Transformation
n Turnaround scchools receive support
s
in impleementing IAT/R
RTI in order to be
b successful.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 3. Rigorous Insttructional Stand
dards and Suppo
orts
3
3.4
School Transformation
T
n Turnaround Plan
Main Element
Progress
3
3.4.1
Build Tran
nsformation Corre Team
3
3.4.2
Research and
a identify pro
oven approachess for low-perform
ming schools
3
3.4.3
Implementt a school-wide transformation intervention mo
odel that would begin with the 2010–2011
2
schoool year
A
Accomplishmen
nts
Elementary scho
E
ools were selectted and approveed by the board for
f the district’ss transformation
n program expannsion. The focuss has shifted
t
towards
implem
mentation in the 2011-2012
2
scho
ool year. The disstrict has received numerous do
onations from ouur external partn
ners. To date, th
he
H
HISD
foundatio
on has received almost
a
$2,500,0
000 in support of our transformaation turnaround
d model.
The district receeived and dissem
T
minated the Mid
d-Year Network Education Report. The prelimiinary secondaryy data is encouraaging as we notee:
•
High Sch
hools decreased
d the cohort drop
p out rate for 20
010, on an averaage, by 8%.
•
263 stud
dent (19%) had greater
g
than 2.0 years of typicall growth.
•
327 stud
dents (23%) had between 1.0 an
nd 2.0 years of ty
ypical growth.
•
204 stud
dents (14%) had between 0.5 an
nd 1.0 years of ty
ypical growth.
•
Out of scchool suspensio
ons have decreassed by over 50%
% on average in our transformattion schools.
•
Math tuttoring has seen 15% - 29% in growth from diag
gnostics in the beginning
b
of thee year for 6th & 9th grade tutorin
ng.
•
Overall schools
s
systemss and proceduress have improved
d to establish a safer environmeent focused on learning.
•
Schools have implemen
nted stricter discipline policies and
a uniform policies.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
•
Schools have implemen
nted PLCs that are
a looking at 3 week
w
district assessment data to
o monitor masteery and using in
ndividual studentt
t
trackers
to track
k mastery.
•
Implemeenting Classroom
m Management and Professionaal Developmentt plans based on
n principal prioriities for 100% engagement,
e
d
differentiation,
assessing
a
for leaarning, and mov
ving towards mo
ore student centeered learning. Schools
S
still neeed growth in theese areas, but
c
coaching
and deevelopment is beeing provided to
o schools.
•
Schools continue receiv
ving monthly feeedback around strengths
s
and priiority areas for growth
g
once a m
month.
I
Issues/Concern
ns/Requests
The district conttinues to commu
T
unicate with all stakeholders arround the missio
on & vision of th
he program andd success. Secon
ndary students
b
benefit
from a lo
onger school yeear, longer days, intensive 2-on--1 math tutoring
g and a double dose
d
of class tim
me for the subjeccts in which they
y
a struggling th
are
he most. Elemen
ntary schools wiill not have an extended
e
school year or longer school
s
days, butt they will offerr high dosage
m tutoring fo
math
or fourth-graderss and Saturday school
s
for studeents who need th
he most help in math
m and/or reaading. Funding the
t effort is a
c
concern
and therefore the district continues to seek
s
additional private donation
ns. This year ou
ur transformationn effort initiativ
ve earned the
e
endorsement
of the Greater Hou
uston Partnershiip, which is the city’s largest bu
usiness advocaccy organization. We expect this to increase our
a
ability
to raise funds.
fu
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 3. Rigorous Insttructional Stand
dards and Suppo
orts
3
3.5
Implement a compreheensive literacy (reading) prog
gram in grades pre-k through
h 12
Main Element
Progress
3.5.1 Develop a comprehensivee PK-12 Literacy
3
y Plan to ensuree all students hav
ve the necessary
y literacy skills to be
c
college
and careeer ready
3.5.2 Establish PK-12
3
P
reading standards
s
acrosss the district to be
b used in the id
dentification of above-,
a
on- and belowg
grade
level read
ders
3
3.5.3
Develop and
a implement an
a aligned districctwide student literacy
l
pathway
y to meet the needs of individuaal students
a each grade lev
at
vel
3
3.5.4
Implementt PK-12 standarrd districtwide screening and prrogress monitoriing reading asseessments to ensuure students
r
read
on- or abov
ve-grade level
3
3.5.5
Provide diifferentiated and
d ongoing trainin
ng to teachers, campus
c
leadersh
hip teams and diistrict administrrators on
h to implemeent, monitor and
how
d support literacy
y framework
A
Accomplishmen
nts
Completed Phasse 1 of our Literracy Plan work. The feedback received was possitive. Stakehold
C
ders included Elementary SIOss, Principal Ad
H committee,, elementary and
Hoc
d secondary literracy coaches, an
nd Central Officce academic dep
partments. Readding documents were developed
d
f parents that describe what sttudents should know
for
k
and be able to do by the end
e of the each grade
g
level, in ggrades K-12. An
n ongoing trainin
ng
i
initiative
was laaunched to faciliitate quality imp
plementation of new reading adoption including
g coaching and mentoring, mod
del lessons, and
c
classroom
suppo
ort. The training
g is to be provid
ded by instructio
onal specialists and
a curriculum specialists.
s
A ddistrictwide textb
book selection
c
committee
deveeloped a process for Pre-K, lang
guage arts, and ESL
E adoptions. We plan to imp
plement the texttbook selection process
p
in the faall
2
2011.
P
Planned
for nex
xt period
T activities we
The
w will be underttaking in the nex
xt reporting periiod will includee:
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
•
•
•
•
“Literacy
y” will be the um
mbrella that all other disciplinees will integrate as reading is the threshold skilll for success forr all others.
Develop
p action steps forr literacy plan frramework throu
ugh committee work.
w
Develop
p implementation
n plan for literaccy work.
Develop
p a training plan to support scho
ool staff in the im
mplementation.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 3. Rigorous Insttructional Stand
dards and Suppo
orts
3
3.6
Implement a compreheensive Numera
acy/mathematiccs program in grades
g
pre-k th
hrough 12
Progress
Main Element
3.6.1 Provide eq
3
quitable instructtion by establish
hing districtwidee Numeracy targ
gets to ensure th
hat all students aare
c
college/career
reeady
3.6.2 Develop an
3
a aligned, distriictwide Numeraacy Coaching Model,
M
targeted to
o meet the need
ds of teachers annd students
a each grade lev
at
vel
3
3.6.3
Provide diifferentiated and
d ongoing trainin
ng to teachers, principals,
p
Scho
ool Improvemen
nt Officers, and oother
s
stakeholders
on how to implem
ment, monitor, an
nd support Num
meracy instructio
on
3
3.6.4
Develop and
a implement districtwide
d
form
mative assessmeents and providee guidelines and standards of practice for
t
targeted
interven
ntion, based on assessment dataa
A
Accomplishmen
nts
Launched in thee fall, the Housto
L
on ISD Math Sttars program is an
a experimentall fifth grade matthematics incenttive program deeveloped in
p
partnership
with
h Harvard’s Edu
ucation Innovation Laboratory and
a funded by a private foundattion. Student annd parent particiipation in the
H
HISD
Math Starrs program remaains strong. At the end of four pay periods, 98
8 percent of Matth Stars studentss in 25 treatmen
nt schools have
e
earned
incentivee pay through deemonstrating mastery of mathem
matics objectivees. More than 85
8 percent of Maath Stars parentts have attended
d
c
conferences
with
h their children’s mathematics teachers. Studeents in Math Staars treatment sch
hools have masttered twice as many
m
objectives as
a
c
control
group sttudents over the course of the prrogram thus far. Students’ hard
d work appears to be paying off
ff. Preliminary data
d suggest a
p
positive
correlattion between Acccelerated Math
h objective masteery and student performance on
n the middle-of--year assessmen
nts.
P
Planned
for nex
xt period
The activities we
T
w will be underttaking in the nex
xt reporting periiod will includee continuing the work with num
meracy through an
a integrated
l
literacy
umbrellla.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 4. Ensure data-d
driven accountaability
What we will do
W
o
B
Build
robust sysstems and proceesses that enablee easy access to and use of key data
d to inform decisions
d
and manage high leveels of performan
nce
d
districtwide.
Why we will do it
W
C
Currently,
relev
vant data on stu
udents, teacherrs, and achievem
ment are difficcult to access, often
o
not up-too-date, and not always accurate.
F
Furthermore,
maany people acro
oss the district laack the expertisee to use data to make
m
decisions..
This creates an opportunity
T
o
to arm
a HISD leadeership with accessible, timely an
nd accurate dataa and provide thhem with the traiining necessary to
u
understand
how
w to translate datta into action. By
B doing so, wee will get betterr at making the key decisions tthat affect the peerformance of the
t
d
district.
Fundin
ng for this initiattive is focused on
o Phase 1, whiich includes min
nimal training and
a will providee initial reports. Training beyon
nd
P
Phase
1 is a mullti-year program
m of training and
d learning throug
gh use.
What we will rep
W
port
T following Strategic
The
S
Directiion Managemen
nt Report answers the question: Is HISD acting
g on the prioritiees identified in th
he strategic plan
n
w fidelity? It measures HISD
with
D’s accomplishm
ments and risks for
f each Key Sttrategies in supp
port of the overaall Core Initiativ
ve.
The Strategic Direction
T
D
Manag
gement Report iss produced Quarrterly. Color ind
dicators are used
d to as an idicatiion of whether administration
a
iss
o track to accomplish a Key Strategy’s quarteerly goals. A “G
on
Green” indicator means the diistrict has made acceptable prog
gress with respeect
t budget, scopee and timeliness. A “Yellow” in
to
ndicator
mean
ns the district haas identified risk
k with respect too one or more aspects.
a
A “Red
d”
i
inidcator
means progress has stopped or hass a significant deficiency. As th
he Strategic Direection builds a ffoundation towaards achieveing
t district’s goaals over a multi--year period, no
the
ot all Key Strateg
gies will have in
nformation to co
ommunicate in a given period.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 4. Ensure data-d
driven accountaability
4 Build easily
4.1
y accessible and
d accurate data
a architecture, warehouse,
w
and
d technology in
nfrastructure
Main Element
Progress
4
4.1.1
Create a data warehouse with
w business in
ntelligence interfface
4
4.1.2
Implementt a data quality and data stewarrdship program
4
4.1.3
Re-skill an
nd implement IT
T infrastructure that supports th
he District
Accomplishmen
A
nts
A new Chief Teechnology Inform
mation Officer (CTO),
(
Arnold Viramontes,
V
waas hired and willl report directly to the superinteendent. He will
o
oversee
both thee Technology an
nd Research, and Accountabilitty divisions.
((4.1.3.6) The iniitial phase of thee Information Security
S
Program
m is in progress, with $2MM in initial funding secured. IBM Security
S
Servicees
c
consulting
engagement is underrway. Penetration Test is comp
plete and a reporrt has been deliv
vered for accepttance by HISD. An interim CIS
SO
(
(Chief
Information Security Offficer) from IBM
M was brought in
n to lead the seccurity program. Substantial addiitional investmeent ($10- 15
m
million)
will lik
kely be required for this effort. ISS engagemen
nt also involves a data security assessment
a
and strategy program
m. Workshops
a underway with
are
w key district stakeholders
s
to catalog the dataa elements of HIISD, drive owneership, develop standards and policy,
p
and
i
implement
them
m.
((4.1.3.1) The RF
FP requirementss were finalized
d for a Student Assessment
A
tool as part of Instru
uctional Applicaations Architectu
ure. It is awaitin
ng
a
approval
by cab
binet prior to mo
oving forward. Goal
G is to have Pilot in 4Q11 an
nd tool rollout in
i 1Q12. Formattive Assessmentt was a key areaa
m
mentioned
by th
he CGCS audit recommendation
r
ns.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Initiative 4.1.3
3 consists of sevveral independen
nt efforts. Acco
omplishments forr these independ
dent workstream
ms are below:
((4.1.1) Currently
y, critical data on
o student and teeacher performaance is housed in various locations, requiring eextensive manuaal effort and tim
me
t pull together relevant and useeful reports to in
to
nform decision making by lead
dership across th
he district. To remedy this, HISD
D will create a
c
central
repositorry where all crittical data will bee stored. The iniitial bids for thiss effort were recceived and are rready for presentation to the
B
Board
for appro
oval in 3Q10.
((4.1.2) Initial an
nalysis of emplo
oyee and studentt subject data arreas indicates that a 1-2 year efffort to clean andd structure data is
i required before
a sustainable daata repository caan be built. For instance,
i
historiccal student reco
ords are not in co
onsistent formatts throughout th
he district. Data
s
such
as course, teacher,
t
transcriipt and state cod
ding data elemen
nts are not consistently represen
nted, preventingg effective data analysis. Each
s
school
can havee different class period structurees. Estimated co
ost of the effort is $7MM in thee first year, $3.44MM in the seco
ond and third
y
years,
and $1.8 MM
M per year on
n an ongoing baasis.
((4.1.3.2) In supp
port of a 21st cen
ntury learning environment,
e
HIISD needs to dev
velop a special type
t
of instructiional application
n called a
c
collaborative
en
nvironment, whiich will allow sttudents, teacherss, and administrrators to work on
nline more prodductively across a common
p
platform.
A succcessful collaborrative system pillot was conductted at Lamar HS
S. This solution is ready for scalling to the wholle High School as
a
a expanded pilot test.
an
((4.1.3.5) In ordeer to support thee transition to neew IT architectu
ures, HISD mustt revamp its exissting IT architeccture in areas su
uch as network
c
connectivity
and
d information seecurity to ensuree that the supporrting infrastructture in place is safe,
s
secure, andd easy to access.. A high-level
n
network
design and architecturee for a new netw
work was complleted, an RFP reeleased, and ven
ndors finalized. W
Work continuess to secure federral
f
funding
in suppo
ort this effort. Some
S
funding fo
or past eRate yeears has been approved. eRate Year
Y 14 470s weere finalized on 3/22. The
d
district
is interviiewing Project Managers
M
and Sr.
S Network Eng
gineers for the network
n
implemeentation projectt. Matching fund
ds for E-rate
s
schools
is aroun
nd $10MM. Thee funds required
d to upgrade sch
hools not funded
d through E-Ratee are estimated at $12MM-$20M
MM.
Planned for Neext Period
P
T new CTO will
The
w start in early
y April. The disstrict will contin
nue the work in support of the Information Secuurity Program such as
c
conducting
dataa security and go
overnance workshops. Work wiill be done to secure additional funding.
T administration will be askeed to approve the Student Assesssment requirem
The
ments. We will also
a continue to work to acquiree eRate funds
f
from
past years..
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Needed to move Red to Yellow
N
w
T majority off the efforts requ
The
uire funding to secure
s
qualified resources and im
mplement projeects. The districct needs to initiaate a data quality
y
p
program
in supp
port of creating a central data reepository that will be used to pu
ull together relev
vant and useful reports to inform
m decision
m
making
by leadeership across thee district. The district
d
needs to determine
d
prioriity of IT infrastrructure projects and feasibility given current
r
resources
and fu
unding.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
S
Strategic
Direcction Managem
ment Report
C
Core
Initiative: 4. Ensure Data – Driven Accou
untability
4 Develop and
4.2
d implement peerformance ma
anagement toolls and practicess for decision-m
making
Main Element
Progress
4.2.1 Adapt Boaard Monitoring System to createe a dashboard th
4
hat provides a sn
napshot of the most
m important ddistrict
p
performance
meeasures
4
4.2.2
– 4.2.6 Creeate a dashboard
d that summarizzes important peerformance metrrics for key distrrict leadership
4
4.2.7
End User Training
T
Accomplishmen
A
nts
T Board Mon
The
nitoring System metrics were discussed and rev
viewed at the ann
nual Board retreeat in January. A MSDF Found
dation grant to
s
support
perform
mance managemeent in the districct concluded sm
moothly with work transitioned to
t HISD staff gooing forward. For those central
o
office
employeees participating in
i ePerformancee Phase II, midy
year conversatio
ons occurred and
d work continuees in aligning theeir individual
g
goals
with thosee of their departm
ment and the disstrict.
Planned for nex
P
xt period
W
Work
on the Bo
oard Monitoring System will co
ontinue. In additiion, end-of-yearr performance reeviews through the ePerforman
nce pilot are
s
scheduled
for th
he spring/summeer 2011.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Direction Manag
gement Report
C
Core
Initiative: 4. Ensure Dataa – Driven Accou
untability
4 Design Effeective and Efficcient Business Processes
4.3
P
and Procedures
P
for Optimization of
o Resources an
nd Results
Main Element
Progress
4.3.1 Design and
4
d implement efffective and efficcient processes for
f selecting, ob
btaining, and evaaluating instructtional
s
services
and maaterials
4
4.3.2
Design pro
ocesses for scho
ools to evaluate and share experriences about veendors
4
4.3.3
Define a business
b
processs for the procureement of servicees and materials off the recomm
mended vendor liist
Accomplishmen
A
nts
I this period we finalized all su
In
ubject program questionnaires for
f acquiring In
nstructional Prod
ducts and Servicces. We also dessigned and agreeed
t link the Instru
to
uctional Productts & Services Questionnaires
Q
to
o the Supplier Registration
R
proccess. Finally, wee developed an Instructional
I
P
Products
& Serv
vices on-line app
plication so thatt Suppliers are able
a to completee these questionn
naires and subm
mit them electron
nically to the
c
corresponding
specialist in the Curriculum
C
Dep
partment for theeir vetting and teesting.
IIn addition, we developed
d
the District’s
D
ScoreC
Card application
n, which can be found on the Prrocurement Servvices website. This application
w designed fo
was
or schools to ratee and comment on the success or
o disappointmeent in the produccts and services they have acqu
uired and
e
experienced.
SccoreCards will also
a have the preeviously rated Suppliers
S
so thatt other campuses can view the S
Suppliers’ rating
gs prior to their
a
acquisitions
of the
t same produccts and services..
Finally, we desiigned the Instrucctional Productss & Services Ev
F
valuation Busineess Process. Thiss illustrates the Curriculum Dep
partment’s
e
evaluation
proceess once they reeceive the complleted questionnaaires.
P
Plans
for Next Period
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
IIn the next perio
od, we plan to update
u
the Produ
uct Spend Categories so they match
m
the study programs
p
on thee Instructional Products
P
&
S
Services
Questio
onnaires, thus th
hese costs can be
b tracked and ev
ventually linked
d with performaance.
Finally, we are making
F
m
plans fo
or ongoing Supp
plier Fairs that will
w provide supp
pliers with a forrum to showcasee their products and services,
w
while
providing
g the District witth a learning lab
boratory to test and
a interact with
h the various sup
pplier offerings.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Dire
ection Managgement Report Core Initiative: 5. Culture of Trust Through Action
C
W
What
we will do
We will put in place
W
p
structures, processes, and methods to ensu
ure that we havee effective two-way communication to engage both internal an
nd
e
external
stakeho
olders, including
g staff, parents, and community
y members.
W we will do
Why
d it
A powerful sensse of community
y and a shared direction
d
among
g all stakeholderrs is crucial to th
he successful traansformation of HISD. Yet, wee
k
know
that curren
nt communicatiion structures in
n place are insuff
fficient to foster authentic engag
gement.
During the process of developin
D
ng the Strategic Direction, we have
h
attempted to
t begin the mov
vement toward a communicatio
ons approach thaat
i more interactiive and transparrent. Throughou
is
ut dozens of meeetings, commun
nication emerged as a clear areaa for improvemeent. Thousands
o stakeholders shared concernss, ideas, and sug
of
ggestions on how
w we can impro
ove. Taking all th
his valuable feeedback into acco
ount, we designeed
t strategies th
two
hat will enable us
u to revamp ourr communicatio
on so we can eng
gage internal an
nd external audieences in meanin
ngful ways and
e
ensure
we have authentic two-w
way communicaation. By doing so,
s we will prov
ve our commitm
ment to change, rre-build trust an
nd confidence, an
nd
s
start
a new era in our communiccation and relatiionship with HIISD’s broad com
mmunity.
W
What
we will report
The following Strategic
T
S
Directiion Managemen
nt Report answers the question: Is HISD acting
g on the prioritiees identified in th
he strategic plan
n
w fidelity? It measures HISD
with
D’s accomplishm
ments and risks for
f each Key Sttrategies in supp
port of the overaall Core Initiativ
ve.
The Strategic Direction
T
D
Manag
gement Report iss produced Quarrterly. Color ind
dicators are used
d to as an idicatiion of whether administration
a
iss
o track to accomplish a Key Strategy’s quarteerly goals. A “G
on
Green” indicator means the diistrict has made acceptable prog
gress with respeect
t budget, scopee and timeliness. A “Yellow” in
to
ndicator mean
ns the district haas identified risk
k with respect too one or more aspects. A “Red
d”
i
inidcator
mea
ans progress hass stopped or hass a significant deeficiency. As th
he Strategic Direection builds a ffoundation towaards achieveing
t district’s goaals over a multi--year period, no
the
ot all Key Strateg
gies will have in
nformation to co
ommunicate in a given period.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Dire
ection Managgement Report Core Initiative: 5. Culture of Trust Through Action
C
5
5.1
Develop
p effective, timeely, two-way co
ommunication for
f internal sta
akeholders
Main Element
Progress
5.1.1 Esstablish structures and protocolss for disseminatting information
n to and from intternal stakeholdders
5.1.2 Usse a variety of methods
m
to comm
municate with in
nternal stakehollders
5.1.3 Bu
uild capacity to ensure implemeentation of timely, effective, tw
wo-way commun
nication
5.1.4 Deefine and implem
ment methods to
o evaluate effecctiveness of internal communicaations
Accomplishmen
A
nts
D
During
this perio
od, work continu
ued on the redessign of the HISD
D website. New pages were creaated for the buddget crisis, goverrnment relationss,
an
nd State of the Schools
S
event. In
I addition to the print version, an enhanced, on
nline version off the 2010 Annuual Report was created
c
that
in
ncluded live link
ks to relevant web pages and videos. Eighty sch
hools are in the first cohort thatt is implementinng Schoolwires, web hosting an
nd
co
ontent managem
ment system, and
d as of March 31, 26 schools haave participated
d in training. Additional videos hhighlighting sch
hools and
prrograms have been produced an
nd posted on thee district’s webssite. A Legislativ
ve 101 worksho
op was cablecastt and streamed on
o the web. A
live, call-in TV show
s
on the bud
dget crisis also was
w held. The reevamped HISD TV
T News Updaate has been inteegrated into the employee
e
eNew
ws
an
nd promoted on
n the main page of the district website.
w
ded with regularr updates on critical issues and initiatives,
i
inclu
uding the budgett crisis, effectivee teacher
Staff members haave been provid
nitiative, and maagnet review. Prrincipals were provided
p
with co
omprehensive materials
m
in multiple languages—
—including talkiing points, fact
in
sh
heets, Connect Ed
E scripts, and sample
s
letters—
—to support theirr communication
ns efforts aroun
nd critical issuess. These resources and more aree
av
vailable to princcipals on the new
wly established Principal Resou
urce page on thee employee porttal. In addition, all principals arre being provideed
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
with a weekly Co
w
ommunications Update summarrizing helpful in
nformation and resources
r
that th
hey can share w
with their school communities.
T
Three
training seessions were held for principals on developing and maintaining
g community paartnerships. To ffurther build cap
pacity, trainingss
on
n writing and efffective commun
nications have been
b
conducted with a cohort of assistant princcipals.
Thirteen Commu
T
unity Conversatiion meetings weere held to keep staff, parents, and
a community members updatted on the budgeet crisis. Multiplle
seessions were sch
heduled to be co
onvenient for em
mployees. A seriies of meetings focusing on thee magnet review
w also were held. Monthly
m
meeting
with all principals and the
t principal ad hoc group havee provided additiional opportunitties for face-to-fface, two-way communication.
c
Planned for nex
P
xt period
W
Work
is progresssing on the district strategic com
mmunications pllan; it will be co
ompleted in spriing 2011. Effortts will continue to strengthen th
he
em
mployee electro
onic newsletter and
a the employeee portal. Planniing has begun fo
or development of a toolkit for senior staff thatt outlines
sttandard commun
nications protoccols and processses and providess useful resourcees. A webinar fo
or principals on building comm
munity
partnerships is neearing completio
on and will be available
a
next qu
uarter.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Strategic Dire
ection Managgement Report C
Core
Initiative: 5. Culture of Trustt Through Action
n
5 Develop efffective, timely, two-way
5.2
t
comm
munication for external
e
stakeh
holders
Main Element
Progress
5
5.2.1
Establish structures
s
and prrotocols for dissseminating inforrmation to and from
f
external stakeholders
5
5.2.2
Use a varieety of methods to
t communicatee with external stakeholders
s
5
5.2.3
Build capaacity to ensure im
mplementation of timely, effecttive, two-way communication
5
5.2.4
Define and
d implement meethods to evaluatte effectiveness of external com
mmunications
Accomplishmen
A
nts
D
During
this perio
od, work continu
ued on the redessign of the HISD
D website. Efforrts related to thee website redesiggn positively im
mpact both
in
nternal as well as
a external stakeeholders by increeasing transpareency while ensu
uring all stakeho
olders receive thhe same timely and
a accurate
in
nformation. New
w pages were created for the bu
udget crisis, government relation
ns, and State off the Schools eveent. In addition to
t the print
version, an enhan
nced, online verrsion of the 2010
0 Annual Reporrt was created th
hat included livee links to relevannt web pages an
nd videos. Eightty
scchools are in thee first cohort thaat is implementiing the Schoolw
wires web hostin
ng and content management
m
systtem; as of Marcch 31st, 26 schoo
ols
have participated
d in training. Ad
dditional videos highlighting sch
hools and progrrams have been produced
p
and posted on the disstrict’s website. A
L
Legislative
101 workshop
w
was cablecast and strreamed on the web.
w A live, call--in TV show on the budget crisiis also was held
d. The revamped
d
H
HISD
TV News Update has been
n integrated into
o the community
y eNews and prromoted on the main
m page of thee district websitte. Multimedia
reesources in multtiple languages, including a bro
ochure, fact sheeet, and video, were developed to
o inform and enngage parents at the 11 Apollo
ellementary schoo
ols.
Thirteen Commu
T
unity Conversatiion meetings weere held to keep parents, commu
unity members, and staff updatted on the budgeet crisis. Multiplle
seessions were sch
heduled with wo
orking parents’ schedules in miind. A series of meetings
m
focusiing on the magnnet review also were
w held.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope Quarter: 3rd January ‐‐ March 2011 Q
Ongoing meeting
O
gs have been helld with strategicc partners, inclu
uding civic, business, and faith-b
based organizattions to keep theem apprised of
diistrict initiativess. Twenty-two Parent
P
Prep Acaademy workshop
ps were held Jan
nuary through March.
M
Several initiativees were launched
d to that providee targeted outreaach to HISD’s Latino
L
and Africcan American coommunities. A weekly
w
30m
minute
segment on
o KCOH radio
o began in Octob
ber 2010; to date, 18 segments have
h
aired. Sincce January 2011, the Office of Communication
C
ns
has been providin
ng a weekly artiicle to African American
A
News and Issues for the
t print and onlline editions. Thhe district has en
ntered into a
da 1010AM wheereby HISD will be participatin
ng in a bimonthlly, 30-minute tim
me slot hosted by
b
partnership with Univision Radio’s La Tremend
R
Renzo
Heredia to
o discuss topics of interest. In addition,
a
Univisiion TV airs weeekly news segmeents titled Educaate: Es el Momeento that are
w
written
and produ
uced by HISD. An
A HISD Twittter feed in Spaniish was launcheed, and a Spanish
h weekly newsccast will premierre in April 2011
1.
T biannual parrent and commu
The
unity survey wass finalized and will
w be administered by phone; this year, a webb version also will be available.
Planned for nex
P
xt period
W
Work
is progresssing on the district strategic com
mmunications pllan; it will be co
ompleted in spriing 2011. An edducation summitt for faith-based
d
grroups across thee city is being pllanned for later in the spring. The
T parent newslletter will be lau
unched in May w
with a special en
nd-of-year
ed
dition. In additio
on, work is conttinuing on development of a pillot “neighbor-to
o-neighbor” cam
mpaign to dissem
minate informatiion about issuess
afffecting the disttrict.
Green indicates ac
G
cceptable progress Yellow indicates a concern with timeline, budget and scope
Reed indicates a deficciency in time, bud
dget or scope