MSDE Alternative Governance
Plan Development
School: James Madison Middle School
January 2012
Objectives
•
Todays’ meeting will provide:
1. The rationale from MSDE that highlightsng the
process of this school’s Alternative Governance
Proposal development.
2. An explanation of this school’s status in the MSDE
School Improvement Process.
3. A description of the process underway to develop
and finalize the school’s Alternative Governance
Proposal due January 26, 2012.
4. An opportunity to discuss possible staffing concerns
regarding implementation of Option 1.
5. An opportunity to chart and provide answers to
questions about the outcome of the Alternative
Governance Proposal development and
implementation process.
Rationale
• Under the federal law No Child Left Behind Act of 2001
(NCLB), schools must select an alternative governance
structure after having completed a comprehensive
analysis of the school’s teaching and learning
environment.
• NCLB further requires schools in Year 4 of improvement
to develop two-year alternative governance plans to
address student and teacher needs (Federal Register
Section 200.41 (b)).
• Interventions implemented as part of a school’s
restructuring plan must be significantly more rigorous
and comprehensive than the corrective actions that the
school implemented after it failed to make AYP three
years in a row.
• Interventions must address the reasons why a school is
in Priority phase of school improvement.
School Status:
Restructuring Planning
• Restructuring is a process under the
federal law No Child Left Behind for
schools failing to make adequate yearly
progress (AYP) for five or more
consecutive years. Restructuring
requires a major reorganization of a
school’s governance structure.
School Status:
Restructuring Planning
Restructuring …
– makes fundamental reforms to improve
student academic achievement in the
school;
– is significantly more rigorous and
comprehensive than strategies undertaken
as part of corrective action; and
– addresses the reasons why the school
continues to not make AYP and facilitates
the school’s ability to exit school
improvement as soon as possible.
Rationale: Restructuring Planning
• If a school is identified as a Priority Comprehensive
Needs or Priority Focused Needs school it will begin
planning for restructuring.
• In collaboration with the LEA, the school must
develop an Alternative Governance for School
Improvement plan.
• All schools entering restructuring planning must
have their Alternative Governance Plans approved
by both their local Board of Education and the State
Board of Education.
• If the school does not make AYP in the Restructuring
Planning year, it must implement its restructuring
plan no later than the start of the next school year.
• If a Restructuring Planning school makes AYP, they
remain in “holding”, and it is expected that they
implement their plan.
What is Alternative Governance?
• Alternative governance is a deliberate
and significant change to manage and
oversee (govern) daily instructional and
administrative processes within a
school.
• Effective implementation of the
selected alternative governance option
and significant reform efforts with
supporting action steps should
increase student achievement.
Process
• Local education agencies (LEAs) bear the
primary responsibility for ensuring that schools
in improvement receive help as they adopt an
alternative governance structure, develop or
revise their school improvement plans, and
provide technical assistance throughout the
implementation of the plans.
• Specifically, the LEA must ensure that the
school in need of improvement receives
technical assistance grounded in scientifically
based research in three areas: 1) data analysis,
2) identification and implementation of
strategies, and 3) budget analysis.
AG Plan Development
In consultation with parents, school staff,
and local education agency (LEA) staff, the
LEA must:
• Prepare a two-year Alternative Governance for
School Improvement Proposal (AG Plan) that
will, upon approval, be subsequently embedded
in the school’s “new” school improvement plan.
At least ONE of the following alternative
governance structures must be selected:
AG
Option
NCLB Alternative Governance Options
1
Replace all or most of the school staff, which
may include the principal, who are relevant to
the school’s inability to make adequate
progress.
2
Contract with a private management
company.
3
Re-open the school as a public charter
school.
OPTION 1:
Replace all or most of the school staff, which may include the
principal, who are relevant to the school’s inability to make adequate
progress. (Note: Replacing the principal alone is not sufficient to
constitute restructuring. A school may do so as long as this change is a
part of a broader reform effort.)
Working in partnership, local education agencies/schools selecting this
option facilitate its effectiveness by:
•
•
•
•
•
Endowing the Office of the Principal with the authority to make curricular,
professional development and staff changes based on the needs of the
school;
Staffing the school with quality experienced teachers and paraprofessionals
by the first day of teacher pre-service orientation for the school year;
Soliciting the LEA to provide additional specialists and professional
development in areas of academic need;
Monitoring and adjusting instruction throughout the year based on
benchmark data; and/or
Establishing partnerships with parents, community and/or government
social services agencies for the purpose of providing additional school
resources, e.g., health, mental health, employment, juvenile services,
language services, etc., as needed.
Overview of Proposal
• Learning from the Past - The Year of Corrective
Action Revisited
• Stakeholder Support
• School Academic Profile
• Building a Collaborative School Culture
• Alternative Governance & Reforms
– Option One – Replace Staff Questions
• Potential Challenges to Implementation of
Reforms
• LEA’s Two-Year Commitment
• LEA Alternative Governance Board Attestation
• LEA/Alternative Governance Board Monitoring
• LEA Resources
• State Board of Education Summary
To Develop the AG Proposal
The school must:
• Revisit the results of a comprehensive school
needs assessments and the Teacher Capacity
Needs Assessment.
• Revalidate Reforms identified during the year of
corrective action to enhance the quality of
education for students, build teacher capacity,
and ensure a supportive learning environment;
• Obtain staff, parent, and community stakeholder
buy-in for the proposed Alternative Governance
option and Reforms. (SPMT-1/11 PM session)
• Submit the alternative governance proposal for
local and state board approval.
• Embed AG Reforms within the school’s
improvement plan.
Timeline
• MSDE Training Provided to School Team –
December 16, 2011
• Total staff Meeting – January 4, 2012
• Parent Community Input – PTSA January 10,
2012/SPMT January 11, 2012
• Proposal to Sheila Jackson in PGCPS Office of
School Improvement – January 26, 2012
• Proposal to LEA AG Board – February 7, 2012
• Proposal to PGCPS Board of Education –
February 9, 2012
• Proposal to MSDE – February 29, 2012
• Proposal Reviewed and Approved by MSDE –
April 24, 2012
Who Has the Final Decision in
the AG Selection?
• The Superintendent and the Local Board
of Education have the final say as to what
alternative governance option is selected
and implemented.
• Parents’, community stakeholders’,
teachers’, and school and central office
administrators’ input is valuable,
necessary, and taken into consideration.
How Can a School Exit
Alternative Governance?
• A school that has implemented its alternative
governance plan enters a “holding” pattern once it
makes AYP.
• During this year, the school must continue to
implement its approved alternative governance plan.
• If a school makes AYP the next year (a second
consecutive year), it exits the improvement program.
• If, after exiting the improvement program, the school
fails to make AYP for two consecutive years, it reenters the improvement process as a Developing
Comprehensive Needs school or a Developing
Focused Needs school.
AGP Planning Session
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
@
4:30 p.m.
You are welcomed to participate in this
planning session. Thank you.