Albemarle Road Elementary
SLT Agenda
September 28, 2015
4:30 – 5:30 pm in the Media Center
Meeting Minutes
Welcome/Staff Introductions/Purpose of SLT……………………………...................Ms. Fullington
o The purpose of the School Leadership Team is to reflect on school information and plan for
continuous improvement. The SLT will meet monthly to look at our practices at school and
measure the effectiveness of these practices. We will give feedback on the plan and make
revisions as needed to lead to significant growth for all students at ARES.
Review roles and vote on chair, co-chair, timekeeper, recorder…………….............Ms. Fullington
o Each member will serve a minimum of one year and a maximum of three consecutive years
o It is suggested that 2/3 of the team remains each year, while 1/3 of the members can rotate off
o Any member other than the principal may serve as an officer on the School Leadership Team
Voted on roles:
Chairperson – Ms. Haley (4th)
Co-Chairperson – Ms. Duntun (5th)
Recorder – Ms. Holden (TD)
Timekeeper – Ms. Donnelly (2nd)
Additional Team Members present – Ms. Brosi (Art), Ms. Kilbride (3rd), Ms. Dixon (EC), Ms. Tucker (K),
Ms. Uriarte (Parent), Ms. Long (TA), Ms. Smith (5th sci/math)
Vote on meeting times and dates………………………………………………………..Ms. Fullington
o 4:30 – 5:30 pm in the media center
o Sept. 28, Oct. 26, Nov. 23, Dec. 14, Jan. 11, Feb. 22, March 14, April 18, May 16,June 6
Voted to move monthly meetings 3:30 - 4:30 and approved the above dates.
Establish norms……………………………………………………………………………Ms. Fullington
Established the following norms:
 Be on time
 Come prepared based on agenda
 If a team member cannot attend it is their responsibility to find a substitute representative
 Respect the opinions of others
 Be present and actively participate
 Keep it “simple” – limit use of acronyms and other field-specific language without explanation
Grade level updates……………………………………………………………………….Team Reps
For next month’s meeting – Bring information to share about grade level activity and events
Ms. Haley: Beacon tests begin next week. Monday, 10/5 – Science (5), Tuesday, 10/6 – Reading (3,4,5),
Thursday, 10/8 – Math (3,4,5)
Mr. Thompson: Beason assessments will occur every 6 weeks to track progress towards performance
goals. Dr. Brightwell is our Beacon “Shepherd”
Ms. Duntun: 5th grade starting to fundraise for Camp Thunderbird. The GoFundMe campaign link
https://www.gofundme.com/arestocamp can be shared and there’s a flyer in the workroom with link
information.
PTA updates……………………………………………………………………………….Mr. Thompson
Mr. Thompson: Listed current and upcoming PTA events and activities:
 Trunk or Treat Halloween event (Date TBD) sign-up sheet will be posted in teacher lounge
 Mustang Men led by Mr. Cannon
 Holiday Shop & “Classic Cookie” fundraisers – finds raised could potentially go towards canopies
for outside
School updates…………………………………………………………………………….Principal
o New staff members- Ms. Murry (2nd gr.), Ms. DeSanta Ana and Ms. Falla (ESL),
Ms. Webster (4th gr.), Ms. Bryce and Mr. Doolen (5th gr.), Ms. Clifford (EC), Ms. Langdon (Social
Worker), Ms. Grayson (Speech), Ms. Lee (4th gr.), Mr. Steffes (Principal – starting 10/5)
o
Student enrollment – 1135
o
North Star Reading Partners – Central Office EC Department began on Sept. 21st. They are
working with 3rd graders who are not at the desired reading level M which is considered to be on
grade level. Scripted lessons provided by the district are being used to teach key reading
strategies. Our hope is to have every 3rd grader make a year’s worth of growth and be reading at
a level P by the end of 3rd grade.
Ms. Kilbride & Ms. Fulington: This is Ann Clark’s initiative to help struggling readers in 3rd, 7th and
12th grades. CMS central office employees and community members will be assigned to 3rd
graders as reading tutors. The CMS EC department has been assigned to ARES and begun
working with students. Each adult will be assigned to three students at the same reading level.
They will meet once per week in the cafeteria for one hour.
o
AdvancED Survey – Last day for the survey is Oct. 2. Please visit our school website to login to
the survey. Look for the AdvancEd survey logo.The survey information will help us make
decisions based on how our parents, students, and staff are viewing our school.
Mr. Thompson: Spanish paper copies of the survey will be sent home. English version is still
completed via computer. This survey is necessary as part of the accreditation process that CMS
is presently undergoing. A link to the survey is located on the front page of the school website.
o
Report Card Grade – A letter will go home to parents on Thursday about the release of our
school’s score. The state of NC gives each school a letter grade from A-F based on the number
of students proficient on the EOGs at the end of the year. Our school received a D in math, F in
reading, and an overall score of a D. We want to highlight that we EXCEEDED growth which
meant our student gains showed more than a year’s worth of growth.
Mr. Thompson: Letter going home this week to parents regarding the school report cards issued
by NCDPI. Grades are calculated based on 80% proficiency and 20% growth.
o
Early Release Days at 12:00 pm (4 this year) – New idea for all CMS schools this year. CMS staff
will be involved in tailored professional developments based on our school goals. Our staff will
participate in the following professional developments:
Oct. 7 = Compass Learning
Jan. 20 = ExCELL teaching strategies with a focus on vocabulary enhancement
March 1 = Integrating Literacy across all content areas
April 20 = Using EOY data to plan instruction
Mr. Thompson: dismissal on early release days will be 12:00. Revised lunch schedule has been
forwarded to staff.
Ms. Fullington: Daycare/after-school providers for van riders will need to be notified of early
release days.
o
CMS School Based Instructional Learning Team – Each CMS school has an ILT cohort who will
meet monthly with district leaders to participate in ongoing literacy PD focused on standardsbased curriculum and instruction, assessment, and the use of data to inform teaching and support
strategies. Our ILT will share learning with our teams with the emphasis on implementing school
wide.
Ms. Fullington: ILT cohort made up of principal, assistant principals and teacher leaders. Cohort
will participate in regular all-day planning sessions to make sure classroom practices align with
the standards.
o
School Partnerships: Lowes, UNCC, Central United Methodist Church
Mr. Thompson: focus for partnerships will be literacy
 Lowes – outdoor classroom, learning garden
 UNCC – Lily Sarah Grace, students from education dept. and ESL cohort observing,
doing service work, and student teaching
 Second Harvest & Target – Food Pantry
 Local churches – ongoing support
o
Curriculum Night – About 350 people attended. Parents, students, and teachers were actively
working together on literacy and math activities aligned with each grade’s curriculum. Teachers
also shared important beginning of the year classroom expectations.
Mr. Thompson – uniform passes were a success and the event was promoted well to families.
Moving forward, we should continue these efforts for future Curriculum Night events.
o
SIP and 90 Day Plan
Goals:
(1) Improve school-wide reading proficiency from 15% to 30% (2015-2016).
(2) Improve school-wide math proficiency from 32% to 42% (2015-2016).
*4s and 5s on EOG tests means college and career ready.
Action Steps:
Provide professional development for all teachers in the Balanced Literacy framework specifically
around shared reading and interactive read aloud. Math professional development will focus on
math workshop centers that are differentiated for students at all levels. A PD calendar has been
created that is aligned with our school goals. Monday PLC meetings will alternate focusing on
either supported reading strategies or differentiated math workshop.
Mr. Thompson: Professional development for interactive read aloud has begun. PD for shared
reading and math workshop to come.
Facilitate PLC planning to ensure the strategies are written into the lesson plans appropriately
and that teachers have the resources they need to provide consistency across classrooms.
Conduct walkthroughs with administrators and facilitators to look for and discuss the
implementation of the specific skills: shared reading, interactive read aloud and math workshop
centers. Supportive feedback will be given to teachers to enhance or affirm their teaching
practices.
o
SEF Plan
Ms. Fullington: Self Evaluation Feedback Plan had to do with aspects of ARES that are unique.
Instructional Leadership Team gave input. Areas identified: Diversity, volunteers and community
support
o
Safety Plan
Ms. Fullington: Final copy is due October 2, 2015. After SLT approves, it will be sent to district for
feedback. The plan cannot be posted publically. SLT approved and signed off on current plan.
o
Next meeting date: October 26, 2015