New London Public Schools Considering Ways To Achieve Student Improvement Strategies

The Board of Education has received a set of proposed implementation steps toward improving student achievement in New London Public Schools.

The steps are part of a five-year strategic operating plan being developed by the Board in consultation with the Connecticut Department of Education. Dr. Stephen Adamowski, a special master appointed to the district, recommended that the Board take a vote next month on the implementation steps to adopt.
Board members have already agreed on goals and strategies for the plan.

For the goal of creating a “regional system of high performing, effective schools,” the district’s strategy is to create magnet pathways in grades six through 12 for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics; international language studies; visual and performing arts, in partnership with ISAAC and the Garde Arts Center; and a fourth program at New London High School. Another strategy would create an accountability plan for schools.

Implementation steps for these strategies include:

• Developing an annual school performance measure based on the school performance index 
  
• Categorizing schools annually based on relative performance and rate of improvement 
  
• Intervening in low-performing schools and granting more autonomy to high-performing schools 
  
• Redesigning, closing, or repurposing any school that remains under review for two consecutive years without improvement 
  
• Developing an operations plan or design specifications for any new, redesigned, or expanded magnet school 
  
• Developing program specifications for a K-8 STEM pathway, and aligning it with the high school STEM program 
  
• Collaborating with the Connecticut Science Center to provide inquiry-based teacher training for STEM staff 
  
• Designing a curriculum based on the Connecticut Science Standards and Common Core State Standards and assessments aligned to these standards to measure proficiency 
  
• Identifying and vertically aligning community partnerships 
  
• Developing program specifications for the elementary and high school visual and performing arts program 
  
• Developing program leadership capacity for a K-12 arts magnet pathway
  
• Collaborating with ISAAC and the Garde Arts Center to develop the arts magnet pathway 
  
• Designing a curriculum that allows the arts program to serve as a “vehicle to deliver the Common Core State Standards” 
  
• Designing assessments aligned with the Connecticut Arts Standards and Common Core to measure proficiency in creative writing 
  
• Creating and aligning standards-based report cards to the standards and visual and the performing arts curriculum 
  
• Partnering with the Garde Arts Center to identify and align community partnerships with the arts pathway 
  
• Offering a world language option to elementary school grades 
  
• Working with LEARN to develop middle school dual language program specifications and develop community partnerships 
  
• Aligning and implementing the dual language program beginning in sixth grade
  
• Designing a curriculum, assessments, and report cards aligned with dual language and Common Core standards 
  
• Collaborating with the Center for Applied Linguistics to develop and evaluate a dual language program 
  
• Developing a plan to continue the language and international studies pathway into high school grades and develop a program for these grades 
  
• Investigating and identifying the theme and focus for the additional magnet program to be offered to grades six through 12 
  
• Implementing each program and training staff 
  
• Implementing expanded learning time 
  

• Establishing evaluation criteria to identify and reward distinguished teachers and administrators, including opportunities for teachers to enhance and expand their careers 
  
• Investigating teacher residency programs that have been effective 
  
• Increasing the number of TEAM mentors 
  
• Developing a year-long induction program for new teachers 
  
• Exploring employment and retention incentives for district employees to improve retention 
  
• Developing an exit interview process and using the data to revise practices to improve retention 
  
• Collecting data about the current workforce to develop a plan toward increasing diversity 
  
• Creating an aspiring educators program for New London High School students
  
• Establishing partnerships with New London colleges and other postsecondary educational organizations to improve college recruitment for students as well as teacher recruitment 
  
• Creating an on-campus college recruitment plan 
  
• Developing a minority teacher recruitment program and investigating the sponsorship of minority teacher candidates through the state Alternate Route to Certification programs 
  
• Developing a marketing strategy for the district, incorporating assets of the city 
  
• Looking to the Teach for America program for new and resident teachers
  
• Implementing a new district organizational structure and designing it to support magnet school pathways 
  
• Expanding school leadership capacity to include school-based budgeting and marketing to support the magnet school model 
  
• Administering and analyzing client surveys annually 
  
• Adjusting the teacher and administrator evaluation based on the new state guidelines and hiring a career management coordinator to align professional development with evaluation 
  
• Adopting a data management plan to analyze evaluation data 
  
• Providing professional development on state evaluation revisions, the strategic operating plan, Common Core standards, and Smarter Balance assessments 
  

• Creating a three-year district curriculum development, writing, and revision plan 
  
• Creating and implementing a pre-kindergarten curriculum to align with the state’s Preschool Curriculum Framework and Common Core standards
  
• Developing an implementing reading, math, and writing pacing guides based on Common Core standards and aligning the science curriculum with the state’s Next Generation Science Standards 
  
• Connecting the district’s content area standards to ELL standards 
  
• Designing and implementing high school curriculum for core courses with magnet theme standards 
  
• Implementing a college and career-ready advisory program to begin in sixth grade 
  
• Developing and implementing a roll-out plan for the core reading program at the elementary and middle school grades 
  
• Adopting reading intervention programs 
  
• Auditing schools’ Individual Education Plans in special education and adjusting the Planning and Placement Team decision-making process based on the results  
  
• Transferring IEP data to a web-based system 
  
• Having IEPs include a four- or five-year graduation plan to help prepare special education students for college or careers 
  
• Determining special education program effectiveness (and adjusting services and instruction) based on regular state assessments as compared to non-special education peers 
  
• Analyzing special education performance on a district-administered universal screener and Modified State Assessments 
  
• Analyzing shortfalls in the Least Restrictive Environment continuum of supports, services, and placements and adjusting these as needed 
  
• Developing and implementing transitional programs to support students who will receive special education services until the age of 21 
  
• Designing professional development to improve teachers’ ability to chair Planning and Placement Team meetings, implement effective IEPs, ensure compliance with federal requirements, and reduce the number of students in need of interventions 
  
• Investigating the use and integration of technological tools to improve classroom instruction 
  
• Evaluating programs that serve students with autism and implementing any recommended changes 
  
• Providing professional development in Applied Behavior Analysis as well as behavior management strategies for students who are autistic or emotionally disturbed 
  
• Ensuring compliance with federal and state laws in ELL services 
  
• Designing professional learning for administrators in implementing regulations and guidelines for educating ELL students 
  
• Providing job-embedded professional learning on instructional strategies for ELL students 
  
• Analyzing ELL student performance levels on the state-mandated English proficiency test, on the district administered universal screener, and as compared to non-ELL peers to determine the effectiveness of ELL programs and make changes as necessary 
  
• Adopting and implementing a district assessment and data management system including national, state, and district student measures to measure individual and group progress 
  
• Creating a timeline for data analysis, including an annual Board of Education retreat, and reporting data to stakeholders (parents, students, and community members) 
  
• Designing criteria to identify students with advanced learning needs and charting services within magnet pathways for these students 
  
• Providing professional learning opportunities for teachers of students with advanced learning needs 
  
• Designing and opening a Joseph S. Renzulli Academy for advanced learners in grades four through eight 
  

• Revising school governance council policy, expanding the governance council structure to all schools, and providing annual training for school governance council members 
  
• Researching effective models of parent engagement resulting in increasing student achievement in the district 
  
• Developing a shared vision and district definition of parental engagement that incorporates research of effective models and implementing the plan at school building level 
  
• Identifying community partners who can support reform efforts and conducting a needs assessment across magnet pathways identifying areas that can be supported by community partnerships 
  
• Establishing community partnerships in conjunction with the expansion of magnet pathways 
  
• Strengthening partnerships with local colleges and increasing the number of students attending dual credit courses 
  
• Administering annual surveys to stakeholders to enhance magnet programming  
  
• Designing an inter-district magnet model for middle school grades and regional inter-district high school options 
  
• Developing additional language and STEM programs 
  
• Designing educational specifications for a middle school wing to be added to the Science and Technology Magnet High School 
  
• Exploring the possibility of having ISAAC become a district-affiliated charter school 
  
• Collaborating with LEARN to redefine the district’s relationship with the Dual Language Arts Academy in Waterford 
  
• Developing a “statistically valid measure” of parents’ satisfaction with their child’s school and reporting results annually 
  
• Surveying the satisfaction of K-12 students, teachers, and staff on and analyzing and reporting results annually 
  
• Creating and hiring for a communications officer position
  
• Designing strategies for communications and marketing to inform stakeholders of reform progress, school and program choice, and student achievement
  
• Seeking input from local business, nonprofit, and civic leaders and developing plans for an external nonprofit organization to support education reform in the district 
  

• Expanding the school year by 300 hours through collaboration with the National Center for Time and Learning 
  
• Designing theme-based programs for extra learning hours 
  
• Including 90 minutes a week of differentiation and 60 minutes a week of teacher collaboration and professional development in the K-8 schedule, as well as 60 minutes a week for enrichment opportunities 
  
• Designing a progress monitoring tool for the work of community partners
  
• Analyzing the discipline data for schools and researching positive behavior intervention systems 
  
• Designing and implementing a positive behavior intervention system
  
• Coordinating with outside agencies to research strategies for reducing suspension and expulsion rates and auditing the effectiveness of current strategies 
  
• Exploring internal placement alternatives to meet student needs as an alternative to suspension and expulsion 
  
• Using school-wide data teams to analyze data and identify interventions for truant students 
  
• Creating incentives for students to improve their attendance and initiating a student and family focus group to assess the reasons for truancy 
  
• Coordinating with outside agencies to examine strategies for reducing truancy and reviewing and revising the district’s school attendance procedures and expectations 
  

• Systematically increasing the number of New London schools available for state funding 
  
• Exploring state, federal, and private funding opportunities for creating and implementing new instructional programs 
  
• Improving the district’s ability for grant writing 
  
• Creating a per pupil allocation system to improve equity and portability in school funding 
  
• Developing architectural plans for renovating NLHS as new to include two magnet programs for grades six through 12 
  
• Developing a 10-year facilities master plan based on the district’s existing plan and implementing the first phase of the plan 
  
• Assuming district responsibility for the repair of school facilities by establishing a “non-lapsing account” for the purpose 
  
• Exploring options to improve the efficient use of student transportation funds
  
• Exploring the combination of school and city technology services 
  
• Investing in a common financial management system to allow data and system sharing between the district and city and putting out a request for proposals for this purpose 
  
• Developing a memorandum of understanding between the district and city to create a joint finance office 
  
• Acquiring and implementing an automated financial and personnel management system and joint office capacity 
  
• Allocating at least 70 percent of local funding of the district to the schools
  
• Aligning special funds and Alliance funding to support the strategic operating plan strategies 
  
• Approving budgets annually through the school governance councils before they are submitted to the superintendent