Habersham County 21st CCLC Evaluation
2011-2012 School Year (1st Year)
6/22/2012
Pioneer RESA
Dr. Marcia W. Williams
Table of Contents
Overview and History 1
Student Attendance and Enrollment 2
Program Operation 2
Quality of Staffing 3
Objective Assessment 4
Other Observations 4
Progress towards Sustainability 6
Overall Recommendations 7
Overview and History
The 21st Century Community Learning Center program is authorized under Title IV, Part B of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) and No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). The 21st Century Community Learning Center (CCLC) grantees in Georgia are required to provide academic enrichment opportunities in before-school and/or after-school activities for students attending low-performing schools. These activities will help advance student achievement and meet the local and state achievement standards in the areas of reading and mathematics.
The South Habersham Middle School (SHMS) 21st Century Community Learning Center (CCLC) program consists of a before-school and after-school program, along with a three-week summer program of extended academic instruction and enrichment activities. This program and activities helps to advance student achievement and meet the local and state academic standards in the areas such as reading and mathematics. The present grant focuses on the most at-risk students in grades six, seven, and eight from South Habersham Middle School (SHMS) based on the following criteria:
· CRCT performance was below the state standard in reading, language arts, and/or math
· qualify for free or reduced lunch, or
· receive services as a student with a disability (SWD) or English Language Learner (ELL).
During the summer of 2008 through the 2010-2011 school year, South Habersham had a previous before-school and after-school program, as well as a four-week half-day summer program of extended academic instruction and enrichment activities. The grant targeted 100 at-risk sixth, seventh and eighth grade students at South Habersham Middle School based on mathematics scores of the Georgia Criterion-Referenced Competency Test (CRCT). The at-risk students were provided extended instructional time, enrichment activities, and family support during the school year.
Connie Franklin, South Habersham Middle School principal, served as the project coordinator and Leigh Tallant served the project through data collection and submission during the previous grant,. Academic and enrichment instruction were delivered by certified and/or trained personnel that complemented the traditional school activities and allowed for academic and personal growth. Enrichment activities during the program included fine arts, physical education/recreation, culinary arts, technology, family literacy, and parental education.
Because of the success of the previous grant, South Habersham proposed a new 21st CCLC grant and was awarded the grant funding during the summer of 2011. An additional fifty students, making the goal of 150, is now targeted to provide services to the sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students. One advantage over the previous grant is that all grade levels are now housed on the same campus which was new for this school year of 2011-2012.
Student Attendance and Enrollment
A Formative Evaluation conducted on SHMS 21stCCLC through December of 2011 resulted in an enrollment of 220 students with an average daily attendance of 85 students per day in the after-school program and 14 students per day in the before-school program. Updating the mid-year data, SHMS 21st CCLC enrolled a total of 307 students with an average daily attendance of 92 students per day. The average daily attendance of all students enrolled was 30%. When isolating Regularly-Participating Students, a total of 185 students were enrolled and averaged a total of 80 students per day. The average daily attendance for students present 30 days or more was 43.5%. Data for All Students and Regularly-Participating Students are included below.
Site / All Students / Regularly-Participating StudentsStudents Enrolled / Average Daily Attendance / Daily Attendance % / Students Enrolled / Average Daily Attendance / Daily Attendance %
South Habersham MS / 307 / 92.1 / 30.0% / 185 / 80.4 / 43.5%
Data collected from “Export Attendance Data”
In addition to the enrollment numbers, demographic information on the Regularly-Participating Students was collected on Gender, Race/Ethnicity, Special Education (SWD), and Economically Disadvantaged (ED). The table below indicates 92 students were female compared to 93 male. Observing Race and Ethnicity data, White students totaled 69 while Hispanic (105) and Other (11) were also served. The opportunities provided to students in the SHMS 21st CCLC program included service to 35 Students with Disabilities and 144 economically disadvantaged students.
Site / Female / Male / White / Hispanic / Other / SWD / EDSouth Habersham MS / 92 / 93 / 69 / 105 / 11 / 35 / 144
Program Operation
The SHMS 21st CCLC began the before-school program - Students Obtain Academic Reinforcement (S.O.A.R.) - on a daily basis Monday through Friday from 6:45-7:35 from August 29, 2011 until May 30, 2012. The after-school component was in operation between September 6, 2011 and May 17, 2012. After-school met Monday through Thursday each week from 3:30 to 5:30 pm. The South Habersham 21st CCLC served a total of 307 students by providing enrichment activities, both academically and personally, for 12 hours, 10 minutes across 34 weeks. The table below indicates a total service time of 158 days.
Site / Total Days / Hours per Week* / Total WeeksSouth Habersham MS / 158 / 12 hours, 10 minutes / 34
*A typical week consisted of 12 hours and 10 minutes, although morning time was provided to students on days before and after afterschool services.
Quality of Staffing
The SHMS 21st CCLC program employed a total of 26 staff member which included 21 school-day teachers, 2 center administrators, 2 other non-teaching school staff, and 1other non-school day staff. Of the staff members, a total of 23 were certified by the Georgia Professional Standards Commission. The 291 years of teaching experience among the school-day teachers is another positive quality of the program. With the 185 regularly-participating students, the resulting Student: Staff Ratio of 7:1 satisfied the requirements set forth by the guidelines. Additionally, students were served in the SHMS 21st CCLC program by 19 females and 7 males. All educators responsible for classroom instruction in the program were certified.
The professional learning trainings were numerous throughout the school year. Some of the highlights included: the 21st CCLC New Sub-Grantees Training, Building Effective Teams, CRCT Data Review, Bullying, Thinking Maps Training, Cayen Training (Program Manager and Data Clerk), and Making the Most of 100 Minutes. Additionally a vocabulary enrichment training – Word Wisdom – was provided to all teachers while math teachers received additional training with Suzy Pepper and Math in the Fast Lane. Other teacher trainings included Read 180, Project-Based Learning, GaETC Conference, Georgia LDS training, Aligning with the School Day, STEM, Strengthening Partnerships, and the Program Manager and Data Clerk attended the Brown Bag Meetings through the Georgia Department of Education. All of the above mentioned programs were vital to the success of the program and student progress throughout the school year.
Objective Assessment
Objective / Status / Comments78% of students who attend the program 30 days or more will meet or exceed the state standard on the reading portion of the CRCT. / Met / Out of 181 students with reading CRCT scores, 8 DNM, 136 Met, and 37 Exceeded
95.6%
65% of students who attend the program 30 days or more will meet or exceed the state standard on the math portion of the CRCT. / Met / Out of 180 students with math CRCT scores, 40 DNM, 96 Met, and 44 Exceeded
77.8%
Fifty percent of the targeted students participating in the program will improve their Reading/ELA grades. / Met / Of 182 students with Reading/ELA scores, only 35 students’ grades decreased from Semester 1 to Semester 2. The remaining 147students produced an increase rate of 80.8%
Fifty percent of the targeted students participating in the program will improve their Math grades. / Met / Of 182 students with Math scores, 69 students decreased their grade from Semester 1 to Semester 2. The remaining 113 students produced an increased rate of 62.1%
Fifty percent of the targeted students’ families will participate in the school year program. / Met / 136 adults (out of 185 students) participated in the afterschool program, producing a rate of 73.5% participation
Twenty percent of the targeted students’ families will participate in the summer program. / TBD / Objective measure cannot be determined until the completion on summer school – June 2012.
Other Observations
South Habersham Middle School's morning S.O.A.R. program provides students with academic assistance on homework and assignments. The S.O.A.R. offers a structured quiet time which enables students the chance to prepare for the school day with an additional academic support.
In the Afterschool program, multiple Academic Enrichment Activities are provided in Language Arts and Math. In addition to direct instruction, these activities include several computer software programs such as - Compass Learning, SuccessMaker, and Study Island. Additionally, there are Enrichment and Recreation Activities in Art, Fitness, LEGO robotics, cooking, and music. For Nutrition, a snack is provided on a daily basis.
A strong component of the program includes the parent participation. For the parents, Family Literacy and Enrichment Activities are offered through the PTSA Open House, Parent Power/Community Evening, Lunch and Learn, Parents Do Make a Difference, and Real Night. Most of the parent activities are offered in English and in Spanish since a large portion of the participants have parents who are unable to communicate in English. Also, since numerous homes do not have access to the internet, parent and student surveys were administered manually and entered into the Cayen data system. The results below indicate success of the South Habersham 21st CCLC program.
Parent Responses (n=38):
· 76.3% “Agree” or “Strongly Agree” the program helped improve their child’s behavior.
· 84.2% “Agree” or “Strongly Agree” the program helped their child complete and turn in his/her homework in a timely manner.
· 78.9% were “Very Satisfied” or ‘Somewhat Satisfied” with the after school program.
· 68.4% of children typically stayed at home with a sibling, parent, guardian, or sitter prior to participating in the program.
· 57.9% were informed of the program “From the school or agency.”
· 81.6% “Agree” or “Strongly Agree” the program is improved their child’s reading skills.
· 86.8% “Agree” or “Strongly Agree” the program is helping their child’s math skills.
Student Responses (n=121):
Question / Strongly Agree / Somewhat Agree / Neither Agree nor Disagree / Somewhat Disagree / Strongly DisagreeI like the 21st CCLC program. / 64% / 24% / 17% / 5% / 11%
My overall behavior has improved because of the 21st CCLC program. / 53% / 30% / 18% / 7% / 13%
The program helps me complete and turn in my homework on time. / 60% / 32% / 14% / 5% / 10%
I am doing better in school since I started coming here. / 46% / 41% / 18% / 5% / 11%
I feel better about myself and my abilities. / 56% / 33% / 15% / 5% / 12%
I have made new friends. / 49% / 32% / 16% / 5% / 19%
Bold denotes highest rating.
Progress towards Sustainability
The SHMS 21st CCLC program has established partnerships with two types of entities: faith-based and community or non-profit partnerships. Four partnerships provided enrichment programs in their specific area while another partner monetarily supported the program. The partnerships between the SHMS 21st CCLC and the contributing partners considered the needs of the student population and the intended outcomes of a successful program. Program contributions, both financially and in-kind are represented in the table below.
Type / Entity / Financial Amount / Comments/OtherCommunity Based Organization or other Non-Profit / Avita Community Partners / In-kind – $1.00 / Provided speakers for the parent activities
Community Based Organization or other Non-Profit / Department of Family and Children Services
(DFACS) / In-kind – $1.00 / Provided speakers for the parent activities
Community Based Organization or other Non-Profit / Gainesville Care Center / In-kind – $1.00 / Provided speakers for the parent activities
College or University / North Georgia Technical College / $2625
Faith-Based Organization / The Torch / In-Kind - $1.00 / Helped coordinate parent activities and provided support as needed.
Through the above partnerships, the financial contributions were $2629. In order to sustain the SHMS CCLC, community partners of North Georgia Technical College and The Torch Worship Center, along with a new partner, Ten Cate have pledged contributions to help maintain the program.
When funding is no longer available, the team of educators will pursue new grants and local funding to maintain the program. Additionally, the Parent Student Teacher Association (PTSO) will recruit businesses to provide support. The advisory team will seek support from the faith-based organizations to provide volunteers and monetary support. The SHMS 21st CCLC is in its first year of the grant and has had previous success with implementing a 21st CCLC grant from FY2008-FY2011. The program’s budget is reasonable and cost effective. There is an urgency to serve this population of students. Staff development and parent components will yield long-term benefits for teachers, children, and the community. Project design builds the capacity of SHMS to continue the project at reduced cost in later years as technology equipment, software, manipulatives, remediation workbooks, and other resources are in place while staff development is spread across most of the teaching staff. However, without the opportunity of the 21st CCLC, the program would be minimized in its service to students and the community.
Overall Recommendations
The 2011-2012 year of the SHMS 21st CCLC program has been a positive experience for everyone. All aspects of the program are now occurring on the same campus allowing for a more cohesive program and a sense of solidarity for all students. Under the leadership of the new Program Manager, Ms. Katherine Ledford, the entire staff worked diligently to ensure student success. It is commendable such progress has been made not only by meeting the grant requirements (participation, hours per week and weeks per year, quality staff, student-staff ratio), but by successfully meeting the objectives defined specifically for the SHMS 21st CCLC program. (The 5th objective will be measured at the conclusion of the summer program.)