Ann ArborMichigan:
“District Equity Leadership Team”
“Equity Assessment”
“Principal Equity Seminar”
“Equity Audit”
ANN ARBOR PUBLIC SCHOOLS
BOARD OF EDUCATION – Regular Meeting of September 14, 2005 APPROVED
MINUTES
Performance – The committee has not met since the last board meeting. Trustee Patalan added that the committee will
meet 9/20 and then 10/4 @ 8:00 a.m.
INFORMATION
Professional Development/Student Achievement Plan 05-06
Mrs. Middleton presented a Powerpoint of the outcomes of the Professional development/cultural competency training. Dr.
Fornero noted that the focus is eliminating the achievement gap – no exceptions, no excuses. Equity is another focus -
equity of opportunity, access, and outcomes. Dr. Fornero discussed Ben Perez’s analysis of change – 1st and 2nd order
change. We want to bring about 2nd order change which will require changing our belief system and behaviors. Cultural
Competency will continue this year. Dr. Fornero discussed the newly created District Equity Leadership Team, noting that
the first meeting will be 9/22. He also noted that administration will be conducting an equity assessment in October and that
Principal equity seminars will be conducted. He confirmed that district-wide training will continue and building and student
equity teams will be developed. Nelson noted that student progress needs to be an outcome of this program.
In response to Trustee questions, Dr. Fornero will invite someone from the Equity Audit Committee to serve on the Equity
Leadership Team. It was also suggested that, in light of the overidentification of minority youth for special education, that a
member of the SISS staff or community be added. In response to Trustee concerns that teacher participation on this team
may take inordinate time from the classroom, Dr. Fornero believes it is not uncommon to pull together leaders to change the
direction and focus of an organization. Mrs. Middleton noted that we need to build the capacity at the building level, which
will be accomplished
Trustees and administration discussed the need to be sensitive to the cultural differences of all of our students to most
successfully provide education. Various strategies and methods will be employed to address these differences, the levels of
which will be tailored to each building. Programs that are not effective in promoting student achievement will be removed.
President Cross commended Fornero and Middleton for moving forward with this effort.
SPECIAL BRIEFING – scheduled for approval at this meeting
Amherst-Pelham Regional Schools
A Commitment to Equity
Diversity is a strength because it challenges every student, every teacher, and every person in the school system to understand, respect and value the differences among us. In the four towns that comprise the school district, more than thirty languages are spoken in the homes of our students and nearly 30% of the entire student body belongs to the ALANA (African American, Latino, Asian and Native American) population. In every elementary school classroom there is at least one student who is learning English as a new language – from the nearly 300 students who receive instruction in English as a Second Language, to those enrolled in Transitional Bilingual Educational programs, which teach academic subjects in the native language until the ability to learn English is acquired. Creating a diverse school community that reflects the community at large includes addressing racism and other forms of discrimination in the classroom to help students understand the nature and complexity of a multicultural society. But diversity isn’t something that can be forgotten when the bell rings at the end of the school day. All of our schools are devoted to promoting equity in all aspects of education, inside the classroom and out. The commitment to equity is demonstrated by having set specific goals for Becoming a Multicultural School System (BAMSS). These explicit goals call for equity in hiring, establishment of a multicultural curriculum, and attention to the needs of each and every student.
/ Standard D – Promotes Equity
Indicators
D.1. Encourages all students to believe that effort is a key to achievement.
D.2. Works to promote achievement by all students without exception.
D.3. Assesses the significance of student differences in home experiences, background knowledge, learning skills, learning pace, and proficiency in the English language for learning the curriculum at hand and uses professional judgment to determine if instructional adjustments are necessary.
D.4. Helps all students to understand American civic culture, its underlying ideals, founding political principles and political institutions, and to see themselves as members of a local, state, national, and international civic community.
Eugene OR
Equity, Diversity, and Accountability
Equity
- District 4J will provide equal opportunities for all students.
Diversity
- District 4J will respect and honor diversity.
- District 4J, through example and instruction, will encourage students to embrace diversity and appreciate the richness that it adds to life.
Accountability
- District 4J will set high standards and help students reach them.
- District 4J will assess students to determine whether the standards have been met and to foster their achievement and success.
- District 4J will provide students and their parents meaningful ways to participate in curriculum decisions and program evaluation.
- District 4J will provide comprehensive information for students and parents about all schools and programs that are publicly funded.
- District 4J will periodically reevaluate the purpose and relevance of all publicly-funded schools.
B. Equity issues with school choice.
We address three groups of schools that currently exist as part of publicly-funded education in 4J.- Neighborhood schools, which exist to serve a geographical unit of some kind, and are run by the district.
- Alternative schools or Magnet Schools, which are also run by the district, but whose purpose is to meet the desires of parents or students for some particular sort of curriculum or program.
- Independent schools,which are publicly funded and privately run. These schools provide a unique educational philosophy and an educational program to meet the interests or needs of students that is not available in a district-operated school. This term is meant to include publicly-funded private alternative programs and charter schools.
The task group also discussed several equity issues concerning students. Transportation limitations put all but neighborhood schools out of reach of many students, particularly those families who have fewer resources. The task group is concerned that some groups of parents simply don’t have the resources and time to pursue alternative choices for their children, even if they could solve the transportation issue. A related issue is that programs for special needs students are not generally placed in alternative schools.
Recommendation 2: District resources are distributed equitably to schools.
Schools with high average socioeconomic status have a much easier time raising money through private donations. The task group believes this may come directly out of the decisions that the school district has made about our school system. One of the unintended consequences of school choice may be the polarization of average socioeconomic status between schools.While the members of the task group agree with the recommendation, there is significant disagreement about suggestions for how to solve the problem. Part of the group suggests that all private donations to district schools be pooled, and shared
amongst all district schools based on population. This would increase equity and the perception of equity. Furthermore, it is possible that the fact that parents with significant resources would not be able to contribute directly to their own schools would increase political pressure to fund schools at an adequate level.
Part of the task group, however, was opposed to the pooling of resources. It is possible that the amount of financial support will decrease dramatically if parents are not able to donate directly to their own schools. Representatives from some schools believe their schools depend in part on staff hired with donated funds. Indeed it may be naive to hope that restricting donations will encourage political action that could benefit all schools.
Simultaneously, independent schools exist at a much lower funding level than district operated schools. This is in spite of the fact that many of the existing independent schools in Eugene serve students that are difficult and expensive for the district run schools to serve. These schools, (charter schools at 80% of ADMw, and private alternative programs at 80% of the district’s operating costs) are also responsible for providing their own buildings, and generally receive no help from the district on transportation. Independent schools are not well represented in information presented to parents and students about choices within 4J.
Recommendation 2 responds to the following Schools of the Future Guiding Principles:
1. We believe that education must provide an environment in which all students are respected and have equal access and opportunity.
7. We believe that school communities must recognize and respond positively to diversity.
Recommendation 3: All schools have an equal ability to set class size and enrollment targets.
Enrollment Caps: The School Choice Task Group has identified enrollment caps as an issue that impacts equity. Generally, alternative schools have enrollment caps and neighborhood schools do not. The task group identified this as a core issue but did not attempt to provide solutions.Program Stability: Enrollment numbers are linked to staffing levels and those schools that are able to cap their enrollments enjoy stable and predictable staffing. A core program can be developed with the understanding that staffing levels will remain steady and stable as long as enrollment does not drop. In neighborhood schools where the enrollment fluctuates, programs change as staffing levels change. With declining enrollment, neighborhood schools have struggled with a greater proportion of this decline.
Class/Grade Size: Those schools with enrollment caps can predetermine the number of students they will accept by gender, class, and grade, providing a balance not afforded other schools. These schools can offer consistency in classroom and grade configur-ations. In addition class sizes may actually drop in upper grades where new older students are not enrolling, but currently enrolled students may move away. Neighbor-hood schools without caps take all students in the neighborhood. These schools constantly need to adjust their classroom and grade configurations and staffing. In some years grades may be blended, in other years not, to respond to the projected enrollment numbers.
Enrollment Projections: Those schools without enrollment caps may find themselves in a situation where the enrollment actually exceeds the projection and yet the additional staffing is not available. In this case the school operates at a disadvantage with staffing ratios that are not adequate.
The task group did not identify a specific remedy, but strongly recommends that the district determine how to share the instability so that it doesn’t continue to fall solely on neighborhood schools. For example, after schools are consolidated so that schools are not dealing with low enrollment, all schools could be allowed to set enrollment targets in consultation with the district. Since any student must be able to attend his or her neighborhood school, there would need to be flexibility in such a system. One way of dealing with this is as follows: If a neighborhood school has 10 more students in a grade than its enrollment target, then an alternative school within the same building could be required to admit 5 more students from that grade (at that school) off of its waiting list. This way the instabilities are shared by the alternative schools while lessening them for the neighborhood schools.
Another possibility would be to allow all schools to set enrollment caps, again in consultation with the district, based on projected enrollment figures. The district could institute a registration deadline with remaining slots open to a lottery.
A third possibility is that schools paired in buildings could share enrollment targets. Thus, if an alternative school shared a building with a neighborhood school, they could each have maximum sizes of, say, 200. But the actual sizes could be linked so that any shortfall would be shared, and any extra students in the region would also be shared between the schools.
Recommendation 3 responds to the following Schools of the Future Guiding Principles:
1. We believe that education must provide an environment in which all students are respected and have equal access and opportunity.2. We believe that education must be flexible and responsive to the changing needs of students, the community, and society.
3. We believe that schools must provide a comprehensive, focused education, which challenges the whole student.
4. We believe that schools must be accountable to the public, providing a quality education while making efficient use of public resources.
Recommendation 4: All schools are balanced and reflect the diversity of the school district.
It is important for the health of schools that special needs students not be concentrated at a few schools. Furthermore, since many parents perceive the presence of such students as a disadvantage, the district should pursue a policy that places regional learning centers at schools that are otherwise considered desirable. It is also important, if the district believes in offering choices, that special needs students be included and considered for alternative programs.The district should also reduce the socioeconomic disparity that exists between schools in the district.
Recommendation 4 responds to the following Schools of the Future Guiding Principles:
1. We believe that education must provide an environment in which all students are respected and have equal access and opportunity.
7. We believe that school communities must recognize and respond positively to diversity.
Recommendation 5: The system for awarding places in schools is equitable and is perceived as being equitable.
Although the lottery system is open to all students, it is currently perceived by some as unfair. The task group suggests considering other systems, including a centralized lottery system. There are a number of ways this might be done. For example, at the beginning of each year, a number might be assigned to each possible birthday, and students could be prioritized based on how low their numbers are. An advantage to such a system is that every student would automatically participate in the lottery. This might encourage parents who ordinarily wouldn’t think about the possible schooling options to consider them.Recommendation 5 responds to the following Schools of the Future Guiding Principles:
1. We believe that education must provide an environment in which all students are respected and have equal access and opportunity.4. We believe that schools must be accountable to the public, providing a quality education while making efficient use of public resources.
7. We believe that school communities must recognize and respond positively to diversity.
Recommendation 6: Regions are redefined along demographic boundaries. Each region has a mix of types of schools. Transportation is available to any school within a student’s region and students are guaranteed access to some school within their region.
The task group developed this recommendation to respond to two of the negative effects of the current choice system. There is a tremendous amount of traffic throughout Eugene associated with bringing children to and taking them from schools. By presenting a good mix of programs within each region, we would hope to reduce this traffic. Simultaneously, by supplying transportation (whether through LTD bus passes, through school buses, or by some other means) the task group hopes to reduce the economic obstacle of choosing a school. To accomplish a good mix of schools within each region, alternative schools might need to be relocated, as they have been for other reasons in the past.Enrollment trends in the South Region make it clear that people prefer alternative schools, which have more applicants than spaces. At the same time, enrollment at neighborhood schools has shown a steady decline. The rise of charter schools may accelerate this decline. Since the community wants choice, one idea that the task group discussed, but did not reach consensus on, was turning all schools into alternative or charter schools. Each school would develop an identity that it felt offered something special to the community. Attendance at all schools would be by lottery.
Another option is to redefine the current alternative/neighborhood options by creating "neighborhood alternatives" within a region. All students within a one-mile radius (or some other predetermined distance) of a school would have preferential status for enrollment. A registration deadline could be set, just as there is currently for alternative programs. After that time, remaining slots would be open to a lottery. The total number of slots for schools within a particular region would closely correspond to projected enrollment figures for the region to insure that all or most slots at a particular school are filled. Students could still choose schools outside their region, but hopefully this would be reduced to a minimum level with a transportation provision and an adequate choice of programs within regions. Programs, rather than their alternative or neighborhood status would define schools. Program stability across schools would increase. Collaboration among schools within regions would be more likely to occur if schools are not competing to meet their enrollment needs.
Recommendation 6 responds to the following Schools of the Future Guiding Principles:
1. We believe that education must provide an environment in which all students are respected and have equal access and opportunity.
2. We believe that education must be flexible and responsive to the changing needs of students, the community, and society.
7. We believe that school communities must recognize and respond positively to diversity.
Champaign. IL