2006-2007 No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon Schools Program
U.S. Department of Education
Cover Sheet Type of School: (Check all that apply) [ X ] Elementary [ ] Middle [ ] High [ ] K-12 [ ] Charter
Name of Principal Mr. Christopher Harper
(Specify: Ms., Miss, Mrs., Dr., Mr., Other) (As it should appear in the official records)
Official School Name Westmoreland Road Elementary School
(As it should appear in the official records)
School Mailing Address______8596 Westmoreland Road______
(If address is P.O. Box, also include street address.)
__Whitesboro______New York______13492-3201______
City State Zip Code+4 (9 digits total)
County _Oneida______State School Code Number*_41290206000______
Telephone ( 315-266-3440 )______Fax ( 315-768-9789 ) ______
Web site/URL http://www.wboro.org/education/school/school.php?sectionid=38 E-mail
I have reviewed the information in this application, including the eligibility requirements on page 2, and certify that to the best of my knowledge all information is accurate.
Date______
(Principal’s Signature)
Name of Superintendent* Mr. Arnold L. Kaye
(Specify: Ms., Miss, Mrs., Dr., Mr., Other)
District Name Whitesboro Central School Tel.(315-266-3303)
I have reviewed the information in this application, including the eligibility requirements on page 2, and certify that to the best of my knowledge it is accurate.
Date______(Superintendent’s Signature)
Name of School Board
President/Chairperson Mr. Stephen Pattarini______
(Specify: Ms., Miss, Mrs., Dr., Mr., Other)
I have reviewed the information in this application, including the eligibility requirements on page 2, and certify that to the best of my knowledge it is accurate.
Date______
(School Board President’s/Chairperson’s Signature)
PART I ELIGIBILITY CERTIFICATION
The signatures on the first page of this application certify that each of the statements below concerning the school’s eligibility and compliance with U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) requirements is true and correct.
1. The school has some configuration that includes grades K-12. (Schools on the same campus with one principal, even K-12 schools, must apply as an entire school.)
2. The school has made adequate yearly progress each year for the past two years and has not been identified by the state as “persistently dangerous” within the last two years. To meet final eligibility, the school must meet the state’s adequate yearly progress requirement in the 2006-2007 school year.
3. If the school includes grades 7 or higher, it has foreign language as a part of its core curriculum.
4. The school has been in existence for five full years, that is, from at least September 2001 and has not received the No Child Left Behind – Blue Ribbon Schools award in the past five years.
5. The nominated school or district is not refusing OCR access to information necessary to investigate a civil rights complaint or to conduct a districtwide compliance review.
6. OCR has not issued a violation letter of findings to the school district concluding that the nominated school or the district as a whole has violated one or more of the civil rights statutes. A violation letter of findings will not be considered outstanding if OCR has accepted a corrective action plan from the district to remedy the violation.
7. The U.S. Department of Justice does not have a pending suit alleging that the nominated school or the school district as a whole has violated one or more of the civil rights statutes or the Constitution’s equal protection clause.
8. There are no findings of violations of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in a U.S. Department of Education monitoring report that apply to the school or school district in question; or if there are such findings, the state or district has corrected, or agreed to correct, the findings.
PART II DEMOGRAPHIC DATA
All data are the most recent year available.
DISTRICT (Questions 12 not applicable to private schools)
1. Number of schools in the district: __4__ Elementary schools
__1__ Middle schools
__0__ Junior high schools
__1__ High schools
_____ Other
___6__ TOTAL
2. District Per Pupil Expenditure: _ $7,279.91___
Average State Per Pupil Expenditure: __$9,359.04___
SCHOOL (To be completed by all schools)
3. Category that best describes the area where the school is located:
[ ] Urban or large central city
[ ] Suburban school with characteristics typical of an urban area
[ X ] Suburban
[ ] Small city or town in a rural area
[ ] Rural
4. ___0 __Number of years the principal has been in her/his position at this school.
8 years, 7 months If fewer than three years, how long was the previous principal at this school?
5. Number of students as of October 1 enrolled at each grade level or its equivalent in applying school only:
Grade / # of Males / # of Females / Grade Total / Grade / # of Males / # of Females / Grade TotalPreK / 0 / 0 / 0 / 7
K / 37 / 36 / 73 / 8
1 / 36 / 35 / 71 / 9
2 / 31 / 30 / 61 / 10
3 / 36 / 37 / 73 / 11
4 / 30 / 40 / 70 / 12
5 / 32 / 38 / 70 / Other / 8 / 6 / 14
6
TOTAL STUDENTS IN THE APPLYING SCHOOL ® / 432
[Throughout the document, round numbers 1 or higher to the nearest whole number.
Use decimals to one place only if the number is below 1.]
6. Racial/ethnic composition of 95 % White
the school: 3 % Black or African American
1 % Hispanic or Latino
1 % Asian/Pacific Islander
0 % American Indian/Alaskan Native
100% Total
Use only the five standard categories in reporting the racial/ethnic composition of the school.
7. Student turnover, or mobility rate, during the past year: ____4_%
[This rate should be calculated using the grid below. The answer to (6) is the mobility rate.]
(1) / Number of students who transferred to the school after October 1 until the end of the year / 10(2) / Number of students who transferred from the school after October 1 until the end of the year / 8
(3) / Total of all transferred students [sum of rows (1) and (2)] / 18
(4) / Total number of students in the school as of October 1 / 422
(5) / Total transferred students in row (3) divided by total students in row (4) / .042
(6) / Amount in row (5) multiplied by 100 / 4.265
8. Limited English Proficient students in the school: __1_____%
__6_____Total Number Limited English Proficient
Number of languages represented: ___2____
Specify languages: Arabic, Russian
9. Students eligible for free/reduced-priced meals: ___48___%
Total number students who qualify: __202___
If this method does not produce an accurate estimate of the percentage of students from lowincome families, or the school does not participate in the federally supported lunch program, specify a more accurate estimate, tell why the school chose it, and explain how it arrived at this estimate.
10. Students receiving special education services: ___12__%
___50__ Total Number of Students Served
Indicate below the number of students with disabilities according to conditions designated in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Do not add additional categories.
__1_Autism ____Orthopedic Impairment
____Deafness __1_Other Health Impaired
____Deaf-Blindness _32_Specific Learning Disability
__3_Emotional Disturbance __8_Speech or Language Impairment
__5_Hearing Impairment ____Traumatic Brain Injury
____Mental Retardation ____Visual Impairment Including Blindness
____Multiple Disabilities
11. Indicate number of fulltime and parttime staff members in each of the categories below:
Number of Staff
Full-time Part-Time
Administrator(s) ___1______
Classroom teachers __31______
Special resource teachers/specialists ___7______
Paraprofessionals ___3______1___
Support staff ___3______
Total number ___45______1___
12. Average school student-classroom teacher ratio, that is, the number of
students in the school divided by the FTE of classroom teachers, e.g., 22:1 __14:1__
13. Show the attendance patterns of teachers and students as a percentage. The student dropout rate is defined by the state. The student drop-off rate is the difference between the number of entering students and the number of exiting students from the same cohort. (From the same cohort, subtract the number of exiting students from the number of entering students; divide that number by the number of entering students; multiply by 100 to get the percentage drop-off rate.) Briefly explain in 100 words or fewer, any major discrepancy between the dropout rate and the drop-off rate. Only middle and high schools need to supply dropout rates, and only high schools need to supply drop-off rates. Also explain a high teacher turnover rate.
2005-2006 / 2004-2005 / 2003-2004 / 2002-2003 / 2001-2002Daily student attendance / 95% / 95% / 95% / 95% / 95%
Daily teacher attendance / 93% / 93% / 93% / 93% / 93%
Teacher turnover rate / 3% / 11% / 5% / 2% / 13%
Student dropout rate (middle/high) / NA% / NA% / NA% / NA% / NA%
Student drop-off rate (high school) / NA% / NA% / NA% / NA% / NA%
PART III – SUMMARY
The Westmoreland Road Elementary School, one of four elementary schools in the six campus Whitesboro Central School District system that includes a middle and high school, is guided and focused by a District Strategic Plan, including a strategic mission and specific, measurable outcomes. Within this context, “the Road” shares a school level elementary mission with its partner elementarys, and a unique “site-plan” aimed at achieving high levels of academic proficiency from each and every child. The educational program at “the Road” is organized by subject area, and is integrated to include not only the academics, but also the arts. In each of those grades, teachers develop a specialty academic area. In recognition of the importance of developing proficiency and confidence in learning during the first three years of school, “the Road” created a proven, successful Transitional First Grade Program for students who would otherwise have fallen behind. “The Road” pursues the districts Strategic Plans through the following strategies:
Strategy 1: We will develop our system of teaching and learning to ensure each student can achieve his/her academic and personal goals.
Strategy 2: Ensure that all segments of the community are active participants in the educational process.
Strategy 3: We will ensure that all staff in the Whitesboro Central School District are superior and are dedicated to accomplishing our mission and objectives.
Strategy 4: We will ensure that communications, in all its forms, further develops interpersonal relationships to accomplish our mission and objectives.
Strategy 5: We will ensure fiscal security and serve as responsible stewards of district resources.
Strategy 6: We will establish a safe, nurturing environment conducive to the development of positive attitudes and effective teaching and learning.
Strategy 7: We will ensure that facilities meet our current and continually emerging needs.
“Building a Strong Foundation for Lifelong Learning,” are the words that appear on our School’s Strategic Planning Brochure and are the building blocks for everything that we do at Westmoreland Road Elementary School. Westmoreland Road Elementary is a school where children come first and this is evident in the Whitesboro Elementary School’s mission statement:
“The mission of all Whitesboro Elementary Schools, as a community of students, educators, staff and families, is to build a strong foundation for lifelong learning that ensures each student’s academic success, as well as physical, social and emotional well-being in a safe, nurturing and stimulating environment.”
Throughout its existence, Westmoreland Road Elementary School has always been at the pinnacle of academic excellence, molding students from all walks of life. All of the principals and staff have consistently employed the best innovative methods to provide the best academic program possible to all of the students at “The Road.” Our fourth grade sections are semi-departmentalized and fifth grade is departmentalized with each homeroom teacher delivering science instruction. We believe that this departmentalization prepares our students for a seamless transition to meet the challenges of our Middle School. Our Parent-Teacher Organization is active in our school. Parental involvement is integral to Westmoreland Road’s success. In pursuit of our mission, our parents are engaged in a partnership that provides unique experiences that could not be supported otherwise.
The faculty and staff at Westmoreland Road recently implemented a strong and consistent character education component into our curriculum. We think that this component will enhance the physical, emotional, intellectual and social growth of our students needed to be successful, including finding creative ways to settle conflicts. Westmoreland Road's staff committee structure provides our school with a wide variety of activities to meet our students' needs. The extra time and effort that staff members contribute to our school is exemplary and results in diverse experiences for all students. Uniting to meet the needs of student diversity is a driving force behind Westmoreland Road’s teaching philosophy and instructional efforts and excellent student performance.
PART IV – INDICATORS OF ACADEMIC SUCCESS
1. Assessment Results: Westmoreland Road Elementary School includes economically disadvantaged subgroups and Special Education subgroups, as well as many students from language poor home environments. Subgroup performance on State assessments reflects our belief that all students are capable of learning when they are challenged and supported in a stimulating environment. The teachers have high expectations for all students’ success. The commendable performance demonstrated by our special education students can be attributed to our belief in the inclusionary model of teaching. Regular Education and Special Education teachers use a team teaching model, which results in all students benefiting from targeted instruction and remediation, not just the identified population.
The New York State Assessments in content areas determine levels of performance and how well students have reached the higher level learning standards. These tests require students to demonstrate their ability to read, write and listen, and to understand, calculate and apply information related to mathematics. Performance on these assessments is reflected at four levels.
Level 4 –These students exceed the standards and moving toward high performance on the Regents examination.