Tool: Staffing Plan Example Elementaryschool

Tool: Staffing Plan Example—ElementarySchool

Overview

This elementary school staffing plan example from a pilot Opportunity Culture school shows options for staffing redesign in core subjects in a school of 600students. This is intended to help school design teams think creatively about their own long-term staffing plans, and toprovide a starting point for schools to think about how they might use such configurations or others to create a cohesive, schoolwidedesign that meets school goals and design parameters.

Staffing plans should follow the five Opportunity Culture Principles.

This example school set these goals within the Opportunity Culture Principles:

Have excellent teachers reach 80 percent of students in all core subject within three years

Include 90+minutes of weekly collaborative time for teaching teams, and ideally much more

Pay reach team teachers at least 20 percent more on average, and be financially sustainable within current budget

Understanding the charts:The key below provides the job titles used in thisstaffing plan.

CT: Classroom Teacher / BL: Blended Learning
RTT1: Reach Team Teacher 1 / ST: Specialization
SRT: Senior Reach Teacher / CSI:Class-size increase
MRT: Master Reach Teacher / RA: Reach Associate
MCL1: Multi-Classroom Leader 1 / LM: Lab Monitor
MCL2: Multi-Classroom Leader 2
Expanded-Impact Teacher

Section 1: Note Your Reach Goal

Has your district set a goal at full implementation for the percentage of students for every school to reach with excellent teaching? Note that percentage here (you may aim higher, but no lower). (Early-implementing schools generally have set 75 percent as a target, understanding that 100 percent is unrealistic initially.)

Reach goal:

Section 2: Develop Your School’s Staffing Plan

Sketch current year staffing

Start with “Current Year” (current school year). Create a visual outline of your current staffing using your rosters and allotments. Include only roles that have instructional responsibilities(e.g., classroom teachers, assistants, facilitators, academic deans).

Elementary Example: 4th Grade

Grades /Subj. / TRANSITION YEARS
CURRENT YEAR / YEAR 1 / YEAR 2 / FULL IMPLEMENTATION
4thGrade
100 students /

Sketch staffing for Full Implementation

Complete the “Full Implementation”column. Create a visual outline of how your ideal school will look with aschoolwide, cohesive staffing model that makes makesthe vision statement you created in Phase 1 real. Use the tables below to break up your school’s staffingplan by grade(s) or subject(s) or both, depending on what format will most easily enable you to visually represent how teachers willwork together the most.

Elementary Example: Multi-Classroom Leadership with Time Swap in 4th Grade (no Specialization)

Grades /Subj. / TRANSITION YEARS
CURRENT YEAR / YEAR 1 / YEAR 2 / FULL IMPLEMENTATION
4thGrade
100 students /

/

* Formerly a TA position in “Current Year.”

Elementary Example: Multi-Classroom Leadership, Subject Specialization, and Time-Technology Swap in 4th Grade

Grades /Subj. / TRANSITION YEARS
CURRENT YEAR / YEAR 1 / YEAR 2 / FULL IMPLEMENTATION
4thGrade
100 students /
/

Consider implications of Full Implementation staffing, and revise

Pause to think through the bullet points below that ask you to consider the implications of the Full Implementation staffing. Check to ensure that the staffing plan enables your school to meet its goals. Make revisions based on how you answer these considerations.

Think about how your draft staffing for Full Implementation affects the following:

Teacher time (planning/collaborating/coaching other teachers vs. teaching students)

Teacher reach (how many students for teachers of record)

Student time spent with teachers each day

Student time spent learning in another way (e.g., with a paraprofessional, digitally)

Implications for instructional group sizes – with teachers and with multi-classroom leaders; and with paraprofessionals.

Your school’s ability to meet your goals and priorities

Consider transition to Full Implementation

Think about how fast you want/are able to make changes. Could you adopt your Full Implementation plan next year? If not, why not? Use this rationale to focus your planning for transitional years.

Also consider:

If the need for change is urgent for large numbers of students in your school, you may want to implement faster. This may involve staggering implementation in priority grades and/or subjects.

A slower transition may give some teachers and staff more time to adjust. In some cases, the pace of change may depend on the need to exchange out-of-classroom instructional roles for reach roles to be feasible.

Move on to fill in the “Transition Years” (Year 1, Year 2) as needed to visually outline a transition of your staffing from current to full implementation.

Elementary Example: Multi-Classroom Leadership with Time Swap in 1st Grade (No Specialization)

Grades /Subj. / CURRENT / TRANSITION YEARS
CURRENT YEAR / YEAR 1 / YEAR 2 / FULL IMPLEMENTATION
Kindergarten
100 students / / / /

* Formerly a TA position in “Current Year.”

Elementary Example: Multi-Classroom Leadership with Time Swap in 1st Grade (No Specialization)

Grades /Subj. / CURRENT / TRANSITION YEARS
CURRENT YEAR / YEAR 1 / YEAR 2 / FULL IMPLEMENTATION
1st Grade
100 students /
/ / /

* Formerly a TA position in “Current Year.”

Elementary Example: Multi-Classroom Leadership with Time Swap in 2nd Grade (No Specialization)

Grades /Subj. / CURRENT / TRANSITION YEARS
CURRENT YEAR / YEAR 1 / YEAR 2 / FULL IMPLEMENTATION
2nd Grade
100 students /
/ / /

* Formerly a TA position in “Current Year.”

Elementary Example: Multi-Classroom Leadership, Subject Specialization and Time-Technology Swap in 3rd Grade

Grades /Subj. / CURRENT / TRANSITION YEARS
CURRENT YEAR / YEAR 1 / YEAR 2 / FULL IMPLEMENTATION
3rd Grade
100 students /
/ / /

Elementary Example: Multi-Classroom Leadership, Subject Specialization and Time-Technology Swap in 4th Grade

Grades /Subj. / CURRENT / TRANSITION YEARS
CURRENT YEAR / YEAR 1 / YEAR 2 / FULL IMPLEMENTATION
4th Grade
100 students /
/ / /

Elementary Example: Multi-Classroom Leadership, Subject Specialization and Time-Technology Swap in 5th Grade

Grades /Subj. / CURRENT / TRANSITION YEARS
CURRENT YEAR / YEAR 1 / YEAR 2 / FULL IMPLEMENTATION
5th Grade
100 students /
/ / /

Estimate your school’s reach percentage

What percentage of students will have an excellent teacher accountable for learning in each subject? Check this against your reach goals; adjust final goals as needed. For “current year,” insert same numbers as on page 2.

Subject/Grade / Current Year / Year 1 / Year 2 / Full Implementation
Kindergarten / 25% / 25% / 50% / 100%
1st Grade / 0% / 25% / 100% / 100%
2nd Grade / 25% / 25% / 100% / 100%
3rd Grade / 0% / 100% / 100% / 100%
4th Grade / 25% / 100% / 100% / 100%
5th Grade / 25% / 100% / 100% / 100%

After you have documented your entire school’s staffing plan from Current Year to Full Implementation Year, count and record the number of each position (e.g., Multi-Classroom Leader II) you will need each year. For this, use the Financial Sustainability Tool. Use the Staffing Plan Checklistto check your staffing work.