2004-2005 No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon Schools Program
U.S. Department of Education
Cover Sheet Type of School: X Elementary __ Middle __ High __ K-12
Name of Principal Mrs. Neadia Riley______
(Specify: Ms., Miss, Mrs., Dr., Mr., Other) (As it should appear in the official records)
Official School Name White Church Elementary School______
(As it should appear in the official records)
School Mailing Address 2226 N. 85th Street______
(If address is P.O. Box, also include street address)
Kansas City Kansas 66109-2016______
City State Zip Code+4 (9 digits total)
County Wyandotte School Code Number* 8354______
Telephone ( 913 ) 627-4250 Fax ( 913 ) 627-4276
Website/URL www.kckps.org 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 Dr. Ray Daniels______(Specify: Ms., Miss, Mrs., Dr., Mr., Other)
District Name Kansas City Kansas Unified School District 500 Tel. ( 913 ) 551-3200______
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 Mrs. Gloria Willis______
(Specify: Ms., Miss, Mrs., Dr., Mr., Other)
I have reviewed the information in this package, 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)
*Private Schools: If the information requested is not applicable, write N/A in the space.
PART I ELIGIBILITY CERTIFICATION
[Include this page in the school’s application as page 2.]
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 of Civil Rights (OCR) requirements is true and correct.
1. The school has some configuration that includes grades K-12. (Schools with one principal, even K-12 schools, must apply as an entire school.)
2. The school has not been in school improvement status or 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 2004-2005 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 1999 and has not received the 2003 or 2004 No Child Left Behind – Blue Ribbon Schools Award.
5. The nominated school or district is not refusing the OCR access to information necessary to investigate a civil rights complaint or to conduct a districtwide compliance review.
6. The 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 the 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: _30 Elementary schools
8 Middle schools
_____ Junior high schools
_ 6 High schools
_____ Other
44 TOTAL
2. District Per Pupil Expenditure: _$8,415.00
Average State Per Pupil Expenditure: _$7,748.17
SCHOOL (To be completed by all schools)
3. Category that best describes the area where the school is located:
[X ] Urban or large central city
[ ] Suburban school with characteristics typical of an urban area
[ ] Suburban
[ ] Small city or town in a rural area
[ ] Rural
4. 4 Number of years the principal has been in her/his position at this school.
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 / 7
K / 17 / 18 / 35 / 8
1 / 26 / 13 / 39 / 9
2 / 18 / 16 / 34 / 10
3 / 18 / 15 / 33 / 11
4 / 18 / 16 / 34 / 12
5 / 26 / 16 / 42 / Other
6
TOTAL STUDENTS IN THE APPLYING SCHOOL ® / 217
[Throughout the document, round numbers to avoid decimals.]
6. Racial/ethnic composition of 35 % White
the students in the school: 56 % Black or African American
8 % Hispanic or Latino
1 % Asian/Pacific Islander
% 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: ___13 %
(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. / 17(2) / Number of students who transferred from the school after October 1 until the end of the year. / 16
(3) / Subtotal of all transferred students [sum of rows (1) and (2)] / 33
(4) / Total number of students in the school as of October 1 (enrollment for 2003-04) / 245
(5) / Subtotal in row (3) divided by total in row (4) / .13
(6) / Amount in row (5) multiplied by 100 / 13%
8. Limited English Proficient students in the school: __ 5 %
___11 Total Number Limited English Proficient
Number of languages represented: __2__
Specify languages: Hmong and Spanish
9. Students eligible for free/reduced-priced meals: ___52 %
Total number students who qualify: __113___
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 federallysupported 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 %
___25 Total Number of Students Served
Indicate below the number of students with disabilities according to conditions designated in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
_ 1 Autism ____Orthopedic Impairment
____Deafness ____Other Health Impaired
____Deaf-Blindness _4 Specific Learning Disability
____Emotional Disturbance 11 Speech or Language Impairment
____Hearing Impairment ____Traumatic Brain Injury
__4 Mental Retardation ____Visual Impairment Including Blindness
____Multiple Disabilities 5__Developmentally Delayed
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 _10______
Special resource teachers/specialists __2______6_____
Paraprofessionals __1______
Support staff __5______2_____
Total number _19______8_____
12. Average school student-“classroom teacher” ratio: __22:1__
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.)
2003-2004 / 2002-2003 / 2001-2002 / 2000-2001 / 1999-2000Daily student attendance / 96 % / 96% / 95% / 97% / 97%
Daily teacher attendance / 96% / 96% / 96% / 98% / 98%
Teacher turnover rate / 0% / 0% / 23% / 15% / 21%
Student dropout rate (middle/high) / % / % / % / % / %
Student drop-off rate (high school) / % / % / % / % / %
PART III SUMMARY
White Church School is one of thirty elementary schools in the Kansas City Kansas School District. The school has been a vital part of the area for 172 years. A drive through the neighborhood would show White Church is a diverse community, 47 percent of the population is black, 41 percent of the population is white, and 12 percent is of other ethnic origin. Almost the entire community is comprised of residential homes. The homes are a mix of older and newer homes that fall in the fifty to one hundred thousand dollar range. Census figures indicate that an average of four people live in each house. Two parent families inhabit 61 percent of the homes and 39 percent are headed by single parents. One hundred thirteen of our students qualify for free or reduced lunches; 104 receive no lunch support. Many of our students are children from families that have been part of the White Church School for generations. Two of our teachers attended White Church as students.
Although many changes have been made since the first White Church School was established in 1833, the purpose of our school has remained the same. In 1910, the class motto was “We Can Because We Think We Can.” Today each morning the school community recites together “If I Think I Can, and I Work Hard, I Will Be Successful.” A new motto was added in 2002 “Be Respectful, Be a Learner, and Be in Control.”
Our school is organized and designed to facilitate a community of learners. The efforts of the staff to create a climate for learning at White Church are reflected in the accomplishments and achievements of our students.
Our school community includes students from kindergarten through fifth grade. We support student development over time and build relationships by implementing the following models: Two 1 /2 multiage classes, one 3 /4 and one 4 /5 multiage classes. Through Inclusion, children with Individual Education Plans as well as those in regular education work collaboratively in a small learning community. We also offer five looping classes, which make up the other small learning community of our school. These students stay with the same teacher for two consecutive years.
One of the educational goals of our school is to provide enriched and diverse opportunities for students to learn, perform and to be recognized. Students are given opportunities to participate in school musicals, science fairs, art festivals, award assemblies, math and reading clubs, family reading, math and game nights, after school recreation programs, and morning announcements. Student projects are proudly displayed throughout the school. Student representatives serve on our Student Council. This group plans events and community service projects to promote school spirit and community involvement.
With the support of parents and community, the staff and students have created a school at White Church where a climate of learning is one of the primary educational goals. White Church received the Standard of Excellence in writing on the Kansas Assessment in 2002 and the Standard of Excellence in both the Reading and Math Assessments 2004. We were awarded the Challenge Award of Recognition for outstanding accomplishments in closing the achievement gap in fifth grade reading (gap between minority students and white, or between those on free and/or reduced priced meals and full pay students) based on the 2004 Kansas Reading Assessment.
Parent volunteers, PTA, Site Council, Student Improvement Team, and Family Advocacy are integral parts of our school and support in the highest quality of education for our students. We take pride in our school. White Church is a place where everyone is special.
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PART IV INDICATORS OF ACADEMIC SUCCESS
1. White Church Elementary Assessments
According to the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001(NCLB), Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) is used to determine the academic achievement of every student and every group of students. The Kansas State Assessments in reading and math are used to determine if a school makes an AYP. The Fourth grade students are given the Kansas Math Assessment and the fifth grade students are given the Kansas Reading Assessment. These assessments are created by the Center for Educational Testing and Evaluation (CETE) at the University of Kansas. CETE collects, disaggregates and reports the results by the end of the school year. All students are assessed including students with Individual Education Plans and English Language Learners. All Schools are expected to make Adequate Yearly Progress or AYP each year. To achieve AYP, 57.3% of all students must score in the proficient and above in reading and 53.5% of the students must score proficient and above in math. Failure to make AYP for two consecutive years will place the school on improvement.