2002-2003 No Child Left Behind—Blue Ribbon Schools Program
Cover Sheet
Name of Principal Mr. Elbert L. White
(Specify: Ms., Miss, Mrs., Dr., Mr., Other) (As it should appear in the official records)Official School Name Robert Lee Frost Elementary School
(As it should appear in the official records)School Mailing Address 5650 Selinsky
(If address is P.O. Box, also include street address)Houston Texas 77048-1832
City State Zip Code+4 (9 digits total)Tel. ( 713 ) 732-3490 Fax ( 713 ) 732-3498
Website/URL Email
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)
Private Schools: If the information requested is not applicable, write N/A in the space.
Name of Superintendent
(Specify: Ms., Miss, Mrs., Dr., Mr., Other)District Name Tel. ( )
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
(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 SignaturePART II - DEMOGRAPHIC DATA
DISTRICT (Questions 1-2 not applicable to private schools)
1. Number of schools in the district: 211 Elementary schools
49 Middle schools
Junior high schools
36 High schools
296 TOTAL
2. District Per Pupil Expenditure: 5,291
Average State Per Pupil Expenditure: 4,929
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
[ ] 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 enrolled at each grade level or its equivalent in applying school:
Grade / # of Males / # of Females / Grade Total / Grade / # of Males / # of Females / Grade TotalK / 42 / 46 / 88 / K
1 / 46 / 52 / 98 / 1
2 / 56 / 52 / 108 / 2
3 / 58 / 61 / 119 / 3
4 / 63 / 60 / 123 / 4
5 / 55 / 58 / 113 / 5
6 / 29 / 27 / 56 / OtherPK
TOTAL STUDENTS IN THE APPLYING SCHOOL / 705
6. Racial/ethnic composition of 0.1 % White
the students in the school: 93 % Black or African American
6.9 % Hispanic or Latino
0 % Asian/Pacific Islander
0 % American Indian/Alaskan Native
100% Total
7. Student turnover, or mobility rate, during the past year: 30.7 %
(This rate includes the total number of students who transferred to or from different schools between October 1 and the end of the school year, divided by the total number of students in the school as of October 1, multiplied by 100.)
(1) / Number of students whotransferred to the school
after October 1 until the
end of the year. / 157
(2) / Number of students who
transferred from the
school after October 1
until the end of the year. / 164
(3) / Subtotal of all
transferred students [sum
of rows (1) and (2)] / 321
(4) / Total number of students
in the school as of
October 1 / 697
(5) / Subtotal in row (3)
divided by total in row
(4) / 46
(6) / Amount in row (5)
multiplied by 100 / 44.5 %
8. Limited English Proficient students in the school: 4.1 %
29 Total Number Limited English Proficient
Number of languages represented: 1
Specify languages: Spanish
9. Students eligible for free/reduced-priced meals: 98.3 %
693 Total Number Students Who Qualify
If this method is not a reasonably accurate estimate of the percentage of students from low-income 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: 7.9 %
56 Total Number of Students Served
Indicate below the number of students with disabilities according to conditions designated in the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
____ Autism ____ Orthopedic Impairment
____ Deafness 6 Other Health Impaired
____ Deaf-Blindness 32 Specific Learning Disability
____ Hearing Impairment 17 Speech or Language Impairment
12 Mental Retardation ____ Traumatic Brain Injury
____ Multiple Disabilities _____ Visual Impairment Including Blindness
11. Indicate number of full-time and part-time staff members in each of the categories below:
Number of Staff
Full-time Part-Time
Administrator(s) 2
Classroom teachers 31 _
Special resource teachers/specialists _4______
Paraprofessionals 12______1____
Support staff 14______
Total number 62
12. Student-“classroom teacher” ratio: ____22.1____
13. Show the attendance patterns of teachers and students. 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 and drop-off rates.
2001-2002 / 2000-2001 / 1999-2000 / 1998-1999 / 1997-1998Daily student attendance / 96.0 / 95.7 / 95.9 / 95.6 / 95.6
Daily teacher attendance / 95.0 / 94.0 / 97.0 / 95.0 / 95.0
Teacher turnover rate / n/a
Student dropout rate
Student drop-off rate
PART III - SUMMARY
Provide a brief, coherent narrative snapshot of the school in one page (approximately 475 words).
Include at least a summary of the school's mission or vision in the statement and begin the first sentence with the school's name, city, and state.
Robert Lee Frost Elementary School in Houston, Texas has made a commitment to the students and the community. We are proud to acknowledge that each and every student will be successful. We are sincere in our desire to provide the best and the finest educational opportunities possible for all of our students. The mission of Robert Lee Frost Elementary School is to educate all students in an environment that is conducive to learning. Our setting does include innovative technical skills, which promote academic improvements, parental involvement, the development of each child's potential, and enhance the desire to become productive and functioning citizens of the twenty-first century. Our motto at Frost Elementary School is "Failure is Not An Option." We welcome you to Frost Elementary School. Frost is a pre-kindergarten through fifth grade elementary school within the South District of the Houston Independent School District. Currently, 98.3% of our 705 students participate in the federal free-reduced breakfast/lunch program. One hundred percent of our students are considered economically disadvantaged by Texas Education Agency (TEA) guidelines which qualifies Frost as a Title I school. Ninety-three percent of our students are African-Americans, one-tenth percent are white, and six and nine tenths percent are Hispanics and are Limited English Proficient (LEP) students. Eight percent of our student body receives special education services. Our special education program is comprised of a generic self-contained class, a behavior services class, a speech program and a learning disable resource program. These multi-level classes serve the primary and intermediate grades.
Our student/classroom teacher ratio is 22:1. Our gender population is approximately 50 percent male and 50 percent female. Forty-five percent of the students are academically at-risk according to TEA guidelines. These students are served through Title I and Community in Schools of Houston (C.I.S.H) programs.
Forty-six percent of our teachers have eleven or more years of teaching experience, eight percent are between five and eleven years and forty-six percent have five years or less. Twenty-six percent of our instructional staff have a master’s degree. The following information service to define our professional team: female teachers 87%, male teachers 13%, African American teachers 85% and Caucasian teachers 15%. We have twelve instructional aides that assist the teachers in the classrooms.
The majority of families served in our learning community are of low socioeconomic status. They are resident apartment dwellers receiving government assistance and are predominantly single mothers as head of households. Students from Frost Elementary also come to us from homes which include traditional families, single parents, foster parents, families of unemployed parents, as well as families with two working parents. There are some residential homes in our area that are headed by grandparents who have assumed the responsibility of raising their grandchildren. In spite of the economic variations of Frost, our learning community remains committed to educating all students. A strong sense of devotion for our children is exhibit by staff members, parents, and community members.
Frost places a strong focus on student academic achievements and exhibited the creation of a safe and nurturing learning environment. We continually seek avenues for close analysis of programs in order to improve and expand upon learning environments which nurture the development of the full potential of each child. High expectations for student behavior and learning have been manifested in mandatory tutorials after-school, daily homework and parents’ support of school uniforms.
Further support for Frost’s community has been achieved through grants from the Mayor’s After-School Achievement Program, and Spark Park-Playground Development. These grants are funded by the city of Houston. The grant goals are to help create a safer neighborhood that fosters involvement on all levels. These partnerships are helping Frost to provide a wealth of support and enrichment opportunities for our students, parents and the community at large. Thanks to this sort of dedication by parents, community and staff, Frost is continually elevating students’ achievement and moving toward its vision of creating learning environments that empower all students to reach their full potential.
Part IV - Indicators of Academic Success
- The school must show assessment results in reading and mathematics for at least the last three years using the criteria determined by the CSSO for the state accountability system.
Houston Independent School District (H.I.S.D.) 2002-2003 accountability system results identified Robert Lee Frost Elementary as being an exemplary school. The HISD progress rating, when compared to the 2001 Spring TAAS test, indicated that Frost made exemplary progress. Frost Elementary School also received the same "Exemplary" accreditation rating from the Texas Education Agency based on our student attendance rate of (95.8%) and the following TAAS scores: 93% of all student groups passed reading, 97% of all student groups in fourth grade passed math, and 96% of all student groups passed writing. Implementation of school improvement plan strategies contributed to student achievement on TAAS.
The TAAS test was administered in the Spring of 2000, 2001 and 2002. The number of students tested were 114 third graders in reading and 114 third graders in math; 112 fourth graders in reading and 111 fourth graders in math: 91 fifth graders students in reading and 97 fifth graders in math.
The following is an overview of the results. All grade levels greatly improved in reading and math from 2000 results. The third graders had some difficulty in the following area: Reading objective 3 - Summarization up to 85%. Overall there was remarkable improvement in reading objective 1 - word meaning 97%, objective 12 - supporting ideas 91%, objective 4 - relationships and outcomes 89%, objective 5 - inferences and generalization 95%, objective 6 - point of view, propaganda, and fact and opinion 88%. Seventy-three percents of the third grade students mastered all objectives in reading, ninety four percent of the third grader students met the minimum expectations. (c-3)
On the TAAS math subtest, the third grade students results indicated that objectives 10 and 13 were the most difficult; estimation and reasonableness 53%, and objective 11 problem solving using solution strategies. (c11). Overall there was great improvement in the objectives 1-6 and objective 12. Twenty four percent of the third grade students mastered all objectives in math. Ninety two percent met minimum expectations.
The fourth grade students also improved in reading and math. The fourth grade students results indicated that objective 3 and 6 were difficult; summarization 50%; and objective 6 point of view, progranda, and fact and opinion 81%. (c4) Thirty six percent of the entire fourth grade students mastered all objectives. Ninety eight percent of the students met minimum expectation in reading.
On the TAAS math subtest the major difficulty was in estimation 27 % solution strategies, and 64% in objective 12 using mathematical representation. (c15) Five percent of the fourth grade students mastered all objectives in math. Ninety five percent of the fourth grades class met minimum expectations in math. On the written communication narrative, 63% receive a score of 2 and 33% receive a score of three. Twenty eight percent mastered all objectives and 96% met minimum expectations.
The fifth grade students results indicated that objective 3 was the most difficult; summarization 82%. The other five subtest objectives 1 89%, objective 2 supporting ideas 96%, objective 4 relationships and outcomes 89%, objective 5 inferences and generalizations 97% and point of view, propaganda, and fact and opinion 95%. Fifty nine percent of the fifth grade students mastered all objectives. (c5) One hundred percent of the students met minimum expectations.
In math the fifth grade students had their greatest difficulty 57% in objective 13, evaluation of the reasonableness of a solution 77% in objective 10, problem solving using estimation 75%, in objective 11 problem solving using solution strategies, 77% in objective 12, problem solving using mathematical representation. Twenty three percent mastered all objectives and 99% met minimum expectations. (c17)
Stanford 9 Reading: Frost's Kindergarten students had an increase in grade equivalent (G.E.) score, moving from G.E. K.8 to G.E. 1.2. Eighty-four kindergarten students were at or above the 50th national/percentile rank (N/PR). First grade students remained about the same with a G.E. of 2.0, but there was an increase in the number of students at or above on the 50th N/PR, from 72 students to 80 students. (c24) Second grade students met the minimum goal of G.E. 1.6, which was a decrease of 3 months from the year 2001. Thirty-two students were at or above the 50th N/PR, which was a decrease of 15 students, form the previous year. (c25) Third grade students earned a G.E. of 3.6, which was an increase of 6 months. Fifty-one students were at or above the 50th N/PR. (c26) Fourth grade students had an increase of G.E. 3.8 to 4.2. (c27) Thirty-nine students were at or above the N/PR. (c27) Fifth grade students had an increase of G.E. scores moving from 4.3 to 4.5 but decrease by one student on or at the N/PR 23 students to 22. (c28)
Stanford 9 Math: Frost's Kindergarten students improved from G.E., K1 to 1.0 month, which was an increase of .9 months. Sixth-five students were at or above the N/PR for 2002. First grade students improved from G.E. 1.6 to 1.9 months which was an increase of 3 month. Sixty-nine students were at or above the N/PR for 2002. (c24) Second grade students decreased from G.E. 2.2 to 1.8 month. The number of students at or about the N/PR remained the same (26). (c25) Third grade students improved from 3.0 to 4.2 which was an increase of 1.2. Seventy students were at or above the N/PR for 2002. (c26) Fourth grade students improved from 4.5 to 4.7 which was an increase of .2 month. Sixty-one students were at or above the N/PR for 2002. (c30) Fifth grade students improved from 5.6 to 6.3 which was an increase of .7 month. Seventy-two students were at or above the N/PR for 2002. (c28)
1a. Disaggregate the data for any ethnic/racial or socioeconomic groups that comprise sufficient numbers.
Robert Frost currently has 705 students that participate in the federal free reduce breakfast / lunch program. One hundred percent of our students are considered economically disadvantaged by Texas Education Agency which qualifies Frost as a Title I school. Ninety-three percent of our students are African-Americans. There are three subgroups that comprise sufficient numbers to be statistically significant; African American students, free and reduced breakfast / lunch program and economically disadvantages. Within each subgroup all groups made statistically significant gain total students over a three-year time span. There is little or no dispanty between each sub groups since the population is primary the same students.
1b. Specify which groups, if any, are excluded from a test, the reasons for the exclusions, as well as the number and percentage of students excluded. Describe how these students are assessed.
Frost administered the TAAS and Stanford 9 in three consecutive years. An important factor to note is the small percentage of students on average were exempted from TAAS and Stanford 9 testing in those three years. Only 38 students, 12% of the 323 students were not tested in reading. This number includes students in the generic self-contained classes, generic behavior service class and the resource classes at Frost. Only 33 students, about 10% of the 322 students were exempted from TAAS math. Likewise, 6%, of the 105 fourth graders at Frost Elementary School were exempted from the writing portion of TAAS. Students who were exempted from TAAS/Stanford 9 at Frost were either absent from school, learning disabled, mentally retarded or emotionally disturbed. Our special education students are administered the SDAA tests which is determined by the students Individualize Education Program (I.E.P.) and the ARD process.
2. How Frost uses assessment data to understand and improve student and school performance?
Assessment results are used systematically in making decisions about the effectiveness of educational programs and for identifying performance gaps through specific instructional strategies. Frost uses multiple assessment data for every student. Performance assessments in the core areas ensure that all stakeholders have quantifiable evidence of what students at Frost know and are able to do, as measured against the Texas Standards.
The school also uses the Stanford 9, Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) and Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI). These test results are shared with our teachers to show how their students compare to state and national norms. This data helps our teachers to analyze various performance patterns in reading, mathematics and language. In faculty meetings, workshops and staff development activities teachers analyze student performance for school-wide strengths and areas in need of improvement. This school-wide analysis helps our teachers to view their classroom results in a wider perspective and to articulate instruction.