MAASE
Urban Community of Practice
06/10/14
Minutes
Significant Disproportionality:
· Many districts attended
· Many charter schools send behavior problems back to the public schools to avoid suspensions.
o Charters are here and MAASE needs to embrace and bring them into the organization
o They need to become a part of this meeting
· Maybe MAASE should have a Charter CoP
o How do we reach out to them
o We might need to reach out to the ISDs
· Farmington's superintendent got involved and demanded a decrease in suspensions by 30% and it worked
· Lansing met with each principal and gave them their suspension data and talked about it
· We need to be creative in dealing with behavior
· Michigan’s the highest in the US with suspension and expulsion
· There should be a change in the way districts are forced to spend their funds
· We should bring Jeff in to talk about the process we need to go through prior to going to significant dispro.
· Focused monitoring should come first, there seems to be some steps that are being bypassed
What next:
· Letter to Eleanor from Urban Administrators
o Numbers of suspension not decreasing
o What state doing not working
o Focus monitoring should come first with time to implement plans before going into significant dispro.
o Suspension and expulsion out of hand
o Why do we have suspension and it is not in AYP
o You have to pick a group of general ed kids to support; this does not turn around the attitude of the building. Can't get speakers to come in to address more people who are actually suspending the students.
o It could be the interpretation of the law by the state
o We are concerned about this law. Not against it, but want to find ways to make it better; State should provide resources; Statewide plan for principals and teachers re: suspension and expulsion
o CC: letter to state level
o Talk to executive legislative group about participating in discussion with Jeff about the problems with MI's policies.
What works:
· Getting superintendents involved
· Show data to principals
· Train teachers to improve classroom management skills
· Getting presentations at MASA re: significant dispro
· Have Eleanor or someone from state office dialogue with principals at all districts
We want to enlist theparticipation of other districts that fall into our category of Urbanadministrators
The Urban Community of Practice is responsible for making a tri-fold poster board for MAASE that should be manned during certain periods of the day. It was decided at the meeting that the board may look something like:
MAASE Urban Administrators Community of PracticeDistricts Represented
Meeting Information:
Tuesday of MAASE Conference
Time: 7:15 am
Location: Packard Room / Characteristics of Urban District
-Free and reduced lunch
-40% or more minority groups
-Special education population above state average
-Students from low socio economic status
Concerns:
Grad drop out
Discipline
Parent participation
Student Achievement
Attendance
Contact us: / Districts that Should be Represented
*This poster is not all inclusive, just a sample of what was discussed. Please send ideas to me so that I can work into poster.
We want the poster to be inviting and enticing so that other districts will be interested in joining our CoP.
I’m not a tech person, so send me your great ideas about the visual presentation.
NOTE:
- I will send out a doodle to schedule a conference call in July.
- I will send out a doodle in July or early August for members to sign up for times to man the poster.
- I’m working with Tony before he leaves to change the time of our meeting.
Have a great summer!!!!!