A NOTE FROM DR. GOOD Having now been with Columbus City Schools for nearly four months, I felt it was important to provide you with my observations to date – and where we are in our reform efforts. I have visited all of our 114 schools, and I have been extremely impressed with the high-quality work that is being done by our staff and students alike. I’ve personally witnessed our staff’s professionalism and commitment to our students, and it’s remarkable. Likewise, I’ve also found our students to be respectful, engaged in their learning, and unbelievably talented and creative. Undoubtedly, this has to be the most exciting time to be a part of Columbus City Schools! As we begin to move forward in our improvement efforts, we do so with unprecedented levels of support from the City, higher education, social service agencies, the faith community, and local residents and businesses. The demonstrated commitment and engagement that has taken place over the past several months with respect to our reform efforts has been unimaginable. I’m so pleased to be here to help lead this effort – and to have the immense honor to serve your children, yourself, the CCS staff, and the greater Columbus community. Building upon a vision and focus, we have set out to improve student achievement, address unresolved issues with respect to student records, develop partnerships and relationships that enhance student opportunities, improve our efficiency and effectiveness and engage the community in order to improve transparency and understanding. The following is a summary of our key efforts and initiatives to date: To focus and refine our efforts, we have developed three short-term goals to ensure that: · Each and every child reaches her/his full potential – prepared to go to college, secure a job, serve in the military, or start a business. · Learning environments are student-centered, efficient, and stable. · The District is accountable to the community and that the community’s confidence in the District is restored. We will achieve these goals by: Addressing the Student Records Issues – Since coming to CCS, I have worked closely with the Board of Education, Mayor Coleman, the District’s Internal Auditor, and the Auditor of State. We immediately took steps to address the student records scandal, including taking personnel actions. We have developed what the Auditor of State recently referred to as “model” protocols for how students should be appropriately withdrawn and the documentation that must be in place. Reducing Administrative Overhead – We listened to members of the community who said that CCS was too top heavy in administration, and that the District needed to place more resources in our schools and in our classrooms. In addition to eliminating six central office positions last year, we have further reduced central office administrators by 10 positions, saving hundreds of thousands of dollars. Improving Student Reading Achievement – Reading is the foundation of every student’s academic success. Our primary objective this year and going forward is to significantly strengthen our students’ literacy skills. To that end, we have partnered with The Ohio State University in investing in one of the nation’s most successful reading initiatives, the Reading Recovery Program. We are training teaching coaches through the Literacy Collaborative program to support teachers and assist in developing classroom lessons, and we have moved 20 master teachers and administrators from a centralized professional development unit into the District’s most challenged schools, where they are supporting and improving instruction. In addition, we have assigned 79 reading coaches to provide additional reading support at every elementary school. We also have launched a partnership with Columbus Metropolitan Library to provide after-school help to students at the library’s Homework Help Centers, and we are recruiting and training volunteer “Reading Buddies” to work with struggling elementary school readers. Expanding Pre-K Availability – Columbus City Schools’ Pre-K programs provide students with a rigorous foundation to prepare them for kindergarten and beyond. Because of long waiting lists at our existing locations, this year we opened 10 new Pre-K classrooms in schools located in areas where the need for high-quality early education is significant. We hope to secure additional financial support to further expand our capacity to serve 100 percent of all Pre-K eligible students by 2020. Expanding Technology Access – We are deploying existing funds where we can to buy the technology that 21st century classrooms and students require. Getting additional technology into the hands of students and teachers will require a substantial investment that cannot be attained with current resources. We hope to secure additional funds to provide one-on-one computer access for every middle and high school student, and one computer for every four students at the elementary level. Expanding College and Career Readiness – We are moving aggressively to align our programs and partnerships with higher education models. We have launched a pilot career and technical program in logistics in partnership with Columbus State Community College and have developed a partnership with The Ohio State Wexner Medical Center East, the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority and East-side stakeholders to make the east side feeder pattern a proposed medical pathway leading to a medically-focused high school. We are also partnering with businesses such as AEP, which has donated $5 million over the next five years to support students from our four STEM high schools. The initiative will allow students to take Columbus State Community College courses for free at their home high schools. Creating Greater Principal and Teacher Autonomy – By providing greater independence and autonomy to our principals and teachers, we intend to give them more authority for the specific needs of their students. Instead of a top-down, generic approach to meeting students’ needs, principals and their teachers are provided with resources and support to enable them to develop and implement building-specific achievement systems. This approach not only allows them to customize and tailor their improvement efforts, but it also makes them more accountable for their building and classroom results. Engaging the Community – We have been reaching out to parents, staff, and community members to listen to their concerns and ideas for improvement. To date, we have participated in more than 200 community meetings, with more scheduled during the next several months. We also plan to conduct surveys to gain insight into the greater community’s perceptions, concerns, and ideas. Our work is certainly not done, but I believe we are on the right course to substantial improvements. We appreciate the engagement and strong support of our parents, teachers, business and civic leaders in helping to reform Columbus City Schools. The outcome of the November 5 election offers the opportunity to redefine the future of our schools – and our community for generations to come. Respectfully yours, Dr. Dan Good, Ph.D. Interim Superintendent
Posted on: Thu, 31 Oct 2013 18:13:58 +0000
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