Priority School (SIG) TA Session Cohort III

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Priority School (SIG) TA SessionCohort III New
Principals
C Corbett Education Consulting LLC
Virginia Department of Education
VDOE Office of School Improvement Holiday Inn
Koger Center Richmond, VA October 18, 2012
October 20, 2012
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Technical Assistance Sessions for Cohorts I II

• October 18th 20th (Thurs. Sat.)
• Cohort III New Principal Boot Camp
• January 2013
• Tue. 01/08/13 Building Autonomy, Leading Change
  and Establishing SIG Working Relationships
• March 6-7, 2013 (Wed.-Thurs.)
• Working with Stakeholders, Professional
  Development, and Reforming Instruction
• April 24, 2013 (Wed.)
• Increasing Learning Time and Reflections and
  Planning for 2013-14

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Agenda (1 of 2)
Thursday, Oct. 18th
Welcome Intro to VAs Turnaround Program 530 630 PM
Advice Lessons Learned 645 800 PM
Friday, Oct. 19th
Optional Continental Breakfast 800 830 AM
Intro to SIG/Priority Schools 830 930 AM
Required Indicators 930 1015 AM
Break 1015 1030 AM
Selecting Working with LTPs 1030 1200 PM
Lunch 1200 100 PM
Teacher Principal Evaluations 100 245 PM
Quick Wins 245 400 PM
Long Break 400 530 PM
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Agenda (2 of 2)
Friday, Oct. 19th
Pick up Dinner 530 545 PM
Selecting and Working with External LTPs 545 800 PM
Saturday, Oct. 20th
Optional Continental Breakfast 800 830 AM
Leading Change Communication 830 930 AM
Break 1015 1030 AM
Intro to Indistar 1030 1145 AM
Pick Up Lunch 1145 1200 PM
Panel Teacher Observations 1200 1245 PM
Transformation Toolkit, Intro to Goal Setting Planning 1245 130 PM
Breakout Sessions 130 200 PM
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Fri Introduction
Introduction to SIG

• In January 2010, the US Dept. of Education (USED)
  released revised guidance for use of the School
  Improvement Grants (under 1003(g) of the
  Elementary and Secondary Education Act)
• The 3.5 billion must be used to implement one of
  four models outlined by USED
• The revised guidelines significantly changed the
  roles and responsibilities for the school,
  district, state and partners

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Defining School Improvement
Fri Introduction

• School improvement
• Is an intensive intervention effort in a school
  and often requires changes at the district level
  as well.
• Is not a short-term fix, but a long-term systemic
  solution to change how schools work.
• Can be accomplished by implementing a variety of
  strategies that vary in the level of
  prescriptiveness and intensity of support needed.
  
• Efforts will not always be successful, but in the
  majority of cases, current efforts to improve
  chronically low-performing schools are not
  producing the needed results.
• Why are the four proposed models so different
  from past improvement efforts?
• Past federal and state guidance allowed and
  promoted piecemeal efforts.
• In effect, few schools exited and stayed off
  improvement lists.
• Students are the focus of these improvement
  efforts allowing schools to operate with
  limited effectiveness for multiple years
  drastically increases the likelihood of
  low-student achievement and high dropout rates.

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Four Models to Improve Persistently
Low-Performing Schools
Fri Introduction

• Turnaround Model
• Requires many specific actions, including
• Leadership staff changes
• New governance structure
• New or revised instructional program assessment
  system
• Increased operating flexibilities
• Increased student supports

• Restart Model
• Close failing school
• Reopen under education management organization
  (could be a charter)
• Must admit any former student who wishes to
  attend (within appropriate grade levels)

• School Closure
• Close failing school
• Enroll students at higher-achieving schools in
  district

• Transformational Model
• Reform plan must include specific actions to
  address
• -Teacher and leader effectiveness
• Comprehensive instructional strategies
• Expanded learning
• Increased operating flexibilities

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Strands Indicators (Transformation Model)
Fri Introduction
Strand Content Area of Indicators
A Establishing Orienting the District Transformation Team 4
B Moving Toward School Autonomy 6
C Selecting a Principal Recruiting Teachers 8
D Working with Stakeholders Building Support for Transformation 7
E Contracting with External Providers 8
F Establishing Orienting the School Transformation Team 2
G Leading Change 6
H Evaluating, Rewarding, and Removing Staff 22
I Providing Rigorous Staff Development 11
J Increasing Learning Time 8
K Reforming Instruction 11
Total 93
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Fri Process Expectations
Overview of the SIG Process Expectations
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3 Year Process to Build Capacity
Fri Process Expectations
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Shifting State Role Compliance to Support
Fri Process Expectations
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Roles Responsibilities
Fri Process Expectations

• Lead collaborative school-based improvement team
• Develop leadership skills of strong teachers and
  junior administrators
• Communicate regularly with all other team members
  to ensure school needs are addressed
• Act as the Change Leader

• Provide overall guidance, timeline, resources,
  support for implementation
• Provide additional staff and capacity building
  services, with decreasing intensity over time

• Have the authority direct contact with the
  superintendent to make timely decisions
• Communicate with superintendent school board
  about process and changes
• Facilitate changes within the district to allow
  autonomy at the school level

• Monitor implementation of all action steps, work
  of partners, and obligations noted in the MOU
• Communicate needs from the field to the VDOE
• Share learnings with other facilitators
• Connect the local team to other supports and
  services at VDOE (help streamline the system)

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Expectations
Fri Process Expectations

• Work in the best interest of the students
• Contribute to a collaborative environment
• Challenge the status quo
• Attend participate in all required Technical
  Assistance sessions, meetings and conference
  calls
• Implement with fidelity
• Everyone must do the work
• Ensure efforts are aligned work towards the
  same goals
• Over communicate with each other outsiders
• Work towards sustainability
• Picking and choosing indicators is not an
  option, all 93 must be included in the overall
  plan, but focus on the ones that directly address
  the schools needs

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Fri LTPs
Selecting Working with an External Lead
Turnaround Partner?
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Hiring Process
Fri LTPs

• Hire or Appoint the divisions Internal Lead
  Partner
• Develop scope of work, roles responsibilities,
  reporting structure, etc
• Define hiring process
• Complete a high-level needs assessment to
  determine your school and districts most
  relevant strengths and weaknesses
• Release an RFP based on your divisions needs
• Score proposals
• Proposal evaluation template (CDE Guide, pages
  30-34)
• Invite finalists to present their proposals
• Sample interview questions (CDE Guide, pages
  35-36)
• Call references!
• Determine finalist and begin contract
  negotiations
• http//corbetteducation.com/CDEresourceguide.pdf

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Contract
Fri LTPs

• Include in the contract
• Scope of work
• Deliverables
• Timeline
• Personnel
• Expectations/needs of the district school (from
  the vendor)
• Goals and performance management
• Rewards and consequences
• Renewal process
• Cost
• IP Rights
• Contract amendment process

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Moving Forward Hints
Fri LTPs
Moving Forward
Hints

• Address challenges and communication problems
  ASAP
• If you dont ask, you wont get it
• Always keep on eye on sustainability
• Ask for help when needed
• Communicate, communicate, communicate
• Remember that its about the students and the
  education they receive

1. Work with the LTP to hire the core-LTP staff to
   ensure a good fit
2. Ensure the divisions Lead Turnaround Partner has
   the authority and autonomy to make decisions
3. Define relationships and boundaries of all on the
   team
4. Jointly complete the diagnostic/needs assessment
5. Determine priorities
6. Create implementation plan for year 1

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Fri Evaluations
Teacher Principal Evaluations
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Sat Quick Wins
Quick Wins
What actions demonstrate the change in culture?

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Quick Wins
Fri Quick Wins
Purpose Evidence that significant change is occurring
Timeline Within the first two months
Outcome Observable
Benefits Signify change in culture Bring positives to potential opponents
Examples Paint walls/murals, clean facilities, complete easy structural improvements (water fountains, bathrooms, flickering lights) Have all teachers/administrators greet students at the beginning of the day Rearrange faculty lounge, provide coffee/breakfast for the first week (ask for local donations)
Frequency September and January of each year Anytime there is a lull in confidence or implementation fidelity
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Prioritize the Indicators
Sat Toolkit Planning

• Within each strand, please rank each indicator
  in priority order
• (1 top priority)
• Please determine the level of difficulty for
  implementation
• 1 easy win little to no controversy
• 3 requires a great deal of planning, input,
  numerous action steps could be controversial
• 4 could be a potential barrier to the work or
  requires major changes to division
  practices/policies
• 3. Indicate a general timeline for completion
  (including the month in year 1, ongoing, or years
  2/3.

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Sat Leading Change
What does it Mean to be a Change Leader?
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Leading Change
Sat Leading Change
Even positive change can be stressful. An
effective change leader can maximize the
opportunities of change while minimizing the
risks. Jody Spiro

• Prepare for
• Unforeseen circumstances
• Participants who feel uncertain unprepared for
  what is to come
• Stakeholders who oppose disruption of their
  current influence
• People who feel disempowered
• People will not make the changes, no matter what
• Prepare by
• Continuous analysis
• Mid-course corrections
• Plan ahead
• Act quickly
• Commit to the goals
• Support each other

• Resources
• Spiro, Jody. Change Leader Handbook,
  www.wallacefoundation.com

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Change Action Steps
Sat Leading Change
1
2
3
4
5
6
7

• Resources
• Spiro, Jody. Change Leader Handbook,
  www.wallacefoundation.com

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Readiness and Structure
Sat Leading Change

• Low readiness HIGH STRUCTURE
• Leader initiated
• Specific, clear outcomes with timelines and
  evaluation criteria
• Templates for work plans and budgets
• Written meeting agenda including ground-rules for
  participation
• Written records of decisions reached at meeting
• Continuous review of progress and mid-course
  corrections through a defined structure, such as
  regularly-scheduled meetings
• Structured questioning to lead group conversations

READINESS

• Medium-readiness MODERATE STRUCTURE
• Decision-sheets, perhaps written by each
  participant on a rotating basis for a series of
  meetings
• Jointly-set meeting agendas and ground-rules
• Collaborative planning

STRUCTURE

• High-readiness LIGHT STRUCTURE
• Jointly set the objectives
• Let the group decide how to achieve objectives,
  divide responsibilities, determine action plans

• Resources
• Spiro, Jody. Change Leader Handbook,
  www.wallacefoundation.com

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Sat Stakeholders
Stakeholder Engagement
Who should be involved in this work? Who
and what could prohibit this work from happening?
How do we involve stakeholders? What
actions demonstrate the change in culture?
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Identifying and Planning with Stakeholders
Sat Stakeholders
SUPPORTERS
OPPONENTS

• Which groups will gain or lose from this
  initiative or aspects of this work?
• Which groups could prohibit or thwart the work
  from happening? How?
• What incentives could be used to engage
  opponents?
• What are the priorities for each group and how
  can they be incorporated into the action plan?
• Identify your schools stakeholders and develop
  messages or action plans to educate the
  stakeholders and get them to assist the
  turnaround process.

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Sat Indistar
Indistars Purpose
What is it? How to use it (technically)?
How does it guide the improvement process?

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Sat Toolkit Planning
Transformation Toolkit Intro to Planning

• Transformation Toolkit, Center on Innovation
  Improvement
• http//centerii.org/resources/Transformation_Toolk
  it-0409.pdf
• Before making a detailed school and district
  improvement plan, we must determine
• What are our needs? (Diagnostic)
• What are our strengths? (Diagnostic)
• What gaps exist? (Diagnostic)
• What should we tackle first? (Priorities
  Activity)

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Questions for Consideration
Sat Toolkit Planning

• Whats the diagnostic process?
• Whats the timeline?
• Whos in charge? Whos involved?
• Whats the desired outcome?
• Whats done with the diagnostic after its
  completed?
• Discuss communication strategies how you work
  best.
• Who should meet, with what frequency for what
  purposes?

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Moving Towards Actions
Sat Toolkit Planning
Task Complete quick wins to change culture of
school Person Accountable Principal Indicator
Strand G4
Task Action Steps Constraints Resources Responsible Timeline Process Notes
Paint mural in lobby Select students to help Graffiti Seek donations from local art hardware store Asst. principal and art eacher Early-mid August
Reveal mural 1st day of school Asst. principal 1st day
Greet students in the morning as they arrive Half of staff take turns each day Teachers not wanting to participate Department heads to divide staff mid-late August
Provide breakfast for the days greeters Seek donations from local bakeries/cafes PTA mid-late August
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Resources (1 of 2)
Sat Additional Resources

• School Improvement School Turnaround
• Brinson, D., Rhim, L. M. (2009). Breaking the
  habit of low performance Successful school
  restructuring stories, http//www.centerii.org/sur
  vey
• Case studies, examples of implementation,
  analysis and other publications are available in
  Mass Insight Education Research Institutes
  School Turnaround Resource Center,
  http//www.massinsight.org/turnaround/reports
• Hassel, B., Hassel, E. A., Rhim, L. M. (2007).
  Introduction Overview of restructuring. In H.
  Walberg (Ed.), Handbook on Restructuring and
  Substantial School Improvement (pp. 1-14).
  Charlotte, NC Information Age Publishing. (Also
  available at http//www.centerii.org/survey)
• Improving Low-Performing Schools Lessons from
  Five Years of Studying School Restructuring under
  No Child Left Behind. Center on Education Policy,
  2009, http//www.cep-dc.org
• Lane, B. (2009). Exploring the pathway to rapid
  district improvement. www.centerii.org/survey
• Redding, S. The mega system. Deciding. Learning.
  Connecting. A handbook for continuous improvement
  within a community of the school. Lincoln, IL
  Academic Development Institute, 2007.
  http//www.centerii.org/survey
• School Turnarounds Actions and Results. Center
  on Innovation and Improvement Public Impact,
  2007. http//www.publicimpact.com
• School turnarounds A review of the cross-sector
  evidence on dramatic organizational improvement,
  Public Impact, 2007. www.centerii.org
• State and Local Implementation of the No Child
  Left Behind Act. American Institutes for Research
  U.S. Department of Education, 2007,
  http//www.air.org
• The Turnaround Challenge Why Americas best
  opportunity to dramatically improve student
  achievement lies in our worst performing schools.
  Mass Insight Education Research Institute,
  2007. http//www.massinsight.org/turnaround/challe
  nge
• Wong, K. (2007). District-wide framework for
  improvement. In H. Walberg (Ed.), Handbook on
  restructuring and substantial school improvement
  (pp. 15-27). Charlotte, NC Information Age
  Publishing. (Also available at http//www.centerii
  .org/survey)

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Resources (2 of 2)
Sat Additional Resources

• Community Engagement
• Starting fresh in low-performing schools
  Engaging parents and the community. National
  Association of Charter School Authorizers
  (NACSA). (2006). http//www.qualitycharters.org/fi
  les/public/Start_Fresh_Book_2.pdf
• Steiner, L. and D. Brinson, Fixing Failing
  Schools Building Family and Community Demand for
  Dramatic Change, Public Impact, May 2011.
  http//publicimpact.com
• Expanded Time
• National Center for Time Learning,
  http//www.timeandlearning.org
• Guidance
• Handbook on Effective Implementation of School
  Improvement Grants, Center for Innovation
  Improvement, http//centerii.org/survey
• School Restructuring Guide. Center for
  Comprehensive School Reform and Improvement
  Public Impact, 2008, http//www.centerforcsri.org
• Toolkit for Implementing the School Improvement
  Grant Transformation Model. Center for
  Innovation Improvement, http//www.centerii.org
• United States Department of Education Final
  Requirements for School Improvement Grants,
  January 15, 2010 http//www2.ed.gov/programs/sif/f
  aq.html
• Leadership Professional Development
• Kowal, J. and J.Ableiding. Leading Indicators of
  School Turnaround How to know when dramatic
  change is on track. Public Impact and UVAs
  Partnership for Leaders in Education,
  http//publicimpact.com
• Principal Effectiveness. New Leaders for New
  Schools, 2008, http//www.nlns.org/uef.jsp
• School Turnaround Competencies. Public Impact,
  Chicago Public Education Fund DC Public
  Schools, 2008, http//publicimpact.com
• Spiro, Jody. Leading Change Handbook Concepts
  and Tools, Wallace Foundation, 2009.
  http//www.wallacefoundation.org
• UVA Darden-Curry Partnership for Leaders in
  Education, http//www.dardencurry.org

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Contact Info
Wrap Up

• Julie Corbett
• jcorbett_at_corbetteducation.com
• www.corbetteducation.com
• 312-479-7719