Hereford & U. S. v. Huntsville City Bd. Of Ed. Public Status Conference September 6, 2017

Outline for the Day Introductory remarks from HCS Superintendent and Deputy Superintendents Consent Order implementation update given by counsel for the Parties Opportunity for Private Plaintiffs and Desegregation Advisory Committee members to address the Court Opportunity for members of the public to address the Court

Introductory Remarks Dr. Matthew Akin Superintendent of Huntsville City Schools Christie Finley Deputy Superintendent of Strategy and Innovation Dr. Tammy Summerville Deputy Superintendent of Instruction

General Topics General monitoring, reporting, and oversight updates School Climate Issues Rolling Hills Elementary School Blossomwood and Jones Valley Elementary Schools Huntsville High School

General Monitoring, Reporting, & Oversight Requests for information from the United States Many teleconferences between the Parties DOJ visits to Huntsville City Schools facilities _______________________________________________________________ DOJ Comments

School-Specific Climate Issues Rolling Hills Elementary School New Leadership Blossomwood and Jones Valley Elementary Schools Withdrawals Disciplinary challenges Huntsville High School Tensions

DOJ Comments: School Climate Issues Rolling Hills Elementary School Blossomwood and Jones Valley Elementary Schools Huntsville High School

Student Assignment M-to-M program Attendance Zones Magnet School Updates

M-to-M Program 2016-17 Transfer Summary Refining the Capacity Process Total M-to-M Transfers: 271 New | 724 Total Blossomwood Elementary School: 57 New | 88 Total Jones Valley Elementary School: 25 New | 58 Total Huntsville High School: 38 New | 122 Total Refining the Capacity Process High Response Rate from Student Surveys

Attendance Zones No changes to the school attendance zones Growth in Huntsville East Huntsville West Huntsville into Limestone County

Magnet Program Update New Magnet Programs College Academy Update Third Cohort First completed year of college courses New Century High School Magnet School of America Certification

DOJ Comments: Student Assignment M-to-M program Attendance Zones Magnet School Updates

Equitable Access to Course Offerings Gifted Math Acceleration and student support services Honors/AP/IB courses available Disparities in academic performance on state standardized tests and AP exams

Gifted Education Update Continued efforts to reach out to parents Compromise with the Alabama State Department of Education Increase in the disparity between Black and White student identification

Math Acceleration The District is not at 100% Algebra I participation. There is great variability in 8th grade Algebra I participation Some schools as low as 19% Some schools as high as 71% Changes to departmentalization

AP, IB, and Honors Courses Work to ensure that all elementary schools have the 6th grade Honors All high schools have met the AP and Honors requirements Participation in all three categories has improved Percentage of students taking at least one Honors or AP   Course 2013 - 2014 Black White Other Total Honors* 26% 53% 39% 40% AP** 14% 31% 19% 23% 2017 - 2018 Black White Other Total 39% 61% 48% 50% 18% 41% 28% 30%

Disparities in Academic Performance Benchmarking on Aspire Math (14-15 & 16-17) for the District 51%  43% Black 29%  23% White 71%  64% Benchmarking on Aspire English (14-15 & 16-17) for the District 73%  67% Black 59%  52% White 88%  85% Benchmarking on ACT Math (14-15 & 16-17) for the District 33%  31% Black 6%  9% White 54%  52% Benchmarking on ACT English (14-15 & 16-17) for the District 57%  53% Black 25%  29% White 80%  78%

Disparities in Academic Performance AP test scores (14-15 & 16-17) for the District 48%  46% Black 10%  16% White 61%  56% New Challenges: Changes to state exam Changes to local benchmarking

DOJ Comments: Equitable Access to Course Offerings Gifted Math Acceleration and student support services Honors/AP/IB courses available Disparities in academic performance on state standardized tests and AP exams

Extracurricular Activities New staff New plans and goals Improvements to the student outreach department

Extracurricular Activities Review of the: National Junior Honor Society National Honor Society Plans for improving communication about these two clubs

DOJ Comments: Extracurricular Activities

Faculty Compliance with Singleton ratios Teacher on Special Assignment (“TOSA”) program composition Equitable distribution of teachers and administrators Summary overview of non-renewals, demotions, etc.

Compliance with Singleton Ratios Small number of schools fall outside the Singleton Ratio: Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School 2% for Black Rolling Hills Elementary School 1% for Black McNair Junior High School 5% for Black | 7% for White Challenger Middle School | 3% for White Mae Jemison High School 5% for Black | 6% for White Efforts to remedy these issues

Teachers on Special Assignment Description of the Program Number of remaining TOSAs: 16 Total by Race: Black 11 White 5 The TOSA Program is being phased out

Equitable Distribution of Teachers This is more difficult to track than the Singleton Ratio Factors (see page 42 of 92): Professional Degrees Certifications Subject Matter Expertise Years of Experience Performance Reviews Qualifications of AP Teachers Training Other Indicia of Quality and Effectiveness

Equitable Distribution of Teachers Major Issues: Long list of possible considerations Hard to meaningfully track all of them Some secondary departments are very small

Summary Overview of Adverse Employment Actions The majority of entries in the Court Reports are non-tenured teachers Summary of Data: 86 Total Teachers 26 Black 59 White 78 Non-Tenured Teachers 8 Tenured Teachers

DOJ Comments: Faculty Compliance with Singleton ratios Teacher on Special Assignment (“TOSA”) program composition Equitable distribution of teachers and administrators Summary overview of non-renewals, demotions, etc.

Facilities Overview The District completed the construction and renovation projects from the Order Whitesburg P-8 Academy for Academics and Arts Huntsville High School Freshman Academy Sonnie Hereford Elementary School McNair Junior High School Jemison High School Grissom High School SMALL Lab Plan

Facilities Overview Completed ahead of schedule: Morris P-8 Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School Continued to follow the Playground Plan

DOJ Comments: Facilities

Student Discipline Behavioral Learning Guide Other major discipline initiatives Discipline data MOU with the Huntsville Police Department/role of school resource officers LAUNCH/ACE alternative programs

Behavioral Learning Guide BLG started in 2016-17 Too dense Not user friendly Stakeholder feedback led to a rewrite of the BLG Significant changes

Other Major Discipline Initiatives Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports Tier 2 training Implementation Challenges Restorative Practices Restorative Panel Meetings Improvements to In-House Learning Centers New Curriculum New Interventions

Student Discipline Data Discipline Summary - Percent of Students Receiving At Least One Disciplinary Infraction   ODR ISS OSS Black White Other P5 & P6 2015-16 14% 4% 8% 2% 1% 2016-17 22% 6% 7% 11% 3% P8 25% 9% 13% 16% 5% 27% 12% 15% Middle 37% 18% 40% 10% 17% 23% High School 32% 38%

Student Discipline Data   Black White Other Expulsions 2015-16 1.4% 0.3% 0.1% 2016-17 0.2% Arrests 1.2%

Role of School Resource Officers Collaboration with the HPD and SROs Monthly meetings Developing more opportunities for collaboration Challenges Ensuring that SROs are not used for school discipline

LAUNCH/ACE Programs The District has changed its alternative program Focus is on “non-traditional” programming and not merely discipline Length of expulsion Focus on career tech opportunities More focus on engaging instruction

DOJ Comments: Student Discipline Behavioral Learning Guide Other major discipline initiatives Discipline data MOU with the Huntsville Police Department/role of school resource officers LAUNCH/ACE alternative programs

Transportation The Parties are working on a Motion for Unitary Status Community concerns about transportation

DOJ Comments: Transportation

Desegregation Advisory Committee (DAC) Update on Parties’ role in assisting DAC Response to DAC report

Assisting the DAC New Communication Options for the DAC Lock boxes Website Training the DAC Periodic updates from the DAC Information requests

DAC Report Received on September 1 District’s review and response Attorneys have reviewed the document Superintendent has not yet been able to review the document

DOJ Comments: DAC Update on Parties’ role in assisting DAC Response to DAC report

Closing Comments from the Parties

Comments from the Community