1. Barrow County Schools Charter System Process January, 2008- February, 2011

2. The journey began… First things first… Get the Board on Board! January 2008- July 2009

3. 1.Charter System Petition Broad Flexibility School Governance Innovation Accountability beyond NCLB 2.Investing in Educational Excellence (IE2) 3.Status Quo Educating BOE, Staff and Stakeholders on 3 Options

4. Educating the BOE, principals, and staff prior to the vote… Presentations from: Mark Whitlock, Dr. Thomas Van Solean, Dr. Pat Stokes, Staff GSBA, GAEL and other conferences Visits to Career Academies Visit to City Schools of Decatur

5. Transparency – Input - Reaching Out Was CRITICAL! Town Hall Meetings Teacher Talks at Every School Chamber of Commerce Press Releases Website Wikispace TOTY Advisory Council 6 Planning Teams –Core Planning Team, Governance Team, Educational Programs Team, Assessment/Goals Team, Operations Team, Fiscal Team

8. Overcoming Misconceptions About Charter Systems Budget cuts tied to charter system status Special Education requirements Fine Arts Class size Salary schedule Highly qualified

9. Organizing the work... The Petition - Five Areas Governance Team Educational Programs Team Goals and Assessment Team Fiscal Feasibility Team Operations Team

10. Process for each of the 5 teams… 1.Committee gathered data 2.Committee developed recommendation 3.Recommendation presented to core planning team for feedback 4.Core planning team presented recommendation to BOE for feedback 5.Recommendation shared with stakeholders

11. Governance Structure School Level Governance Teams (SGT) Cluster Governance Teams (CGT) District Governance Team (DGT) Board of Education (BOE)

12. School Level Governance Team Principal serves as chair for the first 2 years Vice Chair, Parent or Business Partner elected by SGT Secretary, elected by SGT– adheres to Sunshine Law 3 or 4 teachers who are nominated by the Leadership Team and then voted on by faculty (must be proportional to the number of parent/business representatives)

13. School Level Governance Team 3 or 4 Parents or Business Partners (non-staff) who are appointed by principal for the first 2 years (must be proportional to the number of teacher representatives) Student (optional at elementary level) Assistant Principal is an ex officio member Must have a minimum of 7 members and a maximum of 11 members (number must be odd for voting purposes) Should meet on a monthly basis

14. Cluster Governance Team Chair from each SGT in the cluster Vice Chair from each SGT in the cluster Superintendent’s designee (designee will be appointed based on the area of expertise needed for each meeting) Superintendent and Central Office Staff will serve as ex officio members and will be available for support

15. Cluster Governance Team Cluster Governance Team elects a chair and a vice chair Must meet as a team a minimum of 3 times per year Must meet with the District Governance Team in order to present status of the Cluster Governance Team (a minimum of 1 time per year) Must meet with the Board of Education in order to present status of the Cluster Governance Team (a minimum of 1 time per year

18. District Governance Team Superintendent Executive Cabinet Chair of AHS Cluster Governance Team Chair of WBHS Cluster Governance Team Must meet as a team a minimum of 2 times per year Take recommendations to the BOE

20. School level decision-making The School Governance Team (SGT) can make decisions that do not impact the operations of the school system and/or other schools within the district and if the recommendations are permitted by Georgia law and the terms of the Charter System petition. Decisions made by the SGT must be submitted to the Superintendent for review.

21. School Governance Team decision-making (Granted in Stages Based on Training) Year 1: 1.Primary focus – training (possibly use GSBA modules) 2.Make recommendations on the integration/expansion of the 5 areas of focus (Effective written and oral communication, Greater problem- solving skills, Greater critical thinking skills, Effective use of modern technology, Greater focus on 21 st century literacy skills) identified in the Charter Education Program 3. Make recommendations on the Balanced-Scorecard/School Strategic Plan

22. School Governance Team decision-making continued Input in principal selection process Set additional rules regarding dress code and/or discipline (beyond Code of Conduct) Approve fundraisers and field trips Revise by-laws

23. School Governance Team decision-making continued Year 2: Continue training Continue year 1 decision-making Make recommendations for school-level budget Review and revise by-laws and make-up of School Governance Team

24. Requirements for SGT The SGT will be required to adhere to the following operations of the Board of Education: –Conduct open meetings –Advertise meetings –Use agenda –Complete required training –Post meeting minutes –Use e-board –Follow Robert’s Rules of Order –Establish procedure for requests to appear before the SGT

25. Local Board of Education Maintain the rights and responsibilities in the Georgia Constitution May attend meetings but may not serve on School, Cluster, or District Governance Teams Will review recommendations made by the Superintendent/ District Governance Team –will determine if the recommendations are permitted by Georgia law and the terms of the Charter System petition –will vote on recommendations from the Superintendent and District Governance Team

26. Educational Programs/Innovations Essential Questions for our Work 1. What are the critical skills our students need to be successful in the 21st century? 2. What do we expect our high school graduates to know and be able to do? 3. What changes must be made within our education system to prepare our students for post-secondary, work, and life in the 21st century?

27. Educational Programs/Innovations Common System Focus Identified 1.Effective written and oral communication 2.Greater problem-solving skills 3.Greater critical thinking skills 4.Effective use of modern technology 5.Greater focus on 21 st century literacy skills

28. School Governance Teams will be expected to: Work with faculty and stakeholders to integrate the 5 skill areas to meet the system charter goals Work with faculty and stakeholders to implement and/or expand benchmarks that will demonstrate mastery of these goals Work with faculty and stakeholders to communicate outcomes to the students, parents, teachers, BOE members, and the community that the competencies have been met

29. Assessment and Goals Essential Question How will we measure student improvement and its connection to the academic and organizational performance-based goals?

30. 1. Student Achievement - The Five Looks and The Balanced Scorecard 2. Progress Monitoring on the Five Goal Areas 3. On-going Monitoring of the Chartering Process The assessment model for our petition is presented in three parts:

31. The Five Looks CategoryFocusedHow Measured ProficiencyTotal Competency Percent Meeting/Exceeding Subgroup Level Competency Percentage of Total Subgroups Meeting Expectations ProgressValue Added Progress Value Added Improvement/Regression Peer ComparisonDemographic Expectation Performance projection based on demographics compared to actual performance Like-Demographic Expectation Comparisons of AVG. Scale Score with 3 most similar Districts/Schools

32. How can we measure the 5 areas of focus? 1.Effective written and oral communication 2.Greater problem-solving skills 3.Greater critical thinking skills 4.Effective use of modern technology 5.Greater focus on 21 st century literacy skills

33. Possible Assessment Tools: College and Work Ready Assessment (CWRA) –measures how students perform on constructed response tasks that require an integrated set of critical thinking, analytic reasoning, problem solving, and written communication skills Levels of Teaching Innovation (LoTi) –evaluates teaching in the 21st century classroom Walk through formative evaluation assessment –teachers receive feedback on their efforts to meet district goals based on walk through evaluations

34. Possible Assessment Tools: Performance Based Senior Project –measures student performance on the 5 goal areas The CLassroom Analysis of State Standards (CLASS Keys) –teacher evaluation tool has been developed to support teachers’ work in standards-based classrooms Survey businesses in Barrow to ensure student performance and quality Survey students to determine their perception of readiness for school and or work

35. How will we monitor the on-going charter process? Annual reports submitted to Local Board of Education Annual reports submitted to State Board of Education

36. Fiscal Feasibility Essential Questions What is the fiscal history of the school system? –The Barrow County School District has a solid fiscal history –The district has never operated under a fiscal deficit plan. –Barrow County historically has maintained a fund balance of at least 10%. –There has not been an increase in the millage rate for five years. The millage rate is currently at 18.50. –The Standards rating for Barrow County is AA+ for GO Bonds in 2006. –The Barrow County School District passed a SPLOST in 2006. In July 2010 the referendum passed to continue the 2006 SPLOST.

37. Each school will continue to receive funds generated based on student enrollment and program participation Schools will have broad flexibility in spending state generated funds After the SGT has had the appropriate finance training, then the SGT can work with the principal to set the operational budget How will federal, state, and local funds be distributed to each charter system school in order to maximize spending and governance at the school level ? Fiscal Feasibility Essential Questions

38. Fiscal Feasibility Continued The Barrow County Business Services Department will continue to have oversight of the day to day operations budgeting process and will oversee budget spending to ensure compliance to local, state, and federal regulations. The Georgia Department of Accounting and Audits will continue to monitor all fiscal matters in Barrow County.

39. Operations Essential Questions 1.How will students be assigned or enrolled in the school system? - There are no plans to change the way students are assigned to schools in the charter system - HB 251 will be continue to be implemented - High school students will be offered “choice” to attend the new College and Career Preparatory Academy

40. 2.What will the employment procedures be in the charter system? -Minimal changes to charter system’s employment procedures and policies -Final approval of hiring and/or termination of all staff by Barrow BOE -School governance team will have input in selection process for principal -Alternate certification requirements may be defined as highly qualified for specific teaching needs Operations Essential Questions

41. 3. What will the student discipline and student dismissal procedures be in the charter system? -Each school in the charter system will be required to abide by the Barrow County Schools Code of Student Conduct - Each SGT will have the authority to increase the student behavior responsibilities/requirements as long as the changes do not impact another school or district operations

42. 4. Operations Essential Questions What will the grievance procedure be for the school system? The current Barrow County BOE procedures for grievances and complaints from students, parents, and teachers will be followed

43. Questions and Comments