Superintendent sees required reforms an opportunity to improve
instruction at school
Acknowledging that the designation of San Juan School as one of
the state’s lowest performing is
”
a bit embarrassing,
”
the interim superintendent of the Aromas-San Juan School
District said he sees the ability to reform instruction at the
school as
”
an opportunity.
”
San Juan School was one of 188 schools on the state’s
lowest-performing schools list released this week, meaning it must
come up with a turnaround plan that could involve anything from
converting to a charter school, replacing the principal and some
staff or closing the school completely. A more likely approach,
however, is to modify the school’s instructional approach.
Superintendent sees required reforms an opportunity to improve instruction at school
Acknowledging that the designation of San Juan School as one of the state’s lowest performing is “a bit embarrassing,” the interim superintendent of the Aromas-San Juan School District said he sees the ability to reform instruction at the school as “an opportunity.”
San Juan School was one of 188 schools on the state’s lowest-performing schools list released this week, meaning it must come up with a turnaround plan that could involve anything from converting to a charter school, replacing the principal and some staff or closing the school completely. A more likely approach, however, is to modify the school’s instructional approach.
The California Department of Education on Monday listed the San Juan Bautista school among the bottom 5 percent of the state’s persistently lowest-performing schools, based on how students have scored on standardized tests. It was the only San Benito County school to make the list.
“With every challenge comes an opportunity,” said Willard McCabe, who has been the district’s interim superintendent since July. “I’m a new superintendent and we have a new principal and we’re both looking at [the low-performing school status] very seriously. No one wants to be on this list. We have a fine staff. We just have a number of challenges that we need to face.”
San Juan School Principal Bronson Mendes-LoBue could not be reached for comment before press time.
Underperforming schools are eligible for between $50,000 and $2 million in federal money each year for three years, but they must take one of the following four actions in order to be considered for the funding:
– Replace the principal and at least 50 percent of the staff.
– Convert to a charter school.
– Close the school and enroll students at higher-achieving schools in the district.
– Transform the school by changing the way students are taught, reforming instructional methods, and increasing instructional time, among other things.
McCabe said he is considering the latter, so-called transformational model by using more research-based instructional practices tied to state teaching standards.
Schools that don’t make changes voluntarily might be forced to make changes by the state, officials said. Districts have until June 1 to turn in an application outlining how they would reform schools on the list in order to be eligible for funding. Schools must begin their transformations at the beginning of the next school year.
“It may be a bit embarrassing to be classified as low-performing, but we will come out as a stronger school in a couple years when we see a direct outcome from the strategies we’re implementing,” McCabe said. “I see the school rising out of the ashes like a phoenix and becoming a strong and productive school.”
San Juan School’s Academic Performance Index (API) standardized test scores have dropped to 650 last year from 672 the year before. California’s goal is to have all schools score at least 800. Approximately 70 percent of the students at the school participate in the free or reduced-cost lunch program and 40 percent of the students are English Language Learners, which McCabe called “significant.”
“We need to address the needs of those students to mitigate the poverty and language barriers that our children are facing,” he said. “I believe we are up to the challenge and have launched initiatives this year that will transform it. Yes, we haven’t performed as well as we should have in the past, but our API is up districtwide and with the reforms we have in place we see ourselves improving dramatically in next year’s student performance results.”
The reforms enacted by low-performing schools are expected to enhance California’s chances of obtaining Race to the Top funds from the federal government. The state found out last week that it is out of the running for that money this year, though the reasons won’t be revealed until April.
The federal funding is designed to help local officials help turn test scores around by adding staff, expanding school days or buying textbooks or supplies.
In addition to some San Juan School students’ lower level of English proficiency and their families’ economic challenges, the Aromas-San Juan Unified School District is facing budget cuts like nearly every other district in the state. Though McCabe is expecting the official layoff of 1.8 FTE (full-time equivalent) positions districtwide, some of those cuts will be among positions that are not currently filled, lessening the blow.
“My goal is to minimize the impact to our classrooms, because that’s the sacred ground, if you will,” he said. “Our largest priority is to maintain classroom positions.”
San Juan School has been in “program improvement” status for the past five years, meaning the state closely monitors student performance on standardized tests and implements penalties if certain goals are not met.
“The prior superintendents have worked on strategies to attempt to improve that and schools are in desperate times because our finances are pretty bleak, but I don’t want to make any excuses,” McCabe said. “Our kids deserve our best effort now. We’ve taken that charge very seriously and are developing strategies to improve our educational delivery systems.”
Pinnacle wire services contributed to this report.
