Alabama Receiving More Than $58 Million for Turnaround Schools

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today announced that Alabama will receive more than $58 million to turn around its persistently lowest achieving schools through the School Improvement Grants (SIG) program. These funds are part of the $3.5 billion that will be made available to states this spring from money set aside in the 2009 budget and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

"When a school continues to perform in the bottom five percent of the state and isn't showing signs of growth or has graduation rates below 60 percent, something dramatic needs to be done," said Duncan. "Turning around our worst performing schools is difficult for everyone but it is critical that we show the courage to do the right thing by kids."

The $58,052,413 made available to Alabama is being distributed by formula to the state and will then be competed out by the state to school districts. In order for a school district to apply for these funds, it must have a state-identified "persistently lowest achieving" or a Tier III school -- a school that has failed to meet annual yearly progress for two years and is not identified as a persistently lowest achieving school.

However, Tier III schools can only receive funds once all of the state's persistently lowest achieving schools have received funds. Alabama's application, which includes its list of persistently lowest achieving schools, as defined by the state, can be found here: http://www2.ed.gov/programs/sif/summary/index.html.

School districts will apply to the state for the funds this spring. When school districts apply, they must indicate that they will implement one of the following four models in their persistently lowest achieving schools:

• TURNAROUND MODEL: Replace the principal, screen existing school staff, and rehire no more than half the teachers; adopt a new governance structure; and improve the school through curriculum reform, professional development, extending learning time, and other strategies.
• RESTART MODEL: Convert a school or close it and re-open it as a charter school or under an education management organization.
• SCHOOL CLOSURE: Close the school and send the students to higher-achieving schools in the district.
• TRANSFORMATION MODEL: Replace the principal and improve the school through comprehensive curriculum reform, professional development, extending learning time, and other strategies.

Once schools receive SIG funds, they will be able to begin to spend them immediately to turn around schools this fall. States may apply to the Education Department for a waiver to allow them to spend funds over a three-year period. An additional $545,633,000 has been provided for SIG in 2010 and will be awarded to states to fund additional schools in the 2011-12 school year. The department has also made a request for an additional $900 million for the program in the 2011 budget.

The article above is from a press release issued by the U. S. Department of Education on April 21, 2010.

Article from the Public Education Network Weekly Newsblast

As part of his sweeping healthcare overhaul, President Obama has made the federal government primary lender to students, the Associated Press reports. A final set of tweaks to the healthcare bill created an opening for the far-reaching legislation, the largest rewrite of federal college assistance programs in four decades. About half of undergraduates receive federal student aid, and nearly 8.5 million students attend college with the help of Pell Grants. Under the measure, private banks will no longer get fees for acting as middlemen in federal student loans, and the government will use the savings to boost Pell Grants and make it easier for loan repayment. In addition, some borrowers could see lower interest rates and easier approvals. The president has promoted the changes as a way to make college more affordable for students, with a debt load more manageable after graduation. "This reform of the federal student loan programs will save taxpayers $68 billion over the next decade," Mr. Obama said in his weekly address. "And with this legislation, we're putting that money to use achieving a goal I set for America: By the end of this decade, we will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world."

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/30/obama-to-sign-student-loan-legislation-in-virginia/

Social Networks

This week I have been spending some time with the fantastic staff of the Indiana PIRC. This trip was a perfect opportunity for us to share our resources and skills in ways that will help us all to grow and provide better services.

The Indiana PIRC has long been admired for their parent leadership Academies. They have worked hard for years to develop an outstanding model that leads to increasing student success through effective parent engagement. Anyone involved with the Alabama PIRC Academy for Parent Leadership and Engagement knows that we have been using the IN PIRC materials for years. This week, they have introduced us to their revised materials so that we can update the ones we are currently using. Additionally, they shared information about Books on Board (BOB, an early literacy program they developed) and the Path to College. You can find information about their fantastic programs at www.fscp.org

While I was here, I helped them get more connected to families, schools, and other organizations by working with them to develop a social networking plan. You can now find the Indiana PIRC on Twitter (@inpirc) Facebook (Indiana PIRC) and blogging at Posterous (http://indianapirc.posterous.com/) Why would they bother joining the social networking bandwagon? Maybe this video will explain...

Social Networking Video

Family Friendly Walk Through

Last week, the staff of the Alabama PIRC were trained on how to conduct Family Friendly Walk Throughs. The project, developed originally by the Arizona PIRC has been used successfully to help schools identify ways they can work with families to create a stronger learning environment for students. The research on family engagement has found that schools need to be the first to reach out to families and invite them to participate in their children's education. However, often schools have unintentionally created barriers to effective family engagement. Having a Family Friendly Walk Through helps the school understand how inviting it appears to the local community.

As a part of the walk through, the PIRC staff assess the school: customer service, school environment, school website, community partnerships, documents, and school to home communication. The walk through consists of a physical tour of the campus, surveys of parents and teachers, an interview with the principal, document reviews and website reviews. Once the assessment is complete, PIRC staff convert the data collected to a report, which is provided to the school as a reference tool for the purpose of creating a stronger learning environment. The report contains areas that were identified as either strengths, emerging practices, or areas for improvement along with specific research based recommendations for improvement.

If you are in a Title I school and you are interested in having a Family Friendly Walk Through, contact the Alabama PIRC today!

Preparing Teachers to Work With Families

Recently, Secretary Duncan released a call for colleges of education to improve the way they prepare educators to teach students. Secretary Duncan noted that we will need to "hire up to 200,000 first-time teachers annually over the next five years." In his press release, he pointed out that currently colleges of education are not doing an adequate job of preparing teachers for "the realities of the 21st century classroom." Secreatry Duncan calls for the universities preparing our future teachers to "ensure that new teachers master the content of the subjects they’ll teach and they will have well-supported field-based experiences embedded throughout their preparation programs. Their ultimate goal should be to create a generation of teachers who are focused on improving student achievement and ready to deliver on that goal."

I commend Secretary Duncan for taking a bold stand for children by calling out the universities that leave our teachers unprepared. However, I believe he forgot the most important missing link, family engagement. Most colleges of education do not offer future teachers any preparation at all to work with families and engage them in their children's learning. We have more research on family engagement than ever before and the results only confirm what we already know. When families are engaged in their children's education students perform better, have fewer behavior problems, and graduate on time. What we also know is that the most effective type of family engagement is what happens in the home. To truly improve the educational outcomes of our students, Secretary Duncan should call on our colleges of education to better prepare teachers to work with families and give them the help that they need to be more engaged in their children's education.

For more information on Secretary Duncan's remarks, read them at www.ed.gov

A Letter from Michelle Obama

This is a busy time of year in the Obama household. Like so many parents all across this country, I watch with a mixture of pride and anxiety as my daughters stuff their backpacks, kiss me goodbye, and move ahead in another school year without so much as a backwards glance.

My girls are now making new friends, tackling challenging new subjects, and moving closer to becoming the strong, confident women I know they can be. But when I see them come home, bursting with excitement about something they have learned or someone they have met, I can't help but think that some of the most influential people in my daughters' lives won't be the ones they socialize with on the playground or read about in the pages of a book—they will be the people who stand up every day in front of their classrooms.

We all remember the impact a special teacher had on us—a teacher who refused to let us fall through the cracks; who pushed us and believed in us when we doubted ourselves; who sparked in us a lifelong curiosity and passion for learning. Decades later, we remember the way they made us feel and the things they inspired us to do—how they challenged us and changed our lives. So it's not surprising that studies show that the single most important factor affecting students' achievement is the caliber of their teachers. And when we think about the qualities that make an outstanding teacher—boundless energy and endless patience; vision and a sense of purpose; the creativity to help us see the world in a different way; commitment to helping us discover and fulfill our potential—we realize: These are also the qualities of a great leader.

Today, more than ever before, we need precisely this kind of leadership in our classrooms. As the president has frequently said, in a 21st-century global economy where jobs can be shipped to any place with an Internet connection and children here in America will be competing with children around the world for the same jobs, a good education is no longer just one road to opportunity—it is the only road. And good teachers aren't just critical for the success of our students. They are the key to the success of our economy.

But the reality is that with each passing year, we are losing more and more of our most experienced teachers. More than half of our nation's teachers and principals are baby boomers. And in the next four years, as many as one third of America's 3.2 million teachers could retire. The U.S. Department of Education projects that by 2014, just five short years from now, our nation's schools will hire as many as 1 million new teachers. And the challenge to our schools is not just an overall teacher shortage but a shortage of good teachers in the schools where they are most essential: high-need schools that face some of the most daunting obstacles but have students with so much potential. We also have a shortage of teachers in subjects like math and science that we know will be critical to our children's future.

Today, we need a new generation of leaders to take their place in our nation's schools. We need passionate, talented, committed men and women to step up and devote themselves to preparing our students to succeed in this new century.

We need universities to double down on their efforts to prepare teachers and to improve and expand effective alternative routes to certify teachers. We need to encourage more experienced professionals to consider teaching as the next chapter in their careers. And we need to treat teachers like the professionals they are by providing good salaries and high-quality professional development opportunities. We need parents to do their part as well to match that leadership in the classroom with leadership at home. We need to set limits and turn off the TV. We need to put away those video games and make sure that homework gets done. We need to reinforce the example that's being set and the lessons being taught at school and make sure that learning continues at home.

And we need government to support significant efforts to recruit and retain teachers and to reward high-performing teachers. Along those lines, President Obama is already investing more than $3 billion to turn around struggling schools. And he has proposed a nationwide Teacher Recruitment Program to attract more people to the profession, especially in high-need schools. I look forward to being involved with this program and encouraging people across America to put their leadership skills to work in our nation's schools.

Much work lies ahead, and it won't be easy. But I am confident that with a new generation of outstanding leaders in our classrooms, we can make a lasting difference in the lives of our young people and a lasting impact on the life of this nation.

This letter to the Editor was published in US News & World Report on Tuesday, October 20, 2009 http://www.usnews.com/articles/opinion/2009/10/15/michelle-obama-teachers-are-key-to-a-successful-economy.html

Go Outside and Play!

Connecting to Nature Formal Partnership Established Among National, State, and Local Park Organizations Looking for a way to improve your child’s mental and physical health? Look no further than your nearest park or natural area. “Numerous studies conclude that time spent in outdoor settings decreases stress, inspires creativity, promotes social development, and encourages physical fitness,” said National Park Service Director Jon Jarvis. “A new partnership among the National Park Service, the National Association of State Park Directors, and the National Recreation and Park Association was recently formed to develop and promote programs and policies in parks and other areas that connect children with nature.” The partnership’s website, www.nps.gov/ChildrenInNature/BestPractices, contains a searchable database of approximately 450 outdoor activities compiled from hundreds of national, state, and local parks and program offices. “This easy-to-use website contains an extensive list of programs about a wide variety of subjects including archeology, art, prairies, pioneers, critters, and camping,” said Joe Elton, President of the National Association of State Park Directors. “Nature is an amazing classroom, and these creative programs make it fun for children to learn about and connect with the world around them.” “The way children understand and experience their natural world has changed radically over the past several decades,” said Lois Finkelman, chair of the National Recreation and Park Association Board of Trustees. “Our three groups will work together to expand recreational opportunities and natural resource education for children and families. In addition, we hope to engage other federal, state, local, tribal, and non-government partners in the effort.” Leaders of the three conservation organizations signed a partnership declaration which contains an action plan to increase public awareness of local and national natural resources. Contact Information Kathy Kupper | 202-208-6843 *This post is a press release from the National Park Service.

Schools as Community Hubs

October is Parent Visitation Month in Alabama. Parents are encouraged to visit the schools and schools are encouraged to let parents visit. That’s great, but wouldn’t it be nice if every month were Parent Visitation Month.

One of the visions that Education Secretary Arnie Duncan has laid out is the concept of schools acting as community hubs by becoming full service community schools. These schools would be open in the evenings and on weekends and welcome families and community members. The schools would have community computer labs where adult education classes could be taught. They would have social workers and provide access to a full range of social services.

Some communities have already started creating full service community schools and the results they are finding are very positive. For youth, the benefits include improved grades and behavior as well as better attendance. Youth tend to have an increased sense of attachment and responsibility to the community. They have improved personal or family situations with less abuse or neglect and an increase sense of school connectedness with increased access to physical and mental health services.

The school benefits from serving the community as well. The teachers are able to spend more time on class preparation and with students. There is improved teacher attendance and communication between families, schools, and teachers. Schools also receive greater resources due to more community partnerships.

The community benefits from an increased use of school facilities. There is an increase in community pride and citizens and students engage in more school and community service. Communities also see improved adult literacy, improved security and safety surrounding the school and improved outcomes for the basic needs of its citizens.

The benefit to families when schools are full service is also important. Families have an increased confidence in their role as their child’s teacher. They have a stronger sense of responsibility for their children’s education. Finally, when the school is more accessible and provides a full range of services, families have a greater attendance at all school and community functions.

Schools cannot do it alone, but they can become centers for collaboration with an other agencies committed to providing every student with the conditions that support learning. Open year-round and with extended hours, full-service community schools work with community agencies to provide on-site social, physical, mental, vision, and dental health care; after-school activities; service-learning projects; and adult education.

National Disability Employment Month

Did you know that October is National Disability Employment Month? To celebrate the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) is highlighting projects and initiatives funded by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) and the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitative Research (NIDRR) that improve employment outcomes for people with disabilities, including transition-aged youth.

All month, OSERS will feature innovative, employment-based projects and individual success stories on http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/deam-2009/index.html.

National Disability Employment Awareness Month dates to 1945 when Congress passed Public Law 176, designating the first week in October as “National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week.” The name of the month was changed by Congress in 1988.

The Alabama PIRC is proud to be housed in the same agency as the Alabama Network for Children with Disabilities. Our sister project is similar to our PIRC in that it provides training and information to families of children with disabilities. If you have a child with a disability please contact our office if you have any questions or concerns about their education or any other transition issues.

Learning Math Early May Make a Difference

Many adults admit that they find math challenging. In fact, many of us have a hard time doing simple math like calculating miles per gallon. In today's world, math is a critical part of making financial decisions like determining if you can afford that extra car note or how much you can pay on a mortgage. Its more important than ever that our kids learn how to do math well. Parents can play a huge role in helping their kids learn math early, even if they don't think they are good at math themselves!

A recent article by Eleanor Chute of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette provides some strategies for parents working with their kids at home. The most important strategy Chute mentions is to make learning math fun. Parents can start when their children are as young as two years old with learning about shapes and numbers. Parents also need to check their own attitudes at the door. They should avoid telling children that they don't like math or aren't very good at it and instead focus on fun math activities like puzzles and games they can do together. Learning math skills through play at an early age can make a difference in how well kids do math later in life.

For more information read the entire article from Elanor Chute in the August 30, 2009 Pittsburgh Post Gazette at http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09242/994281-298.stm#ixzz0PxkNuETd

Important Information from the US Department of Education

Todays blog is a reprint of a press release from the US Department of Education about their recommendations for dealing with Swine Flu or H1N1.

"Today, Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, District of Columbia Mayor Adrian Fenty and District of Columbia Chancellor of Public Schools Michelle Rhee joined with officials from Google, Apple, Microsoft, Scholastic Inc., Pearson, Curriki, and the International Association for Online Learning to announce new recommendations on the continuity of learning in the event of students absences or school closures due to seasonal or novel H1N1 flu.

The recommendations crafted by the Department of Education are designed to help education stakeholders start planning and acting now for the impact that seasonal and 2009 H1N1 influenza could have this fall and winter on schools and the learning process.

Government officials are especially concerned about the impact of H1N1 in schools because the virus appears to spread quickly among younger Americans. The Centers for Disease Control’s DC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recently found that younger Americans, specifically children ages 6 months to 24 years, are one of the top priority groups when it comes to the new H1N1 vaccine.

“We can all work to keep ourselves healthy now by practicing prevention, close monitoring and using common sense,” Secretary Duncan said. ”We know that some students may be affected by H1N1. And our top priority is making sure that they have a way to get well, stay well and to keep learning. With these recommendations, we’re providing a menu of strategies for educators to help ensure that the learning process will continue.”

“One important reason we are all here today is the Department of Education’s Continuation of Learning guidance,” said Secretary Sebelius. “Everyone’s goal should be to keep children healthy and in school. But if they get sick -- and some will -- we have to make sure that they don’t fall behind.”

The recommendations suggest that educators prepare take-home assignments in advance for distribution to affected students and use the Internet and telephones to post homework materials, conduct classes, share information and keep teachers, parents and students in close touch.

The department is working Google, Apple, Microsoft, Scholastic Inc., Pearson, Curriki, the International Association for Online Learning and other private sector partners, and service providers to make continuity of learning resources like pre-printed lesson plans, conference call services, webinar support, podcasting, and virtual classrooms more affordable and accessible for educators.

For the complete H1N1 Continuity of Learning Guidance, please visitwww.ed.gov/h1n1flu"

Sandra Day O’Connor Develops Online Civics Game

Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor has helped develop a free online computer game for teens that promotes civics. The “Supreme Decision” is the first of several games that are planned. In this game, students role-play the part of a U.S. Supreme Court Clerk. They help a justice with a tie-breaking vote over a First Amendment case. The game was developed to help middle school students learn more about the Constitution and the role of the courts.

Sandra Day O’Connor is not an avid tech user herself and admits that she doesn’t have a Facebook or Twitter account and doesn’t even text. She does recognize that students today do use technology. O’Connor recognizes that students are more likely to learn if they are taught in ways that they like to use. She claims kids spend “40 hours a week, on average, in front of some type of screen." She is famous for having said that more people can name an American Idol judge than the three branches of government.

O’Connor hopes that as a result of this project, students will learn more about civics and develop the skills they need to analyze problems and develop sound arguments. Another game, called "Do I Have a Right," has also been released. In that game, students play the director of a constitutional law firm. They must decide which amendment resolves a problem posed by a client. Check them out at http://www.ourcourts.org/default.php

Gates Foundation Grant for Alabama Teachers

This was just sent out via the Alabama Department of Education:

Funding for Public School Teachers to Help Students at High-Need or Rural High Schools Prepare For College!

1. What’s available? Gates Foundation has given us a grant to match funding to teachers’ classroom project request(s) to prepare students for college. Last year, 93% of projects that qualified for this Gates match offer were fully funded by donors who visited our site!

2. Who qualifies? If you are a full-time teacher at a high-need or rural public high school, you are eligible for this funding.

3. How do I participate? First, log in to your teacher account on DonorsChoose.org (if you don’t have one, any public school teacher can sign up at www.donorschoose.org/teacher. Once you’re logged in, submit a project requesting materials to help prepare your students for college.

4. Then what happens? A few hours after your project is approved, you should see a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation logo on your project. This means it has qualified for this offer and now has a great chance of being fully funded by the other donors that visit our site.

To see projects recently funded via this offer, visit http://www.donorschoose.org/donors/search.html?historical=true&keywords=college&&&gradeType=4

To get started with submitting your own college prep project, log in to your account at www.donorschoose.org/teacher.

Linking the Dropout Crisis to the Economy in Alabama

Did you know that in Alabama students who are over 16 can legally dropout of high school? Perhaps that is one of the reasons The Southern Education Foundation reports that “Alabama now ranks 42nd in the nation in per capita income and nearly two-thirds of the state’s income gap with the nation is entirely due to the state’s low levels of education primarily fueled by the state’s high school dropout problems.” Last year the SEF published High School Dropouts: Alabama’s Number One Education and Economic Problem. This shocking report found the high school dropout rate in Alabama in 2006-2007 was 39 percent and it links the dropout problem to economic problems over the last thirty years. The report found that the consequences of having an undereducated population are dire indeed.

According to the report, dropouts lose the opportunity to gain the skills they need to earn livable wages. The lack of skilled workers can prevent local communities from generating the revenues needed to provide the public services that citizens require. Also, dropouts are less likely to participate in civic life, reducing the effectiveness of public engagement in democracy. Dropouts are more likely to end up marginalized, living as vagrants, creating communities of concentrated poverty and incarcerated at higher rates. This puts an even bigger burden on the community when potentially productive citizens are locked up at public expense.

I encourage everyone to read the report from the SEF. It explains how Alabama is ranked 42^nd in the nation in per capita income and clearly links that to our education system. It explores the pattern of dropout rates by county and shows that Alabama ranks 45^th in failure to graduate according to the US Department of Education.

To solve the dropout crisis facing our state, the SEF encourages Alabama to address the issues that “define the needs of the entire academic system: academic preparation for achievement, positive school environments, targeting effective programs, successful recovery and prevention measures, and adequate financing.” You can find the report online at http://www.sefatl.org/pdf/HSD%20Report-Final-2007Appendix.pdf

According to the report, “Alabama can attract and grow new industries with good paying jobs in the decades ahead only if it systematically keeps more students in school, provides them with affordable higher education, and helps them graduate from high school and college on time.”

Alabama Has a Decrease in Title I Schools In Improvement Status

Today is the day that the list of schools that did not make adequate yearly progress (AYP) was released. Its also a day that many are breathing a sigh of relief! This year the number of schools in improvment status has gone down. If a school does not meet its AYP goals two years in a row in the same subject area, the school enters improvement status. Once a school is identified as in improvement, it must make AYP two years in a row to come out of improvement status.

According to the Alabama Department of Education, 1,376 public schools, including 866 Title I schools, were measured for the 2009-10 AYP status (based on 2008-09 data). This year in Alabama, 122 schools have been identified for School Improvement. Of those identified, 52 are Title I schools – a 29 percent decrease over last year’s 73 Title I schools. These 52 Title I schools must offer School Choice if a school of choice is available in the same district.

Title I schools identified for School Improvement in Year 2 and beyond must continue the school choice option to all students and provide Supplemental Education Services (SES) to students eligible for free/reduced meals. Non-title I schools may offer the same provisions, but don't have to because of the cost. In 2009, the Alabama Department of Education requested a continuation of the waiver so that schools in their first year of improvement may offer choice instead of SES. Parents can contact their local school system’s central office for more information.

Accountability results, assessment results, a listing of all schools, including their AYP and School Improvement status, and School Choice information can be found on the Alabama Department of Education’s Web site at www.alsde.edu under “Accountability Reporting.”

Fireworks Safety

I was raised in Southern California where fireworks were illegal because of the tremendous fire risks and health hazards. Now that I live in Alabama I see firework stands popping up everywhere in December and July. Many families buy their own fireworks to celebrate special occasions. If you decide to use fireworks with your family, here are some tips from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. 

If fireworks are legal where you live and you decide to set them off on your own, be sure to follow these important safety tips:

• Never allow children to play with or ignite fireworks.
• Read and follow all warnings and instructions.
• Be sure other people are out of range before lighting fireworks.
• Only light fireworks on a smooth, flat surface away from the house, dry leaves, and flammable materials.
• Never try to relight fireworks that have not fully functioned.
• Keep a bucket of water in case of a malfunction or fire.

Remember, the safest fireworks are the ones lit by professionals! Check your local paper to find shows near you!

Summer Begins!

Summer has arrived and most schools are closing for the year if they haven't already. Many parents have mixed emotions about summer vacation. Its a great time of year for the entire family to plan a trip or just stay home and enjoy the weather. But its also a time when kids seem to lose some of what they learned the year before. In fact, teaches can tell you that much of the beginning of the next school year will be dedicated to relearning what was taught the year before. 

What can we do at home to make a difference in our kid's learning. Actually, quite a bit. The research tells us that what parents do at home is the type of parent involvement that has the biggest impact on student achievement. So, this summer there are a couple of things you can do and we will highlight a new idea for you each week. This week we will focus on literacy by highlighting Family Book Clubs.

To start your own Family Book Club, select a book that will interest you and your child and is on your child's reading level. Your local library has lots of good books you can borrow and the librarian can help you decide if the reading levels are right. Then decide how many pages or chapters you and your child will read each night. The next morning set aside some time to talk to each other about what you read. Be sure to talk about things like the plot, the main characters,  and the setting. 

This activity can help you to raise your child's vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension. But the best part is the time you get to spend together!