Friday, July 26, 2013

Bd. 227 and ECRA Group Continuous Evaluation Meeting on Wed., July 31, 2013 from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m.

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Announcement of Second School Board 227 and ECRA Group Continuous Evaluation Meeting on Wednesday, July 31, 2013 from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m.

We would like to pay special thanks and  tribute to the many individuals, educational consultants, and community organization representatives in attendance at our last meeting of the District 227 Continuous Evaluation Committee. The following individuals attended our first meeting on July 17, 2013 and took part in the deliberations.   We apologize for any missed attendees and committee members not listed or those whose names were missed or who may not have signed in on the attendance sheet.

 

List of those who attended on July 17, 2013:   Dr. Doris Langon, Dr. David Morgan, Dr. Jennifer Norrell, Mrs. Cynthia Hudson,  Dr. Steve Humphrey,   Mrs. Cheryl Coleman, Mrs. Venesa Woods,   Ms. Jennifer Bednarczyk, Mrs. Ilene Waite,  Mrs. Mary Brown, Mrs. Gail Burks, Ms. Arrie Christian, Dr. Theresa Dixon,  Dr. Herbert Ellis, Dr. Leonard Fourte,  Mrs. Janice Preston, Mr. Edward J. Johnson, Mr. Danny Tolliver, Mrs. Renee Felker, Mr. Terrance Felker,  Mr. Fulton Nolen Jr.,   Mrs. Cynthia Hudson, Mrs. Cheryl Mallard, Ms. Nicole McMorris, Ms. Ameenah Muhammad-Williams, Ms. Deidre Richie, Mrs. Cheryl Rutherford,  Ms. Yolanda Williams, Mr. Clifton Graham Jr., Mr. Reginald Walker, Ms. Bev Thomas, Ms. Hattie Bender, Ms. Chipporah Hightower

Change is not simply a matter of "talking that talk." To realize lasting and significant change we also need to also "walk the walk." Let's be real, it is easier to talk than to walk. If it were not, change and improvement would be easy to achieve, but we all know that it is not. In an organization that is thinking in terms of  a culture of continuous improvement the first step is to talk the talk. Articulate what is needed to achieve a better result. But the intermediate step, the continuous improvement step is to "talk the walk." It's important to try ideas on by thinking about them, talking about them, and projecting what would happen if they were implemented. In analysis, when we have talked the walk in the manner suggested here, then we are ready to walk the walk. Although we may make mistakes, if we keep trying and have done our homework, we can be successful.

 

Not only does routine drive out planning, it can also drive out continuous improvement. Routines unmonitored and unchecked become ruts. Stable in the absence of oversight can easily become stagnant and unproductive. In this day and age, any organization that find itself in a stable state with little or no continuous district evaluation, innovation, or accountability is near death. This is a powerful reminder of the challenges we face in District 227 in keeping schools and schooling relevant in a rapidly changing global society.

 

We hope to see you again on Wednesday, July 31, 2013 from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. Thank you for your continuing support in this endeavor.


David E. Morgan, Ph.D., Educational Leadership

Board Member and Chair of Continuous Evaluation Committee

Rich Township High School District 227 

Olympia Fields, Illinois  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rich Township 227 Coalition for Better Schools

 

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Special Rich Township 227 Board of Education Meeting Notification

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  Special Rich Township 227 Board of Education Meeting Notification

Rich Township District 227

20550 So. Cicero

Matteson, Illinois 60443 

 

Closed Session 5:00pm  

Open Session Meeting 6:30pm 


Date: July 30, 2013 (Tuesday)

See the meeting "LIVE" by visiting this URL: 

 

 open & login

 

 

Mrs. Cheryl Coleman

Rich District Board President

cherylmonique.coleman@aol.com

 

 

 

 

 

Rich Township 227 Coalition for Better Schools

 

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Thursday, July 25, 2013

Our next meeting will be held on Wednesday, July 31, 2013 from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m.

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Our next meeting will be held on Wednesday, July 31, 2013 from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m.

 

On July 31, 2013, we will look forward to your continued participation in the continuous improvement process . We thank you for your leadership participation on Wednesday, July 17, 2013 and look forward to your continued help on Wednesday July 31, 2013. Being an elected official, educator, parent, or citizen is about doing a particular job. It takes leadership to put in place the proper keystones for students to learn and achieve at the highest possible levels. Board work is, well, work. We are going to do this, not because it is easy but because it is hard. It all begins simply with a willingness to work together.

Years from now, we will look back on this historical moment, this movement, as a milestone, a turning point in the history of the South suburbs and of our school district. The one thing that has kept us optimistic and hopeful that our present dilemma can be turned around is the promotion of the accountability continuous school improvement process that we are endeavoring to implement for the 2013-2014 school year. After many years of negligence, it will take leadership to put in place a regular process to review student achievement performance data to ensure continuous improvement, promote board policies that supports it and to get responsible public servants in place to publicly communicate the value of continuous improvement to the District 227 Administration, principals, teachers, students, other district employees, community and to those we must depend upon to implement the school improvement vision.

Education is freedom. It is about preparing our youth to obtain a decent education, to do the work of the modern world, to take their place as equal citizens with others. The best way to fight crime, said Govern Quinn of Illinois, is spelled "JOBS." Our Midwest region, being the central location for the nation, has a number of demographic advantages. Thanks to the upcoming South Suburban Airport. On Thursday, July 25, 2013 Governor Quinn of Illinois signed a bill for the building of a third airport in the south Chicago Suburban region that will provide from 11,000 to 12,000 jobs for its citizens.

Today, our movement is also about having an educational vision in creating the quality public education system that is so fundamental to a strong democratic society. It is about helping board 227 carry out its responsibilities for creating equity and excellence in public education. This movement is about democracy.

Our goals for the next meeting on Wednesday, July 31, 2013, will be to:

1. Decide on our school district goals for the 2013-2014 school year basing our decisions upon:

a.   Where are we as a school district?

b. Where do we want to be?

c. By when?

d. What will it take to get there?

 

   The Role of the Board and Superintendent in Continuous Improvement: Action Plan

  I.  District 227 Goal 1: The District's primary responsibility is to educate students and assist them in meeting their personal learning goals as well as meeting/exceeding the Illinois State Learning Standards. This year, the district is working to improve the literacy of the students, with an emphasis on reading and math, insuring achievement for all students (prevention and intervention strategies). The district will be using data as a guide as it works to make the best educational decisions for all students.

This school year (2013-2014) the district will work to improve student achievement in math and reading by 10%. In the 2010-2011 school years, our PSAE scores went down from 36% at grade level to 27% at grade level. In the 2013-2014 school year, we can be equally as proactive in working on bringing up our school improvement scores from where they are now to what they were just two decades ago in the recent past and beyond. In setting our school improvement goals, it is better to err on the side of too great of a vision than not great enough.

Our purpose for the meeting on July 30, 2013 will be to frame our student achievement (reading-mathematics) goal for the 2013-2014 school year and then to discuss why our goal will be possible through work, focus, and faith in self improvement.

Goal 1: Rich Township High School Student Achievement for the 2013-2014 school year

This school year (2013-2014) the district will improve student achievement performance in Reading and Mathematics by 10% by:

 

II.  Objectives To Goal 1:  An objective is the specific measurable quantifiable daily action steps taken toward reaching the goal in deciding "How are we going to get there?"

 

a.  With ten months in a school year, we will achieve 10% progress during the 2013-2014 school year by demonstrating 1% per month progress in our Reading and Mathematics skills based upon ECRA's  District 227 Data Collection/Assessment Guides. That means we need to start the school year by hitting the ground running in August, 2013. In monitoring our district progress district wide and community wide, we will post throughout the three high schools throughout the school year, our monthly progress in moving toward our 10% annual Reading/Mathematics Improvement Goal to inform, motivate and inspire those who are responsible for goal implementation or in achieving our goal.

 

 b. The Board's Continuous/Assessment/Evaluation Committee will follow a regular process in meeting with the Superintendent/Administration Team (superintendent, administration, three principals, etc.) on a monthly basis, following or shortly after each walk-through to discuss challenges and opportunities for improvement in the board's responsibility and role in following a regular process to review student achievement data to ensure continuous improvement.

 

c.  District Administration will conduct two walk-throughs per month with the Board's Continuous /Assessment/Evaluation Committee at all three high schools. True evaluation drives administrative, instructional, and teacher decisions. The Superintendent and Administrative Team, but especially the building principals play a key role in school district turn around and the three high schools must use open, clear, committed, consistent, credible processes that is known and understood by all to involve board, school employees, and  the community's stakeholders in the process that will lead to a new climate and culture in accountability, organizational change and academic progress.

 

d.    As we review our walk-throughs (Board and District Administration) on our journey toward school improvement and recommend changes, the school board will participate in work sessions to better understand needed changes in curriculum and instruction based upon ECRA's student performance related  data.   ECRA's District  227 Assessment Data with suggestions and guidelines will arm both the school administration and the board with the tools necessary to increase student achievement performance levels, not just in core areas, but on those twenty-first century skills. In doing so, it will help school board 227 achieve the essential elements of their roles and work.

 

III. The Role of the Board and Superintendent in Continuous Improvement:  Summary 

 

An informed community of learners is an empowered community of learners. When it comes to promoting our school district's progress, school leadership matters. As school board and school administrators, we need to model the communications excellence we want our employees, students, parents, and community to emulate. If the board and superintendent don't look good, or don't work effectively together, it's impossible for the school district to look good.

 

District 227 officials will use benchmark tests to collect and evaluate student progress at regular intervals ( in preferably from one month and/or five weeks assessments) throughout the school year. The benchmarks are aligned both with state standards as well as local curriculum expectations in reading, math, and/or science and social science/history. This benchmark data can be made available online to educators and community. The data collected from the ECRA Group and benchmark assessment can be reviewed by administrators. Data reviews can be guided by a rubric of questions. School officials and consultants can then make recommendations for how best to proceed.

 

The board's continuous improvement process committee will meet with the superintendent to: (d-a) Follow a regular process to review student achievement data to ensure continuous improvement. (d-b) Take part in ECRA's training on principles of continuous improvement including use of data and customer focus. (d-c) Participate in ECRA's work sessions to better understand needed changes in curriculum and instruction based on related data. (d-d) Provide funding for continuous improvement. (d-e) Adopt board 227 policies that support continuous improvement, and (d-f) Support publicly and communicate the value of continuous improvement to the community.

In meeting and working with the school board, the superintendent will: (d-a) Clearly communicate to the staff, students, and community that we, the school board and administration, are committed to continuous improvement and to build continuous improvement into the planning process. Keep the community informed by providing (copy-in-hand to each community member) progress reports at open bi-monthly board meetings and on the district's website. (d-b) Set and review benchmarks and performance indicators with the board that demonstrate student performance progress related to the district's yearly goals, Strategic Implementation Plan and standards. (d-c) Provide clear analysis of relevant data related to student achievement (Using charts, graphs, and bar graphs) in user-friendly and visually recognizable understood terms for community stakeholders. (d-d) Seek input from professional staff on changes needed to strengthen instructional programs. (d-e) Recommend changes to the instructional program indicated by ECRA's 227 data, board recommendations, and staff input. (d-f) Schedule trainings on ECRA's principles of continuous improvement and participate with the board and community in the process. (d-g) Discuss ECRA's District 227 Assessment Measures to provide feedback on student achievement.

 
David E. Morgan, Ph.D., Educational Leadership

Rich Township High School District 227 Board Member

Chair:  Board 227 Continuous Improvement Evaluation Committee

Olympia Fields, Illinois  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rich Township 227 Coalition for Better Schools

 

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Sunday, July 21, 2013

DISTRICT 227 SCHEDULED BOARD MEETING DATES FOR 2013-2014 SCHOOL YEAR

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DISTRICT 227 SCHEDULED  BOARD MEETING DATES FOR 2013-2014 SCHOOL YEAR

BOARD 227 MEETING DATES FOR THE 2013-2014 SCHOOL YEAR AT THE DISTRICT ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE AT 20550 SOUTH CICERO AVENUE IN MATTESON, ILLNOIS. 60443.

 

 

JULY 16,   2013..     7:00 P.M.

BUSINESS MEETING

 

NOVEMBER 19, 2013... 7:00 P.M.

BUSINESS MEETING

MARCH 18, 2014... 7:00 P.M.

BUSINESS MEETING

AUGUST 1,2013... 6:00 P.M. WORKING SESSION

DECEMBER 5, 2013... 7:00 P.M.

WORKING SESSION

APRIL 3, 2014... 6:00 P.M.

WORKING SESSION

AUGUST 20, 2013... 7:00 PM.

BUSINESS MEETING

DECEMBER 17, 2013... 6:00 P.M.

BUJSINESS MEETING

APRIL 15, 2014... 7:00 P.M.

BUSINESS MEETING

SEPTEMBER 17, 2013... 7:00 P.M.

BUSINESS MEETING

JANUARY 15, 2014... 7:00 P.M.

7:00 P.M.   BUSINESS MEETING

MAY 20, 2014... 7:00 P.M. BUSINESS MEETING

OCTOBER 3, 2013... 6:00 P.M.

WORKING SESSION

FEBRUARY 6, 2014... 6:00 P.M.

WORKING SESSION

JUNE 5, 2014... 6:00 P.M.

WORKING SESSION

OCTOBER 15, 2013...   7:00 P.M.

BUSINESS MEETING

FEBRUARY 18, 2014... 7:00 P.M.

BUSINESS MEETING

JUNE 17, 2014... 7:00 P.M.

BUSINESS MEETING

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rich Township 227 Coalition for Better Schools

 

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Our next School Board 227 Meeting will be Tuesday, July 23, 2013 at 7:00 p.m.

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Our next School Board 227 Meeting will be Tuesday, July 23, 2013 at 7:00 p.m.
  
    
In our race to the top, our next Special Board 227 Meeting will be held on Tuesday, July 23, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. at the District Administrative Office at 7:00 p.m.
  
On July 17, 2013, concerned board members, school district administrators, parents, educators, the community's educational leaders and concerned citizens met as the Continuous Accountability/Evaluation Committee to begin  the long over due and needed concrete-actionable-step-process of developing District 227 goal one in reading and mathematics with quantifiable matching objectives to support our effective schools reform plan.
 
Enthusiasm has quickly built for the 10% targeted goal achievement in reading and mathematics for the 2013-2014 school year in District 227. 
To stop the bleeding in our school district and community, Board Chair Cheryl Coleman, and Board Member David Morgan will meet with the community in a Community Forum on August 3, 2013 to explain, listen, collaborate, and facilitate with  community input the reasoning and rationales behind  why  dramatic academic improvement in the first year as the new board majority is so essential and necessary.
A successful reading and mathematics program to accomplish District 227 goal one must include skill-specific diagnostic measures.  To accomplish our goal in effective data-driven formative assessments, formative assessment and regular reading-math diagnostic tests must be given regularly and instruction should be focused on exactly the reading-mathematics skills they need most help in mastering.  The approach should be pinpoint, not scattershot and unfocused instruction.
 
To improve student achievement performance, there is no substitute for hard work.  If our district 227 goal one is to improve reading and mathematics, then reading and mathematics progress should be tracked, challenges and recommendations addressed between board, staff, community, and administration, and recorded using diagnostic-formative  tests.
 
Mrs. Cheryl M. Coleman, Board 227 Chair 
David E. Morgan, Ph.D., Educational Leadership
School Board Member
Rich Township High School District 227
Olympia Fields, Illinois   60461
 
 
  
Rich Township 227 Coalition for Better Schools

 

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