Interesting Director Questions on HCC at Seattle School Board Meeting
At the Seattle School Board meeting last night, the Board approved/rubberstamped the district's required by the state plan for highly capable services.
What was interesting to read were the questions and answers on the HCC program. There is a Q&A for Board members to ask questions of staff on items on the agenda and it comes at the end of the Board agenda.
To note, last night the Board also approved slash and burn revisions of many of their policies; here's one part about the Board asking staff for help with information that is now gone:
4. Requesting Work of Staff: Any requests of staff involving significant staff
time must come from at least two Board members. All requests must be
made through the Superintendent or appropriate senior leadership. In the
spirit of collaboration, Board members are committed to be sensitive to
staff workload issues and to reach mutual agreement with senior staff
regarding due dates for requested work. The requesting Director shall
confer with the chair of the appropriate committee regarding requests. If
the chair and/or the Superintendent question the reasonableness of the
request, the Superintendent may ask the Executive Committee (or Board
President between committee meetings) to decide if the request should be
delayed or reduced in scope if it would have an adverse impact on the core
work and established priorities of the district. The Board President will
report to the Executive Committee when a decision is made between
committee meetings.
Clarifications or explanations of agenda items are not considered a request
for staff work.
It is unclear whether the Q&A now on the Board meeting agendas will go away because of this change.
I do want to first show you this statement from Director Liza Rankin and the word salad answer that district staff gave her. This is on the dissolution of the partnership between TAF and the district for the TAF program at Washington Middle School. (The district notified TAF that SPS could no longer provide the level of funding to the school as stated in the agreement between the two. TAF said they could not operate the program without that funding and so they mutually agreement to end the agreement.)
Rankin:
This item is the acceptance of the dissolution of the agreement between SPS and TAF, which was a 10-year agreement. In looking at the original BAR and materials, it appears that the agreed upon level of investment from SPS was exceeded in each of the three years since the beginning of the agreement.
I would like to know how/if this was addressed and what lessons SPS may have for any future partnerships. I'm disappointed to see a promising program leave our district, and I hope that there has been value for students in the past three years, and that district leadership is using this as an opportunity for growth and understanding to increase future capacity for this type of partnership to be successfully maintained, if entered into.
Please advise the board if there are policy recommendations to consider related to this. I do not need this information before voting on this item.
Staff
Director feedback and request for future policy recommendations provided to relevant divisions for consideration and follow-up as appropriate.
They could have just as easily said, "Thanks for the feedback; we'll let you know." But SPS learning lessons? SPS explaining how they spent more on the TAF program than agreed upon? Nah. And again, I say that I believe, like the teachers contract, district leadership KNEW they did not have the dollars for either and were content to just see how everything played out.
Now to the Approval of the Annual Highly Capable Program Plan for 2022-2023.
Director Lisa Rivera Smith asked one question but the bulk of the questions came from Director Vivian Song Maritz.
Rivera Smith
What will the $1,704,438 in state highly capable funding specifically be used for? Please be as detailed as possible.
Staff
Funding is used for the following budget items:
- Staffing: program manager, project manager, 3 program specialist (teacher certs - one with elementary focus, one with secondary focus, one with special populations focus), admin, data analyst, customer care team
- Operations: printing, tech equipment, etc.
- PD support: research books, materials, PD, AP course summer training registration costs
- Program design: practitioner work groups (contract) Dr. Kristina Henry Collins
- Communications/Engagement: Comms team support); Contract - Racial Equity Consultants for work with Highly Capable/Racial Equity Advisory
This answer baffled me a bit because where is testing?
Song Maritz
What is the K-2 pilot? Which Schools participated? What are the learnings/best practices from the pilot? What is the next step?
Staff
K-2 Pilot is focused on Math - currently in progress:
- Collaborative effort with Math Department
- Identification of tools and strategies within EnVision math materials that meet the needs of depth and complexity for any students needing extensions
- Pilot at 4 schools (Hawthorne, Lafayette, North Beach, and West Woodland in prep for grades 3-5)
- Summer Creation of Advanced Learning Hub for resource and guidance for all K-2 teachers
Song Maritz
"Goals for District Program:" How have these goals changed from last year? If they have changed, why did they change? What data do have now to show you are on track to achieve these outlined goals for 22-23?
Staff
District Priority 1: By the end of 2022-2023 school year, Advanced Learning Department will increase confidence in the three big shifts (moving from gifted child paradigm to a talent development paradigm, moving from cut score eligibility to multiple criteria of evidence eligibility, and moving from a cohort model of services to a neighborhood school three tier model) in 10% of school administrators and 10% of educators by 15% as indicated by pre and post questionnaire.
District Priority 2: By the end of 2022-2023 school year, Advanced Learning Department will increasethe number of new eligibility decisions of African American male students in the SW and the SE regions as needing Advanced Learning/Highly Capable services from 9% to 12%. Increase by Feb 2023 the percentage of completed Demonstrated Performance Tools (DPT) from the SW and SE regions by 20% from 47% to 67%.
District Priority 3: By February 2023, the Advanced Learning Department will receive at least one complete DPT by instructions assistants from each of the 36 schools in the SE and SW regions.
District Priority 4: To prepare for systematic student voice gathering, the AL department will analyze existing student voice data from existing sources to learn best strategies for the 2023-24 school year. By April 2023, the AL department twill increase the voice (input and recommendations) of BIPOC families in the SW, SE and Central regions from 19-40 families sharing about one or more of the following:
- General eligibility and identification process
- Communication tools and strategies to families/community
- Services available in their school communities
Comments
"At the current time the above estimates do not include any cost associated with the total
ratio of 1:80 which is below the contracted limited of 1:150 and the number of prep
periods being provided are assumed to meet all current contract requirements"
— Not Surprised