The following document is a reflection of my observations and involvement with the Rochester City School District since mid April of 2007.  By no means is this a comprehensive analysis.  It is one man's observation as viewed through the lens of 37 years of experience in public education.  It only begins to scratch the surface. 

Contents

I.  Parental Involvement/Community Partnerships

Partnerships, School Adoptions, Volunteering

Mentoring

  II. Safety/School Environment

Transportation

UPK Transportation

Scanning of Students

School Climate and Administrative Leadership

Suspensions

Gang Violence

School Sentries

School Resource Officers (SRO)

  III. School Design/Structure/Issues

Early Childhood

Pre-Kindergarten Education (Universal Pre-K or UPK)

Additional 0 to 5 Issues

Kindergarten

Elementary

Secondary Schools

Secondary Administrative Organization

Bi-Lingual Education

Youth and Justice Programs

Alternative Education

Retention

Graduation Rates

•IV. Professional Administrative Ratio

•V.   Special Education

•VI. Human Resources

•VII.  Board of Education

•VIII. Business Operations

•IX.  Closing Statement

•X. Appendices

I.  Parental Involvement/Community Partnerships

Parental Involvement

This is an area of critical concern.  Over the years RCSD has been perceived as involving parents in a perfunctory manner.  While many systems, internal organizations and programs exist to engage parents and community at large, district commitment to follow-through and the value of parents and community partners has been unsatisfactory.  Near fatal procedural and management issues have been replete in DACT, PPC, SBPTs and PTAs.  Additionally, required parental sign-off, communication and participation on important State documents, procedures and programs have been ignored, minimized or marginalized.  Required parental signatures on the Consolidated Grant were ignored.  Parental notification of the status of RCSD as a District in Corrective Action (DICA) was not provided.  One parent has described parental involvement as "looking good on paper" but not in action. 

Recommendations

A new supervisory position of Director of Parent and Community Involvement has been created.  The intention is that a committee of representative parents and community members make a recommendation to the superintendent from a pool of qualified candidates.  It is imperative that the person selected has the support of parents and the community as a community advocate and partner.  In concert with parents and the community the new director will continue the corrective measures put in place from May to December, 2007.  Additionally, the new director should be charged with fostering an atmosphere that welcomes parents and the community rather than viewing them as an "unavoidable nuisance." 

There have been serious election problems with PPC and DACT.  The issue with PPC is currently being addressed, however, at a minimum, there needs to be a change in the by-laws which will enable the committee to be populated by parents.  DACT recently held an election where a school-district employee was elected as president.  The majority of the people casting votes were school liaisons (district employees).  I made a formal complaint to DACT, expressing my desire to have a parent at the head of an organization designed to engage parents. It was subsequent to that meeting that I discovered that the majority of votes came from district employees.  I have not received a response to my complaint.  DACT should be reconstituted with new by-laws.

PTA and PTO organizations often fail to get building and district recognition as an important and viable means of engaging parents.  Recently, PTAs and PTOs were added to the district website to make these organizations and their good works accessible to parents and the community at large. 

Over the past several months, I and staff members have been collaborating with a number of parent and community activists establishing a list of concerns and potential solutions (Appendix A).  It is imperative that these issues are given all due consideration.  They represent parent involvement and community participation at the grass roots level.  Giving weight to this document and its fulfillment will be a significant recognition of the value of parents and community involvement.  This document is a commitment to offer solutions rather than simply pointing out district deficiencies.

Partnerships, School Adoptions and Volunteering

While there are myriad partnerships, school adoptions and volunteers, RCSD needs much, much more in order to ensure the success of our children.  Furthermore, the definition of partnerships, adoptions and volunteerism has a different meaning from school-to-school and are completely unregulated.  There has been very poor support of the aforementioned from the highest levels of administration.  There must be strong support from the superintendent and the board for these initiatives.  Our business community is ready to partner.  Our faith community has committed to adopt every school in the district.  Our community at large is knocking at the door to mentor our youth.  All of the above groups have expressed a serious frustration with RCSD.  They do not feel wanted.  In many cases, they simply cannot get in the door.  Volunteers have repeatedly stated that RCSD does not know how to use volunteers.  This reluctance to involve the community has created a lack of confidence in RCSD and a sense that the school district does not really care about children. 

In a recent conversation with the president of MCC, I was told of a host of partnership opportunities that were squandered by RCSD.  In another meeting with Brockport State College we were informed of Tuition-Free Training offered to RCSD students in Academic preparation, Certified Nurse Assistants, Child Development Associate and Renewal, Civil Service Exam Preparation, Commercial Driver License, Cosmetology, Culinary Arts, English for Speakers of Other Languages, GED preparation, Licensed Practical Nurse, Medical Secretary, Nail Technician, Office and Administrative Support, SAT preparation and Surgical Technician.  These offerings are from SUNY Brockport's Rochester Educational Opportunity Center.  Unfortunately, very few referrals of our students into this program have been made.

Recommendations

The establishment of the position of director of Parent and Community Involvement/Partnerships will be necessary to address the above issues.  The short and long-term plans of the district must include Partnerships, Adoptions and Volunteering as critical components for student success in addition to academic and structural reform.  Commitments made with the community from May to December of 2007 must be maintained and nurtured.  The Faith Community Alliance has committed 52 parishes to adopt all 61 schools.  This must not be ignored.  There has been significant commitment from the Educational Leadership Council (consisting of Who's Who of business, industry, community and higher education of Rochester) to the RCSD.  All levels of education are being supported by the ELC, from Pre-K to grade 12.  In the last year we have engaged our local colleges and universities through Today's Students and Tomorrow's Teachers.  This program, brought to the district in September prepares minority students to become teachers during the high school years and provides college scholarships.  It must be expanded every year.  This is a major initiative that will help produce critically needed minority teachers. 

Rochester's Promise was announced in December and provides $100,000 to RCSD student accepted to the University of Rochester.  Nazareth and Roberts Wesleyan provide tutors as well as other support.  These are just a few programs of many that must be continued, nurtured and expanded.  It should be a priority to engage the 19 area colleges in a commitment to emulate the University of Rochester's "Rochester's Promise."

I met with Monroe Community College President December 13, 2007.  At that time he announced the desire for the MCC Foundation to fund scholarships to MCC for all RCSD graduates.  I recently provided him RCSD student scholarship selection criteria.  It is imperative that RCSD follow through on this initiative to offer substantial hope to our students. 

Judy Fonzi from the U of R has been a wonderful resource to help coordinate and define partnerships, adoptions and volunteerism.  We have begun meetings with her and they must continue.  Another expert source on volunteerism is Isobel Goldman of Jewish Family Services.

Programs that offer free tuition to our students such as the Rochester Educational Opportunity Center must be embraced.  Partnerships with MCC and its vast resources through Workforce Development Funds must be accessed, not ignored. 

Mentoring

One of the major recommendations of the report on the condition of the RCSD chaired by Al Simone was the need for 10,000 mentors.  Prior to 2007, there had been no progress in this area.  We do not need the Simone report to know the importance of mentors and intergenerational activities.  Minimally, our at-risk youth need mentors.  This is a high priority. Generation 2 is an intergenerational program with 1^st graders that is in 3 of our elementary schools (2 added this year).  It is not enough!  Interviews with students have told us that they are crying out for caring adults to serve as role models and mentors.  Conversations with secondary teachers lead us to the same conclusions.  Seventh grade students make up the majority of secondary schools' 1,804 long-term suspensions.  This quote from a highly-respected African-American male RCSD teacher and role model hits the point; "If we can't nip 7^th grade behavior in the bud, what in the world are we going to do when they are in 9^th grade?  All we can do in high school (grades 9-12) is bandage them rather than treat them." 

Recommendations

 This year we created The Family Wisdom Initiative at Freddie Thomas.  This program (led by a community family psychologist Dr. Bruce Goldberg and community member Midge Thomas) engages 40 adults in a family mentoring program.  This program will be evaluated and should be replicated in our other schools.  Additionally, we have had conversations with Educational Data Systems (EDS) to begin a district-wide mentoring program for 7^th graders.  This program is in its nascent stages.  Every "at risk" 7^th grader will be given a mentor BEFORE long-term suspension becomes a necessity.  This program must be established if we expect to make a difference in the lives of secondary students and if we expect to increase the graduation rate.  Henry Bleier of EDS has been part of a mentoring program for the past 12 years at Monroe High School.  He has committed to work with RCSD to develop this program.  Psychologists Bruce Gilberg and Patty Yarmel have worked with me in the foundation of the development of the 7^th grade mentoring initiative.  On December 18, 2007 we discussed the direction the program will need to take in order to provide the necessary help for our adolescents. 

We are hopeful that another participant will be included in these initial mentoring planning discussions in the person of Hussain Ahmed.  I commissioned Hussain to begin the Rites of Passage initiative at John Marshall.  Rites of Passage works exclusively with the 7^th graders at John Marshall.  It is an incentive program that stimulates hope and desire for students to go beyond high school and on to further educational opportunities.  In this program, every 7^th grader has a mentor.  The success of this program will be measured longitudinally.  Combined with efforts such as the Family Wisdom Initiative and the planned Mentors for All 7^th Graders effort, we will make a difference in student behaviors and subsequently student achievement. 

When examining Rites of Passage, the district should also look into a peer mentoring component for seventh graders.  Seventh graders need mentoring and role-modeling from older high school and college students.  Peer mentoring programs such as College for Every Student by Met Life should be given careful consideration. 

II.  Safety/School Environment

Our community is not safe!  Since I have been here, we have seen the highest murder rate in the state.  We have had three schools placed on the Persistently Dangerous list (only 46 of these schools exist in the entire country).  The violence in the community bleeds into the schools.  Murders of parents are commonplace.  Students have been murdered and students murdered students.  Within the school walls, there have been stabbings and extremely violent assaults. 

Our neighborhood streets are not safe.  There are very few neighborhoods where walking to school is safe.  Countless weapons have been seized upon entry to our schools from students who feel they need protection to get to and from school. 

Too many high school teachers teach "afraid."  They are afraid to discipline students.  And for good reason.  In reviewing many of the long-term suspensions, teachers are too often hurt by the violent acts of students. 

Gangs are prolific.

School Culture and Climate must be addressed.

Recommendations

Transportation

Many suburban districts provide door-to-door transportation for all of their children because of "safety," yet transporting all of RCSD children has never been considered.  In conversations with staff who have worked for RCSD for over 30 years, the provision of door-to-door transportation for students living under the 1.5 mile limit has never been on the "radar."  Provision of transportation for all will be a SIGNIFICANT improvement in the effort to meet our children's basic need for safety.  In my view, provision of door-to-door transportation is a moral imperative. 

In addition to protecting our children from harm, to and from school, door-to-door transportation will improve attendance (many students do not attend school out of fear), grades will improve (Fear overcomes the ability to perform well in class.  There is ample research on the production of cortisol in the brain that diminishes a child's ability to learn when fearful) and more kids will graduate. 

In parent surveys, the number one reason for choosing a school is to get transportation.  They want transportation so their children do not have to walk the dangerous streets.  Door-to-door transportation will bring a higher percent of families to their neighborhood schools.  Parents have repeatedly expressed the desire to send their kids to the schools in their neighborhoods but choose more distant ones for the bus ride.  Parents expressed a desire to be at their neighborhood schools so they can be more involved in the school and that the school can be one with the immediate neighborhood.

This is not an issue of great financial significance.  Currently, under Managed Choice, transportation costs are extremely high due to the nature of bussing kids far from their homes.  Over time, the door-to-door proposition will be a negligible expense.  Even without the savings from a movement to neighborhood schools, without transportation aid, the estimated increase in cost would be about $3.7 million to transport the 8,000 walkers.  This amount will decline significantly when parents begin to send their children to neighborhood schools.

I have written legislation that would provide transportation aid to big city districts without mileage limitations.  There is precedent for this legislation and I view its support by the board and the administration as absolutely essential.  I have included my proposed legislation as a part of this report.  This legislation will provide $3.4 million in state funding to RCSD. 

If the legislation passes or not, our city children MUST be afforded the same safeguards as their suburban counterparts.

UPK Transportation

We have a nationally recognized UPK program yet we do not provide transportation.  Due to the lack of transportation and adequate child care, we are not serving as many as 1/3 of our eligible students.  I have forwarded the recommendation to the Governor's Children Cabinet that transportation and all-day UPK be part of the governor's 2008 budget.  In the meantime, RCSD should look at UPK transportation as a budgetary priority.

Scanning of Students

Weapons occasionally enter school due to random scanning.

Recommendation

All secondary students should be scanned.  We are near that level at this time, however, we must purchase more "walk-through" scanners and accommodate the needs necessary to implement their use.

School Climate and Administrative Leadership

The climate (especially at the secondary schools) needs to be one where students and teachers show and are given respect.  All students and adults must treat and be treated with dignity.  Unfortunately, this is all too often not the case.  I cannot emphasize enough the importance of the building principal in creating a nurturing, respectful and caring culture in a building.  It is the principal that sets the stage and manages the players in the drama of high school education.  Teachers and staff will not be able to complete their mission of educating our children and holding them accountable for their behavior without the intimate and consistent support of the principal and his/her administrative team.  And principals must be supported by their supervisors in order to succeed. 

Teachers must not be abused by being sworn at by students.  Students cannot threaten (and too often follow through with) physical harm on their teachers. 

What happens to students who are chronically absent from classes?

What happens to students who are chronically absent from classes and are failing?

When students are not in class (cutting) and wandering the halls or in places that they do not belong and are not held accountable, what are the consequences?

What interventions are enacted at the first sign of class cuts?

What interventions are sought out when a child first experiences academic failure?

For the 2006-07 school year, elementary attendance was 92.53% and secondary attendance was 90.83%.  Attendance figures reflect student attendance for any portion of the day.  Elementary attendance figures will remain relatively constant irrespective of partial day attendance.  Secondary attendance, on the other hand, varies widely.  For example, if a student is in homeroom for daily attendance, the student is recorded as present for the day.  In theory, a student can be absent for all classes and is still recorded as present because he/she was in attendance in homeroom. Additionally, if a teacher at a high school fails to take attendance, the student data system defaults to an "all present" status even though students may not be in class.  The end result is an inaccurate reading of attendance and an inflation of the percentage of students actually present. 

Suspensions

In the 2006-07 school year there were 1804 long-term suspensions.  Long-term suspensions range from 6 days to an entire school year.  This amount equals 10 long-term suspensions per day.  There were an additional 2000 short-term suspensions in 2006-07.

Recommendations

Creating a positive, supportive, nurturing and most importantly a respectful climate is essential if we expect substantive learning to take place in our secondary schools.  We have a lot of work to do in this arena.  To create such an environment:

•1.  Get at the root of the problem. 

We must stop being reactive and think proactively.  There are many signs that indicate potential problems that cannot be ignored.  As one teacher told me, "Most teachers can pin point the future problems right now.  What are we doing about that?"  If a student begins cutting classes, we must aggressively seek the cause and initiate appropriate interventions BEFORE it gets out of hand.  When a student misses 20 or 30 classes and the first semester has not ended and no accountability and intervention measures have been put into place, rest assured this is a future act of violence or a future drop out.  In every building EACH ADULT has an important role in the behavior and academic success of EACH CHILD.  At the earliest signs of problems, parents must be called, parents must be part of parent conferences and consequences and interventions must be initiated.  Principals must support teachers in their efforts to engage parents at these early stages.  Parent conferences must be mandatory with consequences for parents who refuse to participate.  The bottom line is that student behavior is not "someone else's job."  Everyone has a role.  When anyone fails in that role, dissonance, discord and chaos can be expected. 

•2.  Attendance must be viewed as critical to success.

Period-by-period attendance must be viewed as a matter of the life or death of a student....nothing less.  District policy whereby teachers are to call home for the initial student absences (before reporting to the appropriate administrator) absolutely must be strictly enforced.  Currently, it is not being enforced.

Teachers who are not taking period-by-period attendance or do so occasionally or haphazardly must be held accountable.  Students who are unaccounted for are a disaster waiting to happen.  Failure to keep students engaged and present in classrooms is leading to inevitable academic failure.  It is also leading to serious discipline problems in halls and in common meeting areas.  When teachers call home and assign consequences and absenteeism continues, administrators must then firmly deal with the student and the parents.  It should also be noted that consequences should not be a suspension.  Why on earth would we hold kids accountable for missing classes by making them miss more classes?  Consequences, must include detention, Saturday school, mandated parent conferences and community service to name a few. 

Poor attendance starts at the onset of the educational experience.  Our own RCSD research indicates that the average kindergartener misses one month of school each year.  This is abysmal and totally unacceptable.  RCSD must research this issue to determine root causes.  If not corrected at 5 years old, the situation is progressively exacerbated as the child moves through the grades.  The end result is the disengagement and dropping out of school, leading to a 39% graduation rate.

A high-school principal recently told me that attendance issues in her building were an epidemic.  Viewing the district from a global perspective, the epidemic is system-wide. 

•3.  Looking at Student Report Cards

After each marking period the principal, assistants and guidance counselors must thoroughly examine every report card.  The report cards display teacher comments, grades and attendance (daily and each classroom).  This information is an important tool to ward off eventual failure, both academic and social.  If we see a report card with critical attendance gaps and/or failures and we do nothing about it, we are guilty of malpractice.  The sooner we act, the better chance we have at helping students succeed (back to number 1....getting to the root problem...early!)

4.  Suspensions

We have aggressively worked to identify root problems when dealing with suspensions.  We often find that students being suspended have very poor attendance records and have failing grades.  When dealing with student accountability, New York State law does not permit schools to impose corrective interventions.  Districts are only permitted to punish (i.e. suspend) students.  To innovatively deal with this issue, over the past year we have offered corrective interventions such as counseling, psychological evaluations, drug testing, drug counseling, drug court, community service etc. as a means of reducing the number of days of a long-term suspension.  For example, if a parent agrees to counseling, community service and any other constructive prescriptive measure, the number of days of suspension are reduced. 

It is extremely important that the district continues to address root causes.  This process must be expanded to the building level whereby principals are empowered to employ appropriate interventions before behaviors escalate to levels requiring suspensions. 

It is rare that suspended students have good attendance and grades.  It is also not uncommon to see poor attendance and poor grades unattended to at the secondary level (as mentioned in a prior section). RCSD has appropriate attendance policies, that if followed, may very well prevent some of the serious incidents that result from students who do not attend regularly and subsequently have poor grades.  It is imperative that attendance policies are followed if we expect kids to succeed, get good grades and stay out of trouble.

Student behavior is a function of the person we become as a reflection of our personal and communal environments.  If we are to look at the whole person and make every effort to provide for children's basic needs, we are less likely to have discipline problems.  Students are less likely to engage in risky behaviors if there needs are met and they have ASSETS.

5.  Build Positive Climate and Student Behaviors through ASSETS

The following information is directly from the Search Institute's website on the 40 Developmental Assets.  I have been involved in this positive proactive approach of dealing with children for the past 10 years.  If we expect to change behaviors, it is imperative that we stop addressing student issues through a deficit model.  The deficit model identifies what is wrong with kids and spends inordinate amount of time trying to correct inappropriate behaviors rather than getting to the core values and root issues.

Search Institute's 40 Developmental Assets^® are concrete, common sense, positive experiences and qualities essential to raising successful young people. These assets have the power during critical adolescent years to influence choices young people make and help them become caring, responsible adults.

The list below describes the 40 Developmental Assets for Adolescents (ages 12-18).

I have engaged Mayor Duffy in initial discussions about the Asset initiative.  Rochester's School Children are everyone's job!!  It is the job of the community, the parents, teachers, administrators, board members, neighbors, churches, social agencies....EVERYONE.  It is not only the job of those in the city.  The suburbs must engage as well.  As a first step, the RCSD should conduct an Asset Inventory of all of its secondary students.  This survey will provide valuable information relative to the number of 40 Assets that students possess.  The fewer Assets a student possesses, the greater the chances that that student will fail.  The Asset Inventory will be a guide to the programs and initiatives that need to be instituted community-wide for our students.

Gang Violence

Gang violence is ubiquitous and the code of silence relative to gangs makes accountability extremely difficult.  RCSD must financially support Pathways to Peace in order to ensure a presence in all secondary buildings.  In addition to Pathways to Peace, RCSD must engage community support for agencies to better understand the culture of gangs.  The Rochester Police Department has historically implemented the G.R.E.A.T. program which is a weapons resistance program for RCSD students.  The funding and the workforce are not available at RPD to carry out this program at this time.  This is very unfortunate and a void that must be filled.  Community funding must be sought to reinstate this important anti-gang tool. 

School Sentries

Highly trained school sentries are critical to safe daily operations at our secondary schools.  Currently, poor training is provided to the sentry staff.  Salary is very low.  Subsequently, we have inconsistent performance and poor attendance from this group.  Ability to recruit quality candidates has been the result of a poor wage structure.

Recommendations

We have had several meetings regarding the sentry issue.  It has been determined that the job classification must be significantly upgraded.  Salary and training must be substantially improved.  New job descriptions must be created with specific expectations that include training on how to manage students, especially urban youth.  Sentries must be trained to deal with conflict, weapons, restraint, gangs and general security.  I have requested 2008-09 budget consideration for the upgrading of the sentry positions

School Resource Officers (SRO)

As the district transitions from City of Rochester supported SROs, to RCSD funded SROS, we must clearly define RCSD expectations from the City of Rochester and the Rochester Police Department (RPD).  While we have had a positive working relationship with the City and the RPD, the transition has not gone without its difficulties.  Too often, when police officers are absent, the schools are not provided with substitutes.  This has proven to be a critical issue at all of our schools, but particularly at Jefferson and Charlotte (2 of 46 persistently dangerous schools in the country).  Assignment officers have been under the misconception that the City is paying for SROs (as was the case in previous years). As a result, the assignment of SROs has been done on an "if available" rather than a "must have" basis.  The City of Rochester has been charged with the duty of developing a contract for SRO services with the RCSD.  The mayor and the police chief have been sensitive to the plight of RCSD and understand the issues facing the school district.  Their support has been greatly appreciated.

Recommendations

An expeditious formalization of the contract between the City and RCSD will close any gaps in understanding relative to expectations.  We will continue to push for the closure of this issue, however, if not completed prior to December 31, 2007, it will be imperative that the completion of this contract is of highest priority of the new superintendent to ensure the safety of our children.

In the future, the role of SROs should be expanded beyond enforcement and intimately included in the education of children in the buildings in which they serve.  Students would be well-served by classroom lessons about community from SROs.  The view of the SRO by the student will be strengthened and the climate of each building will be greatly enhanced. 

•III.  School Design/Structure/Issues

The most often repeated question during my tenure has been, "What are we going to do about the 39% graduation rate?"  All too often, the knee-jerk reaction is to look to the secondary schools for the solutions.  Clearly, as will be noted later in this report, the secondary schools need significant attention, however, if we expect to significantly improve graduation rates, it is imperative that we address the foundation:  Ages 0 to 5 and Early Childhood Education.  The preponderance of the research is definitive; statistically validated programs that have proven to significantly improve graduation rates are either pre-school or early childhood programs.  In a recent study from Columbia University, Returns to the Public from Investing in an Excellent Education for all America's Children:  A Focus on Black Males, four nationally recognized programs are highlighted for producing significant improvement in graduation rates.  Of the 4 programs, 3 are pre-school and early childhood and only one is secondary (small learning communities). 

Early Childhood

Pre-Kindergarten Education (Universal Pre-K or UPK)

Rochester Pre-k has been evaluated to be one of the best programs in the country.  The children attending Rochester's UPK do better in school throughout the grades.  Unfortunately, estimates indicate that as many as 1/3 of the eligible children do not attend UPK.  This is due to the lack of transportation and the lack of adequate child care available to low-income parents. 

Research also clearly indicates that children placed in UPK at age 3 (currently, the majority of students in Rochester UPK are 4 years old) are much more likely to graduate from high school. 

Rochester has a Montessori School at the Franklin site that is no longer accepting 3 year old students.

Recommendations

In addition to the media blitz and information program to encourage parents to enter their children in Pre-K, it is imperative that the obstacles that prevent UPK enrollment are removed.  RCSD must provide transportation for UPK.  Through the Governor's Children's Cabinet, I have led a UPK committee to forward legislative priorities to include UPK transportation, all-day UPK versus the current ½ day model and openings for 3 year olds.  These priorities are being forwarded to the governor and the legislature.  It is important that we support these legislative initiatives.  I would further add that RCSD's financial priorities should be re-examined if transportation aid is not forthcoming from the legislature.  The cost of our students' failure in the form of dropouts, grade retention and jail is must too high a price to pay to ignore the imperative of early childhood intervention in the form of UPK. 

The three-year old program should be reinstated at Franklin Montessori.

Additional 0 to 5 Issues

Brain and social development are significant in 0 to 5 year olds.  Our children have large verbal and social deficits when arriving at pre-k and grade school.  Everything at our disposal must be done to address these deficits.

Recommendations

We must support the current bill in congress called the Education Begins at Home Act.  This law would provide in-home services to families in poverty that would help reduce verbal and social deficits.

The district should carefully look at the Imagination Library.  This program mails a free book every month to every registered child from birth to age 5.  The only requirements are an address within the designated area and a birth date putting the child in the birth to 5 range.  Economic conditions are not part of the requirements.  The cost to the a sponsoring agency is $27 per year per child.  I recommend that the ELC take this on as a funded project.  It is something that they would clearly embrace.  The players around the ELC table should be able to fund the program with relative ease.

Kindergarten

"There exists disparity between the preschool experience and Kindergarten experience in the District.  Here is what they (kindergarteners) experience:  Sit, Listen, Attend.  Copy me, follow directions, don't think an original thought....it doesn't't fit into the protocol of America's Choice, Houghton-Mifflin, or the other templates of education visible in our district.  What their childhood experience looks like:  child-directed, independent exploration in a rich environment, supportive staff guiding them through myriads of positive and not so positive moments toward development of peaceful problem solving strategies, encouragement of creative process and initiative.  What is right in Preschool is honored and established as best practices.  What is happening in Kindergarten follows a uniquely different model. ....the disconnect between what we are told is best practices, and useful foundation for teachers in later grades and basis for higher achieving academic outcomes versus higher drop out rates,....and what the child will encounter the very next year is massive!"

  RCSD Pre-K teacher

We have many outstanding early childhood teachers.  We have many spectacular kindergarten teachers.  But, what message are we sending our teachers as an institution?  We are brainwashing our staff to think that we must abandon developmentally appropriate practices in lieu of hard-core academics pushed down to lower grade levels inappropriately.  One kindergarten teacher told me that she was disciplined by her principal for breaking up a 90 minute required Reading First reading block with a "break."  Now, I consider myself a fairly committed and dedicated reader.  Forcing me to read for 90 uninterrupted minutes is tantamount to torture for me.  Why do we think that this is appropriate for 5 year olds?

And in some RCSD elementary schools recess is virtually eliminated.  Again, this is developmentally inappropriate.  Forcing reading beyond physical and mental tolerance will not improve test scores.  Eliminating recess will not improve test scores.  Both activities are sure to further diminish a child's capacity to flourish academically.  Is it any wonder why the average kindergartener misses 1 month of school per year?

Recommendations

Shirley Jung is the Director of Early Childhood Education.  Shirley clearly understands developmentally appropriate Early Childhood Education.  Historically, however, her job has been relegated to UPK.  Shirley has been empowered to guide the ENTIRE K-3 experience.  The continuation of this initiative is imperative if we are to have a programmatic continuum K-3. 

We are beginning a study of Kindergarten teachers and Kindergarten practices.  Cheryl Holloway is directing this initiative.  We are starting with surveys of Kindergarten teachers.  This process should continue to help inform our policy decisions at the Early Childhood level. 

Elementary

Getting to know and care about our children is a daunting task.  Given the challenges facing RCSD schools and families it is increasingly more difficult to authentically assess students.  Given all the changes that take place in the lives of students, it is even more difficult to come to know our children in great depth.  More consistency in needed in the life of elementary children, especially K-3.

Recommendations

There are myriad issues affecting the socio-emotional and academic lives of our children.  There are also innumerable interventions, processes and programs to deal with these issues.  If I were to forward one very important pedagogical concept, however, it would be to encourage looping throughout the grades.  Looping is a tremendous benefit to teachers and students alike.  Academics will improve as well as social behavior. 

In spite of the incentives offered through the Contract for Excellence to reduce class size, RCSD has not lived up to this challenge.  There should be a major push to reduce class size especially in grades K through 3.  The research is clear on this issue.  Reducing class size to no more than 15 in grades K through 3 has long-lasting effects throughout the upper grades, thus improving graduation rates.  The S.T.A.R. study of Tennessee provides us with ample justification for this initiative.  Please see:  http://www.futureofchildren.org/information2826/information_show.htm?doc_id=71001

Secondary Schools

Design

Small Schools....  RCSD has been committed to converting "Big Box" schools into the Small Schools design.  As previously mentioned in the Columbia study, Returns to the Public from Investing in an Excellent Education for All America's Children:  A Focus on Black Males,  there is one proven secondary reform that has proven to increase graduation rates, and that is small schools.  Small schools, however cannot be simply the big box philosophy reduced in size.  That simply doesn't work. RCSD's small schools have not been given the support to functionally change the way education is delivered as prescribed in documented small learning environments.  The Northwest Regional Education Laboratory succinctly describes the key elements for a successful small-school learning environment:

RCSD's small schools will fail if the issues above are not addressed and the supports and actions detailed above are not implemented.  Very few of the essential key elements of Small Learning Communities are met in RCSD's small schools.  While it may seem harsh and somewhat distressing, it appears that some of RCSD schools have been set up to fail.  If we look at how schools are provided their student population (admission criteria), which grades the small schools serve (7-12, 9-12 or 10-12) and credit requirements, it becomes clear that particular schools get unbalanced enrollment in particular grades causing program fragmentation and limitation.  Credit requirements push particular student populations in and out of specific schools creating unintentional deficits.  Location of high concentrations of particular programs such as Special Education and English as a Second Language (ESOL) further limit the schools' ability to succeed.  10-12 small schools are fighting an impossible battle due to the lack available students exiting a school at 9^th grade. 

Recommendations

We cannot pick and choose critical components of small learning communities and expect students to succeed.  RCSD must commit to the aforementioned tenets.  All secondary schools should be 7-12 institutions giving everyone an even playing field (That is if we believe in the 7-12 model of delivery.  I do not subscribe to this model, however that is a topic for another day).   Special Education programs must be evenly distributed throughout the secondary schools as well as bi-lingual and ESOL programs.

The district should carefully consider expanding successful models such as School Without Walls.  Another small school should be created as a subsidiary of SWW to take advantage of the flexibility in state requirements.  SWW has had better attendance, graduation rates and higher levels of college acceptance than traditional urban schools.

The district should consider the development of small learning communities based on The Big Picture Schoolshttp://www.bigpicture.org/ Big Picture schools are small learning communities that design their curriculum one student at a time.  They are highly successful with urban children of poverty, color and English as a second language.

Secondary Administrative Organization

Secondary schools are administratively comprised of a Principal, Assistant Principals and Academy Directors.  In most (if not all) cases, each person is assigned discreet duties.  For example, there is an Assistant Principal for Operations and an Assistant Principal for Discipline.  The Academy Director is generally in charge of curriculum issues.  This model is problematic on two fronts:  1. Every administrator needs to be well-versed in all operations of the school.  This model precludes the comprehensive addressing of all student issues by all administrators.  It also segregates responsibility psychologically which can lead to the "It's not my job" syndrome.  2.  As long as we compartmentalize duties we fail to adequately train administrators to be fully equipped to lead as future building principals.  As a result of this model, some sitting building principals have been inadequately prepared to lead buildings as their training was inadequate given the current administrative structure. 

Recommendation

My first administrative position was in Fredonia, New York.  The principal at the time told me that we would both take all duties of the building and divide the workload between us. This was the best training I could ever have to become a principal.  As assistant principal I had half of the discipline, half of the scheduling, half of operations, half of staff evaluations, etc.  All of those "halves" made me whole!  RCSD must rework the current model to one that empowers administrators to deal with most of the student issues in a building and at the same time prepares them to adequately lead in the future. 

Bi-Lingual Education

The entire bi-lingual education now takes place at Monroe High School.  In prior years, the program was located at several secondary sites.  The location of all bi-lingual education at one site seriously limits the access to educational opportunities for students in the program.  Students cannot access the myriad of programs such as Firefighters, Culinary Arts etc. that are offered at different high schools.  Furthermore, the high concentration of bi-lingual students at Monroe has brought problems to the school that, if decentralized would not occur.  Specifically, controlling the gangs that are all at one school is a serious challenge. 

Recommendation

It is highly recommended that the bi-lingual program be a part of several high-school sites, enabling students the ability to access the wide variety of programs available to all other students in the district afforded to them via the choice program.

Youth and Justice Programs

Youth and Justice Programs deal with students who have been in the legal system.  The problems that exist are:

•  
  1. There are no reentry programs for students when they return to the general education population
  2. There are no non-conventional educational delivery systems for this population of students
  3. Intervention services are lacking for Long Term Suspension students (without them, students are likely to enter the justice system)

Recommendations

Margaret Porter is the program administrator for the Youth and Justice programs.  She has made me aware of many critical issues with this population.  To her I am deeply indebted.  Below is a list of recommendations that I have studied and have discussed with her.  They would go a long way toward curbing recidivism and keep many youth out of the justice system in the first place.

• Establishment of a Re-entry Program for youth who leave school to attend community secure and non-secure facilities and return to RCSD. Approximately 90% of these students are RCSD youth in our secondary schools.  Many Family Court cases involve RCSD students who are placed for short periods of time and return to our secondary schools usually within the same semester - we had approximately (1250) youth in this situation within the 2006-2007 school year. The rate of recidivism at Westfall Road Youth Detention is 76%. These students are often also LTS (Long-Term Suspension)  or STS (Short-Term Suspension)  and sometimes chronic truants.  Jails had approximately (350) students returning to our schools after arrest - usually within the same school year.  These students are often violent, gang affiliated and not successful in large buildings.  Re-entry, collaborating with Probation, Social Services (foster care), Detention and NYS Office of Children and Family Services, providing educational opportunities coupled with student and family interventional wrap-around services may prove to offer students support and opportunities for success in school. Students returning from State School at Industry are also very often leaders and are not historically successful in school. (about 200 per year return to RCSD from this group)

Within this group, many of these students drop out or are on a course leading to dropping out.  They are also discouraged when they repeat the 7^th grade for the 3^rd and 4^th time and realize that are going to age-out anyway.  They often, as their families, lack hope.

• Consider looking at non-conventional models for certain populations of students.  Our Rochester Educators and Probation Officers Program (REPO) have graduated a "throw-away student" this year with a Regents Diploma.  He is enrolled in MCC Automotive Program.  He is a STAR in his neighborhood.  He is no longer in a gang.  He wants to work with others. Many other LTS students from this program and are assigned to Adult Probation have summer jobs and have improved attendance and grades.  We must create our own classroom and school gangs - RCSD gangs for youth to belong. 

• Consider piloting a classroom in a Settlement House or Community Organization.  Eastside Community Center, Montgomery, Baden Street, PRYD have many students and families in the immediate area where we would have the opportunity to go to our students and families.  These agencies can provide wrap-around services and we can educate.  Opportunities for family employment services, drug and alcohol treatment, day care, food cupboards, health screening, clubs and re-parenting exist at these sites.  Perhaps a GED program could also be established so that parent and student could become successful in school together. Possibly a (1) year pilot program for students who live in the area and are not succeeding in a traditional setting could be considered.  Often, RCSD has failed the parents of our troubled youth and the expectation is the same for our students. The cycle repeats itself.  This could be an opportunity for success. What about a parent-teacher night at a Settlement House or Community Organization in the neighborhood, rather than in a school building?  Some parents are intimidated in school and may also find it easier to get to a neighborhood parent-teacher meeting.  Many teachers and staff persons might want to give this a try also.*

*Conversations have begun to create a program at Baden St. Settlement House

• Establish Intervention Services for students that are on Long-Term Suspension (LTS).  Probation had a really good model. As there are probably less than (10) reasons for LTS, we could look for research-based models that address such issues as Authority Figure Issues - which is one of the leading reasons for LTS.  Selected schools could run the same program simultaneously, as a pilot. Control groups could be established.

• Our Fast Track Rochester Grant, where we work with youth in our schools whose primary care takers are incarcerated, is proving to be a preventative model where we move youth and family to referral supports and school supports.  We are now diversion in some cases, for Child Protective Custody. This program is designed to support youth and family and move parent to GED and child to graduation.  We can expand here given the opportunity.

In addition to the above ideas expressed by Margaret Porter, I additionally suggest the Orleans Prison Project.  This pilot is taking troubled youth through the Orleans County Jail.  The results have been extremely positive.  RCSD Customer Service Representative Alberta Moss is putting together a unified program that will be able to serve many more students than are currently being served by the pilot.  Additionally, additional facets of the program are currently being planned.  This is an initiative that must continue.  Plans are underway to make this a part of Long-Term Suspension interventions.

Alternative Education

With over 15,000 secondary students, it is difficult to imagine that there are literally no alternative learning environments at RCSD.  There is no alternative high school in the RCSD.  Not all kids learn in the same way and at the same rate.  We cannot currently accommodate children who need an alternative delivery system.  While Josh Lofton certainly had its problems, the baby was thrown out with the bath water.  As previously noted, there were 1804 long-term suspensions in 2006-07.  Most of these students will not graduate.  Most of these students are failing.  Alternative programs are essential to prevent their entering the legal system. 

Recommendations

Expand and change the focus of East High School's Evening School that I brought back this year.  Currently a student must be enrolled in one of our secondary schools in order to participate in Evening School.  Evening School at this point is simply credit recovery.  While this is a good first step, the Evening School needs to become a true alternative to day school.  The end result will be many more high school graduates.

The district should offer a variety of additional alternative programs.  RCSD should look at modeling a program after the Ombudsman Alternative Education Program.  Please see:  http://www.ombudsman.com/

Never should we be in a position whereby we do not provide the educational settings that offer hope for student success.

Retention

It is ever so popular to talk about retention as holding the system and kids accountable. It seems to make so much sense (on the surface) to keep kids back a grade when they have not achieved grade-level performance.  It is also a wonderful sound bite to say that we socially promote and that we are not teaching and our kids are not learning.  That being said, here are the simple facts borne out through extensive research studies over many decades:  When a student is retained, his/her chances of dropping out of school are exponentially increased.  Furthermore, research clearly demonstrates that retention at the 9^th grade level and beyond is a 100% guarantee that the student will drop out!!  Imagine that!  When a 9^th grade student is retained, it is a virtual certainty that the student will drop out of school.  Statistics are not much better in the middle and elementary grades.  One study that I conducted in the early 1990s showed that if a student was retained at any grade in his/her education, they were 83% likely to drop out. 

Recommendation

There is virtually no proven program of successful retention in the United States.  We must stop this practice which occurs on a wholesale basis in the RCSD.  Instead, we must institute the interventions recommended in this paper.  There is no one solution to this problem, but rather the solutions are many.  We must provide multiple remedial and preventative measures.  Retention does neither.

Graduation Rates

This topic merits much more discussion than this paper will provide, however, most issues that lie herein will have an impact upon graduation.  In addition to the many recommendations I am making, I am also recommending that a study is conducted that analyzes RCSD dropouts.  The overview of the study is included as an appendix.  This study will address our own students and determine exactly why they are dropping out.  One question that would be posed, for example would be the effect of having schools in the RCSD requiring as many as 27.5 credits to graduate when the state requires only 22 credits.  Are kids dropping out because it is next to impossible for many to accumulate 27.5 credits in 4 years?  This and many other questions will be addressed.  (Statistics from the last two graduation years show that schools requiring more than the state's 22 credits have declining graduation rates)

•IV.  Professional Administrative Ratio

Since my arrival I reorganized the highest level administrative staff from 12 Chiefs to 7.  This is only the tip of the iceberg.  In short, RCSD is administratively top heavy.  In an October 17^th study by the Conference of Big 5 Schools in New York, the administrative ratios were compared between Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Yonkers.  Buffalo is a larger school district than Rochester.  Buffalo has 85 Central Office Administrators; Rochester has 127.  Buffalo has 45 secondary administrators;  Rochester had 155.  The one-page summary is Appendix D. 

Recommendations

Simply cutting the administrators to rationale levels is not enough.  We must understand how this happened in the first place.  How and why are there as many as 14 administrators in a high school?  The answers to these questions present many possibilities (and probabilities) that are too numerous to address in this paper.  Suffice it to say that every adult must take responsibility and make an investment in students.  Currently, that is not happening.  If behavior is not the responsibility of an individual teacher or support staff in their care, then the burden shifts to administrators.  This is too often the model effectuated.  As a result, we have more administrators doing a surrogate job of addressing the job of all.  Everyone must do their part if we expect an effective and efficient operation.  We have neither.  It also should be noted that the current model of over 3 times as many administrators as the industry standard has yielded 1804 long-term suspensions in one year (over 10 per day), 2000 short-term suspensions and abysmal academic achievement. 

Redesigning the administrative structure with strong central-office leadership, professional development and guidance for principals (especially secondary) is imperative. 

The central office needs much additional attention.  It needs to be analyzed and reduced accordingly.  A central office professional staff of nearly 50% higher than Buffalo is not defensible.

•V.  Special Education

The problems are many in the area of special education.  There are serious issues regarding placement of students, types of placements, types of classifications, timeliness of acting upon referrals, the nature of CSE hearings, the assigning of particular programs to specific schools.  Given the fact that the district has been under Consent Decree for Special Education problems for years, this is especially troubling.

Recommendation

Recently I made arrangements to have a complete study of our Special Education programs undertaken by experts on urban special education.  The new superintendent will bring in a group from New York City to evaluate the program.  I am not aware of the abilities of this new group, however, it is critical that an extensive audit of the special education program and personnel is undertaken.  Additionally, the evaluators must have intimate knowledge of urban issues. 

•VI.  Human Resources

The most important activity of any school district is the hiring of highly competent and caring individuals in all capacities.  Subsequent competent management of personnel issues after hiring is essential to the organization's success.  The issues of concern and the need for serious evaluation and scrutiny would require a thesis no less detailed than this paper in its totality. 

Recommendations

I have discussed the need to do a programmatic and personnel audit of the Human Resources department with Jean-Claude Brizard.  He stated that he will commission an organization to do such a study.  It is my expectation that the recommendations from this study will strongly suggest major changes to Human Resources.  If RCSD is to move toward a caring, high-quality organization, a reconstitution of Human Resource program, policy, procedures and personnel is imperative. 

•VII.  Board of Education

Let me begin by stating that the public should not lose the opportunity to elect the individuals that make policy that will have dramatic effects upon their children's lives.  There is so little that we as citizens are able to vote on that directly and intimately affects our lives. 

That being said, the politicization of the entire enterprise is counter-productive to a student-centered organization.

Board Committees

There are 5 board committees:  Quality Assurance, Finance, Board and Intergovernmental Relations, Policy and Audit.

There are several areas of concern that I have expressed on several occasions to the board leadership.  Several of the committees function too independently.  Many directives, studies and processes voted on by the committees should be taken to the entire board for its approval.  The committees do not and should not have standing authority outside of the board as a whole.  The end result is the existence of 6 boards of education instead of one.  The committees meet too often and at hours that make attendance by the superintendent and appropriate staff difficult if not impossible.  The subject matter at these meetings is such that the superintendent must be a part of the discussion.  The superintendent and his staff cannot rely on second-hand information or committee minutes for critical knowledge of committee content.  Given the number of and length of evening commitments necessary to the proper performance of the superintendent's duties, 5 additional committees that meet regularly is untenable.  And, there has been discussion to add yet another committee. 

It should be noted as well that committee agendas are too often managerial in nature and go well beyond the policy role of a board of education. 

To make good people, to make good citizens and to make our children people who care for others and treat them respectfully should be essential goals of every school district.  The example must start at the top.  Humiliation is not a good management tool.  Not only does it destroy any hopes of a positive working relationship with the staff, but it is a very poor example for our students.  All too often I have seen staff "dressed down" at these public committee meetings.  And sadly, it happens on a regular basis at monthly board meetings of the whole through interrogation posed as questions.  W. Edwards Deming is well known as the father of quality.  One of his essential 14 points is "Removing Fear From the Workplace."  There is no place for fear in a quality organization. RCSD must not be an exception.

Board /Staff Relationships

If a team is to work together for the good of the children, there must be mutual respect.  There must be respect of board members by board members.  There must be respect of board members by staff.  There must be respect of staff by board members.  There must be trust between board and staff.  Much improvement is needed in this area.

Board Staff

The board staff is a wonderful group of competent individuals.  The staff continues to grow, however, and there is discussion about adding another staff member.  There is nothing that the administrative staff cannot provide for the board of education outside of a secretary and a district clerk.  To do this would require a positive working relationship as a team (Board and Administration united) where mutual trust and confidence exist. 

Recommendations

Boards should be elected in the same manner as they are elected outside of the City.  There should be no political affiliation required to be placed on the ballot for the general public.  In the suburbs, whoever secures enough valid signatures is placed on the ballot.  There is no primary. There is no party affiliation.  As a result, there is less politicizing of the education of our children. 

Before board committees existed, there were board workshops which were held every Monday.  The entire board was required to be at these workshops.  These sessions dealt with all of the issues that are currently being handled by the individual committees.  Board workshops like these keep everyone in the information loop and enable all board members and staff to participate.  Additionally, they provide a much better opportunity for public participation and input as compared to the committee structure which not only makes staff attendance difficult, but public participation particularly onerous.

Professional development provided for the board to help develop and define roles and relationships is extremely important to the success of RCSD.  Ruth Scott has been working with the board and has provided wonderful insight and guidance to the group.  A continuation of this staff development and an increase in the regularity of these sessions will go a long way towards developing an essential team relationship.  When that relationship is built and trust is created, the staff will be seen as a resource instead of the enemy and the staff will be able to provide for the board's needs without creating additional positions to the board staff.

All quality organizations should revisit Deming's 14 points regularly.  If the board and administration take heed, indeed RCSD will be a quality organization

The 14 points.

1. Create constancy of purpose toward improvement of product and service, with the aim to become competitive and to stay in business, and to provide jobs.
2. Adopt the new philosophy. We are in a new economic age. Western management must awaken to the challenge, must learn their responsibilities, and take on leadership for change.
3. Cease dependence on inspection to achieve quality. Eliminate the need for inspection on a mass basis by building quality into the product in the first place.
4. End the practice of awarding business on the basis of price tag. Instead, minimize total cost. Move toward a single supplier for any one item, on a long-term relationship of loyalty and trust.
5. Improve constantly and forever the system of production and service, to improve quality and productivity, and thus constantly decrease costs.
6. Institute training on the job.
7. Institute leadership (see Point 12). The aim of supervision should be to help people and machines and gadgets to do a better job. Supervision of management is in need of overhaul, as well as supervision of production workers.
8. Drive out fear, so that everyone may work effectively for the company.  Break down barriers between departments. People in research, design, sales, and production must work as a team, to foresee problems of production and in use that may be encountered with the product or service.
9. Eliminate slogans, exhortations, and targets for the work force asking for zero defects and new levels of productivity. Such exhortations only create adversarial relationships, as the bulk of the causes of low quality and low productivity belong to the system and thus lie beyond the power of the work force.
10. Eliminate work standards (quotas) Substitute leadership.
11. Eliminate management by objective. Eliminate management by numbers, numerical goals. Substitute leadership.
12. Remove barriers that rob the worker of his right to pride of workmanship. The responsibility of supervisors must be changed from sheer numbers to quality.
13. Remove barriers that rob people in management and in engineering of their right to pride of workmanship. This means, inter alia, abolishment of the annual or merit rating and of management by objective.  Institute a vigorous program of education and self-improvement.
14. Put everybody in the company to work to accomplish the transformation. The transformation is everybody's job

The Board of Education should take note of the principles detailed by the National School Boards' Association in their publication and workshops entitled, Key Work of School Boards as well.  Below are the NSBA Key Elements and links to their website documents.

•VIII.  Business Operations

The overall condition of Business Operations is good and improving.  Jim Coney provided much needed help in his interim stay.  The hiring of Vince Carfagna will be a significant boost to the entire business office.  In a short period of time he has addressed many long-standing problems.  Areas of continued concern (that are being addressed by Mr. Carfagna) are payroll and accounts payable.  Both of these areas need an overhaul.  In order for improvements to be effective, however, it is imperative that the office of Auditor General is part of the solution and not part of the problem.  The auditors must ensure integrity while not compromising efficiency and the ability of staff to process required payments to vendors in a timely fashion. 

•IX. Closing Statement

If we expect our students to succeed we must love each and every one of them. 

If we expect our students to succeed we must demonstrate through our actions that we truly care for them.

If we expect our students to succeed we must involve parents and the community and create partnerships that provide our children with the support they need.

If we expect our students to succeed we must provide safe and secure schools and a safe community.

If we expect our students to succeed we must pay attention to research and provide the school design and structure that will get them to graduation and beyond. 

If we expect our students to succeed we must provide them with an organization that serves them, not one that cheats them by spending money on the wrong priorities.

If we expect our students to succeed we must provide them with appropriate special education, vocational education and alternative education.

If we expect our students to succeed we must hire the best teachers, support staff and administrators.  Second best will not suffice.

If we expect our students to succeed we must provide them with a board of education that asks the question "Is it good for kids?" before any vote is taken.

If we expect our students to succeed we must treat each other with kindness and respect....ALWAYS (even our enemies).

We will not succeed unless we truly care.  We do not truly care unless our actions are focused on the benefit of our precious children....ALWAYS! 

Appendix A

Position Statement

It is the position of the Rochester community that the Rochester City School District must recognize and accept the model of community/district collaboration which has been established during the appointment of Dr. William Cala as interim superintendent.  Since his appointment, Dr. Cala has worked closely with the community to compile a list of the major concerns and their solutions that have been recognized as the reoccurring themes connected to the low graduation rate, high drop-out rate, high rate of violence, and low AYP of many of our schools.

While it is important to note that many of the solutions agreed upon by Interim Superintendent William Cala have already been implemented it is equally important to recognize that our work has just begun and that much more work will be necessary to sift through the many levels of educational policies in order to find those that have been effective and eliminate those that have not.  The community in collaboration with RCSD members and members of the Board of Education have worked together diligently to address and commit to the solutions outlined in the agreed upon Solutions List that accompanies this document. 

The major areas of concern are:

• Ÿ Transparency in District Operation
• Ÿ Accountability of all stakeholders
• Ÿ Shared Decision Making
• Ÿ Parental Involvement
• Ÿ Code of Conduct
• Ÿ African-African American Affairs
• Ÿ Special Education/Early Intervention
• Ÿ Student Enrichment Programs
• Ÿ Alternative Education
• Ÿ Student's Voice in Decision Making

It is understood that this list is a compilation of headings under which many concerns and solutions were placed.  It is a living document that will change as problems occur and are solved.

The Rochester City School District under the leadership of Mr. Jean-Claude Brizard, the School Board and the concerned citizens of this community have and must continue to work together to create an environment of educational excellence for the children of Rochester.

Solutions List

The solutions agreed to by Superintendent Cala are as follows:

Transparency

• Real notification of public hearings
• Easy access to information
• Contracts for Excellence that adhere to the intent of the law
• The Board of Education should follow laws regulating executive sessions

Accountability

• Accessibility of Central Office to parents and teachers
• Complete chain of command-accountability with standards met as success criteria
• Do not hire contractors who have made financial contributions to political parties or individual candidates to avoid the appearance of conflict of interest
• Make all contracts and expenses public before the board vote

Parental Involvement

• "Meaningful consultation" with parents on Consolidated Application, DECA, Biennial review, etc.
• Constituency based district wide parent group-no more appointed parents
• BENCHMARKS for principals regarding parental involvement-principal evaluations must measure parent involvement/SBPT-District must provide consequences for not partnering with parents
• Parents should have the opportunity to volunteer at least 10 hours a year in their child's school
• Fundraising activities should be counted as parent involvement and use of funds should align with student needs
• Identify a parent

Shared Decision Making

• Representatives clearly elected by parents
• Review and reform of school based planning policy and regulation
• Honest biennial review of shared decision making filed with NYSE
• Compliance at all SBPT's
• Education for all on issues and policies
• Definition of roles and responsibilities of all parties
• Parents participate in valid decision making process (not a rubber stamp to advance the dominant valued partner)
• Constituency based parent representatives elected by parents and making up a district wide group
• Parents should be able to meet with the Board and Superintendent once a month outside of scheduled board meetings

The Code of Conduct

• Adult staff should model student expectations
• Professionalism must be the norm
• Administrative regulations should align with concurrent district policies impacting behavior expectations for all
• Due process should be clear and available in a timely manner for all students
• Continuity in interpretation of infractions that warrant disciplinary referrals

African-African American Affairs

• African American Council with extensive background in African American culture to work with development and implementation of curriculum whose focus will be the African/African American experience in public education where the past is acknowledged in the present to inform the future
• All research based models will be authenticated through this department for success in students populations reflective of the RCSD

Special Education/Early Intervention

• Create a continuum of services from early intervention through school age to reduce the number of children inappropriately classified
• More "Highly" qualified special education teachers
• IEP's that appropriately expose students to curriculum aligned with state standards
• A real "Gifted and Talented" program

Alternative Education

• Place students in grades 7-9 in age appropriate environments for learning, not with "grade level" students

Student Enrichment Programs

• Establish and distribute RFP for new student enrichment programs and set aside funding to test pilot programs

The final heading on the Solutions List, Student's Voice in Decision Making has yet to be discussed and is expected to become the first discussion item at the next formal Superintendent's Monthly Meeting.

To date, Superintendent Cala has made information from and about the district more accessible to the public, created an African/African American Affairs Department, appointed staff to critique and make necessary changes to several areas of concern within the aspects of parent involvement and shared decision making.

Appendix B

RochesterCitySchool District

Enhanced Pupil Safety

Transportation Aid Proposal

Proposal: The Rochester City School District  requests the support of the New York State Senate to revise the New York State Education Law (Title 5, Article 73, Part 2) to make aidable all eligible expenses incurred in transporting students regardless of the distance between the pupil's home and the school attended.

Background / Rationale:  Transportation Aid distributed by the New York State Education Department currently reimburses school districts, including the Rochester City School District, in a subsequent year for eligible expenses incurred in a base year.  Section 3621, Subsection 2 of the Education Law restricts that aid to eligible expenses incurred in the transportation of pupils who live more than one and one-half miles from the school attended. 

However, the Law also recognizes that certain safety-related circumstances may warrant adjustments to that distance limitation.[1]  While meritorious, the current exceptions are limited to overcoming physical barriers and conditions that endanger pupils who might walk to and from school (e.g., heavily traveled roadways, rail lines, the absence of sidewalks, and insufficient lighting).  Other dimensions of pupil safety demand to be addressed.

In urban districts generally, and in Rochester specifically, students who must walk to and from school are frequently exposed to and are likely to fall victim to violence borne of the concentrated poverty in those communities and perpetrated by the criminal elements that prey upon the most vulnerable members of those communities.

The City of Rochester has acknowledged that it is presently in a crisis of violent crime and has reacted in extraordinary fashion to combat this scourge.[2]  Statistical data support the community's concern,[3] but a series of recent, high-profile, horrific incidents have underscored the tragedy that has transformed Rochester neighborhoods to "killing fields":

A well-respected 49-year old worker at Rochester's main anti-poverty agency was slain by gunfire while walking home from a community meeting;

A young, promising musician was similarly murdered during the summer while walking home from a band rehearsal;

A 36-year old mother was beaten and stabbed to death by a mob when she responded to aid her daughter who had also been attacked by the mob.

The efforts of the Police and others notwithstanding, it is unconscionable to expose the students of the Rochester City School District to the too-present dangers of the city streets, particularly when a reasonable remedy - State-aided, universal transportation - is readily apparent.  An equally extraordinary response is required by the School District and warrants the support of New York State.

Analysis: The RCSD has an enrollment of 32,717 K - 12 students, with an additional 1,821 Pre-K students.  Transportation is provided to 25,773 RCSD K-12 students annually (79%).  The District also provides transportation services to an additional 3,099 Non-Public and Charter School students out of a population of 4,572 (65%).  The student transit services are provided by a combination of a contract vendor, utilization of the Rochester - Genesee Regional Transportation Authority's public routes, and a limited number of District-owned and operated busses.[4]  Service is provided via 626 routes employing door-to-door private transportation service and 231 routes employing congregate bus stops using public transportation services.

Total aidable transportation expenses for FY 2006 - 2007 were $47.1 Million and $42.4 Million (90%) is projected as Transportation Aid for those expenses.  FY 2007 - 2008 expenses are budgeted at $48.7 Million.

The District also has anecdotal evidence that suggests that many families choose the schools that pupils attend simply in order to obtain transportation service, i.e., that a school 1.5 miles or more distant to home is selected in favor of a neighborhood school so that the child need not walk through a threatening or dangerous neighborhood. (But for this, a tragedy involving an RCSD "walker" might well be found in the listing of recent high-profile crimes.)

Extending the right to transportation by eliminating the one and one-half mile restriction in Rochester is projected to increase year one District operating expenses by $3.8 Million.[5]  This projection assumes the following:

10% of the student population will decline the service and continue to walk;

8% of those being transported will forego attending a distant RCSD school and revert to a neighborhood school, thus shortening the commute and strengthening the neighborhood school model;

Daily ridership (as a percentage of those eligible to ride) and thus daily school attendance will increase by 11%, as truancy declines.  (The proposed change will eliminate "fear of the walk / fear for personal safety" as de-motivational factors that contribute to truancy.)

A total of 107 additional routes will be required.  The additional capacity needed will be obtained via expansion of contracted services (and / or, and only if permissible, the additional utilization of public transport routes), and the District will not incur any capital expenses.

This expansion would result in a $3.4 Million increase in New York State Transportation Aid, based upon the District's 90% aid ratio.  In addition, the District would also need to receive the additional aid in the base year of service rather than in the subsequent year for the proposal to be financially feasible.  The program costs and reimbursement assumes no other changes in the State's reimbursement regulations. 

Appendix C

Falling Through The Cracks: An Analysis of RCSD Dropouts

 Dan Drmacich, Principal, School Without Walls

 and Dr. Richard M. Ryan, University of Rochester

It is pointing to the obvious to say that the city of Rochester is suffering because of the high attrition among our public school students.  Some estimates suggests that the actual four year graduation rate may be a meager 39%, meaning that at least a solid majority of all of our students are falling through the cracks.  The social costs of this are extremely high as dropouts are statistically at risk for a) unemployment; b) imprisonment; and c) a lower quality of life for them and their offspring, among many other well documented outcomes.

There have been many academic studies of the reasons for dropout (e.g., see Eckstein & Wolpin, 1997, Rumberger, 1987; Vallerand et al., 1997).  Surprising to many is that the top reasons given by students for leaving school are not involvement with drugs, crime or lack of family support.  Instead the predominant reasons from the students point of view are motivational.  The research suggests that dropouts could not connect with the schools or teachers.  Top reasons include not finding school engaging, not being able to succeed at the work assigned, and not feeling a sense of belonging to the school community.  Although these national studies are informative, all involve students from cities other than Rochester. Thus we do not have a good understanding of why the dropout rate is so severe locally, and what specifically could be points of intervention in Rochester to reduce this costly trend.

In discussions with Dr, William Cala it became clear that there is a need to better understand where schools might better reach students on this local level.  Furthermore, it seems important to understand what has happened to foster dropout from the point of view of those whom we as a city have failed-namely the dropouts themselves. Accordingly we are proposing to do a "post-mortem" assessment of dropout by interviewing a representative sample of students who did not complete high school in Rochester. Our aims would be to a) identify the factors that led these individuals to drop out; and 2) to identify time points, situations, or interventions that, in the view of these consumers, might have had a preventive effect.  Out report would be made available to policy makers in Rochester to help promote both better understanding of the issues, and possible targets for intervention.

Specifics:  Our goal would be to use a combination of qualitative and quantitative empirical methods to examine the perceived causes of dropping out, and to inquire deeply into points where prevention of dropout might have been successful.  Focus will include both familial and school factors, but the latter will be most in focus since there we have the most possibility for structural and policy prevention programs.

Our intention would be to recruit 100 dropouts that represent the population of dropouts from the RCSD.  We will recruit these individuals from a variety of sources in cooperation with the superintendent's office. These will include youth in GED programs, those that are imprisoned, and those who can be tracked using identifiers. be carried out The study will be conducted in partnership with individuals in the Warner School of Education at the University of Rochester. Ethical procedures for the protection of participants will be exactingly followed, insuring confidentiality. Participants will be interviewed in depth, and will be asked as well to complete several standardized assessments and questionnaires focused on both factors leading to dropout and potential catch points where that could have been presented. Interviews will be recorded and rated by trained raters to assemble quantitative data, and also summarized for contents not captured numerically.

A formal request for expenses can be developed, but costs will be kept to a minimum. There will be a need for paying interviewers (approx costs $100 per session for time and transportation costs) and participants ($50 per session) and approximately $5000 for administrative costs, and 5,000 for report preparation and dissemination, and $3,000 suggesting an approximate budget of $28,000.

Appendix D

[1] See Education Law Section 3621, 2.b., which makes aidable transportation expenses in a certain school district for K - 4 pupils 4/5 of a mile or more from school, and Section 3635B, which provides for the designation of "child safety zones" in which aid is permissible regardless of distance between home and school.

[2] Mayor Robert Duffy initiated a "Zero Tolerance" program that greatly increased police presence in the community (through the use of overtime assignments and collaborative patrols with the Monroe County Sheriff and the New York State Police).  He has also indicated an intention to supplant this measure with an overall increase in the sworn strength of the Police Department in his 2008 - 09

[3]New York Times, March 9, 2007: Violent Crime in Cities Shows Sharp Surge.  " ... aggravated assault with guns up more than 30% in ... Rochester, NY" INSERT additional appropriate data

[4] A legal challenge by the union representing employees of the contracted vendor, Laidlaw, is likely to terminate the District's ability to utilize the RGRTA routes.  This matter is expected to be resolved by the end of the current school year.

[5] All expense and revenue estimates are valued in anticipated FY 2008 - 2009 dollars.