Article Details

For Immediate Release
August 9, 2011
Kathy Toelkes, Director of Communications, 785-296-4876

Number of Kansas schools and districts on improvement increases
Schools progressing, but performance targets increasing at faster pace

TOPEKA – Thirty-four Title I school districts and 46 Title I schools in Kansas were identified as “on improvement” for the 2011-2012 school year during the Kansas State Board of Education meeting in Topeka today. While both numbers increased from the previous year, they represent just 12 percent of Title I districts in the state, and just 7 percent of the 667 Title I schools in Kansas. 

 “It’s not surprising that we’re seeing the number of schools and districts on improvement increasing from year to year given that performance targets are increasing as much as 8 percent each year,” said Education Commissioner Diane DeBacker. “What is more surprising is the relatively small percentage of our Title I schools and districts that are on improvement this far into the federal No Child Left Behind accountability system that requires 100 percent proficiency by 2014.”

 The total number of Title I schools on improvement increased by nine from the previous year, but 12 of the schools that were on improvement last year came off of improvement this year. In addition, 12 more of the Title I schools that were on improvement last year made adequate yearly progress (AYP) this year in the area that was identified for improvement. Schools that meet AYP in the identified area of improvement for two consecutive years are no longer considered on improvement. Twenty-one of the schools on the improvement list are on improvement for the first time.

 Among the Title I school districts identified for improvement this year, 22 are in only their first or second year of improvement. Of the eight districts in their second year of improvement, four met AYP in the identified area of improvement this year.

 “While the number of schools and districts on improvement has gone up, we are still seeing great progress in student performance among the majority of the schools on improvement,” DeBacker said. “The assistance provided to schools and districts on improvement appears to be having a positive impact and even though the schools may not be improving at a rate that matches the dramatic yearly increases in AYP performance targets, it’s clear that these schools are on the right track in terms of helping all students learn.”

 Schools identified as on improvement are provided with additional funding to implement improvement plans, as well as an implementation coach who is onsite regularly to help develop and implement those plans. Districts on improvement receive a needs assessment as well as technical assistance in meeting the needs identified in the assessment.
Only Title I schools can be placed on improvement. Title I schools are those that receive federal Title I funds, typically schools with high percentages of students receiving free and reduced price lunches. Schools and districts are placed on improvement when they do not make AYP for two consecutive years. AYP designations require that schools and districts meet specified targets for student performance and participation on reading and math assessments, as well as in the areas of attendance and graduation. Performance targets must be met for the full student population in specified grades, as well as for sub-groups based on race/ethnicity, income level, special needs and English proficiency within those grades. Once a school or district is placed on improvement, it cannot come off of improvement until it has made AYP for two consecutive years in the identified area of improvement. 

 Each year a school is on improvement a different level of sanction is applied. In the first year of improvement, students in the school must be offered the choice to transfer to another school in the district that is not on improvement. In the second year of improvement, the school must provide supplementary educational services (SES) to low-income students. In the third year on improvement, the school must take corrective action to improve the school, such as replacing staff, implementing new curriculum, etc.  In the fourth year of improvement the school must prepare a plan to restructure the school to address the areas in need of improvement, and in the fifth year of improvement the school must implement restructuring. The sanctions are cumulative and accrue from year to year unless the school makes AYP in the identified area of improvement for a given year. When that happens, the school is placed on delayed status, meaning it will not advance to the next level of sanctions unless it does not meet AYP requirements in the next year.

 The list of districts and schools on improvement for 2011-2012 follows and is provided as an attachment.

Kansas State Department of Education Title I Schools and Districts Identified for Improvement for 2011-2012

Title I Districts Identified for Improvement for 2011-2012 Summary

• 34 Title I districts are identified for improvement for 2011-2012;  in 2010-2011there were 24 districts identified for improvement
• Three districts went off improvement: USD 257 Iola, USD 398 Peabody-Burns and USD 503 Parsons
• USD 424 Mullinville disorganized; therefore, it is not on the improvement list
• 20 districts have no Title I schools on improvement
• 3 districts that are not on improvement have Title I schools on improvement
• 6 districts on improvement in 2010-2011 made AYP in the area identified for improvement; USD 480 made it in reading but not in mathematics
• 14 districts are in 1st year of improvement
• 12 districts are in corrective action status (3 or more years on improvement)
• 12 districts are on improvement for only reading; 7 are on improvement for only mathematics
• 15 districts are on improvement for both reading and mathematics
• 2010-2011 AYP district reading targets were 86.0%
• 2010-2011 AYP district mathematics targets were 82.3%

Title I Schools Identified for Improvement for 2011-2012 Summary

·        46 Title I schools are identified for improvement in 2011-2012; 37 schools were on improvement in 2010-2011

·        12 schools are off of improvement: USD 259 Linwood Elementary, USD 259 Spaght Multimedia Magnet, USD 308 Avenue A Elementary, USD 430 Everest Middle School, USD 500 Chelsea Elementary, USD 500 Emerson Elementary, USD 500 Bertram Caruthers Elementary, USD 500 Whittier Elementary, USD 500 Central Middle School, USD 501 Chase Middle School, USD 501 Shaner Elementary and USD 501 Lundgren Elementary

·        2 schools are not on the improvement list as they closed July 1, 2011:  USD 253 Lowther South Intermediate School 5^th and USD 500 Fairfax Campus

·        5 schools may be removed from the improvement list later as they might not be Title I schools in 2011-2012: USD 259 Black Traditional Magnet Elementary, USD 259 Brooks Magnet Middle School, USD 259 Coleman Middle School, USD 500 JC Harmon High School and USD 500 Wyandotte High School

·        12 schools are on delay status for next level of sanctions as they made AYP in 2011 in the area previously identified for improvement

·        21 schools are identified on improvement for the first time

·        13 schools are identified for improvement in reading only

·        19 schools are identified for improvement in mathematics only

·        14 schools are identified for both  reading and mathematics

·        Improvement Status Year refers to the level of sanctions applied to a school on improvement:

1. Year 1Choice—29 schools
2. Year 2 Choice and Supplemental Educational Services (SES)—6 schools
3. Year 3 Choice, SES and Corrective Action (CA)—2 school
4. Year 4 Choice, SES, CA and Plan to Restructure—3 schools
5. Year 5 Choice, SES, Restructure—6 schools

·        2010-2011  AYP reading  targets were 87.8% for K-8 and 86.0% for 9-12

2010-2011 AYP mathematics targets were 86.7% for K-8 and 82.3% for 9-12

Title I Schools Identified for Improvement for 2011-2012

###