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Camden City Schools

Camden City Schools. Wednesday, January 8 , 2014. Agenda. Overview Student and Staff Survey Performance Listening & Evaluation Tour Preliminary Actions Taken. Camden City Overview. Camden is home to 77,000 people, of whom 25% are school-aged children.

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Camden City Schools

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  1. Camden City Schools Wednesday, January 8, 2014

  2. Agenda Overview Student and Staff Survey Performance Listening & Evaluation Tour Preliminary Actions Taken

  3. Camden City Overview • Camden is home to 77,000 people, of whom 25% are school-aged children • More than 15,000 students are served by Camden’s 26 traditional district schools and 11 charter schools • Nearly 95% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch • 19% of students have a special education classification

  4. Schools in Camden • Camden is the lowest-performing district in New Jersey • Priority Schools – schools with the lowest school-wide proficiency rates in the state • 23 of Camden’s 26 schools are Priority Schools • 3 of the absolute lowest-performing schools in the state • 14 of the lowest-performing 21 schools in the state based on overall proficiency in our NCLB waiver

  5. Agenda Overview Student and Staff Survey Performance Listening & Evaluation Tour Preliminary Actions Taken

  6. The Opportunity: Students are eager to learn Elementary School Students: I want to explore and learn new things Middle and High School Students: Thinking back over the past year in school, how often did you try to do your best work in school? Camden City School Climate Survey, Spring 2013

  7. The Opportunity: Students perceive their families to have high expectations of them… Elementary School Students: My family wants me to do well in school Middle/High School Students: My family wants me to do well in school Camden City School Climate Survey, Spring 2013

  8. The Opportunity: …and believe that their teachers care about them Elementary School Students: My teachers really care about me Elementary Students: My teachers would give me help if I needed it Camden City School Climate Survey, Spring 2013

  9. The Challenge: One-third of Camden City students wish they attended a different school Elementary School Students: I wish I went to a different school Middle/High School Students: I wish I went to a different school Camden City School Climate Survey, Spring 2013

  10. The Challenge: Many students feel unsafe both inside and outside of their school Middle/High School Students: How safe do you feel outside around the school? Elementary School Students: I feel safe in the hallways and bathrooms of the school Camden City School Climate Survey, Spring 2013

  11. The Challenge: …and violence is a significant problem in middle and high schools Middle/High School Students: Violence is a problem at my school Camden City School Climate Survey, Spring 2013

  12. The Challenge: Students do not find their school work engaging or interesting… Elementary School Students: My teachers make learning interesting Middle/High School Students: My teachers make learning interesting Camden City School Climate Survey, Spring 2013

  13. The Challenge:… and many students frequently miss school Chronic Absenteeism % of students absent > 10% of days

  14. The Challenge: Staff members report that schools lack the necessary ingredients for a culture of achievement Staff Members: The school community has high expectations of all students Staff Members: Teachers have close working relationships with each other Camden City School Climate Survey, Spring 2013

  15. The Challenge: Staff members spend a lot of time attending to student emotional needs and have difficulty motivating them Staff Members: I spend a great deal of time dealing with students’ social and emotional troubles. Staff Members: Some students at this school just cannot be motivated to do the work. Camden City School Climate Survey, Spring 2013

  16. Agenda Overview Student and Staff Survey Performance Listening & Evaluation Tour Preliminary Actions Taken

  17. Nearly half of Camden’s K-8 and high school students are performing far below the State’s bar for proficiency Camden NJASK LAL and Math Scores, 2012-2013 Camden HSPA LAL and Math Scores, 2012-2013 Proficient Proficient Note: Students scores are attributed to the school they were enrolled in as of October 15; data is for district schools onlySource: NJDOE

  18. Despite modest progress in some areas, Camden students remain 40-50 percentage points lower than the state proficiency average Camden NJASK LAL and Math Proficiency, 2011-2013 Camden HSPA LAL and Math Proficiency, 2011-2013 LAL Math LAL Math Note: Students scores are attributed to the school they were enrolled in as of October 15; Data is for district schools onlySource: NJDOE

  19. While all sub-groups under-perform, Special Education and ELL students in K-8 schools score particularly low Camden Public Schools NJASK LAL Performance by Demographic, 2012-2013 Note: Students scores are attributed to the school they were enrolled in as of October 15Source: NJDOE

  20. Last year, some K-8 schools showed modest progress in LAL while others fell further behind; charters performed slightly better on the whole Change in Camden K-8 NJASK LAL Scores by School, 2011-2012 to 2012-2013 Indicates charter Source: NJDOE

  21. Still, all K-8 district schools are both low-performing and low growth NJASK LAL Performance and Growth, 2012-2013 a Proficiency 0 SGP Source: NJDOE

  22. And at the high school level, the majority of schools have declined in performance Change in Camden HSPA Scores by School, 2011-2012 to 2012-2013 Indicates charter LAL Math Source: NJDOE

  23. …And most concerning, we’re far from preparing our students well for college or careers High School Graduation Rate College Readiness

  24. Agenda Overview Student and Staff Survey Performance Listening & Evaluation Tour Preliminary Actions Taken

  25. Superintendent’s 100-Day Transition: Three Areas of Focus

  26. Superintendent’s 100-Day Transition: Areas of Focus

  27. Superintendent’s 100-Day Transition: Areas of Focus (cont’d) • Community Engagement: The Listening Tour • Objective: to listen to and learn from all members of the community about the best path forward for Camden’s schools • How was this achieved? • 4 community town halls • 8focus group events with parents, students and staff • Feedback from hundreds of teachers via suggestion boxes placed in every school

  28. 100-Day Listening Tour: Community Town Halls Creative Arts Bonsall Woodrow Wilson Molina Attendees: • Signed In: 61 • Students: 15 • Parents: 18 • Educators: 21 • Community Members: 24 Attendees: • Signed In: 67 • Students: 11 • Parents: 26 • Educators: 26 • Community Members: 16 Town Halls Attendees: • Signed In: 85 • Students: 23 • Parents: 45 • Educators: 11 • Community Members: 12 Attendees: • Signed In: 48 • Students: 9 • Parents: 15 • Educators: 8 • Community Members: 10 88% of attendees indicated an interest being involved in efforts to improve schools

  29. 100-Day Listening Tour: Focus Group Events Liberty Park Community Huddle Oct. 24th Chat with Student Representatives Oct. 28th Fairview Community Huddle Nov. 19th Parent Roundtable Nov. 25th District Office Town Hall Nov. 26th Teacher Talks Met East - Nov. 25th Cooper’s Poynt - Dec. 12th Camden High - Dec. 16th

  30. Listening Tour Findings • Students want: • Safer and better schools in high quality school buildings • Higher expectations from teachers and parents • Access to innovative technology and learning tools • Access to extracurricular resources • Parents want: • Safer and better schools in high quality school buildings • A more service-oriented district office and school environment • Clear opportunities for parents to engage • Teachers want: • Better curriculum and instructional support • A more service-oriented district office and school environment • Less bureaucracy • Community stakeholders want: • Safer and better schools, and community centers • Continuity in district-led community programs and initiatives

  31. Camden receives $21.7K per pupil Camden City General Fund % Allocated to Charters & Out of District Tuition *Excludes PEA and Federal Grants

  32. Agenda Overview Student and Staff Survey Performance Listening & Evaluation Tour Preliminary Actions Taken

  33. Preliminary Actions Taken Leaders & Educators • Hired 5 new turnaround principals • Started the school year with 100% of vacancies filled through a more strategic approach to staffing • Revised recruitment and selection process for new hires • Held first ever matching fair for current staff to increase choice in school placement process • Ensured a sufficient number of substitute teachers were hired to meet persistent gaps • Won a 5-year $5M SLP grant to support the development of a residency-based school leadership development program Curriculum & Instruction • Authored rigorous new math and ELA curricula across grades K to 12 to align to Common Core State Standards • Invested $5M in new textbooks for students and classrooms • Provided intensive summer development institutes to all educators • Providing ongoing monthly professional learning opportunities for teachers and principals Technology • Established technology pilots in three schools to explore the use of instructional technology in our classrooms • Working closely with the state to ensure that our PARCC pilot schools are prepared for computer-based testing this spring

  34. Preliminary Actions Taken School Safety & Security • Updated all school security plans • Installed more than 100 new security cameras • Partnered with Camden City and the Camden County Police Department to establish “Safe Corridors” for students traveling to and from school • Ongoing heightening of school safety drills and protocols with state support • Developing a comprehensive school safety and security strategy • Currently, interviewing to hire a School Safety and Security director Student Support • Established the development and growth of a breakfast program • Program began in 2 schools at the start of the school year, and is now in all schools • Piloting a dinner program for students in our after school program • Program is beginning in 6 schools with plans to expand to all schools by the end of the year • Piloting PBSIS (Positive Behavior Support in Schools) in three of our K8 schools to promote positive behavior and improved school climates • Planning similar intervention programs for our early childhood and high school students

  35. Preliminary Actions Taken Families & Partnerships • Continued parent and community engagement though additional roundtables and community cabinet meetings • Hosted 4 community meetings and 8 focus group events in 2 months • Establishing “Parent and Community Centers” in our city’s 4 wards in partnership with the Office of the Mayor to ensure parents have access to clear information about educational options for their students • Re-engaging recent dropouts through a home visit campaign • Of the ~350 students who have recently dropped out, we have already re-enrolled more than 50 students School Options • Launched an RFP seeking additional Renaissance school project applicants to partner with the district starting in the fall of 2014 • Supported the takeover of Freedom Academy by Democracy Prep to improve rigor and school quality

  36. Next Steps • Based on the findings of our transition period, we are finalizing a strategic plan to be rolled out later this month • It aims to address the concerns that we heard voiced by our families and the community, including: • Academic rigor • School-level resources • School safety • Building quality • Access to information • Following the roll-out of the strategic plan, we will re-engage with families at the school level to discuss how the strategic plan commitments will improve education options for all students in their community

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