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School board to vote on grant
The immediate fates and futures of one principal, a number of teachers, a school and perhaps a school district itself could rest on a decision the members of the Quincy School District board of directors will make at Tuesday’s meeting.
On Tuesday, March 2, the board held a special meeting to discuss that the district has received preliminary notification it may be eligible to apply for a federal school improvement grant. These grants, which could range from $500,000 to $2 million per school per year for three years, are intended to substantially raise student achievement in the state’s lowest-performing 5 percent of schools.
The district has understood that Quincy Junior High School will be identified as one of those schools through a U.S. Department of Education formula based solely on the Washington Assessment of Student Learning test.
On Tuesday, the board will vote to apply or not apply for the grant. Superintendent Burton Dickerson told the school board members and a large gathered crowd that if the district is awarded the grant, it must adopt one of four models.
The ‘closure’ model, deemed the most unrealistic for the Quincy district by Dickerson, would simply involve the closure of Quincy Junior High School. The ‘restart’ model would involve closing the junior high and re-opening it as a charter school or another type of educational institution run by other agencies. The ‘turnaround’ model would involve replacing junior high principal Scott Ramsey and 50 percent of the current staff; and the ‘transformation’ model would have the district institute a developmental growth outline that it must follow, with teachers being rewarded and reprimanded for student achievement.
The transformation model seemed to be the one Dickerson thought most highly of, although it too would require the replacement of Ramsey.
“From my perspective, this model is the least objectionable, although it contains things that are very concerning for us,” Dickerson said. “The idea of replacing (Ramsey) is troubling. He’s done a good job as a principal and district leader. From my own observations and conferring with others, he’s a respected and appreciated leader. He’s supportive and positive to work with.”
Dickerson said that if the district received the grant and the transformation model was adopted, he’d like to find a way to keep Ramsey as part of the junior high leadership team in some way to work with the new principal.
“I’d like to find a way to achieve a win-win scenario, if possible, if we pursue this grant and model,” Dickerson said.
When the list of low-performing schools is publicly announced, possibly later this week, the district has been notified that some of its elementary schools will also be identified as needing improvement, though not in the same category at the junior high.
Dickerson said that if the district was awarded the grant, at least some of the apportioned funds should be utilized to assist the efforts of those schools as well.
“A point that I want to stress is that this is not just a junior high problem,” he said. “This issue is system-wide. The responsibility rests with the entire system.
“One thing is clear, and that’s we need to be more effective at implementing improvements on a system-wide level. This grant might provide the impetus we need to implement some of our efforts more quickly.”
The U.S. Department of Education Grant will allocate $3.456 billion nationwide over the next three years — $42.5 million for Washington. Dickerson said resources offered with the grant include technical support, training and focused, professional development for staff.
Dickerson said that 49 other schools in 30 other districts have been notified they will be eligible for the grant as well.
“The state believes that as many as 25 to 35 applications may be submitted,” he said. “You can do the math, but there won’t be funding available for all of those schools if the application number is that high.”
Dickerson also noted that in a few years, the state may require districts to undergo the types of structural changes the grant would provide, so in a way, the Quincy district could get a head start on that process if it applies for the grant now.
“My concern is passing up this type of funding,” he said. “We may be forced to do this in the future, but we don’t know what kind of funding will be available then. It may be less.”
Several teachers spoke at the meeting, and all of them were against applying for the grant.
Junior high teacher Lelia Coghill read portions of a letter she’s going to send to state legislators who work on education committees.
“We’re working under a short timeline, and the details are unclear,” she said. “Why are we given only four choices? Why don’t they ask the school what we can do to help? I can’t accept the unfair way schools are being targeted.
“I don’t see the state or the federal government listening to us. We have proven we improve students’ skills. The Northwest Evaluation Association scores show that. I believe in the staff. We can bring that (academic) growth. I know it in my heart.”
Junior high counselor Trevor Sill provided a variety of charts and figures that show the academic maturation of the students at the junior high over the past several years.
“We’re in this boat because of the WASL and the Adequate Yearly Progress (mandate). In terms of the WASL, the seventh-graders have always gotten the short shift,” he said. “The seventh-grade reading test is the most difficult test on the WASL in relation to other tests. The math is where the seventh-graders are hit the hardest. There’s a problem because of the disproportionate difficulty of the state’s seventh-grade tests.
“We’re doing something right at the junior high. We’re not quite up to the WASL bar just yet, but the kids are leaving the building better than they came in. To take Scott out would be a mistake. Getting rid of Scott isn’t worth $2 million. If a bunch of money is what it takes to get improvement, then let’s pass a levy and not have the feds meddling with us.”
Melissa Culich, a mother of four children in the Quincy School District, said communication between teachers and parents could be improved,
“The low test scores come from the parents not being responsible. That’s the No. 1 tool to a child’s success,” Culich said. “Not too long ago, I didn’t know that one of my kids was failing classes. Nobody called me. There’s a lot of information I wasn’t getting.
“I want to feel confident that my child’s teacher is helping my child succeed. As a parent, it’s frustrating sometimes. The teachers are doing a good job, but the communication and follow-through could be refined.”
The school board members asked Dickerson several questions about some of the details of the grant, but otherwise didn’t publicly reveal which way they might be leaning toward voting. The meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at the district administration building.
Board member Myrna Blakely questioned the wisdom of rewarding teachers based solely on student performance, saying that might lead to an erosion of morale among the staff.
“I’ve talked to the junior high staff, and I’ve acknowledged the good, hard work they’re doing to boost student achievement,” Dickerson said. “It doesn’t feel good to be picked on or labeled based on outcomes that you don’t necessarily have total control over. I just wanted them to know that we’re all in this together and we’re not going to finger-point or blame the junior high teachers.
“We’re well aware of the challenges we’re facing, and we’re working diligently to improve as we’re faced with these labels and designations.”
