Title I School Improvement Grant (SIG), section 1003(g)



SIG I Year 2 Monitoring and Fiscal Teams’ Third Onsite Visit Feedback

Maryland State Department of Education—Title I School Improvement Grant (SIG), section 1003(g)

|School: Booker T. Washington Middle School LEA: Baltimore City Public School System |

|Principal: Debbie Thomas LEA Turnaround Director: Kim Ferguson |

|Date of SIG Team’s School Visit: May 8, 2012 Date of SIG Fiscal Team’s Visit: June 8, 2012 |

|SIG Team: Walter Sallee, Annette Harris, Gary Hedges SIG Fiscal Team: Geri Taylor Lawrence |

Title I School Improvement Grant (SIG): The School Improvement Grant (SIG) Program, authorized under section 1003(g) of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Act of 1965, provides funding through State educational agencies (SEAs) to local educational agencies (LEAs) with the lowest-achieving schools that have the greatest need for the funds and demonstrate the strongest commitment to use the funds to raise significantly the achievement of students. The United States Department of Education (USDE) views the large infusion of Federal funds into the SIG program through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) as a historic opportunity to address one of the most intractable challenges for America’s education system: turning around or closing down our Nation’s persistently lowest-achieving schools.

Purpose of the SIG Monitoring and Fiscal Teams’ Third Onsite Visit: As approved by USDE, MSDE, through SIG Monitoring Teams, will conduct three onsite monitoring visits annually in each LEA that receives a school improvement grant to ensure that the LEA is implementing its intervention model fully and effectively in Maryland’s Tier I and Tier II schools. The purpose of the SIG I Year 2 Teams’ third onsite visit is to provide each SIG school, with LEA guidance, an opportunity to showcase the successful implementation of two or three activities/strategies focused on instruction, use of data, and/or professional development, within the approved SIG plan. As an additional monitoring activity during this SIG I Year 2 third onsite visit, the SIG Monitoring Team will conduct interviews with four or five stakeholder groups. These groups must include SIG Principal; Teacher Leaders; Parents; Students; and School-based Lead Restart Partner (if applicable). In addition and on a different day, a MSDE SIG I Year 2 Fiscal Team will monitor the school’s SIG I Year 2 budget.

| |

|Table Organization of SIG I Year 2 Monitoring and Fiscal Teams’ |

|Third Onsite Visit Feedback |

|Table 1 |Activity/Strategy #1 Observed by SIG Team |

|Table 2 |Activity/Strategy #1 Observed by SIG Team |

|Table 3 |Principal Interview Questions and Responses |

|Table 4 |Teacher Leaders’ Interview Questions and Responses |

|Table 5 |Parents’ Interview Questions and Responses |

|Table 6 |Students’ Interview Questions and Responses |

|Table 7 |SIG I Year 2 School Budget Expenditures for Booker T. Washington Middle School for School Year 2011-2012 |

|TABLE 1 |

|Observed Activity/Strategy #1 |

|MSDE Question |SIG Principal Responses in Black Font and MSDE SIG Team Responses in Blue Font |

|Which intervention model requirement/component will |Booker T. Washington Middle is implementing the Turnaround Model. |

|the observed activity/strategy address? | |

|What is the specific activity/strategy that will be |Strategy 1 |

|observed that is aligned to this requirement? |Teacher mentoring and development. |

| |Teacher mentor co-teaching and support. |

|How is the activity/strategy to be observed linked |The activities to be observed are articulated in the SIG plan as areas of need for the school. |

|to the needs assessment in your SIG plan for the |These activities are currently being implemented in accordance with the SIG plan. |

|school? | |

|Where are you in your timeline for the |These activities are being implemented at the present time, according to schedule. |

|implementation of the observed activity/strategy? | |

|What is the current level of implementation for the |These activities are currently fully implemented as per the SIG plan. |

|activity/strategy as determined by the school? | |

|What has been the impact of the activity/strategy to|Under Strategy 1, new teachers are receiving additional support and development using the co-teaching model. |

|be observed on the school making progress towards | |

|its SIG goals? | |

|SIG Team Consensus |SIG Team Consensus Summary |

|MSDE SIG Team’s Consensus Summary of the observed |The team observed two classes that were implementing Strategy 1: Teacher Mentoring and Development. |

|activity/strategy during the Third SIG Onsite | |

|Monitoring Visit (bulleted summary of each observed|6th grade social studies and a 7th grade English language arts (ELA) classes were observed. |

|activity/strategy) | |

| |A 7th grade ELA class with a teacher and a student teacher was observed. The students worked in cooperative groups to create a business plan. |

| |The steps for creating a business plan were posted in the classroom. In addition, an agenda; models of business plans; model of a persuasive |

| |letter to target businesses; and group roles and expectations were posted. The students orally presented business plans as a small group, and |

| |other students had the option to ask questions from the presenters which appeared to be language specific for a business plan. A parking lot was |

| |posted for students to ask questions or to make comments. The students were engaged and well-managed. Both teachers asked questions and provided |

| |student feedback. |

| | |

| |A 6th grade social studies class with a classroom teacher and a Teach for America teacher was observed. The lesson focused on map skills. The |

| |students had to identify the four cardinal directions and apply this knowledge to navigate maps of different scale. The students worked |

| |independently using a textbook to aid in drawing a continent of their choice for students to guess the continent. Students were asked to identify |

| |the name of the continent, countries in the continent, and capital of the countries. One teacher was using the behavior modification program to |

| |monitor student behavior on Smartboard. A rubric was posted for persuasive letter. |

| | |

|MSDE SIG Team’s Consensus Assessment of the level of|For both examples the team observed that Strategy 1 was being implemented as per the SIG plan. |

|fidelity of implementation of the observed | |

|activity/strategy during the Third SIG Onsite | |

|Monitoring Visit (bulleted summary) | |

| | |

| | |

|TABLE 2 |

|Observed Activity/Strategy #2 |

|MSDE Question |SIG Principal Response |

|Which intervention model requirement/component will |Booker T. Washington Middle is implementing the Turnaround Model. |

|the observed activity/strategy address? | |

|What is the specific activity/strategy that will be |Strategy 2 |

|observed that is aligned to this requirement? |Learning environment. |

|How is the activity/strategy to be observed linked |The activities to be observed are articulated in the SIG plan as areas of need for the school. |

|to the needs assessment in your SIG plan for the |These activities are currently being implemented in accordance with the SIG plan. |

|school? | |

|Where are you in your timeline for the |These activities are being implemented at the present time, according to schedule. |

|implementation of the observed activity/strategy? | |

|What is the current level of implementation for the |These activities are currently fully implemented as per the SIG plan. |

|activity/strategy as determined by the school? | |

|What has been the impact of the activity/strategy to|Under Strategy 2, there have been noticeable improvements in the overall climate of the school, which was a concern indicated in the needs |

|be observed on the school making progress towards |assessment in the SIG plan. |

|its SIG goals? | |

|SIG Team Consensus |SIG Team Consensus Summary |

|MSDE SIG Team’s Consensus Summary of the observed |The team observed three classes implementing Strategy 2: Learning Environment |

|activity/strategy during the Third SIG Onsite |8th Grade class was engaged in a lesson on the Civil War. The class used personal laptops (one for each student) to develop a PowerPoint |

|Monitoring Visit (bulleted summary of each observed|presentation highlighting the significance of specific battles from a graphic organizer. Students in the class were involved and on-task. |

|activity/strategy) |6th Grade class with a first year Teach for America teacher taught a lesson on present verb present progressive/past verb past progressive. During|

| |the lesson there were frequent checks for understanding and students were flexibly grouped for remediation and re-teaching. Students were engaged |

| |in the lesson, on task, and the teacher demonstrated good classroom management skills. |

| |In an 8th Grade Math class, the teacher taught an interactive lesson using iPads as instructional tools. Students were shown a video on the |

| |whiteboard at the beginning of the lesson to inspire them and make a connection with math concepts using a short video on skateboards and various |

| |maneuvers, including 360 and 720-degree turns. During class time, students used iPads to create personal goals for the week. The teacher |

| |implemented a point system encourage and reward classroom participation. Most of the students were on task and engaged; however, a few were |

| |playing unrelated games on the iPads. The teacher skillfully redirected these students back to the task at hand. |

|MSDE SIG Team’s Consensus Assessment of the level of|During the observations of Strategy 2, the team observed evidence of successful implementation. Various strategies, including the use of |

|fidelity of implementation of the observed |technology, were used to maintain an environment conducive to learning. |

|activity/strategy during the Third SIG Onsite | |

|Monitoring Visit (bulleted summary) | |

|TABLE 3 |

|Principal Interview Questions |

|Describe the impact of the second year of |The administrative staff at the school is all new: the principal began on April 9; Assistant Principal began on April 9; and another assistant |

|implementation of the reform in the school. |principal began in December 2011. |

| |SIG has provided opportunities in arts programming, including funding for staff. |

| |Instructional technology is finally being implemented (e.g. iPads, laptop computers, smart boards). Seven laptop carts were purchased with SIG |

| |funds. |

| |The school opted out of the extended day program due to compensation issues for district staff. Next year, the plan is for full implementation of |

| |the extended day program for the arts. |

| |SIG funds have helped to fund the YMCA program. |

|What is the school like now after the second year of|There will now be new professional development opportunities for teachers to visit other schools to observe demonstration lessons, co-teaching, and|

|implementation in terms of student achievement and |to dialogue with experienced teachers. |

|instructional effectiveness? |There will be job-embedded collaborative planning time built into the schedule next year. |

| |School is moving toward data-driven analysis (diagnostic and prescriptive) to address students’ needs. |

| |The school has a partnership with Daniel Brown (UTC, 60%, 3x per week) to provide mentoring and teacher professional development. |

|Talk about your greatest successes in the second |Partnership with Teach for America (TFA). |

|year of implementation of SIG. |Instructional technology. |

| |Arts program is growing. |

| |Teacher efficacy has improved and the work will be to translate that to effectiveness. |

|What were the greatest challenges in the second year|Stable and consistent leadership. |

|of implementation? |Principal does not know if she will be in place next year. |

| |Stability of the staff and staff dedication. |

| |Retaining and training high quality staff due to budget restraints. |

| |Job-embedded professional development/collaborative planning. This will be built into the schedule for next year. |

| |Though teachers had repeatedly asked, they were not provided a copy of the SIG plan during the previous administration. |

| |The Year 2 SIG plan was not finalized until October, 2011. It should have been finalized and in teachers’ hands from the start. |

|Which challenges have you overcome in the second |Ensured that teachers were provided a copy of the SIG and school improvement plans and reviewed expectations of them under those plans. |

|year of implementation and how? |Set additional expectations for teachers (professionalism commitment). |

| |Improved communication between staff and administration. |

| |Adapt to new staff. |

| |Under the previous administration there was no consistent assistant principal and there was no behavior specialist funded. |

| |Teachers were pulled out of classrooms to perform administrative duties. |

|Discuss the lessons learned in the second year of |Strategically utilizing funds to ensure that staff members are compensated in a timely manner. |

|implementation. What advice would you give to |Multiple plans must be aligned under one vision (e.g. SIP, SIG). |

|another school beginning this process of reform? | |

|What would you like to tell us that we have not |It is extremely important to maintain a level of consistency for students and staff. |

|asked about the second year of implementation? |Relationships with all people are critical. Everyone must understand their worth and value because all have it. Staff has had a rough year and |

| |there is a need for a time of healing. Part of this, moving forward, is making sure that there are clear and concise expectations of everyone. |

|TABLE 4 |

|Teacher Leaders’ Interview Questions |

|Describe the impact of the second year of |The responses in this section and the next (Items 1 and 2) are classified in terms of prior and post arrival of new principal and administration: |

|implementation of the reform in the school. |Prior to the arrival of the new principal and administration: |

| |Teachers were placed in administrative roles without proper certification. |

| |Conditions of teacher incentives/bonuses were not communicated. |

| |Teachers had not need a copy of the SIG plan. |

| |School schedule was changed at least 9 times for various reasons. |

| |Records of teacher mentoring for new teachers were falsified to show that mentoring was taking place when, in fact, it was not. Note: evidence of |

| |this was duly noted and documented during the document review during the second SIG visit as well. |

| |Instructional support was not available to teachers except for the person assigned from Johns Hopkins. |

| |There were no after-school activities. Lack of funding was cited as the reason by the former administrator. |

| |Teachers were in an environment of fear and intimidation. Teachers’ jobs were threatened. When teachers spoke up or had different opinions on |

| |matters they were retaliated against by being assigned to a self-contained “behavioral class” made up of students with behavior problems pulled |

| |from several other classes. No additional supports were provided to these teaches (e.g. special educator, behavioral support, etc.) |

| |Teachers felt that there was little or no access to the principal. |

| |Teachers report that there may have been achievement growth between Benchmarks A and C. |

| |Access to “Data Links” was limited or non-existent and the tool was not being used to make data-driven instructional adjustments. |

| |Technology purchased with the SIG grant was not being utilized. For example, laptop computers, iMacs ©, and iPads ©, were locked away and not being|

| |used to support instruction. |

| |Teachers noted that large amounts of money were being used for catering though it is not clear of the source of these funds and whether they were |

| |being appropriately spent. |

| |Teachers reported that the former principal was “never here” citing that she had missed approximately 60 days of school. The team did not have the|

| |resources to confirm nor deny this claim. |

|What is the school like now after the second year of|Post arrival of the new principal and administration: |

|implementation in terms of student achievement and |Teachers feel that lines of communication between them and administration have reopened. |

|instructional effectiveness? |Technology was unlocked and is currently being utilized (the team observed this during the observation). |

| |Teachers have more collaborative planning (job-embedded). |

| |Teachers felt that in general, there was more transparency and better morale overall. |

|Talk about your greatest successes in this second |Building/maintaining relationships with students. |

|year of implementation of SIG. |Student gains on “Benchmark C”. |

| |Reintegration of Ceramic Art, which was stifled under previous administration. |

| |Implementation of instructional technology. |

| |Mural for school. |

| |Art piece for the Booker T. Washington birthplace museum. |

|What were the greatest challenges in the second year|The previous administration was cited as the greatest challenge by the Teacher Leaders. Please see Items 1 and 2 above. |

|of implementation? | |

|Which challenges have you overcome in the second |Becoming an independent learner and seek help when needed. |

|year and how? |Reaching out to other teachers. |

| |Owning success or failure – personal accountability. |

|Discuss the lessons learned in the second year of |Teachers reported that “Turnaround” is about people: getting the right people in place to do the work – recruit and retain the best people for the |

|implementation. What advice would you give to |job. Teachers went on to express the need for balance in terms of experience for a Turnaround school. Currently the school is top-heavy with new |

|another school beginning this process of reform? |teachers and there needs to be a balance between new and experienced teachers to be successful. It makes no sense to have a majority of new |

| |teachers at a Turnaround school. |

| |Promote transparency and autonomy. |

| |Select excellent professionals, especially for a Turnaround School. |

| |Consistency: Staff, schedule. Stick with something, particularly as it relates to the schedule. Do not allow a 2nd year teacher to develop the |

| |school schedule. |

|What would you like to tell us that we have not |Gains in achievement are expected despite deplorable working conditions. These gains will be due to hard work and dedication of teachers in the |

|asked? |classroom. |

| |It was difficult to stay off the “blacklist”. Teachers’ jobs were threatened. |

| |Mentor teachers are needed for all subject areas. |

|TABLE 5 |

|Parents’ Interview Questions |

|Describe the impact of the second year of |The library resource center is better, though there should be more computers. |

|implementation of the reform in the school. |Aesthetics in the building are better. |

| |Behavior has improved. |

| |Climate control (in terms of actual temperature) in the building is better. |

|What is the school like now after the second year of|Communication with teachers is better. |

|implementation in terms of student achievement and |Parent portal is now available (online resources, phone calls) |

|instructional effectiveness? | |

|What did your child/children say about the school |Child has started afterschool program with the YMCA. |

|last year and what are they saying this year? |Students speak more highly about their teachers. |

| |Fewer fights/more police patrol. |

|What role do you now play at the school? |PTA. |

| |Parent volunteer. |

| |Parents said that they would like to see more safety awareness and drug prevention programs at the school or in the community. |

|What has made the most positive difference in your |Teachers have made the difference. |

|child’s education this year? |Positive phone calls home. |

| |Fewer office referrals. |

| |Student is more outgoing this year. |

|What has been the most challenging thing about |Bullying in and out of school. Parents did not receive assistance in cases where child was bullied. |

|school for your child this year? |Time management as it relates to academics, homework, sports involvement, and the YMCA program. |

|Which challenges did your child overcome and how did|Bullying was an issue; however, the school was of no assistance. |

|the school help? | |

|What advice would you give to the teachers and |Address bullying and gang issues. |

|principal if they wanted to improve the school more?|Provide sex education classes or programs. |

| |Drug awareness education. |

|What would you like to see happen next year for you |Better learning environment. |

|and your child? |Use of broadcast technology. |

| |More parent involvement. |

| |More computers for students. |

|What would you like to tell us that we have not |There should be more choices for school meals. |

|asked? |Healthier meal options. |

| |More time is needed for students to eat their lunches. |

| |Staff is more involved and more engaged with parents. They take the extra step when needed with parents and students alike. |

|TABLE 6 |

|Students’ Interview Questions |

|Describe what the school was like last year. |The school has improved in the areas of behavior and attendance. |

| |Last year there were few arts opportunities. |

| |The building was remodeled. |

| |There were very few opportunities for field trips last year. |

| | |

|What is the school like this year? What makes your |The school is more strict, but there are more opportunities for arts and fieldtrips and to learn about personal responsibility. |

|different from any other school you know? |Teachers have high expectations. |

| | |

|What is the best thing you like about the school |Having arts classes and completing art projects. |

|this year? |More personal connections with teachers. |

| |Coach classes. |

|What has been the most challenging thing about |Getting to know personal responsibilities. |

|school for you this year? |Behavior of 6th grade students. |

| |Fitting in. |

| |Getting ready for high school. |

| |Work is hard but students know they are capable of doing it. |

|Which challenges have you overcome this year and |Transitioning into a more responsible student. |

|how? |Being around disrespectful students. |

| |Making better choices. |

|What advice would you give to your teachers and |Instead of having meetings to discuss good/bad behavior, discuss this with students individually as needed. |

|principal if they wanted to improve the school more?|Make expectations more clear school wide. Use rewards as appropriate (e.g. PBIS cart, Star Bucks, etc.). |

|What would you hope to see or do at this school next|Improved behavior. |

|year? |More students allowed to visit the library. |

| |Recognition for positive behavior – too much time is spent on “bad” kids. |

|Tell us what you expect the school to be like in 5 |School will be remodeled: another dance studio; more arts classes. |

|years? |Booker T. Washington will not share building with another school (Renaissance Academy). |

| | |

|What would you like to tell us that we have not |Teachers need more support, especially in large classes. |

|asked? |Behavior needs to change for the better. |

| | |

| | |

| TABLE 7 SIG I Year 2 School Budget for Booker T. Washington Middle School , Tier I |

|MSDE Fiscal Reviewer: Geri Taylor Lawrence Monitoring Date: June 8, 2012 |

|Total SIGI Year 2 Allocation: $ 1,002,143. |School Budget Spent: |Percent of School Budget Spent: 37% |Spend Down Data as of: |

| |$ 368,943 | |June 1, 2012 |

|Salaries & Wages |Contractual Services |Supplies & Materials |Other |

|Budgeted: $ 561,823 |Budgeted: $ 121,727 |Budgeted: $ 77,273 |Budgeted: N/A |

|Encumbered: $ 0 |Encumbered: $ 11,550 |Encumbered: $ 0 |Encumbered: N/A |

|Spent (amount): $ 244,039 |Spent (amount): $ 42,350 |Spent (amount): $ 0 |Spent: N/A |

|Spent (%): 43 % |Spent (%): 35 % |Spent (%): 0 % | |

|How much of the school budget, based on the LEA’s approved application, has been expended to date (amount and %)? |

|BCPSS provided documentation that showed Booker T. Washington has spent $ 368,943. This amount is 37% of their approved SIG I year 2 budget. An additional amount of $ 11,550 has been encumbered. Expended |

|amounts for fixed charges are included in the total spent. |

|Is school spending consistent with budget timeline? If not, what steps are being taken to expend the funds as planned? |

|BCPSS indicated that spending for Booker T. Washington is not consistent with the budget timeline. Booker T. Washington has been using funds from last year’s allocation for most of the school year. |

|Additionally, the appointment of a new principal in April has also caused delay in spending. The district will be submitting an amendment to extend the grant period to September 30, 2012. |

|What action steps or planned activities have not taken place that would impact the budget? BCPSS explained that materials for the arts program have not been ordered and therefore no spending in the |

|supplies and materials category has occurred. |

|Has a budget amendment been submitted? If yes, what budget changes were requested for this school? |

|BCPSS indicated that Booker T. Washington has been included in the pending amendment that has been submitted to MSDE. Salary adjustments will occur for most positions to reconcile the budgeted amount to the |

|actual salary amount. Approximately $140,000 will be moved from salaries to contractual services because the dance and technology positions will be filled outside of the school system. Additionally, new hall|

|monitor positions are being added to the school plan. Booker T Washington plans to enhance instruction through the purchase of SMART boards and Activotes. The school further proposes providing a Summer Arts|

|Bridge for students. |

|How often are school expenditures monitored by the LEA? Who monitors? BCPSS provided documentation that showed that monitoring was conducted on April 17, 24, and May 3, 2012. BCPSS explained that the |

|Grants Administration Office provides monthly reports as a part of the monitoring process. These reports are disseminated to the Turnaround Office staff, school principal, Title I Coordinator, and EMO |

|operator if applicable. The reports are color coded and categories that have spending concerns are denoted in red. If the school principal has questions or concerns, they are addressed by the Turnaround |

|Office business manager. BCPSS indicated that the business manager continues to meet regularly with school leadership to reconcile and plan. |

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