Baltimore City Public Schools’ Five-Year Strategic Plan ...

Baltimore City Public Schools'

Five-Year Strategic Plan 2016?20

Approved by the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners, December 2015

1 Baltimore City Public Schools' Five-Year Strategic Plan 2016?20

The Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners began the work of strategic planning in 2011 which resulted in a clearly articulated mission, vision, goals, and priorities that form the foundation of this strategic plan. Now, with this strategic plan, City Schools is positioned to take the next step toward excellence and equity for all students. By 2020, City Schools will meet a set of clear goals in areas from improving students' academic achievement to recruiting high-quality staff to ensuring inviting school buildings. We will increase parent and community involvement in our schools, improve our service to all stakeholders, and manage school and district budgets efficiently. That work is already under way and will continue through the five years of this plan. With this strategic plan, the district has mapped out specifically what we need to do to ensure that all our students are on the path to success. Staff, students, parents, community partners, and other stakeholders provided their input in developing this plan and, on behalf of the Board, I thank the entire City Schools community for their active participation--and for their continued support in creating the schools Baltimore's children need and deserve. Together, we will build a district where equity and excellence grow and thrive, and where all our students have opportunities to create bright futures for themselves and for our city.

Marnell A. Cooper Chair Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners

January 2016

Table of Contents

Introduction

2

About City Schools

4

Measuring Success

6

Foundational Elements

7

Mission

7

Vision

7

District Goals and Priorities

7

Core Beliefs

7

Pillars of Excellence

8

District Priorities

1. Quality Curricula & Instruction

9

2. Quality Staff

13

3. Climate & Facilities

15

4. Parent & Community Engagement

17

5. Responsible Stewardship & Excellent

Customer Service

19

6. Portfolio of Great Schools

21

1 Baltimore City Public Schools' Five-Year Strategic Plan 2016?20

Introduction

Every day, the Baltimore City Public Schools community works to provide excellence in education for every child. In classrooms across the city, students gain new knowledge and understanding, teachers learn new ways to support and connect with students, administrators and district office staff develop programs to meet a range of student interests and ensure schools provide a positive environment for learning. But until now, City Schools lacked a roadmap for advancing excellence systematically and equitably across all schools and programs to meet the needs of all students.

With this strategic plan, City Schools outlines the strategies it will pursue to advance its mission of excellence and equity. The plan takes as its starting point a framework of goals, priorities, and core beliefs established by the Board of School Commissioners and is supported by three pillars--student achievement, effective and efficient operations, and parent and community engagement--around which the district's work is structured. It will serve as the district's roadmap for the next five years (2016-2020), guiding development of implementation plans that will put the strategies into action in classrooms, schools, and central office. It provides clear direction and goals against which progress can be measured, including specific targets for increased student achievement, sound management, and effective stewardship.

City Schools' success relies on the involvement of a large community: students, parents and families, school and district staff members, volunteers, community partners, education advocates, city leaders, and many other stakeholders. To be successful, the district's five-year strategic plan must involve and receive the support of the community. For this reason, the district developed the plan over the course of several months, during which it sought a broad range of input to inform the plan's development. Beginning in Summer 2015, Board members worked with committees of key district staff members to map out strategies aligned to each of six priority areas. Then during October and November 2015, the draft strategies were shared in face-to-face conversations with principals and the executive directors who support them, other district office staff members, high school students, the local philanthropic community, faith leaders, representatives from Baltimore's Hispanic community, and other community partners.

2 Excellence & Equity 2020

To provide opportunities for parents, families, teachers, school staff, and the broader public to learn about and contribute to the plan, seven public meetings were held in communities around the city. School leaders were asked to register a school team including a staff member, parent, student (for high schools), and community member to attend the meeting in their neighborhood. Community organizations were enlisted to help promote the events and encourage attendance from other interested members of the public. More than 800 people attended meetings in October and November 2015, providing valuable feedback that helped shape this final plan. Finally, an interactive website was created where anyone with Internet access could read about the plan and provide general comments or ideas about specific priorities and strategies.

In response to the feedback received, the draft plan was refined. Language was clarified and made more accessible; jargon was removed and specialized terminology was defined. In some priority areas, additional strategies were added--for example, to ensure that students in specific populations such as English language learners, students with disabilities, and gifted and advanced learners would receive attention. Similarly, strategies were added to ensure student needs would be addressed at specific times (for example, at transition points from elementary to middle to high school) and in specific areas (across disciplines, in career preparation, etc.).

Finally, growth targets were established to measure success in each priority area. Each target uses baseline data drawn from the current school year (or the recent past, when current year data are not available) and sets an ambitious but realistic target for the future. Over the next five years, progress toward the targets will be measured on an ongoing basis and documented each year in the district's annual report.

With this strategic plan, its framework and goals, Baltimore City Public Schools is now positioned to accelerate its reform and the progress of its students. In this, the district will continue to engage the entire city and rely on the support of its thousands of stakeholders. Together, we can ensure that Baltimore's children and youth receive what they need and deserve not only for success in school, but for success in life.

3 Baltimore City Public Schools' Five-Year Strategic Plan 2016?20

About City Schools

As the largest city in the State of Maryland and the 26th most populous city in the country, the City of Baltimore is also home to one of the country's largest school districts. Since the first public school opened in 1829 with an enrollment of 269 students, Baltimore City Public Schools has grown to serve more than 80,000 students in a broad range of schools and programs.

Originally established under the authority of the City of Baltimore, since 1997 City Schools has operated under an expanded partnership of the city and state, with Baltimore's mayor and Maryland's governor jointly responsible for appointing members of the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners. The Board, in turn, is responsible for appointing the district's Chief Executive Officer, who leads the district's operations, ensures its performance in delivering high quality academic programming that promotes growth in student achievement, and guides implementation of strategic planning.

Below are key facts and figures about City Schools. For more detailed information about the district, visit .

84,976 students District data Percentage of Students 2015?16 by Race/Ethnicity*

2014?15

83.7% free and reducedprice lunch 4.5% English language learners

82.7%

African American

7.4%

Hispanic/ Latino

15.0%

students with

8.0% White

disabilities

*The data for Asian/Pacific Islander, American Indian, Multiracial, and Native Hawaiian/Other are not reported for confidentiality reasons because the student population is less than 1%.

5,263 teachers Percentage of Teachers 2015?16 by Race/Ethnicity*

606 new teachers 27 new school leaders

47.4%

White

2.2%

Multiracial

7.6% Asian 39.6%

2.9%

Hispanic/

African American Latino

*The data for American Indian/Alaskan and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander are not reported for

confidentiality reasons because the teacher population is less than 1%.

89.5% attendance rate (days attended divided by days enrolled)

48.2% of children are ready for kindergarten based on the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (in all of Maryland, 46.6% of children are ready for kindergarten)

74.9% of students graduate within five years

1167 average composite SAT score

28.9% of AP exams score a 3 or better (students took 2,225 AP exams in 2015)

186 schools and programs 34 includes

2015?16

public charter schools and schools

operating under contract or through alternative

governance structures

7alternative programs

52

elementary

1 p rekindergarten/

kindergarten

73

elementary/middle

9 18

middle middle/high

25

high

1 elementary/

middle/high

4 Excellence & Equity 2020

student achievement data

The graphs below show the percentage of students scoring Level 1?3 (below or approaching expectations) or Level 4?5 (meeting or exceeding expectations) on the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) assessment in 2014?15. Students who score at Level 4?5 are considered on track to be college and career ready. These graphs show the gaps in achievement that currently exist between Baltimore City students and students across the state; among our African American, Hispanic/Latino, and white students; and between our students who receive free and reduced-price meals and those who do not. Our strategic plan aims to close these gaps and raise the bar for all of our students.

Grade 3 Reading Grade 3 Math

79.6% 61.9%

38.1% 20.4%

Below or Approaching Expectations (Level 1?3)

Meeting or Exceeding Expectations (Level 4?5)

Baltimore City Public Schools (6,283)

Maryland (65,196)

86.2% 84.0%

54.4%

45.6%

17.4% 16.0%

Below or Approaching

Meeting or Exceeding

Expectations (Level 1?3) Expectations (Level 4?5)

African American Hispanic/Latino

(4,947)

(614)

White (577)

83.5%

2014?15

45.6%

54.4%

16.5%

Below or Approaching Expectations (Level 1?3)

Meeting or Exceeding Expectations (Level 4?5)

Receiving free and reduced-price meals (5,631)

Not receiving free and reduced-price meals (652)

82.1% 63.6%

36.4% 17.9%

Below or Approaching Expectations (Level 1?3)

Meeting or Exceeding Expectations (Level 4?5)

Baltimore City Public Maryland

Schools (6,326)

(65,594)

85.7% 83.5%

56.7%

43.3%

14.3% 16.5%

Below or Approaching

Meeting or Exceeding

Expectations (Level 1?3) Expectations (Level 4?5)

African American Hispanic/Latino

(4,957)

(635)

White (580)

85.7%

2014?15

51.2%

48.8%

14.3%

Below or Approaching Expectations (Level 1?3)

Meeting or Exceeding Expectations (Level 4?5)

Receiving free and Not receiving free

reduced-price meals and reduced-price

(5,666)

meals (660)

English 10

Algebra I

71.9% 60.3% 39.7% 28.2%

Below or Approaching Expectations (Level 1?3)

Meeting or Exceeding Expectations (Level 4?5)

Baltimore City Public Schools (3,637)

Maryland (55,653)

90.2% 68.7%

31.2% 9.8%

Below or Approaching Expectations (Level 1?3)

Meeting or Exceeding Expectations (Level 4?5)

Baltimore City Public Maryland

Schools (4,003)

(61,849)

75.5% 72.9%

65.2%

34.9% 24.6% 27.1%

Below or Approaching

Meeting or Exceeding

Expectations (Level 1?3) Expectations (Level 4?5)

African American Hispanic/Latino

(3,137)

(170)

White (261)

77.3%

2014?15

52.5%

47.5%

22.7%

Below or Approaching Expectations (Level 1?3)

Meeting or Exceeding Expectations (Level 4?5)

Receiving free and reduced-price meals (2,844)

Not receiving free and reduced-price meals (793)

92.8% 91.8% 64.0%

36.0% 7.2% 8.2%

Below or Approaching

Meeting or Exceeding

Expectations (Level 1?3) Expectations (Level 4?5)

African American Hispanic/Latino

(3,468)

(194)

White (261)

93.2% 76.0%

2014?15

24.0% 6.9%

Below or Approaching Expectations (Level 1?3)

Meeting or Exceeding Expectations (Level 4?5)

Receiving free and reduced-price meals (3,308)

Not receiving free and reduced-price meals (695)

5 Baltimore City Public Schools' Five-Year Strategic Plan 2016?20

Measuring Success

In order to determine whether or not the strategic plan is an effective roadmap to student success, the plan must include clear metrics to measure our progress and hold us accountable for results. While we will always aim for the ultimate target of all students being proficient and ready for success in college and careers, we know that we will need more time than the five-year time frame of this strategic plan to achieve that, especially given the baseline data that show our tremendous need for growth. Therefore, we have decided to include and emphasize metrics that measure improvement over time because building on this type of continued growth is what will allow us to ultimately reach our goal of excellence for every student.

The core metrics on the next page, associated with each of the six priority areas, most clearly define our progress and will be included in the district's annual report to be released every September. Included in the appendix (pg. 27) are additional supporting metrics that will be available on the district's website as a District Data Dashboard. These metrics provide a more detailed picture of our progress and will be updated on the district's website as data become available. In addition, the district will set implementation goals each year, so that progress can be measured on an ongoing basis and implementation adjusted to ensure we remain on track for reaching our established targets. In this way, the strategic and implementation plans should be viewed as living documents that will change according to identified needs so that we can achieve our ultimate mission and vision of excellence and equity for all students.

These measures, baselines, and targets were developed with input from multiple stakeholders and included analysis of existing data, trends, and projections; national and state benchmarks; and understanding of the impact of existing policies, strategies, and initiatives. Baseline data are based on results from the 2014-15 school year unless otherwise noted.

6 Excellence & Equity 2020

 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download