CR Shared Decision Making Plan of the. Rondout Valley Central School District

Transcription

1 CR Shared Decision Making Plan of the Rondout Valley Central School District Adopted by BOE Resolution: 03/28/06 Revised August, 2007 Revised Fall 2007(10/24/07) For BOE Adoption June 10, 2008

2 Table of Contents Pages Items 1 Introduction 2 Mission Statement 3-9 Plan Components 3-5 Participation District Committee Building Committees 5-6 Educational Issues 6-7 Student Achievement 7-8 Accountability 8 Dispute Resolution 9 Parental Involvement i

3 Introduction The purpose of the planning process is to improve the educational performance of all students. New York State Education Department Commissions Regulation requires a biennial update to the public school districts Shared Decisionmaking Plan. As a district, Rondout Valley has been involved in shared decisionmaking for the past ten years. The initial Strategic Plan of along with its action plans eventually evolved into a Visioning Plan series of plans. These plans have resulted in significant changes in the Rondout Valley Central School District organizational structure and focus. In the academic year, the District began a Comprehensive District Education Plan (CDEP) process. With representatives of the various schools, parents and community, the CDEP team reviewed various student performance and developed three goals. The expectation is that through comprehensive planning our students will excel, our communication will improve and we will continue to develop effective use of data. Thank you to the committee members and Board of Education liaison for their work in bringing this plan to completion. Original Committee Members Eileen L. Camasso, Interim Superintendent of Schools Dr. Timothy Wade, Assistant Superintendent for Pupil Personnel Services Raymond Palmer, President, Rondout Valley Administrators Association Robert Rutigliano, RVAA Representative Sheryl Delano, Vice President, Rondout Valley Federation of Teachers John Haeselin, President, Rondout Valley Federation of Teachers Committee Members: Eileen L. Camasso, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Timothy Wade, Deputy Superintendent of Schools Raymond Palmer, President RVAA Alan Baker, Vice President RVAA Karen Traverse, Teacher, K-4 Geoffrey Miller, Teacher, 5-8 Catherine Arra, Teacher 9-12 Sheryl Delano, President, RVF Kate Kenney, Parent Community - TBD Thanks also to the Parents Presidents Council, James Ayers and Jane Bullowa, Ulster BOCES for their input. 1

4 Mission Statement The Mission of the Rondout Valley Central School District, the dynamic, visionary, educational center of the Mid-Hudson Valley, is to unleash the limitless potential of each student by inspiring a lifelong passion for learning, embracing the resources of our culturally eclectic community, engaging the talents of our educational team in partnership with families, supporting change, and dedicating ourselves to giving wings to our students dreams. 2

5 Rondout Valley Central School District Plan (Shared Decision Making) I. PARTICIPATION A. District Committee 1. Terms of one and two year terms. A maximum of four years are possible at the committee s option. One year off before beginning another term of two years. Also initial staggered terms at start to assure continuity. Length of terms to be reviewed every two years for possible changes. 2. Responsibilities: To review the plan at least once per year and support the biennial review process To act as a review board in matters of conflict resolution To provide a mediator to resolve disputes To meet annually with chair/or designee of building sites to review the guidelines of the plan To suggest amendments to this plan to the Board of Education, which if approved by the Board of Education, would be implemented prior to the biennial review. 3. The District Committee will be comprised of the following: Three teachers (one from each level, selected by RVF) One parent (selected by PTA Presidents) Two administrators (selected by RVAA) One non-teaching unit member (selected by RVF) One community representative (selected by the BOE after appropriate advertising) One district administrator selected by the Superintendent of schools. RVF (president/or designee). Superintendent of Schools (or designee). 4. All representatives must be truly representative of their constituents. 5. The community representative is to be selected by the Board of Education after appropriate advertising. 6. Parent participation will be per Commissioners Regulation selected by Parents President Council. 3

6 7. Chairpersons shall be determined each year from among the membership of the committee. 8. The number of meetings to be held and the frequency of meetings are to be left to the committee. It is recommended that the committee meet twice yearly, otherwise as needed. 9. A quorum of a majority of the established membership of the committee must be present to make decisions. 10. In the event of a vacancy, the appropriate stakeholder group must select a member to fill the remainder of the term. B. Building Committees 1. Two year terms for parents; three year terms for teachers and non-teaching unit members. A limit of two consecutive terms on the same building committee. One year off before beginning another term. To provide for continuity each committee shall use a staggered start date for the terms of office. Makeup of committee to be reviewed every second year for possible change. 2. The building committees will be comprised of the following: Three teachers (up to seven) (3) Two parents (up to four) (2) One non-teaching unit member (1) One building administrator (1) One district administrator (1) TOTAL (8-14) 3. The school committees may enlarge their bodies to 14 members as the committee feels advisable including adding up to two students from differing grades at the middle school and high school. 4. All representatives must be truly representative of their constituents, chosen by their respective constituents and report back to their constituents regularly. 5. Additional subcommittees are encouraged as needed and desirable to bring in additional expertise without further enlargement of the basic committee structure. 6. Chairmanship shall be determined each year from the membership of the committee. If the principal is not the chair, 4

7 the chairs shall be in regular consultation with the principal to review the agenda. 7. The number of meetings to be held and the frequency of meetings are to be left to each building committee. It is recommended that committees meet a minimum of four times per year. 8. A quorum of two-thirds of the established membership of the building committee must be present to make decisions. 9. Building committees may act in an advisory capacity in the following areas: school policies, staffing, hiring and health and safety concerns, and educational issues as noted below. 10. In the event of a vacancy, the appropriate stakeholder group shall select a member to fill the remainder of the term. II. EDUCATIONAL ISSUES Educational issues are categorized into two areas: Those not subject to cooperative planning and shared decision-making and those that fall under the purview of the building level committees. A. Listed below are those issues which shall not be subject to cooperative planning and shared decision-making: Board of Education Policies and Regulations Budget Development Commissioner of Education s Rules and Regulations Negotiated Agreements Redistricting Regents Rules and Regulations State, Federal and Local Laws B. Listed below are potential areas that may be considered by the Building Committees as indicated. Decisions made in these areas are subject to the restrictions set forth in Section 1, Part A, of this document. 1. Curriculum and Instruction Student Outcomes/Mastery Implementation of Curriculum Initiatives and Review Instructional Practices Student Assessment Reports 5

8 2. Scheduling Building based instructional day/week Special Events 3. Policies Student Grading Discipline Practices Recognition/Awards 4. Professional Development 5. Facilities Faculty/Staff Rooms Parking Cafeteria Food Service Room Assignments 6. Fiscal Utilization of SIT funds Long Term Planning Utilization of Conference Monies 7. Community Involvement/Activities & Communication 8. Extracurricular and Extended Day Programs III. STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT A. Evaluation The primary purpose of the Plan is improvement of student achievement. The following categories plus other data are utilized in the evaluation of the effectiveness of this plan. The NYS Report Cards and Accountability Reports are the basis for an analysis of student success. B. Comprehensive District Education Plan Each building shall be responsible for the analysis of state report cards, accountability reports and the progress toward meeting district goals. 6

9 C. Assessment Measures Assessment measures currently utilized by the District are: 1. State mandated tests 2. Other norm or criterion-referenced tests 3. Locally constructed tests and teacher designed assessments 4. Portfolios and other performance-based assessments IV. ACCOUNTABILITY A. District Committee 1. The District Committee shall be accountable to: The Board of Education The Superintendent of Schools Their representative constituent groups: Individual buildings, Rondout Valley Administrators Association, Rondout Valley Federation, community, parents, administration and students. 2. Individual District Committee members shall be responsible for: Attending meetings Communicating with stakeholders Participating in the process Publicly supporting the decisions made by the group B. Building Committees 1. Building Committees shall be responsible for following the elements of this Plan and goals of the Comprehensive District Education Plan. Periodic status reports (to building staff and parents) e.g. via newsletters or website Communicating with stakeholders Shared decision making Monitoring and evaluating student progress as it relates to building action plans and make revisions based on student achievement. Meeting targets and setting standards 2. Individual building committee members shall be responsible for: Attending meetings 7

10 Publicly supporting the decisions made by the group Demonstrating productive team behavior 3. Prepare annual CDEP Report with copies to: Committee (structure and function) Board of Education V. DISPUTE RESOLUTION Understanding that issues will arise as part of the ongoing involvement of stakeholders that cannot be easily resolved, the following procedures are provided for resolution of disputes: A. Building Committee: 1. Within the parameters defined under the Education Issues section of this document as issues covered by shared decision-making, consensus is to be used to reach decisions. (Consensus is defined as decisions reached as a result of agreement by all committee members.) The committee will use whatever resources needed to assist them, including outside facilitators. 2. The Building Committee may request that the District Committee provide a mediator to resolve the dispute. The mediator will be appointed by the District Committee. 3. If the mediator and the Building Committee cannot resolve an issue, it may be referred to the District Committee. The District Committee will hold a meeting at which representatives of both sides of the dispute will make presentations. The District Committee has 30 days after the meeting to reach a consensus decision. B. District Committee: 1. District Committee decisions shall be made by consensus. If the District Committee cannot reach consensus, the Superintendent will render a decision. 2. All decisions rendered during dispute resolutions can be appealed to the Board of Education. 3. A decision rendered by the Board of Education can be appealed to the Commissioner of Education under Section 310 of CR Part

11 VI. PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT The District supports the involvement of parents and is further committed to encouraging parent participation in the process of the education of the youth of this community. The following is a list of the committees with parent members and others as appropriate: District School Improvement Committee (i.e. CDEP) Building School Improvement Committees Health & Wellness Committee Committee on Special Education (CSE) Technology Advisory Committee Parent Teacher Groups Ad Hoc Committees District Committee Other 9