By Carla Branch and James Cullum
alexandrianews.org
TC Williams High School (Courtesy Photo)
For six consecutive years, T. C. Williams High School has failed to make adequate yearly progress under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. The school must now be restructured under the supervision of the Virginia Department of Education.
The U. S. Department of Education just released school report cards for the 2009-10 school year. T. C. is one of six Virginia high schools to be categorized as Persistently Lowest Achieving schools based on the academic achievement of all students in reading/language arts and mathematics. The Virginia Department of education defines Persistently Lowest Achieving schools as:
Schools that meet criterion A. (Courtesy Image)
• Criterion A: A Title I school in improvement, corrective action, or restructuring that is among the lowest-achieving five percent of Title I schools in improvement, corrective action or restructuring based on the academic achievement of the “all students” group in reading/language arts and mathematics combined and the school has not reduced its failure rate in reading/language arts and/or mathematics by 10 to 15 percent each year for the past two years (Tier I); or
Schools that meet criterion B. (Courtesy Image)
• Criterion B: A secondary school that is eligible for, but does not receive, Title I funds that is among the lowest-achieving five percent of schools based on the academic achievement of the “all students” group in reading/language arts and mathematics combined and the school has not reduced its failure rate in reading/language arts and/or mathematics by 10 to 15 percent each year for the past two years; or
Schools that meet criterion C. (Courtesy Photo)
•Criterion C: A high school that has had a graduation rate that is less than 60 percent for two years.
T. C. meets the second criteria. There are 128 secondary schools in Virginia that are eligible for but not receiving Title I funds. T. C. is in the botom five percent of these schools and the only school in Northern Virginia on the list.
Alexandria City Public School Superintendent Morton Sherman received the news from VDOE in a letter on Tuesday, March 2. He informed the School Board at their budget work session that evening and met with T. C. administrators and faculty on Wednesday, March 3.
“This is not news. Indicators about our persistently low achievement go back for quite a while, e.g., TCW has never made AYP,” Sherman said in an email to staff on Thursday, March 4. “One out of every seven TCW students does not pass the language arts assessments, and one out of every four TCW students do not pass the mathematics assessments used by the state at indicators for Title I eligible schools’ performance.”
School Board Chair Yvonne Folkerts said: “We are aware of the situation and will wait for Dr. Sherman to come to us with a proposed plan of action.”
Options
In 2005, ACPS hired educational consultants to develop a new educational plan for the new T. C. Williams High School, which was then under construction. That plan was implemented when the school opened in September, 2007. In June, 2008, interim superintendent Bill Symons hired Bill Clendaniel as the interim principal after Dr. Mel Riddile resigned as T. C.’s principal. In August, 2008, Sherman asked Clendaniel to stay on as Riddile’s permanent replacement. Clendaniel is leaving at the end of this school year.
Under NCLB, a restructuring/alternative governance plan developed during year four is implemented if the school again does not make AYP in the same subject area and moves into year five of improvement status. The implemented plan must include one of the following actions:
• Reopen the school as a charter school
• Replace all or most of the school staff relevant to the school’s failure to make AYP
• Turn the management of the school over to a private educational management company or other entity with a demonstrated record of effectiveness
• Any other major restructuring of school governance
If a Title I school in restructuring fails to make AYP, the school continues to implement its restructuring/ alternative governance plan while receiving technical assistance from the school division and state.
“I indicated to the TC faculty several short and long term steps to get us moving ahead, as we believe that an application back to the state will be due in the next six to eight weeks,” Sherman wrote. “We all must think about our role in the next steps. We have systemic and systematic issues which must receive attention. Our TCW curriculum, professional development, special education, ELL, student discipline, alternative education, assessments, interventions, teacher evaluation, school climate, belief system, monitoring of student progress, and other related areas must be addressed.
“The core of the growth we need to make lies in the classroom. As one part of the Tripod model, pedagogy is clearly in need of support. Individual teachers must review their practices just as we must provide support for our teachers to better understand and use methods of differentiation and cultural competence with high expectations for all. A final note: improvements must be for all students. This designation is not about some students… it is about our responsibility to assure high levels of achievement for each and every one of our students in this 21st Century,” Sherman wrote.