Sunray Independent School District

District Improvement Plan

2002-2003

 MISSION STATEMENTS

State Mission Statement

The State of Texas ensures that all Texas children have access to a quality education to enable them to achieve their potential and fully participate in social, economic, and educational opportunities.

Belief Statements:

1) The general diffusion of knowledge is essential for the welfare of the state and the preservation of citizens’ liberties and rights.

2) A successful public education system is directly related to a strong, dedicated and supportive family.

3) Parental involvement in schools is essential for maximum educational achievement.

Sunray I.S.D. Mission Statement

The mission of Sunray ISD, through cooperation of community members, parents and a well-trained staff, is to provide to all children of this district an excellent education in a safe environment, graduating motivated life-long learners.

Sunray Elementary School Mission Statement

The mission of Sunray Elementary/Middle School is to provide an excellent education to all children in a safe environment, establishing the foundation for life-long learning.

Sunray Middle School Mission Statement

The mission of Sunray Middle School is to provide an excellent education to all children in a safe environment, establishing the foundation for life-long learning and developing the skills necessary to become productive citizens.

Sunray High School Mission Statement

The mission of Sunray High School is to provide a quality education for every student in a safe environment, preparing them to be productive citizens.

SUNRAY ISD VISION STATEMENT

Reflecting changes made at December Board/Council Meeting 2002

"Excellence, We Make It Happen!" is the motto for Sunray ISD's vision of excellence in all areas of school life.  This vision is based on three foundational beliefs and the supporting statements that make up this vision.

The three foundational beliefs are:

1. High academic expectations exist for all students.
2. The staff works to ensure that students are meeting or exceeding those standards.
3. Through the leadership of the staff and daily positive reinforcement, all children believe they can learn, improve, and excel.

The supporting statements that make this vision happen are:

1. Parents, staff, students and the community work together as partners in a spirit of positive teamwork.
2. A safe, well-maintained, disciplined environment creates a supportive atmosphere conducive to learning.
3. All students will achieve at a level far above minimum standards.
4. Effective leaders make progressive, proactive, consistent decisions that are supported on all levels and are based on what is best for all students.
5. A true open door policy exists where administration and staff allow freedom to discuss positive and negative perceptions without reprisal.
6. The campus and district councils annually evaluate programs for continuous growth and student success using available data.
7. Teachers are willing and encouraged to seek out the latest teaching techniques/strategies so that students can continue to learn effectively.
8. Students graduate from SISD with the ability and confidence to make quality choices about their future.

      9.   All parties involved in the educational process at Sunray ISD value the vision and use it to make all educational decision.

Sunray Independent School District

Comprehensive Needs Assessment

2002-2003

Demographics

Students                                  Staff

African American                                                  .4%                      2                       0%              0

Hispanic                                                                  42.2%              221                  10.4%              9

White                                                                       56.8%              293                  89.6%             80

Economically Disadvantaged                             47.7%              246

Limited English Proficiency                                13.4%                69

Teacher/Pupil Ratio:                                            10 to 1

Avg. Years of Teacher Experience                    11.7

Turnover Rate                                                      22.7%

Accountability Ratings

District                                                                 Recognized

High School                                                        Exemplary

Middle School                                                    Recognized

Elementary School                                             Recognized

CHAMPS                                                            AE:Acceptable

Acknowledgements:

District                                     Attendance, Advanced Academic Courses,       

                                                Recommended H.S. Program

Middle School                          Attendance,  Alg. I EOC

Elementary School                    Attendance, CI:Reading

High School                              Attendance, Advanced Academic Courses, Recommended H.S. Program

State Testing Areas of Focus

Elementary:                   Reading            All students, Hispanic, Eco. Dis.

                                        Math                 Ec. Dis.

                                        Writing             White, Eco. Dis.

Middle School:             Reading            Hispanic, Eco. Dis.

                                        Math                 None

                                        Writing Eco.    Dis

High School:                 Reading            None

                                        Math                None

                                        Writing            Hispanic, Eco. Dis.

Accountability rating determined by : 

Elementary School:    All students in each subtest.    White in Reading and Math.   Elementary missed Exemplary by .8% Reading for all students.    Math and writing were Exemplary standards.

Middle School:  All students in each subtest.  Hispanic, White, & Eco. Dis. in Reading and Math.  All students in Writing nd Social Studies.  The areas of focus continue to be Hispanic Reading and Eco. Disadvantaged Reading.  Math and Writing show exemplary rating.

High School: All students in each subtest.   Exemplary

Other Areas of Focus:  District Educational Improvement Council Members were divided up into teams based on areas of knowledge and expertise.   The subgroups reviewed the data shared in the campus needs assessments to determine the needs of the district.    These areas were then addressed in the district improvement plan.

Attendance:  Attendance rates continue to be recognized as acknowledged by the state of Texas.    All areas with significant numbers of students continue to be above the 96% AEIS requirement.  We will continue to recognize students for attendance. We will continue parent contacts through calls and letters for excessive absences and tardies.  We will continue the exemption policy at the high school for semester test based on attendance and grades. Student Campus Assistance Teams will also review attendance.

CATE:  Our goal is to help students understand the vast array of choices for future careers so they can work academically to prepare for the future.  We will work to provide age appropriate awareness and investigation activities.  We will continue to use CHAMPS Academy for alternative education to meet the needs of students who are not successful in the mainstream education.   We will work with the special education department to conduct appropriate interest inventories and transition plans as needed for all students including those in special education. We will work to get all special populations students involved in our CATE courses.  We will work to better integration of CATE and Academic Courses.   We will refine our career pathways and coherent sequence of courses offered at the school.   

College Entrance Exams : Currently we have 15.4% up from 10.5% of our students who are scoring above the criteria for acknowledgement for performance on college entrance exams.   This number increases  to 18.2% for Hispanic students.  We will continue to give the PLAN to all sophomores and the PSAT to Juniors to get them use to taking the tests and seeing results - areas of strength & weaknesses.   We will also provide study materials and other information for the ACT or SAT.  We will encourage all Juniors and Seniors to take the ACT.    We will make sure that all students are made aware of the 10% rule.   We will also use NovaNet software for test preparation as needed.  Eighth graders will have access to review materials and testing information.

Compensatory Education: This area has an increased focus as the criteria for identification was changed by the last legislative session (SB 702) and this area was audited for some very particular information by our independent auditors for the 2001-2002 school year.   The audit occurred in October.   From the audit, we learned that SCE will require more documentation (time & effort logs) at the high school because they are not at the 50% poverty mark so these funds can’t be used as with a schoolwide program.     The first step will be to make sure that all students are re-identified  "at risk" based on the eligibility criteria each semester.  There are thirteen of these criteria.   We are not recommending any local criteria to be added to these.    (Mr. Hazlett will do this and get the information out to the appropriate staff members).   Mrs. Stavlo will be responsible for determining the funding amounts and will provide those to all parties involved with the budgeting of this program - specifically the campus principals & superintendent.   She will also work with the principals and superintendent to determine FTE's to be placed in the plans based on staff schedules.  She will also complete the work necessary to show the 85% expenditure standard.  From the audit, we learned that everything you are spending SCE funds on needs to be in your plans and that careful documentation must be kept to prove these expenditures and to make sure that they add up to the 85% requirement.   Plans should be amended as a budget throughout the year.   The DIP and CIPs are an official budget document for this program. (budget worksheets can be stapled to the back of the plan as changes are made throughout the year.) The principals and superintendent will be responsible to make sure that the plans include all the necessary components as they become know and if any changes are necessary based on this information.   We will be reviewing with CHAMPS Academy & Fritch’s auditor to determine what formula to use for the funding of CHAMPS with SCE funds.    These funds can also be used to support a Title I schoolwide program as long as the campus poverty level is 50% or greater.   This support is available at the elementary/middle school.    We plan to continue to use the funds in the following areas for "intensive" instruction to help students "at-risk of dropping out".   These areas include:  Saturday School, Tutorials, CHAMPS, and supplemental material to help students pass state assessments. Based on review of student data, these methods are proving to be the most effective measures to help these students.  The areas of focus for At-Risk will be Reading at the elementary level, Math, Reading and Writing at the middle school and Writing at the high school.   We will also look to use the funds to expand our optional extended day program to include more days for third grades as well as additional staff for third graders who are taking the TAKS reading this spring and must pass to be promoted.

Crisis Management:  We have had a goal for the past few years since school violence has increased to develop a comprehensive plan for crisis management.   This has been started on several occasions, but has never been completed due to changes in administration and participants having trouble coming up with scenerios and strategies for handling this problems that might arise.   We need to continue to push towards completion of this project and to come up with a format that is user friendly, easily accessible and step by step on how to handle various situations.    The above information was written in last year’s needs assessment, however, we still have not developed these plans fully.    Time has been spent working on the CIPs, the DIP and special programs for compliance.   Our goal needs to be to develop this plan at each campus this Spring.  

Discipline Management:  The progressive discipline guide continues to make discipline more firm, fair and consistent across the board.   The new administrators continue to move the district towards better discipline.   This has been a concern mainly at the high school & middle school in the past.  We will continue to refine the progressive discipline guide and the student code of conduct.   We will share these documents with all parties to make sure they all know the rules and consequences.   We will provided training as needed to make sure discipline in firm, fair and consistent.   We will continue to report to the board in July our discipline report.   We need to have a substitute training session as we have had in the past.   All staff needs to share in the area of discipline on their campus.

Drop out Rate:  Our drop out rate continues to be very low.   Our most recent data (2000-2001) shows a 1.4% drop out rate.  This is 3 students.  One white and two Hispanic students.  Two of the three are eco. disadvantaged.   Our goal will be to maintain a rate of less than 1% - however this is not used in the accountability ratings because of our low numbers.   Our strategies will be to continue to identify all at -risk students districtwide.  We will also use Novanet and Champs to help with credit recovery for those who are behind in credits.   We will also use tutorials to help students not to fail.   We will also develop individual campus strategies to promote staying in school and being successful.    This area will also be audited in March of this year.   Details of that information are currently unavailable.  Any future needs will be identified when that information is available to us.

Dyslexia:  Our main objective will be to refine the district plan that was revised last year.   We also need to provide more training for all staff so that they are aware of the plan, the program and how it works to identify and provide intervention to help students with dyslexia or related disorders.   We need to assign a district committee to revise the plan and also to identify areas of training needs.

ESL:  We will be receiving as monitoring visit over this program this Spring (March 24).  Needs assessment  data shows that the major areas of focus for this program need to be in the development of a stronger curriculum, better documentation by staff (lesson plans), parental involvement and following required procedures for summer school (Pre-K-K).  The program will focus on language and reading development for all the students in the district.   One activity planned to help parental involvement is a Sunday meal and meeting including ESC representatives to review the ESL and Migrant Programs for our parents.    We will work with a parent committee for both ESL and Migrant parents.  - Strengthen our LPAC and use parental input to improve program will be a key to program enhancement.

GT:  Advanced academic services continues to be an area of focus as it requires the most training.     We have worked through the process of getting all staff the 30 hours of required training and the 6 hours of updates.   We will continue to monitor this and make sure staff is trained as needed through Region 16 ESC.  Areas of focus will continue to be the Pre-AP and AP courses at  the high school, development of leadership activities through various organizations and providing options in fine arts through band, art and OAP.  Getting information out to parents about the program as well as the identification of students for the program will be our main focus in the early Fall .   Each campus will work to get the information out, identify those needing to be screened and then actually conducting the screening.   The district GT committee will then select new members after all the data is collected at each campus..   We will also participate in seminars provided by Region 16 ESC as well as other activities available at the campus level.    Campus GT coordinators will be responsible for these activities and other enrichment activities.

 New testing materials will be needed to update this screening process.

Migrant:  Numbers in this program over the past few years have been falling as less and less migrant workers are being used in the agricultural industry in our area.  Needs assessment data shows that parental involvement and attendance are two key areas for this program to succeed.   We will continue to offer summer school through Project Smart for these students.   We will also monitor attendance very closely and use every means possible to help these student with credit accrual.   We will stress attendance with the parents and stress the process of withdraw and enrollment in another school when they move from here.   We will develop a parent committee to provide input and support for this program.

Optional Extended Year (OEY):  Based on data that we have gained from recent year programs, we plan to continue with the extended day program.   This program will begin in January as a means to proactively help students who are in danger of failing a subject to be able to improve their grades.   It will also be used for our at-risk students and any student who has not been successful on state testing measures.   Ms. Hightower will coordinate this program again and will be in charge of developing the program as per rules for the program.    We will also look to coordinate this with SCE so that we can expand the program for third graders who must pass the reading TAKS this spring or be retained.

Parental Involvement: Parent feedback supports the continuation of the parent report pick up days in the Fall and Spring.   We have also had positive feedback on the amount of documents we are able to send home in English and Spanish.   We need to strengthen our parent advisory committees and try to involve them in as many ways as possible.  We want to have more group meetings to discuss needs associated with special programs with the parents.  This will be the year for a parent survey to be conducted in the Spring.  We will look to find ways to increase volunteerism and mentoring at the campuses.     We will also have parent and community representation on our Campus and District Improvement Councils.    Shot clinics for senior citizens as well as activity passes have also shown to be effective ways to involve the community.

Professional Collegiality: Our goals is to promote professionalism and respect among our staff members.   We need to take opportunities to celebrate successes and to have fellowship with our colleagues while at school and away from school.  We also need to do all we can to help keep staff informed about different issues that might be of importance to them.    We will continue to provide various opportunities for fellowship revolving around holidays and other special events.   We will continue to pass out service pins and have the appreciation banquet.   We will continue to use all means available to communicate with staff members.  This past summer, we stressed vertical alignment and the development of curriculum maps.   This Spring, we need to set times for personnel to get together and review their vertical alignment of their subject areas.     This will get all staff members who teach a certain subject together to help build the curriculum to be a stair step approach to the "portrait of a graduate".

Special Education: The focus in Special Education will be to review our areas of focus on our matrix to determine where our needs exist for this school year.   Campus personnel will also be receiving required training in the use of time-out and the use of restraint with special education students. (Campus teams)  Other training will be developed as needed based on the matrix review.   Working closely with the NWTSSA to meet the needs of our students as well as strengthening our pre-referral process (SCAT) teams will be one of our main goals.

Special Populations:  See disaggregated ADM data to determine the various needs of the various sub-groups at the campus level.   Each campus has varying needs for student performance in the different special population groups.   We will review overall data at the district level under student performance below.   Campuses will be responsible for various sub-group needs at their campus.

Staff Development:  Staff feedback shows that the following areas are identified as areas of focus for staff development:  1) TAKS,  2) Dealing with At-Risk students, 3) GT, 4) Special Education, 5) Student Assistance Teams, 6) ADM, 7) Various subject specific trainings.   Our strategies will include going to the Annual At-Risk Conference to get training for working with At-Risk students and also conflict resolution training.   We will also provide individual staff members training in ADM.   We will also receive training through the NWTSSA in the areas of special education and campus assistance teams.   Teachers will also be required to prepare a minimum of two lessons per semester using the laptop labs.   Technology training will be offered as needed on an individual basis.   Staff will also either get their 30 hour or 6 hour GT training as required by law.  

Student Performance: 

Elementary:                   Reading            All students, Hispanic, Eco. Dis.

                                        Math                 Eco. Dis.

                                        Writing             White, Eco. Dis.

Middle School:             Reading            Hispanic, Eco. Dis.

                                        Math                 None

                                        Writing Eco.     Dis

High School:                 Reading            None

                                        Math                 None

                                       Writing              Hispanic, Eco. Dis.

Reading appears to be the most needed area of focus for Eco. Dis. and Hispanic students in elementary and middle school.   Writing is an area of focus for the high school for Eco. Dis, and Hispanic students. Math continues to be the area of greatest strength.   Each campus has individual sub-groups that they must address that are needing additional assistance.    At the district level data shows that disaggregating TAAS scores and having teachers use this data to prescribe remediation or help is working well.   Our scores continue to improve.  Vertical alignment process completed this past summer which we will review this Spring will also prove to help get the entire staff on the same page in regard to curriculum and student needs as related to TEKS and the test changes that are set to come in 2003.   We will continue to use SAXON Math program as it is showing success.   We will reward students who receive academic recognition on the TAAS and we will review the learning opportunities for any student that is not successful on the test.   

Suicide, Violence, Substance Abuse, Crime Prevention:     Sunray ISD continues to be a safe and secure school.   Each campus is being monitored closely for safety and discipline issues are mostly of a non-violent or non-severe nature.   We will continue to incorporate both counselors in this program as well those staff members trained in crisis management.   We will continue to stress positive choices in relation to these areas through our health programs, science classes and other areas as appropriate.   We will continue to use the sniffer dog to serve as a deterrent and to find unwanted contraband. We will finish the crisis plans and provide parent materials as appropriate.   We will also continue to offer the Alert Hotline even though we have not had any use of it by our students.  (This is a good thing).    We will also finish our crisis management plan this spring.

Technology:  Our technology plan is currently approved for five years.   It will need to be reviewed and re-approved in 2006. However, review of the plan shows that a lot of it has been accomplished already, so we will start the review process this spring. We currently have not done a lot with our technology committee due to not having a true technology coordinator.   Our goal this year will be to reestablish the technology committee and to use it to review and redevelop out technology plan. We will select a chairman to head up this effort from the professional teaching staff.   Technology proficiencies for K-8 students  as well as high school course TEKS must be reviewed and addressed at the campus level.   We will continue to pursue grant opportunities.   We will continue to develop the community network.   We will develop and begin to use K-12 Planet Software Program.

Title I- Schoolwide:  As we are a schoolwide program at the elementary school and middle school, these funds can be used to help all students in the school be more successful.   TAAS data shows that most areas have shown a slight decrease in performance from 2001 to 2002 results.   Third grade performance remained stable in Reading and in Math, but was below 90% (85.7%).   Fourth grade showed a 5.2% gain in Reading, a 1.6% increase in Math.  Fourth grade lost 2.5% from 92.5% to 90% in Writing.   Fifth grade decrease by 2.9% in Reading (84.6%) and 5.1% in Math .  Sixth grade decreased by 4.4% in Reading but increased by 4% to 100% in Math.   Seventh grade showed a decrease of 4.7% in Reading and a 3% increase in Math.  Eighth grade improved 7.4% in Reading, 1.4% decreased in Writing, 2.3% decrease in Math and improved 1.3% in Social Studies.  Even though some results are lower, most remain above 90% and/or did not show a significant drop.   This is also different students taking the test at each level so it is not a student to student comparison.  Based on this data, we will have the following strategies in Title I - we will continue to use paraprofessionals as possible for support in the regular classroom.  We will continue to offer intensive reading remediation for those students determined to have needs.  We will coordinate with all other special programs to meet the needs of the students in special population groups.   We will training the staff as appropriate for SDAA and other TAAS strategies as needed.   Mrs. Hightower will continue to build the parent resource center and provide opportunities for parent s to be involved in their child's education.    We will be revising the parent compact as well as issuing a new parental involvement policy for Sunray ISD as per new legislation.   

District Improvement Plan

Sunray ISD

2002-2003