ZSD Annual Yearly Progress

No Child Left Behind Information

Title 1 Information

September 1, 2011

 

Dear Families:

 

In an effort to keep parents and community members informed of important issues affecting our school district, this letter in written to explain Zillah School District’s status with regard to student achievement. In August, all districts in Washington State were notified of their status in relation to federal legislation known as “No Child Left Behind Act of 2001” (NCLB). This status, called “Adequate Yearly Progress” (AYP), is a key part of NCLB. AYP is an annual determination of whether schools, districts, and states have made progress toward the goal of having all students meet or exceed state standards in reading and math as well as meet targets for test participation, unexcused absences and graduation rates. Washington’s statewide assessment, the Measures of Student Progress serves as a major factor in calculating AYP in Washington State.

 

Zillah School District has not met these targets in the areas of reading and math proficiency. Because of this, we are required to revise our district improvement plan within 90 days after identification; administrators, teachers, parents, and other representatives will be collaboratively involved in the development of this plan. Additionally, the district must reserve at least ten percent (10%) of its annual Title I allocation to provide focused, professional development for teachers and administrators in the areas where we have not met the target.

 

Parents are vital partners in improving schools, and we welcome you to actively participate in the revision and update of the district improvement plan. There are many ways you can be involved to support district staff and students in reaching the annual targets.

 

Parents/guardians of students in grades 3-8 and high school who participated in the MSP this spring will receive individual MSP results in the month of September. Programs and opportunities for additional instruction and guided practice are available during the school day as well as after school for students who have not yet met standard. Please contact your student’s school for specific information about these services.

 

We are committed to the success of each student in our district and are focused on raising each student’s academic performance. We are optimistic about the future, and we hope that you will join us in this important work. We encourage you to contact your student’s school or the district office for any questions that you may have or for additional information.

Sincerely,

Kevin McKay, Superintendent         

Kevin McKay, Superintendent         

 

Kevin McKay, Superintendent           

No Child Left Behind Informational Links

Zillah School District Parent Involvement Policy and Procedure

TITLE 1 PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT

I.        The Board recognizes that parent involvement contributes to the achievement of academic standards by students participating in district programs. The Board views the education of students as a cooperative effort among school, parents and community. The Board expects that its schools will carry out programs, activities and procedures in accordance with the statutory definition of parental involvement.  Parental involvement means the participation of parents in regular, two-way, and meaningful communication involving student academic learning and other school activities, including ensuring that parents:

A.     Play an integral role in assisting their child’s learning;

B.     Are encouraged to be actively involved in their child’s education at school; and

C.     Are full partners in their child’s education and are included, as appropriate, in decision-making and on advisory committees to assist in the education of their child.

II.     The board of directors adopts as part of this policy the following guidance for parent involvement. The District shall: 

A.  Put into operation programs, activities and procedures for the involvement of parents in all of its Title 1 schools consistent with federal laws including the development and evaluation of policy. Those programs, activities and procedures will be planned and operated with meaningful consultation with parents of participating children;

B.   Provide the coordination, technical assistance, and other support necessary to assist participating schools in the planning and implementing of effective parent involvement activities to improve student academic achievement and school performance.

C. Build the schools’ and parents’ capacity for strong parental involvement;

D.  Coordinate and integrate Title 1 parental involvement strategies with parent involvement strategies under other programs, such as Head Start, Reading First, Early Reading First, Even Start, Parents As Teachers, Home Instruction, Preschool Youngsters, State-run preschools;

E.   Conduct, with the involvement of parents, an annual evaluation of the content and effectiveness of this policy in improving the academic quality of the schools served with Title I funds including: identifying barriers to greater participation of parents in Title I-related activities, with particular attention to participation of parents with limited English proficiency, parents with disabilities and parents of migratory children; and

F.   Involve the parents of children served in Title I, Part A schools in decisions about how the Title I, Part A funds reserved for parental involvement are spent.

Legal References:         PL 107-110, Section 1118(a)

Management Resources:     Policy News, October 2008     Family Involvement Policy

                                          Policy News, June 2005           Title 1 Parental Involvement Policy

                                          Policy News, August 2003       No Child Left Behind Update

Adoption Date:  October 23, 2003

Revised: October 27, 2005, November 18, 2008

School District Name: Zillah School District

Title 1 Parent Involvement 

I.             The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that the district’s Title 1 Parent Involvement policy, plan and programs comply with the requirements of federal law.

A.     The district will take the following actions to involve parents in the joint development of its district wide parental involvement plan:

1.      An annual meeting of parents of participating title 1 students shall be held to explain the goals and purposes of the Title 1 program. The superintendent is responsible for planning the annual meeting which is scheduled for each September and held in the Zillah High School Performing Arts Center. All parents and guardians of children in the Zillah School District will be invited to attend.

2.      Parents will be given the opportunity to participate in the development, operation and evaluation of the program. Parents will be informed of their opportunity to participate at the annual meeting.  Opportunities for parents to be involved in district or building level committees or teams will also be made available.

3.      Parents will be encouraged to participate in planning activities, to offer suggestions, and to ask questions regarding policies and programs. The Zillah School District provides outreach in the form of email, the district website, newsletters, surveys, forums, phone calls and meetings.

B.     The district will take the following actions to involve parents in the process of school review and improvement:

1.   Parents will be given the opportunity to review the school improvement plan. The opportunity to review the school improvement plan will be provided at parent meetings throughout the school year.  Parent meetings are held monthly in each school.  Parents may also request school improvement plans from each school’s principal or the district office.

2.   Parents will be encouraged to participate in the building self-review. Parents will be made aware of the self review process at monthly parent meeting.

C.     The district will provide the following coordination, technical assistance, and other support to assist Title I, Part A schools in planning and implementing effective parental involvement activities:

1.   Identify barriers to greater participation by parents in parental involvement activities;

2.   Use findings of the evaluation to design strategies for more effective parental involvement; and

3.   Revise, when necessary, the district and school parent involvement policies.

D.     The district will coordinate and integrate parental involvement strategies with similar strategies under the following other programs, such as: 

?         Learning Assistance Program;

?         Special Education; and

The district shall facilitate removing barriers to parental involvement by activities such as:

1.   Conducting joint parent meetings with other programs;

2.   Holding meetings at various times of the day and evening;

3.   Arranging for in home conferences;

4.   Title 1 funds may be used to facilitate parent attendance at meetings by payment o transportation and child care costs.

E.      The district will conduct, with the involvement of parents, an annual evaluation of the cotent and effectiveness of the parental involvement policy.

F.      The district will build the schools’ and parent’s  capacity for strong parental involvement through the following: 

1.   The school district will, with the assistance of its Title I, Part A schools, provide information to parents of children served by the school district or school, as appropriate, in understanding topics such as the following:

?         The State’s essential academic learning requirements,

?         The State and local academic assessments including alternate assessments,

?         How to monitor their child’s progress, and

?         How to work with educators. The district will assist parents through news letters, emails, meetings, Family Access and provide staff members that parents can make contact with concerning their child’s education.

2.   The school district will, with the assistance of its schools, provide materials and training to help parents work with their children to improve their children’s academic achievement, by: 

a.   Giving guidance as to how parents can assist at home in the education of their child;

b.   Holding parent meetings at various times of the day and evening to provide parents:

?         Opportunities to formulate suggestions and to participate, as appropriate, in decisions relating to the education of their children.

?         Opportunities to submit parent comments about the program to the district.

?         Opportunities to meet with the classroom and Title 1, Part A teachers to discuss their children’s progress.

G.     School district personnel will work with teachers, principals and other staff, to reach out to, communicate with, and engage parents as equal partners. The district will provide:

1.   An explanation of the reasons supporting their child’s selection for the program;

2.   A description and explanation of the school’s curriculum;

3.   Information in the academic assessment used to measure student progress;

4.   Information on the proficiency levels students are expected to meet; and will

      provide this information to parents using district newsletters, mailings, district website, Family Access, emails, and community meetings.

H.     The school district will take the following actions to ensure that information related to the school and parent-programs, meetings, and other activities, is sent to the parents of participating children in an understandable and uniform format, including alternative formats upon request, and, to the extent practicable, in a language the parents can understand: 

1.   Distribute the Title 1 Family Involvement policy on a annual basis through the annual meeting, building parent meetings and will also be posted on the district’s website.

2.   To the extent needed and practicable, distribute the Title 1 Family Involvement policy in multiple languages or formats.

II.    School-Based Parent Involvement Policy

A.  In addition to the district-wide policy on family involvement, each school offering Title I, Part A services will have a separate school building parent involvement policy.

The building-level Title I , Part A parent involvement policy will meet the following requirements: a) Each building in the district receiving Title 1, Part A funds shall jointly develop with and distribute to parents of students served in the program a written building-level policy, agreed upon by parents of Title I served students; b) The policy will outline how  parents, school staff and students share responsibility for student achievement in meeting academic standards; c) Parents will be notified of the policy in an understandable and uniform format;  d) To the extent practicable, the policy will be provided in a language the parents can understand; and e) The policy will be evaluated with parents annually.

Adoption Date:  October 23, 2003

Revised: October 27, 2005, November 18, 2008

School District:  Zillah School District

Parent Informational Links