Worcester Public Schools Report of the Superintendent School

Worcester Public Schools Report of the Superintendent: School Opening Report October 2010 Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 1

2010 -2011 School Year * New Employee to District Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 2 New Administrative Staff: David Perda*, Chief Research and Accountability Officer Mark Berthiaume, School Support and Communication Dolores Gribouski, Quadrant Manager Lisa Dyer, Manager of Professional Development Sergio Paez, Manager of ELL, Student Support, and Supplemental Services Marco Rodrigues, Manager of Special Education and Nursing Services Barbara Sargent, Director of Supplemental Academic Programs and Services Sara Consalvo, Budget Director James Bedard, Facilities Director Chunlin Yu*, Director of Compensation

2010 -2011 School Year New Building Principals: June Eressy, Chandler Elementary School Marie Morse, Union Hill Elementary School Patricia Mc. Cullough, Clark Street School Michele Sullivan, Midland Elementary School Steven Alzamora, Dr. James A. Caradonio New Citizens Center Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 3

Student Enrollment Total Enrollment as of 10/1/10: 23, 948 + 436 from 10/13/09 Includes 989 new students to Worcester in Grades 1 -12 (and 2, 138 new Kindergarten students) Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 4

Student Enrollment Grade Pre-K* Oct. 2009 905 Oct. # 2010 Change % Change 1, 140 +235 +2. 6% K-6 Middle School 12, 729 13, 015 3, 074 3, 097 +286 +23 +2. 2% +0. 7% High School Total 6, 804 6, 696 23, 512 23, 948 -108 +436 -1. 6% +1. 8% Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 5 * In 2009 -10 the WPS Administration worked with DESE to include Head Start students in the foundation enrollment for WPS. These students were not previously allowed to be counted in the WPS enrollment (including the 10/09 enrollment report above).

Class Size Elementary: 21. 5 to 1 (Classroom Teachers only) 17. 6 to 1 Adult-Student Ratio with Kindergarten IA, Literacy and Intervention Tutors Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 6

Elementary Class Size FY 11 = Total Elementary Classroom = 576 (plus 2 team teacher classrooms) FY 10 FY 11 +9 classes from last year Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 7

Human Resources & Payroll Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 8 Completed HR and Payroll process for 229 new hires 55 Teachers 2 Non-Instructional Support 53 Long Term Subs 1 Occupational Therapy Asst 52 Day-by-Day Substitutes 1 School Nurse 42 Instructional Assistants 1 Administrator 11 Head Start Employees 1 School Clerk 5 Crossing Guards 1 LAU Tester 3 Tutors 1 Bus Monitor In addition, processed 2, 032 payroll changes (increments, longevity changes, degree changes, change in status, etc. )

Curriculum Restructuring of the Central Office Instructional Division to provide improved support for school improvement Implementation of the Comprehensive Accountability Plan under the direction of Dave Perda, Chief Research and Accountability Officer $360 K Gates Foundation supporting 6 – 12 literacy development in partnership with Clark U. , Focus on Results, & the South Quadrant Level-4 School Launch supported by $250 K Early Implementation Grant Pilot AP Art History in partnership with the Worcester Art Museum Full-time Instructional Coach at each Elementary School Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 9 Implementation of newly adopted Science Texts and Materials

Supplemental Services Head Sprout early elementary reading supported by an $80 K Title 1 Grant from the Massachusetts DESE Citizenship classes at Adult Ed supported by $92 K Federal US Citizenship and Integration Grant ELL technology support at Elm Park, Chandler Magnet, City View and New Citizens Center supported by $115 K Title II D Technology Grant Customer satisfaction survey at PIC used to support continuous improvement of services Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 10

Intervention Services Programming: • Improved in-house alignment of services to support Autism / Life Skills programming. • On-going alignment of curriculum and instruction at the high school level with the post-secondary Transition Services. Professional Development: Bi-weekly PD for ETCs. The focus will be technical support, customer service, and community engagement during Team meetings. Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 11 Customer Service: To increase parent participation in Team meetings, we are now using the “medical field model” and placing phone calls to all parents/guardians one week in advance of their scheduled meetings

School Nutrition Daily Meals Served: 9, 600 Breakfasts & 15, 900 Lunches Students Free/Reduced: 72% 15 schools with “Breakfast in Classroom” Program 10 schools with state fruit & vegetable grant ALL schools with farm-to-school fresh fruits & vegetables Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 12

Student Transportation 94 Large School Buses 88 Special Education Buses and Outof District Vehicles Transporting 11, 072 students daily Covering approximately 10, 000 miles per day Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 13

Facilities & Maintenance Summer 2010 Projects: Burncoat High: Chemistry Lab Union Hill: Painting of all classrooms and hallways, and other interior improvements. Chandler Elementary: Painting and interior improvements Lowe’s Grant: Both school projects completed. Belmont Street Replaced paving and installed new exterior security lighting. Rice Square: Ceiling replacement & painting Various Schools (10): Fats, Oils and Grease compliance. Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 14

Facilities & Maintenance Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 15 Summer 2010 Projects: Chandler Magnet: Renovated family center, HVAC work, and ceiling replacement Certificates of Occupancy: All school inspections completed prior to 8 -31 -10. Community Service & Sherriff’s Department Assistance: Chandler Magnet – Grounds maintenance Sullivan Middle – Grounds maintenance South High – Grounds maintenance Union Hill – Painting Worcester Community Action Council – youth workgroup assisted Utility Crew with general grounds maintenance

Technology • Installed Fast For Word labs at 10 sites • Purchased 200 document cameras, projectors and mobile carts for instructional use • Completed conversion of all schools from old INET internet connection to a modern fiber network • Continued replacement of old PC’s and monitors • Ongoing improvements to district website and administrative technology tools. Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 16

Helping Hand Generous support of friends and business partners for backpack & school supplies donation, as well as the donation of equipment and furniture. Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 17

Student Achievement: MCAS • Overall, the % of students scoring at or above Proficient increased from last year at every grade level and subject with the exception on Grade 10 students on the English Language Arts and Mathematics tests. • Over the past 5 years, improvements are evident at every grade level and subject area. • 46 percent of students had high rates of growth (in the 61 -100 th percentile range) relative to students across the state with similar MCAS ELA or Mathematics history with an additional 19 percent growing at a moderate (in the 41 -60 th percentile range ) in ELA and an additional 18 percent growing at a moderate in Mathematics. Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 18

Student Achievement: MCAS • Eight schools in Worcester were commended by the DESE for student performance on the 2010 MCAS. – High growth (Clark Street; Jacob Hiatt Magnet) – Narrowing proficiency gaps (Elm Park; Nelson Place; Roosevelt; Tatnuck; Burncoat Middle) – Exiting 2009 NCLB accountability status (Heard Street; Nelson Place) • Burncoat Senior High School was cited by the state as being a high school with one of the ten largest combined increases in the percent of students scoring Proficient and Advanced (up 8 percent in ELA; up 14 percent in mathematics) on the 2010 MCAS. Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 19

Student Achievement: Adequate Yearly Progress • • Nine schools made AYP in both ELA and Mathematics Twelve schools made AYP in ELA only Six schools made AYP in Mathematics only An additional 20 schools were within 5 Composite Performance Index (CPI) points of meeting DESE improvement targets in ELA. • An additional 25 schools were within 5 Composite Performance Index (CPI) points of meeting DESE improvement targets in Mathematics. Annex A ros #0 -18 Page 20