School Improvement Process | LCS | Lynchburg City Schools

Published on Wed., September 25, 2013

See detailed information about state and federal standards as well as the plan Lynchburg City Schools has in place to meet these standards as we uphold our mission of Every Child, By Name and By Need, to Graduation.

LYNCHBURG CITY SCHOOLS SUPERINTENDENT SCOTT BRABRAND DISCUSSES SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT AND ACCREDITATION

The Big Untruth in Public Education in Virginia (Commentary for The News and Advance)

Lynchburg Schools Superintendent Talks About Accreditation (WDBJ7)

Sandusky Middle at Risk for State Takeover (The News and Advance)

Excerpt from September 20th Superintendent’s Preview to all LCS staff:

In a week where state officials release information on state SOL scores and accreditation, I have a simple message for you. We got your back!

Attached is the press release we provided to the media this afternoon. You all are working harder than ever and our students are achieving better than ever.

We are going to stand together and fight for our students, for our schools and for our communities here in Lynchburg! Like I shared at convocation, we have a plan and the plan is working. The tests are harder, and we can and we will do better over time on these assessments. However, I will not allow politicians in Richmond or Washington to take over any of our schools!

Ignore the headlines and keep on providing a culture of warmth, then competence in all of our schools!

WHICH LCS SCHOOLS ARE FULLY ACCREDITED AND WHICH ARE ACCREDITED WITH WARNING?

Number in parenthesis = consecutive years of being Accredited With Warning

Elementary Schools

Bedford Hills - Fully Accredited
Dearington - Accredited With Warning in Math (1) and English (1)
Heritage - Accredited With Warning in Math (2) and English (1)
Linkhorne - Accredited With Warning in Math (1) and English (1)
Paul Munro - Fully Accredited
Perrymont - Accredited With Warning in Math (1) and English (1)
R. S. Payne - Fully Accredited
Sandusky - Fully Accredited
Sheffield - Accredited With Warning in Math (1) and English (1)
T. C. Miller - Accredited With Warning in Math (1)
William Marvin Bass - Fully Accredited

Middle Schools

Dunbar - Accredited With Warning in Math (2)
Linkhorne - Accredited With Warning in Math (1)
Sandusky - Accredited With Warning in Math (3) and English (1)

High Schools

E. C. Glass - Accredited With Warning in Math (1)
Heritage - Accredited With Warning in Math (1)

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BEING FULLY ACCREDITED, ACCREDITED WITH WARNING AND DENIED ACCREDITATION?

Fully Accredited: For a school now to earn full accreditation, they must meet the following benchmarks:

At least 75 percent of students must pass reading and writing SOL tests,
At least 70 percent must pass state assessments in mathematics, science and history.
High schools must also meet a benchmark for graduation.

They may be considered fully accredited based on the current year’s scores or a three year average. For example, a school may have missed the 75 percent mark in 2012-13 but still be fully accredited because the average of the scores from 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2012-13 school years meets that benchmark of 75 percent. (Previously, the reading and writing benchmark in middle and high schools was 70 percent and the required pass rate in grade-3 science and history was 50 percent.)

Accredited with Warning: Schools that are accredited with warning are schools that did not meet one or more of the benchmarks listed above. A school can receive the accredited with warning classification no more than three consecutive years.

Accreditation Denied: Accreditation rating given to a school when students achieve adjusted pass rates below those required to earn the Fully Accredited rating for the current year as well as the preceding three consecutive years.

For more information and terminology on the accountability process, click on the links below to the Virginia Department of Education:

http://www.pen.k12.va.us/statistics_reports/school_report_card/accountability_terminology.shtml

http://www.pen.k12.va.us/statistics_reports/school_report_card/accountability_guide.pdf

HOW DO LCS SCHOOLS COMPARE TO THE REST OF THE STATE?

41% of schools in the commonwealth met all federal standards; 43.75% of all LCS schools met all federal standards.
Only 36 of Virginia’s 132 school divisions have all schools fully accredited within their division, compared with 87 divisions the previous year.
Statewide the number of schools accredited with warning nearly quadrupled, compared to the previous year.

SAMPLES OF THE NEW SOL TEST QUESTIONS

http://www.pen.k12.va.us/testing/sol/practice_items/index.shtml

VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION STATEWIDE NEWS RELEASES ON ACCOUNTABILITY

http://www.pen.k12.va.us/news/news_releases/2013/sep20.shtml

http://www.pen.k12.va.us/news/news_releases/2013/sep17.shtml

http://www.pen.k12.va.us/news/news_releases/2013/aug20.shtml

WHAT IS THE OPPORTUNITY EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION?

Summary passed by Senate: Opportunity Educational Institution (OEI) and Board established. Creates the Opportunity Educational Institution to be administered and supervised by the Opportunity Educational Institution Board. The bill requires any school that has been denied accreditation and permits any school that has been accredited with warning for three consecutive years to be transferred to the Institution and remain in the Institution for five years or until the school achieves full accreditation. The bill also sets forth requirements for student attendance, staffing and funding for the Institution. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.For more complete details on the OEI click here:
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?131+ful+CHAP0805
The Virginia School Board Association (VSBA) and the City of Norfolk filed suit in the Circuit Court of Norfolk requesting that the Court invalidate the legislation that created the OEI. Click here for a copy of the lawsuit: http://www.vaschoolboards.org/images/uploads/conferences/OEILawsuit.pdf
The Lynchburg City School Board adopted a resolution in support of the lawsuit during the September 3, 2013 school board meeting. Click here to see the minutes and the sample resolution: http://www.lcsedu.net/sites/default/files/pdfs/schoolboard/minutes/school-board-meeting-minutes-090313.pdf