Fall 2002 Issue

Dear NCA CASI Members: As we embark on the 2002-03 school year, all of us face the national challenge to ensure there is "no child left behind." Indeed, the stringent new requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation are causing all of us to re-examine our school and district initiatives and funding priorities. Fortunately, we do not have to look far for a tool to help us meet the new legislative requirements in a cost-effective manner.

Those of us who have been following NCA CASI's performance accreditation framework are already on the right track for meeting the requirements of the federal legislation. Both NCA CASI and NCLB require schools to:

• Regularly monitor student performance in key areas.
• Disaggregate and analyze performance data by student subgroups.
• Demonstrate growth in performance for all students.
• Develop a school improvement plan that includes goals for increasing student performance and research-based strategies for achieving those goals.
• Monitor performance against the school improvement plan.
• Engage in an external review process.
• Hire qualified teachers.
• Involve parents in the school improvement process.
• Regularly report to the community about the school's performance and progress on its school improvement plan.

In many areas, NCA CASI pushes schools beyond the requirements of NCLB. For example, NCLB only requires schools that have not achieved "adequate yearly progress" to develop a school improvement plan, but NCA CASI requires all schools to engage in a continuous school improvement process. In addition, under NCLB only those schools designated for school improvement must receive an external review of their plans. NCA CASI requires this of all schools as part of their school improvement cycle: (visits occur at least twice in a five-year improvement cycle.) Finally, NCLB bases a school's status largely on its students' performance on a single state assessment. NCA CASI requires schools to measure student performance using at least three valid assessments (known as triangulation of data), as this approach is supported by research.

As NCA CASI accredited schools, we are well-positioned to meet and exceed the requirements of NCLB. And, unlike the federal government which issues mandates but provides no support, NCA CASI provides districts and schools with training, tools, and technical assistance to engage in successful continuous school improvement. Following are some examples of the ways you can use these tools to support your work.

• Use the NCA CASI data analysis and school profile software to help you monitor and analyze the adequate yearly progress of the student subgroups required by NCLB.
• Use NCA CASI's school improvement handbook and rubrics to help you engage in a school improvement process that is based in research and designed for success. NCLB requires research-based approaches.
• Focus your school improvement plan goals on improving the core academic program in reading, math, and science. This will help ensure alignment with the requirements of NCLB.
• Ensure that your improvement goals include specific annual, measurable objectives for continuous and substantial progress by each group of students.
• Integrate performance on the state assessments as one of the measures your school regularly reviews to gauge progress toward meeting your school improvement goals.
• Attend NCA CASI school improvement training sessions. Talk to your district and/or state department of education about using NCLB money to fund attendance at these conferences, as the legislation makes available federal money for the professional development needs of teachers and administrators.
• Use the chairperson and members of your peer review team to obtain ongoing technical assistance on school improvement. Use them as resources throughout the school year. They can help you with such areas as data analysis, strategy development, and assessment development.
• Make sure your budget is aligned with the needs identified in the school improvement plan. Use the school improvement plan to make resource decisions in your building or district.

As a superintendent, I see NCA CASI accreditation as a clear, focused, and extremely cost-effective way for me to help the schools in my district meet and even exceed the requirements of NCLB. In fact, I am in the process of talking with state department of education officials about using NCLB money to pay my NCA accreditation dues. I encourage you to do the same.

So often in life the solutions we seek are right in front of us and have been there all along. In this case, as we face the challenge of ensuring that we see no child left behind, the solution is NCA CASI's performance accreditation framework. Use it to your advantage and challenge NCA CASI to support you in your work. I guarantee NCA CASI is prepared and eager to support you in your improvement efforts.

Sincerely,

Don Kirkegaard
Chair
NCA Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement

About the Writer: For the past eight years, Don Kirkegaard has served as the Superintendent of Schools for Britton Public Schools in South Dakota. Prior to that, he was the 7-12 grade principal in the district. He has also held teaching, coaching, and school administrative positions in South Dakota. He is a member of numerous state professional organizations and has been an active member of the South Dakota North Central Association State Committee. He can be contacted at don.kirkegaard@k12.sd.us.