Achievement Issues

Describe the student achievement need presenting the greatest challenge in your school district which the Contract for Excellence addresses. In particular, those schools in some stage of improvement status that qualified your district for the Contract for Excellence. The needs of special populations (LEP, SWD, and Poverty) should also be assessed.

The Norwich City Schools have been identified on several levels.  Currently, we are in Corrective Action for Intermediate ELA and Math for Students with Disabilities according to NCLB.  We have also been identified as a District in Need of Assistance by VESID due to our high drop out rate for Students with Disabilities and the poor performance of Students with Disabilities on the 3-8 ELA and Math Assessments. These accountability designations show our highest needs to be with our Students with Disabilities throughout the district.  Therefore, the District has made an effort to distribute the C4E funds across the District.

Contract Plan

Describe the overall strategy your district will implement under the Contract for Excellence to address the above needs. Detail the new and innovative programs selected and how they will integrate with existing improvement plans. What achievement outcomes do you anticipate will result?

The Contract for Excellence allows the District to add positions and enhance current programs to further leverage all resources to address student needs. The District 1st proposes 2 Teachers on Special Assignment. They will focus on coaching and modeling research based practices in K- 6 ELA and Math classrooms. They will facilitate teacher group work focused on benchmark and NYS assessments. The data they generate will guide future instruction. The District proposes an additional elementary social worker who will support students and families which struggle with the issues that keep students from achieving academic success. The C4E money will support two existing elementary teachers designated for classroom size reduction and one on-site coordinator for the 100 Book Challenge, a reading program implemented last year. An experimental program to be supported by C4E is the District’s Technology Integration Project. Through the use of innovative technology, teachers will be trained to work collaboratively to build curriculum and learn research based instructional strategies that engage all students in learning. A new Middle School master schedule allows more Academic Intervention Services, more instructional time, and the expansion of Special Education programs. The programs integrate students into the general education classes using a team of highly qualified teachers.  The C4E will allow the District to add an additional ACES classroom (1 Teacher and 1 Licensed Teaching Assistant).  It will also support the materials and supplies required for this classroom and the staff development including substitutes needed by all staff to plan, collaborate, monitor, and evaluate the work done with Students with Disabilities.  In order to run such a schedule and to align with a new High School Business program, the middle school requires the addition of a Business teacher. This position allows the building to function with 5 distinct teacher teams, thereby creating smaller learning communities.  At the High School level identified needs are Students with Disabilities and students at-risk. In a newly modified master schedule the District increases Academic Intervention Services by the addition of a Math Teacher, Science Teacher and a Social Studies teacher to staff Learning Centers. The District will expand a high school Art position to full time in an effort to engage and challenge a greater number of students. This will be possible by restructuring the schedule. The district also proposes the addition of a Special Education Alternative Learning teacher. The teacher’s assignment will be to work with Students with Disabilities who are at risk of dropping out.   Materials and supplies and staff development will be required to support all 5 of these programs.  Substitutes are built into the budget for staff development. At the District level the C4E will fund a .25 FTE Psychologist at all 4 buildings.  The Psychologist will allow the Director of Special Programs to be more actively involved in observations, modeling, coaching, coordinating, and providing staff development.  All programs and positions mentioned are supported by the District’s Comprehensive Plan (referred to as LINKS) and the Comprehensive Education Plan required by NYSED for the middle school.   The District expects the following outcomes:  All students will increase their performance on NYS ELA and Math assessments including Students with Disabilities; All students will receive all required Academic Intervention Services including Students with Disabilities; more students will graduate including Students with Disabilities; and more students will be supported through the learning process by the additional staff members, programs and an expanded District wide curriculum. These supports at elementary and secondary levels will enable us to focus on our highest needs students. The C4E money will allow the District to attend to student needs in a more comprehensive way.

Contract for Excellence Documents: