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Rhode Island Department of Education

Office of Special Needs

School Support System Report and Support Plan for the

Jamestown Public Schools

January 20-26, 2004

SCHOOL SUPPORT SYSTEM

Introduction

The purpose of the School Support System (SSS) is to provide a means of accountability for delivery of programs and services for students with disabilities. The School Support System model is designed to promote the involvement of the whole school district, regular educators as well as special educators and parents. It is designed to learn of the district meets the minimum regulations and what effects the program and services have on student performance. Finally, the SSS develops a school support plan for training and technical assistance.

To accomplish this the SSS includes these components:

• The Orientation Meeting The Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) staff meets with the Local Education Agency (LEA) to plan the site visit and identify issues or initiatives that may influence programs or service delivery.
• Data Analysis Meeting The RIDE staff meets to review LEA demographic information on selected reports including: the LEA annual plan, census information, and information collected through record review, staff questionnaires and parent interviews. To ensure that the child is at the center of the study, all analyses begin with the child. Thus, a sample of approximately 30 students with disabilities is selected; the records of these students are reviewed; their parents, teachers and related service providers are interviewed, and their classrooms are observed. The result is an in-depth, unified examination of the actual provision of programs and services for students with disabilities. The RIDE staff compiles a preliminary summary of their analyses of this data.
• Presentation by the LEA and School Site Review The site review begins with a presentation of programs by teachers and staff. The presentation provides the review team with general and specific information on delivery of programs and services to students. Following this presentation, visits to all schools are made. The team members interview school administrators and teaching staff. Parents and central office staff are also interviewed. The team gathers sufficient information and works with the LEA personnel to generate a report, covering the following:
• The district’s compliance with the state and federal regulations, relative to the education of students with disabilities.
• The quality and effectiveness of programs and services provided by the district.
• The need for professional development and technical assistance that will enable the LEA to improve programs and services.
• The Support Plan The RIDE team, LEA central office and building administrators meet to review the data and complete a report of results. The group designs a professional development/technical assistance support plan with timelines for implementation. This plan enables the school and district to correct areas of non-compliance and to strengthen promising programs and correct areas of weakness in order to improve services and programs for all students.
• The SSS Report The report summarizes the findings from the various data sources. The format of the report uses four divisions: Indicators, Findings, Documentation, and Support Plan. Indicators describe either performance or compliance. Findings can include a variety of some twelve categories, from school improvement to the least restrictive environment. The Documentation section of the report distinguishes the source of the finding. The support plan reflects the responsive to the described findings. The support plan describes the corrective action required by the district as well as ways that RIDE will assist the district to improve programs and services.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. School Improvement

2. School Climate

3. Teaching Practices

4. Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in the

Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)

5. Teacher Support Team (TST)

6. Evaluation/Individual Education Program (IEP)

7. Transition

8. Parent Involvement

9. Professional Development

10. Facilities

Jamestown Public Schools

School Support System Review

January 20-26, 2004

Team A: Anne Landry, RI Technical Assistance Project, Susan Wood, RI Department of Education

Trish McGrath, Newport Pubic Schools

Team B: Jane Keane, West Bay Collaborative, Laura Jones, Parent Support Network of Rhode Island, Robert Vincze, North Kingstown Public Schools,

1. SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT
Indicator		Findings	Documentation	Support Plan	Follow-up Findings
Performance	1	The Jamestown School Department serves a total school age population of 941 (public and private). There are 545 students in the K-8 program between the Melrose Avenue School and the Lawn Avenue School. All student must go “off island” for their high school experience. The Jamestown school district is high performing and sustaining schools. There are currently 131 students receiving special education services. Jamestown School Department’s Strategic Plan was developed by various contingencies representing community leaders, families of students and school department personnel. The district mission statement embedded in the strategic plan, dated November 2003, seeks to partner with the community to provide a safe, nurturing learning environment in which each child is challenged to fulfill his/her unique potential. The district has established core values and beliefs that support their mission to address safety, responsibility, resourcefulness, respect and fiscal responsibility. Jamestown is in the first year of their five-year plan and is currently developing action steps to facilitate the process. Their vision for this plan will address instructional practices to meet each child’s individual needs, expanded learning opportunities, enhancing opportunities for community participation and ownership, improving the physical environment that supports health and learning, maintaining a position of excellence within the community, creating opportunities for intentional, holistic student social development, participating in proactive legislative agendas, and systematic K-12 articulation that meets the current high standards of the district overall.	Document Review Presentation Interviews
	2	Prior to the 2002-2003 school year, Melrose Avenue School and Lawn Avenue School had one School Improvement Team (SIT). This is the second year each school has a separate team. Melrose Avenue School’s SIT is active and functioning. Parents and the Special Education Director are active participants on the SIT and the Local Advisory Council has representation on the SIT. The primary goals are: Develop meaningful ways to broaden the partnership among parents, the community and the school. Continue to build effective instructional practices with a clear focus on the development of higher order thinking skills for all our students. Continue the commitment to a full continuum of service in order to provide the best education for all students. As a result of the Melrose Avenue School Avenue SIT looking at student assessment, math problem solving and geometry have been the focus of several professional development meetings. Childcare is provided at Melrose Avenue School during the SIT meetings for those that chose to access it.	Interviews District Presentation Document Review Review
Performance	3	The Lawn Avenue School is in its second year with a separate School Improvement Team (SITs). During this transition time the school has followed the 2002 school improvement plan. As the district revised their strategic plan, the Lawn Avenue School awaited the completion of their process to facilitate their own School Improvement Plan. The Lawn Avenue School is currently realigning their school improvement plan with the district Strategic Plan. They have established their school Mission Statement and Goals. Their primary goals are: Provide a challenging learning environment that values excellence and promotes high levels of performance. Support a culture that fosters the development of all middle school students and encourages their motivation. Promote citizenship and civic responsibility within the school and the community at large. The School Improvement Team meets monthly and is comprised of school administrators, general educators, parents and community members.	Interviews District Presentation Document Review
Performance	4	The superintendent of schools also serves as the principal of the Lawn Avenue School. The district is in the process of restructuring to include a Dean of Students. (see also Section 4 FAPE/LRE)	Document Review Interviews
2. SCHOOL CLIMATE
Indicator		Findings	Documentation	Support Plan	Follow-up Findings
Performance	1	Staff, administrators and parents spoke about feeling supported by and having access to the Special Education Director, Principal and Superintendent (see also Section 8: Parent Involvement)	Observation Interviews District Presentation Document Review
Performance	2	There is a strong sense of collegiality and collaboration among faculty throughout the district.	Observation Interviews
Performance	3	The district’s mentoring program is active and functioning. Whenever possible, they are matched with mentors in their respective schools. There is a group meeting quarterly. Mentors meet with their mentor twice a month for the first 12 months then once a month for the remaining six months. Both mentors and mentees reported the mentoring experience to be a positive and productive one.	Interviews Document Review
Performance	4	Jamestown has a comprehensive Pupil Services Manual that is provided to all special education teachers and administrators. A copy is also in the library and all conference rooms. It states the overall goal of special education services in Jamestown as the following: “To implement researched based practices regarding effective teaching practices, service delivery models, and evaluation that improve educational performance and enhance life long outcomes.”	Document Review Interview
Performance	5	The Jamestown School Information Guide is a comprehensive publication for students and their families that details student expectations and governing district policies.	Document Review Interview
Performance	6	The Jamestown School District has an established Crisis Response Plan. For individual student crisis response, Jamestown Schools has a support team comprised of administrators, Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds, the school psychologist, social worker, planning center coordinator and school nurse who thoughtfully and collaborative plan for student and family interventions and support.	Interview
Performance	7	The school psychologist and the school social worker provide a variety of positive behavioral supports to students throughout the two schools as well as the communities at large. They provide professional development opportunities for families, individual support for students, home visits, transition planning and maintain relationships with community support services for comprehensive student response.	Document Review Interview
Performance	8	Lawn Avenue School has a Student Assistant Counselor two days a week. The Student Assistant Counselor is currently reviewing ways that group activities can be facilitated for 7^th graders revolving around issues of substance abuse and problem solving. The role of the Student Assistant Counselor at the Lawn Avenue School is to provide support and referral opportunities for students and their families addressing substance abuse related issues and prevention opportunities. Additionally, the Student Assistant Counselor facilitated presentations in the 7^th and 8^th grade on Normal Adolescent Development with student follow-up discussions.	Document Review Interview
Performance	9	Crossing the Bridge at the Lawn Avenue School is an instructional program taught within the 8^th grade Health/Physical Education curriculum. The curriculum is co-taught by the Jamestown Police Department and the Physical Education Department addressing three core areas: Dealing with stress, anxiety, boredom and depression. Relationship skills and resisting pressures to use. Legal issues and community resources.	Document Review Interview
Performance	10	The Jamestown School District has established community linkages with Newport County and South Shore Community Mental Health Center, North Kingstown School Department, Early Intervention agencies, Valley Community School, Bradley School, Briggs School, Sargent Center, SORICO, RIDE, RITAP, Jamestown Early Learning Center, South County Montessori, Maher Center, Rogers High School, Newport Area Career and Technical Center, The Compass School, Quest Montessori School, Meadowbrook Waldorf School, RI School for the Deaf and the URI Hearing Center	Document Review Interview
Performance	11	Students at the Lawn Avenue School engage in a variety of civic and community activities. Students recently participated in fund raising project for the American Heart Association. Additionally, as part of the 8^th grade social studies curriculum, students investigate specific social justice issues and create potential solutions and/or strategies that impact positive change. Through this process, students identified a need for a teen center in Jamestown and are currently involved in planning for the Center.	Document Review Interview
3. TEACHING PRACTICES
Indicator		Findings	Documentation	Support Plan	Follow-up Findings
Performance	1	For the past several years, Jamestown has engaged in standards based instruction. All classes are heterogeneously grouped with teachers engaging in differentiated practices. Teachers utilize professional development meetings to examine student assessment data to inform their instructional practices. Research based techniques and programs are implemented and utilized with carry over throughout all grade levels.	Document Review Interview
Performance	2	Jamestown Public Schools have a comprehensive website that students, parents and the community can access to find out a plethora of information on the district and grade levels, technology, parent engagement opportunities, Local Advisory Council, etc.	Interviews District Presentation Website Review
Performance	3	The district has engaged in standards based instructional practices and assessment for over the past five years. Evident practices throughout the schools included facilitated instruction, student problem solving, posting of student work, rubrics and standards. Students were engaged in multiple learning strategies and reported the process to be “fun”. The Jamestown faculty engages in a variety of assessment strategies to inform instructional practices. During grade level planning periods and through professional development teams faculty review and assess student work individually and collectively, they review the correlation of common assessments and classroom feedback and engage in research to differentiate instruction to meet individual students learning needs and styles. Student portfolios have been initiated at both schools this year.	Document Review Interview
Performance	4	The district has had standards-based report cards for several years. Art, music, library, physical education/health standards and competencies are detailed in an attached addendum to the report card.	Interviews Document Review Review
Performance	5	The Technology Department provides the district the ability to explore promising practices, manage and collect data, assist classroom instruction as well as overall maintenance and installation. Throughout the district there is evidence of instruction supported by technology through the use of computers, network servers, digital cameras, the Seelinger Computer Lab, the Epson Computer Project and the use of assistive technology with tools like the Alpha Smart and the IntelliTools, IntelliTools Keyboard. Additionally, the district web page is a comprehensive, current picture of the overall school activities, instructional practices and current events. At both schools students were engaged in technology supported instruction through the use of computer labs with laptops available for students to use, mobile computer carts that bring laptops to classrooms on an as needed basis as well as the library and individual classrooms having a good number of computers. Additionally assistive technology was evident throughout all classes and students appeared to be very comfortable with a wide array of devices.	Document Review Interview Observation
Performance	6	The Special Education Director meets with the special education faculty of both schools as well as individually to address special education reform initiatives, district service provision, and individual faculty and student planning.	Interview
Performance	7	The district Speech and Language Pathologist provides student centered comprehensive therapeutic services and supports in collaboration with educators to address the individual needs of students with exceptionalities. Therapeutic instruction and support are provided through curriculum focused small group in class/pull-out activities, which are literacy-based and often include students’ peers. Folders are maintained for each student receiving speech language services and supports, which include student work, observations, student activities and progress reports. The Speech Language Pathologist works closely with families through notes to and from home, communication book noting the objective of the days therapy activities, weekly homework as well as a speech language web page.	Document Review Interview
Performance	8	The occupational therapist has a sensory integration room at the Melrose Avenue School that she utilizes with all students. The occupational therapist is currently doing a handwriting program with students in the 2^nd and 3^rd grade co-taught classes this year and the 1^st grade last year. A sensory-based program is utilized in the 4^th grade co-teaching room for all students. In addition, she also serves students at the Lawn Avenue School	Interviews Observation
Performance	9	At the Melrose Avenue School the music curriculum is performance based thus each student is on-stage at least once per year. It is teacher/grade driven. For example: one grade may do an international theme, another may do a retrospective of their grade’s year. The art curriculum is also performance based. Each student showcases at least three pieces of art that is exhibited in a culminating art show in late spring. The art curriculum works in conjunction with the general education curriculum and needs.	Interviews Observation