CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD the Student Success Act – Student Investment Account Kids Unlimited Academy Medford- Signed Grant Agreement No. 13853.
Meeting Minutes
Kids Unlimited Academy
A Public Charter School
Board Meeting
Date: 10.27.20
Time: 7:30 AM (Video/Telephonic)
1. Preliminary Call to Order: 7:35 AM by Chair Michelle Atkinson Determination of Quorum: Michelle Blum Atkinson, Julia McFadden, Greg Aldridge, Ryan Bernard, Pedro Cabrera, Martha Ibarra Lopez, Absent: Paul McClay, Lisa Hutchins; Guests: None Staff: Tom Cole, Sunshine Price, Cass Weiland, Raco Verhaaren, Cass Weiland, AJ Schultz Approval of Agenda: Public Comments: SSA Grant is approved, $123,000 which comprises 1/3 of the previous year’s amount.
2. Review and Approval of Minutes: Minutes approved with the submitted correction on the audit report. Audit information will not be in the October agenda.
3. Business Update- Cass Weiland/Pat Barry: The Finance Committee met on the 15th. The committee will meet each month on the Thursday prior to the board meeting, which should allow time to get the financials out 4-5 days before the board meeting. Highlights of the this month’s report incidate KUA is slightly below what they forecasted for income ($47,000). ADM is under the max of 470. Covid may have an impact on that number. A question was asked on additional cash and the cap. Sunshine reported KUA enrollment is at 468. Pat provided some clarification on the question. Authorized signers for bank card need to be updated (remove Jani Hale, add Sunshine Price). Motion to approve creation of new signature cards moved, seconded and approved unanimously. Cass reminded that the SSA funds are not part of the overall budget at this time.
4. KU Executive Director Report—Tom Cole: Tom reported that Austin St. is now formally closed. The remainder of the work should be completed by the second week in November and campus should be completely secured. There have been car burglaries and numerous other security issues. KU has done a Thanksgiving for students and families including those in the food program who may not be students. That will continue this year observing Covid guidelines. Tom also discussed the childcare program which has been closed temporarily due to a Covid positive test of a student. Later, in an unconnected case, a teacher tested positive. We are normally entering the cold and flu season which further complicates the matter. KU is compelled to re-think how to provide this important service. This is part of a larger ideology about what KUA students need. Tom also shared his conversations with the MSD Superintendent, Dr. Champion. That discussion included a conversation on expansion of KUA, and Tom’s vision on an additional building or space and the flexibility that brings to the program to add other programs in the future such as band/music. The discussion also included getting student performance data on transfer students in grades 9-12 from MSD to get a linear picture of achievement and success of former KUA students. A question was asked about any partnership opportunity with Phoenix/Talent. There was a detailed discussion on expansion/partnership opportunities.
5. KUA Principal Report—Sunshine Price: Sunshine reported that attendance is quite variable in person from day to day. She explained some of the issues surrounding getting kids to connect on line while following extensive procedures. Board discussion included the possibility of creating a commitment agreement for students to sign. Sunshine requested approval of the SSA Grant agreement which comes in 40%, 30% and 30% increments. She went on to explains some of the protocols with data collection with a focus of mental health and social/emotional components. It was moved and seconded to approve and sign the SSA Grant as received. Motion passed unanimously.
6. New/Other Business Chair Michelle pointed out that we are supposed to hold elections in May or June. Our last election was December 2018. We are off cycle. Some discussion centered around whether we should hold elections in December or wait until May/June. Ryan shared several procedural processes to help streamline this process. The Governance committee will meet prior to the next meeting. It appears the pleasure of the board is to wait until May for elections. It was moved and seconded to hold the elections in May. Motion passed unanimously. Consent Agenda None Executive Session None
7. Adjournment 9:30 AM. Next regular meeting, Tuesday November 24, 2020, Video Format, 7:30 AM.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE PDF OF THIS PAGE
PART TWO: NARRATIVE
A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF YOUR SCHOOL DISTRICT OR ELIGIBLE CHARTER SCHOOL (ENROLLMENT, DEMOGRAPHICS, STRENGTHS, CHALLENGES, ETC.) AND THE EXACT NEED(S) OR ISSUE(S) SIA FUNDING WILL ADDRESS AS OUTLINED IN YOUR 3 YEAR PLAN AND AS IT RELATES TO THE TWO PURPOSES STATED IN THE LAW (MEETING STUDENTS’ MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH NEEDS AND REDUCING DISPARITIES AND INCREASING ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT).
Kids Unlimited Academy (KUA) is a public charter school in the Medford School District. KUA serves 470 students in grades Kindergarten through 8th grade. This is the 7th year our charter school has been open. KUA has contracted with Kids Unlimited of Oregon (KU) to provide teachers and staff for KUA. All references herein to KU’s teachers/staff are to those provided by KU to KUA. Kids Unlimited of Oregon has been a non-profit for 23 years in the Rogue Valley. KU offers after school programs in Title 1 schools in the Rogue Valley including camps and sport programs during the year. Students at KUA also have the opportunity to participate in those programs. KUA offers an extended day program and our students have additional instructional hours each year compared to other districts.
We accomplish this through a longer school day Monday-Friday (no early release days each week). Additionally, KUA offers many enrichment activities including: art, music, PE, Title 1 interventions for all students and opportunities for hands-on learning. Our afterschool programs include many unique classes such as: Tae Kwon Do, ceramics, culinary classes, Project Lead the Way, music, drama, dance, Ballet Folklorico, German, Spanish, gardening and more. Our families choose KUA due to our family-like atmosphere, small class sizes, our unique made-from-scratch food program, many bilingual staff, and our wrap-around services. KUA began in 2013 with grades 1st-3rd and has gradually added a grade level each school year. In 2018-2019 KUA had its first “graduating” 8th grade cohort. The poverty rate of our student population is consistently high enough that KUA qualifies for CEP (Community Eligibility Provision) which allows 100% free breakfast and lunch for all students in the district.
The 435 (numbers from the 2018-19 school year enrollment) students enrolled in at KUA are broken down into the following subgroup populations :
- >95% Economically Disadvantaged
- 51% Ever English Learners
- 13% Students with Disabilities
- 6% Talented and Gifted
- <1% American Indian/Alaskan Native
- <1% Pacific Islander
- <1% Black
- 70% Hispanic
- 25% White
- 3% Multiracial
- 33% Migrant students (numbers came from SOESD)
- 39% Bilingual/Bicultural Staff
- 85% Regular Attenders
Our school has experienced a significant increase in challenging behaviors across our K-8 program during the last few years. Our PBIS team has worked to develop consistency across the school as our program has continued to grow with time. We have worked to add behavior and mental health supports including staff training but we still struggle to meet the needs of these students. KUA has 3 full time staff who are devoted solely to behavioral support. While these supports help students in immediate need, they do not teach students the preventative skills they need to cope with stressors in their lives. In October 2018 we began partnering with a local care provider to provide medical and mental health services to students and KUA SIA Plan – April 2020 – page 2 families on campus. However, despite these supports our students continue to struggle with socio-emotional difficulties. The impact on the classroom is evident on a daily basis and this impacts the learning outcomes for all students.
Our overall achievement based on the Smarter Balanced Assessment for language arts and math show improvement over the years. In 2018-2019 our English Language Arts scores decreased by 5%, while our Mathematics scores increased by 5%. While we outperform many Title 1 schools around the state, our averages are below the State of Oregon averages. Of all of our student categories, our lowest performing sub groups are our students experiencing disabilities (Special Education), Ever English Learners, and migrant students. Attendance rates have shown improvement over the last few years, but we still have 15% of students who are not attending school regularly.
THE EXACT NEED(S) OR ISSUE(S) FUNDING WILL ADDRESS AS OUTLINE IN YOUR 3-YEAR PLAN
After synthesizing and analyzing all of the staff and community input gathered through this process, 5 key areas emerged that we want to increase supports for:
- Student Academic Achievement
- Behavior and Mental Health
- Mission and Vision Outreach
- Staff Development
- Social Media and Communication
With these funds we will address the following needs and issues:
- Improving our core work with students to build a strong foundation of learners at KUA
- Enhancing our behavioral and mental health programs to support the social, emotions, and physical well-being of our community
- Development of a clear mission, vision, and culture that emphasizes the belief that ALL students are capable of success
- Invest in our teachers by providing high quality professional development that will benefit our diverse student population
- Improve school communication systems to better inform KUA families and the community through relevant and timely communication
PART THREE: COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND INPUT
OVERVIEW OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT – DESCRIBE YOUR APPROACH
OVERVIEW : ENSURE RESPONSE INCLUDES: WHO YOU ENGAGED, FREQUENCY/OCCURRENCE, HOW YOU ENSURE ENGAGEMENT OF STAFF AND EACH OF THE FOCAL STUDENT GROUPS AND THEIR FAMILIES, KEY INFORMATION COLLECTED, WHO PARTNERED WITH IN THE ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS .
Community Engagement built KUA. Poor and Latino teenagers who had been marginalized by public schooling, grew up and had children of their own. These children go to Kids Unlimited Academy. From our food program to our after school enrichment program, our success depends on engagement.
The demographics of each and every KUA stakeholder group mirrors the demographics of the school. Prior to the news that Oregon would be inviting school’s to engage their community in a decision making process to establish spending priorities, KUA’s Parent Teacher Collaborative, Site Council, Migrant PAC and School Improvement Team and staff were representative of our student body’s diversity.
As soon as Kids Unlimited Academy learned that we would have the freedom to establish our own priorities, independent from the Medford School District, we made applying for the SIA funds a priority. With the Student Investment Account Engagement Toolkit and the support of the KUA School Board and KUA’s Chief Executive Officer, KUA’s Principal and Assistant Principal began the work of creating a 2019-2020 roadmap of engagement.
We decided to begin our journey by engaging with our staff. We wrote the 5 areas for input in large print on sticky poster paper. After presenting the SIA information we utilized a think/pair/share strategy. Folks formed groups and circulated from poster to poster, adding what they felt should be our priorities under each area. It was an old school approach that we replicated with our various parent groups as well as our Site Council. The posters were put on display in our large meeting room so that our all meeting participants during the course of the year would be KUA SIA Plan – April 2020 – page 4 reminded and encouraged to revisit the input from all stakeholders This feedback was shared with our KUA school board several times and the completed draft SIA plan was shared in February 2020. An online survey was also emailed to our staff, families, middle school students, community stakeholders, and Kids Unlimited school board members in mid-March 2020.
SELF ASSESSMENT OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
SELF ASSESSMENT: SHARE A SELF-ASSESSMENT ABOUT THE QUALITY AND NATURE OF YOUR ENGAGEMENT OF FOCAL STUDENTS, FAMILIES AND THE STAFF MORE BROADLY. IF THE GOAL IS MEANINGFUL, AUTHENTIC AND ONGOING COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, WHERE ARE YOU AT IN THAT PROCESS? WHAT BARRIERS, IF ANY, WERE EXPERIENCED AND HOW MIGHT YOU ANTICIPATE AND RESOLVE THESE ISSUES IN FUTURE ENGAGEMENT?
Honesty and Humility is our approach. The tone and tenor of our parent meetings involves food, warmth, childcare, humor, relevancy and bilingual support. We have a loyal following of families who expect no less than authentic engagement. At our September Open House we create a centralized area where food is offered and tables are manned by a diverse selection of community outreach agencies: DHS, Medical Clinics, our Public Libraries, etc. This year we added a Student Investment Act table where parents could speak informally to a staff member about the input we would be discussing and gathering in the upcoming months. At our first parent input meeting we had bilingual staff members circulating between the input topics, ensuring our non-Spanish speaking parents and Spanish speaking parents would have the ability to share and engage with each other.
Staying ahead of the needs of our families is a never ending goal of KUA. This year we not only embarked upon the work of gathering input for the SIA application, we spent the year applying for grants and basically building a Pre-K program to serve the needs of our families.
To ensure we weren’t relying strictly on attendance, grades or behavior data, KUA decided to reach out to the Search Institute, a private research group. We wanted to learn about our students. In order to establish “meeting students behavioral and mental health needs” as a priority, we decided to put in place the Search Institute’s Developmental Assets Survey. We asked and received permission from our students and their families to participate and gather data. We ensured that KUA SIA Plan – April 2020 – page 5 the survey was conducted in a safe and secure atmosphere. The survey took place in the first week of December and in January we received the results. Did the results impact our priorities? No. Our student’s lowest developmental asset was “self image”. The results simply confirmed what we knew: we needed to make student mental health a priority. Our stakeholders agree that building safe and healthy relationships with self and others is a priority.
We see that we need to build a stronger relationship with Options for Southern Oregon, a non profit that provides an array of mental health programs in both Josephine and Jackson County. If KUA is going to go forward with our work to support the mental health of our families and children, we need to build bridges between as many providers as possible. Currently KUA has provided office space to La Clinica, a local care provider. Our mental health needs extend beyond what La Clinica can provide. Though we currently provide an office space for the Department of Human Services and we elicited their feedback in our engagement journey, silos still exist that prevent a seamless connection between Kua, our families, and services.
The barriers we faced during this process were (a.) working with a minimal administrative crew and (b.) expecting that our parent community, whose economic realities include working multiple jobs could be expected to find the time to engage in the SIA process.
(a.) The principal and assistant principal share an office with minimal administrative support. Somehow we managed to work through the SIA process with the support of the regular ODE Webinars. Additionally, two KUA teachers are also Southern Oregon University administrative candidates and supported this work while at the same time accruing practicum hours.
(b.) Over 75% of our families are Latino with 35% being employed in migrant occupations. Face to face family dinner/meetings became our dominant approach, as we learned that online surveys simply don’t engage our Spanish speaking families.
WHAT RELATIONSHIPS/PARTNERSHIPS WILL YOU CULTIVATE TO IMPROVE FUTURE ENGAGEMENT?
We will continue to strengthen our relationship with La Clinica to build bilingual KUA SIA Plan – April 2020 – page 6 mental health services and resources for our families. We will work to cultivate a relationship with Options of Southern Oregon, who built an outreach facility within blocks of Kids Unlimited Academy.
Building a bridge between Southern Oregon University’s Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion would be an important next step in impacting our student’s self image – self identity. Reaching out to SOU’s Konoway Nika Tillicum Academics and Cultural Support Program would benefit our students in grades 6-8. There is no reason why KUA can’t have the same mentoring program found in Bulldogs to Raiders – a mentoring program established between SOU and Talent Middle School. KUA held a Indigenous People’s Day this year, with the help of SOU’s Native Liaison Instructor Brent Florendo and the staff saw first hand the impact such a celebration had on the student body and highlighted our student’s innate hunger to celebrate and recognize their individual cultures.
Building a bridge with SOU’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion would provide the mentoring our teachers need to ensure their curricular choices meet our student’s cultural needs.
WHAT RESOURCES WOULD ENHANCE YOUR ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS? HOW CAN ODE SUPPORT?
✓ Ensure that communication around expectations and outcomes gives KUA plenty of time to thoroughly execute the state’s expectations.
✓ Understanding many public schools were able to keep staff employed during the shutdown, KUA laid off the majority of support personnel. Two major funding streams – a major auction and a large basketball tournament – were cancelled. Before embarking on our SIA plan, KUA will require time to rebuild and regroup once school starts up again, hopefully in August.
✓ Refine ODE support webinars to focus on like-schools, not just Charter/non-charter schools. KUA is a school with high poverty/diversity and would truly benefit from ODE sponsored webinars to gain strategies around inclusion and equity, etc. Not all Charter Schools are alike. KUA SIA Plan – April 2020
✓ Targeted Assistance in building strategies to support curriculum and strategies around English Language Learners, culturally inclusiveness, and equity and inclusion strategies to build student esteem and academic efficacy.
✓ ODE can influence the Confederation of Oregon School Administrators to invite Charter Schools, who serve the underserved, such as KUA, to statewide inservices.
✓ Use the influence of ODE to encourage local colleges to include schools of poverty and diversity, when placing practicum students whose goal is to serve, whether in education or social services, etc.
WHO WAS ENGAGED?
✓ Students of color
✓ Students with disabilities
✓ Students who are emerging bilinguals
✓ Student navigating poverty, homelessness, and foster care
✓ Families of early learners ✓ Families of students of color
✓ Families of students with disabilities
✓ Families of students are are emerging bilinguals
✓ Families of students navigating poverty, homelessness, and foster care
✓ Licensed staff (administrators, teachers, etc.) ✓ Classified staff (paraprofessionals, office support,cafeteria staff, etc.)
✓ Community based organizations (non profits, civil rights organizations, community service groups, culturally specific organizations, etc.) KUA SIA Plan – April 2020 – page 8
✓ Tribal Members (adults and youth)
✓ School Volunteers (school board members, PTC, Site Council, Migrant PAC group, Title I Parent group, classroom volunteers, etc.)
✓ Business Community
✓ KUA Donors
HOW DID YOU ENGAGE THE COMMUNITY?
✓ Evening Dinner meetings with Child Care provided
✓ In-person forums
✓ On-Line Surveys
✓ Roundtable discussions
✓ Website
✓ Email Messages
✓ Remind Messages
✓ Social Media
✓ School Board Meetings
EVIDENCE OF ENGAGEMENT (INCLUDE YOUR TOP 5 ARTIFACTS)
ARTIFACT 1 – STAFF SSA ENGAGEMENT MEETING PHOTOS AND POSTER PAPER NOTES
Artifact 3 Migrant PAC SSA Engagement Meeting Photos / Agenda
Winter Migrant PAC Invitation & KUA Feedback from SSA Discussion at Migrant PAC Night KUA SIA Plan – April 2020 – page 15 Artifact 4 Middle School Student Developmental Assets Survey Artifact 5 March 2020 Stakeholder Survey
Artifact 4 Middle School Student Developmental Assets Survey
Artifact 5 March 2020 Stakeholder Survey
Tell us why you selected the artifacts, how do they show evidence of engaging focal student populations, their families, and the community?
Artifact 1 The Staff SSA Engagement meeting slides show evidence of our staff passion surrounding what they see as KUA’s priorities.
Artifact 2 The KUA Parent SSA Engagement meeting photos show KUA’s diversity. Seeing the pictures of the parents surrounding the tables, sometimes with translator help, engaged in conversation with parents who they had met for the first time. Each voice was contributing to the posters.
Artifact 3 The Migrant PAC SIA Engagement Meeting photos show the parents leading the various groups as the parents provided feedback as to what they felt were SSI priorities.
Artifact 4 The Developmental Assets Survey is a powerful representation as to why we embarked upon this journey of engagement. 96% of our 6th, 7th and 8th graders were surveyed. The results were a wake up call to our teachers who were faced with the fact that poverty, marginalization, and a lack of cultural responsiveness on the part of our community and our school has a life-long impact on mental health, academic efficacy and … happiness.
Artifact 5 The Stakeholder survey contains feedback that was shared in a one on one format. Without the influence of a discussion facilitator or without the influence of peers, the feedback is thoughtful and impactful.
STRATEGIES/ACTIVITIES -STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES FOR ENGAGING FOCAL STUDENT POPULATIONS AND THEIR FAMILIES. DESCRIBE THE STRATEGIES (AT LEAST TWO) THAT YOU EXECUTED TO ENGAGE EACH OF THE FOCAL STUDENT GROUPS AND THEIR FAMILIES PRESENT WITHIN YOUR DISTRICT AND COMMUNITY. YOUR RESPONSE SHOULD INCLUDE WHY THE STRATEGIES WERE USED.
✓ Public Meetings
✓ On-Line Surveys
✓ Focus group work
We utilized these strategies to reach a broad group of stakeholders that represented the various opinions and viewpoints of our community. We advertised through social media, posters, text messages, emails and hard copies sent home in Friday Folders. This variety of strategies were used because we know what works for our families. Reaching out only electronically does not work for our families in poverty who may not have an email account or internet access at home. Face to face meetings are always more impactful with our families. Our student council enjoys meeting during lunchtime rather than afterschool – we knew that we would get a higher percentage of students to attend this way! We do what works!!
ACTIVITIES TO ENGAGE EACH OF THE FOCAL STUDENT GROUPS AND THEIR FAMILIES. DESCRIBE THE ACTIVITIES (AT LEAST TWO) THAT YOU EXECUTED TO ENGAGE EACH OF THE FOCAL STUDENT GROUPS AND THEIR FAMILIES PRESENT WITHIN YOUR DISTRICT AND COMMUNITY.
Title 1 / Student Investment Act Parent Night – This meeting was held on October 17th, six days after the staff SSA engagement meeting held on October 11th. We began the meeting with an overview of KUA’s progress from the previous 2018-2019 school year. The Title I teacher gave an overview of the Title I program, its strategies and how KUA’s Title I program integrates with the work of the classroom teacher. We met in the art room – which was a perfect location – as the art room consisted of tables that seat KUA SIA Plan – April 2020 – page 17 approximately four people. We first reviewed the five areas of input: reducing academic disparities, mental health needs, access to academic courses, support for teachers and staff to develop strategies and establishing and strengthening community partnerships. With the help of a translator – we ensured all of our parents understood fully each of the five areas.We had written the five areas of input on separate pieces of sticky poster paper and placed the papers on 5 different tables. What followed was inspiring. The parents spent a total of one hour reflecting – discussing and writing. The final documents were placed on the walls of the conference room – alongside the feedback from the October 17th staff meeting.
PreKindergarten Parent Night & Informational Session – This meeting was held to gauge the interest in the opening of our Kids Unlimited PreKindergarten program. A presentation to our families described the type of preschool program we were hoping to open. We also utilized a survey created by the Southern Oregon Early Learning Hub (SOELS) to learn more about the families that were interested in attending our PreK program. This survey gave us additional feedback that helped guide the direction of our preschool and also the strategies that we needed to use to help with Kindergarten transitions.
KUA Middle School Student Council – The KUA Student Council is comprised of 6th, 7th and 8th graders. The council meets weekly and has a slate of student officers with each student officer assigned to a leadership role during each meeting. The principal is always in attendance as an observer or as a resource to answer the questions that might arise. During the Student Engagement activity, the principal took notes. The students first divided into grade level teams reviewed the five areas of need and brainstormed ideas of their own. Then the council reconvened and shared out their ideas and priorities. Then the students posted the large sticky notes on the walls – that contained the feedback from the teachers and the parents. They placed check marks on the comments that they had agreed with. The students were pleased with the amount of passion and support that was evident on the posters – for THEIR SUCCESS.
KUA Stakeholder Survey – March 2020 The survey was taken through Google Forms and included questions in both Spanish and English. The survey was promoted through emails to all staff, all parents, KUA’s Facebook page, KUA website and word of mouth. The questions elicited anonymous responses that focused on current strengths, KUA SIA Plan – April 2020 – page 18 areas of growth, and allocation of SIA funds. The survey was available for a minimum of two weeks. We selected a survey as we needed to hear from as many stakeholders as possible in order to understand what overall themes emerged from their responses. Originally, we were hosting a parent night to review the completed SIA plan, but were unable to hold this meeting due to the COVID school closures. This survey was also sent to Kids Unlimited board members, KUA volunteers, donors and other community members.
ACTIVITIES TO ENGAGE STAFF DESCRIBE THE ACTIVITIES (AT LEAST TWO) THAT YOU EMPLOYED TO ENGAGE STAFF. YOUR RESPONSE SHOULD INCLUDE WHY THE ACTIVITIES WERE USED.
Activity 1: Staff SSA Input Meeting – The Large Group SSA Meeting held on Oregon’s inservice day, October 11th, was preceded by a general announcement shared at the August 19th “Welcome Back Kids Unlimited + Kids Unlimited Academy” Meeting. The KU staff shares the K-8 KUA building with the KUA staff. The KU staff works in the eleven Medford School District Title I after school Site Programs and KUA’s after school enrichment program. The mission of Kids Unlimited is to serve all students from families who need a quality after school engagement experience. Unlike most normal public elementary/middle schools, KUA teachers are not afforded the luxury of enjoying the peace and quiet of their classroom at the end of the day. Each K-8 teacher’s classroom is used for an engagement class such as art, storytelling, STEM, etc. The purpose of bringing both staffs together is to build relationships as well as remind everyone WE are all on the same team. In August, the staff learned the generalities of the grant. They also learned that we did NOT have confirmation that KUA would be able to pursue the grant independently from the Medford School District. We shared that the KU/KUA staff would reconvene in October to ensure all voices were heard as we gathered input to build our priorities and build our plan.
At the October 11th SSA Engagement Meeting — we provided academic and social data to the KU/KUA staff. At each table were pens, post it notes and copies of the powerpoint slides that contained the data. During each data point – we provided time for think/pair/share.
Following a full vetting of the data – We reviewed the five areas of input. Again, we provided time for reflection (Think) small group dialogue (Pair) – a bit larger dialogue (sharing at the table) and finally – – we broke into groups – and devoted 20 minutes to each large post it note. The artifacts included in this application includes photos of these notes – I love seeing the passion in their writing. Following the meetings, the post it notes were kept on display in the same room where the KUA School Board, KU Board of Directors, School Improvement Team, Site Council, Parent Teacher Collaboration team and Student Council met. The notes from the October 17th parent meetings were also kept on display.
Activity 2: KUA School Improvement PLAN team meetings – The SIP team is comprised of teachers, administrators, Title I KUA SIA Plan – April 2020 – page 20 representatives, SPED representatives and support staff members. These meetings are held in a round table format with an agenda agreed upon at the end of the first meeting and throughout the year the agenda’s were flexible enough to include anything that arose prior to the last meeting. During these meetings all participants provided updates to any of the conversations around SSA they had in their PLC meetings. This team met multiple times during the fall to complete our School Improvement Plan utilizing the ORIS(Oregon Integrated Systems Framework) indicators. Based on the input that was given during the SSA staff meeting in October, the team was able to identify priorities and areas of improvement needed. This information was condensed in order to write our Title 1 improvement plan and identify how the SIA funding could help fulfill these goals and priorities.
COLLECTING AND USING INPUT WHAT DID YOU LEARN OR ACTIVELY LEARN FROM THE ENGAGEMENT WITH THE COMMUNITY AND STAFF?
Our families value all of the work that KUA does to meet the needs of students. There was not a desire to increase instructional time via lengthening the school year or days since we already have an extended day and provide our students with additional learning time. However, the feedback showed that both staff and parents desire increased support and services for mental health. This was also evident from the Search Institute’s Developmental Assets survey which was administered to KUA’s 6th, 7th and 8th graders.
All stakeholders would like to have a school counselor to help support the emotional needs of students and to work on preventative measures. Parents would like afterschool tutoring and some type of summer learning program in order to avoid the “summer slump.” Our migrant families and staff requested additional support for our English Language Learners and specifically students who are “newcomers” to the country. Staff have a desire to learn how to scaffold language instruction and also would like to enhance our systems of school-wide data review through the use of Professional Learning Communities and 100/80/20% meetings. Additionally, many staff are interested in learning Spanish so they can better communicate with parents.
The data represented a desire for an increase in hands-on learning KUA SIA Plan – April 2020 – page 21 opportunities (through Expeditionary Learning) in order to provide our students with real world learning experiences. Families appreciate the improvements we have made to our communication systems this year, but would like to have additional opportunities to learn about what is happening at school and also to know how they can support their children at home (especially when language can be a barrier for many of our families). Teachers also requested additional support for early phonics instruction and high quality mathematics instruction. Finally, parents of students in Special Education and Talented and Gifted would like additional supports for their children.
PART FOUR: DATA ANALYSIS DESCRIBE THE DATA SOURCES USED AND HOW THE DATA INFORMS EQUITY-BASED DECISION MAKING.
Data that is used for the purpose of continuous improvement and identifying goals for KUA’s school improvement plans was used throughout the process. KUA leadership and staff conducted a Comprehensive Needs Assessment by conducting a review of all the current systems using a survey at the end of the 2018/19 school year. These systems include but are not limited to academic, behavior, after school programming, family outreach, mental health services and stakeholder investment, and social media. These systems were looked at through the Oregon Integrated Systems (ORIS) Framework needs assessment with Parents, KUA board, Educators, Office employees, Afterschool Program Manager and the KUA Leadership team in the fall of 2019.
This data reviewed includes the following: classroom summative assessments, SBAC state assessment results, iReady data, attendance rates, behavioral referrals, climate and culture survey data by middle school students, and results of parent meetings and feedback . Data was disaggregated by subpopulation to assist in making equity-based decisions. Teams of staff and parents review data annually, and monitored throughout the year, to identify KUA priorities and ensure equity for all students.
PART FIVE: SIA PLAN
SIA Integrated Planning Tool – Priorities Over the next three years of this plan our outcomes will be:
KUA-Medford-Annual-Report21-22.docx 
STRATEGIES:
- Braid Racial Equity, Social Justice, and English Language Learner strategies into our instructional core work with our students, teachers, and content, and build our organizational culture and capacity to create a strong foundation to support every student.
- Create a culture of safety and respect for all students and adults that supports the social, emotional, and physical wellbeing of students and adults that is critical to academic and professional success.
- The educational community collaboratively focuses on increasing and maintaining positive student outcomes in their vision, mission, and culture, while leaders guide the educational community to draw from the vision and mission to support decision-making.
- Educators systematically review multiple sources of data to determine effectiveness, improve learning outcomes, and make data-based decisions through the PLC and RTi process.
- Systems are in place to inform stakeholder groups about student progress in a timely, relevant and meaningful manner and ensure they have access to school information, and assess the perceived quality of the communication between the school and stakeholder groups.
STUDENT INVESTMENT ACT PLAN – SHARED WITH ALL STAKEHOLDERS FOR INPUT
Student Academic Achievement: As a school we will implement strategies that support the learners at Kids Unlimited Academy. We will look at our core work with students and build a strong foundation of learners at KUA.
We can do this by:
- Providing Before/After School Tutoring
- Academic Summer Programming
- Hire additional Aides to assist in the classroom
- On site learning/Expeditionary learning (learning from experts on or off campus – hands on learning opportunities)
Social Emotional Learning (Behavior & Mental Health): As a school we will create a culture of safety and respect for all students and adults. This work will support the social, emotional and physical wellbeing of our community with hopes of improving academic and professional success for all of its community members.
We can do this by:
- Hiring Skills Trainers to assist with social emotional work for K-8 students
- Provide effective positive discipline trainings for KUA’s staff
- Provide Equity Training for staff and
- Hiring a School Counselor
Mission and Vision Outreach: KUA staff, KUA families, and the Rogue Valley Community share a vision, mission and culture that emphasizes the belief that ALL students are capable of success.
We can do this by:
- Hiring an English Language Development Teacher (part time) to help assist the transition for students entering the country for the first time and
- Hiring an early learning literacy volunteer and community outreach liaison
Staff Development: KUA will invest in its teachers by providing quality professional development that will benefit the academic success of its students.
We can do this by:
- Providing Instructional Trainings (Constructing Meaning training for English Language Learners; GLAD Language Acquisition training, Positive Discipline Classroom Management training, working with a Mathematics & Literacy Coach to improve instruction)
- Using substitute teachers to cover classrooms so our current teachers can collaborate and witness successful instruction in the classroom and
- Using substitute teachers to cover classrooms so our current teachers can analyze KUA’s student data to help drive future instruction
Social Media and Communication: School communication systems will be updated in order to better inform KUA families and the community. KUA will communicate relevant information to all of its community members in a timely and meaningful manner.
We can do this by:
- Updating our Social Media Accounts, KUA website and utilizing Friday Folders
- Teachers creating bi-montly newsletters or a class webpage
- Hosting parent nights
- Enhancing our volunteer program
| . | BUDGET & PRIORITY LEVEL | YEAR 1 BUDGETED COST |
PROJECTED 3-YEAR COST |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strategy 1 |
Braid Racial Equity, Social Justice, and English Language Learner strategies into our instructional core work with our students, teachers, and content, and build our organizational culture and capacity to create a strong foundation to support every student. |
$140,178.13 | $411,534.39 |
| Strategy 2 |
The educational community collaboratively focuses on increasing and maintaining positive student outcomes in their vision, mission, and culture and leaders guide the educational community to draw from the vision and mission to support decision-making. |
$72,600.00 | $217,800.00 |
| Strategy 3 |
Create a culture of safety and respect for all students and adults that supports the social, emotional, and physical wellbeing of students and adults that is critical to academic and professional success. |
$94,200.00 | $264,600.00 |
| Strategy 4 |
Educators systematically review multiple sources of data to determine effectiveness, improve learning outcomes, and make data-based decisions through the PLC and RTi process. |
$9,500.00 | $19,000.00 |
| Strategy 5 |
Systems are in place to inform stakeholder groups about student progress in a timely, relevant and meaningful manner and ensure they have access to school information and assess the perceived quality of the communication between the school and stakeholder groups. |
$9,000.00 | $17,000.00 |
| Yearly SIA Costs | $325,478.13 | ||
| Yearly Administrative Costs 5% | $17130.43 | ||
| Total Budget | $342,608.56 |
SIA INTEGRATED PLANNING TOOL – SIA BUDGET EQUITY LENS
Our approach, through this planning process, resembles our consistent and dedicated focus on equity through the empowerment of our entire population of students, families, and community at Kids Unlimited Academy. Prior to the start of the ‘19-’20 school year, our entire staff took part in a 1 day training led by Oregon Center for Educational Equity (OCEE). This is one of many examples of our continued commitment to approach our work through an equity lens. During the planning and preparation process for this grant, we recognized how crucial it was to bring all voices to the table in order to best understand the specific ideas, needs, and supports that each group is seeking.
Groups included in the planning process: migrant families, non-English speakers, emerging bilingual families, special needs students and families, TAG students and families, families that are navigating the foster care system and others experiencing poverty and homelessness. These groups describe the make-up of our wonderful student, family, teacher, and staff population KUA SIA Plan – April 2020 – page 30 and therefore it was critical to create a plan that is culturally responsive with the goal of increasing academic potentiality and social-emotional security for all.
Utilizing the “Appendix B Equity Lens” in the state’s guidance for SIA, we were able to determine, gather, and analyze data based on a specific framework that ensured that we would be able to identify very specific ideas, priorities, and suggestions from the various groups we met with. During each meeting, large poster papers with questions and topics were used to collect data. For Spanish speaking families, the questions were translated and interpreters were available to assist and support language needs.
The questions that were selected from the Equity Lens Tool to apply to the topics, suggestions, and ideas produced during stakeholder meetings were:
- Who are the racial/ethnic and underserved groups affected?
- What is the potential impact of the resource allocation and strategic investment to these groups?
- How does the resource allocation advance student mental or behavioral health and well-being and/or increase academic achievement and address gaps in opportunity?
- How will you modify or enhance your strategies to ensure each learner and communities’ individual and cultural needs are met?
- What is your commitment to professional learning for equity? What resources are you allocating for training in culturally responsive and sustaining instruction?
PART SIX: USE OF FUNDS
WE HAVE SELECTED THE FOLLOWING USE OF FUNDS:
✓ Increasing instructional time
✓ Addressing Student Health and Safety Needs
✓ Reducing Class Size/Case Loads
✓ Well Rounded Learning Opportunities
DESCRIBE HOW YOU WILL UTILIZE FUNDS TO MEET STUDENTS’ MENTAL AND HEALTH KUA SIA PLAN – APRIL 2020 – PAGE 31 NEEDS (500 WORDS OR LESS TOTAL)
We will be able to revamp our current behavioral support program to add the preventative supports that are currently lacking. Quite simply we need to do more to teach students self regulation skills and have consistent socio-emotional instruction throughout the school. Our school counselor, in coordination with the Behavioral Skills Trainers, will provide building leadership and classroom teachers with instructional support and professional learning specific to utilizing data to inform decisions. The Behavioral Skills Trainers will be integrated into lower grade levels to allow for early interventions and reduce premature identification into the Special Education program. It will allow staff to take the time needed to identify triggers, create plans over time, and monitor progress – prior to a referral to special education. We have worked diligently over the last 3 years to develop and improve our PBIS intervention system and to utilize SWIS data to plan interventions. With the SIA funds, we will add additional supports that are needed for students to be successful in the classroom. If a student is not regulated, he or she will struggle to learn. This has an impact on the other students in the classroom, as well as impacts the teachers ability to teach effectively. We will have the experts on staff that are needed to truly meet the mental and health needs!
DESCRIBE HOW YOU WILL UTILIZE FUNDS TO INCREASE ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AND REDUCE ACADEMIC DISPARITIES FOR THE FOCAL GROUPS
These funds will allow us to make a tangible impact with our students and reduce academic disparities in focal groups. Teachers will benefit from high quality professional development including: language acquisition training, phonics and literacy across the curriculum, engaging math instruction, equity and inclusion training and effective behavioral trainings. Through the implementation of these straIf will be held accountable to utilize these strategies; our teachers will be able to see and share methods of instruction that are effective for the population of students at KUA; our administration will be able to assess teacher effectiveness and establish meaningful coaching plans; our students will benefit from the shared knowledge and our leadership team will be able to identify future professional development that fits the needs of the school. Student data will be reviewed through effective PLC’s and a schoolwide systematic plan for data analysis through our 100/80/20 percent data meetings, facilitated with substitute release time. Data will be reviewed with an emphasis on focal groups and increasing teacher capacity to adjust teaching methods as needed to best meet the unique learning needs of each student.
DESCRIBE THE POTENTIAL ACADEMIC IMPACT FOR ALL STUDENTS AND THE FOCAL STUDENT GROUPS BASED ON YOUR PLAN.
The potential impact goes beyond academics. It is our hope and prayer that along with the strengthening of our summer school program, the increase in expeditionary learning, the targeted tutoring and the broad based training for our staff and teachers, our students will, as shown in the old equity cartoon, not only be able to watch the game, but be in the game.
Many High School planning teams lack the time to examine closely the vertical data in a high school sophomore’s file. The ability of a K-8 school to impact the trajectory of student success in high school and beyond…begins with the day to day ability of the K-8 teacher to reach all students. It is KUA’s dream that the SSA will move each K-8 child’s trajectory in an upward direction.
- Broad Based Training – When a teacher lacks the training to apply culturally appropriate responses to students in need, the impact is long lasting. When funds don’t exist for training, teachers simply use the tools they have. KUA has been in existence since 2013. Staff turnover was high and scores had been low in 2016. With a new administrative team starting in 2017, KUA has invested over $45,000 in ensuring teachers received training in Explicit Instruction. With SSA funding, our trainings will go beyond Explicit Instruction into practices that will support the success of all KUA students. Our marginalized students, our ACES impact students and students who thrive when a teacher utilizes culturally responsive instruction.
- Targeted Tutoring – When KUA is able to invest in a quality tutoring program, quality tutors will be hired, trained and prepared. Student will be paired with tutors who are able to connect and support the students. Bottom line – more students will gain the help they need.
- Expeditionary Learning – Imagine a high ACE’s population of students in a school without Expeditionary Learning. This year KUA started a class where the students were able to choose to be part of a silk screening class. From designing to production to marketing – the success our students experience impacted their confidence in their other classes. An increase in expeditionary learning offerings, increases the academic confidence of our students.
KUA’s mission is to empower our students through the opportunity of a quality education, an education that goes beyond the classroom. Yet, we’ve learned that schools cannot distinguish between the student’s academic, mental and social success. Everything matters. KUA is tremendously excited about the potential of putting into motion the plan we have submitted. Our plan will move each student’s trajectory in an upward direction.
WHAT BARRIERS, RISKS, OR CHOICES ARE BEING MADE THAT COULD IMPACT THE POTENTIAL FOR FOCAL STUDENTS TO MEET THE GROWTH TARGETS YOU’VE DRAFTED OR EXPERIENCE THE SUPPORTS YOU HOPE YOUR PLAN CAUSES?
Kids Unlimited Academy is composed of highly dedicated professionals that share a common language, awareness, and vision focusing on providing a wide variety of enriching opportunities for underserved populations. We recognize the reality of implicit bias and are aware of potential impacts within our educational environment and the community we serve. We are responsive to the reality of implicit bias by committing to operate through an equity lens, which guides decision making at all levels, day to day interactions between stakeholders, and enables us to stay on track with our vision and guiding principles of helping to create a better future through opportunity. Our school has also invested in equity training opportunities that are provided to the entire staff on a regular basis. Prior to the start of the ‘19-’20 school year, our entire staff took part in a 1 day training led by Oregon Center for Educational Equity (OCEE).
A combination of consistent, clear, and honest communication coupled with eliciting stakeholder feedback is a safeguard that we use to ensure the continuity of care of focal populations. We will continue this approach of reaching out on a consistent basis to keep track of the positive effects and potentially negative impacts of our plan to better support students and families. Our school is fortunate to have a staff that reflects the makeup of the student population. This enables our entire staff to better connect with families and truly understand the circumstances that could prevent or cause barriers to achievement.
Part Seven: Documentation and Board Approval
Board Approval – Linked here
Link to SIA Plan: https://kuaold.kuaoregon.org/ssa/
Link to SIA Grant Agreement: CLICK HERE
Part Eight: Public Charter Schools
We are a public charter school. We have participated with the Medford School District in various stakeholder input sessions and online surveys. We have also collaborated with other charter schools as they discuss their needs.