Preparing ALL Students for the FutureMarshall Tuck: Candidate for Superintendent of East Baton Rouge Parish School System

East Baton Rouge Parish School System must prepare ALL students to lead opportunity filled lives

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72%

100%

2019 2030

GRADUATION RATE

The foundation is in place for a transformative leap forward

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STUDENTSAll students can excel when given the right opportunities

EMPLOYEESA diverse and engaged team committed to the future of Baton Rouge

BOARDStrong combination of education, business, advocacy and political expertise

Collective commitment to see all students in Baton Rouge succeed

PARTNERSBusiness leaders, community organizations, philanthropists, nonprofits and civic leaders are committedto partnering with the school system to helpit succeed

PROGRESS11 Blue Ribbon Schools

Over 10,000 students in A and B schools

Strong academic growth in some schools

We all know that the community of Baton Rouge can do special things when it works together

By leveraging our collective passion and commitment, we can graduate ALL students prepared for college or careers

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2020 National Champions

2016 Flood RecoveryPreparing ALL Students for the Future

But we have hard work ahead of us

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It will require thoughtful planning and diligent executionto meet the needs of all students in this difficult environment

DATA SHOW NEED FOR ACCELERATED IMPROVEMENT

72.4% graduation rate

ACT scores relatively flat in recent years and below national average

32% mastery on LEAP tests

40 percentage point Mastery gap between white and black students

36 percentage point Mastery gap between economically disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged students

COVID-19 WILL MAKE ITMORE CHALLENGING

Significant lost learning time means students will be further behind

Interruptions in SY 20-21 are possible

Social distancing and related measures may require schools to look different

Low income students impacted the most, furthering inequity

UNFAVORABLE ECONOMIC OUTLOOK COMPOUNDS ISSUES

A very difficult economy next year, multi-year recession appears likely

Louisiana may be hit particularly hard given the role energy and hospitality play in its economy

Local sales tax receipts may be down significantly

District will have to find a way to do more with less in the short-term

We must begin with a shared vision for what all students, at all grade levels deserve

DEVELOPING A COMMUNITY-WIDESHARED VISION MUST BE A KEY PRIORITY

● Board, employees, parents, students, community groups, business leaders, civic leaders, and other key stakeholders are all a part of developing a shared vision and strategic plan

● While difficult to launch visioning and planning process during Pandemic, it is important to get it done

● Structured process should gather input and build alignment shortly after new Superintendent starts

● Extensive conversations with stakeholders are needed during the process

● Board should be in position to lock in vision statement and strategic plan in the Fall

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FOUNDATION FOR VISION BEGINS WITHDEFINING WHAT ALL STUDENTS DESERVE

Belief in all students’ potential

Strong, relevant curriculum

Committed teachers

Quality counseling and social emotional supports

Diverse enrichment opportunities (during and after the school day)

Targeted supports and interventions as needed

Relevant connections to future employment

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EVERY SCHOOL IS GREATEvery student in the East Baton Rouge Parish School System, regardless of class, race or neighborhood, will go to a great school —whether neighborhood, magnet, or charter.

FOCUS ON EQUITYStudents in the greatest need of support will have accessto great schools and be served well by the school system.

EFFICIENCY WITH QUALITYAs we push our schools to provide 21st century opportunities to students, we will similarly embrace a 21st century mindset in our central office and operations. Every dollar must be used to deliver a quality service to our schools.

Three core values

will guide our effortsto deliver

against this vision

We must set ambitious goals aligned with our values

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Note: Even with highly effective execution, timeline to achieve these goals will be impacted if there is a deep, multi-year recession.

All students graduate on-time and all graduates are qualified to enter college or a well-paying job

EBRPSS is an A rated district with no D and F schools

EVERY SCHOOLIS GREAT

11A

1B

Achievement gaps cut in half for graduation rates and achievement on LEAP assessments

Especially focused on gaps between White students and Black and Latino students, economically disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged students

FOCUS ON EQUITY

22A

2B

Operational excellence as measured by being the top performing district in Louisiana on key performance indicators of operational efficiency and effectiveness

Healthy fund balance, greater than 10% of annual revenue

EFFICIENCYWITH QUALITY

33A

3B

EVERY SCHOOL IS GREAT FOCUS ON EQUITY EFFICIENCY WITH QUALITY

And we must pull the right strategic levers

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● Support Great Principalsand Teachers

● Prepare Students for the21st Century

● Connect Schoolsto Communities

● Deepen Transformative Work at Struggling Schools

● Target Supports to Underserved Students

● Expand EarlyChildhood Education

● Deliver HighlyEfficient Operations

● Maximize Resources to Schools

● Increase Transparencyand Accountability

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Core Value #1: Every School is a Great School

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SUPPORTGREAT PRINCIPALSAND TEACHERS

Ensure strong leader at every school

Invest in recruiting, training, mentoring and retaining talent

● Leverage top talent to mentor peers, share best practices

● Build phenomenal recruiting capabilities

● Increase educator pay when economy strengthens

Adjust master schedules to allow more time for collaboration

Organize central office to support educators at school sites

PREPARESTUDENTS FORTHE 21ST CENTURY

Ensure rigorous, relevant, Tier 1 curriculum at all grade levels

Promote regular collaboration with business leaders to ensure skills taught in schools align with employer needs

Connect high school students with internships in growth sectors

Launch job shadowing programs at middle and high school levels

Create a Career Center to connect graduates with well-paying jobs post-graduation

CONNECTSCHOOLS TO COMMUNITIES

Strengthen parent engagement

● Launch Parent College to empower parents in supporting instruction

● Establish Parent Centers in schools

● Include parent engagement measure in principal evaluations

Utilize community partners to expand student supports

● Increase after-school opportunities

● Collaborate to expand mental health and counseling services

● Ensure central office partnerships team connects schools to partners

Core Value #2: Focus on Equity

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DEEPENTRANSFORMATIVE WORKAT STRUGGLING SCHOOLS

Continue and enhance the work in the Innovation Network

Incentivize via stipend for transformational principals to move to lowest performing schools

Prioritize staffing for hard to staff schools

Provide extensive and targeted professional development and coaching

Restructure master schedules and leverage different school models

Deepen counseling supports and wrap-around services

TARGETSUPPORTS TOUNDERSERVED STUDENTS

Hold all schools accountable for educating underserved students

● Special education, low income, English learners, etc.

● Leverage data to track progress of sub-groups and individual students

Explore partnerships to extend learning time, target programs, and individualize support to struggling students

Ensure underserved students have home access to devices and internet

Promote sharing of best practices for supporting underserved students

EXPANDEARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

Ensure all low income four-year olds have access to quality Pre-K

● Will likely require stronger economy given the costs

● Expand quality Pre-K for three-year olds as economy recovers

Create networks to collaborate and share data, strengthen alignment between Pre-K and Kindergarten

Advocate at the state and federal levels to increase funding for Pre-K and to access available funds

Core Value #3: Efficiency with Quality

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DELIVERHIGHLY EFFICIENTOPERATIONS

Assess key operations to identify areas for improvements

Prioritize systems and process improvements based on cost and impact

Transition central office to serve as a support function for schools

Expand use of data and sharing of best practices to drive system-wide improvements

Consider redesign of central office functions due to shifting enrollment patterns

MAXIMIZERESOURCES TO SCHOOLS

Facilitate budget review to ensure maximum funds flow to school sites

Problem solve creative, effective fiscal management practices to navigate challenging economic forecast

Strengthen political advocacy to maximize federal and state funding

● Ensure EBR receives our fair share of federal stimulus dollars

● Advocate to minimize MFP cuts

Expand philanthropic support to help offset likely decreased public funding

INCREASETRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY

Increase transparency in key functions to build long-term trust and buy-in

Include a diverse group of stakeholders to inform key decisions, especially if cuts are needed due to the worsening economy

Improve performance management system

Develop performance metrics for all key operational and instructional areas

Make goals public, share progress annually, hold regular convenings to discuss successes and areas for growth

As we deploy these strategies, we must also differentiate our approach to supporting schools

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STRENGTHEN SCHOOLSIN THE MIDDLEApproximately 15k students● Strengthen district supports to these schools

centered on key strategies (slides 10 – 12),differentiate based on recent progress

● Connect principals, teachers and counselorswith peers in high performing schools tolearn from best practices

HOLD OUR CHARTERSACCOUNTABLE, LEARN LESSONSApproximately 4k students ● Shut down consistently low performing charters

● Learn from high performing charters

● Implement new charter policy effectively and communicate regularly with charter community

EMPOWER HIGHPERFORMING SCHOOLS Approximately 10k students● Give more freedom from red tape and

bureaucracy to do even more

● Align services based on what schoolssay they need

DRIVE INTENSIVE SUPPORTTO D AND F SCHOOLSApproximately 12k students● Deepen Innovation Network to provide

intensive support for D and F schools(see turnaround strategies from slide 11)

● Develop targeted effort to lift upalternative schoolsDIFFERENTIATED

SCHOOLSUPPORTS

We need a deliberate strategy to address new challenges due to COVID-19

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CHALLENGE POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS

Students will be further behind (particularly low-income students)

● Extend school time after school and/or over summer, could be differentiated based on how far students fell behind (i.e. extended time for some but not all students)

● Explore leveraging community partners and technology solutions to extend time cost effectively

● Assessment early in SY 20-21 to identify students who fell the furthest behind and inform the strategies needed to help students catch up (including potentially adjusting schedules)

● Credit remediation opportunities for Class of 2020, as needed

2020-21 school year may look different and could see disruptions

● Must start planning for the upcoming school year immediately

● Social distancing may require new schedules, alternating days, staggered recess / lunch, prohibitions on large gatherings / assemblies

● A hybrid model may be needed, where students learn part-time online and part-time at school

● Provide all students home access to computers and internet, train teachers on preparing to teach virtually in the event school needs to shut down again

● Ensure staff and student safety which may include wearing PPE, stocking campuses with hand sanitizer, setting up hand washing schedules, limiting visitors and increasing school cleaning

● Set up policies that define criteria for future school closings (including how meals will be provided and how learning will continue remotely) and clear protocols if a student or staff member is sick

Economy will be in worse shape

● Accelerate budget reform and improve efficiency efforts to maximize dollars to schools

● Aggressively pursue federal, state and philanthropic dollars; advocate against funding cuts

While COVID-19 requires

adaptation, the District must

remain steadfast in its dedication

to driving educational opportunity

for all

The first 90 days on the job will set the tone

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KEY ACTIVITIES SUCCESS WILL LOOK LIKE

● Visit schools, Board Members, current Superintendent, district employees, students, families, community members and partners

● Deep dive into our current data and assess our programs and systems

● Develop and refine robust launch plans to re-open schools in wake of COVID-19● Articulate plan to recover lost learning time throughout SY 2020-21● Fully staff schools and establish strong improvement plans for struggling schools

● Build trust and rapport among senior team, principals and teacher leaders● Build alignment around vision

● Access every available resource from local, state, federal and philanthropic sources; advocate for EBR’s fair share of stimulus funds

● Balance and finalize SY 2020-21 budget and kick-off 5-year financial planning

● Establish transparent, inclusive process to develop long-term strategic plan ● Launch process with opportunities for extensive input from internal EBR Schools

stakeholders, parents, families, and community members

New Superintendent establishes critical relationships and develops an initial understanding of what is working in the district and what needs to be improved

School-site staff, students and families experience a smooth launch of the school year, no matter how it looks

Top team and key stakeholders within EBR Schools align around a vision for effectively serving all students in the district

EBR maximizes resources to schools while avoiding deficit spending, planning for future volatility

Long-term strategic planning process is launched with strong support from key stakeholders

Deeply understand EBR Schools

Secure financial stability

Prepare for a strong start to SY 2020-21

Build internal alignment for new vision

Launch strategic planning

It will be hard, but EBR Schools can be a district where all students are prepared for collegeor careers

It is possible that by 2030…

● Every single student graduates with a chance at a better life

● The economies of Baton Rouge and the entire State of Louisiana are among the fastest growing in the country because our students are graduating at high skill levels

● Baton Rouge is recognized as the model in the nation for effectively serving all kids

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