Strategic Plan Final ReportJanuary 1, 2015 to June 30, 2017

Barbara Nemko, Ph.D., Napa County Superintendent of Schools

Your Partner for Educational Excellence

NCOE adopted strategic goals and related initiatives for the 30 month period of January 1, 2015 through June 30, 2017. This report summarizes the accomplishments of the office in carrying out the initiatives stated in this plan. The next strategic plan implementation period will be July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2020.

Strategic Goals and InitiativesStrategic Goal 1: Develop programs to support students and their families through meaningful partnerships with school districts, NapaLearns and other local and governmental agencies in areas of common

purpose, ideally based on long-term agreements.

Initiative 1: Early Childhood ServicesImprove the quality and availability of early education across the county including emphasis on parental partnership; mental health and social services; alignment of preschool, transition kindergarten, and kindergarten services across local education agencies, and expanded access to Digital Early Learning (DEL). The overarching goal of these efforts is to reduce the achievement gap.

The following is a list of key developments:

• Opened up an additional preschool classroom in 2016-17. The department continued to operate 24 preschool classroom sessions serving 377 three and four-year-olds. Additionally, the department provided Early Childhood Special Education services to 356 infants, toddlers, preschoolers and their families.

• Program staff worked with principals to locate two new classrooms on district sites. • Established consult services from an Infant Mental Health psychologist to work with teachers, children and their

families for support regarding aggressive and unique behavior concerns.• Received continued funding from the Vintners Early Learning Initiative to provide 16 new preschool slots for 4-year-

olds in the Phillips area, and worked on an application for funding to improve the Kindergarten/Preschool playground at Phillips Elementary school.

• Program director met with NVUSD Executive Director of Elementary Education and Consultant to School Planning and Construction to explore the possibility of relocating two preschool classrooms at district school sites.

• Continued to maintain excellent relationships with all five school districts in providing special education services and successful IEP meetings into Kindergarten.

• Continued ongoing partnership with the Napa Community Health Initiative to ensure that each child served by our programs has health care insurance.

• Established a partnership with the California State Department of Education and DRDP Access to participate in the Embedded Instruction training. Five preschool staff participated and the program has been asked to expand the training in the 2017-18 school year.

Major progress in the DEL program:• In the 2015-16 school year, 21 of 23 preschool teachers received a stipend due to their achievement in full fidelity of

classroom implementation.• Each teacher received in-classroom coaching in addition to four staff developed trainings.• Provided upgraded iPads for teachers. • Child word exposure data from August 2016 to present is 13 million words. The total number of word exposure to

children since February 2014 is an astounding 64.3 million.• 214 parents attended Literacy Nights for an introduction to Footsteps2Brilliance.• Continued the iPad loan program to 64 parents of children in our program, provided they attend training on how to

use it to teach literacy skills to their children.• The DEL program was awarded the ACSA’s “Partners in Educational Excellence” Award.• Staff gave presentations to disseminate information about our DEL Program. More than 20 Superintendents and other

government officials came to NCOE for a program overview and classroom observation. Andi Knowlton and Barbara Nemko presented our DEL program at six state and national conferences.

Initiative 2: Career Readiness SupportIncrease focus of college and career readiness across the county through support for career pathways, linked (academic and career technical) instruction, and college and career planning tools for students and parents in middle and high schools.

The major accomplishments of the College and Career Readiness Department (CCRD) are as follows:• NVUSD began contracting with NCOE CCRD to fund all instructional staff. The MOU included a new governance model and decision making process.

• NCOE operated 18 pathways in four high schools.• The CCRD provided support and coaching to all CTE teachers, regardless of their employer. • Teachers were included in professional development and received support with curriculum development.• Teachers began using the 11 Elements of High Quality CTE rubric to evaluate their programs.• CCRD continued to manage and oversee the Culinary Arts program at St. Helena High School. • Work-based Learning expanded and staff was co-located on high school campuses. • CCRD staff worked with NVC faculty and high school CTE teachers to map courses and develop opportunities for dual enrollment and credit by exam courses.

• Calistoga JUSD showed interest in expanding career pathways. The CCRD provided input and guidance to the district on the development of new pathways.

• CCRD served as the lead agency on the Napa County Perkins Consortium and provided guidance to make sure districts complied with Federal regulations.

• NCOE was awarded four major grants/contracts. California Career Pathway Trust Grant, Career Technical Education Incentive Grant, Technical Assistance contract for Career Technical Education Incentive Grant recipients, California Career Pathway Trust Technical Assistance contract.

Initiative 3: Community ProgramsOperate high quality after school and expanded learning programs that provide educational enrichment, academic support and tutoring. Address prevention, health and wellness by raising awareness of the risks of tobacco, alcohol and other drugs and promoting positive choices through education and quality role models for students and families. Promote the effective use of volunteers to build capacity to address the unmet needs of

children and families. These programs augment school district initiatives and are delivered in collaboration with teachers, community partners and NCOE’s AmeriCorps program. Major department accomplishments were as follows:• Served over 5,000 students daily in before, after, and summer school programs.• Delivered STEM and Literacy Tutoring through AmeriCorps to 1,200 students in addition to providing active recess services to all students across 13 schools.• Provided over 140 AmeriCorps members each year to build volunteer programs statewide that enable non- profits and educational organizations to recruit over 12,000 volunteers.• Provided Life Skills instruction to

support health choices for 2,800 Napa County middle and high school students.• Provided Mariposa/Bridging Brothers gang prevention programs to 155 students each year in Napa middle and high

schools.• Implemented the CA Healthy Kids survey each year for all Napa County schools, surveying over 5,000 students yearly

in grades 5, 7, 9 and 11 to determine attitudinal and behavioral changes related to drugs/alcohol, school connectedness, and health/safety.

• Received Dept. of Health & Human Services funding for the UpValley Drug Free Communities program in partnership with the UpValley Family Center.

• Received Dept. of Health & Human Services funding to support a youth focused alcohol prevention program (STOPAct).

• Received U.S. Department of Education funding to support a 3-year physical activity project in before, after, and summer school programs.

Initiative 4: Local Control Accountability Planning Assist school districts in preparing, budgeting and evaluating local control accountability plans to assure their compliance with state standards and their likelihood of producing significant improvements in student learning.

Developments in this area included:• Hired Lucy Edwards to serve as NCOE’s Director of Continuous Improvement to support NCOE and districts with

the LCAP planning and reporting processes.

• Piloted an LCAP evaluation tool designed by BASC/CCSESA for our local LCAP approval process.• Provided ongoing differentiated technical assistance to LEAs with the development, refinement, and assessment of

their continuous improvement efforts for increased student performance as reported in their LCAPs.• Drafted a local data collection and analysis tool to aid LEA efforts with LCAP progress monitoring, evaluation of

program effectiveness, and stakeholder reporting.• Worked with LEAs to help identify and prioritize local needs in alignment with the LCFF eight State Priorities and

associated metrics.• Shared effective practices with LEAs on stakeholder engagement and input for LCAP creation, refinement, and

progress monitoring.• Trained LEAs and their stakeholders on the rollout of CA’s new Accountability and Improvement System and the CA

School Dashboard.• Collaborated with NCOE’s Communications Director to craft language and speaking points that would help local

LEAs share information and deliver a common message on CA’s new Accountability/Improvement System and School Dashboard.

Strategic Goal 2: Maintain and continuously improve training and professional development for NCOE staff, district personnel, and community members.

Initiative 1: Parent Education WorkshopsProvide parent education workshops on a variety of topics including sessions focused on digital literacy.

The following tasks were completed:• The Early Childhood Department continued to host successful Parent Night events with emphasis on Digital Early Learning (DEL) training in both English and Spanish, development of z language and literacy and Kindergarten readiness activities. A total of 250+ parents regularly attended bi-monthly parent nights at individual preschool sites.• Napa Infant Preschool program held 10 parent workshops with follow- up coaching in the areas of: Sensory integration, fine motor activities, “Talk, Read and Sing” with your babies and supporting your child’s social emotional development. Classes were held in both English and Spanish. 110 families participated in these classes and follow up support.

• The Early Childhood Services department continued to have an active Parent Advisory Council. 26 parents regularly attended the monthly meeting.

• NCOE’s signature “Parent Workshop Series” maintained strong attendance numbers. Topics included: “Kindergarten Preparation”, “Talking to Your Kids about Drugs”, “Choosing a College”, “Common Core Math”, and “Keeping Our Brains Healthy”.

Initiative 2: Business Services Professional Development WorkshopsDeliver professional development workshops for NCOE and district employees aimed at improving business services, including expanded and ongoing training on the new financial system, Digital Schools.

• More than 12 workshops were delivered to county office and district employees on use of the Digital Schools software. Initiative 3: Student Services Staff Development WorkshopsDeliver professional development workshops for NCOE and district employees aimed at improving student learning, including the Napa County Teacher Induction Program for first and second year teachers.

• In 2015-2016, the NCOE Teacher Induction program served 108 Pre-Kindergarten through Adult Ed teachers to help them earn their clear teaching credentials.

• In 2016-2017, the NCOE Teacher Induction program served 78 General Education teachers and 10 Education Specialists in Kindergarten through Twelfth Grade to help them earn their clear teaching credentials.

• The Teacher Induction Program selected, trained, and retained 80+ Support Providers tasked with job embedded mentoring for each new teacher. Mentors and new teachers worked together to develop a reflective teaching practice for the purpose of student progress and achievement.

• The NCOE Induction program designed and delivered strategic professional development to promote targeted growth for all new teachers using an Individualized Learning Plan and helped them track student success through cycles of inquiry.

• Other professional development included: The Director of the Napa SELPA received two CDE grants to support alternative dispute resolution activities in Napa and statewide, and delivered training to district personnel.

Initiative 4: Teacher Leader Collaborative (TLC)Provide training for experienced educators with new leadership roles. Engage and develop 21st century skills and collaborative cultures to transform our schools.

Developments in this area included:• The Teacher Leadership Collaborative trained an additional 60 new teacher leaders in effective facilitation,

communication, and team building skills in order to more effectively work with their professional learning communities and students at their school sites.

• The co-creators of the Teacher Leadership Collaborative, Lucy Edwards and Amye Scott, presented at the New Teacher Center’s annual National Symposium in February 2015 and February 2016, at Learning Forward’s annual International Conference in December 2015, and at the CISC Symposium in February of 2016.

• The Teacher Leadership Collaborative created and offered an advanced professional development series for further exploration of team building skills, managing change, and leveraging conflict for high performing organizations; the series was open to past participants of the TLC Level 1 series.

Strategic Goal 3: Improve the academic achievement and life success of students in the Court and Community School Programs.

Initiative 1: Program StaffingIncrease program staffing (e.g., mental health counseling and a licensed social worker) to better connect school programs with parents, outside partnering agencies, and mental health counselors.

Developments included the following:• The Court and Community Schools contracted with the Probation Department to hire a full-time therapist. • Through contracted services with Mentis, each classroom received an assigned therapist to meet with students

individually or in groups for the purpose of giving all students access to a therapist.

• Parent Liaison/Refocus Room Supervisor began working as a full time Parent Liaison.• Hired full time Fitness Coach.• Hired part time Music Instructor

Initiative 2: Truancy and Graduation RatesConcentrate efforts on increasing school attendance and the number of students who earn a high school diploma.

The Community School program did the following:• Child, Welfare and Attendance Specialist worked with truants and their families.• Monitored seniors with regard to addressing issues affecting graduation. • All seniors were enrolled in the Get Ready class to explore their interests and to assist students with college and/ or vocational education planning and work readiness skills.• Continued partnering with Napa Valley College representatives to more easily transition students to the college.• New staff continued to be trained in Restorative Practices to build community and manage conflict. • Parent Liaison held twice monthly parent support groups in both English and Spanish.• Contracted with Nimbus Arts to deliver art instruction to all students.

• Social Worker and Child Welfare and Attendance Specialist worked closely with students and families.• Developed close partnership with probation department.• Provided an after school program to make up credits.• Offered OdysseyWare for credit recovery.• Provided Service Learning opportunities like TAAP and Community Garden to engage students in real world

activities.• Offered free breakfast and lunch daily.

Initiative 3: Staff DevelopmentProvide ongoing staff development and coaching on Common Core standards and their implementation in the programs.

The following developments were noteworthy:• Curriculum and Instruction/Continuous Improvement staff provided professional development and coaching to staff

on the implementation of the California Common Core Standards (CCSS), unit and lesson design for CCSS, and formative assessment practices to help measure student learning and adjust lesson plans for differentiated support.

• NCOE’s signature “Parent Workshop Series” has maintained strong attendance numbers. Topics included: “Kindergarten Preparation”, “Talking to Your Kids about Drugs”, “Choosing a College”, “Common Core Math”, and “Keeping Our Brains Healthy”.

• As part of the Teacher Dinner Series on Technology, 31 technology trainings (variety of topics) were delivered to 206 Napa county teachers, including staff from the Court and Community School. • NCOE partnered with NapaLearns to deliver the Digital Innovators Series targeted to Napa county teachers. As part of this series, five learning strands were offered with a total of 30 workshops. • Technology Training and Support Services have delivered 30 technology trainings to NCOE staff on a variety of technology tools including: Zendesk, DocuSign, Zoom, Digital Schools, and software selected from Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Cloud, and Google Apps for Education. • College and Career Readiness (Lacey

Boatman) provided Project Based Learning training to NCOE’s Community School.

The Court and Community school staff received training in the following areas:• Restorative Justice Practices to build community and manage conflict.• Common Core standards.• Ho’Ala educational philosophy to target personal responsibility in creating positive school culture.• Maker’s Education training.• Mindfulness training.• Technology training with Instructional Technology Coach and NCOE Technology Training and Support Services

Department.

Initiative 4: Parent EngagementInitiate activities to increase parent involvement with their children’s school success through improved home-to-school communication, parent advisory committees, and frequent celebrations and student recognition events.

The Community School Program initiated: • Quarterly newsletter for families. • Phone calls to parents regarding: student absences, student updates, upcoming meetings and events, etc. • Additional parent events were planned in comparison to previous years. • Formal and informal parent meetings. • Home visits.• Campus Facebook page.

Initiative 5: Internet Connectivity and UseAssure high speed Internet connectivity in all classrooms and provide a technology mentor for teachers.

• Court and Community Schools have deployed a one to one Chromebook system; all students used technology on a daily basis.

• A blended learning model was adopted by program teachers.• The Instructional Technology Coach led regular staff development trainings for teachers to increase skills and introduce

innovative software programs.The IT Department provided the following services:• Upgraded all network equipment for Juvenile Hall. • Upgraded Juvenile Hall’s Internet connectivity to a 50M data circuit in support of mandated online testing.• Assisted Court and Community Schools in launching Google Apps for students.

Strategic Goal 4: Improve the facilities housing NCOE programs.

Initiative 1: Facility SurveyConduct a facility survey to determine NCOE school facilities in need of improvement. Develop a plan to follow through in making need improvements and begin implementation.

• The Facilities Master Plan was completed and contains detailed recommendation for needed repairs and improvements to all of NCOE’s facilities with proposed timelines broken out into immediate, intermediate (1 – 5 years) and long- term projects. General Services began developing cost estimates and scheduling the projects for the next fiscal year.• NCOE’s Prop 39 Energy expenditure finance plan was submitted to the California Energy Department and was approved. Lighting and HVAC thermostat retrofits were performed at the NCOE admin building, Napa Preschool, Community School and the Napa Infant Program. The remaining funds were put towards the Solar PPA.

Initiative 2: New Community School CampusBuild a new Community School campus that is safe, welcoming and conducive to improved student learning.

• The Facilities Master Plan that was completed includes a two-story building that would anchor moving the Child Development Center to the footprint of the current Community School, and the two-story building would become the new site for the Community School in the area of the current Napa Children’s Center.

• The new Community school design was fully conceptualized with detailed schematics and then forwarded to the estimators. The goal is to complete DSA-ready plans by the end of the current school year.

• The IT Department assisted project architects in designing the building to meet the network requirements of the new school building.

Initiative 3: Child Development Program UpgradeMove the Napa Child Development Program to a better quality facility that includes an outdoor playground that is comparable or better than the program’s current arrangement.

• The new Napa Children Center design plan was fully conceptualized with its placement in the area where the Community School currently sits and then forwarded to the estimators. The goal is to complete DSA-ready plans by the end of the school year.

Strategic Goal 5: Improve the quality of NCOE’s internal organization and share information about it with our employees and the community.

Initiative 1: Effectiveness of NCOE’s WorkforceIncrease the efficiency and effectiveness of NCOE’s workforce through introducing technological enhancements (equipment, software and staff training) and proactively recruiting, developing and retaining high quality employees. Focus on addressing specific challenges facing our office: assuring quality substitute teachers and teaching assistants, adjusting business practices to improve the financial well-being of

AmeriCorps members, and joint planning between NCOE’s Research and Professional Center and all other NCOE programs to create synergies that enhance the performance of all organizational units.

The General Services Department: • Filled five positions in six months while continuing to provide quality customer service.• Two classified employees were promoted to higher-level classified positions.• Trained approximately 180 employees in CPR, First Aid and AED.• The annual Giving Tree Gift Drive was successfully held. General Services staff collected and delivered over 275 gifts

to families in the Community School and Napa Infant Programs.• Served over 120 Community School students and NCOE staff at the “Tree Trimming and Country Breakfast” event.

The Human Resources Department:• Created a substitute-focused ad that was used in a variety of advertising venues to reach a broader market including

college sites, retirees, recent and unemployed graduates.• Postcards and flyers advertising for substitutes were created for distribution at job fairs, colleges and public locations in

the surrounding area. • Human Resources used new and alternative advertising efforts for reaching possible substitutes including Facebook,

stickers ads in the local newspapers, local movie theaters and public service announcements on local radio.• Provided orientation for over 300 combined employees including substitutes.

The Fiscal Services Department:• Helped to complete the financial audits for NCOE and our five districts.• Completed First Interim financial statements for NCOE and our five districts.• Processed the 1099s and W-2s for NCOE and our five districts.• Implemented new Affordable Care Act reporting processes for NCOE and two other districts.

Initiative 2: Career Advancement of NCOE EmployeesFacilitate the career advancement of existing employees by developing career ladders, prioritizing internal promotions when appropriate, and continuing to work with our collective bargaining partners to assure a compensation system that is fair and competitive with industry standards.

• Made refinements to the salary schedule in collaboration with collective bargaining partners.• Added 10 new positions in several departments at multiple class levels creating opportunity for current staff to grow

and forming ladders of advancement.• Made refinements to the salary schedule with collective bargaining partners along with health benefits that are

increasingly competitive with the industry.• Ten classified employees were promoted to higher-level classified positions. • Six classified employees were promoted from classified positions to management positions.• Fourteen management employees were promoted to higher-level management positions.• Six classified employees were promoted to higher-level classified positions.• Three classified employees were promoted from classified positions to management positions.• Twelve management employees were promoted to higher-level management positions.

Initiative 3: Internal Communication and UnderstandingDevelop and implement a systematic strategy to improve communication among NCOE employees regarding

the successes and challenges facing all sectors of our organization. This will include scheduled opportunities for interaction between business and direct service personnel.

The following was accomplished in response to the Communication Survey administered to all staff on communication:• Launched an internal e-newsletter for staff that is now distributed monthly. • Instituted quarterly staff meetings at the Research and Professional Development Center in Rohnert Park, providing the staff an opportunity to hear from and speak with NCOE leadership.• Instituted an additional all-NCOE staff meeting held once per year (in addition to Back to School, holiday

events, etc.) in early Spring where staff from all NCOE locations gathered to hear program updates and connect to co-workers they don’t normally see.

• Hosted several informal meetings between the Superintendent and staff including “A Second Cup of Coffee”, a forum for staff to ask questions and hear directly from the Superintendent.

• Held several informational workshops, including two workshops for staff including How to Read Your Paycheck and Health Benefits Overview to provide issue specific information on topics affecting employees.

Initiative 4: Social Media and Other Communication with the PublicUtilize social media and all other available means, such as the preparation of a brief video, to increase public awareness of NCOE’s services and resources, as well as to increase back and forth interaction with the Napa community.

NCOE Communications completed the following:• Re-organized some staff members to form the Communications and Special Projects Department to better meet the

growing communication needs of the organization.• Launched an Instagram social media account to expand online presence. Barbara Nemko contributed regularly to the

NCOE social media accounts and kept an active twitter account.• Began using an online monitoring service to better track media coverage and social media mentions.• Arranged with the County of Napa to begin participating in the automated text/email messaging system Nixle. Staff

and specific departments serving students began using the system in 2016 to communicate both crisis messages and non-emergency updates. All staff were given opt-in option in early 2017.

• Installed monitor in central office entrance for additional promotion opportunities, and promoted social media accounts via posters in all primary conference rooms.

• Fall 2016 launched extensive re-branding process which will result in a new logo, overview video, brochure and slide deck.

• Ads were developed and placed on city buses to inform the public about the Digital Early Learning program.• Brochures were developed with information about downloading and using the Footsteps2Brilliance program. The

brochures were provided at preschools, parent meetings etc.

Barbara Nemko, Ph.D., Napa County Superintendent of Schools

Your Partner for Educational Excellence

Napa County Board of EducationAnn Cash, James Haslip, Don Huffman, Jennifer Kresge,

Lisa Lindsey, Steve Orndorf, Janna Waldinger

Napa County Office of Education, 2121 Imola Avenue, Napa, CA 94559 • 707-253-6810 • @NapaCOE