CAPTA Resolution, Achievement: Eliminating the Gap Sacramento Council PTA

Sacramento Council PTA:

March 19, 2013

SACRAMENTO COUNCIL UPDATE

Click here to read CAPTA Resolution, Achievement:  Eliminating the Gap   Jason Shah and Benito Delgado-Olson are young men who are dedicated to reducing the achievement gap through innovative organizations they started. Read more

Sacramento Council of PTAs commends the SCUSD in their efforts to eliminate the achievement gap, and we are excited that we were invited as a stakeholder in this important task. Board Update - dated March 15, 2013: "SCUSD has convened a Closing the Achievement Gap Coalition consisting of a diverse team of stakeholders including members of the business community, faith-based representatives, partners from community services organizations, and district staff representing various departments and school sites. The initial meeting of the coalition took place on Tuesday, March 12 at Serna. The team will engage in a process to analyze and study the disparate achievement and outcomes of racial/ethnic minority students in the district with a focus on developing a set of recommendations for district policy, processes, and practice which will be made to the Superintendent and Board of Education. Although the district has experienced incremental growth in student achievement, there is still a great amount of attention and work required to bring the performance of racial/ethnic minority students on par with that of white and high performing Asian groups. The district recognizes that a more laser-like focus on the issues contributing to the persistence of the achievement gap is essential if we are to ensure that every child actualizes the goals and promise of college and career readiness outlined in our Strategic Plan." Several of our PTA leaders, including myself, will be serving on this task force, and we will keep you updated on the progress.  Please contact me with your questions or comments. Lily Williams, 2012-13 President Sacramento Council of PTAs president@saccouncilptas.com (916) 201-8512

Position Statement: School Based decision Making Adopted March 2003 - Revised January 2009 Education Commission The California State PTA supports the concept of school based management in the decision-making process. While the legal responsibility for school governance rests with local Boards of Education, PTA believes that the decentralization of decision making to school sites where service delivery occurs results in greater responsiveness to student and societal needs and improves the quality of educational opportunity. PTA believes school based management decision making should give constituents - parents, teachers, administrators, students and other community members - meaningful control over what happens in schools in order to enhance school performance and the quality of education provided to all students. PTA believes that there is a vast potential to close the achievement gap by improving learning, instruction, school governance, operations, and outcomes when representative stakeholder groups receive meaningful training, and resources that enables them to participate in educational decision making. Schools implementing effective school based management should: Have an active vision focused on teaching and learning that is coordinated with district and state standards for student performance. Develop knowledge and skills in an ongoing process oriented toward building school-wide capacity for improvement, creating a professional learning community and developing a shared knowledge base. Understand that with decision making comes accountability for the results of those decisions. Enlist and empower meaningful participation by all stakeholders in the decision-making process and share leadership responsibilities among all school employees. Have multiple mechanisms for collecting information related to school priorities and for communicating school-related information to all constituents and members of the school community. Use various incentives and acknowledge individual and group progress toward school goals, and Cultivate outside resources through involvement in the community and professional networks. PTA recognizes that school based management decision making must be given time to succeed. School and district leaders must be supportive of the School Based Management process, ensure that communication channels are kept open and provide all stakeholders with a clear understanding of their roles, responsibilities and accountability.