The Sonoma Valley Unified School District is hosting a community forum on the school district budget reduction process. The evening will be an opportunity for staff and community members to share their thoughts and suggestions for budget reduction possibilities.  The meeting will take place on Thursday, November 17th at 6 PM in the Altimira Middle School Multipurpose Room.
The meeting will be in English with Spanish translation.
Childcare will be available.  If you have any questions, please contact Lissa Juricich at the District Office (935-4246).

El Distrito Escolar Unificado del Valle de Sonoma estará realizando un foro comunitario acerca del proceso de reducción del presupuesto en el distrito escolar. La noche será una oportunidad para que el personal escolar y los miembros de la comunidad compartan sus pensamientos y sugerencias para las posibilidades de reducción del presupuesto. La junta se llevará a cabo el jueves, 17 de noviembre a las 6 PM en el Salón Multiusos de la Escuela Secundaria Altimira.
La junta será en inglés con traducción al español.
Habrá cuidado de niños disponible. Si usted tiene alguna pregunta, por favor contacte a Lissa Juricich en la Oficina del Distrito (935-4246).

Prior to the budget reduction discussion, the DELAC will host a presentations from The Boys and Girls Club of Sonoma Valley and the Drug Abuse Alternative Center (DAAC) of Sonoma County.  This portion of the meeting begins at 6 PM.

The meeting will be in Spanish with English translation.

Childcare will be available.  If you have a question, please contact Maite Iturri (El Verano Principal) at 935-6050.

El Comité de Asesoramiento de los Estudiantes de Inglés en el Distrito (DELAC) llevará a cabo un foro comunitario acerca del proceso de reducción del presupuesto en el distrito escolar. Se invita al público a que asistan a una presentación breve en PowerPoint, y a que tomen parte en el dialogo comunitario. La junta se llevará a cabo el lunes, 7 de noviembre a las 8 PM en Escuela El Verano (18606 Riverside Drive).

Antes de hablar de la reducción del presupuesto, el grupo DELAC tendrá una presentación del Club de Niños y Niñas del Valle de Sonoma y del Centro Alternativo al Abuso de Drogas (DAAC) del Condado de Sonoma. Esta parte de la junta empieza a las 6 PM.

La junta será en español con traducción al inglés.

Hay cuidado de niños disponible. Si usted tiene alguna pregunta, por favor contacte a Maite Iturri (Directora de El Verano) al 935-6050.

We want to be sure we share this information with as many folks as possible – please spread the word!

The Sonoma Valley Unified School District will host two community forums on the school district budget reduction process.  We invite you to attend to hear a PowerPoint presentation, and take part in a community discussion. 

The meetings are scheduled as follows:

Monday, Oct 17^th             5:30pm                 Sonoma Valley High School Library

Tuesday, Oct 18^th             6:30pm                 Altimira Library

Both meetings will have childcare and Spanish translation.

If you have any questions or would like additional information, please contact Lissa Juricich at the District Office at 935-4246.

Thank you!

But here, we have moved far beyond the simple metrics of an annual test to track our progress.  We have implemented better collaboration among teachers and schools across the District using the Professional Learning Community model.  This allows teachers time to talk about what is working and what isn’t, and to continue to learn from each other.  It also allows and facilitates production conversations between grade levels and schools.  For example, middle school math teachers are hearing from high school math teachers about what they are seeing in ninth graders that is helping them be successful.  Social studies, science and language arts teachers are integrating curriculum so that students can enhance their education and practice skills in a variety of contexts. 

We have adopted a Cycle of Inquiry approach that facilitates data driven decision making.  A Cycle of Inquiry involves the identification of a problem, brainstorming possible solutions, choosing and implementing one, and then measuring results.  The process then begins again, building on successes and fine tuning to address shortcomings.

Finally, we have been compelled to think about what really matters in the success of our students.  My own vision focuses on five strategic benchmarks:  1) high quality preschool opportunities for all four year olds; 2) all students reading at grade level by the end of third grade; 3) all students English proficient by the end of fifth grade; 4) all students ready for college preparatory classes by ninth grade (including Algebra); and 5) all students college and career ready upon graduation from high school!

Too much to hope for?  I don’t think so.  We have the teachers, administrators and staff to do this and much more.  We have awesome students and families, great community partners including non-profits serving youth, and generous donors of time and treasure to the cause of public education in the Valley.  Stay tuned….

While clearly the focus on closing the “achievement gap” has been very beneficial and was long overdue, NCLB also imposed punitive sanctions on schools and districts that did not have all student subgroups scoring at the proficient level or above after five years.  Possible sanctions included such things as firing all of the teachers and the administrators, closing schools, or converting to them to charters.  Yet there was and is no evidence that these changes would, in all or even most cases, be in the best interests of the students.  Instead, there would be huge disruptions even in schools that had made substantial improvements, if they had not managed to reach the target of proficient or above.

As the five year mark came closer, more and more schools found themselves targeted as “program improvement” schools or districts.  The number of schools and districts nationwide with this designation became staggering.  It was clear that to impose these sanctions after five years would be impossible, even if there had been evidence that it was the right thing to do for the students.  Would the supposedly “failing” teachers and administrators at one school simply trade places with the “failing” teachers and administrators at another school?  How would districts build on the progress made at a school when the student body scattered to other schools? 

The Obama Administration recently took steps to suspend NCLB due to Congress’ failure to act on any of the proposed amendments and improvements to NCLB.  Currently, states such as California are considering whether to submit alternate plans for addressing the achievement gap, which, if approved, would allow districts in that state to opt out of NCLB, providing that they comply with their state’s plan.  Thus there is now broad recognition that NCLB was a statute based on a single great idea, encompassed in its name – No Child Left Behind.  However, to truly address the needs of all students, a different regulatory process is required.

Next week:  No Child Left Behind – Sonoma Style.  Stay tuned.

Problem One:  No Child Left Behind legislation selected one way to hold schools and schools districts accountable – scores on standardized tests.  While these test scores do provide important information about student achievement, they do not tell the whole story.  These tests are given to students in grades 2-11 in early May each year and we receive the results in mid-August, so with such a long turn-around time, the results hold less meaning for the classroom teacher and student.

It makes much more sense to “measure what matters,” which is much more than test scores, and includes attendance, student wellness, parent satisfaction, teacher professional development, participation in after-school or extracurricular programs,  and a myriad of other things.

Problem Two:  The federal system of accountability under NCLB, unlike the California system, set the bar for ALL students to be proficient or advanced on standardized test (in English and Math) by the year 2014 which has truly set up a system of frustration for educators – “ALL” students would include special needs students and students who are learning English as a second language.  We certainly should be sure these students become proficient in English and Math, but it may take more time than is allotted under NCLB legislation. The accountability system in California, which employs a growth model is a much more effective. Schools, districts and subgroups of students are given targets each year based on the previous year’s performance.  This is sound educational practice, and based on research that supports and rewards continuous improvement based on realistic objectives.

In fact, California Secretary of Education Tom Torlakson recently announced that a record 49% of California schools met or exceeded the state’s growth target, up from 46% last year.  He found particularly impressive, given the severe budget cuts that have had such an adverse impact on school finances in these last few years.  In fact, in the state’s system, the numbers of schools meeting their growth targets have increased in each of the last nine years.  This is the kind of steady, measurable progress that all educators can work to achieve while still providing the kind of classroom instruction geared toward teaching the skills that our students need.

Problem Three:  NCLB imposes sanctions on schools that are making steady progress but that do not have all students meeting the proficiency standards.  There is no research to show that these sanctions are in the best interests of the students that they are supposed to protect.   It is a one size fits all punitive approach that applies to schools that have made remarkable progress as well as to schools that are making no progress at all.    

In Sonoma Valley Unified, we have a commitment to making decisions based on data that shows what is in the best interests of our students.  It is important that we continue to look at the progress of all subgroups of students; making sure we are meeting their needs.  We are making excellent progress and we have developed systems that ensure that we build on our successes while we also look hard at what we can be doing better or differently.  These decisions are made based on student data that is much more comprehensive than the results of a standardized test.  Clearly, this is the way toward improvement.

Next week:  The Ugly…  Stay tuned!

The achievement gap was and is real and measurable, not just in standardized test scores, but in variety of other ways, such as behavior, graduation rates, grades, attendance, and participation in extra-curricular activities.  In fact, California adopted its own accountability system in 1999 to address the achievement gap in this state.  While far from perfect, itprovided a workable set of goals for improvement each year, for districts, for schools and for targeted subgroups.

This attention on underserved student groups was long overdue.  It had been too easy for many school districts to focus on the high achievers in its district as evidence that things were working well.  It had been too easy for many school districts to attribute the low performance of these groups as being caused by external forces that schools could not possibly address, such as multi-generational poverty.

But NCLB caused many of us to ask ourselves the harder questions.  Have we really tried to modify our instructional systems to reach the needs of these students?  Are we really doing everything we can to
counteract the effects of these external forces? Are we, as an educational system, taking responsibility and not placing blame on the students and/or their families?

Next week:  THE BAD.  Stay tuned.

During the first 10 minutes of the match, Sonoma lost one of its key defensive players, Raegen Hedley to a sprained ankle. The team was now down to 10 players (teams play with 11 on the field).  The Lady Dragon battled to a 0-0 half-time score, playing excellent defense, led by Alejandra Alvarez, Shelley Marmaduke, and Angelica Pena and goalkeeper Christin Silkey. The outstanding defense continued into the second half. Twenty minutes into the second half Sonoma lost their strong midfielder to dehydration; still, they found a way to keep the game a scoreless tie.

About 30 minutes into the second half and close to the end of the match, Rian Verdu found space on the left flank about 30 yards out, cut the ball to her right foot, and unloaded on the Cardinal Newman keeper, who made the save, knocked the ball to ground, only to have Lady Dragon Selena Gutierrez charge in from nowhere to clean up the play, and give the Dragons a 1-0 lead (while playing 2 players down!). The Sonoma defense stayed strong, and while Newman tried and tried and tried, but they just could not get through the Dragon defense. The final whistle blew, and the Lady Dragon along with their home fans went absolutely crazy. 

Coach Mike Verdu said it was the most amazing victory he had ever been a part of not only in his 5 years at the high school, but also including his 10 years coaching competitive soccer here in the valley. According to Coach Verdu everybody on the squad played a huge role. Defenders: Alvarez, Marmaduke, Hedley, and Pena. Midfielders Perez-Usher, Burquez, Burningham and Quackenbush. And Strikers Verdu and Gutierrez.  

Congratulations and it’s a great day to be a DRAGON!

We offered this program at four sites: Dunbar, El Verano, Flowery and Sassarini.  The students spent two weeks in the spring and another week in August attending school.  We involved the parents in the program by asking for input on the student’s progress and helping them learn how to better help their child at home to be kindergarten ready.  We also exposed the children to some concepts normally introduced in preschool, such as classroom norms (come in and line up, boys and girls!), learning to write their names, participating in classroom activities such as singing or reading activities.

Thanks to our dedicated SVUSD teachers for making the program such a success this year.  We will see how these students do at the beginning of the school year, and evaluate the success of the program in helping these students and families. 

Please join me in welcoming our youngest learners and their families to the 2011-12 school year!

Laura Zimmerman, Executive Director of SVEF, led an impressive team of volunteers in planning and hosting The Red and White Ball.  There were a number of SVUSD staff members, including Board Trustees who volunteered to make the evening such a success.  Once again, our community stepped up and “raised a paddle” for the Fund-a-Need portion of the evening and from my estimates at least $20,000 was raised for our public
schools.

I’m already looking forward to next year’s event – thank you Sonoma Valley for once again showing why this is the best community in the world!!