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You are Here: Fairfax County Public Schools > Departments, Clusters > Superintendent's Office > Superintendent's Community Advisory Council > SCAC Minutes September 27, 2005
Superintendent's Community Advisory Council
SCAC Minutes
September 27, 2005
In the absence of the chair and vice chair, Brenda Greene chaired the meeting. Greene called on Superintendent Dale for updates.
Dale mentioned that the Cappies fund-raiser for relief of victims of the recent hurricanes had been very successful. Almost 200 students from the hurricane-hit areas have been registered in FCPS schools. We have publicized the availability of jobs in FCPS to those displaced to Northern Virginia by the hurricanes and have hired six teachers from that population. We have made excess textbooks available to schools in the affected areas and may possibly send them excess trailers and buses.
The opening of school went smoothly. There was little if any growth in enrollment this year. AP and IB participation and SAT scores were the highest ever for FCPS. Dale commended students for their willingness to take more demanding courses and for their achievements. High school students are not sloughing off as they approach graduation. This year, there are 33 new principals and approximately 1,600 new teachers. Given the turnover of principals, mostly through retirement, leadership preparation programs for FCPS employees are increasingly important and a focus of our human resources department.
Dale said that the discussion in the previous year's last meeting of SCAC was valuable and led to some changes for this year. It is important that members talk with their constituencies between meetings and that discussions at SCAC meetings comprise more from Council members and less from FCPS staff members. The goal is that members take on issues that they think are important and get feedback on these issues between meetings.
Greene called for the election of chair and vice chair for the 2005-06 year. Lynn Terhar and Mary Tycz were reelected chair and vice chair (respectively) by acclamation.
Teressa Caldwell asked the group to divide into two for focus group discussions to be led by facilitators from her office. The discussions were organized around questions that had been sent to members in advance.
Results from the focus group discussions (checked items were mentioned multiple times):
Who are the constituents you represent – not just the organization you represent?
Students whose parents have not received high school diplomasSchools with high minority populations
GT parents and aspiring parents ü
Public school children and educators
School Board members
Lee district, social workers, librarians, support staff
People who make art and appreciate art
Senior citizensImmigrant students
Taxpayers and voters
PTA, parents, grandparents, children who want a career
Retired educators
Parents and students of older buildings
ESOL population
70 % of county residents without kids in school
Interests of the citizens of Fairfax County
Parents and students of the Providence District
Homeowners and renters and any Civic association
Human relations advisory council, three stakeholders: staff-teachers-students and parents and community
Parents and students of Hunter Mill
Citizens of Fairfax City and parents and students of Fairfax schools
At-risk youth
Taxpayers seeking an efficient educational system
Fairfax City Democratic Committee (includes teachers, parents and students who consider themselves Democrats)
Parents, students, Jewish constituents concerned about K-12 education Elementary School principals in Fairfax County
League of Women Voters
Teachers of FCPS,
Parents, students (Republicans and Democrats), and teachers of the Dranesville District.
What are effective ways for the Superintendent and the Advisory Council to communicate with each other?
Information out before meetings
Quarterly meetings
Interacting
List of everyone and contact information
Discussion topics known ahead of time and read materials
Action lists
Subject and topic driven discussions
Minutes
Blackboard or discussion board
Listen carefully and take action
Goal-oriented discussion
30-day notice of topics
Survey Monkey
Jointly agreed upon topics (Superintendent and Council)
Special topics and specialists,
Flexibility
Attend with constituent
Feedback
Timely topic
Regular meetings every couple of months and e-mail ü
Letters
Create subgroups to address specific concerns
Regular meetings with the whole Council and subcommittees that meet more
frequently with the superintendent
Superintendent meets with the constituents whom the respective Council members represents
More frequent information available on the web
Superintendent suggests topics to advisory council and vice versa
Advise Superintendent on topics of concern to him in FCPS, format will determine effectiveness of communication.
What are effective ways that Advisory Council members communicate with their constituents?
Local community newspapers
Summary to School Board members
Phone calls
Newsletter
Quarterly newsletters
E-mails
Face-to-face meetings
Conferences
Conversations üwith neighbors
Informal networking
PTA Monthly newsletters
Homeowners associations
Workplace chats
Report to board of directors
Monthly building rep. meetings
Public evening presentations for parents
PTA newsletters (translated)
Presentation to community and organizations
Executive board
Church organizations
Minority newspapers
What are topics that the Advisory Council should explore this year?
Reducing achievement gap
Translation and interpretation
Immigrant achievement gap
Federal requirement for wellness policy (linked to achievement)
Booster clubs (how much is too much?)
Increased art instruction
Teacher retention
Teacher salary-Montgomery County
Student motivation
Fuel adjustments
Repeal Kings Dominion law
Program effectiveness
School hours (later)
Business partnerships-school system
More school renovation dollars
Workforce diversity
Cluster director duties
Regular kids
Gang violence
School connectedness
Large-scale budget trade-offs
School auditoriums for community performances
Class size
Land and affordable housing for Fairfax County personnel
Minority SAT
Success rate of IB students in college
Behavior and grades
How to make adult education a more dynamic part of the education system Whatever topics the supervisor wants counsel and advice on ü.
Is the staffing formula adequate for meeting the NCLB targets?
Fair grading policy for students (especially students with ADD, depression, or other problems.)
Improving student-teacher ratios and keeping teachers in the county
Expanding minority success: adding an international experience to curriculum Discipline in schools and school atmosphere
Budget ü
Efficient facilities-including transportation
Boundary issue for West Springfield High School
Separation of church and schools
Impact of non-English speaking population
How should the Advisory Council meetings be formatted in order to accomplish a full discussion of critical issues? (Suggestions: What should the meetings look like? Guest presenters, activities that “prevent sitting and getting” for two hours, someone on the committee with something to share. Always open and close with Superintendent)
Current format
Facilitated discussion of predetermined topic ü
More frequent meetings ü
Subdivide into topic groups, then large discussion
Chairperson controls meeting, 20-minute guest presenters
Two focus/one current/one presenter (mixed format)
Breakdown in subgroups on alternate months
Facilitated focus group
Consensus on survey topics
Hot topics and updates
Superintendent update of prior meeting
Sit-get-talk, time limit speeches
Soliciting more advice
Mix focus groups
Formatted to clarify mission
Ensure active student input
More than one student
Opportunity for extended discussions
More discussion and debate (spontaneous).
Use specific set of topics prior to meeting,
Eliminate guest presenters ü
Chat form ü
Information on line
Have pros and cons of information available on topic
Eliminate committee announcements
Provide opportunity for round table wrap-up
Focus your guest presenters
After the discussions, Dale mentioned that the School Board was considering a model for school system governance called “Policy Governance.” A major part of this model is creating mechanisms for the School Board to get input on issues from the community. It is important that members of advisory councils and committees such as SCAC see themselves as representing and do represent the community, not just an interest group, and that they get broad input on issues. The School Board is looking at clarifying the roles and responsibilities of their own advisory committees, trying to sort through the role of each committee. The Board expects to decide by mid-October whether to move toward Policy Governance, in which they would delegate more responsibility to the Superintendent and also demand more accountability for meeting specific goals for student achievement. Policies would also include things the Superintendent is prohibited from doing.
The meeting was adjourned.