Reagan High School

Reagan High School Campus Advisory Council April 15, 2009 ----- Present at this meeting (taken from the Sign-Up Sheets): Administrators / Faculty / Staff: Rodney Godsy, Van Savage, Van Kirk Johnson, Jheri Rivers, Joe Underwood, Rhonda Simmons, Faith Garganta, Anabel Garza, Pedro Sanchez, Edmund Oropez, Nikki Guckian Parents/Public: Dee Carney, Deborah Warren, Laura Rifkin, David Ray, Lainie Duro Students: ----- Meeting chaired by: Jacqueline Chatham ----- Old Business:

TAKS The main emphasis of the discussion was about the upcoming test and the ongoing preparations:  two weeks left to prepare for the test  many interventions in place (individual tutoring, group tutoring, etc.)  students in need of assistance have been identified If you are concerned about how TAKS might affect a student, it would be wise to telephone the Counselors' Secretary who can then direct your call to the appropriate counselor: Christina Rodriguez = 4147610.

If you have questions pertaining to TAKS on the Reagan Campus, contact Rebecca Brandon, the CAPS Instructor = 4147972

Attendance This campus is required to TAKS test 95% of the eligible students. For this reason, attendance at the test has been emphasized in the classrooms and during Advisory. A TAKS schedule is attached to the end of this document.

Along with this, the discussion turned to students who had a passing grade in class and have stopped attending school. There is a rule that requires students to attend a certain percentage of classes to receive a passing grade. This message has been lost on some students. They are in danger of losing credit. This would be disastrous to Seniors. Students may erase absences and tardies by following certain rules and taking advantage of opportunities. A form, Attendance Documentation, has been created for the students to document their "make-ups". A copy of this form is in the CAC Binder in the library office.

Mr. Fowler chairs the attendance committee. If you need information pertaining to this = [email protected]. -or- 4147606.

Campus Budget Ms. Garza distributed a copy of the campus budget for the 2009 -10 school year. As always, the money is based on projected student enrollment and is then adjusted once the school year begins. At this typing, the projected budget is based on, among other things:  969 students  84.89% on free/reduced lunch This means the campus will receive + $99000.00 from the district at the start of the next school year.

If you would like to see the projected budget, there is a copy in the CAC Binder in the library office.

Work Orders Ms. Garganta spoke briefly about the ongoing work on the campus. She has established a relationship with the district workers and subcontractors to expedite the way things are done.

If you want to find out about the work being done on campus, contact her: 4140896.

Counseling Department We have added a new counselor until the end of this school year: Margaret Williams. She is housed in the Counselors' Office in the campus administration building. If you wish to contact her, telephone the Counselor's Secretary: 4147610.

Campus Contingency Plan Dee Carney, who works for the district's office of Campus and District Accountability, told of a plan that must be created in case RHS does not meet standards (TAKS + Attendance). The reason for this plan is because RHS is in year three of "academically unacceptable" (au). To quote the coversheet of her packet:

In January, 2009, TEA directed AISD to develop contingency plans for possible closure in Spring 2009 or 2010 and submit them to TEA by June 15, 2009. A contingency plan addresses the operational details of "What happens when a school closes?"

II The following are among items considered in this document:  Where will the students attend school and how will the attendance boundaries be determined?  What happens to the school staff?  What happens to facilities, furniture, and equipment?  How will this closure affect other district schools?  How will the closed school's budget be distributed?  How will information for a successful transition be distributed?

Ms. Carney handed out a multi-page packet that showed how the Texas Education Code handles schools that are au.  It lists procedures for each of the five possible au years.  The packet also included a timeline that spans from March, 2009, through June, 2009. The timeline presents dates and deadlines that must be held and met.  Finally, it contained a page from AISD's contingency plan (P. 7 of 11). This page shows the 10-step plan and who is responsible for each step.

The Pearce-Reagan Community Leadership Team handout was also distributed. This flowchart offers various scenarios depending on the success of the two schools. A copy of this page and of the previous pages is in the CAC Binder in the library office.

There were many questions posed to Ms. Carney, Ms. Garza, and Mr. Oropez. No definite answers were forthcoming because the students have not yet taken TAKS. Among the questions:  Is there a chance that RHS will be closed immediately if TAKS scores are not met?  If the school is closed, will the faculty/staff be treated in the same manner as were the Johnston faculty/staff?  If the students perform to standards on the TAKS this year, will this give RHS one year's reprieve or many year's reprieve?  Why does the district promote 8th graders who do not yet have 9th grade skills?

If you wish to delve deeper into this topic:  Dee Carney; 4149866 -or- [email protected]  Ms. Garza; 4147975 -or- [email protected]  Mr. Oropez; 4140893 -or- [email protected]

There is an Austin American-Statesman article from 4/17/09 that speaks to this issue. It is cut-n-pasted to the end of this document. ----- New Business:

Home Purchase Plan for Educators Two guest speakers from the All Homes Team handed out packets and told of a way educators, civil servants, and low-income citizens can purchase a home. If

III one qualifies, the home may be bought at low interest rates and then qualify for tax credits, not tax refunds. It is available to first-time homebuyers and/or people who have not owned a home in the past three years. The newly-created incentive package benefits anyone desiring a home and fits the criteria. In addition, the City of Austin also has plans in effect to benefit these qualified people. These packages can be combined.

My notes from this presentation are full of confusing numbers and percentages. Rather than type all of them onto this document, I will provide phone numbers, website information, and Eaddresses for you:

 Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs = http://www.tdhca.state.tx.us/homeownership/fthb/  All Homes Team = http://www.allhomesteam.com/  Trish Harris = 512-5830193 -or- [email protected]  Mike Spivey = 512-5830193 -or- [email protected]

If you would rather read a hard copy, there is a small number of the All Homes packets in the library office. You may come for one: first come, first served. Any remaining packets will be discarded at school year's end.

CAC Elections New officers and members are needed for the upcoming school year. Plans must be made to hold nominations and then elections. More information will follow.

Campus Improvement Plan There was insufficient time to discuss this issue. ----- If you wish to place an item on the agenda for an upcoming CAC meeting, please contact the co-chairs well in advance of the meeting:  Ms. Chatham = [email protected]  Mr. Arroyo = [email protected]

At this writing, no agenda has been set for the next meeting. The next meeting is scheduled to meet in the campus Conference Center on 5/6/09 at 5:30 PM. Any interested party may attend. ----- Any errors should be pointed out to the CAC Secretary immediately. ----- Respectfully submitted,

Jordan Grams Secretary, Campus Advisory Council [email protected] 414-7625

IV TAKS schedule (as of 4-16-09)

Monday 4/27 10th & 11th - Social Studies 10th - LAT Math 10th - LAT Science** (we are still requesting to have this moved to Thursday) Exit Level Social Studies

Tuesday 4/28 10th - Math 10th - LAT ELA (Day 1) Exit Level ELA TAAS Writing

Wednesday 4/29 11th - Math 10th - LAT ELA (Day 2) Exit Level Math TAAS Math (10th - Math Make Up)**Pending

Thursday 4/30 9th - Math 10th & 11th - Science Exit Level Science TAAS Reading (10th - Math Make Up)**Pending

Friday 5/01 (10th - Math Make Up)**Pending

V Senate bill may stave off Pearce, Reagan closures

By Kate Alexander AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF Friday, April 17, 2009 Two Austin schools facing possible closure could get more turnaround time if the latest version of the school accountability bill makes it through the Texas Legislature. The new iteration of Senate Bill 3, unveiled in committee Thursday, gives low-performing schools one more year (for a total of five) to meet state accountability standards before reaching the ultimate sanction of closure or alternative management. The new sanction provisions would also go into effect immediately, rather than waiting until 2011 when the rest of the reforms are enacted. Pearce Middle School in East Austin and Reagan High School in Northeast Austin, both of which are teetering on the edge of closure, could get a reprieve with that change. Pearce has been rated unacceptable for the past four years, while Reagan is in its third year below the state standards. Anne Ware, the accountability director for the Austin school district, said she would welcome an extra year to turn the schools around and enact lasting improvements. It would provide for a more realistic timetable to hone curriculum, focus attention on individual students who need more academic help and provide more staff training, she said. The bill's author, Sen. Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, said the goal of the accountability overhaul is to provide the incentive for schools to succeed, not to punish them. Loosening up the sanction provisions, she said, is meant to ensure fairness for all schools in the accountability system and provide adequate time for new school leaders and their strategies to work. The revised bill also offers another alternative to closure, known as repurposing, which is keeping a school open but with a different educational mission. That option was technically not available last year when Austin's Johnston High School was closed after five years of earning an "academically unacceptable" rating. But after much back-and-forth between the state and local officials, Education Commissioner Robert Scott allowed Johnston to be closed, renamed Eastside Memorial High School and repurposed as two independent high schools. Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, who was heavily involved in the negotiations over Johnston's closure last year, has filed a bill to allow repurposing and welcomed his idea being rolled into the larger measure. Watson said Shapiro's move was "a real effort to bring practicality to how we address these issues." In Johnston's waning days, Watson said "it seemed like every day there would be some good idea that would achieve accountability and avoid a negative

VI unintended consequence, but we were faced with the cold language that was written into the statute." A similar bill in the state House also includes the same changes to the sanction provisions, said Rep. Rob Eissler, R-The Woodlands, chairman of the House Public Education Committee. Austin Democratic Rep. Dawnna Dukes, an alumna of Pearce and Reagan, said these proposed changes in the accountability bills are a "move in the right direction." [email protected]; 445-3618