The School Board of Sarasota County, Florida s1

THE SCHOOL BOARD OF SARASOTA COUNTY, FLORIDA 1960 Landings Boulevard Sarasota, FL 34231 Phone: 941-927-9000 FAX: 941-927-2539

January, 2010

Dear Parent,

Your child attends Glenallen Elementary School that receives federal Title I funds to assist students in meeting state achievement standards. This money provides extra help for your child to meet requirements in reading, writing, and mathematics. Under the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, schools must meet challenging state targets for all of their students in reading, writing, and mathematics. Last year, Glenallen Elementary School did not make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for meeting all of the NCLB state requirements. This school has been identified as a “School in Need of Improvement”.

What happened last year?

Glenallen Elementary School earned a school grade of “A.” Overall, Glenallen Elementary met 97% of the AYP criteria, but it did not make AYP for the 2008-2009 school year. To make AYP, all groups of students must do well in reading, writing and mathematics. Even though all students met the mathematics proficiency goals, one subgroup, students with disabilities, did not do as well in reading as the other students. The attached chart shows the 2009 AYP status of Glenallen Elementary in comparison to every elementary school in the district. If you want more information about Glenallen Elementary or any other school, please contact the Office of Research, Assessment and Evaluation at 927-9000 extension 32255 or visit the Florida Department of Education’s website: http://schoolgrades.fldoe.org.

What are we doing about it?

Glenallen’s 2008-09 AYP report indicates a need to improve in the area of reading. To improve student performance in reading, Glenallen Elementary will:

 provide a ninety minute daily reading period for students in grades K-5.  provide small group differentiated instruction in the area of reading  offer parent training in the area of reading  offer computer assisted reading programs: SuccessMaker Enterprise and FCAT Explorer.

All these efforts are designed to help Glenallen Elementary School students receive high-quality reading instruction. Page 2

What can you do?

We are confident that with a focus on reading requirements, all groups of students at Glenallen Elementary School will show improvement in reading. In addition, we know you are also very important to your child’s education. We invite you to become more involved at Glenallen Elementary School. You can help by reading with your child, asking your child questions about the books they are reading, serving as a PALS reading volunteer, helping your child with homework, attending parent training opportunities, attending parent conferences and maintaining regular communication with your child’s teacher.

Under the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law, when a school has been identified as a School in Need of Improvement, parents have options.

 If your child is eligible for free or reduced-priced lunch, you may choose to receive free tutoring or “Supplemental Educational Services”.  If Glenallen does not meet AYP targets in 2010, you will be eligible to transfer your child to Cranberry or Toledo Blade Elementary School. To assist with your planning, you will be able to make that selection in February, 2010 in the event that the school does not meet AYP.  Please complete an application for “Elementary Choice with Transportation” and return it to the School Choice office at the School Board prior to February 19, 2010. This application is attached to this letter.  Transportation to the new school would be provided by the district. If demand for transportation exceeds available funds, transportation will be prioritized to the lowest achieving low-income students.  If Glenallen does meet AYP targets in 2010, your choice selection will be honored, however transportation will NOT be provided.

For more information about your child’s school or other schools in the district, please contact Deb Metheny at (941) 927-9000 ext 32255 or visit the Florida Department of Education’s website at http://schoolgrades.fldoe.org.

Sincerely,

Deborrah Metheny Supervisor, School Choice