A s s o c i a t e d A d m i n i s t r a t o r s o f L o s A n g e l e s UPDATE Week of March 10, 2008 REAL INNOVATION IS TAKING PLACE AT RAMONA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Ramona Elementary School was highlighted in a front-page story in the Sunday, March 9, 2008, edition of the Los Angeles Times. Ramona instituted the innovative Singapore Mathematics Program to address the needs of its K-5 student population. Math scores had been lagging, as in other schools, so Robin Ramos, Math Coach, with the support of the faculty and the leadership of Susan Arcaris, Principal, searched for a program that had a proven record of high achievement. They discovered in their research that students in Singapore schools were among the highest achieving math students in the world. With this analysis, they instituted the same mathematics program at Ramona three years ago. Since then, the math scores have skyrocketed to the point where the school, a Title I high-achieving school, has produced test results significantly above the District and State averages. Seven out of every ten students are either proficient in, or advanced in mathematics. AALA congratulates Principal Arcaris, Math Coach Ramos, as well as the teachers, staff, parents, and students at Ramona for the innovative way that they addressed a very real educational problem. We find it interesting that it did not take a new division to accomplish this success. In fact, there is innovation going on daily in the Los Angeles Unified School District where school administrators and teachers are solving problems related to teaching and learning. Our schools are problem-solving institutions unlike the “Top-Down” Innovation Division. AALA hopes that Superintendent David L. Brewer and the members of the Board of Education would heed this lesson and fully support grass roots innovation occurring at school sites. It is more than just irony that an Innovation Division was established with a very limited scope. The implication is that a school can only be innovative if anointed by the “Division.” This is a fallacy that must be debunked. Ramona Elementary School stands as a shining testament to the fact that teachers led by a respected principal can and will solve learning problems for their students if they feel empowered to do so. Superintendent Brewer should not be cloning the mathematics program, but rather he should be extolling the courage of the Ramona community to swim against the tide and try something new that they thoroughly researched. This is the real empowerment and lesson from this success. And, of course, if a school is looking for a new mathematics program, the Singapore Math Program may be a fit. Don't invent a new wheel, just find what works, and do it! Our schools are the real initiators of innovation. AALA wonders if all the Mayor’s partnership administrators will be taking the next plane to Singapore. Or, maybe they will just visit Ramona Elementary in nearby Hollywood. A s s o c i a t e d A d m i n i s t r a t o r s o f L o s A n g e l e s WHO DO YOU TRUST? Trust is a basic attribute in any personal relationship. When trust is not present, cynicism and suspicion become pervasive. The same is true in a management structure; if trust is not present, self-protection will replace motivation and productivity. AALA believes that trust is lacking in the Los Angeles Unified School District. When principals are reticent to approach their immediate supervisors and local district superintendents with problems and concerns, that is a trust issue. When school administrators have unclear lines of communication, that is a trust issue. When principals and assistant principals are called to redundant “meetings,” that is a trust issue. When local district offices listen to complaints from parents and staff and serve as their advocate before knowing the facts from the perspective of the administrator, that is a trust issue. A good management structure values its managerial team and has confidence in the team's ability to make decisions consistent with institutional policy. To use a metaphor, principals should be like the captains of naval vessels. They have guidelines, but they are authorized to use their judgment when making command decisions. A truly well-run institution that values trust should have no more than three layers of line-staff authority. In LAUSD the line-staff authority should be Superintendent to Local District Superintendent to Principal. Any other extraneous staff positions should report through this chain of command. All other divisions, branches, departments, etc., merely serve as support staff. Trust is a two-way street, and it must be earned. AALA hopes that an institution the size of LAUSD can develop trusting relationships so that the hard work of teaching and learning can be respected. The Superintendent and the Board of Education need to answer for themselves the fundamental question, who do you trust. AALA members will also be asking that question. "Education is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today." Malcolm X 2 A s s o c i a t e d A d m i n i s t r a t o r s o f L o s A n g e l e s LOCAL MAGNET SCHOOL RECEIVES MERIT AWARD Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies (Robert Weinberg, Principal) has been named a National Magnet School of Distinction by the national organization Magnet Schools of America. School representatives will be honored at the 26th Magnet Schools of America Conference hosted by the Hamilton County School District in Chattanooga, Tennessee. School representatives will receive a plaque during the awards ceremony. They are the only winner from California this year and the first winner from the Los Angeles Unified School District (Local District 1). The award is based on a commitment to high academic standards, curriculum innovation, successful desegregation/diversity efforts, and the consistent delivery of quality services to all school stakeholders. Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies believes in a rigorous standards-based instruction curriculum that all students can learn, high expectations for all students, and all students should be prepared for whatever the 21st Century brings in the way of occupations, career paths, postsecondary education or life. Their students are exposed to a rigorous curriculum that ranges from 4th grade to 12th grade, with students from all areas of the school district. With 44% of the students eligible for the Federal Lunch Program and a diverse population of ethnicities, socio-economic backgrounds, cultures, and neighborhoods, SOCES has won the California Distinguished School Award in 2005, California Title I Academic Achievement Awards in 2006 and 2007, Silver Medal for the US News and World Report (Top 3% of high schools in the country), and the Newsweek.com top 500 Schools in America Award. Their API score of 845 is the highest of all Middle and High schools in the LA Unified School District. With an emphasis on Closing the Achievement Gap, their scores for all populations are some of the highest in the state. Caroline Massengill, President of the Magnet Schools of America, will present the Magnet School of Distinction Award during the national conference, which runs from April 28-May 1, 2008, at the Chattanooga Trade and Convention Center. The awards presentation is scheduled for Wednesday, April 30. Attendees will include more than 1000 school administrators and teachers from magnet schools and districts across the nation. Magnet schools were initially developed during the 1970s as a strategy to eliminate the inequity of segregation in public schools across America. Specially designed curriculum with unique educational themes was placed in minority-dominated schools to attract majority students to improve the racial balance of the schools and to increase the quality of education. NOTE: UPDATE will not be published the week of March 17, 2008, due to the SPRING BREAK. (Check the new AALA website at www.aalausd.com for Positions Available) 3 A s s o c i a t e d A d m i n i s t r a t o r s o f L o s A n g e l e s POSITIONS AVAILABLE Minimum Qualifications: Candidates are responsible for making sure all the District requirements for administrative positions have been met. AALA is not responsible for errors in publication. NOTE: Please do not contact AALA for information regarding administrative positions. Use the listed contact phone number, or contact LAUSD Human Resources Division at 213.241.6886 or via e-mail at http://certificated.lausd.k12.ca.us/admin_vacancies. ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL, ELEMENTARY Sylmar School (2) MST 38, 13291 Phillipi Avenue, Sylmar, CA 91342 Sylmar is a YR 90/30 school. For information and application procedures contact Maxine Matlen, Director, School Services, at 818.755.5312. Filing deadline is Friday, March 21, 2008. ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL, SECONDARY Central High School #11 (4) MST 40, 1200 West Colton, Los Angeles, CA 90026 Central #11 will open as a B Basis school. For information and application procedures contact Rosa Maria Hernandez, Director, High School Support Services, at 323.932.2221. Filing deadline is Wednesday, March 19, 2008. ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL, SECONDARY COUNSELING SERVICES (SCS) Harbor Teacher Prep Academy (8) MST 37, 1111 Figueroa Place, Wilmington, CA 90744 Harbor is a B Basis school. For information and application procedures contact Susan Price, Director, School Support Services, at 310.354.3400. Filing deadline EXTENDED TO Monday, March 24, 2008.