Innovation schools: Worcester East Middle

The report of the superintendent on Worcester East Middle's innovation school is here.
Reminder that innovation schools have six areas of autonomy: curriculum, PD, schedule & calendar, staffing, budget, and district policies

Rodrigues: second round included WEMS, Worcester Tech, Lincoln Street
others had five year innovation cycles; WEMS had a three year cycle
major feature was adding 6th grade to middle school
thus grades 6-8 are aligned
common planning time for each team
PD in developmental design & instructional best practice

moving ahead with flexible grouping for students who have not yet mastered particularly standards
intervention for students who have not yet mastered math standards

Boone: SGP's are student growth percentiles: between 40 and 60 represent that annual rate of progress
"and I predict in the future that they will even begin to exceed those"

Biancheria:
there for the library opening and the kids were so excited
partners selective in how they give out their funding
how many for next year?
about 92 coming for next year
science labs: new additions each year, which is great
new cabinets for the science room to store equipment
students then move to North High School with science for a career

Monfredo:
good things happening at the academy
squared away with science materials that we were lacking?
Yes, are going to get a few more things for the science lab
lab sinks as well
Monfredo: attendance: any chronic absenteeism?
No, keep in contact with parents, come to the school for meetings and for events

O'Connell:
schools are most effective when they are developed bottom up
"heavy layer of common sense" in planning
behaviors that underwrite so much
would it be appropriate to add numbers to science MCAS goals?
to reach progressively higher goals
new goals once new scores come out in the fall
Motion: inform SC of what goals are once established

Foley:
telling that we have developed so many innovation schools
"best part..is the autonomy that it gives"
bring a team that's going to bring success

Novick:
is this the plan that will be submitted?
no, mostly plan that was previously submitted, a few tweaks, but will include the new goals based on MCAS in fall
needs approval now due to innovation expiring in June
request that we have available full plan for such approvals
how are flexible scheduling times working?
advisory time: working well
attractive to parents

three year approval unanimously passes