Lunchtime and six month plans

Some of us are hoping that they’ll break for lunch here…ooh, not breaking for lunch “having a working lunch”
Expectations six months out? is what they are to be thinking about over lunch.
Concerns and issues:
· Budget vs. service
· Technology & marketing
· Competition: impact on funding…diversity opportunities
· Core strategies for underperforming schools
· Expectations high enough across city: top-down vs. bottom-up: Boone speaks of a collaboration, but says “research is clear” that urban districts do best with a top-down until things improve, then control can be loosened.
· Monfredo speaks of getting kids on grade level (reading on grade level by grade 3), and he wants to look at curriculum; Mullaney wants to not only see kids as people who need to pass the tests; kids who are going to have no problem need challenges too; (dang, is she really not all that pro-MCAS?)….ah, “Worcester has been able to retain a middle-class, college-educated population...”other districts are freed up to focus on other things.
· Family involvement: embrace family involvement: “parents as key players”
· School safety: something about bullying programs
· Alternative assessment
· Next generation of leaders in Worcester Public Schools
· Hargrove: “What is success?”
· Foley wants leadership training for principals
· 25% of budget and population is special ed: how do we get them succeed? (Foley)
· Healthy Communities (Worcester is doing this as a city) (Foley)
· Professional development for teachers (Monfredo)
· Transparency in Title I budget (Monfredo)
· Mayor: maintaining services in underperforming schools during budget crunch: “making parents part of the solution...looking at reforms” Foley suggests having budget hearings of a sort early
· Extended Learning Schools: have they improved? What difference has it made, if any? (this from Hargrove)
· Math: what recommendations, what makes sense? (Monfredo)
· Listen to teachers’ concerns: CEO visibility (O’Connell)
· Collaborate with social agencies
· ELL students (look at how far down this is!)