Anchorage
Anchorage School District will use ARRA funds in a number of ways, but will focus mainly on projects that increase student achievement, build teacher capacity, and increase the graduation rate. These projects are in keeping with the district’s main goal that all students earn a diploma and be college- and career-ready when they graduate. Under the district’s ARRA plan, about 130 jobs will be created within the next two years. The district has a plan in place to review the programs and jobs created by the stimulus funds to determine their success.
The district has a number of projects that it is eager to pursue with ARRA funds, specifically the Title I and IDEA formula allocations, and the flexible funding available under the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund.
The first of the projects that the district plans to fund focuses on college- and career-readiness. This comprehensive project will prepare students in Anchorage public schools for postsecondary education, training, and careers to help meet Alaska’s workforce needs. Through the use of college/career-ready assessments and curricula—in concert with professional guidance—students and families will have extensive information on student interests, aptitudes, and needs about education and career pathways. Career/Tech Ed planning will be incorporated into the educational specifications after approval by the school board at a later date.
The second project focuses on online learning. The district plans to increase the number of netbooks and online learning applications for students. This step will allow teachers to differentiate instruction for students in their classrooms while responding to individual student needs for independent and engaging learning opportunities. It will also provide opportunities for independent learning outside the classroom.
The Response to Intervention (RTI) Comprehensive Readiness Project is the third project receiving funding through ARRA. A comprehensive assessment system will provide teachers with specific data on individual student achievement and progress. The project also provides for curriculum renewals, additional student learning time, and parent outreach and education. The district is heavily engaged in its efforts to systematize RTI in the elementary-school division as the critical starting point for maximum effect. However, RTI is occurring at the site level in secondary schools as well, as required by IDEA. The district recognizes that the Tier I curriculum must be sound in order for RTI efforts to be successful. ARRA will help bring the curriculum up to date after having lagged behind cycle for several years. The funds will also allow for more professional development on RTI for teachers who are working with struggling students, using data, and applying differentiated instruction. With these funds, also, elementary reading coaches, elementary counselors, middle and high school intervention support specialists, and middle school outreach teachers will be able to benefit from more professional development opportunities; staff will have more time to collaborate on data analysis and planning; and elementary, middle, and high school summer schools will receive a cash infusion.
The third project will help to enhance leadership capacity. The district needs a comprehensive professional development program to assist the administrative leadership team in supporting and guiding staff in its efforts to meet Anchorage School Board goals and individual student needs. The district’s principal mentorship program assists those new to the role of administrator, in terms of induction and initial mentoring. However, the district still lacks a comprehensive plan for professional development aligned with the six-year instructional plan. Stimulus funding will help ensure that planning process does occur, resulting in a more cohesive and comprehensive leadership professional development plan. Additionally, funds in this project will provide support to the district’s inaugural University of Alaska at Anchorage (UAA) Leadership Cohort. A selected group of 18 students in UAA’s educational leadership program will receive additional support via stimulus funds on their road to becoming successful Anchorage School District administrators.
In the area of technology, the IT/ED tech restructure completion project is another effort that the district would like to pursue. State Fiscal Stabilization Funds (SFSFs) will be used to continue the reorganization effort that began three years ago to use appropriate staff members to support client machines, as well as to support teachers. Reorganization efforts will continue to move tech-support teachers back into the classroom and move IT support into the schools. The district has created a staffing plan for truly transitioning the tech teachers back into instructional roles and moving IT tech support workers (at a significantly lower salary than the teachers) into the schools. Stimulus money is only needed for these positions the first and second years of this effort to support the added positions during the transition years. Funding for the required long-term positions would be supported through the General Fund in the following years if the effort is deemed successful and the school board so directs the funding.
Another Anchorage School District technology-related project—network refurbishment—also stands to benefit from stimulus funds. The funds will help the district to provide effective educational tools based on new technologies, including hardware such as netbooks, interactive Whiteboards, projectors, and digital cameras; instructional reading and math applications; and network applications. ARRA funds will also help the district expand and acquire the technology tools used for keeping in touch with parents, notifying families in emergencies, and increasing home communication. These applications and supporting tools use the local area network, the wide area network, and the Internet. A network upgrade will provide added cost savings to the district by increasing wide area network capability and centralized servers, low-cost backup solutions, increased Internet bandwidth capability, along with unified communication, reduced support staff requirements, and substantially lowered hardware refresh costs.
The library patron system is also a priority area for the district. Stimulus funding will help the district upgrade a library system that supports Anchorage School District students in gaining 21st century skills and meeting grade-level expectations; meeting state and district library and information literacy standards; and supporting teachers in a meaningful way to deliver curriculum to students. The current system lacks many of the tools that the most casual Internet user has come to expect, which has been found to be detrimental to the engagement of students.
Additionally, stimulus funds will aid in building system renewal. Fire alarm, security system, intercom, lighting, and HVAC repairs will be made to several schools across the district. The district’s Office of Support Services has prioritized a list of building system upgrades that would be allowable projects under the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund.
In addition, IDEA funds available under ARRA will be used to redesign teacher professional development to ensure more sustained, job-embedded, collaborative, data-driven, and focused efforts to improve student achievement for those with disabilities. The grant will fund additional instructional days and teacher duty for more intensive professional development over the two-year period. Funds will also be used to enhance the skills of highly effective teachers and administrators, who will then be able to serve as instructional leaders and coaches. The funds will provide more professional development for both special education and general education teachers on evidence-based strategies, such as positive behavioral supports to improve outcomes. The ARRA special education funds will provide expanded after-school and summer school opportunities, including one-on-one and small-group instruction, and other similar instructional activities to address the academic needs of low-performing students.
The IDEA stimulus grant will also allow the district to implement an easy-to-use, online Individualized Education Program (IEP) system for students with disabilities. The online system will be aligned with state academic standards and can be used to provide greater access to the general education curriculum. Moreover, the district will be able contract for outside services to assist students through tutorial, training, and staff development activities.
Overall, the Anchorage school system hopes to use the stimulus funds to continue to advance its efforts to prevent students from dropping out of school and increase the graduation rate. ARRA is funding programs that establish career and education goals for students, with each middle school student working with an adult to develop individualized career and college plans based on his or her interests and skills. The district will also purchase software that monitors when students are in danger of failing, and alert staff members who can intervene. The Anchorage Daily News praised the district in a recent editorial for its use of stimulus funds.
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