School Superintendent Report, Early September 2024

Message From Copper River School District 

By Superintendent Theresa Laville

Wednesday, September 4th, 2024 

Mission: To provide an excellent education

Vision: To prepare and empower all students for current and future success
Academic Excellence

The Leadership Team, Sandy, and I participated in a number of training sessions held by Carleen Mitchell, director of the Alaska Public Entity Insurance (APEI). Some of the topics were

Managing to Stay Out of Court…, Documenting Employment Actions and Disciplinary Issues,

Conflict Resolution for Supervisors, and Conducting Internal Investigations.

The team also participated in a four-hour training on Marzano, the district’s evaluation tool, to become more familiar with the teacher evaluation elements. I selected 13 elements as a focus for teacher evaluation, but the administrators will look out for additional elements throughout theirwalk through and observation. The training was led by Mark Gardner. The Marzano training provides the Leadership Team with instructional strategies in which they can better support and coach their teachers. Sample of the 13 elements will be provided during the board meeting.

Instructional Excellence

The district now has a standard document that can be used to monitor students who are taking credit recovery courses. The document is designed specifically for students who are on the verg of dropping out of school or who have dropped out of school. Sample of the credit recovery plan will be provided during the board meeting.

To increase the rigor of students receiving an education set with high expectation, grades sixth through twelfth grade teachers are now expected to complete a unit lesson plan that focuses on specific learning goals, transfer of learning, performance-based assessments, and modification for high achievers and struggling students. Sample of the unit lesson plan will be provided during the board meeting.

This year, high school teachers were tasked in completing a syllabus for every class that they teach. Again, the purpose of this is to ensure that we are increasing the rigor in the classrooms, so our students can receive an equitable learning experience. The intention is to post all syllabi on the Copper River School District’s Website. Sample of a completed syllabus will be provided during the board meeting.

We are moving forward with a structured tutoring program this year. Ashley Hicks will be the overseer of the program. A draft copy of the tutoring program will be provided during the board meeting.

Brenda Riffel and I have met to discuss a potential gifted and talented program. We are in the beginning stages, and Brenda is conducting some research and looking at other districts.

Additionally, we discussed the process that will be needed to first identify students who would be eligible to take the Gifted and Talented Program Assessment. However, in order for a district to have a gifted and talented program, a teacher would have had to take six courses to be a potential teacher to direct the program.

The State has now made it easier for more students to qualify for Alaska Placement Scholarship (APS). Students who have met the GPA requirement will no longer be required to take the ACT or SAT, and students who do not meet the GPA requirement will be required to take the ACT or SAT. Additionally, there has been an increase in the amount students will receive for the scholarship. Students who graduated in May 2024 are now grandfathered into the new updated scholarship.

Unity

The Ahtna Immersion Program plan continues to unfold. I met with Angela Vermillion and Kirk Howard in August, and we have agreed that it would be best to pilot the program next school year rather than implementing the program for the entire K-2. Reasons: 1) only one teacher that will have completed the program by 2025. 2) Of the three teachers, only two teachers are interested in teaching; therefore, there will be a potential of teaching two days a week instead of five days a week. Nevertheless, we have agreed to meet once a month to discuss and revise the plan.

Assistant Superintendent: Jason Roslansky

First Student is experiencing a shortfall in staffing for three Copper River School District bus routes. Those routes are 1, 2, and 7. This shortage has necessitated alternative arrangements for transporting students. In response, our school and families have been working together to ensure that students from these affected routes are able to get to school. These arrangements include using school-arranged transportation, parents transporting their children to alternative bus stops, or parents bringing their children directly to school, for which they are being reimbursed by the district.

First Student is actively working to resolve this issue and has several local candidates invarious stages of the hiring process. However, the timeline from when a candidate is signed on to when they are fully qualified and able to drive a bus is a minimum of three weeks to two months. This extended processing time includes background checks, training, and obtaining the necessary certifications. The impact this situation is having on our students,and families is worrisome, and we are closely monitoring the situation to support a timely resolution with First Student.

Indian Education: Georgia Jackson

In May I met with the Glennallen principal and assistant principal, the Enrollment Officer, and the Superintendent about high school students who need to work on credit recovery. We have developed a plan to assist them. We also gathered the names of students who recently dropped out of school and discussed how to re-enroll students and assist them in academic efforts. Sample will be provided during the board meeting.

District Interventionist: Laura Scott

Jodi and I provided a reading comprehension with Mrs.Carty to middle school, high schoolteachers, and support staff during the district’s in-service. We presented information on the skills that students need in order to comprehend what they are reading. Building background knowledge, increasing academic vocabulary, and identifying different types of text structures and text features were the skills that we discussed. We modeled the explicit instruction procedure, including the gradual release teaching strategy, “I do, We do, You do.”

Mrs. Carty facilitated the mCLASS Calibration Course for GES staff, and Laura did the same with KL and UL staff. This is a State requirement to be able to administer the mCLASS screener. Staff from KL and GES met in the Summer to identify and map out essential skills that are necessary for Core Tier 1 reading instruction in grades K-5. These skills include phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and reading comprehension. The program map provides specific activities aligned with the Science of Reading model. Sample will be provided during students to put in class requests. Students were then met individually to make sure class requests were aligned with CRSD’s graduation requirements.While it is a major goal to allow students to register for classes that they are excited about, earning the required number of credits in the correct content areas takes precedence. 

So far during the 2024-2025 school year, there have been fewer Schedule Change Requests submitted by students compared to the last several years. Since CRSD converted to a five period day during Basecamps, almost all students are taking an elective course, or picking up an additional core course, during basecamps. There are four courses being offered during Treks that give students the chance to earn credits in areas other than electives or CTE/Fine-Arts.

The Carl Perkins Grant application is completed and approved. While there are many goals for the CTE program at CRSD, the main goals outlined were increasing the number of CTE  contractors, providing students with access to professional level materials, supplies, equipment, and ensuring member of the CTE department are prepared to provide students with a high level of instruction by securing professional development opportunities for instructors and coordinators. Since the CLNA and Four-Year Plan was submitted prior to September 15th, the district will receive an additional $5,000.00 in reallocation funds.