State report urges changes; Vejr reassigned

Transcription

1 State report urges changes; Vejr reassigned Delsie Phillips, Franklin Favorite- Former Franklin-Simpson High School principal Pat Vejr talks with the sophomores Tuesday morning in the gym. Vejr told the students that he had been

2 reassigned on recommendations from a state report based on the findings of a state Department of Education leadership assessment team. FRANKLIN FAVORITE Published: Thursday, January 19, :48 PM CST The Kentucky Department of Education issued its report Friday from a state leadership assessment of the F-S High School and Simpson County School District that recommended a change at the top of the school that serves students in grades The report compiled by a five-member assessment team that visited the community in December said Principal Pat Vejr had not created or communicated a sense of urgency for improving student achievement. The principal does not have the ability to lead intervention and should not remain as principal of the school, the report said. On the other hand, the report said the school district leadership and sitebased decision making council did have the capacity to lead improvements at the school. The leadership assessment was part of the sanctions levied by the state Department of Education after F-S High School was named one of the state s 19 persistently low-achieving schools based on Kentucky Core Content Tests results from reading and math tests taken last May and the school s inability to consistently meet the federal No Child Left Behind goals. Recommendations from the state Department of Education are essentially mandates, and Superintendent Jim Flynn reassigned Vejr effective Wednesday. Classes were off Monday for the holiday, and Vejr made the announcement to staff and students Tuesday. Flynn said former Greenwood High School Principal Mark Davis began duties as the interim principal Wednesday. The superintendent described Davis as a no nonsense leader who expects good behavior. See Report/Page A3 report Davis was assistant principal for five years and principal for nine more at Greenwood, which is part of the Warren County School District. The retired educator also taught in the Hart and Union county school districts.

3 Flynn praised Vejr for bringing stability to the high school, which has been plagued by turnover. Vejr, who was in his fifth year, was the seventh principal in the previous nine years at the school. I am deeply appreciative of Mr. Vejr stepping up to lead FSHS in a time of critical need, bringing much-needed stability and direction to our school, the superintendent said. The district leadership assessment team conducted interviews and made observations in the school and community from Dec Two of those who were interviewed by the assessment group but did not want to be identified said they stressed that instability at the principal s position has played a key role in the struggles at the school. This is not all of Pat Vejr s fault, said Flynn, who said Vejr will develop personalized learning programs for Learning Opportunities Center and other middle school and high school students in his new duties. We can certainly use his talents elsewhere in the district. Flynn said Vejr will support LOPC, as well as work on designing and planning a personalized, anytime/anyplace learning program to serve secondary students using state of the art online learning technologies along with project-based instruction, service learning and career exploration experiences. Flynn noted the high school has made advancements under Vejr. He has led a number of successes highlighted by an all-time low drop-out rates, increased attendance rates, record AP course enrollments along with qualifying scores on AP exams and fostering a partnership with Bowling Green Technical College to offer dual-credit college courses at a discounted tuition rate on the campus of the Franklin Center of BGTC to name a few, Flynn said. Under a new state law, the superintendent joins the site-based decision making council in the search for a new principal. Flynn said he will meet with the council soon and develop a time line for the hiring of a new high school leader. At this point, it looks like we will post the job in late winter, interview and hire in the spring, and a new principal will start in the summer, Flynn said.

4 The council is comprised of high schools staff members Sheena Hall, Amanda Houchens and Ed Rahm and parents Doug Holder and Laurie Hill. Interim Principal Davis will also serve on the council but will not participate in the hiring process, Flynn said. The Kentucky Department of Education reports stress that the school district and high school develop a sense of urgency and adopt a no excuses policy for positive change. It said the roles and responsibilities of all of the stakeholders should be clearly defined, and improvement plans should be analyzed and evaluated at regular intervals to measure the impact on classroom practices and student achievement. Included in the 80-page report on F-S High School were five deficiencies: Principal and school council has not established the organizational structure to sustain continued school improvement; Principal and school council has not created a culture of high academic and behavioral expectations and respect for all students; Principal and school leadership do not systematically monitor implementation of academic programs to measure impact on student achievement; Principal does not involve family and community as active partners in improving academic achievement; The school does not have a process to analyze and to evaluate data and use the results to make informed decisions that positively affect student achievement. The 95-page report on the assessment of the Simpson County School District lists seven deficiencies and steps to correct them. Among the deficiencies included in the report were that the superintendent has not created or communicated a sense of urgency for improvement of student achievement and the district had not established a organizational structure that effectively supports the high school in improving student performance. Flynn pledged the support and leadership of the district as Kentucky schools prepare for a new assessment system starting this school year that was called for by the state legislature four years ago. Flynn said the district would:

5 ensure a sense of urgency for change with a no excuses attitude. foster an expectation of accountability for excellent teaching, learning and behavior in our high school. evaluate our organizational structures and programs to ensure we are providing the exemplary leadership, service and support we expect and getting the return on investment from our programs. involve our parents and community to support learning and high expectations academically and behaviorally for all students, specifically getting all students college and/or career ready. The Simpson County district or F-S High School council can appeal the recommendations within 30 days. The report was officially issued Jan. 13. We need the support of our community to move FSHS to excellence across the board in all areas, Flynn said. The most critical needs are supporting high expectations for academic achievement in a safe, appropriate learning environment and preparing all students to achieve the college/career readiness benchmarks.