DISTRICT PROFILE Hacienda La Puente Unified School District Synergy Site Profile Spring 2006 Compiled by The National Institute for Urban School Improement
The mission of the National Institute for Urban School Improement (NIUSI) is to partner with Regional Resource Centers to deelop powerful networks of urban local education agencies and schools that embrace and implement a d a t a - b a s e d, c o n t i n u o u s i m p r o e m e n t a p p r o a c h f o r i n c l u s i e p r a c t i c e s. Embedded within this approach is a commitment to eidence-based practice in early interention, uniersal design, literacy and positie behaior supports. The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), of the U.S. Department of Education, has funded NIUSI to facilitate the unification of current general and special education reform efforts as these are implemented in the nation s urban school districts. NIUSI s creation reflects OSEP s long-standing commitment to improing educational outcomes for all children, specifically those with disabilities, in communities challenged and enriched by the urban experience. Great Urban Schools: Learning Together Builds Strong Communities
n a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t e f o r u r b a n s c h o o l i m p r o e m e n t Introduction The purpose of this profile is to report on the conditions that exist at arious leels of a school district with an eye toward their influence on four outcomes across the Institute s synergy sites: Increased numbers of students with disabilities sered effectiely in general education settings Increased use of research alidated culturally responsie practices in early interention, reading, behaior, and uniersal designs for learning Increased numbers of inclusie schools with records of effectie, achieement oriented, culturally responsie success with students with disabilities Increased numbers of effectie, improement strategies for special and general education professional deelopment and technical assistance that are unified and coherent across schools within large, urban school districts To proide a cohesie framework for assessing these outcomes, a systemic change model 1 was deeloped that proides a way of describing the work of school districts and schools, thus organizing change efforts in ways that are meaningful and effectie for all. This unified system is based on the principle that each student Systemic change framework Families and communities Systemic Infrastructure and Organizational Support district effort and support Culture of School / Community Renewal and Relations Improement Resource Deelopment and Allocation Family Participation in Teaching and Learning Learning Assessment Physical Enironment and Facilities Student Serices school organi zat ional ef fort professional effort student effort Student Learning Teaching Design and Practices Culture of Change and Improement Inquiry on School and Schooling Group Practice and Professional Deelopment Structure and Use of Time Learning Standards Goernance And Leadership Resources Deelopment and Allocation District/ Community Partnership F a m i l i e s a n d c o m m u n i t i e s represents a unique combination of abilities and educational needs and may require indiidual assistance at arying times during the school year in order to achiee important outcomes. The key belief is that schools are organized around serices, not programs. In a unified educational system, human and other resources are employed to proide a range of serices in a range of settings to students with unequal educational needs. Central to this approach is accountability for all students: children in poerty, children with disabilities, children with Limited English Proficiency, children from dierse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, and assurance that all students are being appropriately and effectiely educated. For a unified system to be successful, educators must beliee not only that all students can learn but also that teachers are capable of teaching all students. As a result, the lines between regular education, special education, Title I, bilingual education, migrant education, ocational education, and other categorical programs become blurred and eentually reformed in ways that may not be specifically calculated. Furthermore, these programs become unified in a new educational system anchored by student content, performance, and skill standards that are embraced by local communities and families while informed by national and state standards, curriculum frameworks, and assessment strategies. The Policy Enironment Complex state and national policy enironments shape the kinds of educational initiaties and reform efforts that are possible in local situations. Two major policy initiaties that impact state and local policy in the arena of disproportionality are: The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), passed by Congress and signed into legislation in spring of 2001, and the reauthorized Indiiduals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments of 2004 (IDEA). The influence of federal policies on the educational work and expectations of states cannot be understated. State policies, as well as local education practices, must respond to the intent and requirements of these laws. Educational content standards, student performance, high stakes testing, state performance reports, annual yearly progress, NCLB standards, IDEA risk analysis and least restrictie enironments for culturally and linguistically dierse students are some of the indicators of policy impacts. Creating culturally responsie educational systems means proiding a quality education for all students. 1 Ferguson, D., & Kozleski, E.B., & Smith, A. (2003). Transformed, Inclusie Schools: A Framework to Guide Fundamental Change in Urban Schools. Effectie Education for Learners with Exceptionalities, 15, Elseieer Science, 43-74. 3
n a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t e f o r u r b a n s c h o o l i m p r o e m e n t 40 Key Requirements of NCLB Standards and Assessments Reading Standards Mathematics Standards Science Standards Annual Assessments in Reading Annual Assessments in Mathematics Assessments in Science Assessment of English Language Proficiency Inclusion of LEP Students Inclusion of Students with Disabilities Inclusion of Migrant Students State Report Card Single Accountability System All Schools Included Continuous Growth to 100% Proficiency Annual Determination of Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) Accountability for All Subgroups Primarily Based on Academics Includes Graduation Rates and Additional Indicator Based on Separate Math and Reading Objecties 95% of Students in all Subgroups Assessed The Institute s partner school systems are located in the states of Illinois, California, Colorado, Florida, New York, District of Columbia, Wisconsin, Tennessee and Neada. According to ECS 2, two of these states, California and Colorado, hae 100% of the key NCLB requirements currently in place. ECS s analysis indicates that Illinois and New York now hae nearly 100% of their requirements in place compared to 16 out of 40 requirements in place last year. Neada, Wisconsin, Tennessee and Florida hae approximately 97% of the requirements in place on ECS s rating scale. The District of Columbia, in the difficult situation of being both a state and a school district simultaneously, has the fewest elements in place 21 out of 40 elements according to ECS s analysis. Understanding this policy enironment is important to the work of the National Institute since many of the features of NCLB support whole school improement efforts but may, because of their local interpretation or the degree of compliance that already exists, constrain the focus of resources and effort. Further, the reauthorization of IDEA 2004 and the uncertainty associated with potential policy shifts there make the special education enironment blurry. Another important part of the policy enironment is the degree to which the accountability system in states may be said to hae Timely Identification Technical Assistance Public School Choice Rewards and Sanctions School Recognition School Restructuring Correctie Action for LEAs Criteria for Supplemental Serices List of Approed Supplemental Serices Proiders Monitoring of Supplemental Serices Proiders Implementation of Supplemental Serices Criteria for Unsafe Schools Transfer Policy for Students in Unsafe Schools Transfer Policy for Victims of Violent Crime Highly Qualified Teachers Definition Subject Matter Competence Test for New Elementary Teachers Highly Qualified Teacher in Eery Classroom High Quality Professional Deelopment Disaggregating of Results high stakes implications for students (i.e., graduation from high school depends on performance on standards based assessments) and teachers, schools and districts (i.e., funding and ealuations of staff are connected to student performance on these tests). The National Board for Educational Testing and Public Policy (http://www.bc.edu/research/nbetpp/statements/nbr1.pdf, 2003) recently categorized states by these two indices. The National Institute s synergy sites were categorized in the following way: (1) high stakes accountability for students, teachers, schools and districts: California, Florida, Neada, New York, Tennessee and Texas; (2) high stakes for teachers, schools and districts but moderate stakes for students: Illinois; (3) high stakes for teachers, schools and districts but low stakes for students: Colorado, and (4) moderate stakes for teachers, schools, and districts but high stakes for students: Wisconsin. Information for District of Columbia was not aailable in this study The Community Hacienda La Puente is located within the core of a 40-mile-radius, encompassing Los Angeles, Orange County, and the Inland Empire. Incorporated in 1957, it was deeloped to proide a center for industry and commerce to the surrounding communities. La Puente Valley attracted numerous settlers during the 1840s with the Gold Rush and again in the 1870s with railroad lines. By the early twentieth century the region was known for its abundance of citrus, walnut, and aocado crops, and maintained its agricultural character, mixed with growing industrial deelopment of oil, banking, and communications-through the middle of the twentieth century. After World War II, the region underwent a building boom that eentually edged out crops in faor of deelopment, and today is mostly residential in nature. There hae been seeral attempts to incorporate both, though by 2001, these attempts had not been successful. The District 3 The Students The Hacienda La Puente Unified School District is one of the largest suburban school districts in California. During 2004-2005, the District sered more than 2 3 Education Commission of the States (ECS). Retrieed on April 5, 2006, www.ecs.org. The following information on Hacienda La Puente Unified School District was retrieed from the Hacienda La Puente Unified School District website, http://www. hlpusd.k12.ca.us/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp, and from the California Department of Education website, http://www.cde.ca.go/, between the dates of March 21, 2006 and April 13, 2006. 4
n a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t e f o r u r b a n s c h o o l i m p r o e m e n t 78,800 students; nearly 25,000 pre-k-12 and 30,000 adult education students in the dierse communities of City of Industry, Hacienda Heights, La Puente, portions of Valinda, and West Coina. The District also has the largest correctional education program in the nation, sering an additional 33,000 students at eight correctional facilities throughout Los Angeles County. The students of Hacienda La Puente span a dierse community and encompass a wide range of income leels, ethnic backgrounds, and educational experiences. Of the 24,955 pre-k through 12th grade students enrolled in 2004-2005, 73.3% (18,280) were Hispanic, 2.7% (671) were African American, 8.1% (2,041) were White, 2.0% (491) were Filipino, and 13.8% (3,445) were Asian. The total enrollment of pre-k through 12 decreased slightly from 25,499 in 2003-2004. Pre-K-12 Student Enrollment, 2002-2005 Special Education Enrollment by disability, 2004-2005 disability Mental Retardation 184 Hard of Hearing 6 Deaf 0 Speech or Language Impairment 538 Visual Impairment 10 Emotional disturbance 97 Orthopedic Impairment 61 Number ethnicity 2002-2003 2003-2004 2004-2005 Other health Impairment 95 American Indian or Alaska Natie 107 (0.4%) 109 (0.4%) 93 (-0.40%) Specific Learning Disability 1,260 Asian 3,705 (14.7%) 3,600 (14.1%) 3,445 (13.8%) Deaf Blindness 0 Multiple Disability 4 Pacific Islander 110 (0.4%) 113 (0.4%) 127 (0.5%) Autism 134 Traumatic Brain Injury 8 Filipino 554 (2.2%) 528 (2.1%) 491 (2.0%) Hispanic 17,908 (71.1%) 18,515 (72.6%) 18,280 (73.3%) Total 2,397 African American 700 (2.8%) White 2,041 (8.1%) 709 (2.8%) 1,881 (7.4%) 671 (2.7%) 1,801 (7.2%) Total 25,184 25,499 24,955 Exceptional Students In 2004-2005 the number of students enrolled in special education was 2,397. The largest group of special education students were those classified as haing a Specific Learning Disability (1,260 students). 2005 State Testing Result data is recorded in aggregated form and disaggregated by ethnicity and special populations. It is not clear if special population groups, economically disadantaged, limited English proficiency, or students with disabilities, are discrete numbers or if there is crossoer. In other words, we cannot say that limited English proficiency students are not included in special education numbers. The disaggregated data does not separate out regular students from special populations. According to 2005 State Testing Results for Hacienda La Puente Unified School District, of the 1,538 students with disabilities that were tested only 11.8% (182) of those are meeting or exceeding standards in English-Language Arts and of the 1,533 students with disabilities tested in math, 16% (245) are meeting or exceeding standards in math. 5
n a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t e f o r u r b a n s c h o o l i m p r o e m e n t Hacienda La Puente Unified School District Testing Results for Adequate Yearly Progress, 2005 Group Number Tested in English- Language Arts % scoring at or aboe proficient in English- Language Arts Number Tested in Math % scoring at or aboe proficient in Math Economically Disadantaged Limited English Proficiency Students with Disabilities 8,811 4,686 1,538 30.50% 25.40% 11.80% 8,809 4,683 1,533 37.50% 36.60% 16% Total Graduation Rate The graduation rate for Hacienda La Puente Unified School District rose from 87.6% in 2004 to 89.3% in 2005. The graduation rate for special education students was 65% in 2005. Graduation rate, 2004-2005 year 2004 87.6 2005 89.3 percent The Staff The district is goerned by a fie-member board of education and employs approximately 1,500 certificated and 1,200 classified employees. At the start of the 2003-2004 school year, 39% of core academic classes in Hacienda La Puente Unified School District were taught by highly qualified teachers. The Schools The district offers a comprehensie education program for students from preschool to adult. The Hacienda La Puente Unified School District is dedicated to maximizing the talents, interests, and abilities of all its students, enabling them to meet the challenges and opportunities of a changing world. The district also maintains an Administration Center, an Instructional Serices Center, a Student Serices Center, a Multilingual Assessment Center and a Curriculum Lab. The Hacienda La Puente Unified School District has 19 K-5 elementary schools, 5 K-8 schools, 5 middle schools, 4 comprehensie high schools, 1 alternatie high school, an orthopedic unit for the physically handicapped, and an extensie child deelopment and adult education program. The district also maintains an Administration Center, an Instructional Serices Center, a Multilingual Assessment Center, a Professional Library, and a Curriculum Lab. Elementary classrooms are self-contained and opportunities for team teaching are aailable. Middle schools offer both core and departmentalized scheduling. Classrooms are departmentalized for students in grades 9-12. Band, chorus, drama, journalism, and other student actiities are also proided. A number of supplemental programs enhance the district s basic classroom curriculum. These programs include: special education, English language deelopment, gifted and talented education, counseling, school improement, and compensatory education programs. In recent years many school districts hae implemented forms of school-based, shared decision making in their efforts to improe results for all students. Shifting of accountability to schools has had a profound impact on the work of central district administrators. With schools as the critical customers of district work, central administrators hae had to reealuate their organizational and collaboratie work structures to ensure that they proide the support that schools needs to improe results for all students. This shift in relationship between schools and central administration has been difficult to negotiate both at the organizational and at the indiidual leel since it requires a reconceptualization of the formal and informal power structures within the district. One way of thinking about the functions of central administration is proided by the systemic change framework which organizes the work of schools into seen key areas: (1) systemic infrastructure, (2) culture of renewal and improement, (3) inquiry on schools and schooling, (4) organizational support, (5) resource deelopment and allocation, (6) student serices, and (7) district and community partnerships. 6
n a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t e f o r u r b a n s c h o o l i m p r o e m e n t Systemic Infrastructure The bureaucratic structure supports the work of schools, facilitating communication, networking, resource acquisition, entrepreneurship, and innoation (i.e. matrixed organizations, data systems, feedback loops, communication across and within leels). The Hacienda La Puente Unified School District Board of Education espouses that the success of eery student is the drie of the district. Based on this, the goals of the district are: Goal 1: All students in HLPUSD will succeed in meeting high standards and achieing at high academic leels. Goal 2: The HLPUSD will proide a supportie and innoatie learning enironment rich in the isual and performing arts and a challenging course of study to meet the unique needs of eery student. Goal 3: The HLPUSD will attract and retain quality personnel who demonstrate strong, positie leadership that promotes a culture of collaboration and teamwork and creates an enironment in which all stakeholders feel respected, alued, and are dedicated to eery student s success. Goal 4: The HLPUSD will efficiently expend and effectiely maximize all resources to fulfill educational priorities while sustaining and maintaining long-term financial stability. Goal 5: The HLPUSD will proide its students and employees with safe, orderly and clean schools and district sites. Goal 6: The HLPUSD will continue to deelop, sustain, recognize, and promote programs of excellence and strong partnerships with parents and the community which result in high leels of success for all students. Dr. Edward Lee Vargas is the Superintendent of the Hacienda La Puente Unified School District. During Dr. Vargas tenure in HLPUSD, the Board of Education has adopted and implemented the aboe goals and a strategic plan that has shaped the District s forward thrust on all students meeting high standards and achieing at high academic leels. Student achieement continues to exceed County and State aerages; business serices and finances in the District are in solid financial footing; a 100 million dollar facilities improement program is on course, along with new District wide facilities Master Plan underway. One of Dr. Vargas achieements is that HLPUSD School Board, 2005-2006 Sandy Johnson Joseph Chang Rudy Chaaria Norman Hsu Anita Perez Superintendent of Schools Dr. Edward Lee Vargas the first new K-12 school since the District was unified in 1970 opened in the spring of 2005 the same year the District celebrated its 35th anniersary. HLPUSD is leeraging the Internet to enhance goernance and proide a basis for better communication with the public while increasing process efficiency and minimizing cost. The new egoernance initiatie will replace the old method of compiling, printing, binding and distributing a limited number of paper meeting documents with electronic distribution. By making meeting agendas and supporting documents aailable on the Internet, it will be possible to distribute documents associated with a meeting more quickly and efficiently. For this district, electronic distribution will not only sae time and resources, it will also proide unprecedented public access to information that Board of Education members use to make decisions. Through the district s web site, the public can iew the agenda and the supporting documents associated with the meeting. This will allow interested parties to reiew and print the information prior to the meeting. After the meeting, the indiiduals can reiew the agenda items and see what action was taken by the board complete with oting. All documents associated with the meeting are automatically archied and can be accessed by meeting date or by using the comprehensie search feature. In the future, the same technology will also be used to publish the Board of Education Policies and Administratie Regulations of the district on-line. Currently, paper ersions of the manuals are distributed and maintained throughout the district. Members of the community can reiew the policies and procedures at any school district location. By publishing the policies and regulations on-line, the district will assure that personnel and community will hae access to current information. 7
n a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t e f o r u r b a n s c h o o l i m p r o e m e n t Inquiry on School and Schooling Educators, families, and students are engaged in ongoing reflection and practiced-based inquiry in classrooms and schools (i.e. classroom practices that support learners with dierse abilities, backgrounds and languages, data policies and procedures, school improement). The California Department of Education s (CDE) re-release of 2002-03 testing data reported compiled scores from each school during administration of STAR (Standardized Testing and Achieement) and CAHSEE (California State High School Exit Exam). Test scores are tallied in such a way as to show whether indiidual schools met Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) criteria. Of HLPUSD s 34 schools, 95 percent met their API targets. Those that fell short of their goals hae aggressie plans in place to improe their scores. Collectiely, the District showed continued growth with a 34-point increase in API scores. Fie schools in the District scored more than 800 in API scores, and 100 percent of the District s K-8 schools achieed their AYP growth targets. Of the District s 34 schools, all but four schools met or exceeded the required percent of students scoring at proficient or aboe in math. The district feels that the schools that fell short of the required percent of students scoring proficient or aboe in English Language may be a reflection of the high numbers of English Language Learners in the District. Organizational Support Thoughtful supports proide coherent, continuous opportunities for improed practices (i.e. professional deelopment, reporting to parents and community, mentoring). In Hacienda La Puente, staff deelopment is continuous throughout the year. Site staff deelopment is ongoing, with many schools participating in a weekly early release day. District and site support programs are proided for teachers new to the district. Resource Deelopment and Allocation Districts strategically and flexibly deelop and allocate resources to support the work of schools (i.e. special projects and initiaties, equity among schools, externally funded projects [priate, demonstration, corporate]). The Hacienda La Puente Unified School District is putting a measure on the ballot to generate funds that will be used to improe the school buildings in the district. Measure A is a general obligation bond initiatie that will generate $100 million to repair and upgrade schools in the Hacienda La Puente Unified School District. Measure A funds must be used exclusiely on local school improement projects and eery school in the District will receie repairs and upgrades. This is the first bond eer put on the ballot by the Hacienda La Puente Unified School District. Reenue and Expenditures, 2004-2005 REVENUE Total Net Reenue $19,818,452 EXPENDITURE Certified salaries $10,859,187 Classified salaries $1,714,460 Employee benefit $3,986,478 Books and supply $265,209 Serices, Other operating expenses $1,710,818 Capital outlay $32,300 Total Budgeted Expenditure $19,818,452 District and Community Partnerships Healthy, productie partnerships exist among community, goernment, colleges and uniersities, and schools to further the renewal and improement of schools (i.e. existing partnership, teacher preparation and induction). HLPUSD has established seeral partners to sere on their Technology Adisory Committee: administrators, teachers, clerical staff, parents, students, and employee organizations from 8
n a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t e f o r u r b a n s c h o o l i m p r o e m e n t across the district. Their Local Education Agency, Cal Poly Pomona will also be inited as a consultant to this committee. In addition to these groups, arious community agencies, non profit groups and business, such as the La Puente City, Texas A&M Uniersity, Verizon, Cisco Systems, Apple Computers, and Dell Computers hae been ery supportie in the planning and implementing of the district s technology goals, and hae been inited to participate in the Technology Adisory Committee. This ongoing committee will proide continual input and support as technology is integrated across the curriculum and will be a aluable resource in ealuating technology use district wide. Culture of Renewal and Improement There s a culture that supports growth and deelopment - personally, professionally, and organizationally. Risk taking and failure are seen as opportunities for growth (i.e. district ision, risktaking climate, district standards, inestment in collectie & indiidual, professional deelopment). The Hacienda La Puente Unified School District s Educational Technology Master Plan is composed of actiities and strategies to guide the district for the next 3-5 years. The district s Educational Technology Plan is based on the philosophy that educational technology must be used to support the instructional program in order to prepare students for the 21st century. The implementation of educational technology must be rooted in curricular and pedagogical models designed to ensure educational opportunities for all students to achiee optimally. The rapidly and continually changing world requires a change in the current educational system from one that is designed for an industrial age to one that will prepare students for the challenges, changes, and adjustments in the technology age ahead. The Hacienda La Puente Unified School District s ision for educational reform seeks to leerage the best teaching practices from educational research, resources from the priate sector, and adancing power of network technologies to aggressiely attack the achieement gap and ensure that eery child has access to an extraordinary education. As this ision has deeloped oer the past fie years, HLPUSD has established a consortium of dedicated partners, conducted a series of successful projects in technology integration and staff deelopment, adopted a strong focus on basic skills, and deeloped a state-of-the-art broadband network. This foundation and planning now proide the framework which is designed to produce top quartile student performance using unprecedented curriculum, professional deelopment and networking to dramatically impact teaching and learning for all students from pre-kindergarten through adult education. HLP has a history of innoation and leadership, especially in the area of educational technology. In 1989, the district created the ision for a broadband network capable of transmitting ideo, a far more complex requirement than considered by any other district at the time or een today. Through strategic fiscal policies and an aggressie ision, the district continues to set precedents, as it currently supports the largest ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) network in the country. National recognition includes a recent Computerworld Smithsonian Award in the field of Education and Academia, as well as numerous Apple Distinguished School awards. NIUSI District Partnership, 2005-2006 School Year Hacienda LaPuente and the National Institute hae collaborated on seeral leels to bring serices to Hacienda LaPuente Unified School District. In collaboration with NIUSI, Hacienda LaPuente Unified School District has identified 14 NIUSI Schools. Professional deelopment in co-teaching was proided for seeral of their schools. Creating the Profile A ariety of sources informed this profile. Some of the information about the district came from the district s website, which proides a broad spectrum of information. Additionally, websites of the California State Department of Education and Education Commission of the States were consulted for current information. National Institute staff, Barbara Sparks, Mackenzie Meredith, Jeff Richmond, and Swati Jain deeloped and updated information as necessary. Elizabeth Kozleski created the original structure of the profile and wrote the introduction for the document. 9
great URBAN SCHOOLS: Produce high achieing students. Construct education for social justice, access and equity. Expand students life opportunities, aailable choices and community contributions. Build on the extraordinary resources that urban communities proide for life-long learning. Use the aluable knowledge and experience that children and their families bring to school learning. Need indiiduals, family organizations and communities to work together to create future generations of possibility. Practice scholarship by creating partnerships for action-based research and inquiry. Shape their practice based on eidence of what results in successful learning of each student. Foster relationships based on care, respect and responsibility. Understand that people learn in different ways throughout their lies. Respond with learning opportunities that work. Great Urban Schools: Learning Together Builds Strong Communities
DISTRICT PROFILE National Institute for Urban School Improement arizona state uniersity po box 872011 tempe, arizona 85287-2011 Phone: 480.965.0345 Fax: 480.965.4942 Email: niusi @asu.edu www.niusileadscape.org Funded by the U. S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs Award No. H326B020002 Project Officer: Anne Smith Great Urban Schools: Learning Together Builds Strong Communities