COBB COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT

 

  

Pope High School

  

SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PLAN

2006-2009

 

 

 

Revisions

 

 

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SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PLAN

Table of Contents

		Pages
PART 1	PROFILE………………………………………………………………………………	3
Executive Summary ……………………………………………………………………………		3
Significant Accomplishments…………………………………………………………………..		6
Significant Challenges………………………………………………………………………….		8
Organizational Characteristics…………………………………………………………………		9
Student Performance Data Analysis ……………………..…………………………………..		10
Stakeholder Perceptual Data Analysis …..…………………………………………………..		11
PART 2	SCHOOL MISSION AND BELIEFS………………………………………………...	12
PART 3	ACTION PLAN ……………………………………………………………………….	13
Priorities………………………………………………………………………………………….		13
Student Performance Action Plan: Goals ……………………………………………………		16
Student Performance Action Plan: Resource Plan …………………………………………		18
School Performance Action Plan: Goals ……………………………………………………..		34
School Performance Action Plan: Resource Plan …………………………………………..		36
PART 4	RESULTS ……………………………………………………………………………..	39
Strategy Analysis ………………………………………………………………………………		39
Georgia Performance Standards Implementation …………………………………………		41
Benchmark Reporting …………………………………………………………………………		42
Reflections on Lessons Learned ……………………………………………………………..		45
Next Steps ……………………………………………………………………………………...		45
APPENDIX ……………………………………………………………………………………….		46

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PROFILE

 

Executive Summary

 

Alan C. Pope High School has a rich and successful past that blends almost seamlessly into the present and creates a vision for a dazzling future.  In an effort to have continued success, we strive daily to push our students and ourselves to the next level. An examination of the data contained in "The School Improvement Plan" indicates that we have demonstrated considerable strengths in student achievement based on our benchmarks. As we enter our twentieth year of existence, we are committed to our school’s mission: "Inspiring students to achieve extraordinary success."  Our motto, selected by the student body, is "The promise of a great future lies within our grasp."  As Pope moves forward, we continue to create more opportunities to involve all stakeholders in shaping the journey.

 

A review of past practices supports an intense commitment on the part of Pope to go further and seek innovative ways to increase student achievement.  We continue to provide new opportunities for teaching and learning as we identify and address academic issues related to the 4X4 block schedule.  On going self-reflection presents staff with complex and challenging issues and creates professional learning communities in which we challenge ourselves to provide curriculum delivery that meets the diverse needs of our entire student body. The integration of rapidly changing technology into classroom instruction has resulted in the creation of ongoing professional learning opportunities in technology. The entire staff has embraced instructional technology by starting the 2006-2007 school year with new laptop computers and their effective application is clearly evident in classroom observations.

 

In the winter of 2005, our vision to increase student achievement was fortified by a group of deeply committed staff members, students, and parents who formed "Future Pope".  This collaborative group researches instructional initiatives and programs that would meet the challenges to improve student achievement.  Their dedication to improve student performance has lead to the formation of various “Future Pope” committees that meet often to plan and implement programs that support the SIP goals.  These initiatives target future needs of the physical facility, cultural diversity, school climate, communications, character education and other relevant topics.  In spring 2005, the Pope Foundation was expanded from an organization devoted to funding the athletic stadium to an umbrella organization that has become a vehicle for funding improvements for the entire facility and supporting all programs--including academics, fine arts and athletics.  One foundation goal, for instance, is to gain Pope alumni support and involve them in mentoring students and resource funding.

 

A challenging initiative that has truly pushed both teaching and learning to the next level of performance has been establishing Pope as an Advanced Placement Certified School (APCS)—Demonstration Level.  Pope’s overall goal is not to reach only advanced students but to challenge and encourage all students to succeed at a high academic level.  By increasing the rigor of course work in the ninth and tenth grade, we hope to encourage more students to participate in AP classes during their Junior and Senior years.  In addition, Pope implemented PSAT testing for freshmen in 2003 in an attempt to gain longitudinal student data which is used in conjunction with AP Potential to identify students who would be successful in the AP program.  Studies indicate that students who successfully complete AP coursework have a significantly higher four-year college graduation rate than students who do not complete AP courses. 

 

One critical component to academic achievement is the successful transition of students from middle to high school.  In the spring of 2006 we established the Ambassador Program using upper classmen as mentors to give support to rising ninth grades students.  In addition, during the summer of 2006, Pope provided a three-day institute of transitioning activities aimed at improving study skills and appropriate social interactions for entering freshmen.  A positive outcome from these programs was the successful bonding of the Class of 2010 that could result in lifetime relationships. 

 

A major academic accomplishment for Pope students has been their continued outstanding performance on the EOCT, SAT, ACT, Advanced Placement and Georgia High School Graduation tests.  All students are able to take advantage of our extended learning tutoring program, SAT and ACT preparation classes, and Advanced Placement and GHSGT review sessions held at Pope High School prior to each examination. Pope is also a host site for ACT and SAT test administration, allowing students to have the security of testing in familiar surroundings.

 

Effective communication is a life skill that must be acquired for successful transition to adulthood. Our focus on improving stakeholder satisfaction and student responsibility includes an emphasis on effective communication.  This school performance goal supports the Cobb County School District Graduate Profile competency of the graduate as an effective communicator, and the CCSD goal of increasing stakeholder satisfaction. Pope High School embraces the values of safety, civility, maximum learning for all, and effective use of resources which are consistent with the ideology of the Cobb County Public Schools. Pope has also been sensitive of the need to address safe driving and suicide prevention programs for adolescents. The PTSA promotes and presents defensive driving programs twice yearly in partnership with local businesses, and parental safe driving awareness programs yearly.  Our partnership with the Prevention/Intervention Center provides suicide prevention training to heighten awareness of suicidal signs in teenagers and others. Providing a safe learning environment also presents challenges that are addressed daily.  Thirty-two video surveillance cameras monitor the building and grounds around the clock. Access to the school building is limited during classes and after hours. Visitors are required to sign in, and identification must be produced by anyone taking a student from school for any reason. Our school profile details the commitment Pope is making to stress civility through the character education program. We recognize and embrace the power of student recognition and the positive effect it has on student performance. "Renaissance" is a strong academic recognition program created to reward student accomplishments on many levels and is targeted to include improvement in performance as well as outstanding academic achievement.

 

We began in 1987 as a new school with a committed faculty and a vision to make Pope a high achieving school in every area, and we continue to be driven by this vision.  Our priorities of increasing thinking and reasoning skills in all content areas and of improving stakeholder satisfaction and student responsibility support our efforts to meet these challenges. Pope High School is many things, all of which play a part in defining the essence of what we represent--high achieving students, a dedicated and professional staff, involved parents, and a supportive community. As we look back into our history, and forward to our vision to assess our position, we will embrace again what made us strong. The commitment to reach beyond our grasp will assure that we are truly seeking improvement which is consistent with "Inspiring students to achieve extraordinary success!"

 

Dr. Charlotte Stowers

Principal

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Significant Accomplishments

 

The Cobb County School District is the second largest school system in Georgia and among the 30  largest in the United States. Pope High School, located in the northeast corner of Cobb County, enjoys a strong tradition of excellence in education, and student achievement remains the primary focus. Approximately 90% of Pope graduates go to college. Pope is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Pope was voted a Georgia School of Excellence in 1990, and was one of two Cobb County schools awarded the state Pay for Performance Grant for the 2002-2003 school year. The Pope Media Center was selected as the Georgia Exemplary High School Media Program in 2003, and one of our media specialists, Connie Kone, was named Cobb County Media Specialist of the Year in 2004. Parent and community involvement is a hallmark at Pope. In fact, the PTSA was named most outstanding local unit in the state of Georgia in 1999, 2003, 2004 and 2005. Our principal, Dr. Charlotte Stowers, was named one of the top ten high school principals in Georgia by the state PTSA for 2005-2006.  She was also recognized by Georgia Governor Sonny Purdue as a High Performance Principal in June 2006, for being the leader of a school performing well above expectations. Parents and community members also serve along with teachers to honor "Teachers and Students of the Month" at monthly character education breakfasts. Georgia Power Corporation and Publix Supermarkets became Partners in Education through the Cobb Chamber Partners in Education program in October 2002. The Marietta Kiwanis Club and Carvel Ice Cream joined Pope as Partners in Education in 2005. Marietta's "Theater in the Square" joined as a Pope partner in the winter of 2004, and The Avenue at East Cobb became a partner in the summer of 2004. In addition to the formal "Partners in Education," Pope has strong community ties with other local businesses and organizations. Elementary schools, civic groups, and junior sports organizations are some of the groups that hold events in Pope facilities throughout the year, further strengthening school and community ties. Indeed, Pope High School offers a virtual "Town Hall" for the surrounding community.

 

In the past six years, Pope has won thirteen state championships; six in slow pitch softball, four in girls soccer, one in girls basketball, one in boys swimming, and one in boys cross country. In 2005-2006, Pope produced state champions in wrestling and high jump, as well a region title in girl's Track. The boys’ basketball team advanced to the State Tournament for last four years, and in its second year, the Pope Rugby team won its second consecutive state title.  The boys swimming team won the Area championship and the boy’s tennis team advanced to the State Quarter Finals.

 

Musical ensembles from Pope have received regional and/or national recognition for performing excellence. Band and Chorus groups have performed at the GMEA State Music Conference. The Bands have earned recognition at Bands of America Regional and National events in both marching and symphonic venues. Pope has a high number of participants in GMEA All State music ensembles each year. Our students comprise one of the largest percentages of annual participants in District Honor Ensembles and musicians from Chorus, Band and Orchestra participate in the Governor's Honors Program, Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra, Atlanta Youth Wind Symphony, and various "by audition only" community ensembles. Our Tri-M Music Honor Society is one of the largest honors organizations on campus. Its members participate in a variety of extracurricular musical performances, and serve as ambassadors of community outreach through music. In addition, the Pope Band Director, Gary Gribble, will serve as the State Band Chairman for 2006 as well.

 

The "Odyssey of the Mind" teams have received honors at regional and world competitions for the past four years, and the Pope Math Team continues to be highly competitive with many members winning competitions at state and national levels. In its first year, the Pope Mock Trial Team won the region and placed 8th in the State. In addition, the Pope yearbook Panache and the student newspaper, The Greyhound Tracks won the Columbia Scholastics Press Association's highest award, the Gold Medal in 2003-2004. The new literary magazine, Apostrophe won a silver medal in the first year of publication. In the 2005-2006 school year, a new debate team was also added to academic clubs at Pope.

 

 

Academic accomplishments are further outlined in the student performance data analysis later in this profile. The following list summarizes some of the other significant accomplishments for Pope in the 2005-2006 school year:

 

• State of Georgia Governor’s Office of Student Achievement 2005 Silver Award for Highest Percentage Meeting and Exceeding Standards - Achievement of student scores to meet Annual Yearly Progress under No Child Left Behind Law
• Selected as one of the 1,200 Top U.S. High Schools- Newsweek  America’s Best High Schools in May 8, 2006 edition
• Pope PTSA named Most Outstanding Chapter in the state of Georgia
• Achieved Advanced Placement Certified School status in CCSD at the highest level- Demonstration School in November 2005
• Continued a Character Education Program established in 2001-2002 school year
• Continued and increased participation in the Reading is Succeeding Everyday (RISE) program for junior and senior students to mentor elementary students reading below grade level in feeder schools
• Continued a Teacher Cadet program for junior and senior students to serve as teacher apprentices in feeder elementary and middle schools
• Built a strong Partners-in-Education team with eleven business/industry members through the Cobb Chamber of Commerce by the 2005-2006 school year
• Built the eighth Pope Habitat for Humanity home and supported countless other building projects-building number nine in Spring 2007
• Ranked 7^th of over 500 schools with the fewest disciplinary incidents-AJC School Discipline Article
• Athletically ranked 3^rd in the Region Cup
• Ranked 13^th out of 80 schools as the best athletic program in the GACA Dodge Cup
• Pope students averaged record high scores for the school on the ACT
• Food Service staff received the Golden Achievement Award
• 50 Pope students were selected for the GMEA District Honor Band, 9 for All State

 

The levels of achievement so far attained by Pope's students continue to reflect our vision of excellence and our commitment to exemplary performance. We have extensive parent and community involvement, strong teacher commitment to professional development and administrative leadership that encourages full stakeholder participation in all areas of school improvement. On every measurable indicator, Pope has a consistent history of high achievement. Although outstanding, our statistics fall short of the complete picture of the community of Pope High School. Our focus on the processes of life --learning, communicating, being a healthy citizen -- is as important as our focus on the products of education. The benchmarks of our achievement reside in a safe environment of nurturance, support and appropriate challenges. We are proud of our students, and their successes continue to fuel our vision for sustained excellence.

 

Significant Challenges

 

Pope has successfully met the standards for AYP for the past three years. However, assuring continued compliance with the AYP standards remains a priority.

 

Another ongoing challenge each year is the successful integration of our new teachers. We have a teacher mentor program in place, and are establishing ways to support both these mentors and their protégés. As we approach the AP certified school standards, we are also supporting teacher training in advanced content and honors curriculum. In fact, our pursuit of the standards of rigor associated with the AP certified model continues to be a primary challenge. While infusing rigor into our curriculum across disciplines, we hope to sustain exemplary student achievement on state and nationally normed tests.

 

Overall stakeholder satisfaction, in general, remains a priority at Pope. As we embrace strategies to increase student achievement, we want to be sure we are clearly communicating with all stakeholders so that we can work together toward student success. Data from our school improvement surveys suggest a need to be more specific in our communication with students and parents about ways to increase student performance.

 

In 2005, Pope faculty members identified a need for a consistent tardy policy in order to protect instructional time and to maximize student performance. A faculty committee developed a “Start on Time” program to decrease tardies in 2005-2006, and the continuing implementation of this program is another of our challenges.

 

The shift toward teaching and learning based on Georgia Performance Standards has mandated professional development specifically targeted at designing performance-based assessments and lessons. Funding and supporting “unpacking the standards” with all faculty members is another challenge we take very seriously In addition, as we incorporate special needs students into the least restrictive learning environments for them, we will continue to be challenged to differentiate instructional delivery, while maintaining our commitment to rigor and relevance.

 

A summative list of these challenges follows:

• Continuing to meet AYP
• Continuing to meet AP Certified Schools Exemplary Standards
• Funding of State and County Incentives regarding Professional Development
• Maintaining up to date integration of technology instruction
• Increasing student achievement on the new writing portion of the SAT
• Unpacking of the Georgia Performance Standards
• Continuing to increase stakeholder satisfaction and student responsibility
• Meeting the needs of special needs students

 

Organizational Characteristics

 

Pope's current enrollment is approximately 1965 students, which remains very close to last year’s after a slight drop in the earlier four years. Currently, the Pope student body is composed of 1013 males and 952 females. Pope’s student population might be described as statistically homogenous, as no subgroup is large enough to be statistically significant. Pope's ethnicity distribution has remained relatively stable over the last few years. Currently our enrollment is approximately 84% Caucasian, 6% African-American, 3% Hispanic, 6% Asian and 2% multi-ethnic. Other relevant demographic information is presented in the appendix to this document.

 

Pope is a college preparatory school with high academic standards. Our completion rate for the class of 2006 was 95%, which is historically typical for Pope. Consistently, over ninety percent of graduating seniors go to college. The faculty consists of 130 educators, 74% female and 26% male, and six administrators, 3 female and 3 male. The student-teacher ratio is approximately 16 to 1. Three teachers are licensed, 39% have Bachelor degrees, 43% have Masters degrees, 13% have Specialist degrees, and 2% hold Doctorate degrees. Pope teachers are dynamic and visionary. Staff development opportunities abound in the building as well as at conferences and outside seminars. The faculty is a wellspring of knowledge and skills, which are frequently, shared with colleagues through in-services and staff development classes. Faculty members continue to present at local, state and national conferences. Twenty-three faculty members are working on advanced degrees, and six teachers hold National Board Certification. We have a dynamic professional learning community that taps into the expertise of veteran staff members as well as the enthusiasm and new ideas of new members.

Perhaps the most significant characteristic of Pope High School that sets it apart from most other East Cobb schools is the block schedule. Several years ago the faculty decided to look for alternatives for students to have increased academic options. With the implementation of the Block Schedule (four ninety-minute periods meeting daily), students have 32 opportunities to take academic and/or elective courses, eight more than on the traditional seven-period schedule. Students at Pope have taken advantage of the flexibility of the block schedule. In 2004, after professional discussions among all stakeholders, Pope decided to pursue designation as an Advanced Placement Certified School. The APCS philosophy is to encourage students to take at least one AP class and to increase rigor in all classes. In 2005, Pope was recognized at the highest level of the APCS standards as a “demonstration” school. This designation supports our mission statement and is consistent with our broader purpose of challenging all learners.

In 2005-2006, Pope students continued to participate in the Reading Is Succeeding Everyday (R.I.S.E.) program. Fifty-nine students traveled to four elementary schools to assist teachers in providing one-on-one instruction to weak readers. In addition to R.I.S.E., several Pope students have gone to Murdock Elementary School to assist a non-English speaking student and to teach a Spanish enrichment class for second grade students. Career technology programs that have been added to Pope High School since 2002-2003 continue to grow in scope and in student involvement. Medical technology, graphic arts, drafting, computer repair, interior design, telecommunications and horticulture are among the newest of these programs.  Several new AP classes have been added in the last two years as Pope continues to maintain APCS status.  The net effect of richer programming seems to be that the numbers of students remaining on campus for the full day have increased, and programs such as "minimum day" have diminished.

 

In addition to academics, Pope students were very involved in other activities. Approximately 1000 students competed on athletic teams in the past year. Over 450 students participate in the band, chorus, and orchestra programs. There are more than 1968 participants in clubs, such as National Honor Society, Beta Club, foreign language clubs, and Environmental Action League. Pope students’ spirit and enthusiasm show through their club involvement. For instance, Pope students have built eight houses for Habitat for Humanity over the last few years, and collected over $11,000 for Relay for Life in 2006.

 

Student Performance Data Analysis

Student Performance Data Analysis

Pope High School consistently ranks among the top high schools in the state on measures of student achievement. For instance, we have maintained exemplary performances on the GHSGT in the last five years, as well as consistently higher than state and national averages on the SAT, We have steadily increased the number of students taking at least one AP course from 102 in 2001 to 469 in 2006. The Pope student population is relatively homogenous with no statistically significant subgroups (as defined by NCLB). However, we continue a close analysis of test data in order to identify instructional strategies that have proven effective and areas for improvement. Much of this analysis is performed by collaborative data teams who also examine formative classroom data as they make decisions about teaching and learning. To summarize, we use broad measures as benchmarks for overall school performance, while maintaining an ongoing focus on formative, classroom-level measures as barometers of what students know and are able to do.

 

The following statistics reflect the performance of all students on the GHSGT during the 2005-2006 school year:

• 11^th Grade-GHSGT: 96.85% Meeting and Exceeding Standards which reflects a gain over the prior year of 0.34% (all students)
• 11^th Grade- GHSGT English Language Arts: 99.33% Meeting and Exceeding Standard
• 11^th Grade- GHSGT Mathematics: 98.44% Meeting and Exceeding Standard
• 11^th Grade- GHSGT Social Studies: 97.31% Meeting and Exceeding Standard
• 11^th Grade- GHSGT Science: 92.17% Meeting and Exceeding Standard
• Georgia High School Writing Test: 97.69% Meeting and Exceeding Standard

 

The following scores reflect student performance in the 2005-2006 school year:

• Graduation Rate: 96.23 Percentile of High Schools
• SAT – average score of 1659 (with new writing component)
• ACT – average score of 23.5

 

The following statistics are related to benchmarks for being an AP Certified School:

• AP sections offered – steady increase from 15 in 2001 to 45 in 2006
• AP students enrolled – steady increase from 102 in 2001 to 469 in 2006
• AP Scores of 3 or above – steady increase from 173 in 2001 to 424 in 2005

 

The following EOCT scores reflect the annual percentage of students who passed the EOCT in 2005-2006:

• Algebra – 99%
• Geometry – 93%
• 9^th Lit/Comp – 93%
• Am. Lit/Comp – 97%
• Biology – 94%
• Physical Science – 91%
• US History – 93%
• Economics – 86%

 

 

Stakeholder Perceptual Data Analysis

 

Pope uses many instruments and methods to gain insight throughout the school year regarding stakeholder perceptions. CCSD School Opinion Surveys given to staff, parents and students offer insight about nine domains of school performance. An analysis of data from the 2005-2006 school year indicates that parents, students and staff have no significant negative perceptions. Rather, they are generally positive in their perceptions of school performance. According to the Cobb County office of research, evaluation and student assessment, scores of 2.6 or above indicate neutral to positive perspectives of domain items. Only one item across all domains and all respondents fell below this range, and it was the students’ response to “Our school is clean.” Although the student response was 2.5, reflecting only a 56% agreement among the eleventh grade students who took the survey, Pope still scored above the average system score for high school students of 48%.  A local question that we added to the parent survey indicated that only 58% are satisfied with the physical condition of Pope facilities. As we enter our twentieth year, maintaining a clean and up to date physical facility will be is a priority.

 

The Pope staff responses to the Opinion Survey indicate a satisfaction with all nine domains of school performance, and we scored higher than the system high school average on every domain. Pope parents also indicated neutral or positive perceptions on all domains, although Pope fell below the system high school average on three domains: school leadership, parent involvement, and auxiliary services (specifically food services). A closer item analysis within these domains reveals that parents continue to want more specific communication about their children’s’ academic performances. To that end, we are implementing a strategy that requires all teachers to maintain an internet based method of communicating with parents (and students) about classroom expectations and performances.  

 

We designed our local survey questions for parents and students to focus on their perceptions of local school initiatives, such as the tardy policy, pursuing rigor and relevance in the classroom, and the new Ambassador Program for the class of 2010. These data indicate a strong parent support (82%) for the “Start of Time” program, and student support (52%) for the Ambassador mentoring program. Parent responses indicated satisfaction with the degree of rigor offered in Pope curriculum (92%). Although 80% of parent responses indicate agreement that the curriculum is relevant, only 41% of student responses agreed that “My teachers make the learning objectives clear so that I understand how the information learned is relevant to the real world.” These data reinforce a need for a sustained focus on the pursuit of rigor and relevance in our classrooms.   

 

Another source of stakeholder perceptual data that we use is a classroom survey. In the spring semester of 2006, all Pope teachers were asked to give an end-of-course survey in their own classes to assess levels of student satisfaction within their classrooms. Teachers received immediate and direct feedback about their instruction and classroom learning environment, which they discussed within departments. In 2006-2007, we plan to administer the classroom surveys at midterm in order to use the feedback in a more formative way.

 

 

SCHOOL MISSION AND BELIEFS

 

INTRODUCTION

 

The wording of the current Pope High School mission and belief statements was revised in the fall of 2003 and approved by all stakeholders.  We kept the spirit of the former statements and reformulated them into more succinct phraseology.  We feel that the brevity of the new Mission Statement, in particular, makes it more powerful. Because student at Pope have historically performed in an exemplary fashion on broad measures of

academic achievement and ability, we feel our challenge is to avoid complacency. As Steven Covey stated, “The good is the enemy of the best,” and therefore it is “extraordinary success” that we pursue. Our mission statement is based on the idea that “description is prescription,” and we feel that all community members are empowered by it!

 

MISSION

 

Inspiring students to achieve extraordinary success!

 

 

 

BELIEFS

 

We believe the following statements to be true about Pope High School and our mission as educators:

 

• We believe that everyone deserves respect and dignity.

 

• We believe that a safe and positive environment is essential to student learning.

 

• We believe that education requires a partnership of enthusiastic learners.

 

• We believe that a challenging and dynamic world demands advanced skills.

 

ACTION PLAN

 

STUDENT LEARNING PRIORITY

Students will demonstrate proficiency in the skills of thinking and reasoning within content areas.

 

Current research in teaching and learning indicates that data-driven decision-making is a powerful tool in effective schools. The research from Doug Reeves and Nan Woodson, in particular, provided an excellent starting point for our initiative to illuminate effective teaching and learning through the use of data teams in the 2004-2005 school year. “Using data is the most effective strategy for translating the good intentions described in a vision statement into meaningful improvement” (DuFour, 2000). By continuing to use content area teams to assess student performance at the classroom level, we hope to monitor and increase student achievement through the implementation of best practices. Katzenbach and Smith define a collaborative team as “a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, set of performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable.” In addition to focusing on data analysis, many teams collaborate to “unpack” Georgia Performance Standards through assessment and lesson design. We believe that effective collaboration has been the key to the success of many initiatives we’ve adopted to improve instruction and to increase student achievement, and we plan to continue the use of the collaborative model as a strategy to address our School Improvement goals again this year.

Our goal statement of emphasizing proficiency in the skills of thinking and reasoning is directly linked to our Belief and Mission Statements. Standardized test scores from the PSAT, SAT, ACT, as well as statistics from the AP program and EOCT analyses were used to determine this priority. In addition, there is powerful empirical evidence that rigor and relevance on all instructional levels leads to increased student achievement (Silver and Strong; The College Board). Pope parents indicated agreement through the local 2005-2006 opinion survey that Pope curriculum is both rigorous and relevant, and we will continue this priority for instruction. The APCS model is being used as our standard because studies indicate that students who take AP courses in high school are more likely to complete four years of college (The College Board). Adding rigor to our program by increasing the number of honors and AP courses is a response to research lauding the importance of infusing rigor into the high school curriculum for all learners (The Accelerated School Project; Pepperl and Lezotte). This initiative marries well with our countywide curriculum focus on meeting performance standards in each content area in the least restrictive environment for all students.

In addition, classroom procedures are being aligned with the new Georgia Performance Standards in many content areas, and we hope to support the collaborative teams as they focus on lesson design and assessment. We have had success using the “Understanding by Design” model and hope to include more staff members in training. Also, we are planning to support vertical teaming across all content areas so that teachers may effectively align content standards with our middle and elementary feeder schools, as well as within our high school curriculum.

Our priorities can be summarized in Mike Schmoker’s words from The Results Fieldbook, (2001). In articulating the key features of success for Adlai Stevenson High School, he identifies “frequent, focused, data-driven teamwork,” and “high quality, carefully aligned lessons, instructional units, and end of course assessments – all the product of teamwork.” These sentiments summarize the priorities for student learning at Pope High School as well, and support the parameters of the Cobb County Direction for Student Achievement.The following action plan includes specific departmental strategies, all of which are designed to address our student learning priority. We have chosen our benchmarks for 2006-2007 as representative and effective barometers of demonstrated proficiency in thinking and reasoning within all content areas.

 

SCHOOL PERFORMANCE PRIORITY

Staff will collaborate with all stakeholders to increase student achievement and responsibility.

There is an abundance of research supporting our goal of stakeholder satisfaction among all members of the school community. Parents and teachers working together have a powerful and positive effect on student learning (Barth; Reeves; Walberg).Based on the CCSD School Improvement Opinion Surveys and our Belief and Missions statements, we have identified the need to improve stakeholder satisfaction and student responsibility as priorities in the area of organizational effectiveness. Accepting the results of the staff, student, and parent surveys as valid and representative of our stakeholders, we see effective communication as a recurring priority in this community. The volume of information to be communicated and the need for specific, individualized information make this area an ongoing challenge.  In addition, parents indicate support of initiatives designed to increase student responsibility, including our “Start on Time Policy” and the Character Education Program. Student responsibility is also being promoted through the “STARS” program for rising freshmen, and the Ambassador program in which upper classmen mentor all members of the class of 2010 through morning advisement classes. 

 

Although in the past few years, Pope has supported freshmen in their transition through a one-day program called “The Freshmen Experience,” we feel that these students need sustained support throughout their ninth grade year.In the fall of 2005 members of the School Improvement Team, a long-range planning committee called “Future Pope,” and the Pope Guidance Department began looking more closely at the needs of our ninth grade students. Angie Bruce (guidance) designed a study that identified the “Predictors of Academic Performance” using our current ninth grade students. She conducted a regression analysis that suggested that the impact of a student’s psychosocial state has more impact on academic success than ability does. This research was based on abundant empirical evidence that corroborates her findings. At Pope, we had 52 ninth graders who failed 79 classes in the fall semester of 2005.  In most cases, they failed two or more classes. These data reflect only the failure rate; other statistics reflect significant underperformance among other ninth grade students.

 

We also surveyed upper classmen at Pope to solicit their opinions about their freshman experience. We listened to the voices of our own students when asked, “What do you wish you had known as a ninth grader that you know now?” A qualitative analysis of their responses indicate common threads of need – a need for clarity about the high school life, about the importance of Freshmen grades as a foundation for all of high school, about study skills and time management, about school social and extracurricular activities to which they might belong, and about avenues of support when they need it. We realized that all freshmen need support, not just academically under-performing students.

 

The idea for the “Ambassador Program” was born, and we received some funding for this project as an Educational Impact Grant. We have recruited 149 rising juniors and seniors at Pope to work with approximately 500 rising freshmen for the 2006-2007 school year. We are training our upper class mentors through a research-based program called “Natural Helpers” that helps students become better listeners, communicators and positive role models. These 149 students will be divided into 20 teams that will work with each freshman homeroom throughout the 2006-2007 school year. These teams will address the articulated needs of our students as they transition into high school and throughout their freshman year.

 

Our work with the class of 2010 will serve as a baseline effort that we plan to implement and monitor for the next four years. This project is aligned with the Pope High School Improvement Goals for 2005-2006 to improve student achievement through increasing thinking and reasoning skills, and to improve student responsibility and stakeholder communication. The “Ambassador Program” will not only impact all freshmen students and their mentor students, it will also involve our PTSA (who has already funded many of the initial costs and will have funds available for sustaining the program over the next four years), and community mentors who will serve as resources. We also anticipate that because many of the 500 freshmen “mentees” will become mentors in future years, the impact of this program will affect the classes of 2011, 2012 and 2013 beyond the actual freshman portion of their experience. We anticipate that this program will directly impact student achievement by targeting the needs voiced by our students. We plan to monitor our success through academic data, and through a pre and post test survey of the class of 2010 (designed by “Natural Helpers”).

 

We feel that the “Ambassador Program” will have a significant effect on the academic success of members of the class of 2010. Perhaps more importantly, we anticipate that these students will receive crucial psychosocial support as they face the transitional issues of entry into high school. We feel that this program certainly supports our Pope High School Mission, “Inspiring students to achieve extraordinary success!”