+ Voorheesville CSD Strategic Plan Community Forum September 30, 2015

+ Goals of the Strategic Planning Process Review the current state of the school district Engage stakeholders in discussion and reflection on strategies for the continuous improvement of the district Establish the goals and strategies for the Voorheesville School District for the next 5 years ( )

+ Strategic Planning Process Overview Each month of the school year will have a ‘theme’ – a topic that we will review and discuss regarding the district’s programs Stakeholder groups will have multiple opportunities to participate and provide feedback – Board of Education Meetings, faculty and staff meetings, community forums Documents will be posted on the district website so all stakeholders can review the information discussed In the spring of 2016, a comprehensive report of all the information will be prepared and shared, and goals and strategies for implementation will be developed The strategic goals and strategies will be adopted by the Board of Education by the end of the school year (June 2016)

+ Most Recent District Goals VCSD Goals : The district will create an academic culture of openness and continuous improvement, including continuous teacher development, and high quality instruction across all grade levels. The district will support student achievement by developing students’ Potential for scholarship, curiousity, critical thinking, and problem-solving Capacity for independent, self-directed learning Social and emotional growth and well being The district will enhance communication strategies to engage all community members in student learning. The District will be faithful stewards of the community’s financial commitment to the children and will be responsible in managing all resources.

+ Enrollment Data We will review student enrollment data for the district from 2000 to 2014 We will draw some inferences from the data presented The source for this data is the New York State Education Department School Report Cards (this data was originally submitted by VCSD to NYSED) – data is from the fall (early October) of each year We will also review enrollment projections based on current enrollment and projections from the NYS Rural Schools Association and the Capital District Regional Planning Commission

+ VCSD Enrollment

+ Voorheesville Elementary Enrollment

+ Voorheesville Middle School Enrollment

+ C.A. Bouton High School Enrollment

+ VCSD Enrollment by Grade

+ Indications from the Enrollment Data Voorheesville School District enrollment has declined 10.6% from 2000 to 2014 VES Enrollment has declined 5.9% from 2000 – 2014 – the least decline of all of our schools Middle School enrollment has declined 22% over the period of 2000 to 2014 – the steepest decline of our schools High School enrollment declined 6.7% from 2000 to 2014 – less than the district rate of decline What projections are available for us to estimate future enrollment?

+ Projecting Future Enrollment Trends We will look first at the community demographic data We can estimate enrollment for incoming kindergartners We can promote each grade each year to project future enrollment in each grade There are inherent unknowns such as Who will move into and who will move out of the district? Who will choose private schools?

+ Community Population Projection (Capital District Planning)

+ Population Under Age 5 (historical and projected)

+ VCSD Projected Enrollment (NYS Rural Schools Association)

+ Indications from Enrollment Data The population of children under 5 years old has declined significantly for the past 25 years, but now appears to be leveling off The district’s K-12 enrollment is projected to stabilize at just over 1100 students in 2021 (as compared to 1150 in 2015) The district will experience shifts in enrollment from grade to grade as larger and smaller classes move from one grade to the next We need a pre-school census to determine more precisely how enrollment shifts will impact the district – we are conducting the preschool census now

ELA 3-8 Test Data: % of Students at or Above Proficiency

Math 3-8 Test Data: % of Students at or Above Proficiency

ELA Grades 3-5 Tests: % of students at Level 4

ELA Grades 6-8 Tests: % of students at Level 4

Math Grades 3-5 Tests: % of students at Level 4

Math Grades 6-8 Tests: % of students at Level 4

+ ELA 3-8 Tests Results Trends Grades 4, 5, 7, & 8 have recently improved performance and moved ahead of the suburban cohort For each of those grades, 10 points or higher Grades 3 & 6 both showed a decline Gr 6 – 1 year Gr year decline

+ Math 3-8 Tests Trends With the exception of 1 grade level (8 th ), all have improved proficiency since the onset of the CC exams With the exception of one grade level (8 th ), all are out performing the average of the suburban cohort Grades 4, 5, 6 are 5 points or higher

+ HS Course Enrollment Overview We will review some of the key course enrollment data at the High School We will review enrollments in elective classes and some AP courses We will gain some insight as to the percentage of our students who take challenging courses, and what types of elective courses our students select

+ ELA 11 Honors

+ AP English

+ AP US History

+ HS Art Electives

+ HS Business Electives

+ HS Music

+ HS Technology

+ Family and Consumer Science

+ HS Foreign Language Electives

+ Indications from HS Elective Enrollments Advanced English Courses - 30% to 40% of our students take AP or honors courses as replacements for the regular courses AP Social Studies – 30% to 40% of students take AP courses as replacements for the regular courses Electives – Music and Technology courses are taken by 200+ students (some of these would be the same student taking multiple courses) Foreign Language elective enrollments have declined slightly Art and Business elective enrollments have increased Family and Consumer Science HS electives are low in enrollment (FACS HS courses were eliminated due to budget cuts in )

+ Thoughts on Future Middle School and High School Course Offerings If more students in 8 th grade were to be accelerated (particularly in science) and/or could take credit bearing HS courses (e.g., Art and Music), more students could take advanced coursework and more elective courses in High School What additional elective and advanced courses might we offer to allow students to pursue their interests and to take more advanced offerings? What electives might be considered for elimination due to low student interest? Are there High School scheduling changes that might make it easier for students to take challenging elective courses?