Dropout Prevention Action Plan: Process and Product Alaska Dropout Prevention Symposium Anchorage, Alaska April 17, 2009

Dropout Prevention Action Plan: Process and Product The Wheel

Objectives 1. Evaluate the 6 components of Floyd Dryden Middle School’s (Dryden) Dropout Prevention Plan process;

Objectives 1. Evaluate the 6 components of Floyd Dryden Middle School’s (Dryden) Dropout Prevention Plan process; 2. List the 5 Key Questions answered to develop Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan;

Objectives 1. Evaluate the 6 components of Floyd Dryden Middle School’s (Dryden) Dropout Prevention Plan Process; 2. List the 5 Key Questions answered to develop Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan; 3. Describe how the process and plan could be modified to work for your school.

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 1. Thoughtful Team Member Selection

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 1. Thoughtful Team Member Selection -> grade levels/teams -> special education -> classified staff -> administration

Dryden Instructional Model Grade Level Teams (6 th, 7 th, 8 th ) Common Grade Level Prep Time Special Ed Teacher on Each Team Weekly Special Ed Teacher Meeting

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 1. Thoughtful Team Member Selection -> Leadership -> Respected -> Serious -> Fun

 Before we go on…

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 2.Advanced Organization of Information and Data -> Meeting/Travel Information -> Agenda -> Data

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 2. Advanced Organization of Information and Data -> Data by School and Subgroups Standardized Assessment Average GPA AttendanceDiscipline PovertyTruancy RetentionDropout Stats Demographics

 Before we go on…

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 3. Analyze Data -> Distribute Organized Information and Data -> Individually Review/Analyze Data Before Action Plan Meeting

 Before we go on…

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 4. Develop Your Dropout Prevention Action Plan -> Full Day Action Plan Meeting -> Use Data to Answer 5 Key Questions

Objectives 1. Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process; 2. List the 5 Key Questions answered to develop Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan; 3. Describe how the process and plan could be modified to work for your school.

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 4. Develop Your Dropout Prevention Action Plan -> Full Day Action Plan Meeting -> Use Data to Answer 5 Key Questions -> Create Format to Share Plan

 Before we go on…

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 5. Share Dropout Prevention Plan -> Team Meetings -> Site Council -> Accountability Plan -> District Administration -> School Board

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 5. Share Dropout Prevention Plan -> Team Meetings -> Site Council -> Accountability Plan -> District Administration -> School Board -> Basically… Anyone Who Will Listen!

 Before we go on…

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 6. Annual Evaluation and Revision -> Repeat Process With New Data -> Emphasis On Effectiveness of Previous Plan’s Strategies

 Before we go on…

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 1.Thoughtful Team Member Selection 2.Advanced Organization of Information and Data 3.Analyze Data (individually before meeting) 4.Develop Your Dropout Prevention Action Plan 5.Share Dropout Prevention Plan 6.Annual Evaluation and Revision Eliminate One Step… Which One?

Obj #1: Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process 1.Thoughtful Team Member Selection 2.Advanced Organization of Information and Data 3.Analyze Data (individually before meeting) 4.Develop Your Dropout Prevention Action Plan 5.Share Dropout Prevention Plan 6.Annual Evaluation and Revision 7.Do Not Eliminate a Step Eliminate One Step… Which One?

Objectives 1. Evaluate the 6 components of Floyd Dryden Middle School’s (Dryden) Dropout Prevention Plan Process; 2. List the 5 Key Questions answered to develop Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan; 3. Describe how the process and plan could be modified to work for your school.

Obj #2: List the 5 Key Questions answered to Develop Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan 1.What does the data tell you? 2.What patterns do you see? 3.Who is our focus/profile? 4.What are the critical needs? 5.What strategies will address the critical needs?

FDMS 2008/09 DROPOUT PREVENTION ACTION PLAN Ken Brown Leah Heiman Bill Hill Tom Milliron Angela Noon

#1: What The Data Tells Us / 53% of Alaska Native Males are not proficient in writing. / Approximately 73% of all discipline referrals are male. / Floyd Dryden has a 90% attendance rate. / More than 50% of retained students are Alaska Native. / Special Education students have not made AYP in either math or reading during the past 5 years. / 33% of Special Education students are Alaska Native.

#2: Patterns in Data / Alaska Native boys with free/reduced lunch are consistently lower performing than other groups. / Boys are getting in trouble more than the girls. / Boys score lower in writing on the SBAs. / Special Education students struggle to succeed at grade level and on the SBAs. / Alaska Native students are retained more than other students. / A disproportionately large number of Alaska Native students are identified for Special Education.

#3: Who is our focus? The typical Floyd Dryden student who struggles comes from a lower socioeconomic family and is often Alaska Native. This student has a high probability of being identified for Special Ed. Additionally, if the student is male, regardless of ethnic background, he is more likely to have discipline referrals and difficulties with meeting achievement goals, especially in writing.

#4: Critical Needs 1. Engage at-risk students in ways conducive to success in the school environment. 2. Reduce male discipline referrals. 3. Improve male writing skills. 4. Build relationships with Alaska Native boys. 5. Improve overall attendance rate.

Engage at-risk students in ways conducive to success in the school environment. / Identify at-risk students before they enter the 6 th grade. / Provide two teacher workdays at the end of the year with a focus on transition from elementary to middle and from middle to high school. / Hire a mentor at each grade level to monitor at-risk students. / Provide a class that would be taken during exploratory time with a focus on study skills, coping skills, and activities for students. / Offer gender specific classes. / Implement a K-2 experiment with single gender reading classes / Provide a place for poverty kids to receive supplies—a contact person in the morning where the kid checks in and gets ready for the school day. (CONTINUED)

Engage at-risk students in ways conducive to success in the school environment. / Offer non-academic after-school activities to attract at-risk kids to school—kids who are not typically engaged in other activities. / Provide more opportunities for movement in the classroom. / Create four person teams at 6 th and 7 th grade to allow more creative scheduling. / Create smaller class sizes. (We need a TRUE student/teacher ratio.) / Make counselors available to kids more often. Create counseling classes or groups for kids in need. / Offer classes for parents on how to help your middle school kids succeed—offer these at times that parents can attend and have childcare available.

Reduce male discipline referrals. / Hire a mentor at each grade level to monitor at-risk students. / Implement a K-2 experiment with single gender reading classes. / Provide non-academic after-school activities to attract at-risk kids to school—kids who are not typically engaged in other activities. / Extend the lunch period—more opportunities for exercise. / Provide more opportunities for movement in the classroom. / Create four person teams at 6 th and 7 th grade to allow more creative scheduling (i.e. gender specific classes, boy/girl reading groups). / Create smaller class sizes. (We need a TRUE student/teacher ratio.) / Make counselors available to kids more often. Create counseling classes or groups for kids in need. / Create a staff-student management strategy handbook. A list of strategies compiled by teachers of how to deal with problem behaviors that do not involve detentions/referrals (creative discipline).

Improve male writing skills. / Offer gender specific classes. / Provide a place for poverty kids to receive supplies—a contact person in the morning where the kid checks in and gets ready for the school day. / Create four person teams at 6 th and 7 th grade to allow more creative scheduling. / Create smaller class sizes. (We need a TRUE student/teacher ratio.)

Build Relationships with Alaska Native Boys. / Hire a mentor at each grade level to monitor at-risk students. / Provide a class that would be taken during exploratory time with a focus on study skills, coping skills, and activities for students. / Offer gender specific classes. / Provide a place for poverty kids to receive supplies—a contact person in the morning where the kid checks in and gets ready for the school day. / Offer non-academic after-school activities to attract at-risk kids to school—kids who are not typically engaged in other activities. / Host family fun days at the school. / Create smaller class sizes. (We need a TRUE student/teacher ratio.) / Make counselors available to kids more often. Create counseling classes or groups for kids in need.

Improve Attendance. / Provide a class that would be taken during exploratory time with a focus on study skills, coping skills, and activities for students. / Provide a place for poverty kids to receive supplies—a contact person in the morning where the kid checks in and gets ready for the school day. / Offer non-academic after-school activities to attract at-risk kids to school—kids who are not typically engaged in other activities. / Host family fun days at the school. / Make counselors available to kids more often. Create counseling classes or groups for kids in need. / Offer classes for parents on how to help middle school kids succeed— offer at times that parents can attend and have childcare available.

# 5: Strategies Six Suggested Strategies Targeting Multiple Critical Needs 1. Hire a mentor at each grade level to monitor at risk students. 2. Provide a class that would be taken during exploratory/A.R. time with a focus on study skills, coping skills, and activities for students. 3. Create smaller class sizes. (We need a TRUE student/teacher ratio.)

4. Offer gender specific classes. 5. Offer non-academic after-school activities to attract at-risk kids to school—kids who are not typically engaged in other activities. 6. Make counselors available to kids more often. Create counseling classes or groups for kids in need. What is our biggest roadblock for meeting these critical needs?

Funding! Problem: limited money for multiple programs Possible solution: use our limited funds to hire a grant writer for Floyd Dryden to find the funds to allow us to hire staff to enact multiple programs

Objectives 1. Evaluate the 6 components of Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan process; 2. List the 5 Key Questions answered to develop Dryden’s Dropout Prevention Plan; 3. Describe how the process and plan could be modified to work for your school.

Evaluate Us… Just a click away! Scale of 1 (root canal w/o meds) to 6 (better than sex) 1.The objectives were clear. 2.The presentation was well organized. 3.The presentation was easy to follow. 4.The information was meaningful to me. 5.I can use the information to promote student success at my school and/or district. 6.I feel better prepared to create a Dropout Prevention Plan after attending this session. 7.I spent ___% of the session time daydreaming. a. 0 to 5 b. 5 to 30 c. 30 to 50 d. > 50 e. 100