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Education Report Card Committee issues recommendations to MNPS
For Immediate Release
Jan. 22, 2008
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Education Report Card Committee released today its findings based on an evaluation of the 2006-2007 school year. Now in its 15th year, the 22-member Education Report Card panel, convened by the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce to evaluate the progress of Nashville's public school system, issued key recommendations in the areas of school system performance, public support and advocacy for Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS), and individual school accountability.
"Although we are making incremental progress, it's not rapid enough," said Bob McNeilly, chair of the city's Metropolitan Action Commission and report card committee co-chair. "The amount of time we have to meet No Child Left Behind standards is running out, so it is imperative that we take every possible measure as a community to ensure our children succeed."
This year's report warns the city that "Nashville is in danger of losing control of its schools" due to the system's inability to meet No Child Left Behind (NCLB) standards. The 2007 Education Report Card recommends that a community-wide effort is necessary to achieve success, and highlights strategic efforts designed to accomplish this goal.
The report card issues 10 recommendations to support progress, each of which falls into two broad areas that the committee believes to be absolutely critical for success in the era of NCLB: the training, recruitment and retention of talented educators, and the need for complete parental and community involvement in public schools.
Key recommendations by the 2007 Education Report Card Committee include:
Individual School Accountability
There must be an outstanding principal in every school, recruited aggressively from outside the district, as necessary. Successful principals should be at a school at least five consecutive years in order to build partnerships with parents and the community.
Teachers should be assigned to schools based on the needs of students. Incentives or differentiated pay should be used as needed.
School System Performance
Budget adequate resources to make sure key initiatives and programs are evaluated for effectiveness.
Public Support and Advocacy for MNPS
Create a dedicated staff position in every school to serve as a parent/community liaison.
Key commendations by the 2007 Education Report Card Committee include:
The on-time high school graduation rate has improved by more than 10 percentage points since 2004. This progress is particularly significant, given that a majority of MNPS high schools have an annual student mobility rate of more than 40 percent.
More elementary schools are in good standing under NCLB, with 89 percent of MNPS elementary schools reaching the necessary targets, up from 79 percent last year.
MNPS improved the letter grades issued by the State Report Card in grades 3-8. While NCLB measures the proficiency of many different subgroups of students, these State Report grades reflect the scores of all students in a particular grade for the subjects of math, reading, social studies and science.
Key challenges identified by the 2007 Education Report Card Committee include:
MNPS, as a school district, has been placed in Corrective Action under NCLB for having missed district-wide benchmarks four out of the last five years. Because of this designation, the Tennessee Department of Education is now a collaborative partner in running Metro schools. Further failure to meet the benchmarks could result in the state removing the elected School Board and director of schools.
After the Corrective Action designation of the district, the performance of the MNPS comprehensive high school is the greatest challenge. While many high schools have increased their graduation rate, none of the non-magnet high schools are close to achieving the state goal of a 90 percent on-time graduation rate.
While MNPS reaches the required targets in reading and math for grades 3-8 when all students taking the test are included, disaggregating the results under NCLB reveals that several subgroups of students remain below the required benchmarks.
"While in previous years, the report card may have summarized MNPS's performance with a letter grade, this year's report instead focuses on strategic recommendations that we believe can help our district meet the demands of NCLB," said Joyce Searcy, president & CEO of Bethlehem Centers of Nashville and report card committee co-chair. "The committee's ultimate goal is to provide a candid assessment of how we are performing in K-12 education, and what we can do as a school system and community to improve."
Convened each year by the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce, the Education Report Card Committee is comprised of a diverse group of concerned citizens who serve as the voice of the community in evaluating Metro Nashville Public Schools. Committee members include Chamber members, parents, educators and members of the faith community. To view the complete 2006-2007 report, visit NashvilleChamber.com/education.
The 2006-2007 Education Report Card is sponsored by Loews Vanderbilt Hotel.
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