IMPROVEMENT GOALS AND MEASURABLE OBJECTIVES – 5 YEAR BLUEPRINT

Goal 1: Increase student achievement in a variety of areas (through instructional strategies, classroom steps, technology, relevance, engagement, etc.) Develop all students’ academic and career skills.

Measurable Objective 1:

Increase Grad Rate each year for all disaggregated groups (with a minimum rate of 50% for Special Populations Groups within five years.)

Reduce the number of credit deficient students at each grade level annually.

Teachers’ use of technology, engagement strategies, real world connections, and formative assessments will increase and improve each year.

Goal 2: Increase student achievement. Special Populations Groups need additional resources and opportunities.

Measurable Objective 2:
Student performance on HSPE will meet or exceed annual benchmarks

To begin the process of determining Galena High School’s Five-Year Master Plan for School Improvement, staff stakeholders met during Professional Development time in November 2009 to brainstorm ideas and steps to take based on reviewing all the data and research previously completed and shared. Nine different staff groups were assembled. A brief review of our most relevant data was shared via Powerpoint, then staff members were asked to think about the skills students will need for the year 2016. Each group was given a set of instructions as well as materials to consider. Each group was asked to come up with steps on how to tackle Galena’s identified concern areas (instructional strategies, Special Populations groups, and graduation rates), and, more specifically, our measurable goals relating to all students, including meeting HSPE AYP benchmarks, reducing credit deficiencies at each grade level annually, and increasing graduation rates.

All the input from the staff groups was combined and organized into a modified five-year plan then shared with Review Team Chair and Steering Committee. Further modifications were then made, and steps were expanded to the five-year format. Through a process of seven drafts, the 5-Year Master Plan was developed, input was sought from Steering Committee and stakeholders, then revised until final draft was completed (see above attachment). The Master Plan had to be clear, achieveable, and geniune. Our two goals are very focused: Increase Graduation Rate and Students will pass the Proficiency Exams. There are many other programs, goals, and plans at the school--which are likely to change as our student population and staff changes--but for Accreditation reporting these goals are real and realistic.

Each September, Galena will begin the school year with the staff by reviewing and surveying the NAAS Standards in order to continually monitor progress, success, and to determine where modifications in school improvement efforts need to be made. Our parent newsletters (in both English and Spanish), website, and daily announcements will be used to keep our stakeholders informed of accomplishments and modifications to the plan. The required annual reports each October allow for evaluation of successes and problems with action steps in order to determine when and where to make modifications. Built in to Galena’s Master Plan action steps are guiding phrases to determine emerging targets for improving student achievement, including “explore options,” “modify as needed,” “adjust to meet current students’ needs” and “explore alternatives.”

School improvement does not have an end date; it is an on-going process involving changing stakeholders. Renewing accreditation status is vital to the school and its stakeholders; however, it is the never ending processes of self-evaluation, modification, and the determination to meet the changing needs of the students in our society that is the goal of all school improvement.