The Chesterfield County School Division is commended for
the following goals, programs, and practices:
The Division is to be commended for recognizing that its Board policies and supportive regulations are in disarray due to rapid expansion on the one hand and benign neglect on the other. There is some evidence of annual revisions to certain policies and regulations; however, the last comprehensive review appears to have been in 1994. The current over-sized binder contains a mixture of policies, regulations and administrative documents.
The Division is to be further commended for already initiating a process to address the issue. An outside attorney/consultant has reviewed all CCPS policies relative to the Code of Virginia, the Standards for Accrediting Public Schools, and the regulations of the State School Board. Staff review of this work is currently underway. Upon completion of this staff work, a broadly based, competent Policy Review Committee will review all policies with any proposed changes and provide recommendations to the School Board and Superintendent for review and adoption.
Perceptions: Parents, teachers, administrators, and other Division professionals all agree that effectiveness is well established in the matter of building administrators' visibility and accessibility.
The Site Visit Team noted the effective leadership and communication skills of building principals in schools visited throughout the Division. It was obvious that building leaders are visible, know their students and take a genuine interest in student success. The Division is commended for its ability to attract, appoint, develop, support and retain strong principals, dedicated to promotion of student success in all buildings visited.
The Division is to be commended for exceeding the effectiveness level in the percentage of its students enrolled in the Advanced Placement program as well as the percentage taking the AP examinations and the percentage passing the exams. The summary data indicate a reasonable overall balance between male and female enrolled in Advance Placement courses. See also Recommendation #2 (Page 60) for an expanded discussion of gender equity in course content areas.
International Baccalaureate programs exist to provide a specialized course of study in a small fraction of US public high schools. Both Meadowbrook High School and Midlothian High School operate such programs to assist outstanding students whose future educational and career opportunities may go beyond the boundaries of the 50 states. The Site Visit Team commends the School Division for providing this important educational opportunity.
The Site Visit Team commends the Chesterfield County School Division for expanding programs and making unique educational opportunities available to its students. In addition to the broad spectrum of programs available to students in each comprehensive high school, seven specialty centers, located throughout the county, are available to students as they enter the 9th grade. These optional programs emphasize academic rigor and higher-level thinking. The specialty centers include: language immersion in Spanish and French, mass communications, humanities, international baccalaureate, mathematics and science, and pre-engineering studies. Additional options include the two regional Governor's Schools.
The Division is commended for an outstanding student attendance rate in numerous school buildings resulting in a Division-wide rate of 95.7 percent. This is compared to a mean for the cohort group of 93 percent and an effectiveness level of 96 percent.
The perception survey data indicate that there is an acceptance of students with diverse backgrounds. Further, the Site Visit Team saw evidence of such acceptance of diversity in its school visits. The team believes the following quotation is appropriate when applied to the Chesterfield County School Division. "The greatest strength of a school system is its belief in the human flower garden." (Dr. Alonzo A. Crim, Superintendent Emeritus Atlanta Public Schools, East Side Union High School Division SchoolMatch Audit of Educational Effectiveness Final Report, 1999.)
Chesterfield County School Division celebrates its multicultural pupil population and establishes high expectations for students, staff, and constituents, with emphasis on the belief that its diversity is an added resource.
The Division is commended for the development and implementation of an effective three-year new teacher orientation program focused on a mentoring concept pairing non-experienced teachers with seasoned professional teachers.
The Colleague Program, also exemplary, helps to orient experienced teachers new to the Chesterfield system during their first year of employment.
The Division has modified its recruitment schedule to enhance its competitive ability to attract top teachers early in the recruitment year. The Division is to be commended for its flexibility in monitoring and addressing changing market conditions.
Visits to classrooms and a review of data indicate a high level of success in job placement for Chesterfield County School Division students learning new careers at the Technical Career Center, including culinary arts training, auto body work,carpentry, landscaping, ventilating and air conditioning, plumbing and pipe fitting, cosmetology, health occupations, computer systems, and call center applications.
The Division should be commended for developing and implementing an exemplary English as a Second Language program for students who enroll in school without English as their principal language.
The Division is commended for the establishment and on-going operation of an effective program to provide for the individual differences of students with special gifts and talents.
The Division is commended for the development and the promotion of its core values among school personnel, students and parents. The Site Visit Team was impressed with the visibility of core value statements in each of the buildings visited, and in the creative ways in which building personnel sought to convey core value messages to all constituents.
The Division should be commended for the establishment of a Career Pathway Guide which effectively provides assistance to help students plan their high school programs of study. The Site Visit Team observed implementation of this Guide at Meadowbrook High School.
Example: Senior Passport for Adult Education. The Division is to be commended for providing senior citizens with a wide range of learning opportunities with no out-of-pocket expense.
Example: Community Center at Ettrick Elementary School. Under the leadership of the building principal, Ettrick Elementary School has dedicated an unused classroom as a Community Center. The center is Ettrick's response to a needs assessment in the school attendance area. A recent job fair sponsored by Capital One netted jobs for several Ettrick parents. Parenting forums are scheduled regularly in the facility.
Ettrick is also considering the possibility of partnering with the Chesterfield Adult Education program to offer computer literacy training in the evenings and with Chesterfield County agencies to offer adult English as a Second Language training during school hours.
The room, staffed by volunteers, has several computers donated by an area business. The parent support group has purchased parenting materials that are also housed in this facility. The Ettrick Elementary School community is commended for effectively bringing greater numbers of adults into the school facility, effective use of building space, and innovation in helping to meet the needs of the community.
The Site Visit Team commends the Division for enthusiastically embracing and implementing the inclusion of children with special learning needs into mainstream educational programs.
The Site Visit Team notes a commitment in the Division to consistently utilize data in making decisions about deploying Division resources to areas of greatest need. The Division is to be commended for its efforts to promote data-based decision making and to improve its ability to collect and use outcomes data to improve student learning and performance.
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