THE METROPOLITAN SCHOOL DISTRICT OF

Washington Township

DistrictStrategic Plan

2012-2015

Adopted by the WT School Board 1/25/12

Address:Community & Education Center

8550 Woodfield Crossing Blvd., Indpls, IN 46240

Telephone Number: 317-205-3332

Fax Number:317-205-3362

School Corporation DOE Number:5370

Website:

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Superintendent Signature& DateSchool Board President Signature& Date

Dr. Nikki Woodson Mr. Tony Dzwonar

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Per district accreditation, the Strategic Plan is aligned to the AdvancED Standards for Quality School Systems.

SectionPage

Executive Summary3

Standard 1: Purpose & Direction4

Standard 2: Governance and Leadership5

Standard 3: Teaching & Assessing for Learning6

Standard 4: Resources & Support Systems11

Standard 5: Commitment to Continuous Improvement14

A supplemental working document entails details for each goal area: “Goals Action Plan”

Executive Summary

The framework for the three-year Strategic Plan aligns with the standards set forth by AdvancED Accreditation System. Our district currently holds AdvancED accreditation and will seek accreditation through 2015 during the AdvancED Quality Assurance Review during the 2012-2013 school year.

Throughout the strategic planning process, both internal measures and external reviews (such as the AdvancED Quality Assurance Review) should reveal a school community that is aware of and is implementing action plans that align with the district’s mission and vision.

It is our intent that International Baccalaureate will provide the framework for teaching & learning, our Quality Assurance Process will provide a system for monitoring and measuring the success of our students, and the accreditation process will validate our efforts.

We believe that our supportive community will provide the resources necessary to continue providing superior schools. Below is a summary of our objectives in Washington Township for each standard for accreditation. Each School’s Improvement Plan also follows this framework and aligns with the seven accreditation standards.

Standard #1: Purpose & Direction – The system maintains and communicates at all levels of the organization a purpose and direction for continuous improvement that commit to high expectations for learning as well as shared valued and beliefs about teaching and learning.
Standard #2: Governance and Leadership – The educational system provides governance and leadership that promote and support student performance and school/system effectiveness.
Standard #3: Teaching & Assessing for Learning – The system’s curriculum, instructional design and assessment practices guide and ensure teacher effectiveness and student learning across all grades and courses.
Standard #4: Resources and Support Systems – The educational system has the resources and provides services in all schools that support its purpose and direction to ensure success for all students.
Standard #5: Using Results for Continuous Improvement – The system implements a comprehensive assessment system that generates a range of data about students learning and system effectiveness and uses the results to guide continuous improvement.

The district goal areas are outlined in this strategic plan. There is a supplemental document that outlines the action plan for each goal that defines progress monitoring, timeline and detailed action plan to achieve the goal.

More information about AdvancED accreditation can be found at:

Purpose & Direction

The system maintains and communicates at all levels of the organization a purpose and direction for continuous improvement that commit to high expectations for learning as well as shared valued and beliefs about teaching & learning. (AdvancEd, Standard #1)

MSDWT Mission Statement

The mission of Washington Township Schools is to develop life-long learners and globally- minded citizens by fostering the academic, creative, and social skills needed to achieve excellence in a multicultural environment.

Purpose

The purpose of the district strategic plan is to evaluate the effectiveness of our improvement initiatives over the past few years, develop goals for the next three years, establish our priority for improvement, identify the strategies and sequence of improvement, and create action and professional development plans to support the deployment of the strategies.

Community Profile

This is the Metropolitan School District of Washington Township (MSDWT) located in the northern section of Indianapolis, Indiana and Marion County. It is a dynamic community with broad diversity in cultures, religions, ethnic groups, races and socio-economic levels. MSDWT has been an educational leader in Indiana for the last forty years.
MSDWT offers a comprehensive educational curriculum with special activities and programs geared to provide enrichment, exploration, and instructional support for students. Parents have always played an active role in the operations of the district and each school furnishes a "Parent Center" to accommodate parents visiting the school.
MSDWT has the finest high school curriculum in the State of Indiana. It annually produces the highest number of students taking Advanced Placement exams and scoring high enough to earn college credits. MSDWT's North Central High School was the first high school in Indiana to offer the International Baccalaureate program. The high school offers programs that allow students to earn the North Central Academic Honor Diploma and the Indiana Academic Honors Diploma.
MSDWT provides excellent opportunities for students to participate in outstanding performing arts, fine arts, academic teams, publications, athletics, and other student activities. North Central High School has the distinction of being Indiana's number two high school in the number of Indiana athletic championships.
The MSDWT provides quality education in award winning schools built on a foundation of outstanding educators, administrators, school board members, and supportive parents. Our vision is "Superior Schools in a Supportive Community."

Current district information:

Current demographic data can be found on the Indiana Department of Education website:

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Governance & Leadership

The system operates under governance and leadership that promote& support student performance and system effectiveness. (AdvancEd, Standard #2)

A 5 member Board of Education governs the district. The Superintendent is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the school district responsible for the development and achievement of the goals and strategies contained in this strategic plan.

The leadership of Washington Township is lead from five divisions, overseen by the Superintendent:

  1. Teaching & Learning Division
  2. Special Services Division
  3. Business Services Division
  4. Human Resources Division
  5. Operations Division

We hold leadership meeting on an ongoing basis to monitor progress in every division. Each division supports teaching & learning district wide as outlined in the graphic below.

A leadership matrix supports each division. District leadership meetings are held on a consistent basis from a variety of capacities to ensure that all of our work is supporting teaching & learning.

The district goal areas are outlined in this strategic plan by division. There is a supplemental document that outlines the action plan for each goal that defines progress monitoring, timeline and detailed action plan to achieve the goal.

Teaching & Assessing for Learning

The system’s curriculum, instructional design, and assessment practices guide and ensure teacher effectiveness and student learning across all grades and courses. (AdvancEd, Standard #3)

A variety of student achievement data is continuously collected and analyzed to determine the student subgroups that are underperforming and then determine the root causes for that underperformance.

The Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) report provided by the Indiana Department of Education reflects the overall areas of performance or underperformance by student subgroup. Green reflects the student subgroups that made annual yearly progress while Red indicates those student subgroups that did not make annual yearly progress. The 2011 AYP results are below:

The data below represents examples of data reflecting overall student performance. Through the Quality Assurance Process (Commitment to Continuous Improvement Standard) data points are more specific to individual school’s school improvement plans.

While district and school-wide data are important in determining Annual Yearly Progress, MSD of Washington Township schools are unique in the populations they serve. Therefore, the data used at the building administrator and teacher level is more specific to those populations.

While the subgroup data may be analyzed for differing populations from school to school, the process and goals of using the results are the same.

Through the Quality Assurance Process, the MSD of Washington Township is attempting to analyze the systems we use that result in the overarching data below. We will identify classroom practices that yield the best results across grade levels, ability levels, socioeconomic, and ethnic lines. The data therefore becomes a means of identifying processes we wish to replicate.

The use of the data will influence professional development efforts, staff evaluation procedures, and program evaluation efforts. The following data is a brief snapshot, more comprehensive data and data by subgroup can be found on our website.

Comprehensive data on Washington Township and all schools can be found at or on our website at

The purpose of the Teaching and Learning Division is to lead student and staff learning through the International Baccalaureate Framework.

To meet this purpose, the Teaching and Learning Division has identified three overlapping categories in which to communicate and address the Strategic Plan Goals in a meaningful and sustainable way.

The International Baccalaureate Authorization Process will prioritize the work of the Teaching and Learning Division. It is this IB Framework that influences best instructional practices, responsiveness to our diverse learner population, use of technology, professional development design, and cultural responsiveness.

The following three categories outline the Program of Work for the Teaching and Learning Division for the next five years:

  1. Professional Learning
  1. Instruction
  1. Student Achievement

The Teaching and Learning Division will categorize each goal area and design an action plan for each. The action plan will include steps of progress monitoring, measureable outcomes, and timelines for deployment and completion of each goal area.

Teaching & Learning Division Strategic Plan Goals

  • We will develop a Quality Assurance Process that:

Utilizes student achievement data to identify successful processes and systems

Investigates the practices of our most consistently effective educators/schools and identifies instructional practices to replicate across schools, disciplines and grade levels. (2011-12 for ES and 2012-2013 for MS and 2013-2014 for HS)

Establish Standard Instructional Practices in the WT Quality System (2012-2013)

Monitors and controls deployment of the Standard Instructional Practices

  • We will become authorized as an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School Corporation

By 2011-2012 Washington Township will successfully complete the IB Authorization Process in the Primary Years Program.

By 2012-2013 Washington Township will successfully complete the IB Authorization Process in the Middle Years Program.

  • MSD of Washington Township will receive an additional 5 year accreditation during the 2012-2013 School Year by Advanc-ED Accreditation
  • By 2012-13 Special Services will

Identify systems and measures that will be used consistently across all grade levels that measure student growth for special populations.

Identify effective practices that must be in place to differentiate instruction for all special populations in the CORE curriculum

  • By 2013-14 Special Services will implement systems, measures, effective instructional practices and intensive interventions with fidelity that will be used consistently with special populations across all grade levels.
  • By 2014-15 Special Services will assess and alter evaluation practices to align with student growth and monitoring of programs and practices.
  • By 2014 Technology will provide all students and educators with access to a reliable network infrastructure for learning when and where they need it
  • Technology will have80% of educators including administrators be proficient in National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) by 2014
  • Technology will enable all educators including administrators to have easy access to timely student performance data by 2015.
  • By 2014-15, Elementary School Language Arts – Reading will have a ninety minute uninterrupted reading framework effectively implemented in every classroom.
  • By 2014-15, the Five Easy Steps to a Balanced Math Program framework will be effectively implemented in every classroom.
  • By 2014-15, a vocabulary framework using the Common Core vocabulary in all content areas will be effectively implemented in every classroomusing Marzano’s Six Step Vocabulary Process.
  • By 2014-15, the Common Core Literacy standards for writing will be implemented in all content areas grades k-12.
  • By 2014-15, Secondary School RtII will implement a highly effective framework providing students with the additional support necessary for academic success.

Resources & Support Systems

The system has the resources and provides services in all schools that support its purpose and direction to ensure success for all students. (AdvancEd, Standard #4)

Support Divisions Strategic Plan Goals

Each goal area has a supplemental action plan as a separate working document that outlines the progress monitoring, timeline and detailed action plan for each goal listed.

Operations Support Division Goals

Goal #1: Develop and implement HVAC operational procedures and practices that conserve energy and provide excellent indoor air quality (IAQ) and occupant comfort by 2015

Goal #2: Ensure adequate and appropriate facilities are available to educate the children attending Washington Township Schools annually.

Business Services Support Division Goals

Goal #1: Develop annual budgets that maximize revenues and align the district revenues with expenses.

Goal #2: Convert tracking of time & attendance to an automated system by 2013. Create a vendor selection process and develop an implementation process.

Goal #3: Develop a Teacher Compensation Model in 2012 through work with HR in the development of ideas for this model andcollaborate with WTEA through the collective bargaining process to finalize the model annually or on an as needed basis.

Goal #4: Transportation Department:Maintain the financial viability within the Transportation and Bus Replacement Funds annually. Maintain continuity of service that best supports the needs of our students.

Human Resources Support Division Goal

Goal #1: Develop (2012), deploy (2012-2013), and implement (2013-2015), a performance evaluation and compensation model for all employees in the Metropolitan School District of Washington Township Schools.

Resources & Support Systems

Washington Township Advisory Council

In the 2011-2012 school year, we will establish the Washington Township Advisory Council. This broad based group will represent all grade levels and stakeholder groups. Students, parents, business leaders, school administrators, school board members, as well as faculty and staff will make up this group.

The purpose of the WT Advisory Council is to provide feedback to be used when considering grade level and district level programming. Additionally, the WT Advisory Council will provide perspective to our superintendent when considering our school calendar, our district mission and vision, and our overall Strategic Plan.

Each year the WT Advisory Council will focus on unique needs of the district or issues that arise through legislation, funding, or program changes. However, as the name suggests, the group will serve in an advisory capacity – giving stakeholder input to our district leadership to be used in decision making processes.

Washington Township Schools Foundation

The mission of the Washington Township Schools Foundation is: "Changing the lives of children in Washington Township Schools by funding innovative educational programs that provide extraordinary learning experiences." Since1986, the Foundation has given over $3 million in private dollars in support of public educationthrough grants, program support, designated gifts and scholarships. In the 2010-2011 school year, over $320,000 was given in that school year alone. The Foundation provides not only funding support to our district schools, but holds an endowment fund for the PTOs of each of those schools. The Foundationprovides an important vehicle that allows us to tell our positive stories of teaching and learning through two main annual fundraising events and an annual fundraising appeal. The Foundation rallies the support of community stakeholders through solicitation of funding support, community partnerships, and outreach to faculty, staff, current student families, and alumni.

Washington TownshipParent Council

Washington Township values the input and involvement of district parents. Parent Council is a group of parent advocates of MSDWT students who represent a diverse community in Indianapolis and believe that quality public education is an investment in the future. Members of the Parent Council give their time to actively influence the direction of the District and support positive learning experiences that result in students who are productive contributors throughout their lives. The goals of Parent Council are to:

  • Empower Parents by providing resources and opportunities for them to be leaders in our school community.
  • Inform and Educate Parents by providing objective and pertinent information regarding our school district.
  • Elect School Board Members that will move our school district forward.

Parent Teacher Organizations (PTO

Parent Teacher Organizations at each school are encouraged and supported by Washington Township. PTOs offer support to school faculty and staff in many ways. From funding of additional materials for classrooms and enrichment experiences for children, to facilitating staff appreciation events, PTO activity is lively in Washington Township schools. Washington Township provides an open forum of support for PTO, through the endorsement of the PTO Presidents Council which meets once a month. The purpose of these meetings is to gather PTO support through collective input and collaboration among the district schools.