U.S. Department of Education September 2003

2003-2004 No Child Left Behind—Blue Ribbon Schools Program

Cover Sheet

Name of Head of School Mr. Chris Hahn

(Specify: Ms., Miss, Mrs., Dr., Mr., Other) (As it should appear in the official records)

Official School Name Prince of Peace Christian School (Elementary/Middle School)

(As it should appear in the official records)

School Mailing Address 4000 Midway Road ______

(If address is P.O. Box, also include street address)

Carrollton Texas ______75007-1903______

City State Zip Code+4 (9 digits total)

Tel. ( 972) 447-9887 Fax ( 972) 447-0877

Website/URL www.popcs.net E-mail

I have reviewed the information in this application, including the eligibility requirements on page 2, and certify that to the best of my knowledge all information is accurate.

Date______

(Head of School’s Signature)

Name of Superintendent* N/A

(Specify: Ms., Miss, Mrs., Dr., Mr., Other)

District Name Tel. ( )

I have reviewed the information in this application, including the eligibility requirements on page 2, and certify that to the best of my knowledge it is accurate.

Date______(Superintendent’s Signature)

Name of School Board Mr. Todd Bloom

President/Chairperson

(Specify: Ms., Miss, Mrs., Dr., Mr., Other)

I have reviewed the information in this package, including the eligibility requirements on page 2, and certify that to the best of my knowledge it is accurate.

Date______

(School Board President’s/Chairperson’s Signature)

*Private Schools: If the information requested is not applicable, write N/A in the space.


PART I ELIGIBILITY CERTIFICATION

[Include this page in the school’s application as page 2.]

The signatures on the first page of this application certify that each of the statements below concerning the school's eligibility and compliance with U.S. Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights (OCR) requirements is true and correct.

1.  The school has some configuration that includes grades K-12. (Schools with one principal, even K-12 schools, must apply as an entire school.)

2.  The school has not been in school improvement status or been identified by the state as "persistently dangerous" within the last two years. To meet final eligibility, the school must meet the state’s adequate yearly progress requirement in the 2003-2004 school year.

3.  If the school includes grades 7 or higher, it has foreign language as a part of its core curriculum.

4.  The school has been in existence for five full years, that is, from at least September 1998.

5.  The nominated school or district is not refusing the OCR access to information necessary to investigate a civil rights complaint or to conduct a districtwide compliance review.

6.  The OCR has not issued a violation letter of findings to the school district concluding that the nominated school or the district as a whole has violated one or more of the civil rights statutes. A violation letter of findings will not be considered outstanding if the OCR has accepted a corrective action plan from the district to remedy the violation.

7.  The U.S. Department of Justice does not have a pending suit alleging that the nominated school, or the school district as a whole, has violated one or more of the civil rights statutes or the Constitution's equal protection clause.

8.  There are no findings of violations of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in a U.S. Department of Education monitoring report that apply to the school or school district in question; or if there are such findings, the state or district has corrected, or agreed to correct, the findings.


PART II DEMOGRAPHIC DATA

All data are the most recent year available.

DISTRICT (Questions 12 not applicable to private schools)

1. Number of schools in the district: _____ Elementary schools

_____ Middle schools

_____ Junior high schools

_____ High schools

_____ Other (Briefly explain)

_N/A__ TOTAL

2. District Per Pupil Expenditure: _N/A______

Average State Per Pupil Expenditure: ______

SCHOOL (To be completed by all schools)

3. Category that best describes the area where the school is located:

[ ] Urban or large central city

[ ] Suburban school with characteristics typical of an urban area

[ x ] Suburban

[ ] Small city or town in a rural area

[ ] Rural

4. 1* Number of years the principal has been in her/his position at this school.

*One year as Head of School, Four years as Principal in prior years, for a total of 14 years

at this school.

If fewer than three years, how long was the previous principal at this school?

5. Number of students enrolled at each grade level or its equivalent in applying school:

Grade / # of Males / # of Females / Grade Total / Grade / # of Males / # of Females / Grade Total
K / 36 / 36 / 72 / 7 / 18 / 30 / 48
1 / 32 / 34 / 66 / 8 / 31 / 25 / 56
2 / 38 / 34 / 72 / 9 / N/A / N/A / N/A
3 / 39 / 33 / 72 / 10 / N/A / N/A / N/A
4 / 25 / 36 / 61 / 11 / N/A / N/A / N/A
5 / 21 / 28 / 49 / 12 / N/A / N/A / N/A
6 / 22 / 35 / 57 / Other
TOTAL STUDENTS IN THE APPLYING SCHOOL ® / 553


6. Racial/ethnic composition of 87.5 % White

the students in the school: 3.5 % Black or African American

3.5 % Hispanic or Latino

5.5 % Asian/Pacific Islander

0 % American Indian/Alaskan Native

100% Total

7. Student turnover, or mobility rate, during the past year: _3.94______%

(This rate includes the total number of students who transferred to or from different schools between October 1 and the end of the school year, divided by the total number of students in the school as of October 1, multiplied by 100.)

(1) / Number of students who transferred to the school after October 1 until the end of the year. / 9
(2) / Number of students who transferred from the school after October 1 until the end of the year. / 15
(3) / Subtotal of all transferred students [sum of rows (1) and (2)] / 24
(4) / Total number of students in the school as of October 1 / 609
(5) / Subtotal in row (3) divided by total in row (4) / 0.0394
(6) / Amount in row (5) multiplied by 100 / 3.94

8. Limited English Proficient students in the school: _0.003 _%

____2__Total Number Limited English Proficient

Number of languages represented: __2______

Specify languages: Spanish, Korean

9. Students eligible for free/reduced-priced meals: _0.03____%

__16____Total Number Students Who Qualify

If this method does not produce a reasonably accurate estimate of the percentage of students from lowincome families or the school does not participate in the federallysupported lunch program, specify a more accurate estimate, tell why the school chose it, and explain how it arrived at this estimate.

10. Students receiving special education services: __12.8__%

__79*__ Total Number of Students Served

Indicate below the number of students with disabilities according to conditions designated in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

_3___Autism _0___Orthopedic Impairment

_0___Deafness _40__Other Health Impaired

_0___Deaf-Blindness _28__Specific Learning Disability

_2___Hearing Impairment _25__Speech or Language Impairment

_0___Mental Retardation __0__Traumatic Brain Injury

_0___Multiple Disabilities __0__Visual Impairment Including Blindness

*Some students may have more than one disability, thus the total number of students served is lower than the total number of disabilities.

11.  Indicate number of fulltime and parttime staff members in each of the categories below:

Number of Staff

Full-time Part-Time

Administrator(s) __5______0_____

Classroom teachers __28___ __2_____

Special resource teachers/specialists __7___ __9_____

Paraprofessionals __3______19____

Support staff __9______3_____

Total number _ 58___ __28____

12. Average school student-“classroom teacher” ratio: _19:1______

13. Show the attendance patterns of teachers and students as a percentage. The student dropout rate is defined by the state. The student drop-off rate is the difference between the number of entering students and the number of exiting students from the same cohort. (From the same cohort, subtract the number of exiting students from the number of entering students; divide that number by the number of entering students; multiply by 100 to get the percentage drop-off rate.) Briefly explain in 100 words or fewer any major discrepancy between the dropout rate and the drop-off rate. (Only middle and high schools need to supply dropout rates and only high schools need to supply drop-off rates.)

2002-2003 / 2001-2002 / 2000-2001 / 1999-2000 / 1998-1999
Daily student attendance / 96.86 / 96.69 / 96.21 / 96.59 / 96.40
Daily teacher attendance / 98.1 / 98.6 / 99.2 / 98.7 / 98.5
Teacher turnover rate / 11.5 / 16.7 / 19.1 / 17.1 / 15.4
Student dropout rate / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
Student drop-off rate / N/A / N/A / N/A / N/A / N/A


14. (High Schools Only) Show what the students who graduated in Spring 2003 are doing as of September 2003.

Graduating class size / _N/A_
Enrolled in a 4-year college or university / _____%
Enrolled in a community college / _____%
Enrolled in vocational training / _____%
Found employment / _____%
Military service / _____%
Other (travel, staying home, etc.) / _____%
Unknown / _____%
Total / 100 %


PART III SUMMARY

Prince of Peace Christian School is a ministry of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Carrollton, Texas. The school was established in 1982 and serves students from preschool through the 11th grade. Prince of Peace Christian School is recognized by the Texas Education Agency through the accreditation process of the Lutheran School Accreditation Commission of the Texas District of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. It has also received National Lutheran School Accreditation. The most recent accreditation renewal was given in June of 1998.

Prince of Peace is one of the largest, actively growing Christian schools in the United States. When fully complete, our student population will reach a capacity of 1000 children and young adults. The purpose of Prince of Peace Christian School is to assist parents in carrying out their responsibilities in Christian education. The Great Commission gives the body of Christ the secondary responsibility for the Christian training of all, including children. Our school is designed to provide a Christian education centered on Biblical principles. The curriculum is taught from a Christian viewpoint and integrated with Christian values. Teachers at Prince of Peace create warm, nurturing learning environments. Each teacher is committed to the encouragement and development of the God-given gifts and talents of every child. As we prepare for the future, Prince of Peace is committed to providing a broad range of learning opportunities for every child. Lower school curriculum is enriched with foreign language and fine arts programs. Middle school offers honors and remedial classes as well as foreign language, fine arts productions, and concerts. As students anticipate college experiences, Prince of Peace also offers a variety of college preparatory and advanced placement classes for high school students. Two fully equipped computer labs are utilized in the lower, middle, and high schools, with mobile labs available to middle school and high school students. The School Board and school administration team are devoted to developing educators and staff who are called to teach and serve the children and families of Prince of Peace. The educational team is active and growing in faith as members of a Christian church. Prince of Peace desires to hire teachers based on their professional knowledge and experience, and on lives that are Christ-centered, student-centered, and servant-hearted.

Prince of Peace Christian School provides a Christ-centered exemplary education equipping students and families as disciples and leaders to meet the challenges of today and the opportunities of tomorrow. As a “Christ-centered” community, Prince of Peace Christian School is committed to providing a teaching staff dedicated to the Lord and His children and studying daily Bible lessons with all students. Prince of Peace Christian School implements a curriculum that integrates Christian beliefs and understanding in all areas, while modeling faith through service, love, and kindness. An exemplary education is offered by providing a stimulating curriculum that challenges students and integrates progressive technology to prepare students for work in today’s world. Prince of Peace Christian School is committed to equipping disciples and leaders by helping students discover spiritual gifts and talents to be effective for God’s Kingdom; challenging students to improve academically, spiritually, physically, and emotionally.

Through provision of a firm foundation based on the Gospel and the understanding that prayer empowers believers, Prince of Peace students are equipped to face the challenges and opportunities of tomorrow.


PART IV – INDICATORS OF ACADEMIC SUCCESS

IV-1. Assessment Results

For the past five years, Prince of Peace Christian School student scores have averaged at the 90th percentile or above when compared to children across the nation in both reading and math components on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills. For example, the first grade had a percentile score of 97 in 2002 in the composite Math score from ITBS. That means that when compared to other schools, our score was a 97%, or in the top 3%, when compared to other children taking the same test at the first grade level nationally.

A summary of the results demonstrates our effectiveness in teaching the approved curriculum as demonstrated by the assessed testing scores. The scores are the combined averages of grades 1-8, from 1998-2003, using National School Norms.

Testing Year Composite Math Score Composite Reading Score

2002-03 97.0 98.4

2001-02 * *

2000-01 93.3 96.1

1999-00 97.1 97.8

1998-99 97.0 97.8

*The 2001-02 test was a new version, thus no national norms existed.