APPALACHIAN REGION: A REPORT IDENTIFYING AND ADDRESSING THE EDUCATIONAL NEEDS WV VA KY TN U.S. Department of Education Regional Advisory Committee (RAC) July 2011 TABLE OF CONTENTS Preface............................................................................................................................................. 2 Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... 2 Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................ 3 Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 4 Regional Background Information .............................................................................................. 4 Figure 1: Percentage of School Districts by Metro Status ...................................................... 5 Table 1: Selected Student Subgroups ...................................................................................... 5 Table 2: Socioeconomic Indicators ......................................................................................... 6 Table 3: Educational Standards ............................................................................................... 6 Table 4: Meeting Requirements To Establish Standards ........................................................ 6 Table 5: Professional Development ......................................................................................... 7 Data Collection: Public Meetings ................................................................................................... 7 Data Collection: Outreach Strategies .............................................................................................. 7 Table 6: Members of the Public Submitting Comments by State (Survey Monkey and RAC website).................................................................................................................................... 8 Table 7: Members of the Public Submitting Comments by Role ............................................ 9 Cross-Cutting Challenges Impacting Regional Needs .................................................................... 9 Educational Needs And Recommendations For Addressing The Needs ...................................... 10 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 15 Appendix A: Appalachia Regional Profile ...................................................................................... i Appendix B: Recommended Strategies by Need Category ............................................................ ii Appendix C: Verbatim Public Comments from Appalachia RAC Website .................................. iii 1 PREFACE This report presents the deliberations of the Appalachia Regional Advisory Committee (Appalachia RAC), one of 10 RACs established under the Educational Technical Assistance Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C. sections 9601 et. seq.) to assess the educational needs of the region. The Committee‘s report outlines the educational needs across the four states of Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky that comprise the Appalachia region. Committee deliberations took place May 23, 2011, through June 21, 2011. Appalachia RAC members represented local and state education agencies; institutions of higher education; practicing educators, including classroom teachers, school board members, and other local school officials; business; and researchers. Members included: Name Affiliation Barbara ‗Bobbi‘ Lussier, Chair Tennessee Department of Education Dee Hopkins West Virginia University, College of Human Resources and Education Terry Lashley SouthEast Educational, Inc., Tennessee Lana Mullins Trigg County Public Schools, Kentucky Carol Muniz Morgantown Public Schools, West Virginia Kathleen Smith Virginia Department of Education, Office of School Improvement LaTonya Waller Richmond City Public Schools, Virginia Nancy Williamson Tennessee School Boards Association ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Appalachia RAC would like to thank Ronn Friend, Designated Federal Official (DFO) from the U.S. Department of Education (ED) and Rhonda Crenshaw, RAC Facilitator from Synergy Enterprises, Inc., for their assistance and support. The Appalachia RAC also would like to thank Rocky Knox, Bridget Belknap, Kipchumba Kitur, Akshay Jakatdar, and Clare Corroone from Synergy Enterprises, Inc., who assisted the Appalachia RAC by preparing the Regional Profile, helping the RAC organize the information gathered by the RAC, and documenting and providing logistical support for the Committee‘s public meetings, including webinars, under U.S. Department of Education Contract No. ED-ESE-11-C-0017 (Nancy Loy, Project Officer). 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY There are 10 Regional Advisory Committees (RACs) authorized by the Educational Technical Assistance Act of 2002 (Pub. L. 107-279; 20 U.S.C 9605). This report represents the work of the Appalachia Regional Advisory Committee (Appalachia RAC), which includes Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky. From May 23 – June 21, 2011, the Appalachia RAC worked to predict and prioritize the region‘s educational needs in the coming years and identify strategies to meet those needs. The Appalachia RAC members met with each other in three public meetings and reached out to their constituencies for input to include in their deliberations about the region‘s educational needs. School districts in Appalachia are in largely rural territories. In fact, only one of the four states in the region (Virginia) has a sizable number of urban and suburban districts. The region also has a substantial percentage of students from low socio-economic backgrounds as evidenced by the percentages of students receiving free and reduced lunches daily. (See Tables 1 through 5 in this report for more information on the educational profile of the region.) Given these factors that reflect the region‘s unique educational environment, members of the Appalachia RAC identified the following seven needs:  Closing the Achievement Gap.  Improving Instructional Leadership and Effectiveness.  Building and Sustaining Systemic Capacity.  Addressing Legislation.  Ensuring Equity.  Promoting Family/Community Engagement and Understanding Socio-Economic Status (SES) Factors.  Re-Thinking Education. These identified needs were overwhelmingly supported by various education stakeholders. To verify the needs, the Committee proposed and executed an outreach strategy that involved developing and administering an online survey via Survey Monkey. Individuals who responded to the survey included, but were not limited to, teachers, principals, parents, superintendents, community members, students, central office staff, staff from institutions of higher education, the business community, and staff from state and local government employees. The survey was administered to and received responses from 2,532 individuals. Members of the public were also given opportunities to comment on needs through the RAC website. Seventeen individuals commented using this site. Each of the needs conceptualized by the RAC is discussed in greater detail in this report, along with recommendations to address them from both members of the RAC and from the public. 3 INTRODUCTION This report represents the regional needs assessment of the Regional Advisory Committee (RAC) for the Appalachia region, which includes Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky. The Appalachia RAC members conducted outreach activities to obtain input from various constituencies on regional needs and how to address those needs, used statistical data from the Appalachia Regional Profile (Appendix A), and deliberated during three public meetings from May 23 through June 21, 2011. Legislative Background There are ten Regional Advisory Committees (RACs) authorized by the Educational Technical Assistance Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C. sections 9601 et. seq.). The RACs are governed by the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) (Public Law 92-463). Each RAC also has a charter that defines the RAC‘s roles and responsibilities. Regional Background Information A wealth of educational data is available about the Appalachia region, and was used to create a regional Profile that represents a descriptive statistical snapshot of the Appalachia states‘ educational status in various areas. The Appalachia RAC used member expertise, information from the Profile, and input from constituencies to identify the region‘s most pressing needs. The entire Profile can be found in Appendix A but excerpts are presented below that relate to the seven priority need areas identified by the Appalachia RAC. These areas are: (1) closing the achievement gap; (2) improving instructional leadership and effectiveness; (3) building and sustaining systemic capacity; (4) addressing legislation; (5) ensuring equity; (6) promoting family/community engagement and socio-economic (SES) factors; and (7) re-thinking education. The following data were considered when identifying all seven of the need areas and devising potential strategies to address the needs. 4 Percentage of School Districts by Metro Status. Figure 1 shows the percentage of school districts by metro status for the Appalachia region states. In three of the four region‘s states, a majority of school districts were located in rural areas. Virginia had the highest number of suburban and urban school districts. A rural area is a territory that is away from an urbanized area or urban cluster. An urban metro area is a territory that is inside an urbanized area and inside a principal city. A suburb is a territory that is outside a principal city and inside an urbanized area.1 Figure 1: Percentage of School Districts by Metro Status SOURCE: Common Core of Data, 2003-2004. Selected Student Subgroups. Table 1 displays data, such as the percentage of students receiving free and reduced-price lunch (FRPL), the percentage of students identifying as English language learners (ELL), and the percentage of students receiving special education services, as well as students considered homeless. Table 1: Selected Student Subgroups Percent of Students Receiving Free and Percent of Percent of Number of Number of Reduced-Price Students in Students With Migrant Homeless State Lunch¹ ELL/LEP¹ an IEP¹ Students² Students² Kentucky 51.6 2.2 16.1 3,105 22,626 Tennessee 50.0 2.8 12.2 3,072 9,836 Virginia 33.1 7.0 13.5 1,171 12,768 West Virginia 50.0 0.6 16.5 <100 4,257 SOURCES: ¹Common Core of Data, SY2008-2009; ²Consolidated State Performance Reports: SY2008-2009. 1 NCES‘s urbancentric locale categories, released in 2006: http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/ruraled/page2.asp. Last accessed on May 5, 2011. 5 Socioeconomic Indicators. Table 2 reveals data such as the total number of families, the percentage of families below the poverty level, and the percentage of families with children below the poverty level. Table 2: Socioeconomic Indicators Percent of Children With at Percent of Families Least One Percent of Students Percent of Families With Children Parent With a Receiving Free and Total Number Below the Below the Postsecondary Reduced-Price State of Families¹ Poverty Level¹ Poverty Level¹ Degree² Lunch³ Kentucky 1,128,816 13.4 20.4 39.4 51.6 Tennessee 1,617,722 12.2 18.8 38.8 50.0 Virginia 1,967,020 7.2 11.0 51.8 33.1 West Virginia 496,656 13.2 21.8 36.5 50.0 SOURCES: ¹American Community Survey, 2005-2009: U.S. Census Bureau; ²EPE Research Center, 2011; ³Common Core of Data, SY2008-2009. Educational Standards. Table 3 displays data such as high school graduation rate, percentage of students receiving high AP test scores and the number of credits required to earn a standard diploma. Table 3: Educational Standards Advanced Placement High State Test Scores (3 or Total Number Alternative Finances High School Above) Per of Credits Credential for Remediation Graduation 100 Students Required To Not Meeting Basis for State Has for Students Rate, in Grades 11 and Earn Standard All Standard Alternative Exit Failing Exit State SY2007-2008¹ 12 for 2009² Diploma² Requirements² Credential ² Exam² Exams² Kentucky 84.5 14.6 22.0  Disabilities Disabilities, Fail Tennessee 82.2 10 20.0   Exit Exam Disabilities, Virginia 80.0 35.2 22.0    District Criteria West Virginia 84.0 8.8 24.0  Disabilities SOURCES: ¹EDFacts/Consolidated State Performance Report, 2008-09; ²EPE Research Center, 2011. Meeting Requirements to Establish Standards. Table 4 displays whether states are meeting requirements to establish state standards in the areas of reading, math and science or have agreed to adopt Common Core State Standards. Table 4: Meeting Requirements To Establish Standards Agreed To Adopt Common Core State Reading¹ Mathematics¹ Science¹ Standards² Kentucky Yes Yes Yes Yes Tennessee Yes Yes Yes Yes Virginia Yes Yes Yes No West Virginia Yes Yes Yes Yes SOURCES: ¹Education Commission of the States NCLB database, downloaded March 2011; ²Common Core State Standards, downloaded March 2011. 6 Professional Development. Table 5 displays whether Appalachia has formal professional development standards or not, whether or not these are financed by the state and whether or not the state requires districts to align professional development with local priorities and goals. Table 5: Professional Development State Has Formal State Finances Professional State Requires Districts To Align Professional Development Development for All Professional Development With Local State Standards Districts Priorities and Goals Kentucky    Tennessee   Virginia    West Virginia    SOURCE: EPE Research Center, 2010. DATA COLLECTION: PUBLIC MEETINGS The Appalachia RAC held three public meetings; the first was a 2-day face-to-face meeting held on May 23 and 24, 2011, in Arlington, Virginia. During that meeting, Appalachia RAC members identified seven regional educational need areas based on the Appalachia Regional Profile (see Appendix A), Committee members‘ expertise and experience, as well as input they had received from constituent groups and public comments made at the meeting. The second meeting was conducted via online webinar on June 14, 2011. The public was invited to listen but submit comments via the RAC website (www.seiservices.com/rac) and Survey Monkey. At that meeting, Committee members reviewed the status of the online survey (using both their own online Survey Monkey and the online data from the RAC website) (see next section) and input from colleagues that was relevant to the needs identified by the Committee and the public. The Committee also reported on its reviews of existing data sources (e.g., the Kentucky Teaching, Empowering, Leading & Learning TELL Survey, etc.). Using all these information resources, the Appalachia RAC members were charged with securing more respondents to their online Survey Monkey and considering how best to integrate needs and strategies related to English language learners and libraries as offered via public comment. The third meeting also was an online webinar held on June 21, 2011. Again, members of the public listened but submitted their comments via the RAC web site and Survey Monkey. During the final meeting, RAC members reviewed the second set of data from the RAC website and the new information from their online survey from Survey Monkey. The Committee deliberated on new recommendations—noting the priority in some areas on technical assistance—and a format for the final report, with the goal of reaching consensus on key educational needs and their solutions. DATA COLLECTION: OUTREACH STRATEGIES The priority of the Appalachia RAC‘s needs assessment was to contact numerous constituencies including teachers, principals, state and local education administrators, governors, institutions of higher education/community colleges, post-secondary technical programs, parents, school boards (state and local), education professional organizations, teacher unions, local government, youth organizations, communities at large via faith and community-based organizations, chambers of 7 commerce, U.S. Congress members, and business leaders. Appalachia RAC members developed an outreach strategy to elicit input from stakeholders via the RAC website, online surveys using Survey Monkey, personal phone calls, and one-on-one and group meetings. This strategy consisted of drafting personal e-mail invitations to constituent groups to take the Survey Monkey survey and/or visit the RAC website to leave open-ended comments. Each RAC member revised the e-mail invitation to tailor the message for the intended target constituency group. Ultimately, the RAC members created an online Survey Monkey and an interview protocol that mirrored the online survey items. Some RAC members indicated that they would be willing to make personal phone calls to some targeted respondents and that they would be participating in gatherings of respondents groups. They reasoned that in such a setting it would be advantageous to have an interview version of the survey available to administer on site. RAC members agreed to summarize any data collected via interviews for inclusion in the final report. The survey and interview protocol listed each of the seven need areas and the RAC‘s proposed recommendations. Respondents were asked to identify whether they agree, disagree, or wanted to modify the need and/or the recommendations in an open-ended text box. Additionally, respondents were asked to identify their state and their primary role (e.g., teacher, parent, student, administrator, etc.) The protocol also provided respondents with an opportunity to identify any needs missed by the RAC. The survey was administered and received responses from 2,532 individuals. Individuals were not required to respond to each of the seven needs presented in the survey, but could skip items. Additionally, 17 comments from the public were captured from the RAC website. (See Appendix C for verbatim public comments from the RAC website.) Table 6 displays online response data captured from both Survey Monkey surveys and all RAC website comments combined. Table 7 shows the self-identified roles of the respondents from the RAC‘s online Survey Monkey and from the RAC website. Table 6: Members of the Public Submitting Comments by State (Survey Monkey and RAC website) State N % Virginia 1,213 48 West Virginia 615 24 Tennessee 322 12 Kentucky 398 16 Total 2,549 100 NOTE: Respondents could select only one state. 8 Table 7: Members of the Public Submitting Comments by Role Role N % Student 2 .1 Parent 244 10 Teacher 1,614 64 Principal 119 5 Curriculum Specialist 55 2 Superintendent or Director of Schools 28 .1 Other Central Office Staff 81 3 Higher Education Staff 52 2 Community Member 76 3 Representative of Chambers of Commerce 3 .1 Local or State Government Employee 133 5 Librarians 9 .1 Other 352 14 Appalachia RAC members reviewed the comments and found that most were aligned with and validated the RAC‘s assessment of the most pressing needs in the region. A summary of the public comments appears in Appendix B. They are organized as individual tables by area of need. CROSS-CUTTING CHALLENGES IMPACTING REGIONAL NEEDS Technology as a Tool – Not a Solution The Appalachia RAC‘s proceedings generated much discourse about technology. The members agreed that technology is integral to education design and delivery. They understand the implications of technology with regard to the readiness of students entering a global, digitally dependent workforce. The Committee believes that technology must be fully and appropriately integrated into the education and overall experience of students, teachers, administrators, and community members at large. It also acknowledges that its highly rural region with significant pockets of poverty must continue strides to close the digital divide through better technological infrastructure and enhanced technology access. Despite these conditions, the Committee deeply believes that technology is merely a tool and not a cure-all solution for addressing the educational needs of the Appalachia region—a belief that framed its assessment of the region‘s educational needs and strategies to meet those needs. As such, the Appalachia RAC determined that for each of the seven need areas identified in this report, it should be assumed by the reader that technology could and, in most cases, will play a supportive role as a tool used to address various needs. Data-Informed Decision making Throughout the Appalachia RAC‘s process of brainstorming education topics before determining a finite set of regional needs, a particular focus on enhancing data collection methods and using the data to more effectively inform decision making applied across every need category. Committee members agreed that although accurate data are critical to decision makers, in most instances, educators and administrators focus largely, if not entirely, on data derived from standardized student test scores. Preferring the term ―data-informed‖ to ―data-driven‖—the latter concept too closely aligned with a narrow view of reliable and relevant data sources in education––Appalachia RAC members believe that decisions are better informed when based 9