New Mexico Public Education Department 2010 Annual Report Making Schools Work Table of Contents AAnnnnuuaall RReeppoorrtt 22001100 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................ 2 2 AAccaaddeemmiicc RRiiggoorr aanndd AAccccoouunnttaabbiilliittyy .............................................................................................................................................................. 3 3 CClloossiinngg tthhee AAcchhiieevveemmeenntt GGaapp .............................................................................................................................................................................. 5 5 SScchhooooll RReeaaddiinneessss .................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 9 9 QQuuaalliittyy TTeeaacchheerrss .................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 1 111 2211sstt CCeennttuurryy CCllaassssrroooommss .......................................................................................................................................................................................... 1 133 PPaarreenntt aanndd CCoommmmuunniittyy IInnvvoollvveemmeenntt………………………………………………………………………………………………………………1155 CCoolllleeggee aanndd WWoorrkkffoorrccee RReeaaddiinneessss ............................................................................................................................................................ 1 177 LLooookkiinngg FFoorrwwaarrdd .................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 1 199 The accomplishments listed in this report would not have been possible without the support of our statewide partners. We thank you for helping us to create a world class education system that prepares all students in New Mexico for success.  The New Mexico Public Education Department (NMPED) 2010 Annual Report is published by the Office of the Secretary of Education. New Mexico Public Education Department Jerry Apodaca Building 300 Don Gaspar Santa Fe, NM 87501-2786 (505) 827-5800 www.ped.state.nm.us Annual Report 2010 The New Mexico Public Education Department 2010 Annual Report was created as a way to reflect on the accomplishments in education that occurred under Governor Bill Richardson’s administration from 2002–2010. In 2003, the Governor outlined a reform agenda and pledged his commitment to improve education in New Mexico. His first order of business was to work with the legislature to place two amendments to the state constitution before voters. The first established a Public Education Department with a secretary accountable to the governor. The second tapped into the state’s Permanent Fund to increase investments to education. Voters approved both Governor Richardson and Secretary García working amendments, paving the way for a coordinated approach to together to address the unique reform at the executive level. needs of New Mexico students. In the fall of 2003, Governor Richardson nominated New Mexico’s first cabinet level Secretary of Education, Dr. Veronica García. She began her term by outlining an aggressive, integrated action plan to raise expectations and close the achievement gap in New Mexico, which included the following components: • Targeted district and school support • Alignment of rigorous state standards for excellence and state assessments • Redefinition of and increase in parent involvement • Focus on English language acquisition and literacy Together with the Governor, Secretary García drafted a state strategic plan for education, Making Schools Work, to address the unique needs of New Mexico students. They identified the following reform areas to target: • Academic Rigor and Accountability • Closing the Achievement Gap • School Readiness • Quality Teachers • Parent & Community Involvement • 21st Century Classrooms • College & Workforce Readiness These seven areas provide the structure for this annual report. Due to Secretary García’s effort up to her retirement Dr. Susanna Murphy, Secretary of in July of 2010, New Mexico leads the nation in Education, (second from right) with staff from Las Cruces Public Schools comprehensive approaches to education reform and has received significant national recognition. In August 2010, Dr. Susanna Murphy was appointed Secretary Designate and continued the momentum of reform. The accomplishments listed on the following pages illustrate the profound transformation that took place in education in New Mexico over the past eight years, truly confirming Bill Richardson as the Education Governor for our state. NMPED | 2010 Annual Report 2 Academic Rigor and Accountability The implementation of the federal No Child Left Behind Act ushered in the era of high-stakes testing. Schools and districts are rated as making or not making adequate progress based on the performance of their students. State agencies are responsible for setting the level at which a student is considered proficient. Under the leadership of Secretary García, New Mexico chose to keep its standard for proficiency high while addressing issues facing our students that negatively impact their achievement, such as poverty and language. In order to boost rigor and accountability, the following actions were taken:  Replaced the state’s criteria-based test with a standards-based test (2005)  Adopted the Student & Teacher Accountability and Reporting System (STARS) ensuring that each student in New Mexico is assigned a unique identification number creating the ability for schools and the state to collect and analyze for longitudinal student data (2006)  Established a Math and Science Bureau within the Public Education Department (2006)  Named a statewide Math and Science Advisory Council with representatives from K–12, higher education, and the private sector (2006)  Created the Charter Schools Division as part of the Charter Schools Act giving parents a choice in public education (2004)  Signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the Council of Chief State School Officers and the National Governors Association to adopt Common Core State Standards (CCSS) along with 47 other states that have also committed to adopting the CCSS (2009)  Adopted CCSS in Mathematics and Language Arts to be implemented in classrooms in July 2012 (2010) Recognition and Results New Mexico has been recognized for its efforts in the area of Academic Rigor and Accountability in the following ways:  Earned recognition as only 1 of 11 states to have standards-based assessments aligned to strong content standards. American Federation of Teachers (2006) NMPED | 2010 Annual Report 3 Academic Rigor and Accountability  Recognized by the National College Board as having state standards that are well aligned with the SAT, PSAT, and AP tests (2006–2007)  Placed 2nd in the nation for education reform, leading the country in three categories: curricular content, standards-based reform, and school choice. How Well are States Educating our Neediest Children? Fordham Foundation (2006)  Recognized by the U. S. Department of Education for having high academic standards aligned to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) (2007)  Received full approval by the U. S. Department of Education for the New Mexico Standards-Based Assessment after a rigorous peer review process (2008)  Recognized by the Regional Education Laboratory for having mathematics standards highly aligned with the NAEP (2008)  Recognized as 16th nationally for having strong policy on standards, assessments, and accountability. Education Week, Quality Counts Survey (2008)  Recognized among the top rural states for proficiency of reading Academic rigor occurs when students are able to demonstrate and math by the National in-depth mastery, achievement, and application of the state’s Center for Education learning standards. Rigor in teaching promotes student growth Statistics (NCES) and achievement.  Rated by NCES for rigor of standards. New Mexico is 9th in the nation in fourth grade reading, 9th in the nation for fourth grade math, 6th in eighth grade math and 14th in eighth grade reading in a comparison of the New Mexico Standards Based Assessment and the NAEP assessment (2009) NMPED | 2010 Annual Report 4 Closing the Achievement Gap The core of the Public Education Department’s work is student academic achievement. New Mexico is faced with some long standing and unique challenges, including having a population with great diversity, many languages and cultures, significant poverty, and geographic isolation. Governor Richardson viewed these challenges as opportunities for reform and charged Secretary García with developing initiatives to level the playing field for all students, regardless of their background. She led this effort through collaboration with the business community, education partners, practitioners, legislators, and her staff through the following:  Created the Priority Schools Bureau within the Public Education Department. The purpose of this bureau is to collaborate with schools to provide support and assistance for student achievement (2004)  Created a support system for schools that do not make Adequate Yearly Progress for more than two years in a row. This system of support is anchored in the Educational Plan for Student Success (EPSS), a strategic plan that every school must submit (2007)  Implemented the WebEPSS, a web-based tool that allows districts to align funding with research based decision making (2008)  Established a regional model of school improvement to provide support to schools and districts through collaboration with districts, Regional Educational Cooperatives, and educational partners across the state (2009)  Created the Rural Education Division within the Public Education Department to strengthen school, family, and rural community relationships while enhancing opportunities for lifelong learning (2006)  New Mexico Secretary of Education, Implemented the only comprehensive Indian Dr. Veronica García, with Dr. Education Act in the nation which includes the Evangeline Parsons Yazzie, one of following (2003): the authors of the first textbook in  Alignment of BIA & public school systems the nation for teaching the Navajo language (2008) creating equitable access and educational opportunities while maintaining Native languages  The study, development & implementation of positive educational systems  Increased tribal involvement & control with tribal approval of curricula development  Cooperation among NM, Arizona, Utah & The Navajo Nation solidifying formal government to government relationships NMPED | 2010 Annual Report 5 Closing the Achievement Gap  Created MOUs recognizing the unique role and sovereignty of tribes in establishing standards and criteria for, and determining competency of, persons seeking certification in Native American Language and Culture, K-12 (2003)  Adopted a textbook for teaching the Navajo Language—first state in the nation to do this (2008)  Increased from 81 to 184 the number of Native American teachers and administrators in programs for advanced degrees or administrative certificates (2006 to 2007)  Supported student wellness in the following ways:  Adopted Health and Physical Education performance standards in state rule (2006)  Assisted all 89 school districts in developing wellness policies which included forming school health advisory committees, and nutrition and physical activity components (2006)  Regulated vending and removed junk food from schools (2006)  Increased from 70 to 84 the number of school-based health centers (2007 to 2008). These health centers received more than 40,200 student visits and served nearly 19,000 youth over the course of the 2007–2008 school year  Expanded elementary physical education programs to cover an additional 38,600 students in grades K–6 (2008), which has grown to 72,000 (2010)  Held four Governor’s Summits on the Achievement Gap each with a separate focus—English Language Learner, Hispanic, Native American, and African- American. The purpose of the summits was to call attention to educational challenges, collaboratively arrive at solutions, and engage parents and communities in the process (2009)  Passed the Hispanic Education Act to improve the education of New Mexico’s Hispanic students and close the achievement gap (2009)  Appointed the Hispanic Education Advisory Council to advise the secretary on matters related to improving public school education for Hispanic students, to increasing parent involvement and community engagement, and to increasing the number of Hispanic high school graduates who succeed in post-secondary academic, professional or career education (2010) Recognition and Results New Mexico has been recognized for its efforts in the area of Closing the Achievement Gap in the following ways:  Ranked 2nd nationally for food available to students and 4th nationally for a strong nutrition policy. Center for Science and the Public Interest (2006) NMPED | 2010 Annual Report 6 Closing the Achievement Gap  Ranked 1st in the nation for the percentage of eligible low-income students eating free and reduced priced breakfast. Food and Research Action Center (2007)  Increased from 63 to 113 the number of newly-certified Native American teachers (2006 to 2007)  Earned a “B+” for resource equity to schools. Education Week, “Quality Counts Survey” (2007)  Received $28 million in School Improvement Grants to turn around 9 of New Mexico’s persistent lowest-achieving schools as part of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) (2010)  Showed steady, incremental increase on the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) from 2003-2009:  Achieved New Mexico’s highest average scale scores for Hispanic students for both grade 4 and grade 8 mathematics (2009)  Increased test scores in grade 4 math and reading (2009)  Increased grade 4 performance on the assessment in math at a faster rate than that of the nation (2009)  Increased the percentage of students proficient or above by 11% in math and 6% in science from 2004-2009 Bluewater Elementary School in the Grants-Cibola County Schools district honored as Blue Ribbon School of the Year, 2009 NMPED | 2010 Annual Report 7 C losing the Achievement Gap New Mexico students have shown a gradual upward trend in Math, Reading, and Science achievement. Over the last six years, the percent of students proficient or above has increased 12% overall in Math, 3% overall in Reading, and 6% overall in Science. The following are a few achievement highlights:  Native American 3rd graders showed the largest increase of 7% in the 2009-2010 school year, closing the achievement gap in 3rd grade Math by 4 points over 2009  Overall, 4th grade math proficiency increased 3% from 2009 to 2010, and 6% over six years  Native Americans showed the greatest three-year gains in math for the 2009- 2010 school year at 8% followed by Hispanics at 7%  For the 2009-2010 school year, Native Americans show the largest six year gains posting a 5% increase  Fifteen schools made AYP for two straight years, beginning with the 2008-2009 school year, to exit In Need of Improvement designations NMPED | 2010 Annual Report 8 School Readiness During the first few years Governor Richardson was in office, a campaign was undertaken to educate legislators and the public about the tremendous impact early learning can have on overall achievement. This campaign received support from the Lieutenant Governor, Diane Denish. The legislature funded numerous early childhood programs. We are now seeing the positive effects of these rd programs with New Mexico’s 2009-2010 3 graders, the second group of students to attend full day kindergarten, who posted the largest achievement gain in math. Here are some steps taken to ensure all children are ready for school.  Achieved a milestone—Full day kindergarten in New Mexico celebrated the fifth and final year of phase in, which began in 2000. All school districts now offer Full Day Kindergarten programs (2005)  Adopted statewide early learning outcomes for pre-kindergarten (Pre-K) (2005)  Passed the Pre-K Act to promote intellectual, emotional, social and physical development (2005)  Invested $17.6 million in Pre-K programs to be administered by the Public Education Department and the Children, Youth, and Families Department (2008) New Mexico’s K-3 Plus program aims to demonstrate that increased time in  Funded at $7.2 million—New Mexico’s kindergarten and the early grades narrows the K-3 Plus program serving 6,996 achievement gap between disadvantaged students in 92 schools and 25 school students and other students. districts (2008–2009)  Served 4,745 four-year-olds in 152 Pre-K programs administered by both the Public Education Department and the Children, Youth and Families Department (2009)  Funded with an additional $17 million—New Mexico’s K-3 Plus program (2010) Recognition and Results New Mexico has been recognized for its efforts in the area of School Readiness in the following ways:  Ranked in the top 10 states in the nation for reading achievement by the federal Reading First Office in three categories—grades 1, 2, and 3, grade 3 for students with disabilities, and grades 1 and 2 for English Language Learners (2006) NMPED | 2010 Annual Report 9