Program Improvement Letter Fairview Middle School - Gonzales ...

Governing Board
Wendy Franscioni
Danny F. Avalos
Elizabeth Funk
Sonia Jaramillo
Jose Ramirez
Superintendent &
Secretary to the Board
Elizabeth A. Modena
www.gonzales.k12.ca.us
Committed to Excellence
FAIRVIEW MIDDLE SCHOOL
September 12, 2011
To the Parents/Guardians of students at Fairview Middle School:
The purpose of this letter is to inform you that our school district has entered Program Improvement (PI) Year 2 and
Fairview Middle School has been identified as a PI school Year 5 under the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act
of 2001.
What is a PI District?
The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)/No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 requires all states
to create high academic standards for what a child should know and be able to do for all grades in English-language
arts and mathematics, to annually review the performance of each local educational agency (LEA) that receives Title I,
Part A funds, and to inform parents/guardians about LEA performance. Gonzales Unified School District (GUSD) has
now been identified as a PI LEA Year 2 because the federal targets for adequate yearly progress (AYP) were not met.
You can find specific achievement data for GUSD used to make this decision at http://www.cde.gov/ta/ac/ay or by
contacting Zandra Galvan at 675-0100 for a hard copy of the report. GUSD is and will continue to be focused on
academic achievement. This year GUSD will write an addendum to the LEA plan, reserve at least ten percent of our
annual Title I allocation to provide professional development for teachers and administrators, and will continue to
provide assistance to all PI schools.
What is a PI School?
NCLB requires the state and district to review annually the academic progress of federally funded Title I schools and
to identify schools in need of improvement. These schools are identified as PI schools after two consecutive years of
not making AYP. California determines AYP by considering the following four measures:
• The percentage of students scoring at the “proficient” or “advanced” level on the California Standards Tests
for English-language arts and mathematics
• The percentage of students participating in those tests
• The graduation rate for high schools
• California’s own accountability measurement of progress, the Academic Performance Index (API)
What is our school identified as PI?
The reason our school continues in PI is because it did not achieve AYP in 2006-07 thru 2010-11. The AYP area(s)
that caused the identification are:
• English-language arts
• Mathematics

The school’s 2009-10 Accountability Progress Report may be obtained from the school or on the California
Department of Education (CDE) Web site at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/ay.
Public school choice: What right does a parent have to request a transfer to a school that is not in
PI?
All parents/guardians of students attending a PI school have the right to request a transfer of their child(ren) to a non-
PI district school with district-paid transportation. However, at this time Fairview Middle School is the only middle
school in the district thus this option is not available. If you are interested in transferring your child(ren) to a non-PI
school in a neighboring district for the 2011-12 school year, please contact the district office.
Name of School
API
Scores *
ACHIEVEMENT DATA 2010-11
English-language arts
Percent Proficient or above**
(Middle School target = 67.6%)
Mathematics Percent Proficient or
above**
(Middle School target= 68.5%)
Fairview Middle School 682/800 31 31.4
Other Gonzales Unified
Middle Schools
N/A N/A N/A
Other California Middle
Schools
778/800 56.2 58.4
* 800 on the API = Meeting the state proficiency target for schools on the Academic Performance Index
** Percentage targets vary by grade level span.
*** A school does not make their AYP targets if one or more subgroup/s does not meet the AYP target
Supplemental educational services (SES): How does a parent obtain a provider for their child?
Students from low-income families at continuing PI schools, whose parents did not select a public school choice
option, are eligible for free SES. These services are classes or tutoring which occur outside the regular school day with
educational providers approved by the State Board of Education. If the number of eligible students who apply for the
SES program exceeds the financial resources available, the lowest achieving students from low-income families will
receive SES first.
What will the school do to address the problem of low achievement?
We are working closely with the district staff to revise our school plan to include:
• Revise the Single Plan for Student Achievement as a guiding document to program improvement.
• Strategies, policies, and practices that utilize scientifically-based research and have the greatest likelihood of
ensuring that all groups of students will meet the state’s achievement targets
• High quality professional development that will lead to removing the school from PI status
• Strategies to promote effective parental involvement in the school
• Addition of the AVID Program in grades 7 th and 8 th
• Increased time for Reading (2-3 hours) and Math (1-2 hours) to include intervention and enrichment time
• After School Safety and Education Grant serving 80-120 students until 6:00 p.m.
• Monthly Parent meetings and Education courses
• College Environment and college week activities
• Targeted English language learner program to include newcomers and teaching beyond student CELDT levels
to improve English language achievement
• Target Algebra strategies in grades 5 th and 6 th to prepare students for Algebra in 7 th and 8 th

• Incorporate Step Up to Writing strategies in all grades 5 th -8 th
• Library Instructional Technology Specialist
• Align benchmark assessments to monitor and target individual student needs in all areas
What are the district and state doing to support schools in PI Year 5 (Restructuring
Implementation)?
Our district is working closely with the CDE to improve curriculum, instruction, and student performance. Schools
in PI Year 5 must prepare a restructuring plan for alternative governance to include at least one of the following:
• Reopen the school as a public charter school
• Replace all or most of the school staff (which may include the principal) who are relevant to the failure to
make AYP
• Enter into a contract with an entity, such as a private management company, with a demonstrated record of
effectiveness, to operate the public school
• Any other major restructuring of the school’s governance arrangement that make fundamental reform
• As required by NCLB, invite both teachers & parents to participate in the implementation of the
restructuring plan.
How can parents become involved?
Research shows that strong parental involvement leads to student success at school. Parents interested in partnering
with the school are encouraged to contact the school for additional information regarding:
• Parental involvement policies
• School-parent compact
• Ongoing parent/community meetings
• Advisory committee/school site council meetings/English learner advisory council meetings
• Parent volunteer opportunities
We will keep you updated and informed about opportunities to discuss plans for our school. If you have questions,
need additional information on how you can get involved in our school improvement efforts, or would like to discuss
the school’s instructional program and PI status, please feel free to call us at 675-3704 and/or visit our school.
Sincerely, Sincerely, Sincerely,
Elizabeth A. Modena Al Velasquez Jesus Velasquez
Superintendent Principal Learning Coordinator
Gonzales Unified School District Fairview Middle School Fairview Middle School