Transition Team 2016-17 Final Report

8 \ EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Among the major challenges is the fact
that teacher turnover rates remain
high, especially in the first 10 years
of service, which places a demand on
the system to fill vacancies; therefore,
developing newly hired teachers is
another major challenge. Respondents
report that GCS salaries are not
competitive regionally or nationally,
despite adding a local supplement to
the state’s average teacher pay, which
ranks 41st nationally. Respondents
also noted that working conditions in
some schools (designated planning
time and the opportunity to collaborate
and engage in improving instruction)
limit teacher effectiveness and school
performance.
The principal pipeline is equally
challenging, with North Carolina
ranking last out of 50 states in pay for
school leaders. With more than 50
percent of GCS leaders at or within five
years of retirement age, and with fewer
young people pursuing education as a
career in North Carolina and nationally,
it is clear that the traditional career
paths for educators and administrators
are insufficient to meet current and
future demands. As research indicates
that principal leadership and teacher
effectiveness are the two most potent
drivers of better student learning and
life outcomes, recruiting top talent
to GCS is perhaps the district’s most
critical need.
ORGANIZATIONAL
EFFECTIVENESS FOR
OPTIMAL LEARNING
GCS has a student-focused school
board and a lean management
approach, with nearly all operational
areas scoring well on key performance
measures in comparison with other
peer member districts of the Council of
Great City Schools (CGCS). According
to GCS data, a 2015 fiscal analysis by
Schoolhouse Partners emphasized this
point, noting that 95.9 percent of all
“The district’s
financial system is
more than 20 years
old and does not
interface with the
equally outmoded
human resources
and payroll
systems.”
district expenditures focus on program
activities tied to the core business
of the school district – teaching and
learning.
Although the majority of district
resources are dedicated to teaching
and learning, the sub-committee
identified several inefficiencies that
are impeding the district’s ability to
better resource these efforts. A chronic
lack of investment in core operational
areas and infrastructure is costing the
district money in terms of the higher
personnel costs, duplication of efforts
and increased reliance on manual
processes due to inadequate and
outmoded technologies and systems.
For example, the district’s financial
system is more than 20 years old and
does not interface with the district’s
equally outmoded human resources
and payroll systems. At the same
time, the inadequate size and scope of
the district’s maintenance facility for
school buses, penalize the district’s
state efficiency rating, resulting in
GCS receiving less state funding than
comparable districts in North Carolina.
Lastly, while the school board’s
magnet/choice school transportation
policies reflect a commitment to
equity that needs to be maintained,
other savings might be available by
combining services or other innovative
approaches. In addition, the district’s
longstanding emphasis on site-based
decision making has expanded beyond
the current research regarding school
leader efficacy, and thus limits the
most effective deployment of resources
and capital for supporting teaching and
learning to improve student outcomes.
While central office leaders and
staff members are perceived as
knowledgeable and responsive, the
district’s current organizational
structure lacks cohesion in terms of
its support for teaching and learning.
Supervisory duties in multiple areas
go beyond recommended levels for
effective monitoring, evaluation and
improvement.