Core Commitments I Accomplishments I District Goals

Elected in 2003 and re-elected in 2006, Jeff Thielman ran for School Committee on four core commitments:

• Accountability.  It is critical that School Committee decisions are transparent and that the Committee listens carefully to all segments of the Arlington community.
• Excellence.  Every child must receive an excellent education in the Arlington Public Schools.  Students in our special education program must receive the services they deserve, our English Language Learners deserve a top-notch education, class sizes need to remain small, and the unique needs of each child must be met by classroom teachers and specialists.
• New Perspectives.  As someone who works with schools across the country, Jeff is able to bring what he’s learned elsewhere to the Arlington Public Schools.
• More Resources.  Jeff co-chaired the successful 2005 override that stabilized the Town’s fiscal situation and prevented catastrophic cuts in our schools.  He has taken difficult votes that have resulted in improved services and support for children, and he has lobbied for more state aid to public schools.

Some accomplishments of the past two years. . .
Since 2005, the School Committee has voted for budgets and programs that are allowing the Superintendent, his staff and the faculty to make measurable improvements in the Arlington Public Schools. The changes that have been made are built upon the past success of the Arlington Public Schools.  Some of the significant achievements of the past two years include:

• The development of nine schools that work as a coordinated system.  Students benefit from a coordinated system because curriculum and learning must be sequential and well planned.  This approach leverages the best practices of each school and makes it a best practice for 9 schools, not just 1.  Examples of a coordinated system include:
• Closer working relationship between the seven elementary principals.
• Closer collaboration between the middle school and the high school; for example, the 8th and 9th grade Social Studies curriculum is being better coordinated. 
• Bridges have been built between principals and curriculum leaders (department heads), who were accustomed to working separately.
• Essential standards have been identified in Math and English Language Arts by teams of teachers with support from principals and curriculum leaders.  The standards answer the core question:  “What should each student know and be able to do?”
• Common assessments have been developed in math and language arts that allow teachers to assess (other than with MCAS) what students have learned and what teaching styles are most effective. These assessments were developed by teams of teachers with support from principals and curriculum leaders.

• Improvements in Special Education.   In June of 2005, the Department of Education declared our Special Ed department one of the lowest functioning in the state. At that time our on time compliance rate was below 10%, and parents filed grievances frequently. The Special Ed Pac was hostile towards the district, and no plan was in place to address the concerns, which had been documented by the DOE for the last 12 years.  Some of the changes in the Special Education program include:
• Massive reorganization of the department has increased the district’s on-time compliance rate to over 75%.
• The Special Education PAC has been an active participant in shaping a vision statement and goals for the program. 
• Parent grievances have dropped to normal or below normal levels according to the state Department of Education.
• The District has in-house Special Education programs that will allow more students to stay in district.  This is better educationally and has the potential to save the district money each year

• Updating the English Language Learner (ELL) Program.  The district was not in compliance with the legal needs of nearly all ELL students according to a report done by the Department of Education in 2005.  The district is now 100% compliant.  The new program is based on best practices from around the country and includes a voluntary professional development program for faculty designed to teach ways to respond to the needs of the nearly 200 English Language Learners in our schools.  The District has partnered with the World Language Network (WLN), an Arlington-based volunteer group, to welcome non-English speaking families to Arlington.

• Improved teacher training (professional development).  Many teachers and principals expressed concern that professional development was not focused.  Staff surveys of the professional development offered during the 2006-07 school year indicated that 85% of the staff felt the programs offered helped them be a better teacher or serve students better.  Professional development time has more than doubled for many departments, and the district has created common planning time, meaning teachers have time to meet and plan teaching approaches together.  Finally, a culture has been created that promotes the sharing of best practices district-wide. 

• Prioritize children’s needs within a tight budget.  In a difficult vote in March of 2006, days before the election, the School Committee passed a budget that reduced several administrative positions in order to fund an extensive reading program, math support teachers, more counseling, more foreign language teachers, more ELL staff, and increased teacher training.  The cuts allowed the district to maintain class sizes. The budget developed by the Superintendent was clear, transparent, detailed and widely praised by town leaders.  The District also developed a partnership with the Arlington Youth Consultation Center (AYCC), which assured that quality counseling would be provided to students while at the same time saving the Arlington Public Schools $250,000 per year. 

• The establishment of high expectations district-wide and a conversation about what students need to know to succeed in the 21st century.  The district’s leadership team has brought a can do attitude that believes our very good schools can always improve through teamwork, high expectations and a willingness to make tough decisions for the benefit of the students of Arlington.  In this context, the district has launched an open, far reaching dialogue about what skills, knowledge, and habits of mind students need to be emotionally, socially, and vocationally successful in the 21st century.  The curriculum will be modified as this process moves forward over the next few years.

District Goals
Each year the School Committee approves yearly goals proposed by the Superintendent and his staff.  The goal setting process each year is driven by principals and department heads who consult with faculty.  Public forums are held as well to get input from parents and community members. 

The purpose of setting goals is to ensure that the Arlington Public Schools continue to improve each year.  During the past two years Jeff Thielman has chaired the Superintendent Accountability subcommittee, which is responsible for tracking the progress the Superintendent and his staff make each year on the yearly goals.  In 2006-07, the district achieved 71% of the goals it set for itself that year. 
To see the progress made in 2006-07, please see http://www.arlington.k12.ma.us. 
The School Committee will review the following proposed goals at the first meeting in November:

• SPECIAL EDUCATION AND ELL:  All special education students will achieve their full academic and social potential.
• STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT:  All students will attain high levels of academic success through the implementation of data driven, standards based education.
• AN APPROPRIATE EDUCATION FOR A COMPLEX WORLD:  Ensure that all Arlington graduates are well prepared for social, emotional and vocational success.
• WORK ENVIRONMENT TO SUPPORT TEACHING AND LEARNING:  Provide tools and systems that enable staff to focus on student success.

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