By Robert Morales —
For the last two years, the district is being evaluated on a standard
called Phase I Level 2. Every student has a standard that must be met,
and that standard will become more rigorous under Phase II Level 2 next
year.
According to Mr. Puig, if the new standard were to be applied today, the district would have likely not the Level 2 category.
Eagle Elementary: Student achievement – the target for the state was 50, but CCAISD achieved 72 at Phase I Level 2.
Index 2 is about student progress. “Are kids growing?” asked Mr.
Puig. One example he provided was that 80-percent of elementary students
met or exceeded mathematics, the highest in the district.
At the junior high, 63-percent of students of all students in reading
met or exceeded standard. In math, less than half made progress. “We
shouldn't see this disparity between campuses; we should see more
uniformity. When the district gets more fully aligned, you'll start to
see those scores be closer together.”
At the high school, the numbers are about the same as junior high.
Only about 25-percent of high schoolers are at the Level 2 standard.
“We've got a lot of work to do. Our burning focus is teaching learning.
We have a huge gap by letting students know and parents know that [we
have to get to the next level].
As for school finances, Mr. Puig reported that the district has $1.34
million in the fund balance account, or about 3.84 months. “We're doing
fine with our money,” he said. He added that student enrollment has
reached 463, or a 12-percent increase over the same time last year.
By the same token, two years ago, staff numbered 88, and today that number has dropped to 63.
In other action, trustees approved the annual review of CCAISD
Investment Policy, which included approval of an investment resolution
for the Public Fund Investment.
Finally, Mr. Puig completed his presentation by talking about the
prospects of a bond issue. He will form a “Bond Steering Committee” that
will be composed of parents, students, civic leaders and teachers. The
committee will make its recommendation to the school board in this
December or January, 2014.
