Repost-Marshall Closure and Transition Q&A
The post below originally appeared on December 4, 2010. It’s now almost a year later and time to look back at what was promised and what’s been done.
Student Representative Henry Li’s Student Representative’s report being distributed at Monday’s board meeting (11/28/11) states ”Students related how, at both Madison and Franklin, TriMet buses were the main way for students to get to their new schools. The buses are so packed that some have to wait for two or three more buses to come before they can arrive at school or home. Some students who live closer to Franklin have to attend Madison instead, and vice versa – because the school district apparently transferred students to their new schools by cohorts: Renaissance Arts, BizTech, etc.” and “at Franklin, students described crowded conditions such that students must sit on windowsills in class.”
Yes, after spending who knows how much on hiring a firm to determine school closures based on enrollment and neighborhood demographics, PPS moved kids based on cohorts not proximity.
And Franklin student, Jazzmine Alcala commented this morning “First of all.. there has been no effort to monitor the former Marshall students’ well being other than the occasional ‘how are you doing?’ from a former Marshall teacher. I can promise you the number of former Marshall students even attending class is not being monitored because I see that number depleting everyday myself.” She asks “How many more students does PPS plan on losing, now that even more students will have a harder time finding their way to school?”
From 12/4/10:
A Marshall parent (Kelly McGrath) serving on the Marshall Transition Advisory Committee posed the following questions to PPS. Their responses are included below:
What’s going to happen with the millions in grant funds that were obtained for Marshall? Will the funds follow the students? How will the district’s funding formulas be changed to address the increased needs of the schools?
A. Some grants were designated for the district and the district decided which schools could benefit. In those cases, money can be moved from one school to the other. Some grants have restrictions on the populations or usage, and they are being reevaluated this year to see what can move with the students. We will not know our funding/budget for several months. The general fund money that pays for many of our employees is expected to be less than this year considering the economy of the state. At this time no funding formulas have been confirmed for the 2011-12 school year.
Q. What is the plan for the 11 Marshall Project Return Homeless Youth students that fall under the McKinney Vento Act?
A. Those students will maintain their Title X status and continue with their present support system when they transfer to Franklin or Madison.
Q. Does the program for teen parents with infants/toddlers move to both Madison and Franklin? What happens to other incoming new or to be parents in the district when Marshall closes? Will they continue to receive TriMet passes?
A. As part of our capacity analysis, we are looking at the feasibility of placing the childcare at Madison where we are anticipating the likelihood of placing Marshall Night School. It is our hope to continue with two district-wide childcare facilities that will serve additional students (one will be at Roosevelt). The district and TriMet are in negotiations. We are advocating for all of our high school students and asking that the free bus passes continue next year.
Q. Will the night school program transfer to both Franklin and Madison? How does the closure affect those currently enrolled?
A. If the night school moves to Madison, we do not anticipate any break in their education.
Q. What are the plans for special education students and ELL concerns?
A. Students who are on an IEP and go to the resource center rooms for support will continue to do that at both Franklin and Madison. They will go to their assigned school based on which small school they are presently attending, exactly the same as non-special education students. We have not yet determined the placement for students who are in our special education self-contained classrooms. This cannot be done until the new boundaries are voted upon by the school board. Where the students live will be a significant factor in their new placement. ELL students will continue to receive the appropriate level learning supports regardless of their placements at Franklin or Madison. Both schools are adequately staffed.
Q. What happens to the MESD Health Clinic and the SUN program? Will Franklin become a SUN school?
A. This is another capacity issue. We have to make certain that there is room for additional programs at both Franklin and Madison. Madison has a health clinic, and Franklin would like to have one if capacity and finances allow for that addition. Madison will maintain its SUN program and Franklin would like to have it at their school if space allows.
Q. Is there any flexibility in school choice for displaced students, especially when programs aren’t currently offered at their new school?
A. The superintendent’s decision regarding school assignments included an option for students to enter into a lottery for the other assigned school. If students are still displeased with the final outcome, they can go through the lottery process with the rest of the district in February.
Q. How do teachers follow students? Will certain science, art, business teachers follow groups of students into each new school?
A. The assigning of teachers to Franklin and Madison will depend on seniority first. The teachers’ contract has a provision for mergers and closures of schools. There are enough students going to a particular school that teachers will follow them depending on their seniority in the district and what courses are taught at the new school.
Q. Are Marshall students going to be able to get the classes they need to continue their tracks?
A. Courses that are required for graduation are offered at the new schools. There may be unique courses offered at Marshall that are not offered in the new school. That does not mean they could not be offered in the future. Please note, that by attending a school with a larger population, students will actually have more course offerings from which to select.
Q. Will Marshall students have priority in the new schools when registering for classes for 2011-12?
A. Probably not. They will be students of their new school and treated on an equal basis with all other students who are new to the building or already attending.
Q. What is the outline for the cohort program? Based on small schools, location, grade level?
A. The superintendent decided that students of small schools will travel together to their newly assigned high school. There is no Marshall cohort within the new schools.
Q. When will new core programs be revealed in all schools?
A. Entering freshman will have access to the defined core program by the time they graduate. This includes advanced courses (IB or AP), two world languages, career preparation programs, visual and performing arts, and supports, such as ninth grade academies, additional literacy and numeracy support and online credit recovery options. Because ninth graders have very few electives and being off-track in ninth grade is predictive of not graduating, schools will first focus on ensuring that basic supports are in place at all schools for ninth graders; additional elective programs will be phased in over the remainder of students’ careers. However, Madison and Franklin, already offer the vast majority of the core program. For example, both Madison and Franklin offer 9 or more AP courses, at least two world languages and visual and performing arts programs.
Q. What additional resources and supports will PPS designate in Franklin and Madison for former small school students use to a personalized teaching model?
A. It is our hope to have the support services of SUN and Step up at Franklin, and it already exists at Madison. There is a mentor/academic support model at both schools. Every school that has such supports in our district has developed a unique program. As you visit the school, that would be a good question to ask for specific answers.
Q. What happens to Senior Inquiry for current Marshall juniors?
A. The Inquiry classes are not funded under PPS general funding sources. Title I funds were no longer covering this budget item. The Deputy Superintendent, Mark Davalos, used one-time stimulus funds this year to enable the classes to continue. Those particular federal funds will not be renewed to our knowledge. Both Madison and Franklin offer dual credit and AP College credit possibilities which could make up for Senior Inquiry.
Q. How does consideration for scholarships, valedictorian, varsity sports, etc. transfer to the new schools? Athletics – letters of recommendation from Marshall coaches for inclusion in sports?
A. Since all courses on transcripts will transfer over to the new schools, scholarships and opportunities for honors would not be hindered in any way. The school athletic directors and the district athletic director, as well as the coaches, will be meeting to discuss the sports questions and the Marshall students.
Q. How do we monitor Marshall students’ progress through 2014?
A. The school administration and the district Research and Evaluation department have a variety of evaluation instruments to measure student progress. This is done for all students in the district. PPS, through the input of principals and the Marshall Transition Advisory Committee, will also develop measures related to ensuring a smooth transition for Marshall students as well for the High School Design project in general. The Board will be holding the High School Design project accountable to these metrics on a quarterly basis.
Q. How do students receive credit recovery?
A. Both schools presently have credit recovery courses, including online options, and are expecting to continue with them.
Does it sound to anyone like PPS has a plan for Marshall students?
12 comments
What did we expect? Of course not. This isn’t any different from what they would have said prior to the closure. No plans have been made, and certainly there hasn’t been enough critical discussion on the issue!
So far in the Marshall transition administrators from Marshall, Franklin, and Madison seem to be doing the heavy lifting planning work to do right by the Marshall students. PPS central office administrators appear to be, ahem, a bit distant from the actual nitty-gritty details of this transition.
The question increasingly becomes, if PPS relies on its school administrators to sort this stuff out, how exactly are PPS central office staff earning their keep?
PILbooster, They’re going to sit back and watch one or two more schools fail so they can close them in a few years.
This week, students will be asked to indicate their intention for next year: the school their small school has been assigned to (BizTech=Franklin, Pauling & Renaissance=Madison), the opposite school, or to return to their home district (for those currently on transfer). The problem, as illuminated by the Q&A, is that certain student groups are unable to make a choice given the information provided. That is, teen parents don’t currently know if Franklin will offer a day care (despite Principal Shay James telling them Franklin WILL); self-contained special education students (life skills and behavior) don’t seem to get ANY choice given the answer above; and for ALL students, it sounds like they cannot even depend on the free bus pass to get to their new school!
As for the question about scholarships — the District’s answer is that students will be able to compete at their new school for all scholarships available. HOWEVER, if you look at OSAC’s database of scholarships available to students at Franklin and Madison, there is one scholarships specifically stating as a requirement “must have taken foreign language classes at Franklin for 3+ years.” How is a current Marshall junior supposed to compete for that scholarship? They are, by definition, ineligible.
Carrie said,
“PILbooster, They’re going to sit back and watch one or two more schools fail so they can close them in a few years.”
Don’t forget, Marshall was not “failing.” That may be the narrative the district wants people to buy in to, but it’s not correct.
Jaded, I agree that Marshall is successful for the students that attend the school. The failure as I see it is that PPS neglected to support the small schools at the Marshall campus in a way that would attract more neighborhood kids. There were changes that PPS could have made that would have provided increased opportunities for students and in turn would have increased enrollment. Instead Smith and her friends made decisions that directly and negatively impacted enrollment.
We are now over a quarter into the new school year after the closure. I am a former Marshall student now attending Franklin high school and its sad to look back at all the answers above and count how many of them were even somewhat true! First of all.. there has been no effort to monitor the former Marshall students’ well being other than the occasional “how are you doing?” from a former Marshall teacher. I can promise you the number of former Marshall students even attending class is not being monitored because I see that number depleting everyday myself. Next, I find it funny that PPS can say that “Opportunities will not be hindered.” That right there, is a lie! A good transcript is not the only factor in receiving a scholarship. In some cases, you need to be nominated! Such as the Multnomah Athletic Club’s Scholar Athlete of the Year, which I received in 2010. I didn’t receive that scholarship merely because of my good grades, but because my administrators actually knew their students and were able to elect an appropriate candidate. Last, I just wanted to bring up the fact that transporting the students to their new school was a big issue. That issue seemed to be resolved with the continuance of free Trimet bus passes for all students. But after December 31st of this year, there will no longer be free bus passes. So my new question is: How many more students does PPS plan on losing, now that even more students will have a harder time finding their way to school ?
Thanks for commenting Jazzmine. Please encourage other Marshall students to comment too!
Hello all,
Thanks for being so committed to the success of PPS students. And thanks for commenting, Jazzmine.
I intended my report to be informative and spark clarifying discussion. Superintendent Carole Smith and I discussed after tonight’s board meeting: transferring students by schools was implemented as a result of student suggestion – they wanted to move with their friends. As the former Marshall students graduate, the rest of the kids will be assigned based on proximity.
I regretted not mentioning that the school district has made an effort to help the Marshall kids – why would they not? LaDara Brydson of the Student Union told me, of the transition, “at first, it was hard, but welcoming people have made it much easier.” Other events include Marshall shirts being passed out, Carole Smith and Sam Adams visiting Franklin on September 6th, etc.
Of course, there are still other problems that need to be addressed. This is an ongoing discussion, and I thank you all very much for your passion around this subject. I can be your liaison to the district should you want them to act on their promises. Let’s continue the dialogue, remembering that the school district belongs to each and every one of us, no matter what we may think of it.
Jazzmine – would you be interested in joining the PPS Student Union? I can give you more information, if you want.
Thanks all. Have yourselves a great week.
Hi Henry – I’d like to elaborate on Carole’s partial answer of the school assignment – and maybe others are interested in how that decision came to be. Anyone correct me if I’ve misspoken. My memory is cloudy a year later and I’m sure I wasn’t privy to all info:
There was not enough room at Franklin or Cleveland for the 2011-2012 Marshall students, and I can’t recall if enough incoming freshman and/or existing Marshall students were going to Madison based on a new boundary to help with enrollment numbers. I think when a physical space audit was completed it was ‘discovered’ that Cleveland already didn’t have any room and that Franklin would be near full (also accounting for incoming freshman). Whatever the exact reasons, assignments based on proximity were definitely not an option on the table. My recollection was that the assignment topic was presented to the MTAC as: read this handout, here’s what we decided, tell us the pros and cons to each option (proximity, cohort, etc.), here’s why such and such can’t happen. This Cohort decision may have been reached by PPS and the smaller committee with principals – I think they worked out the mechanics – then it went down to the larger MTAC to ‘advise’ on.
With proximity eliminated, that left Cohorts. If students were to have some semblance of continuity after being forced to leave their campus, it seemed like sending Biz, Pauling or RA together was the best way to do this – since no one knew where the teachers would end up for months to come. The students in the 1st MTAC mtg supported the idea of attending a new school with the peers they’d spent the past few years with. According to Mark Davalos, Marshall students had given him this feedback during his time on campus. With the promise of transportation some of us thought the Cohort method would be manageable.
So yes, it was a student suggestion to move with their friends and that sounds great – if you aren’t disclosing the fact that the majority of them had no choice. I guess PPS is lucky the conclusion they came to was in line with what students expressed, but I think if space/proximity was available, what the students wanted wouldn’t have played a role in that decision. PPS is just able to say they implemented a move based on a student suggestion – and not really having to explain their buildings were too small to absorb students coming from a school that could have housed 1000+ more.
Keep in mind, PPS is actively asking for feedback and filing it under “lessons learned” so that when/if they close another HS they have this experiment to reference. I’m glad that it’s going well for some students, and sad to hear it’s not for others (my student has had to frequently talk her friend into staying in school due to this transition) – but what about the stories of the SPED, ELL, teen parents and homeless students’ families? As someone that watched this unravel, it was not all that surprising to learn that there was no clear process in place ahead of time for how to assign and monitor the very people affected by this vote, especially those most vulnerable. But considering the attention, money and outreach thrown at the Bond campaigns, again, not surprised.
Good luck, Henry
)
Hi Carrie: It was just as much of a shock to me, that suddenly these facilities couldn’t hold as many students as the Proposals said they would. I wondered if someone went off something as broad as sqft, and maybe didn’t do a physical, staged walk through of each HS until much later in the process – possibly after the vote? I know from experience you have to take bodies, furniture and equipment into consideration when calculating space. There is no other explanation that I can come up with that makes sense. And of course it would have been better if all kids could remain with a reasonable travel time to school, that was a huge part of the discussion from the Lents community – but it didn’t seem like anyone believed it would be a determining factor in kids getting to school. What I guess no one grasped was that more kids + same amount of buses = less seats. My student has been passed by at the bus stop a few times on her way to school and so have teachers. I don’t know the reason Sam Adams took the bus to Franklin instead of to Madison – but my guess is that it would have taken a wee bit longer, eh?
Thanks for providing more background info Kelly. Marshall is a good example of district leadership’s ability to do any long term “planning”. PPS is going back to the table on a bond. There isn’t a bond that they could propose and I would vote for as long as Carole Smith is still superintendent.
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