Top Middle Schools by CMT Scores and Why Compare Schools?

Below is a list of Top Middle Schools in Norwalk based on CMT scores. I've followed the same methodology as I did yesterday for the ranking of elementary schools. The score is the sum of the CMT "At/Above Goal" percentage for 6th, 7th, and 8th grade for all schools in each of the subject areas (Math, Reading, and Writing). I have not included the Science score in this tabulation.



Why Compare?

Yesterday's post listing Norwalk's top performing elementary schools by CMT scores prompted some insightful comments. My intention in creating a list was to figure out how the schools rank against each other.

As many comments pointed out, this limited ranking does not take into account complex factors that underlie the numbers like ethic composition of schools and economic factors that affect student performance. The numbers also do not reflect significant progress in improving CMT scores made by some schools in a relatively short time.

For example, in 2006 only 38% of 5th graders at Kendall School were "at/above goal" in math. In 2009, that number has jumped to 61.7%. That's over 23 percentage points!

At Brookside, 5th grade "at/above goal" reading scores went up from 52.8% in 2006 to 67.9% in 2009. That's up 15 points -- exceeding the State average. Similarly at Naramake, the same measure has increased from 52.8% in 2006 to 68.5% in 2009.

I was particularly struck by the progress made at Cranbury Elementary. Their fifth graders "at/above goal" scores have increased approximately 10% in math, reading and writing.

In contrast, at my children's elementary school, Columbus Magnet, there has been no improvement in "at/above goal" 5th grade math and reading scores since 2006. In fact, there was a significant decline in writing scores for 5th grade from 68.9% in 2006 to 50.8% in 2009.

As well at Jefferson, only 37% of fifth graders were "at goal" in Math this year. This number lags way behind the rest of the district. What's happening there?

My intention in comparing schools is for us as a community to look at best practices and trouble spots in our schools. What is happening at Cranbury that resulted in across the board improvement? How come 77.6% of Wolfpit's fifth graders have writing scores that are "at/above goal", exceeding much of the district and state averages by well over 10 points?

Ranking the schools does not provide the complete picture in and of itself but it is a starting point for discussion about what's working and what's not.

Top Norwalk Elementary Schools By CMT Scores

I desperately try to avoid spreadsheets but I was curious to find out which elementary school has the highest CMT scores in Norwalk.

I've crunched the numbers adding up every school's "% At/Above Goal" result across Grades 3, 4, and 5 in each of the CMT's core subjects of Mathematics, Reading and Writing. The best possible score a school could get was 900.

Rowayton School turned out to be the winner.



I'll do this same type of list for middle schools tomorrow.

Norwalk Posts Gains in CMT Scores; CAPT Scores Disappointing

In Hartford today The State Dept. of Education released results of the Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) and the Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT).

This year the results show that Norwalk Public Schools have posted gains most notably in elementary school math. Additionally there has been some improvements in reading across the grades. Writing scores improved only in grades 3 and 4.

Despite the progress however Norwalk students, with a few exceptions, are still posting scores below the state's "at goal" average in the subjects tested by the CMT and CAPT.

The CMT is administered to students in Grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. The CAPT is administered for students in Grade 10.

CMT results for districts and schools can be obtained here.

CAPT results for districts and schools can be obtained here.

Individual student scores for CMT and CAPT will be sent to parents by schools in September.

A summary of the results released to the media in a talking points format by Assistant Superintendent of Schools Tony Daddona showed that Norwalk's student performance improved in math and reading.

Mr. Doddona specifically pointed to the fact that in 2009 at least 50 percent of the students in each grade scored at or above goal on the math portion of the CMT and 78 percent scored at or above the proficient level.

Trending data from the Connecticut Dept. of Education's web site demonstrates some of the progress Norwalk has made. In 2006 for example only 47.4% of Grade 3 students were meeting or performing above the State goal in Math. In 2009 65.3% were at or above the goal, an increase of 18% percentage.

Also according to Mr. Doddona at least 44 percent of the students in each grade scored at or above goal on the writing portion of the CMT and at least 76 percent scored at or above the proficient level.

The news was not as as good on the CAPT front. This years results showed slight declines from the 2008 scores in math, science and reading.

Mr. Doddona said Norwalk's CAPT performance was "disappointing" however he said that both the CMT and CAPT scores "mirror what happened on a statewide level."

The sentiment was echoed by the state Education Commissioner Dr. Mark K. McQuillan.“This year’s CAPT scores indicate that our high schools continue to face academic challenges and that we need to change what we are doing at the secondary level in our public schools,” he said in a press release announcing the scores.

Norwalk Looks to Redirect Excess Stimulus Funds Meant for Disabled Students

Norwalk school officials are trying to save the jobs of two elementary school principals whose positions were eliminated in the recent budget cuts by trying to redirect Federal stimulus money that was originally meant to for disabled children.

In his Friday Report distributed to members of the Board of Education and the general public outgoing Superintendent Sal Corda wrote:

As we shared at the Board meeting, we have been advised by the State Education Department that they will consider our request for the use of 50% of the Maintenance of Effort (MOE) Funds pending their review of all files of students who in 2006/07 or 2007/08,were classified as LD [Learning Disabled] or ED [Emotionally Disturbed] to ensure that all issues of non-compliance have been addressed. We are reviewing 193 files in anticipation of an audit of the State Education Department on August 20, 2009.

Should we meet the expectations of the State, approximately $200-$250,000 in operating budget monies would become available for general purposes. I am recommending in the strongest possible terms that the most effective use of these dollars, in order to positively impact student achievement, would be to restore elementary assistant principals to full time positions in all schools.

Norwalk is hardly alone in trying to use stimulus fund to plug up budget holes. USA Today reported last month that nationally many states and school districts are trying to find creative solutions using Federal stimulus money to plug budget holes.

But what does all this mean?

Like other school districts in Connecticut, Norwalk receives money to educate disabled children from many sources including the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). IDEA money comes with strings attached -- a Maintenance of Effort (MOE) provision which requires a school district to spend the same amount for special education and related services as it spent in the previous fiscal year. If it doesn't then the school district has to repay the Federal Government.

As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), President Barack Obama’s economic stimulus plan, nearly $11.3 billion in additional funds was allocated to Part B of IDEA which provides funds to state and local educational agencies. Connecticut will receive approximately $133 million in IDEA money. Norwalk’s share is expected to be $2.2 million according to Dept. of Education estimates published in March.

However, according to the regulations which govern the IDEA program monies are to “be used only to pay the excess costs of providing special education and related services to children with disabilities,” and “They shall be used to supplement State, local, and other Federal funds and not to supplant such funds”

There is a loophole, however. Under the regulations if Norwalk gets more money from IDEA than it received last year it can take 50% of the excess money and spend it any way it likes. In Norwalk’s case that would be the $200-$250,000 referred to by Dr. Corda.

But there’s a problem with this plan. Norwalk can only spend the excess money, and effectively reduce its MOE, if it has been in compliance with certain requirements of IDEA.

Based on data from the 2007-2008 school year the Dept of Education found in its Annual Performance Report on Connecticut’s State Performance Plan that the Norwalk School District did not meet the performance requirements set by IDEA and was rated the District “Needs Assistance.” 35 other school districts in Connecticut were not in compliance.

Each year the Department of Education conducts an assessment of every school district looking at factors such as whether “the district has disproportionate representation of racial and ethnic groups in special education and related services that is the result of inappropriate identification.” Based on a statistical analysis Norwalk was found to have a problem in this area.

It seems that by having the Dept. of Education audit the files of learning disabled children Norwalk schools are trying to achieve compliance retroactively and become eligible to use part of the money to save assistant principal jobs.

Stamford and Westport Take a New Slower Approach to Teaching Algebra

Our neighboring towns, Stamford and Westport, are rethinking the way they teach algebra. In both cases they are slowing down the pace of instruction and making sure that students have a more in-depth understanding of core algebraic concepts.

The Stamford Advocate reported yesterday that Stamford schools are revamping their algebra classes for the Fall.

To address high failure rates in high school algebra courses, next year's classes will include new instructional strategies and more focus on the basics and areas where students have struggled, according to a report Superintendent Joshua Starr presented to the Board of Education.

The "basic" algebra class, which 72% of students failed, will be made into a two-period course. The first period is expected to focus on reinforcing pre-algebra concepts and the second period focuses on the applications of algebra.

This is the first year that the Stamford schools have implemented uniform standards, curriculum and assessments for all algebra classes.

According to the Advocate, school superintendent Joshua Starr said at a recent Stamford Board of Education meeting, "We now have a lot of good information to act on and we know through our item analysis what kinds of domains the kids are struggling with so we can map our curriculum and our interventions to that."

In June, The New York Times reported that beginning last year Westport schools abandoned textbooks and developed their own curriculum:

...the district’s frustrated math teachers decided to rewrite the algebra curriculum, limiting it to about half of the 90 concepts typically covered in a high school course in hopes of developing a deeper understanding of key topics. Last year, they began replacing 1,000-plus-page math textbooks with their own custom-designed online curriculum; the lessons are typically written in Westport and then sent to a program in India, called HeyMath!, to jazz up the algorithms and problem sets with animation and sounds.

...

That means Westport students focus only on linear functions in Algebra I, taught in seventh, eighth or ninth grade depending on student ability, and leave quadratics and exponents to Algebra II, eliminating the overlap and repetition typical of most textbooks and curriculum guidelines. Westport has also scaled back exercises like long formal proofs in geometry, revising lessons and homework assignments to teach students to defend their answers to math problems as a matter of routine rather than repeatedly writing them out.

The less is more approach being adopted by Westport is garnering results according to the Times.

The percentage of the district’s 10th graders receiving top scores on state exams rose to 86 percent last year from 78 percent in 2006. Advanced Placement calculus and statistics classes enrolled 231 students this year, from 170 in 2006, and a record 44 students will be able to take multivariable calculus this fall, up from four in 2006.

...

In interviews, several Westport teachers and parents said the slower pace has helped their children focus more deeply on difficult concepts, and students say the shift online has made math easier to understand with cool graphics, animation and real-world context like global warming.

The emphasis on algebra by these two school districts is in part due to a report issued in March 2008 by the National Mathematics Advisory Panel. The report states that American students’ math achievement is “at a mediocre level” compared with that of their peers worldwide. The report recommended that schools focus on key skills that prepare students to learn algebra.

“The sharp falloff in mathematics achievement in the U.S. begins as students reach late middle school, where, for more and more students, algebra course work begins,” said the report of the National Mathematics Advisory Panel. “Students who complete Algebra II are more than twice as likely to graduate from college compared to students with less mathematical preparation.”

Over the next few months, NorwalkNet will be talking to educators in Norwalk to see what our school system is doing to address the challenges of teaching Algebra. I'd be interested in hearing your comments and experience with math education in Norwalk.

Corda Trys Again to Suspend In-School Suspensions

Outgoing Superintendent Sal Corda is asking state legislators to pass a bill that would delay the implementation of a new law which prohibits out-of-school suspensions.

The law, which went into effect on July 1, 2009, requires that students who are disciplined serve their suspension in their school rather than being sent home. The requirement for in-school suspension does not apply to students who are a deemed a threat to safety. The law also extends the number of days a student can be suspended from 5 to 10 days.

In a letter dated July 23, 2009, Dr. Corda writes that the law is a "state mandate without state funding," because school districts, like Norwalk, would have to pay someone to supervise suspended students.

"Failure to delay implementation, therefore, would force just about all districts to take budgets that have already been approved and that are already extremely tight and find in those budgets funds to implement the Act," he writes. "This would result in the further elimination or reduction of programs or services that children need. We cannot handle any further reductions to our already committed budget."

Dr. Corda's letter was contained within the Friday Report distributed to BOE members and the general public.

According to statistics published by the State Dept. of Education there were 1,165 students suspended or expelled in Norwalk during the 2007-2008 school year resulting in an incidence rate of 10.85%. The State of Connecticut's average incident rate was 10.06%.

The requirement for in-school suspension has been controversial. The legislation was passed in 2007 as Connecticut Public Act 07-66 and signed into law by Gov. Jodi Rell. Originally slated to go into effect July 1, 2008 the implementation date was delayed to July 1, 2009 after school superintendents across the state protested that the new law was going to require additional staff and supervision of students in in-school suspension programs in most districts. Bills were put forth before the legislature again this Spring to further postpone the implementation but they did not pass.

Now it seems school officials are protesting again.

Advocates for the law pressed for its passage because the Department of Education's own statistics show that males, children with disabilities and minorities are disproportionately suspended. One educational non-profit organization, Connecticut Appleseed, has even gone so far to suggest that suspensions cause a “schools-to-prison pipeline” because students who are suspended are more likely to break the law.

When she signed the bill into law Gov. Rell said that she supported the measure. “Students should be removed from the school setting only under the most exceptional circumstances,” she said. “Student learning takes place primarily when students are in school. That is why we need policies like this that keep students in school, not at home. Keeping children out of school is a direct line to delinquent behavior. Students get farther behind in their course work. They lose hope of catching up. It’s a recipe for failure.”

The State Dept. of Education has issued guidelines to assist school districts in implementing the new law and suggestions for developing in-school suspension programs.

An analysis done by the law firm Berchem, Moses & Devlin which publishes the Connecticut Education Law Blog says that the department recommends:

"placement of pupils by age or grade in a positive learning environment, supervision and/or instruction as determined by the district using a qualified individual, prompt access to current school work supplied by the pupil's classroom teachers, and guidance on correcting behavior. The guidelines state that if a student is assigned to an in-school suspension location other than the student's usual school, "the pupil may be eligible to receive transportation services pursuant to and in accordance with the transportation policy of the school district", suggesting that districts should have (or develop) policies to address this issue."

Words of advice from Alex Johnston, CEO of ConnCAN

I was reading an interview with Alex Johnston, Chief Executive Officer of the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now (ConnCAN) which I thought was particularly interesting and wanted to share.

ConnCAN is a non-profit organization working to close the achievement gap between rich and poor students in Connecticut by advocating for high quality preschools and charter school funding amongst other initiatives.

In his interview in Flypaper, a blog of the Washington DC-based Thomas B. Fordham Institute an educational think tank, Mr. Johnston discussed the need for education reform and gave his suggestions to newcomers to the world of education. I thought his words good advice for our Board of Education candidates, new and old.

What advice would you give to a person who’s brand-new to your area of the education world?

Some of the best advice I’ve ever gotten is that excellence in any human endeavor is the sum of the difficult conversations that we’re willing to have with each other. And as an advocate for kids who are being grossly disadvantaged by adult politics, following this advice means establishing an organizational culture that practices disciplined urgency. Some of the toughest calls you will have to make are about how much heat to apply, and how much to temper this heat with political pragmatism. Because the minute things really start getting hot, you’ll have tons of folks, including some of your own friends and supporters, telling you to cool it—that a direct confrontation with such powerfully entrenched interests as those defending the educational status quo can only be counterproductive. But of course, if you’re not willing to make things uncomfortable for others (and for yourself), you’re not going to be much of a change agent. But neither should you fall for the ideologue’s self-indulgence: satisfying yourself by merely howling in the wilderness against injustice—you have the obligation to engage as a political pragmatist because there are too many kids waiting for you to deliver results for them tomorrow. So keep your hand firmly on the thermostat—and understand that while you are not seeking out conflict for its own sake, your job is not to build consensus among all of the stakeholders, it is to drive systemic change.

Mr. Johnston's entire interview can be read at the Flypaper.

Norwalk's Political Parties Endorse BOE Candidates

Democrats and Republicans endorsed their candidates for the Board of Education last night at two separate meetings. Four member-at-large seats are up for election in November.

The style and organization of each meeting could not have been more different. The Republican affair held at the Norwalk Inn had a celebratory atmosphere with balloons and appetizers. All of the Republican candidates had prepared statements that were handed out. The Democrats, who seemed to be more representative of Norwalk's diversity, met at City Hall in a by-the-books meeting that lasted well into the night.


The Republican Town Council endorsed Artie Kassimis, a pastor and former business executive, Steven Colarossi, former co-president of the PTO at Naramake Elementary school and lawyer, Sue Haynie, PTO Council president and Erin Halsey, a parent with three children in Norwalk schools. While the first three candidates had declared their candidacy weeks ago Ms. Halsey says she was approached by the RTC just today.

Ms. Halsey is a native of Norwalk with three children in the school system. She worked in the field of medical education for 22 years before being laid off recently.

Fred Wilms, a member of the Republican Town Council's executive board said that the Republican BOE candidates are running on a platform of reform. "We are a district in need of serious improvement. We need better communication and more fiscal responsibility," he said.

In the past the BOE has deferred to the superintendant," Mr. Wilms said. "The BOE is supposed to be supervising the superintendent."

Each of the Republican candidates had prepared written statements that were handed out to the attendees of the nominating convention.

In his statement Mr. Colarossi said that he wanted "to close the true gap that plagues Norwalk's public schools -- that is the gap between those who have hope that they can make a difference and those who have felt neglected and marginalized for far too long that they have abandoned confidence in our public schools."

Mr. Colarossi changed his political affiliation from Democrat to "unafffiliated" in June. "The fact that I'm not a Republican, but can still be endorsed by the party says something about the inclusiveness of the party." he said

"I changed because the majority party refused to communicate with the public and the same people keep getting renominated. Moreover [Democratic] party leadership refused to rebuke the board," Colarossi said.

In her statement Ms. Hayne echoed the need for change. She said that she was running because as a parent of two dyslexic children she came to realize that Norwalk public schools were incapable of teaching her children to read. She related that she and her husband had to pull their children out of school for 10 weeks and send them at their own expense to a special program. Both children are now reading above their grade level she writes.

"Through my this all I learned, importantly, that a child with a Learning Disability and a high poverty child, though coming to reading failure for different reasons, both [can] succeed with the same type of quality intervention," she said.

Ms. Hayne said that Norwalk must aggressively pursue state and federal funding for education that get students reading at grade level and increase the rigor of local education.

In his statement Mr. Kassimis a parent of four* children who attend Norwalk public schools and a the Pastor of Word Alive Bible Church stressed his background as a business executive in bringing fiscal discipline to the BOE. "There is much to be learned from the business world," he said. "There is $150 million that needs to be accounted for! I believe we need to take advantage of technology and use it to better manage the Norwalk Public School system. Yes it is a school, that has a mission to educate our students, but there are some aspects that ought to be managed like a business. Politics should not be managing my children's education. "

In his statement Mr. Kassimis also highlighted his role in establishing the Naramake Family Resource Center which he says came about after his daughters were attending a preschool program 11 years ago at Norwalk High School He said that NHS was not a healthy environment for children that age since teenagers were using the same bathrooms.

Mr. Kassimis also touted his role in combating gang violance in Norwalk and took credit for having Resource officers assigned to NHS and Brian McMahon High School.

At the Democrat Town Committee convention six individuals, four incumbents and two newcomers, were contesting for four BOE positions. Incumbents BOE chair Rosa Murray, Shirley Mosby, and Amy Jimenez, , were endorsed. Newcomer Heidi Keyes, is the parent of three children in the Norwalk schools, an officer of the Columbus PTO and the owner/director of Creative Kids of Silvermine, a pre-school learning program, was also endorsed by the party. Incumbent Greg Burnett and Bob Wagman did not receive the party's endorsement. The Democrats did not have written statements outlining their positions, accomplishments or reasons for running.

In an interview Ms. Jimenez defended the current Board's engagement with the public. "We listened to 15-20 hours of public testimony during the budget process. The Board has been working very hard at being available."

In a comment clearly directed at Republican candidate Sue Haynie, Ms Jimenez commented that she was very surprised by the lack of involvement by the PTO Council during the recent budget process. "They were silent. Usually we have a strong partnership with them."

Ms. Jimenez, who took over Bruce Kimmel's position when he resigned from the BOE earlier this year, also said that working on the current board has been difficult recently. "We were working with a superintendent whose contract was not renewed. It created friction."

"It will be the priority of the future board to really look at the effects of the cuts we made. We made some very touch economic choices and we'll need to look closely at the impact of the cuts," she said.

(In picture: Steve Colarossi and his daughters, Liza and Kana, at the Republican Town Committee endorsement meeting)

*Correction. I had previously written that Mr. Kassimis had seven children. He actually has four children.

William R. Papallo Selected as Interim Sup

The BOE unanimously approved the appointment of William R. Papallo as interim superintendent at a meeting tonight. There was no discussion about his appointment. Dr. Papallo was not present at the meeting.

"I'm so excited to have Dr. Papallo back in Norwalk," said Rosa Murray, chair of the BOE, after the meeting.

Ms. Murray explained that Dr. Papallo was selected after the BOE received the names of five candidates from the State Dept. of Education. Of the five, three candidates were interviewed by the Personnel Committee, which Ms. Murray explained is comprised of the entire board.

"Dr. Papallo fit our criteria because he is experienced and has prior knowledge of Norwalk," she said.

Although Lynne Moore, Principal of West Rocks Middle School and Bob McCain, Principal of Nathan Hale Middle School were rumored to be possible candidates, Ms Murray said that they were not considered. "We were looking for candidates with superintendent experience," she said.

Ms Murray also defended a provision in Dr. Papallo's contract for the use of a car paid for by the BOE. Ms. Murray said the present Superintendant, Sal Corda, recieves a car allowance and that providing a car would not cost any extra money. Ms. Murray could not say however how much Dr. Corda was receiving for his car allowance. She referred further inquiries to the BOE's Finance Department.

Vice-Chair Jody Bishop-Pullan also said it was not unusual for a superintendent to have a car provided by the school district.

According to Jim Katzin, Chairman of the Litchfield Board of Education, the Litchfield School District did not provide a car for Mr. Papallo, however, they did give him a fixed amount of money each month to cover the costs of using his own vehicle, but he could not recall the exact amount.

In an email to NorwalkNet Mr. Katzin wrote: "Bill is a great thinker who thoroughly understands the role of the superintendent. Your district will be fortunate to have him back as interim superintendent."

Tonight's BOE meeting was Sal Corda's final one. In leaving he told the BOE that they should seriously consider restoring the two elementary school Assistant Principals positions that were eliminated as a result of recent budget cuts.

At the meeting the BOE also discussed topics ranging from traffic control at Columbus Magnet School to the consolidation of mail room services with City Hall -- a move which could save up to $55K. The Board discussed applying for a grant under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) that could provide up to $250K in extra funds. The BOE also approved contracts for the Assistant Superintendent Tony Daddona and Human Resources Officer Fay Ruotolo. In addition the BOE extended the contract of Whitsons Culinary Group to manage Norwalk's school cafeterias.

William R Papallo Set to be Interim Sup

The Board of Education is set to appoint William R. Papallo as Interim Superintendent for Norwalk schools at a BOE meeting to be held tonight. Dr. Papallo replaces Sal Corda who resigned as Superindent in June.

Dr. Papallo previously served as Interim Superindent in Norwalk nine years ago after Victor Herbert was let go by the BOE. In the past decade Dr. Papallo has become the fill-in of choice for many school districts in Southern Connecticut. Most recently he was Interim Superintendent for Litchfield Public Schools.

His resume, obtained by NorwalkNet and posted below, shows that he has held an interim post for five other Connecticut school districts. The resume shows amongst other things that Dr. Papallo has a Ph.D. in Educational Administration from the University of Connecticut. He has a Master's in Social Science and a Bachelor's in Elementary Education from Central Connecticut State University.

NorwalkNet has also obtained a copy of Dr. Papallo's proposed contract. It shows that he will be paid a pro-rated salary based on Dr. Corda's base pay, based on a working year of 220 days. The contract also specifies that the BOE will provide Dr. Papallo a car for personal and business use. Under the terms of the contract Dr. Papallo can continue taking on paid consulting assignments, teaching, and speaking engagements in addition to his duties as Interim Superintendent.

The appointment of Dr. Papallo brings an experienced educator back to Norwalk who can help steady the ship while the BOE searches for Dr. Corda's permanent replacement. Nevertheless, one wonders whether the School District would not have been better served by recruiting an Interim Superintendent internally? Someone who has more in-depth knowledge of Norwalk's school culture and particular challenges may have worked to make lasting improvements to our schools rather than acting as a placeholder.

Action Item Interim Superintendent

BOE Meeting and Political Nominations Fill Week

Even though we are in the dog days of summer, this is a big week for Norwalk public schools.

Tomorrow (7/21), there is a Board of Education meeting. The agenda is a hefty one. It includes the approval of the interim superintendent, William Papallo, the approval of Whitsons Culinary Group (after a couple food poisoning incidents) and the approval of the 2009-2010 contracts for Human Resource Officer, Fay Ruotolo, and Assistant Superintendent, Anthony Daddona. I'm also curious about the "BOE/city cooperative efforts" items on the agenda.

The Board of Education meetings which are held twice a month are open to the public. Come to see the BOE members in action, especially since several of them are up for reelection.

Then on Wednesday (7/22), election season officially begins. Norwalk's Democrats and Republicans will be nominating their candidates for municipal elections in November, including four members-at-large for the Board of Education. It will be a busy night, especially for the press who will have to be in two places at one time.

Here are the details about the nominating conventions:

Republican convention: July 22 at 6:30 pm, the Norwalk Inn
Democratic convention: July 22nd, 7:30 pm City Hall Community Room

I plan on interviewing all the candidates for BOE elections in the next few weeks. Please let me know if you have any specific questions you'd like me to ask them.

Drop-In Reading Program Helps Beat the "Summer Slide"

My kids and I have spent a good deal of this summer at the beach swimming and playing tennis, but last week I took my 6 year old daughter to a free drop-in reading program at the East Norwalk Library. For 45 minutes, my daughter and another child sounded out words with a volunteer, discussed a story, and did a reading related activity. She loved it and couldn't wait to go back the next day.

The summer literacy program is the brainchild of Carly Imhoff, a Norwalk resident who attends College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine and is studying Education.

According to Imhoff, research shows that children who don't read during the summer are susceptible to "the summer slide"--falling two months behind in their pre-summer reading level.

Lower income students who have less access to enriching summer activities are most susceptible to falling behind she said. In addition Imhoff said studies also show that elementary kids should not be reading by themselves all the time. Someone should occasionally read with them to check their comprehension.

"There is not a lot of research done about drop-in projects," said Imhoff. "Parents are so busy these days. I wanted to try something more flexible that would be accessible to lower and middle income students."

So far, more than 80 children have signed up for the program which runs from July 13 to August 17. Students Kindergarten to Grade 5, are grouped with others of similar reading level and they can drop in wherever there is a class scheduled at their level. Imhoff recruited 9 local teens and adults to volunteer for the project.

Ruth Balderrama, a Norwalk parent, brings her five-year-old son, six-year-old daughter and neighbor's child to the literacy program. "I want them to learn while they are on vacation," she said "Anything that helps them with their skills is good."

Imhoff, who received a grant for the project from her college, spent a month at the John Hopkins National Center for Summer Learning where she wrote the curriculum for the program. She will be tracking her results to find out what effect such drop-in programs have on child literacy.

For more information about the drop-in literacy program and how your child can participate, contact Imhoff by e-mail at cimhoff@coa.edu, or visit http://sites.google.com/site/summerliteracyprogram/Home.

Here's more information on the "summer slide" for interested parents:

Summer Can Set Kids on the Right—or Wrong—Course Study Links a Lack of Academic Achievement, High Dropout Rate, to Summertime Learning Loss

More Than a Hunch: Kids Lose Learning Skills Over the Summer Months

Doesn’t Every Child Deserve a Memorable Summer?

Here's a link to the Best Children's Books Ever, according to NY Times columnist Nicholas Kristof

In the meantime, happy reading!

(In picture child literacy volunteer Gina Caputo (middle) reads to Maria Balderrama (left))

Sal Corda Speaks: “They Sank My Boat”

Sal Corda, Norwalk’s outgoing Superintendant of Schools said in an interview with NorwalkNet that his departure is involuntary.

He said that his dealings with the current Board of Education had become increasingly difficult . “In the last 18 months my relationship with the Board changed,” he said. “This Board is more concerned with exercising control.”

When asked for examples Dr. Corda declined to elaborate.

Dr. Corda resigned suddenly on June 18, 2009, hours after the BOE approved the 2009-2010 budget in which serious cuts were made. “I didn’t have a choice, they (the BOE) sank my boat,” he said repeating a quotation made famous by John F. Kennedy.

According to Dr. Corda, the BOE decided last year not to renew his contract which runs through 2010 . He said he gave notice as soon as he had another offer in hand. Dr. Corda accepted a position as Associate Professor of Education at Southern Connecticut State University.

The minutes of the BOE meeting held June 30, 2008, reflect that the Board voted overwhelmingly not to extend Dr. Corda's contract beyond 2010. The BOE also denied a 3% cost of living adjustment . Board member Susan Hamilton told her colleagues, "The Board does have some concerns around communication and [Corda's] visibility, along with collaboration between the superintendent, the school community and the community at large."

Dr. Corda, who will be leaving his position on September 15^, talked at length about his challenges and accomplishments as superintendant. He said that this year he had experienced the most brutal budgeting process of his career.

“Sometimes a budget crisis forces you to get creative and rethink how to do things,” Dr. Corda said. “Not this one. This one was just about cutting back. We are losing important elements of our service.”

Dr. Corda cited, in particular, the decision to eliminate the positon of two elementary assistant principals and the Dean of Discipline at Brien McMahon High School. No decision has been made as to exactly which schools will lose the assistant principal positions.

Dr. Corda, who has been Superintendant of Norwalk schools since 2001, said that his greatest accomplishment has been the improvement of student performance as measured by the CMT and CAPT standardized tests. He said that the instructional program he instituted helped to close the achievement gap between White students and minority students. Dr. Corda claims the number of students performing “at goal” has increased.

Statistics obtained from the No Child Left Behind website maintained by the Dept. of Education bear some of this out. Based on the 2002-2003 CMT scores 70% of Norwalk students were proficient in Math and 66 % were proficient in Reading. By the 2007-2008 school year 80.8% of students were proficient in Math and 71.9% were proficient in Reading. Nevertheless, Norwalk is still considered not to have met the State’s proficiency levels. (NorwalkNet will be drilling into the CMT data once the score are made publicly available later this summer.)

Dr. Corda hopes the BOE will choose a strong instructional leader as the new superintendent, someone with what he calls “vision”, not simply a manager.

“There has been systemic improvement,” said Dr. Corda. “Norwalk will be positioned well to continue to improve.”

BOE Elections for Dummies

How does the Board of Education get elected? I had no clue but wanted to know since I was told that there would be BOE elections in November. After searching the web and talking to Town Clerk Andy Garfunkel here's what I learned:

• There are nine members of the Board of Education who are elected by Norwalk residents.
• Each member's term is 4 years. The terms are staggered with elections occurring every two years so the whole board is not up for election at one time.
  
• Four of the nine members of the BOE are designated as members-at-large. At large members are voted on by all Norwalk residents. All four members-at-large seats are up for election this year.
  
• Five members of the BOE are elected through district elections. There are five districts in Norwalk, A through E. The district members were elected in 2007, so the next election for their seats will occur in 2011.
  

(Here's a list of the districts in case you didn't know:

District A -- Central Norwalk
District B -- South Norwalk
District C -- East Norwalk, Strawberry Hill and Wolfpit
District D -- Cranbury, West Rocks and Silvermine
District E -- West Norwalk, Brookside and Rowayton)

The current BOE members are:

• Chair Rosa Murray (Democrat): Member at large, 2005-2009*
• Shirley Mosby (Democrat): Member at large, 2005-2009
• Greg Burnett (Democrat): Member at large, 2005-2009
• Amy Jimenez (Democrat): Member at large, 2005-2009 (took over the term of Bruce Kimmel)
• Susan Hamilton (Democrat): District A 2007-2011,
• Migdalia Rivas (Democrat): District B, 2007-20011
• Glenn Iannaccone (Republican): District C, 2007-2011
• Secretary Jack Chiaramonte (Republican): District D , 2007-2011
• Vice Chair Jody Bishop-Pullan (Democrat): District E, 2007-2011

*last elected term.

The highest vote getter in the 2007 BOE elections was Glenn A. Iannaccone with 1,820 votes cast. So a relatively small number of voters can have a significant impact on who gets elected. The BOE is reponsible for overseeing our school system and managing a $150 million annual budget. With a responsibility like that more people should be voting. How do we get more people to participate?

Over the course of the next month, I'll be interviewing all the candidates. Feel free to send me questions that you think they should answer. I'll do my best to put it to them.

GOP Announces Three BOE Candidates Seeking Endorsement

The Hour reports today that the Republican Town Council has three Norwalk parents who are seeking the GOP endorsement for the BOE election in November. They are: PTO President Susan Haynie, attorney and former Democrat Steven A. Colarossi and pastor Artie Kassimis.

All candidates will be officially nominated at the Republican convention on July 22 at 6:30 p.m. at the Norwalk Inn. The Democratic nomination meeting will be held in the City Hall Community Room at 7:30 p.m. the same day.

Colarossi is an attorney with Berkowitz, Trager & Trager, LLC in Westport. He has two children in the Norwalk Public Schools and has been vocal at Board of Education meetings.

In his June statement announcing he was leaving the Democratic party, he said: "This majority (of Democrats on the Board of Education) fails to respond to constituent e-mails, publicly complains when they are inundated with parental concerns about pressing issues and actually -- and shockingly -- make decisions affecting schools they never visit. Norwalk's Democratic Party has done nothing to make these members more accountable--in fact, the Democratic Town Committee has only served to embolden them by re-nominating and re-supporting them."

Haynie, who has three children in the district, said the position will be a continuation of what she's already doing in her roles on the PTO and as the director of NorwalkSeeks, a non profit dedicated to increasing awareness of issues involving children with learning disabilities.

She also said she doesn't feel the Board of Education is "really about politics" and doesn't think the party aspect should be a big part of the discussion.

Kassimis, who has three children in the Norwalk Public Schools and one who graduated from them, said he's happy to run at-large because constituents at his church, Word Alive Bible Church, come from all over Norwalk.

He previously served as the assistant director of information technology for a Stamford and said that business and technology background will be an asset to the district.

THe Hour, Board of Education hopefuls vying for GOP nominations, By LAUREN MYLO, 7/14/09

I'll be following this story closely. For those of you unfamiliar with the BOE election process, I'll post an explanation of how it works in the next few days.

BOE Issues Statement on Interim Sup Search but Details are Few

The Board of Education's Chairperson Rosa Murray issued a statement today on the search for interim superintendent:

From: Rosa Murray, Chairperson

Norwalk Board of Education

Date: July 10, 2009

To allow for a seamless opening of school in the fall, sufficient time for a comprehensive Superintendent Search, and to meet legal requirements the Norwalk Board of Education will hire an interim superintendent. Referral sources include, but are not limited to the CT Association of Boards of Education and the CT Association of Public Schools Superintendents.

The Board is interested in former Superintendents with years of experience in the state of CT and in districts similar in size and diversity of Norwalk. Candidates with experience in curriculum development, budgeting, community relations, staff hiring, problem solving, building projects, working with city government/boards, press relations and Superintendent/BOE relations are sought as this experience is invaluable to Norwalk. To date, candidates have been identified and interviews scheduled.

Although the timeframe is undetermined, the Board will act under advisement of legal counsel to appoint an interim Superintendent by a mutually agreed upon date, at a negotiated per diem rate with no benefits.

While this statement is a good first step in apprising the public about the search for new interim superintendent it leaves several questions unanswered.

First, on the subject of communication and involvement: How will the BOE communicate with parents/Norwalkers as this process continues? Will the Board involve the parents and teachers in the search process? How?

Second, are the specifics: Which BOE members are in charge of the interview process? Who has the BOE interviewed for the interviewed for the interim position? How many more interviewees are lined up?

Finally, is the net being cast widely enough? The qualifications the BOE lays out--former superintendents from CT with populations similar to Norwalk-- limits the potential candidates to a very small pool. Are these criteria too limiting? Couldn't a senior administrator within the district fill-in?

I've e-mailed Ms. Murray these questions and look forward to her response.

BOE Considers Old Timer for Interim Superintendent Job

The Board of Education Personnel Committee met this evening (Thursday) to interview its second candidate for interim superintendent. The closed door session follows Tuesday's interview with Dr. William Papallo, who served as interim superintendent in 2000, prior to Sal Corda's appointment.

Although the BOE has not yet publicly announced how it is conducting its search for Corda's replacement, BOE Vice-Chair Jody Bishop-Pullan told me today that a statement will be released in the next day giving details.

Dr. Papallo is an experienced educator who has seemingly carved out a niche for himself as an interim superintendent for several school districts in Connecticut. While he has been "retired" he has served as interim superintendent in Wethersfield, Fairfield, Region 6 School District, and most recently Litchfield. According an article in the Southington Observer:

During his career, Papallo was a history, social studies and math teacher in Meriden; an assistant high school principal in Middletown and principal of Northwestern Regional High School in Winsted. He served a total of 19 years as a superintendent, in Meriden and Stamford. Papallo was also president of the Westchester Business Institute, chief of staff for Bridgeport’s public schools and an educational consultant in Bridgeport.

Dr. Papallo's prior term as Norwalk's interim school chief was not without controversy. He was criticized for not firing a Ponus Ridge middle school teacher who gave money to one of his students to buy marijuana in an attempt to entrap dealers. Dr. Papallo believed that a reprimand placed in the teacher's employment file was sufficient.

Insider versus Outsider for Superintendant?

As the hunt begins for a new superintendent for Norwalk schools I see a trend appearing in recent letters to the Editor in The Hour. A debate is brewing whether the next superintendent should be an insider or an outsider. If the letters are representative of public sentiment, hiring someone already familiar with Norwalk schools seems preferable to some people.

The Insider vs Outsider debate was explored in an interesting article published by the journal of the American Association of School Administrators. Veteran Washington Post education writer Jay Mathews, reports that many school boards are looking for a miracle workerwhen they hire a chief administrator:

There is no question that superintendents’ jobs are more stressful than they have ever been. School boards also are under increasing pressure to find someone who will make sure the district schools look good under new statewide accountability plans that rely heavily on standardized testing. That means, the experts say, that every board is looking for a miracle worker. That is an impossible job description, of course, but it is often easier for a board to convince themselves that such great talent might be found in a stranger than an assistant superintendent whom they already know well.

Mathews says however, there is a renewed interest in insiders.

But veterans of superintendent searches say there is something in the dynamics of the new emphasis on student test scores that may be pushing the external vs. internal debate in new directions. Several superintendents and headhunters say they think there is a renewed interest in insiders for no other reason than that such a high percentage of outsiders fail to measure up to the high expectations of their first days on the job. School boards find themselves feeling like lonely, jaded singles who have had too many failed romances. Old, familiar faces at their district headquarters, assistant superintendents they have known for years, begin to look more attractive.

The Mathews article also says that the outside candidate has fresher ideas and tends to be more of a risk taker. He quotes one administrator saying that peers who prefer to stay where they are have an an attude "If this doesn’t work out, they’ll give me my old job back.”

As a parent I want the BOE to clearly state what their long term goals are for Norwalk schools and the criteria they will use to select the individual who will implement their policies. It's important that this process be transperent and that the BOE communicates with Norwalkers.

Food Safety Issues Delay Whitsons Contract

Executives from Whitsons Culinary Group and a dozen NPS cafeteria workers attended this evening’s (July 7) Board of Education meeting to defend their company’s food management practices.

Whitsons has provided Norwalk schools with prepared lunch food for three years and its contract is up for renewal. The company is under scrutiny because earlier this year students at Naramake Elementary School became sick after eating macaroni and cheese prepared by Whitsons. In another incident a Naramake student with a peanut allergy had a severe reaction after eating a cookie that was supposed to be peanut free. The mother of the child recounted the incident to the BOE during the public comments section and was upset that her account was not included of any of the letters between school administrators and Whitsons.

Company officials explained that the macaroni may have spoiled during transportation, but they are not sure of the exact cause. They tried to assure the BOE that the company has stringent food safety procedures and that they are implementing a plan that will reduce the amount of time it takes to transport food. from its industrial kitchens in Long Island to schools in Norwalk. Doug Whitcomb, President of Whitsons told the BOE that in serving lunches to over 300,000 children in the Tri-State area this is the company’s first episode of food poisoning.

John Whitcomb, Whitsons’ Vice President of Merchandising and Concept Development told the BOE that company that provides the cookies had reported that it knew of no other similar incidents. Neither Whitsons nor the cookie manufacturer knows how the cookies from that batch could have been cross-contaminated with peanuts, he said.

Sonia Valasquez who works in the cafeteria agreed saying that the mac and cheese poisonings was “one mistake” that the Whitson’s team should not have to pay for it. In defending Whitson’s she said that in her experience since Whitson’s has been supplying food to Norwalk schools the quality of lunches has improved.

BOE members were divided on how to handle the matter. Board member Greg Burnett wanted to immediately renew Whitson’s contract, but fellow board member Amy Jimenez asked Whitson’s to document how they were going to improve their processes. She motioned to table the decision on whether to renew the contract until BOE’s next meeting on July 21.

The Norwalk Hour also has a story about last night’s meeting with more details about the peanut incident.

What has been your experience with lunches served at Norwalk schools?

Update: Whitson's spokesperson Holly Van Seggern says that the food served to students is usually prepared on site at the schools. If a school does not have a kitchen then the food is prepared at a central kitchen facility located at 352 Main Street and driven to the school in a vehicle owned and operated by the Board of Education.

Welcome to NorwalkNet

Welcome to NorwalkNet. This is a blog primarily about public schools in Norwalk (at least for now). My aim is to provide an independent source of news about the Board of Education, school leadership, curriculum, events, and student accomplishments. NorwalkNet will also include links to useful information from other news sources. I hope this site will provide a forum for Norwalkers to discuss the issues affecting our children’s education.

Like many of you I am a concerned parent who believes in public education. However in order to have excellent schools we need to be engaged not only in our particular child’s classroom, but ask larger questions about the system itself and hold our leaders accountable.

There’s a lot to keep track of. Last month alone we’ve seen the Board of Education agonize over the 2009-2010 school budget. Countless hours were spent trying to decide whether or to stop funding Norwalk High's pool (they are), whether to cut back on teaching assistants at Columbus Magnet School (they aren't), and whether to eliminate some central office positions (they are). Just as the budget was finalized Salvatore Corda, Norwalk's superintendant, suddenly announced he was quitting.

Later this year in November we’ll have school board elections. It’s important to know who is running for these seats and why. After all not only do these officials control a $151 million budget (our property taxes) the decisions that they make affect our children. These are trying, but potentially exciting times for education in Norwalk.

I’m planning on writing 3-5 posts a week and looking to do longer pieces every couple of weeks. I plan on covering the BOE and other committee meetings. I plan to pay special attention to the search for a new superintendent. Please let me know what stories I should be covering or if you would like to guest blog feel free to contact me.