EDUCATIONAL SERVICE DELIVERY
This chapter reviews the educational service delivery of the Rockwall Independent School District (RISD) in the following sections:
- A. Curriculum and Instruction
- B. Organization and Staffing
- C. Student Performance
- D. Gifted and Talented Education
- E. Special Education
- F. Bilingual/English as a Second Language Education
- G. Career and Technology Education
- H. Title I/State Compensatory Education
- I. Guidance and Counseling
- J. Alternative Education Program
B. ORGANIZATION AND STAFFING
RISD's Curriculum and Instruction Division is organized with six administrative staff members who report directly to the assistant superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction. Exhibit 2-12 presents the organizational chart of the Curriculum and Instruction Division.
Exhibit 2-12 Source: RISD assistant superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction.
RISD Curriculum and Instruction Organization
November 2002Exhibit 2-13 lists the responsibilities of each Curriculum and Instruction Division staff member.
Exhibit 2-13 Source: RISD job descriptions and TSPR interviews.
Responsibilities of RISD Curriculum and Instruction Division
2001-02
Position Key Areas of Responsibility Assistant superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction
- Curriculum development and alignment
- Instructional delivery
- Program evaluation
- Program/course development
- Student performance
- Staff development
- Principal assessment program
- Supervision of six professional positions, all principals and two paraprofessional positions
Director of Federal Programs
- Federal programs
- Library coordinator
- Student handbooks
- Grant writing
- PDAS-teacher training
- Head Start/Early Childhood
- Reading initiative/specialists
- Textbook adoption
Assessment coordinator
- Testing coordinator
- Academic Decathlon coordinator
- Liaison for Academic Booster Club
- Destination Imagination Coordinator
- Summer school coordinator
- At-risk student identification
Director of Special Programs
- Director of Special Education
- 504 coordinator
- Language Science coordinator (Dyslexia program)
- Care Team coordinator
Director of Instructional Services
- Gifted/talented program/professional development
- Instructional technology
- Program evaluation and design
- Technology grants (TIF)
- Software preview
- Long-range plan for technology
- Career and Technology programs
- Pre AP/ AP programs
- Intel program
Bilingual/ESL coordinator
- Migrant education
- Bilingual education
- ESL
Student Services coordinator
- Nurses
- Counselors
- Fine Arts programs
- Drug Free Schools
- Extra curricular activities (not athletics)
- Social Services liaison
- Pregnancy coordinator
Director of District Effectiveness and Compliance
- Prepare RISD for TEA visit by compiling necessary information
FINDING
The district does not have enough staff to handle some key functions of the Curriculum and Instruction Division. As a result, the assistant superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction must meet with teachers and principals and monitor school and teacher performance on a daily basis. RISD is a rapidly growing district and the assistant superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction has other important senior administrative responsibilities to address. These responsibilities include evaluating scheduling alternatives in secondary schools, planning teacher staffing needs at new schools, evaluating principals and assistant principals and preparing for new testing programs.
RISD is implementing a new curriculum that will seamlessly connect the instruction that children receive as they move from kindergarten to graduation. But the district does not have a position that is responsible for monitoring the implementation of this curriculum. Currently, responsibility for monitoring the program falls to the assistant superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction. The district also does not have a position that is responsible for ensuring consistent application of the curriculum at grade level districtwide and for working with principals and teachers in implementing or changing the system.
Because of the current division of responsibilities, the assistant superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction is the only position that can monitor each program and function to ensure compliance with state and federal requirements, as well as district policies and goals. The duties of the assistant superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction require her to work with the principals and teachers in the schools as well as make changes to the curriculum.
The superintendent also requires the assistant superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction to meet with the principals on a monthly basis and with the assistant principals every other month. The same assistant superintendent also interviews all candidates for vacant principal and assistant principal positions.
Recommendation 4:
Reorganize the Curriculum and Instruction Division to provide additional support to the assistant superintendent.
Exhibit 2-14 shows the recommended organization for the division.
Exhibit 2-14 Source: TSPR.
Recommended RISD Curriculum and Instruction Division Organizational ChartThe recommended organization structure would:
- Add the position of director of Data Assessment and Program Evaluation. This position would be responsible for coordinating the district testing program, both for the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) and any norm-referenced test, disaggregating all test data and working with principals and teachers to interpret the data and developing strategies to increase student performance. Creating this position will allow the district to eliminate the coordinator of Assessment position.
- Add the position of executive director of Curriculum Management. This position would be responsible for overseeing the implementation of the new curriculum and consistency of its application, overseeing the advance placement/gifted and talented program, adopting textbooks, coordinating the accelerated reader and fine arts programs and supervising the coordinator of Bilingual/ESL education and the director of Special Education.
- Eliminate the director of Federal Programs. The district would transfer responsibilities for the federal title programs and state compensatory education (SCE) programs to the coordinator of Bilingual/ESL education. Since the Bilingual/ESL education coordinator serves a similar population, this change will cause minimal difficulties. The district would also transfer responsibility for new teacher training on the state evaluation system to the mentor coordinator. This position reports to the Human Resources director. Assistant principals at individual schools would supervise Head Start and early childhood programs for their individual schools.
- Eliminate the coordinator of Student Services. The district can transfer responsibility for crisis management plan preparation and implementation to the executive director of Operations/Risk Management. The district can give one existing counselor at the secondary level and one at the elementary level a stipend to serve as lead counselor for their grade level. The lead counselor would coordinate the guidance and counseling program. The district can transfer responsibility for its drug-free program to a teacher at Rockwall High School who is already involved in the program. Finally, the district can transfer responsibility for social services liaison to the security resource officer and the lead counselor at each school.
IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES AND TIMELINE
1. The superintendent reviews the recommended organizational chart and assigns responsibility to the assistant superintendent for Human Resources and Operations to develop appropriate job descriptions for the positions. July 2003 2. The assistant superintendent for Human Resources and Operations prepares the job descriptions and reviews them with the superintendent. August - September 2003 3. The superintendent requests the board to approve all new and eliminated positions. October 2003 4. The board approves the new and eliminated positions and the superintendent directs the assistant superintendent for Human Resources and Operations to post the new positions. November 2003 5. The superintendent withholds extending new contracts to administrators whose positions are affected by the reorganization. January 2004 6. The assistant superintendent for Human Resources and Operations screens candidates for the positions and refers them to the superintendent or appropriate supervisor for interviews. January -
February 20047. The superintendent, with assistance from senior staff, makes recommendations to the board for candidates to fill positions. March 2004 8. The board approves the recommendations and directs the superintendent to implement the new organization. April 2004 9. The superintendent fills vacant positions, reassigns existing personnel as necessary and eliminates remaining positions. September 2004 FISCAL IMPACT
This recommendation will give the district annual savings of $54,412 beginning in 2004-05. The calculation of the fiscal impact is listed below.
Position Salary Benefits (1) Added positions: Executive director, Curriculum Management ($71,050) (2) ($10,658) Director of Data Assessment and Program Evaluation ($65,377) (3) ($9,807) Subtotal ($136,427) ($20,465) Eliminated positions: Coordinator of Assessment $57,292 $8,594 Director of Federal Programs $64,779 $9,717 Coodinator of Student Services $61,671 $9,251 Subtotal $183,742 $27,562 Total savings $47,315 $7,097
- Calculated at 15 percent of salary.
- Calculated using business manager position salary.
- Calculated using highest director salary in Curriculum and Instruction Department.
The district's employee contracts prevent the district from acting on this organizational plan until September 1, 2004.
Recommendation 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 Reorganize the Curriculum and Instruction Division to provide additional support to the assistant superintendent. $0 $54,412 $54,412 $54,412 $54,412
