Section B: Self-Assessment of the Middle States Standards for Accreditation
B.1 The Standards Self-Assessment Process
B.2 Relationship of Standards to the Content of the Plan for Growth and Improvement
B.3 The Standards Self-Assessment Report
Selinsgrove’s self-assessment in regard to the Middle States standards for quality schools was accomplished with surveys of three constituent groups: faculty, students, and parents. Students in Mrs. Gavitt’s business classes uploaded the survey questions to the district’s account with SurveyMonkey.com. The different groups then responded at different points in time.
Faculty and professional staff responded to their prescribed Middle States survey during a school-wide in-service on November 10, 2006, when the survey was made available through a link on the district website. Most faculty completed the survey on this date, but the link was kept open for an additional week to give all faculty adequate time to respond and comment. Of a professional staff approaching seventy in the building, fifty-four survey responses were submitted, which is a response rate of ~80%. We are therefore reasonably satisfied that the general results of the survey provide an accurate representation of faculty opinion.
On December 7, 2006, parents and other members of the community were notified about their Middle States survey via letters sent home with all students (nearly 1000). These letters had a hard copy of the survey attached. Parents had the option of returning their completed hard copies to the school or taking the survey on-line via a similar district website link. The answers on the returned hard copies were up-loaded to SurveyMonkey by students in Mrs. Gavitt’s business classes. We received a combined total of only sixty (60) responses. The Planning Team discussed this disappointing response at its next meeting (in January, 2007) and debated whether and how to attempt to encourage additional responses. In the end, after some members of the Planning Team voiced the idea that a six percent response ratio might provide a valid and useful overview of general parental sentiment, no additional steps were undertaken to gain additional parent input.
Student surveys were completed only with an on-line approach. In the effort to gain a reasonable cross-section of the student population, a number of second-semester English classes were identified that, when taken together, represented all grades and ability levels. These classes were taken by their teacher to one of the computer labs, or a portable lab was brought to the classroom. Students completed their surveys using a separate link to the student version of the Middle States survey at SurveyMonkey. The survey was also promoted to the entire student body with PA announcements and an article in the student paper. Once again Mrs. Gavitt’s students provided the clerical help of up-loading the survey questions. (Most of her students also went ahead and took the survey, as did some additional students—either on their own initiative or in the context of another class.) A total of 119 student responses were generated through these efforts.
The results of all three surveys were compiled by Mrs. Gavitt and then delivered, in summary hard copy and electronically, to all members of the Planning Committee. Members of each Standards subcommittee used these data to prepare their reports in regard to the each particular standard.
B.2 Relationship of Standards to the Content of the Plan for Growth and Improvement
Selinsgrove Area High School does, as reflected in the collective judgment of all stakeholders, generally meet the twelve Standards for Quality Schools of the Middle States Association. The faculty gave the school its approval in nearly all fields, and responses of the students and community, although not quite as high overall, showed the same general approval.
The single specific exception to this general endorsement is the issue of climate control in the building. This situation has been deteriorating for years, and many faculty—especially those working in parts of the building that lack air conditioning or in which the air conditioning no longer functions—have, in the last five years especially, grown increasingly frustrated with the lack of Board action on this problem. Fortunately, the Board has recently given its approval for an architectural firm to create project justification and schematic design plans for a project labeled “Alterations and Additions to Selinsgrove Area High School.” This initiative, when followed through to completion, should make a dramatic difference in the air quality and climate control in the high school, leading to increased morale among students and faculty, and a more generally effective educational effort.
Although the air quality and climate control in the building have been far less than ideal, the faculty and administration have worked continually to make the best of a difficult situation. Our efforts to achieve our newly adopted Student Performance Objectives will certainly be enhanced by the changes to the physical plant and the consequential improvements to climate and mood, but no one has ever given up on the serious business of teaching and learning. Our action plans to achieve our SPOs were fashioned so as to be entirely independent of facilities issues.
As a school, we are committed to improving our students’ lives and achievements. We have responded to NCLB with adjustments designed to help our students realize their potential in this vein. Our administrators have been especially pro-active in looking for and implementing positive curricular change. Our continued efforts in regard to Standard #4 (Educational Programs), Standard #5 (Learning Media Service and Technology), Standard #7 (Student Life and Student Activities), and Standard #11 (Assessment of Student Learning) will all have a direct bearing on our success in achieving our SPOs.
B.3 The Standards Self-Assessment Report
Responses in the reports below were generated through three separate survey processes. The faculty completed their surveys as part of their in-service activity on November 10, 2006. Sixty-four (64) teachers and administrators participated. The community (parents and others) were surveyed on an on-line instrument with a link on the district webpage. This survey was held open for a period of several weeks during January of 2007. One-hundred sixty-one (161) individuals responded. Students were surveyed during the spring of 2007. One-hundred nineteen (119) participated.
Individuals from the Planning Committee volunteered to serve on the individual subcommittees that reviewed the survey results. Each subcommittee completed its own report and, if appropriate, made recommendations. These reports were reviewed by the general Planning Committee at its meeting of November 7, 2007.
The individual reports follow.
Subcommittee Response to Standard #1: Philosophy, Mission, Beliefs, Objectives
Subcommittee Members: Alex Gruenberg, Larry Lawson, Joe Schmidt
Survey Responses
Faculty Survey |
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Standard #1: Philosophy / Mission / Beliefs / Objectives The institution has clearly written statements of philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives that convey the general and specific purposes of the educational programs and that express expectations for quality. Stakeholders, including staff, parents, and governing body members, understand, accept, and give input into the development of the organization’s philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives. These documents are appropriate for the groups served and are reviewed periodically. |
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Faculty Survey 4< >1 |
Indicator |
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3.10 |
a. The philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives are generally understood and accepted by the governance, staff, parents, and students. |
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3.31 |
b. The school provides opportunities for representative constituents of the community to offer input into the school’s organizational philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives. |
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3.55 |
c.) The philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives are consistent with ethical norms and demonstrate respect for persons and acceptance of all races, creeds, and cultures |
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3.31 |
d.) The philosophy, mission, beliefs, and objectives are free of contradiction, ambiguity, and excessive abstraction and can be discussed by school authorities and leading members of the school community in terms of operation, action, movement, and direction. |
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3.43 |
e.) The philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives are appropriate for the students enrolled and the community served. |
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3.23 |
f.) The philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives are periodically reviewed to ensure that the statements are appropriate to the needs of the school community. |
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3.09 |
g.) The school takes steps to ensure stakeholders, potential parents, and future stakeholders understand and support the school's philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives for which it has been founded, prior to enrolling their students in school. |
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3.08 |
h.) The philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives are actively implemented and serve as the basis for daily operational and instructional decision-making as well as long-range planning. |
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Sample Faculty Comments |
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Note: While the faculty scores this section well, the comments above indicate some need to review and/or better publicize our statements of Philosophy, Mission, Belief, and Objectives. |
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Student Survey |
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Standard #1: Philosophy / Mission / Beliefs / Objectives The institution has clearly written statements of philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives that convey the general and specific purposes of the educational programs and that express expectations for quality. Stakeholders, including staff, parents, and governing body members, understand, accept, and give input into the development of the organization’s philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives. These documents are appropriate for the groups served and are reviewed periodically. |
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Student Survey 4 < > 1 |
Indicator |
3.05 |
1. I understand the overall philosophy and mission of my school. |
Sample Student Comments |
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Parent Survey |
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Standard #1: Philosophy / Mission / Beliefs / Objectives The institution has clearly written statements of philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives that convey the general and specific purposes of the educational programs and that express expectations for quality. Stakeholders, including staff, parents, and governing body members, understand, accept, and give input into the development of the organization’s philosophy, mission, beliefs, and/or objectives. These documents are appropriate for the groups served and are reviewed periodically. |
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Parent Survey 4 < > 1 |
Indicator |
2.78 |
1. The school’s philosophy and mission are understandable and widely publicized. |
2.86 |
2. The school’s philosophy and mission are appropriate for the students enrolled and the community served. |
Sample Parent Comments |
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Note: Lower parent numbers indicate less confidence in the visibility and applicability of the school’s PMBO. This also suggests the need for better publication of these concepts. |
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List the significant strengths of the school in the area of P/M/B/O.
The survey responses illustrate that the faculty feel generally aware of and comfortable about their sense of purpose. However, the faculty recognize that we may not have done an adequate job publicizing our sense of mission and our guiding beliefs. The faculty, by their comments, suggest that we may need to do a better job in this regard.
List the significant weaknesses of the school in the area of P/M/B/O.
It is clear that students and parents, while they may feel comfortable in our school and generally well-oriented to a collective sense of purpose, do NOT feel that the school’s philosophy, mission, beliefs, and objectives have been adequately publicized.
Proposed changes:
It should be noted first that the Selinsgrove Area School District has formally adopted a set of belief statements with which to guide the educational policies and practices of all schools in the district. These beliefs are listed on home page of the SASD website. In addition, during our in-service of November 10, 2006, the faculty of Selinsgrove Area High School developed new belief statements specific to the school, as required by Middle States and the AFG process. These belief statements are listed here:
We believe that students who expect more of themselves will achieve more.
We believe that students who successfully meet challenges are more likely to rise to future challenges.
We believe that students will be life-long learners who need a rounded education, including art, family and consumer science, music, technology, agriculture.
We believe that students learn best with support of parents, family and community.
We believe that students thrive with a sense of responsibility, a strong work ethic, respect for others, good manners, and appropriate language.
We believe that students can contribute to their communities now and in the future.
We believe that effective schools foster respect for varied learning styles and abilities.
We believe that schools can motivate students’ desire to achieve.
These statements present a solid, comprehensive guide to the motivating principles behind Selinsgrove’s approach to educating our students. However, members of the subcommittee charged with the responsibility of publicizing these principles worried that simply listing them in some very public display would, by virtue of their length and complexity, invite the very people who complain of not knowing the school’s beliefs to ignore them.
This subcommittee decided, therefore, to distill the essential quality of each belief statement into a shorter, direct statement. Further, these shorter statements were printed on banners and posted strategically around the building in declarative or imperative form. Thus each belief has been transformed into a statement of how we ought to conduct ourselves and treat each other—a statement of purpose. The subcommittee believes that this approach will be much more meaningful, with a potentially far greater impact on student behavior, than the simple posting of a list of beliefs.
These distilled statements follow:
(1) Expect more and achieve more.
(2) Rise to the challenge today so that you can meet the challenges of tomorrow.
(3) Learn in all fields and never stop.
(4) We all need support from everyone.
(5) Responsibility + Hard Work + Respect = SUCCESS!
(6) Give of yourself to others.
(7) Embrace the differences of others.
(8) Learn and succeed.
The banners containing these messages will be posted around the building this fall and will remain on permanent display as reminders of the kinds of behaviors that we wish to foster. Laminated posters showing the correlations between our belief statements and the behavioral prompts will be distributed to all rooms, for teachers to display.
Subcommittee Response to Standard #2: Governance and Leadership
Subcommittee Members: Chad Cohrs, Reed Messmore, Charles Longwell
Survey Responses
Faculty Survey |
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Standard #2: Governance and Leadership The governance and administration work in partnership to ensure the integrity, effectiveness, and reputation of the organization. There is an atmosphere of mutual respect and purposeful effort on behalf of students and their learning. The administration of the organization provides a productive work environment, timely and open communication, and the leadership necessary to plan both a day-to-day operations and the long-term future of the institution. |
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Faculty Survey 4 < > 1 |
Indicator |
3.52 |
a.) The governance and the administration exercise prudent control over all financial operations, following accepted accounting principles and annual independent auditing practices. |
3.40 |
b.) Periodic audits are conducted by a qualified external agency. |
3.54 |
c.) The school administration maintains appropriate and constructive relations with parents, students, staff, the community, and with each other in the interest of serving the needs of the students. |
3.68 |
d.) The school administration complies with all applicable statutes and governmental regulations. |
3.52 |
e.) The school administration undertakes operational, long range, and strategic planning aimed at accomplishing the school's mission and goals. |
3.75 |
f.) The head of the school is accountable to the head of the school district and is responsible for creating a productive learning environment and for the day-to-day operation of the school. |
3.40 |
g.) The school administration ensures that all school programs and activities are adequately and appropriately planned, supervised, resourced and staffed with qualified personnel. |
3.43 |
h.) The school administration maintains timely and open communication with various elements of the school community. |
3.60 |
i.) The school administration stays well informed of educational developments. |
3.48 |
j.) The school administration ensures that all statements and representations relating to programs, services, and resources are clear, accurate, and current. |
Sample Faculty Comments |
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Student Survey |
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Standard #2: Governance and Leadership The governance and administration work in partnership to ensure the integrity, effectiveness, and reputation of the organization. There is an atmosphere of mutual respect and purposeful effort on behalf of students and their learning. The administration of the organization provides a productive work environment, timely and open communication, and the leadership necessary to plan both a day-to-day operations and the long-term future of the institution. |
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Student Survey 4 < > 1 |
Indicator |
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3.07 |
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2.87 |
2. The administration are consistent and fair in dealing with students, parents and the community |
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3.08 |
3. The administration actively works to create a positive learning environment for students. |
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Sample Student Comments |
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Parent Survey |
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Standard #2: Governance and Leadership The governance and administration work in partnership to ensure the integrity, effectiveness, and reputation of the organization. There is an atmosphere of mutual respect and purposeful effort on behalf of students and their learning. The administration of the organization provides a productive work environment, timely and open communication, and the leadership necessary to plan both a day-to-day operations and the long-term future of the institution. |
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Parent Survey 4 < > 1 |
Indicator |
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2.62 |
1. The governance (Board of Trustees, School Board, Superintendent) and administration are c onsistent and fair in dealing with parents, students, and the community. |
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2.73 |
2. The governance and administration maintain positive relationships with parents, students, and the community. |
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2.71 |
3. The administration provides effective leadership to the school. |
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2.78 |
4. The administration actively works to create a productive learning environment for students. |
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2.88 |
5. The administration is actively involved in the day-to-day operation of the school. |
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3.07 |
6. Communication from the school is clear, accurate, and up to date. |
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Sample Parent Comments |
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COMMENT: The lower parent numbers are in marked contrast to the higher ratings from staff and students. While the overall response indicates general satisfaction with the governance of the school, some stakeholders clearly feel that there is a need for improvement regarding communication. This difference may be due to a disproportionate response from parents who have an axe to grind. The school administration tries very hard to follow established policies and procedures so that there is consistency in all situations. These practices do not always produce the results that parents desire. The administration will continue to apply policies and procedures consistently and to emphasize this approach during meetings with parents. We do not believe that “[c]ommunication from the school is rare and often has no bearing on academics or governance.” We can point to several specific kinds of communication: regular letters from the principal regarding the daily activities of the school; immediate communications about special circumstances in the school requiring immediate administrative action and community awareness; the quarterly newsletter with features of interest to the wider community, including information regarding changes in academic programs as well as news of academic successes; and the surveys for this AFG process regarding the focus and direction of our school. We will, nonetheless, look for opportunities to develop additional avenues of communication with the parents and community. |
List the significant strengths of the school in the area of Governance.
Administration is providing effective leadership in the building.
List the significant weaknesses of the school in the area of Governance.
Communication is an area that can always be improved upon. The school needs to continue to be proactive in informing stakeholders of information.