October 9, 2007

 

 

Dear Dr. Hatrick and the Honorable Members of the Loudoun County School Board:

Thank you very much for your comprehensive Power Point response on September 11th to the Loudoun County Branch NAACP’s letter of August 14th. The Branch sincerely congratulates you on the number and variety of programs related to minority achievement that you have instituted since 1992. We also believe that the 11th grade English SOL pass rates and the PSAT and SAT participation rates are outstanding and deserve applause.

However, there are three civil rights issues raised in our August 14th letter that we believe were not addressed adequately: (1) disproportionality; (2) accountability at the individual school level; and (3) ongoing, significant financial commitment to eliminate the minority student achievement gap. We ask: What level of disparity is acceptable?

  1. Disproportionality – The achievement gap has not changed significantly or sufficiently.
    1. Reading Test Scores in Elementary and Middle School -- The Branch believes that reading proficiency in the early years is the basis of all continuing success in school and employment. Because our letter focused on the reading failure rates and your Power Point on the reading pass rates, it may be both more illustrative and consistent to focus simply on the point spread of the gaps:

      2. 2003-4 2004-5 2005-6 2006-7

      3rd Grade Reading:

      Black:White 24 21 20 21

      Hispanic:White 24 26 17 29

      5th Grade Reading:

      Black:White 19 21 23 13

      Hipanic:White 16 14 19 21

      8th Grade Reading:

      Black:White 27 22 27 19

      Hispanic:White 31 23 25 25

      A closer examination of the possible causes of the 5th grade improvement in 2006-7 is certainly warranted to see if it could be expanded to other grades.

    2. Graduation Rates – The number of dropouts shows the extent of this gap. Remember, these are young people we are losing. Graduation is vital in the 21st Century economy. We ask: What is a child worth? (Copies of the pertinent Virginia Department of Education charts are attached):

      3. 2003-4 2004-5 2005-6

      Black:

      Number of Diplomas/

      Completion Certificates 179 224 250

      Dropouts from Grades 9-12 34 31 28

      Total Entering 9th Grade 213 255 278

      Dropout Rate 16% 12% 10%

      Hispanic:

      Number of Diplomas/

      Completion Certificates 167 203 265

      Dropouts from Grades 9-12 35 30 41

      Total Entering 9th Grade 202 233 306

      Dropout Rate 17% 13% 13%

      White:

      Number of Diplomas/

      Completion Certificates 1652 1831 1892

      Dropouts from Grades 9-12 87 78 68

      Total Entering 9th Grade 1739 1909 1960

      Dropout Rate 5% 4% 3%

    3. Suspensions and Expulsions – We ask: What level of disparity is acceptable? The chart on page 13 of LCPS’ Power Point appears to be mislabled. The numbers shown actually depict the Proportion of Race Enrolled. The percentage of suspended students is much higher. When black students represent 8% of school enrollment, 25% of suspensions and 20% of suspended students, the disparity is significant. A copy of page 3 of the report from LCPS Research Office, which was presented to MSAAC on June 21st, 2007, is attached for your convenience.

    Recent research (http://www.indiana.edu/~safeschl/minor.html) confirms that discipline is applied unfairly to young African American males in schools, causing an atmosphere of fear and conflict. This report also states that the classroom teacher is the source of the disparity. It concludes:

    Teacher training in appropriate and culturally competent methods of classroom management is likely then to be the most pressing need in addressing racial disparities in school discipline…[C]lassroom teachers report feeling most underprepared in the area of classroom management. (p. 17)

    Some of the skills proposed by this report include:

    Appropriate training in constructive classroom management, appropriate rules adequately communicated to students, and the support of mental health staff and administration can all assist in developing a more supportive classroom environment…[A] number of important components that may reduce cultural discontinuity and enhance the educational experience of African American students, includ[e] relationship-building strategies, knowledge of linguistic or dialectic patterns of African American youth, increased opportunity for participation in a range of school activities, and family and community partnerships. Finally, effective preparation for teaching diverse students goes beyond "feel-good" or single issue approaches to teaching awareness and tolerance…to include a range of skill instruction and experiences. (pp. 17-18)

    See also an article in the September 25, 2007, Chicago Tribune, by Howard Witt, "School discipline tougher on African Americans." (http://www.chicagotribune.com). Attached to this article also is an advertising link to an on-line course devoted to solving discipline problems (http://www.disciplinecourse.com/).

  2. Accountability at the Individual School Level – We ask: What level of discrimination is acceptable? As the Loudoun County Branch NAACP’s 2004 research report stated (www.naacploudoun.org/education.htm), teacher quality is the greatest single determinant of students’ educational success. See, for example, pp. 10-11. It is now possible to measure teacher quality with great accuracy. One member of LCPS’ School Board suggested doing just that, utilizing the SOL pass/fail rates for each teacher. This or a similar method would help LCPS to concentrate resources, such as required courses in cultural competence and classroom management, on those teachers and administrators who most need assistance. Consequently, evaluating individual teachers would also impact the disparities in both achievement and discipline.

    3. In addition, evaluation using quantitative measurements is a necessary component of the programs of any organization. On September 11th, it appeared that, from questions asked by School Board members regarding evaluation and the responses given by LCPS Administration, evaluations at both the district and school levels may not be designed using quantitative measurements or carried out frequently enough. For example, if evaluations of programs are made every three or four years and these programs are shown to be ineffective, what has happened to the students who participated in them? The Loudoun County Branch NAACP urges LCPS to make sure that programs are evaluated frequently and quantitatively, and to provide a remediation component for students who have been in ineffective programs.

  3. Ongoing Financial Commitment – Requiring courses in cultural competence and classroom management, remediation of students who have been in ineffective programs, and on-going quantitative evaluation of programs are some examples of the need for LCPS to continue to have a long-term financial commitment to eliminating the achievement gap here in Loudoun County. Another example is parental involvement. It is a truism that parent involvement is vital and something everyone in LCPS and the community needs to work toward. Children whose parents are involved in their school careers tend to achieve better. However, lack of parental involvement cannot be used as an excuse for the minority student achievement gap. Many things make parent involvement unrealistic for some families: two wage-earner families; a lack of trust in the school system; fear of retaliation against one’s child if you complain; an unwelcoming ethos in some schools; and a lack of respect for parents by some school personnel. Funding for LCPS Office of Outreach Programs should be increased so that more teachers and parents can be brought together to foster a significant "buy-in" to the educational process among our minority youth and their parents. We ask: What is a child worth?

Minority Hiring -- Finally, the recent report on hiring made to the School Board presents clear evidence that disproportionality persists in this arena as well. The ratio of an approximately 8% black student school population to a 4% black teacher population has remained remarkably consistent over the time that the Loudoun County Branch NAACP has monitored this issue. Commitment and accountability appear to be critical factors in this regard. For instance, if one examines the data for Seneca Ridge Middle School, a completely different picture emerges. This school has an overall population of 878 students, 9% (77) of which are black; its teachers number 88, 11% (10) of which are black. It is not sufficient to explain these numbers merely to say that this is a new school; rather, commitment to diversity is obviously at work here as well. Once again, accountability at individual schools is key. We ask: What level of discrimination is acceptable?

It should also be noted that LCPS has developed a very interesting "Hiring for Diversity Action Plan" for 2008-2009. The Diversity Councils and the teacher focus group, Kaleidoscope, show a lot of promise. We encourage LCPS to include quantitative measurements in the "Evaluation Questions" sections, rather than simple yes/no questions. The approximately $114,400 budget impact seems quite small; as taxpayers, we hope this represents cost-effectiveness, but also as advocates for minority students, we hope it is sufficient.

The Loudoun County Branch NAACP also proposes that LCPS Administration and the School Board consider the likely benefits of having parent or advocate members of MSAAC or the Diversity Councils participate in the candidate interview process, both at the school and administrative levels. Participation would encourage "buy-in" to the educational process among parents. In addition, transparency is a concept that many public and private institutions are beginning to perceive as very valuable in promoting their missions and securing the support of the public and those who provide financial support. Many organizations use signed confidentiality forms if privacy issues are a concern.

According to the U.S. Department of Education, disproportionality in and of itself is not sufficient for a school district to be denied federal funds. However, if there were a complaint of racism made to USDOE, proportionality in hiring would be one element of evidence that would be considered by the Department in making a finding.

Conclusion -- LCPS has instituted many programs directed toward eliminating the minority achievement gap during the time that the Loudoun County Branch NAACP has also been working on this issue. No one in the County could logically doubt the sincerity of the majority of LCPS administrators and the School Board in these efforts and we applaud you and your successes. However, because the elements of disproportionality noted above have varied in such small measure over the years, we urge you to examine your processes of evaluation, accountability at the level of the individual school, training in both cultural competence and classroom management, and to increase the level of ongoing financial commitment to this issue. We ask: What is a child worth? What level of disparity is acceptable? What level of discrimination is acceptable?

Thank you very much for your consideration of these issues, and we look forward to continuing our dialogue and participating as LCPS works to eliminate the minority student achievement gap.

Sincerely yours,

 

 

Rev. Reginald A. Early

President, Loudoun County Branch NAACP

rgnear@aol.com