Funding for English Learners -SCUSD Board Meeting Tonight

Sacramento City Unified District Board Meeting.  June 7, 2018.   6 PM. 5735  47th. Avenue.  The Serna Center
LULAC                        

                          

June 7, 2018

  SUBECT: LCAP UpdateBudget Hearing (2018/2019)

Dear Superintendent Aguilar:

On behalf of the Lorenzo Patiño League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) we urge you to include our recommendations in the budget of the Sacramento Unified School District for 2018/2019.   LULAC is a long-standing national and local civic organization dedicated to the advancement of civil rights, including the achievement of excellent educational opportunities for every child. 

Recommendation 1:   Promote school success of English learners by adding instructional time in English through direct instruction in small groups by skilled credential teachers.  To accomplish this, the District should include in your budget the addition of at least 10 bilingual instructors. 

The task that the District set out in the prior LCAP (2017/2018) was to provide professional learning service for teachers to implement English Standards and ELD Standards.  You held these in service sessions last year.  For 2018/2019, you propose staff support to monitor and coach teachers working with EL students.  You say you will implement the EL Master Plan in accordance with the CA ELA/ELD Framework and you say that staff will support schools’ monitoring of English Learner progress in ELD and in academic subjects. 

While setting this as your goal in LCAP is appropriate, in service and coaching  by itself will not significantly change the learning environment for ELL students.  Some teachers will improve from in service and some will improve from increased monitoring.   

To promote school success English learners in the district need more instructional time in English.  For a period of time – months- students at the emerging level and the expanding level  of English proficiency  should be grouped for dedicated ELD instruction in addition to their participation in the general curriculum.  These students  need intensive instruction at their appropriate language level.  Simply modifying language in a regular classroom (scaffolding) as described in the English Language Arts/ELD framework  is helpful but insufficient.   

Consistent with the ELA/ELD Framework, we recommend that students at an emerging and expanding levels of English proficiency should receive direct instruction in small groups from skilled credentialed teachers.  For students in grades 1-4   class size of 4-1 or 6- 1 would be optimal. This instruction should be at least 40 min. per day for at least 4 days a week.  In upper grades of 8- 12, students in the emerging and expanding levels of English proficiency could work well in a class size of 6-1.  Prior experiences with pull-out programs were too limited in time provided per day to be effective.  

To carry out this additional instruction, we support the Community Priorities Coalition’s proposed hiring of 10 bilingual resource teachers to work at school sites.  These teachers would be under the direction of the Multi-Lingual Office. Such a program would be monitored and evaluated by the Multi-Lingual Office. Should the district not adopt such a strategy, we encourage the Multi-Lingual Office to develop an alternative plan that would provide for an equivalent amount of time in direct, small group instruction using funds received from LCFF. 

Recommendation 2:  In addition to tracking English Learner Funds, ensure your accountability documents clearly show how the authorized funds, now reaching $6 Million, are being used primarily for those students.

Review of your budget documents reveals that you will be adding a code to track English Learner funds.  We are pleased to see the budget will provide the distinct internal code 0009 to track expenditures that serve Limited English Proficient students.  While we appreciate this responseto our recommendation, we believe this is only the beginning.  We will continue to monitor the use of LCFF funds for EL students and look for improved academic success.  We also strongly believe that these funds should not be used to support general administrative district functions.  LULAC’s goal is that the District achieves effective reclassification of English Learners by actually using the dedicated funds that should promote their achievement.  

Thank you for your consideration of our recommendations.  We urge inclusion.  If you have any questions or concerns regarding our request, please contact Dr. Duane Campbell, LULAC #2862 Education Committee Chair .  As you are aware, Dr. Campbell and other LULAC members have been working with District staff to achieve these objectives, and we expect to continue to urge you to take actions that we believe will be of great benefit the Latino community. 

Sincerely, 

                                                                        

Luisa Menchaca, President                              Dr. Duane Campbell, Chair

LULAC #2862                                                Education Committee, LULAC #2862

cc:  

Trustees, Sacramento Unified School District Board 

Jessie Ryan,  President, Board of Education, Area 7

Darrel Woo, First Vice President, Board of Education, Area 6

Michael Minnah, 2^ndVice President, Board of Education, Area 4

Jay Hansen, Board of Education Member, Area 1

Ellen Chocrane, Board of Education Member, Area 2

Christina Pritchett, Board of Education Member, Area 3

Mai Vang, Board of Education Member, Area 5

Sarah Nguyen, Student Board Member   

Sac City Unified has a Budget Problem - And its not the Teachers

 Sacramento City Unified’s plan for Local Control Funding is on their web site.

   LCAP Timeline and Process-  here.

See video in post below.

 SCUSD outlines its LCAP development process, Community Planning Process, timeline, and lists potential community partners to engage with in LCFF implementation. A new budget has been submitted  and should be on the web site this PM. 

Here is a counter  submission  by the Community Priorities Coalition in response for the 2017/ 2018 school year.
Our Budget proposal reflects our communi ty' s priorities and we request that you consider our Budget along with the District's staff Budget in making a very important decision on providing the highest qualit y of education for all children.

May 4, 2017

To: Jay Hansen, President

Jessie Ryan, 1st Vice President Darrell Woo. 2nd Vice President Christina Pritchett. Member Ellen Cochrane, Member

Mai Vang, Member Michael Minnick, Member Natalie Ross. Member

Jose Banda, Superintendent

Dear Board of Trustees and Superintendent:

The Sacramento City Community Priority Coalition (CPC) is pleased to submit to the Sacramento City Unified School District its 20 l 7-18 Budget as another budget scenario to consider.

The CPC coalition member organizations and groups consist of Black Parallel School Board, Building Healthy Communities. Hmong Innovating Politics, La Familia Counseling Center. Making Cents Work, PRO Youth and Families , Sacramento Area Congregations Together, Democracy and Education Institute, and Public Advocates Inc.

Based on the input of our respective communities. the CPC recommends three major priorities for both the LCAP and the LCFF that we conclude will better serve the students of our communities. Those priorities include:

•       Class size adjustments/reductions in select high need schools - beginning with grade 4-6 and gradually progressing to higher grades after three years of LCAP implementation.

•       Culturally competent professional development to enhance school climate and ensure the use of effective and restorative discipline policies in all schools for all students.

•       After school and/or other early intervention supports/programsdesigned to improve and further classroom performance.

The district needs to attract quality teachers that reflect the diversity of the students and continue class-size reduction, address inequities regarding our low-income and high needs students, increase graduation rates, improve professional development, and continue to improve community outreach and involvement year around. Monies allocated through the Local Control Funding process are required by law to be spent on increased or improved services and actions that are principally directed to meet the needs of specific target populations: low income, English Language Learners, foster children, special education.

In addition , to increased funding for class size reduction beyond grades K-3: specific funds should be allocated to meet the needs of the designated targeted populations. For example, English Language Learners need additional instructional assistance and increased efforts to involve their parents in their education programs. including bilingual counselors , teachers, social workers and other staff. Funds should be allocated to establish designated additional programs for ELL students in those schools with large numbers of English Language Learners. These programs might include the use of additional certificated personnel, and/or classified staff.

We recommend that the budget adopted by Sac City Unified School District clearl y and specifically designate where funds will be spent to meet these target populations. At present, we are unable to track funds from the district budget to serving these target students. We strongly recommend that this change. The district should specifically and clearly indicate the amounts of funds planned for specific services and actions that are increases or improvements principally directed to meet the needs of each target group, and which funds have been planned used for spending on combinations of these groups, and which funds have been used for all students districtwide, in addition to funds allocated by school site, which the district currently identifies . This level of transparency is necessary for parents , students and the community to be involved in a meaningful way in the LCAP development process and other district and school site decision making processes.

State Board of Education approves funding rules

The California Board of Education on Jan.16, approved the funding formula presented  by Gov. Jerry Brown and approved by legislators last year which  gives districts additional dollars based on their share of low-income students, English-language learners and foster children.

School District administrators lobbied the board for months arguing for more  leeway for  schools.  School districts want flexibility to spend such money for all students in the district, but civil rights advocates fear that administrative decisions and bureaucracy will  dilute the intended impact on the targeted students  to   benefit more affluent children.

A coalition of 30 education and advocacy groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, Public Advocates and the Children’s Defense Fund in California, sought an amendment Thursday requiring that new funding be “principally directed toward serving students in need”.  The board ultimately approved rules without that change.