December 17, 2009

DCPS Releases Results of the 2008-2009 Stakeholder Surveys 

Contact: Jennifer Calloway | 202-535-1096

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – During the 2008-2009 school year, nearly 20,000 students, parents, faculty and staff completed Stakeholder Surveys designed to collect direct feedback about key issues affecting District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS). The survey asked members of every school community in the District to confidentially weigh in on topics, including satisfaction levels, facilities and academics.

“As we continue to push forward with this critical reform effort, we want to ensure that the families we’re serving and our dedicated teachers and principals have every opportunity to evaluate our progress,” said Mayor Adrian M. Fenty.

According to DCPS Chancellor Michelle Rhee, “this ground-level input is an essential piece of our commitment to garner the type of unfiltered feedback we need to guide our decision-making process.”

FINDINGS
The purpose of stakeholder surveys is twofold: 1) to identify areas of improvement, and 2) to use as an accountability and progress measure.

The goal of the Fenty administration has been to keep student achievement at the forefront of all decision making. Three years into the reform effort, 83 percent of parents, 72 percent of students and 74 percent of faculty and staff agree that their school is on the right track.

Other signs of progress include:

• 74 percent of staff report feeling strongly supported within their school
• More staff feel the central office effectively supports their school
• 55 percent of staff report that at a district level, high expectations are being set for college readiness and workforce preparedness for all students

• 73 percent of students feel that the staff at their school cares about their personal welfare
• 84 percent of students feel that principals are setting high standards for learning
• 72 percent of students feel supported by their school

All stakeholders have taken notice of the drastic operational improvements –from new and rehabbed facilities to the availability of basic resources like internet access and air conditioning. The Administration’s commitment to delivering on these critical promises has streamlined school openings, created a better learning environment, and a renewed sense of pride among many school communities.

Teacher responses concerning resources

Parent responses concerning resources

ACCOUNTABILITY AND AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
During the 2007-2008 school year, stakeholders expressed concerns about the budgeting process. Their invaluable feedback helped DCPS revamp the process to be more organized and inclusive. For the first time, schools have almost two months longer to develop their budgets, and administrators are now required to share their final budget with the entire school community.

Also at the school level, in 2008-2009 teachers showed increased satisfaction in two areas relating to teaching and learning. However, they were less likely to strongly agree that they had clear measurable goals related to supporting student success, with 41 percent in 2008-09 versus 52 percent in 2007-08.

As a first step in response to the teacher concerns, DCPS has rolled out two major policy initiatives: 1) the Teaching and Learning Framework designed to clearly outline what the District believes solid instruction looks like, along with the professional development needed to achieve that vision and 2) IMPACT, the innovative personnel assessment system created to offer all school staff targeted growth opportunities through relevant feedback from experts in their field.
Gaining the confidence of more school staff is still an area where DCPS needs to improve. Since this survey was conducted, DCPS has launched two separate intranet portals for teachers and principals to help facilitate better internal communications between the central office and schools. DCPS has also created more face-to-face forums like the Chancellor’s Office Hours and has built upon the success of the Teacher Q&A sessions.

This week each principal received their full school report and over the next month they will meet with their staff to discuss the results. The goal is for principals to collaborate with their staff to develop strategies for building on their school’s strengths and to address any challenges.

The Chancellor’s Office will hold a Community Forum in January to discuss the district-level report. To view all of the Stakeholder Surveys, including summaries and individual school reports please visit: http://dcps.dc.gov/DCPS/About DCPS/Satisfaction Stakeholder Surveys.

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