Test scores don’t quantify progress at all schools

By Emily Richmond

Thursday, June 25, 2009 | 2 a.m.

Timothy Stephens runs a high school that for six years has been labeled as failing. And in a month, he expects to be told that, for a seventh year running, the campus still isn’t as good as it should be.

Not that Stephens and his staff aren’t trying. And he’s not beating himself up. In fact, the school keeps getting better. It’s just that the bar keeps getting raised higher.

“We’re going in the right direction,” he says. “Just not fast enough.”

Stephens is principal of Desert Pines High School, where the majority of the more than 2,700 students are minorities from low-income households, worsening their odds of being academically successful. And he’s facing a challenge that bedevils principals throughout Clark County at this time of year: how to prove that strides are being made, even if they’re short of the federal requirements of No Child Left Behind.

When the School District announces in July which schools made adequate yearly progress, Desert Pines is expected to be on the “needs improvement” list for a sixth consecutive year. (In the first year of poor performance, schools are placed on the “watch list,” and are labeled “needs improvement” after a second consecutive year of low scores.)

But there is good news, too: Desert Pines expects to meet benchmarks in English for the first time since No Child Left Behind took effect in 2002. This year the missed marks are expected to be solely in mathematics, Stephens said.

And next year the benchmark for math proficiency will again be bumped up, meaning the climb to victory will become even steeper for Desert Pines.

The school’s struggle to meet the hard-target demands of the law demonstrates just how difficult it can be to measure progress.

Desert Pines has made some good efforts, and they’re paying off in ways that can be measured outside of standardized test scores.

Students follow a strict dress and behavior code, which is rigorously enforced. The academic day is stretched from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., staggering classes to reduce crowding.

School and district administrators say they believe the new approach is bearing fruit.

There’s been a significant drop in campus violence, as well as students cited for possession of alcohol or weapons. Truancy citations are up 90 percent in two years, but that’s actually good news, Stephens said. It means the school is keeping track of students and following up with the required discipline when they cut class.

And it’s not just the struggling students who are benefiting. Four years ago Desert Pines had 63 students in Advanced Placement classes. For the 2008-09 academic year more than 400 Advanced Placement seats were filled. The school’s athletic teams have thrived, making the playoffs in football and basketball and earning honors for cheerleading.

But even as Stephens runs through a highlight reel of his students’ achievements, he knows it’s not enough to shed the “needs improvement” label. That’s a source of some frustration, he admits.

“There’s a lot of schools that are in the same boat,” Stephens said. “The best I can do is focus on where we need to go.”

Schools that get the “needs improvement” designation for three consecutive years are required by the Nevada Education Department to submit a plan outlining how progress will be achieved. After four years on the list, the state sends a team of experienced educators to help oversee the changes. And at the six-year mark, the federal law allows key personnel at the school to be replaced, which can be followed by a takeover of the campus by the state.

But such drastic measures are unlikely at Desert Pines and at the other district schools with the longest track records of “needs improvement” status. One reason is there’s a shortage of experienced administrators, which makes replacing principals unrealistic. Another reason is that the “needs improvement” designation doesn’t necessarily mean the staff is falling short.

Marjorie Conners, a retired district administrator who was appointed by the state to lead the improvement team at Desert Pines, said Stephens is the right leader for the campus, evidenced by the remarkable progress that’s been made. And splitting the school into upper-class and lower-class campuses will not only mean students get more attention, but it will also likely reduce staff turnover, as well, Conners said.

Conners’ team, working with Stephens and his staff, intends to have the improvement plan ready for teachers to review when they return to work in mid-August. That’s nearly three months ahead of the state’s mandated deadline.

This week Stephens was busy working on an updated version of the student handbook, and drafting proposals for how he would spend an expected windfall of $660,000 in extra funding through the federal stimulus package.

The money will help fund tutoring and mentoring programs for at-risk students, as well as professional development for staff.

Edward Goldman, associate superintendent of the district’s Education Services Division, hired Stephens as Desert Pines’ principal in spring 2006, specifically because of his reputation as a motivating administrator with a track record of boosting struggling schools. Goldman remains confident in Stephens’ leadership.

“I look for improvement and effort, and I see both,” Goldman said. “When people aren’t willing to try new approaches and just keep doing the same thing over and over, that’s a cause for concern.”

It’s only been two weeks since Stephens handed out diplomas to the class of 2009, but already, he says, “I can’t wait for next year to start.”