The Adams 14 Debacle
“Accountability is dead.”
A small problem with my lungs has me huffing and puffing as never before, which makes me sound like the Big Bad Wolf, which gets me thinking about the Colorado State Board of Education. Because one story going around is that the Board has been the Big Bad Wolf to the little piggies in the Adams 14 School District.
"Then I'll huff, and I'll puff, and I'll blow your house in."
Remember the story? Grim at first. The Big Bad Wolf blows down the first two fragile houses and devours the first two little piggies. We cheer for piggy number 3. We hope he can outwit the Big Bad Wolf. Boo the big Bad Wolf!
Is this the popular version of the story, regarding
the Adams 14 debacle of 2022?
|
“A dozen metro Denver district superintendents condemn Board of Education’s order to reorganize Adams 14,” Jenny Brundin, Colorado Public Radio, June 8, 2023.[i] |
I will offer ANOTHER VIEW. First, let’s try to
understand why so many superintendents were willing to sign this letter.
They were glad to stand up for a colleague—especially for
Dr. Karla Loria, Adams 14’s newest superintendent; she was still new to the
state in 2022, and perhaps shell-shocked to find herself in such a precarious
position. So sure, band together. Stick up for your teammate when she is in a
tough spot. We get that.
Standing up, too, for the beleaguered district
next door. We get that too.
I see another, more important reason these
superintendents might have signed the letter. They did not know the facts. Who
can blame them? Why should they know the specifics about Adams 14’s performance
since 2010. These superintendents are responsible
for so much. A multitude of groups to try to please: their board, principals,
teachers, staff, students, the parents - the entire community. More responsibility
than most of us can handle. Perhaps as a result, from what I have seen, is that
some superintendents are not up to speed about student performance in their
own district, let alone another district. Just not enough time.
The 13 who protested the state board’s action had surely
read news stories about Adams 14’s struggles over many years. At CASE meetings
they may have heard updates about its travails. But we can’t expect these
superintendents to have had an in-depth knowledge of how the district was falling
short of meeting the needs of its 6,000-plus students.
ANOTHER VIEW has had the luxury (I have
been retired for years) to track the school performance of Adams 14 and other low-performing
districts. Addendum A shows some of the achievement results in Adams 14
since 2012, as reported in my newsletters. (CDE’s own five-page summary of
Adams 14’s academic performance was also available last April.[iii])
My guess: the 13 superintendents had no idea results were this bad. Had they
known, they would have seen why the Adams 14 School District has remained on
the state’s accountability clock since 2010.
Why bring up academic achievement? After all, that is
not what the superintendents’ letter was about. It portrayed Adams 14 as the
innocent victim. So not one word about the achievement results in
the district. The thrust of their protest: local control. They wrote:
We
believe collectively in locally elected school boards of education and their
Colorado constitutional right to the local control of the instruction of their
students.[iv]
This was a clever diversion. After all, why was the
State Board of Education so focused on Adams 14? Academic achievement. No
reorganization would have been called for if, using its local control wisely,
the district had served its students well. Superintendents
(Pat Sanchez, 2012-2016; Kandy Steele, then Sandy Rolla – interim superintendents, 2016-19;
Javier Abrego, 2019-21) and their school boards had a responsibility to
see improvement. They failed. Adams 14 collapsed on their watch. No Big Bad
Wolf involved.
Speaking of huffing and
puffing, the superintendents’ letter referred, no less than five times, to the Sword
of Damocles threatening to come down on Adams 14’s leaders. Who knew you
could turn “the accreditation process into a sword to hang above their head”?
Why so irate? ANOTHER
VIEW is that local control was merely the symptom. The cause, never
mentioned in the letter, was accountability. Anger at the Colorado Education Accountability Act of 2009. Fury at
how the State Board and CDE had handled the Adams 14 situation, even if they
were taking steps allowed for in the Accountability Act.
|
Overview of Accountability
System (CDE)[v] “Colorado’s education accountability system is
based on the belief that every student should receive an excellent education
and graduate ready to succeed… “The accountability system is designed to describe
performance of schools and districts and direct attention to areas of promise
and areas of need.” |
I have heard that “accountability is dead.” But the public won’t
allow this. At its heart, as the state’s own language shows (Addendum B),
accountability is about responsibility.
The public understands this word well. Be
responsible. Every district accepts this. True?
**
Addendum A
Adams
14 - Keeping track of academic outcomes, school performance since 2009
From Another View (I have cut references to other districts
and schools in the original newsletters.)
1) Another View #136 - “Local control” not enough; the state still has a key role in accountability - High schools in low-performing districts need help (Sept. 16, 2015)
2012-2015
ACT scores – 2012-2015 - high schools in 5 districts
on year 4 or 5 of accountability “clock”
|
|
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
2014-15 |
|
STATE |
20.0 |
20.14 |
20.31 |
20.1 |
down |
|
ADAMS COUNTY 14 |
15.31 |
15.9 |
15.99 |
15.6 |
down |
|
Adams
City High School * |
15.55 |
16.15 |
16.12 |
15.9 |
down
– 2nd straight year |
Adams 14 - March 2014: Members of the state board applauded the district’s efforts but wondered
if the district, which self-admittedly has much more room to improve, would
beat the clock. “We’ll be sliding in sideways,” said (superintendent Pat)
Sanchez, who has been a vocal critic of (the) state’s accountability clock.
**
2)
Another View # 144 – Fulfilling the Colorado READ Act:
a steep climb ahead (March 6, 2016)
2015
2015 - 3rd grade - PARC English: 38.6% well below meeting expectations - vs. - 16.1% SRD
PARCC results – grades 3: % in lowest two
categories – 7 districts below state average – vs. SRD
|
|
PARCC –
English Language Arts–2014-15 |
SRD – 2014-15 |
||
|
|
Did not yet
meet expectations |
Partially
met expectations |
TOTAL % in bottom
2 categories |
|
|
STATE of Colorado |
19.6 |
19.0 |
38.6 |
16.1% |
|
Adams 14 |
39.9 |
26.1 |
66.0 |
38.9% |
**
3) Another View #222 - The PSAT and
SAT do not work well for perhaps 25% of our high schools
(Jan. 12, 2021)
2018-19
ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT (9TH/10TH
GRADES)
Seven high schools where their
PSAT/SAT scores earned a rating of DOES NOT MEET
in every category for which enough students took
the test, in both 2018 and 2019.
|
ACADEMIC
GROWTH |
SPF Rating* |
PSAT/SAT – Evidenced Based Reading & Writing Growth |
PSAT/SAT Math Growth |
|
STATE
AVERAGE ON ACADEMIC GROWTH |
|
50 |
51 |
|
Adams City
H.S. |
PI - yr 9 |
42 |
36 |
|
State of Colorado
|
PSAT All 9th graders Average - 906 |
PSAT
benchmark
for
9th grade 860* |
SAT All 11th graders Average - 1001 |
SAT
benchmark for 11th grade 970 |
|
FRL students Average - 816 |
FRL students Average -898 |
|||
|
Denver Public Schools |
804 |
902 |
||
|
Aurora Public Schools |
780 |
859 |
||
|
Adams 14 |
779 |
830 |
**
4) Another View #248 - School accountability is not punishment (June 2022)
2009-2019
School Performance Framework in
several Adams 14 schools
What if this were your child, attending these schools from 2009-10 (3rd
grade) to graduation (2018-19)
A look at the School Performance Framework over 10
years.
What if your son or daughter were in 3rd
grade at Central Elementary in the fall of 2009? And he or she attended
Central for three years, in grades 3,4, and 5.
|
Attending |
|
Performance Indicator |
Rating/Plan |
% of Points earned out of points Eligible |
|
Grade 3 |
2009-2010 |
Academic Achievement |
Does Not Meet |
25% (6.3 pts out of 25 pts) |
|
Grade 4 |
2010-2011 |
Academic Achievement |
Does Not Meet |
31.3% (7.8 / 25 pts) |
|
Grade 5 |
2011-2012 |
Academic Achievement |
Does Not Meet |
31.3% (7.8 / 25 pts) |
What
if he or she then attended Adams City Middle School for the next three
years, in grade 6,7, and 8.
|
Attending |
|
Performance Indicator |
Rating/Plan |
% of Points earned out of
points Eligible |
|
Grade 6 |
2012-2013 |
Academic Achievement |
Approaching |
43.8% (11.0 pts out of 25
pts) |
|
Grade 7 |
2013-2014 |
Academic Achievement |
Does Not Meet |
33.3% (8.3 / 25 pts) |
|
Grade 8 |
2014-2015 |
No
SPF – Pause in Accountability during shift to CMAS, etc. |
||
What if he or she then went on to the district’s high school, Adams City High School, for grades 9-12?
|
Attending |
|
Performance
Indicator |
Rating/Plan |
%
of Points earned out of points Eligible |
|
Grade 9 |
2015-2016 |
Academic Achievement |
Does Not Meet |
32.6% (9.8 pts out of 30 pts) |
|
Grade 10 |
2016-2017 |
Academic Achievement |
Does Not Meet |
31.3% (9.4 / 30 pts) |
|
Grade 11 |
2017-2018 |
Academic Achievement |
Does Not Meet |
25.0% (7.5 / 30 pts) |
|
Grade 12 |
2018-2019 |
Academic Achievement |
Does Not Meet |
25.0% (7.5 / 30 pts) |
Adams City High School – from
School Performance Framework 2016-2019
DNM = Does Not Meet - for each
of these academic achievement categories, each year
|
|
2016
- CMAS |
2017-
CMAS |
2018
- PSAT |
2019
- PSAT |
||||
|
|
English |
Math |
English |
Math |
English
|
Math |
English
|
Math |
|
All students – Percentile Rank |
DNM 11 |
DNM 10 |
DNM
9 |
DNM 5 |
DNM 3 |
DNM 3 |
DNM 5 |
DNM 4 |
|
English Learners |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
|
F/R Lunch Eligible |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
|
Minority Students |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
|
Students w/ Disabilities |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
DNM |
5)
Another View #251 – Adams 14 - In
2022 a Colorado school district does not offer choice. What if it had done so?
2004 Scores at Adams City High School
Percentage of students
Proficient or Advanced on CSAP high school tests - 2004
|
Adams City High School |
State of Colorado |
|
|
9th grade - Reading |
30 |
66 |
|
-
Writing |
15 |
53 |
|
-
Math |
11 |
32 |
|
10th grade -
Reading |
30 |
65 |
|
- Writing |
16 |
50 |
|
- Math |
8 |
27 |
|
2004
– ACT |
Adams
City High School |
State
of Colorado |
|
Total |
14.0 |
18.8 |
2010 to 2019
Comparing SPF ratings and achievement scores
|
|
ADAMS
CITY HIGH SCHOOL |
|
2010 |
Turnaround
Plan |
|
2011 |
Priority
Improvement |
|
2012 |
Priority
Improvement |
|
2013 |
Priority
Improvement |
|
2014 |
Priority
Improvement (Year
5 on accountability clock) |
|
2016 |
Priority
Improvement |
|
2017 |
Turnaround
Plan |
|
2018 |
Priority
Improvement |
|
Priority Improvement (Year 9 on accountability
clock) |
|
|
2019 |
Total % pts earned - 35.5% |
2022
2022 UPDATE
|
2022[viii] |
ADAMS
CITY HIGH SCHOOL |
State
of Colorado Average |
|
PSAT
- 9 |
735 |
885 |
|
PSAT
- 10 |
785 |
935 |
|
PSAT
- 11 |
821 |
986 |
2010-2017
“Requests from State Board of Education Members for Additional Information in Advance of the Nov. 14, 2018 Accountability Hearing for Adams 14 School District and Adams City High School.”
|
Year |
2021-22
K-12 Enrollment |
Total
Resident Students |
%
Adams 14 Resident Students Enrolling Out of District |
|
2010 |
1,577 |
7,549 |
17.3% |
|
2011 |
2,566 |
7,321 |
26% |
|
2012 |
2,434 |
7,500 |
24.5% |
|
2013 |
2,780 |
7,598 |
26.8% |
|
2014 |
2,792 |
7,584 |
26.9% |
|
2015 |
3,061 |
7,577 |
28.8% |
|
2016 |
3,043 |
7,467 |
29% |
|
2017 |
3,155 |
7,400 |
29.9% |
Addendum B - The principle central to
Colorado’s Accountability Act: Responsibility
From CDE’s “District Accountability Handbook”
(August 2022)
Stakeholder Roles
Colorado’s system of accountability and support requires the
coordinated efforts of several key stakeholder groups:
● The Colorado Department of Education (Department) is responsible for providing high-quality information to a variety of stakeholders about school and district performance….
● The Colorado State Board of Education (state
board) is responsible for entering into
accreditation contracts with local school boards and
directing local school boards regarding
the types of plans the district’s schools implement….
● Local school boards are responsible for accrediting
their schools and ensuring that the
academic programs offered by their schools meet or
exceed state and local performance
expectations for attainment on the state’s key
Performance Indicators (i.e., achievement,
growth, and postsecondary/workforce readiness). Local
school boards also are responsible
for
creating, adopting and implementing a Performance, Improvement, Priority
Improvement, or Turnaround district plan, whichever is
required by the Department, and
ensuring that their schools create, adopt and implement their assigned plan type.
● District leaders are responsible for
overseeing that [sic] the academic programs offered by
district schools meet or exceed state and local
performance expectations on the state’s key
Performance Indicators. (i.e., achievement, growth,
and postsecondary/workforce
readiness)… Further, districts have the responsibility to review, approve, and monitor Targeted Support and Improvement (TS) school improvement plan….
● District Accountability Committees (DACs) are
responsible for …
● School leaders are responsible for overseeing that [sic] the academic programs offered by their school meet or exceed state and local performance expectations for of attainment on the
state’s three key Performance Indicators (i.e., achievement, growth, and postsecondary/workforce readiness) ….
● School Accountability Committees (SACs) are responsible for...
https://www.cde.state.co.us/accountability/accountabilityhandbookpdf
Endnotes
[i]
https://www.cpr.org/2022/06/08/a-dozen-metro-denver-district-superintendents-condemn-board-of-educations-order-to-reorganize-adams-14/
[ii]
Link to the superintendents’ letter is here – CBS Colorado, https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/13-denver-superintendents-voice-support-for-adams-14-state-board-reorganize-district/
[iii]
“Adams 14 History - A look at the district’s academic performance, enrollment,
graduation and leadership,” Colorado Department of Education, https://www.cde.state.co.us/communications/factsheeta14accountabilityhistory.
[iv]
From superintendents’ letter. Again, for the link the letter, https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/13-denver-superintendents-voice-support-for-adams-14-state-board-reorganize-district/
[v] “Overview of Accountability System,” District
Accountability Handbook (August 2022), page 4.
https://www.cde.state.co.us/accountability/accountabilityhandbookpdf
[vi] “Audit: Colorado school accountability system ‘reasonable
and appropriate,’” by Erica Meltzer and Yesenia Robles,
Chalkbeat Colorado, Dec 12, 2022. https://co.chalkbeat.org/2022/12/12/23506460/colorado-accountability-audit-school-performance-rating-reviews
[vii] “HB23-1241- Task Force To Study K-12 Accountability System. Concerning creating a task force to study the statewide K-12
education accountability system in order to address resource inequities
contributing to student performance.” https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb23-1241
