At the January 4th meeting of the Milton School Committee, the committee heard from Cunningham Principal Karen Spaulding and members of the school’s site council. hey presented MCAS results, highlighting areas of strength and weakness. The team was particularly proud of the significant improvement seen in the MCAS median growth percentile (MSGP). The school improved 19 points in ELA (from 57 – 76) and 27 in mathematics (from 48 to 75).
The MSGP “measures how much a student’s performance has improved from one year to the next relative to his or her academic peers: other students statewide with similar MCAS test scores in prior years.” 1 Spauling also specifically called out that fact that Gr 3,4, and 5 performed higher than the state in every area for aggregate (ie student class as a whole vs specific subgroups)and that areas of weakness for Special Ed subgroup included language, style, and “abstract’ meaning making in ELA and measurement and number sense in math.
Spaulding also has a Principal’s Advisory Team consisting of students that meet with her on a regular basis. “I hope they enjoy it as much as I do,” Spaulding said. She also explained the school’s theme of “Educational Excellence” which consists of evaluative processes, collaboration of leadership, and working to develop a set of strategies to achieve improvement going forward.
The finance sub-committee also presented a revision to the 2013 budget. It includes a third budget called the “Advancement Budget.” The other two are a level service budget and a level funded budget. The level service budget preserves current services at 2012 levels. The level funded budget keeps the budget amount the same as for 2012 which would necessitate cuts in order to meet salary increases and other contractual obligations. (Please see Mtg notes: School Committee – Teacher cuts detailed to meet level funded budget; 26.5 teachers would go).
The Advancement Budget would reinstate certain positions the school administration believe necessary to move the district forward academically. They identified the following positions; Math Coordinator at the Pierce ($105k), 2 FTE Instructional leaders at the elementary schools ($114K), 1.8 FTE Elementary Spec Ed chairs at the elementary schools ($100K), and an elementary science specialist ($102.6K). They also included restoring texts, materials and technology supplies ($57K).
The Advancement budget would add $478,600 above level Service budget.
The budget figures are:
- Advancement Budget- $36,218,319
- Level Service Budget – $35,739,719
- Level Funded Budget – $34,029,343
1. Massachusetts Student Growth Percentiles – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)