Colorado's Unified Improvement Plan for Schools

University Schools UIP 2023-24

      
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Content


  • Document icons and definitions

  • Priority Performance Challenges
  • Root Cause
  • Major Improvement Strategies
  • Action Steps
  • Progress Monitoring
  • Trend Direction

Executive Summary


Priority Performance Challenges Root Cause Major Improvement Strategies
  • PPC1- K-12 Academic Achievement
    		•
  • Tier I Instruction/ Engagement
    		•
  • K-12 Learning Time
  • Systems Approach
    		•
  • PPC2- K-12 Academic Growth
    		•
  • Tier I Instruction/ Engagement
    		•
  • K-12 Learning Time
  • Systems Approach
    		•
  • PPC3- READ Plans
    		•
  • Tier I Instruction/ Engagement
    		•
  • K-12 Learning Time
  • Systems Approach
    		•


    Access the School Performance Framework here: http://www.cde.state.co.us/schoolview/performance

    Access the Literacy Curriculum Transparency Dashboard here: https://www.cde.state.co.us/code/literacycurriculumtransparency-dashboard

    Improvement Plan Information


    Additional Information about the school



    Improvement Plan Information

    The school/district is submitting this improvement plan to satisfy requirements for (check all that apply):


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    Narrative on Data Analysis and Root Cause Identification


    Description of School Setting and Process for Data Analysis

    University Schools is in its 131st year of existence. University Schools educates 1,746 students in grades K – 12 in two buildings on a single campus. University Schools is a public charter school in Greeley/Evans District 6. University Schools began as a laboratory school on the campus of the University of Northern Colorado. Organizationally, the school is configured into an elementary (grades K – 5), middle school (grades 6 – 8) and high school (grades 9 – 12). While no longer a laboratory school, a close partnership is maintained with the University of Northern Colorado. As a charter school, University Schools is a school of choice. Students at University Schools come from Greeley and the surrounding area. University Schools is committed to serving a diverse student population. The percentage of students who qualify for free and reduced meal benefits (FaRM) is 37%. The total minority population of the school is 49% with the Hispanic population at 44% of the student body which is an increase from previous years. Six percent of the student body receives special education services and four percent are English Language Learners (ELL). The total school enrollment has nearly tripled from 640 in 2000 to nearly 1800 in 2023. 

    School administrators gathered academic growth and performance data (CMAS, PSAT, SAT and other local relevant data). The administrators and coaches worked together interpreting and analyzing the data. Trends, performance challenges and root causes were analyzed. The root causes were consistent with those identified two years ago, as indicated by the data analysis. The committee extended improvement strategies that were begun last year and set new targets. Collaborative work included brainstorming and discussions across three levels (elementary, middle and high school) and all content areas. Achievement data was shared with the School Accountability Committee which included faculty, parents and community members. Goals were discussed for school-wide improvement. The Board of Governors, School Accountability Committee and faculty reviewed the final plan.

    Prior Year Targets

    Provide a summary of your progress in implementing the Major Improvement Strategies and if they had the intended effect on systems, adult actions, and student outcomes (e.g. targets).

    Reflection on ELA Prior Year Target: Prior year target met! 20% of kindergarten-3rd grade students were identified as having a Significant Reading Deficiency (SRD) and on READ Plans in Spring 2023 which is a 1% decrease from the 2021-2022 school year. 26 students excited READ Plans K-5 and 96 students were monitored and provided adequate interventions that prevented students from reaching the SRD category.
     

    Reflection on "Other" Prior Year Target: University Schools has not yet selected a survey to administer to students and staff to gauge safety and belonging.


    K-12 Professional Learning Communities Reflection: All staff self-selected a PLC during to 2022-2023 school year and created team-driven and personal professional goals. Grade-level teams and departments completed data-driven conversations to increase student performance after each benchmark. Elementary teams implemented the WIN (What I Need) Block in order to provide core instruction paired with individual interventions to every student in ELA.

    Systems Approach Reflection: K-8 MTSS teams attended professional learning through CDE to realign the MTSS process. Throughout the 2022-2023 school year, the K-12 Leadership Team partnered with the Board of Governors and student representatives to develop a K-12 Strategic Plan focused on three words from the school mission and vision: Leading, Learning, and Caring. Each word has I Believe statements, Objectives, Outcomes, and Action Steps.


    Based on your reflection and evaluation, provide a summary of the adjustments that you will make for this year's plan.

    ELA Target: The elementary school will continue to focus on reducing the percentage of students meeting the SRD category and on READ Plans by piloting co-teaching and achievement teams in kindergarten and 1st grade as well as continuing to provide targeted reading interventions to every student K-5 during WIN Block.

    Other Target: University will select a survey this school year.

    K-12 Professional Learning Communities: Staff will have the opportunity to join a Professional Learning Community (PLC), participate in Extended Learning Opportunities (ELO), or both across 11 professional development days and weekly grade level/ department team meetings.

    Systems Approach: The K-12 Leadership Team will communicate and receive feedback from other staff and families during the 2023-2024 school year to finalize the 3-year K-12 Strategic Plan.

    Current Performance

    The 2023 school rating was Performance. The Elementary School rating was Improvement, the Middle School rating was Improvement, and the High School rating was Performance. All schools were Approaching state expectations in Academic Achievement and Academic Growth. The High School met state expectations in postsecondary and workforce readiness.

    According to the 2023 CMAS data, the number of students in the does not meet and partially met categories increased, and the number of students in the meets and exceeds categories decreased. Our participation rates were lower than in 2022.

    Local spring 2023 NWEA data also shows a high percentage of students in the did not meet, partially met, and approaching categories and a low percentage of students in the met and exceeded categories in both math and reading.
     

    Trend Analysis

    Trend Direction: Decreasing then increasing
    Performance Indicator Target: Academic Achievement (Status)

    Academic achievement scores in ELA decreased from 2019 to 2021 then increased from 2021 to 2022.
    Trend Direction: Stable
    Performance Indicator Target: Academic Achievement (Status)

    Students in the “All Students” category scored the approaching rating in Math Academic Achievement in 2019, 2022, and 2023.
    Trend Direction: Decreasing
    Performance Indicator Target: Academic Achievement (Status)

    All schools have scored approaching in academic achievement in 2019, 2022, and 2023 but the overall percentage of points has decreased from 49.3 to 48.2 to 45.7
    Trend Direction: Increasing then decreasing
    Performance Indicator Target: Academic Growth

    Academic Growth in ELA & Math for elementary students increased from 2019 to 2022 then decreased from 2022 to 2023.
    Trend Direction: Increasing
    Performance Indicator Target: Academic Growth

    Academic Growth in ELA and Math for 6-12 students increased from 2019 to 2022 to 2023.

    Priority Performance Challenge and Associated Root Cause

    Priority Performance Challenge:  PPC1- K-12 Academic Achievement

    In the 2022-2023 school year, the average score for the “All Students” category was Approaching for academic achievement in ELA and Math at the elementary, middle, and high schools.

    Area of Focus: Other achievement


    Root Cause: Tier I Instruction/ Engagement

    There is not a shared understanding of research-based Tier I instruction.


    Priority Performance Challenge:  PPC2- K-12 Academic Growth

    In the 2022-2023 school year the average score for the “All Students” category was Approaching for academic growth in ELA at the elementary, middle, and high schools. The average score for the “All Students” category was Approaching for academic growth in Math at the elementary and middle schools.

    Area of Focus: Other growth


    Root Cause: Tier I Instruction/ Engagement

    There is not a shared understanding of research-based Tier I instruction.


    Priority Performance Challenge:  PPC3- READ Plans

    In the 2022-2023 school year 20% of students K-3 and 22% of students K-5 were identified as SRD on a READ Plan.

    Area of Focus: Early literacy


    Root Cause: Tier I Instruction/ Engagement

    There is not a shared understanding of research-based Tier I instruction.


    Why were these challenges selected and what is the magnitude of the overall performance challenges:

    These challenges have been selected because they represent a major population of our student body. 

    How were the Root Causes were selected and verified:

    The administrative team gathered relevant assessment data  for analysis to determine notable trends and priority performance challenges.  To determine root causes, the team focused on one performance challenge at a time, considered types of data, generated explanations and brainstormed with the circle map tool provided by CDE.  The data was then categorized and classified  to narrow and eliminate explanations over which there is no control and solely focused on adult actions within the school.

    Action and Progress Monitoring Plans

    Major Improvement Strategy and Action Plan

    > >

    K-12 Learning Time

    What will success look like:

    		Utilize K-12 Learning time to build your own and others' capacity to apply the science of learning and evidence-based practices to deepen engagement.

    Describe the research/evidence base supporting the strategy:

    		A recent Gallup study found schools in the top quartile of student engagement had significantly more students exceeding and meeting proficiency requirements than schools in the bottom quartile of engagement. This is a good fit for our school because it aligns with our mission and vision to lead, learn, and care.

    Strategy Category:

    		Continuous Improvement

    Associated Root Causes:

    Tier I Instruction/ Engagement: There is not a shared understanding of research-based Tier I instruction.

    Implementation Benchmarks Associated with Major Improvement Strategy

    Benchmark Name Description Start/End/Repeats Key Personnel Status
    Professional Learning Utilize K-12 Learning time to build your own and others' capacity to apply the science of learning and evidence-based practices to deepen engagement. 08/04/2023
    05/30/2025
    Monthly     		Building administrators, PLC Consultant, PLC Teacher Leaders In Progress

    Action Steps Associated with Major Improvement Strategy

    Name Description Start/End Date Resource Key Personnel Status
    K-12 MTSS
    		Focus on student academic achievement through data collection, interventions and assessments 08/04/2023
    05/30/2025     		Local and State student assessment data, MTSS and RtI implementation Intervention committee members, administrators, classroom teachers In Progress
    K-12 Professional Learning "All"
    		There are 11 professional learning days. On those days, all staff will attend: 8:00-8:15 Leading 8:15-9:00 Caring 9:00-9:45 Learning 10:00-11:00 MTSS 11:00-12:00 Levels 08/04/2023
    05/30/2025     		K-12 teacher leadership committee, collaborative activity planning K-12 teachers and staff, administrators, instructional coaches and community members In Progress
    Professional Learning Communities (PLC)/ Extended Learning Opportunities (ELO)
    		There are 11 professional learning days. On those days, all staff will choose to attend induction, join a Professional Learning Community, or attend an ELO from 1:30-3:00. 08/04/2023
    05/30/2025     		K-12 teacher leadership committee, collaborative planning, monthly PLC committee meetings, monthly staff trainings PLC leadership team members, classroom teachers, administrators, instructional coaches, PLC consultant In Progress
    > >

    Systems Approach

    What will success look like:

    		Develop and maintain a K-12 systems approach to identify student needs academically and social-emotionally with the purpose of creating an integrated model to match needs with appropriate instructional planning and delivery.

    Describe the research/evidence base supporting the strategy:

    		Education systems should approach future changes on the basis of strengthening whole-child approaches, growing social-emotional health, and incorporating needs-based instructional practices.

    Strategy Category:

    		Assessment & Assessment Systems

    Associated Root Causes:

    Tier I Instruction/ Engagement: There is not a shared understanding of research-based Tier I instruction.

    Implementation Benchmarks Associated with Major Improvement Strategy

    Benchmark Name Description Start/End/Repeats Key Personnel Status

    Action Steps Associated with Major Improvement Strategy

    Name Description Start/End Date Resource Key Personnel Status

    Progress Monitoring: Student Target Setting

    Priority Performance Challenge : PPC1- K-12 Academic Achievement

    Performance Indicator:

    		 Academic Achievement (Status)

    Measures / Metrics:
    ANNUAL
    PERFORMANCE
    TARGETS
    2023-2024: Each level's current performance is as follows: ELA: Elem 34, MS 32, HS 43 Math: Elem 26, MS 43.5, HS 45 In the 2023-2024 school year, each level (elementary, middle, and high) will increase by 5 percentile rank points in each achievement area.
    2024-2025:

    INTERIM MEASURES FOR 2023-2024:

    Priority Performance Challenge : PPC2- K-12 Academic Growth

    Performance Indicator:

    		 Academic Growth

    Measures / Metrics:
    ANNUAL
    PERFORMANCE
    TARGETS
    2023-2024: Each level's current performance is as follows: ELA: Elem 47, MS 47, HS 49 Math: Elem 43.5, MS 45, HS 51 In the 2023-2024 school year, each level (elementary, middle, and high) will increase by 5 median growth percentiles in each content area.
    2024-2025:

    INTERIM MEASURES FOR 2023-2024:

    Priority Performance Challenge : PPC3- READ Plans

    Performance Indicator:

    		 Other

    Measures / Metrics:
    ANNUAL
    PERFORMANCE
    TARGETS
    2023-2024: In the 2023-2024 school year the percentage of K-3 students on a READ Plan will decrease from 20% and the percentage of K-5 students on a READ Plan will decrease from 22%.
    2024-2025:

    INTERIM MEASURES FOR 2023-2024:

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