ATSI School Letter

English Version

November 4, 2024

 

Dear Parent/Guardian:

I hope the school year is off to a successful start for you and your child.  I am writing this letter to let you know that Coopers Elementary school has been designated as a Targeted Support & Improvement Additional Targeted Support (TSI-AT) school by the North Carolina State Board of Education.  Per ESSA Section 1111(d)(2), schools are identified as TSI-AT schools in North Carolina because one or more of the following subgroups received a subgroup performance grade score at or below the highest identified CSI-LP school’s All Students group during the identification year; and is on the TSI-CU list for the subgroup(s) for the previous year. Subgroup performance scores are provided for the following subgroups: (1) Students with Disabilities, (2) Economically Disadvantaged, (3) Black, (4) White, (5) Hispanic, (6) Asian-Pacific Islander, (7) Multi-racial, and (8) English Learners. This letter is to notify our parents and guardians of Coopers Elementary’s intentions to improve educational outcomes for underperforming student subgroups and close achievement gaps for all students.

 

As a TSI-AT (ATSI) school, Coopers Elementary is required to develop an Additional Targeted Support and Improvement (ATSI)  plan that specifically addresses how the school will improve outcomes for underperforming subgroups. The plan will also include strategies that our district or charter will employ to support Coopers Elementary improvement efforts. The ATSI plan will address the following areas

• Standards-aligned Instruction

• Recruitment & Retention of Effective Teachers

• Support for Grade-to-Grade Transitions

• Implementation of a Tiered Instructional System

• Data-Driven Decision Making

• Family and Community Engagement

   

We have set the following goals for Coopers Elementary this year:

• Goal 1: By the end of the 24-25 school year Coopers’ staff will use effective instructional strategies daily to provide high quality instruction (Tier 1,2, and 3), leading to exceeded growth and increased student achievement with 70% of our students demonstrating mastery of standards in grade 3-5 (ELA from 55.7% to 70%, Math from 65.2% to 70%, and Science from 60.7% to 70%) and  our K-2 proficiency 85% or higher (from 80%) reflecting on students’ end of grade assessments and benchmarks.

• Goal 2: By the end of the 24-25 school year, staff will attend professional development monthly to target specific needs and address student learning (including Students With Disabilities) documented using sign-in sheets.

• Goal 3: Yearly, Coopers Elementary will create a school culture that is positive, safe, and supportive to the professional growth and personal wellness of all staff, resulting in a 90% or higher retention rate.

• Goal 4: By the end of the 24-25 school year, Coopers Elementary will provide students with daily SEL instruction as well as academic and emotional support as needed utilizing district resources, therefore, increasing student growth and minimizing office referrals by 10% (from 281 to less than 253).

• Goal 5: Coopers Elementary will enhance family engagement and improve student outcomes by hosting at least five events throughout the 2024-2025 school year, documenting using sign-in sheets, and utilizing multiple communication pathways, including but not limited to the NCPS Rooms app, Facebook, the school website, and Connect-Ed messages, to maintain ongoing communication and foster school-to-home connections.

 

Here are some strategies that we will be implementing to improve student outcomes:

• Intentional small group instruction each day

• Strong CORE instruction

• Intervention/ Enrichment Time for grades K-5

• Fluency Passages daily for students

• Following district’s pacing guides

• Intentional lesson planning to guide instruction: Depth of Knowledge questioning

• Curriculum Nights for families

• Daily walkthroughs from admin and MCLs

• MCL (Multi-classroom Leaders) support

• Lesson plans aligned with the district’s curriculum map

• Professional Development

• Data Dives (EC and K-5): Benchmarks, Common Assessment

• Smaller Class Sizes (overall)

• Professional Development available on:

  • Infinite Campus - Aug. / Sept

  • Exact Path - Sept.

  • MTSS/BAIT

  • Subgroup data: Multi-Language, Black, white, Students with Disabilities

  • Selected topics for Beginning Teachers (Monthly Support)

  • Science Professional Development

  • District offers Professional Development for ELA, Math, and Science quarterly

  • Vector Training (SEL and Medical)

• Being proactive instead of reactive

• Small group support led by the school counselor

• Kindergarten and First Grade daily/weekly Social Emotional lessons (SEL) from counselor

• 3-5 monthly SEL lessons from counselor

• Student Support Team analyzing data

• Second Step Curriculum being utilized (District Resource)

• Morning Temperature Check (Classroom Based)

• Colleague and Peer Support

• Exceptional Children’s Department also has SEL groups: Social stories and district resources

• Outside Agency Partnerships: Yotaron, Cross River, PRIDE

• Back to School Fair: August 15, 2024

• Open House: August 22, 2024

• Curriculum Night

  • 3rd Grade: September 17th

  • K - 5th Grade: October 2nd

• PTO events throughout the year

  • Tuesday, October 15th, 2024 

  • Tuesday, December 3rd, 2024

  • Tuesday, January 28th, 2025

  • Tuesday, March 24th, 2025

  • Tuesday, May 20th, 2025

• BINGO Night: Friday, May 2, 2025

• Connect-Ed weekly messages

• Monthly newsletter from Administration

• Teacher weekly newsletters to parents

• STREAM Night: Thursday, November 14, 2024

• K-5 Transition Night (Spring)

• Parent-Teacher Conferences

  • Mandatory MOY Conferences (January 22, 2025 - February 21, 2025)

     

Also, parent engagement is at the heart of our school improvement efforts. Here are some ways we can work together:

• Ensure that both you and your child know the academic expectations set for your child this school year.  A list of learning objectives in student-friendly language is available from your student’s teacher(s). 

• Call Mrs. Land, Principal, if you have questions or concerns about your student or to set up an appointment to meet with a school staff member who will be working with your child. 

• Make sure that your child is prepared and attends school each day.

• Monitor your child’s homework.

• Monitor the progress your child is making and attend meetings with your child’s teacher(s).

• Keep track of our website and social media site: https://cooperses.ncpschools.net/

• Volunteer.

• Join our Parent Teacher Organization

   

Additionally, listed below are a few resources available to help: 

• Graduation requirements: www.ncpublicschools.org/gradrequirements/

• K-12 standards in academic subjects: www.ncpublicschools.org/curriculum/ 

• State student achievement test results: www.ncpublicschools.org/accountability/

• N.C. School Report Cards: https://ncreportcards.ondemand.sas.com/src

We are committed to improving student performance. It is important to remember that just as no single score or grade tells the whole story of a student, neither does it tell you everything about a school's performance or the opportunities that our school provides. The intent of receiving these designations is to improve educational outcomes for all students, close achievement gaps, increase equity, and improve the quality of instruction. We’re excited about this school year and are working to make it a success for your child. Already, we have:

• a set intervention time per grade level

• monthly progress monitoring to see how students are advancing in English Language Arts

• a set time in each grade level for Letterland, which is to build students’ phonics skills

• the implementation of Heggerty to build phonemic awareness skills.

• the utilization of Opportunity Culture to provide more small-group instruction for students and co-teaching support for teachers

 

If you have questions about the content of this letter, please contact Mrs. Land at cnland@ncpschools.net or 252-937-9035.

 

Sincerely,

Courtney Land, Principal

Spanish Version