BEDFORD – During a work session on Tuesday, members of the North Lawrence Community Schools board discussed potential standards and expectations for the recently hired superintendent, Kevin Yancey, and assistant superintendent, Steve Underwood.
The meeting served as a session for members to merely just discuss the topic, with no votes being held at this time.
The proposed performance standards largely come from a template created by the Indiana Department of Education for district leaders, which is endorsed by the Indiana School Board Association Model of Board Governance reference manual.
It covers broad standards such as Human Capital Management, Instructional Leadership, Personal Behavior, Building Relationships, Culture of Achievement and Organizational, Operational, and Resource Management.
Additionally, the board has the option to set their own, district-specific goals and expectations to be included in an evaluation.
After discussion in the meeting, the board narrowed down 11 expectations specific to NLCS that they would like to see achieved by the end of the evaluation period, which will be June 30, 2024.
Those were:
- Collaborate with the NLCS Board of Directors to develop a strategic plan that lays out the strategic vision, mission, goals and objectives for NLCS
- Establish a plan to evaluate and monitor the culture & environment of NLCS schools with a focus on making continuous improvements.
- Establish a plan by which to increase recruitment and retention rates of highly motivated teachers and instructional staff across the NLCS district.
- Establish a time-bound plan with goals and objectives to increase student enrollment at NLCS schools.
- Develop a Facilities Plan such that required improvements in the NLCS buildings can be prioritized and improvement plans can be made based on available resources both in the near and long term.
- Complete a feasibility study on the potential use cases of the Oolitic Middle School facility. Report status to NLCS Board on a monthly basis, with a goal for completion of the study with courses of action and recommendations on January 31, 2024, with an ultimate goal of implementation in time for the school year beginning August 2024
- Review SBOA findings from 2018-2020 and 2020-2022 audits and develop a plan to correct deficiencies identified such that NLCS becomes compliant with SBOA standards.
- In time for the 2023-2024 School Year, make available a readily usable application for teacher-to-family and school-to-family communication. This would include either repairing or replacing the “Blackboard” app that was unsuccessful in this capacity in the 2022-2023 school year. Monitor the future app for effectiveness based on teacher and family feedback.
- Review the trimester system at BNL High School for effectiveness and efficiency. This coming 2023-2024 school year will represent the fourth year of trimesters (vs. semesters) at BNLHS. If found ineffective or inefficient compared to semesters, prepare courses of action and recommendations to improve the trimester system or to transition back to a semester-based curriculum.
- Review the NLCS Special Education Program for compliance and effectiveness. Perform an in-depth analysis of all aspects of the program; including Personnel (numbers and facilifications). Adherence to laws and regulations, Use of IEPS & Accommodations, Use of facilities and personnel, Parental involvement, Processes and Procedures, etc.
- Evaluate the current pay scale and personal time off (PTO) for all support staff. Perform the evaluation and recommend changes, as appropriate, prior to the start of the 2023-2024 School Year. Building administrators have repeatedly indicated that they cannot function effectively without instructional aids. It’s become increasingly difficult to hire and retain support staff. The PTO package was significantly modified by the previous administration. The support staff is critical to the success of the corporation and a review of the compensation package is necessary.
