Nov 21

==Subject: [Aplus] Join A+ Schools - Support the PPS Right Sizing Plan==
Dear Friend of A+ Schools:
A + Schools applauds the work of Superintendent Roosevelt and his team in crafting the proposed school realignment plan. While no plan is perfect and any plan is sure to cause some pain for parents, students, teachers and administrators we believe this is as fair, objective and balanced a plan as we could ask for. We also applaud the decision of the Board of Education to make a decision on the plan as a whole rather than run the risk of piecemeal amendments, each of which might seem mild, but the sum of which might destroy the effectiveness of the plan. Specifically, A+ Schools supports the Superintendent’s proposal for the following reasons:
1. It is the only school closing plan in the last 30 years that makes student achievement the “Number 1” priority of the plan and of the School District.
2. It keeps high-performing schools open if they do not divert resources away from other schools in the district.
3. It calls for the transfer of students only if they move to higher-performing schools or schools with an enhanced educational program.
4. It creates the School Performance Index, a new method for determining the effectiveness of individual schools which is more fair and accurate than relying on annual standardized test scores.
5. It is presented in a way that permits all citizens to examine all of the reasons, and data supporting them, for all the components of the plan, and provides individual parents the opportunity to know in advance about the schools their children will be attending.
6. It creates the Accelerated Learning Academies, a major opportunity to take the best educational practices locally and nationally and dramatically improve student achievement in Pittsburgh.
7. It establishes accountability for student progress through performance-based contracts with principals.
8. It provides the opportunity to retain local control of district schools.
9. It is comprehensive and can bring stability to the district, freeing parents, students, teachers and administrators to concentrate on student achievement rather than coping with additional school closings every year.
We hope you share our enthusiasm for this plan and that you will use your voice to discuss and support the plan. Here are some easy ways to use your voice:
1. Write a letter to the editor of the Post Gazette, Tribune Review or your local newspaper outlining your support for the plan.
2. Attend, and if possible, testify at the upcoming PPS public hearing on the plan on Tuesday, November 29, 2005 at 1 PM or 6 PM. You must sign up by noon on the 23rd if you would like to speak – call 412-622-3600 to register.
3. Call your School Board member and voice your support for the plan. Go to http://cms.pps.k12.pa.us/BoardofDirectors.asp for a list of members. The board can be reached at 412-622-3770.
4. If you are a member of a community organization – ask them to support the plan
5. Talk to friends, neighbors, co-workers about your support for the plan
6. Participate in A+ Schools’ on-line discussion regarding the plan at http://www.aplusschools.org/phpBB2/index.php.
A+ Schools can help with any one of these actions or other ideas you may have about supporting the Right Sizing Plan for PPS. Call Carey Harris at 412-258-2661 for more information.
To unsubscribe from this e-mail list, please contact Dina Vargo at dvargo@aplusschools.org and include the word “unsubscribe” in the subject heading.
Dina Vargo
A+ Schools: Pittsburgh's Community Alliance for Public Education
425 Sixth Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
412-258-2660
412-258-2666 fax
dvargo@aplusschools.org