South Carolina Code of Regulations › Chapter 43 - STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION › Article 19 - INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAM › Section 43-261 - District and School Planning

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 6, June 28, 2024
A.
			 Development of District Strategic Plan and School Renewal Plans
1. Each school district must develop a
			 five-year district strategic plan and each school must develop a five-year
			 school renewal plan as required by the Early Childhood Development and Academic
			 Assistance Act of 1993 and the Education Accountability Act of 1998. District
			 and school plans shall coordinate and align improvement initiatives.
2. New five-year district and school plans
			 shall be submitted to the State Department of Education by April 30, 2005, and
			 every five years thereafter. Plans will become effective on July 1 of the same
			 year. The annual update of the district strategic plan must be submitted to the
			 State Department of Education by April 30 of each year or, if applicable, on
			 the Advanced plan deadline, whichever is later.
3. The district strategic plan includes the
			 accountability system that directs an annual needs assessment; prioritizes the
			 performance goals; and reports how the district supports schools, students, and
			 families. The district strategic plan and school renewal plans must establish
			 priorities and prioritize efforts to focus on raising student achievement
			 levels for all students, the prevention of academic problems, and reducing the
			 achievement gaps identified on the annual report card. It is imperative that
			 the planning processes demonstrate a commitment to continuous improvement and
			 respond to accountability requirements in both state and federal legislation.
			 The plans must be developed collaboratively by a broad-based group of
			 stakeholders using a consensus process.
4. The district strategic plan, school
			 renewal plans, and annual updates must be reviewed and approved by the local
			 board of trustees and coordinate funding from local, state, federal, and
			 private sources.
5. Districts and
			 schools are urged to follow the model planning process developed by the State
			 Department of Education, although no single planning format is required for
			 district or school plans. Whatever process is used for developing a district
			 strategic plan and school renewal plans must include each of the following
			 components:
a. comprehensive needs
			 assessment,
b. performance
			 goals,
c. interim performance
			 goals,
d. strategies and action
			 plans,
e. evaluation of the
			 strategies,
f. evidence of
			 comprehensive consensus building, and
g. assurances.
6. Schools that use the Southern Association
			 of Colleges and Schools (SACS) accreditation process may substitute the SACS
			 plan for the school renewal plan provided that it includes the components (a)
			 through (g) listed above and described below.
a. Comprehensive Needs Assessment
The annual needs assessment will provide focus for planning
				teams to set priorities for the plan. The comprehensive needs assessment must
				identify targeted areas of discrepancy between the desired performance levels
				and the current status as indicated by available data. Any discrepancies in the
				following areas identified by the school and district report cards must be
				included in the plan:
(1)
			 achievement,
(2) achievement by
			 subgroups,
(3) graduation
			 rates,
(4) attendance,
(5) discipline,
(6) teacher/administrator quality and
			 professional growth, and
(7) other
			 priority areas.
b.
			 Performance Goals
Measurable performance goals, written in five-year increments,
				shall be developed to address the major areas of discrepancy found in the needs
				assessment in key areas reported in the district and school report cards.
				Performance goals in the district strategic plan and school renewal plans must
				address:
(1) student
			 achievement,
(2)
			 teacher/administrator quality,
(3)
			 school climate (parent involvement, safe and healthy schools, and other locally
			 identified areas), and
(4) other
			 innovation initiatives or priorities as identified by districts and
			 schools.
c. Interim
			 Performance Goals
Interim performance goals will establish annual measurable
				targets for the five-year performance goals.
d. Strategies and Action Plans
Strategies shall be derived from scientifically-based education
				research and best practices and shall be designed to meet the performance and
				interim performance goals. Action plans, which may include innovative
				initiatives, will provide details (action/activity, person responsible, start
				and end dates for major action steps, professional development, necessary
				resources, and progress measures) regarding the implementation of each
				data-driven strategy to ensure continuous improvement. Staff development shall
				meet national professional development standards and must provide participants
				with the knowledge and skills necessary to implement the strategies.
				Coordination of funding from local, state, federal, and private sources is
				imperative. Schools visited by an external review team (ERT) must incorporate
				appropriate recommendations into their annual update.
e. Evaluation of the Strategies
Ongoing evaluation (formative and summative) will assess the
				progress toward performance goals and annual interim performance goals.
				Measures of effectiveness must include outcome and process indicators of
				improvement. The methods of assessing the efficacy of the strategies must
				provide data regarding the impact of the strategies and whether they should be
				continued, modified, or terminated. After the initial year of the plan, the
				evaluation results from the annual update will become a key component of the
				ongoing needs assessment process.
f. Evidence of Comprehensive Consensus
			 Building
Shared decision making is central to the formulation of a
				functional plan. Therefore, a collaborative consensus building process shall be
				used in the development of the district strategic plan and school renewal
				plans. Stakeholders, including teachers, administrators/principals,
				parents/guardians, and community representatives, must be actively involved in
				the district strategic planning and school renewal planning processes. The
				School Improvement Council must actively participate in the development of the
				school renewal plan.
g.
			 Assurances
Assurances, signed by the district superintendent, attest that
				the district and schools comply with all applicable federal and state statutory
				and fiscal requirements.