Print    Email

Make Informed Decisions

Districts must make informed decisions about needed program changes to support their efforts to increase parent, teacher, and student satisfaction and ultimately work to improve student achievement.

Program Practices

Administer Surveys and Monitor Data Results to Assist in Program Improvement
Since opening in 1999, FRCS has administered surveys as part of the school’s accountability plan.

Choose Location Based on Demographic Data
Minneapolis Public Schools is a district that has implemented choice for over 25 years and has had time to analyze and replicate programs that are successful.

Close Schools That Are Not Successful
Every two years, Minneapolis Public Schools evaluates all schools using 33 quality improvement indicators. When a school fails to meet several indicator benchmarks, district-developed interventions are then followed.

Develop Parent Resource Centers in Strategic Areas
Developed through the ongoing efforts of the state-level Florida School Choice Resource Center (FSCRC), Florida’s local-level School Choice Parent Resource Centers offer parents a neutral location to receive information and support regarding school choice options.

Partner With a Researcher to Study Program and Advise
New Haven Public Schools has been working with the same evaluator since 1995, Dr. David Kikoler from American Education Solutions, Inc, who has worked with the district in a range of ways.

Replicate Successful Programs Based on Achievement and Satisfaction Data
Mesa Public Schools monitors the enrollment and achievement of their schools and replicates successful programs based on this data.

Support Charter Schools Within Your District
Portland Public Schools' School Board has hired a consultant to help the charters reach out to a broader audience and provide more students—especially those in lower-performing schools—with information about their school choice options.

Sample Materials

Benjamin Franklin Schools
Mesa Public Schools' leaders replicated this program in different geographic areas to satisfy parent and student needs.

Malcolm Baldrige Quality Criteria
Minneapolis Public Schools uses the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award criteria as a framework for school improvement discussions.

Spanish Immersion Program
Based on demand from students and parents, Minneapolis Public Schools created a second Spanish immersion program as an educational option.

Thirty-Three Quality Improvement Indicators
Minneapolis Public Schools collects data based on 33 quality improvement indicators for each school to help analyze school performance.

Measuring Up Report
The Minneapolis Foundation, Minneapolis Public Schools, and the Greater Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce team up to publish an annual report on the district's progress.

Arkansas Virtual School Program Final Evaluation Report 2005-2006
During the 2005-2006 school year, the Arkansas Virtual School (ARVS) administrators hired an external evaluator to assess the ARVS processes and policies and recommend areas of improvement. At the conclusion of the evaluation, the evaluator presented its findings in a final report.

Transportation Survey
This survey was distributed to Foxborough Regional Charter School families to better assess their transportation needs.

Quality Service Ratings and Response Rates
Mesa Public Schools created additional schools of choice, their Franklin schools, based on high levels of satisfaction with the program.

Procedures for Developing a School Choice Program
The Florida School Choice Resource Center-designed manual provides standardized procedures for operating school choice programs in Florida districts.

Evaluation Rubric for Magnet Schools
Miami-Dade County Public Schools use this rubric to identify magnet programs for replication.

Media

Three Things to Consider

• Use program data to identify and replicate successful programs
• Demographic data should be analyzed to assess appropriate locations for choice programs
• Based on program data, unsuccessful programs should be altered or closed