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 STUDENT
SUCCESS INITIATIVE A letter concerning an important update on the Student
Success Initiative (SSI) grade advancement requirements is attached along with
the SSI Flow Chart for 2002-2003 Third Graders. The comprehensive Question and
Answer document with more specific guidance to the components outlined can be
found as the last bullet under Resources at
www.tea.state.tx.us/student.assessment/resources/ssi/index.html. THE
SEVENTH ANNUAL TEXAS CHARTER SCHOOL CONFERENCE will be May 5 & 6, 2003 at
the Renaissance Hotel in Austin. Confirmed keynote speakers include Dr. Howard
Fuller, Institute for the Transformation of Learning, and Dr. Felipe Alanis,
Commissioner of Education. This year we ask that you mail, not fax,
the registration form(s) with your check to the Resource Center. Conference
information and registration forms are attached.
Our registration table will be open on Sunday, May 4th
from 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. To avoid long lines on Monday
morning, please make plans to check-in and receive your
conference materials on Sunday evening. A continental breakfast
will be served each morning at 8:00 a.m. and the General
Session will begin at 9:00 a.m. We expect approximately 1,000
attendees, so please call 512-343-2626 to make your hotel room reservations. To
receive the $125 room rate with up to four people in a room, let them know you
are with the Charter School Conference.
TEA
UPDATES
THE CHARTER
SCHOOLS DIVISION is requesting readers to review and score
dissemination grant applications on April 1-2, 2003, in Austin. If you are
interested in participating, please complete the attached form and submit
it to the Charter Schools Division at TEA, 1701 N. Congress Avenue, Room
5-107, Austin, Texas 78701-1494, fax it to 512-463-9732, or email it to
mperry@tea.state.tx.us.
Individuals associated with any applicant are ineligible to serve as
readers. Please note that stipends are not available, but readers will be
reimbursed for travel, food, and lodging expenses. If you have any
questions, contact Mary Perry at 512-463-9575.
SUBMISSION
OF EXPANSION AMENDMENTS The deadline for the submission of
expansion amendment requests for the 2003-2004 school year is March 1,
2003. Expansion amendments include those that would (1) expand grade
levels served, (2) increase maximum enrollment, (3) add a campus, or (4)
expand the geographic boundary. The amendment request form is available at
www.tea.state.tx.us/charter/forms/csforms.htm. Print the form, fill it
out, and fax it, along with any additional information you would like to
include, to Kirsten Christophersen in the Charter Schools Division of TEA
at 512-463-9732. Forms may also be mailed to the Texas Education Agency,
1701 N. Congress Avenue, Austin, Texas 78701-1494. Call Kirsten at
512-463-9575 if you have questions.
CHARTER
SCHOOL CHILD COUNT Charter schools were mailed a packet containing
detailed information for submitting special education child counts. The
child count will be used to determine eligibility for 2003-2004
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Part B (IDEA-B) allocations.
These funds are available to charter schools opening since November
1, 2002, that provide special education services to students with
disabilities based on current full and individual evaluations and
individualized education programs (IEPs). Additional funds may be
available if, since November 1, 2002, your charter school has experienced
a significant expansion of enrollment based on an event unlikely to occur
on a regular basis. Any expansion must have resulted in a significant
increase in the number of enrolled students for whom the charter school
provides instruction. The child count should be reported in the New and
Significantly Expanded Charter School Child Count screens on the automated
2002-2003 Web Standard Application System (WEB SAS) for Special Education
Programs. The reporting system will be available on the web from February
3, 2003, through February 24, 2003, and any child count information must
be reported through the WEB SAS system during this period of availability.
For assistance in completing the child count, contact your education
service center special education contact or Debbie Conaway in the Division
of Special Education at (512) 463-9362.
January 14, 2003
TO THE ADMINISTRATOR ADDRESSED:
SUBJECT: Administrative Materials for Student Success
Initiative
This letter is to provide you with an important update on
the Student Success Initiative (SSI) grade advancement requirements. As
discussed in the previous SSI letter dated September 4, 2002, the agency
continues to work with education service centers to develop and distribute
suggested materials to help schools focus on what is most important in
this initiative: working for every student’s academic success.
Please find enclosed a comprehensive Question and Answer
document that is intended to provide administrators and teachers more
specific guidance to the components outlined in 19 Texas Administrative
Code (TAC) Chapter 101. Assessment, Subchapter BB. Commissioner’s Rules
Concerning the Student Success Initiative. Your comments are welcome and
greatly appreciated. This document is also available on the Student
Assessment web site at
http://www.tea.state.tx.us/student.assessment/. Please note the
following significant points in this document:
• The agency has carefully considered the issue that a number of districts
will be out of session during the third TAKS administration, which is
scheduled for July 8, 2003, as indicated in the 2002-2003 Student
Assessment Calendar. In response to these district concerns, the agency
will allow districts to request an alternate test date for the third TAKS
administration, as well as any administration, (e.g., the March 4th
administration), in which the district is out of session. This opportunity
would be administered the same as in previous years of the assessment
program. However, test security must be maintained. (See Question #32.)
• The agency has made a change for the 2002-2003 school year to allow a
four-week testing window for the alternate assessment. This testing window
is scheduled to begin June 16, 2003, and end July 11, 2003. This four-week
window is intended to cover the last two weeks of June in order to allow
districts to schedule this assessment to coincide with summer school
programs. (See Question #33.)
• All students enrolled in Grade 3 (this school year), Grade 5 (2004-2005)
and Grade 8 (2007-2008) who receive special education services and are
receiving instruction in the applicable subject area are subject to SSI
grade advancement requirements. This is an important clarification of SSI
requirements concerning students receiving special education services.
(See Question #17.)
In addition, the agency is continuing to develop materials
that will cover the full scope of required notices and forms and expects
to make these available in February 2003 on the agency web site in a
format that facilitates downloading and editing for local uses. The
materials will also be provided in English and Spanish to help districts
meet their requirement of a good faith effort to provide parent
notifications in the parent’s native language. To assist the Grade
Placement Committee (GPC) in carrying out its responsibilities, the agency
also expects to develop and distribute an administrative manual in spring
2003.
I encourage you to access the Student Success Initiative web site
regularly for the most current and up-to-date information. If you have any
comments or questions about the grade advancement requirements of the SSI,
please contact the Student Assessment Division at (512) 463-9536, the
Curriculum and Professional Development Division at (512) 463-4314, the
Office of Statewide Initiatives at (512) 463-9027, or the Special
Education Division at (512) 463-9414.
Thank you for your continued good work with our children.
Sincerely,
Felipe Alanis
Commissioner of Education
cc: Testing Coordinators
Enclosure
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