Everything A California Charter School Leader Needs to Know About Local Indicators!

By Jennifer Reyes, Educational Support Services Manager

October 1, 2019

What are the Local Indicators?

The Local Indicators are indicators based on the Eight State Priorities included in a Local Education Agency’s (LEA’s) Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP).  Unlike the state measures that are automatically calculated by state-captured data, the Local Indicators are calculated with data collected by each LEA.  After collecting the data, the school uses the California Department of Education (CDE) self-reflection tools to measure progress, and then reports the findings to its board and finally, to the public via the California School Dashboard.

The Due Date is Fast Approaching!

The due date for the Local Indicators to be uploaded to the California School Dashboard is November 1, 2019.  This is a couple of weeks earlier than last year, so be sure to set aside enough time for the self-reflection and board approval.

It may seem strange to have a reporting requirement that is out-of-sync with the cycle of the LCAP Annual Update.  But the CDE envisions that LEAs will do the work for Local Indicators as part of their annual LCAP reflection and updates.  It is just the reporting for Local Indicators that comes later in Fall, as it is aligned to the annual release of the California School Dashboard.  So, there is flexibility as to when in the year your school conducts the Local Indicators self-reflection, as long as you obtain board approval and upload to the California School Dashboard by the deadline.

Revision Alert: Revised Tool for Priority 3 -Family Engagement

Note the revised self-reflection tool in 2019 for Priority 3:  Family Engagement. This indicator was formerly called Parent Involvement and was revised this past year, after Assembly Bill (AB)2878 expanded the description of Parent Involvement to include family engagement.  AB2878 retained the requirement to address the following in the LCAP:

• Seek parent input in making decisions for the school district and each individual school site
• Promote parental participation in programs for unduplicated pupils and individuals with exceptional needs

It added the following:

Family engagement may include, but need not be limited to:

• Efforts by the school district and each individual school site to apply research-based practices, such as welcoming all families into the school community, engaging in effective two-way communication, supporting pupil success, and empowering families to advocate for equity and access
• Families as partners to inform, influence, and create practices and programs that support pupil success and collaboration with families and the broader community, expand pupil learning opportunities and community services, and promote civic participation.

CDE convened a workgroup for the project and ultimately composed a revised self-reflection tool to encompass the former and new components.  Previously, the tool had two options:  1) Summarizing key findings from a parent survey or 2) Reflecting on local measures relevant to seeking input from parents and promoting parents.  The new tool has three sections, and each uses a set of questions with a numeric rating scale, plus one narrative prompt.  The three sections are: 1.) Building relationships between school staff and families, 2.) Building partnerships for student outcomes, and 3.) Seeking input for decision-making.

Meeting the Requirements

When you input the Local Indicators through the California School Dashboard interface, you will select Standard Met, Standard Not Met, or Standard Not Met for Two or More Years, according to the criteria.  You meet the indicators by:

1. Measuring progress annually
2. Reporting results at a regularly scheduled public board meeting
3. Publicly reporting results through the California School Dashboard

If you have completed steps one through three above, then you have met the indicator for that year and should select “Met.”  In other words, meeting the indicators does not depend on the contents of your self-ratings and reflection, but rather on the completion of the process of reflecting and reporting.

Accountability for Local Indicators

Local Indicators are included in the annual criteria for differentiated assistance:

• The charter school fails to meet the Criteria for three or more student groups (or all the student groups if there are fewer than three student groups)
• In regard to one or more state or school priorities identified in the charter
• For three out of four consecutive school years

If identified for differentiated assistance, the authorizer may opt to provide support or request support from the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence (CCEE).  The authorizer shall consider revocation for a school if, after support is provided, they determine that a) the charter is unwilling or unable to implement the CCEE recommendations or b) inadequate performance of the charter school, based on the Dashboard, is so persistent or acute as to require revocation. The authorizer must consider increase in pupil academic achievement for all student groups as the most important factor in determining whether to revoke a charter.  Charters may not appeal revocation.

Resources

It’s important that schools make time to fully understand the Local Indicators requirements and reserve enough time to complete all the steps appropriately.  The following resources are designed to help you understand and complete your 2019 Local Indicators:

Dashboard Coordinator Login:  https://coordinator.caschooldashboard.org/#/application

2019 Self-Reflection Tools:  https://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/cm/localindicators.asp

CDE LCFF/LCAP LISTERV: JOIN-LCFF-LIST@MLIST.CDE.CA.GOV​

And check out EdTec’s informational video – we’ll walk you through the Local Indicators reporting process!

If you have questions or need assistance with your school’s Local Indicators, please reach out to Jennifer Reyes, EdTec’s Educational Support Services Manager.