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Get Your School’s Performance Data Renewal Ready!

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By Annice Weinstein, Senior Manager, Assessment Data & Analysis

December 14, 2017

Charter renewal is a very time intensive process, and it can be even more demanding if you haven’t already collected the necessary performance data. The following three steps will set you up to have your data ready when the time comes to start working on your renewal petition, so you can focus your energy on putting together a sound analysis and a strong narrative that highlight your school’s achievements!

  • Download your student level data files for state tests as soon as the state makes them available. These files may not be available in your account when it’s time for renewal, so it’s best to download the files annually as they are released. For example, the Test Operations Management System (TOMS) currently stores just two years of summative test results, so make sure to have your LEA CAASPP coordinator download the files as soon as the state indicates they are ready. You can find the files in TOMS (https://caaspp.ets.org/) under Reports (on the left), LEA Reports. Scroll down to the bottom to download the Student Results Report-Student Score Data Extract for each year available. CalTAC has recently removed the 2014-15 files, so you may need to contact them directly if you didn’t already download these files. You may reach CalTAC at 800-955-2954 or caltac@ets.org.
  • Keep track of your comparison schools. Does your authorizer require comparisons to specific schools? Are there other schools in your area, or schools with demographics or programs similar to yours, that you strive to outperform? If most of the relevant comparison schools are within the same district, take a look at the California School Dashboard Five-by-Five grids to see how your school stacks up on the Dashboard indicators: http://www6.cde.ca.gov/californiamodel/. And keep an eye on your Academic Accountability Report with the California Charter Schools Association (CCSA): http://snapshots.ccsa.org/aar. CCSA produces a Similar Students Measure that will give you an idea of how your school’s performance on the SBAC compares to that of demographically similar schools.
  • Select LCAP performance metrics that track longitudinal progress for the same set of students. This will help you stay on track with annual data collection and give you a boost when you want to share your longitudinal progress on local assessments with your authorizers. The metrics can include performance on NWEA MAP, developmental reading assessments, or i-Ready. Working the tests into your LCAP metrics is a good way to ensure that you review progress annually and have the data necessary for your renewal.

Keep Calm and Review Your CALPADS Reports!

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By Gerald Cockrell, Data and Categorical Program Specialist

November 13, 2017

Given the large amount of data reported for CALPADS Fall I, and the multitude of certification reports available, it can be difficult to determine which data are the most important and where to find them!  To help ease the frustration, we’ve created a list of the most important reports and included detail about the information each report contains and who should be reviewing them.

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There are many other reports available as well, but starting with the ones listed in this table will provide a clear view of the data that affect your funding and accountability.  As a reminder, special attention should be paid to FRPM data, EL data, and high school graduate data.

If you have any concerns about the data being reported for Fall I, feel free to reach out to EdTec’s data team to discuss how we can help. You can reach Gerald at gerald.cockrell@edtec.com, or 213.292. 6620 x414.

EdTec’s Going to CSDC 2017!

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October 13, 2017

EdTec will be attending the 2017 Charter Schools Development Center Conference as a sponsor, exhibitor, and presenter! The conference takes place November 16-17 in San Diego at the Manchester Grand Hyatt. We’ll be at Booth #54 at the Exhibitor Fair, so be sure to stop by and say hello to our staff!

We’re also excited to share that EdTec staff will present two sessions at the conference. The first session is designed for school leaders thinking about expansion or replication. We invite you to attend “Successful Charter School Expansion and Growth” on Friday, November 17 from 1:30pm – 2:45pm in room Gaslamp A, with Chang Patel, Senior Client Manager at EdTec, and Alison Suffet-Diaz, Founder and Executive Director of Environmental Charter Schools. Attendees will learn best practices from charter schools that have achieved successful expansion and growth, and will walk away with an understanding of important issues to consider in the decision making process, such as funding, facilities, talent recruitment, the pros and cons of various charter management organization (CMO) models, replication vs. expansion, and more.

Later on Friday, school leaders will have an opportunity to learn how to best prepare for their upcoming audits at our second session, “Prepare For Your Audit”, presented by Amita Parikh, Client Manager at EdTec, along with James Rotherham of Squar Milner, at 3:00pm – 4:15pm in room Gaslamp B. The presenters will offer expert advice on implementing fiscal policies, understanding various requests, and interacting with auditors.

We look forward to a productive two days of learning with California’s talented charter school leaders. Remember to stop by Booth #54 and say hello!

EdTec @ the 2017 CCSA Conference in Sacramento!

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The 24th Annual California Charter Schools Conference will be held in Sacramento, March 20 – 23, 2017. EdTec is proud to be a sponsor, exhibitor, and presenter. Our staff, along with many partner organizations and schools, will present 14 breakout and poster sessions on a wide range of topics from Financial Management to Demonstrating Student Achievement to the LCAP. Take a look at the variety of sessions listed below to see what to attend. And don’t forget to stop by our booth #915 to chat with EdTec staff!

Tuesday, March 21st

Wednesday, March 22nd

EdTec Presented 16 Sessions at the 2016 CCSA Conference in Long Beach!

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EdTec was honored to present 16 sessions at the 23nd Annual California Charter Schools Conference, March 14 – 17, 2016.

EdTec experts, partner organizations and school leaders spoke on topics targeted to both new and existing charter schools:

  • Everything You Need to Know about LCAP and LCFF
  • Navigating the Ops and Finance of Blended Learning
  • Thinking Through Special Education: School-of-the-District or SELPA?
  • The Secret Sauce for Building and Growing an Effective Board of Directors
  • How a Lender Looks at Your School…and How You Can Look Your Best
  • Smart Strategy: Building the Future, Today
  • Defining Reasonable & Measurable Goals for Students in Your LCAP (Poster Session)
  • Funding Equity & LCFF Implementation: Role of Fundraising to Close the Gap
  • Tips from the Masters: Sustaining Excellence in CA’s Fickle Fiscal Climate
  • How to Set Up Common Core Grading in PowerSchool (Poster Session)
  • Benchmark-Driven Budgeting: Informing Your Spending Decisions
  • Bulletproof Your Charter Petition Budget
  • Your Annual Audit: Don’t Be Afraid, Be Prepared
  • Been There, Done That: Facilities-Planning Options & Advice From Schools
  • Replicating for Success: Approaching Growth Strategically
  • From Vision to High Performing: The New School Track to Academic Success