The Orange County Board of Education met Monday night to discuss English learner enrollment and progress data, its new teacher support program and staffing.
What's new?
- The board recognized Orange High School principal Jason Johnson as the 2024-25 principal of the year.
- “In my short time in this district, I have witnessed his dedication to OCS, his staff and students and his commitment to being a role model for everyone,” Jeff Koweek, OCS chief human resources officer, said.
- Layla Allen, a science teacher at Cedar Ridge Hig h School, was recognized as the 2024-25 beginning teacher of the year.
- Sarah Brown-Schumacher, a visual arts teacher at Efland-Cheeks Global Elementary, and Amanda Aguayo, a visual arts teacher at Gravelly Hill Middle School, were recognized as North Carolina Art Education Association Art Educators of the Year.
- The district will observe Red Ribbon Week, a national drug-use prevention campaign, from Oct. 23 through Oct. 31.
- During the week, OCS schools will host engagement activities aimed to empower students to lead drug-free lives, Jessica Dreher, OCS director of student engagement and support services said.
- “Red Ribbon Week is a crucial part of our commitment to creating a safe, healthy and drug-free environment for our students,” Dreher said.
What's changed?
- Emily Lewis, the OCS English as a Second Language facilitator, presented OCS’s multilingual enrollment and annual English proficiency progress data for the 2024-25 school year.
- Since the 2020-21 school year, OCS has seen a 55 percent increase in multilingual learner enrollment, with a 10 percent increase from the 2023-24 school year, she said.
- 24 percent of OCS’s multilingual learners "met progress" in Feb. 2024 towards English proficiency — a 1.3 percent increase from the year before, Lewis said.
- English learner progress is measured using the ACCESS composite score, which consists of four language domains: reading, writing, listening and speaking, she said.
- She said a student’s initial ACCESS composite score determines the number of school years expected for that student to no longer be identified as a multilingual learner and defines yearly progress needed to meet this expectation.
- Students’ annual ACCESS composite score after their first year determines if they do or do not meet progress.
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Rhonda Wood, OCS teacher support coordinator and Connie Brimmer-Kaltz, OCS director of staffing, licensure, and operations, gave an update on the OCS Beginning Teacher Support Program.
- Brimmer-Kaltz presented the results of OCS’s North Carolina Department of Public Instruction beginning teacher support audit, which is completed every five years through anonymous stakeholder surveys, artifact submission and an on-site visit.
- She said OCS received “distinguished,” the highest ranking, in all categories regarding beginning teacher support except staff evaluation, where it was rated “proficient”.
- Brimmer-Kaltz also presented beginning teacher data, which she said is used to guide the district’s improvement efforts.
- As of September, OCS has 75 beginning teachers, although those numbers are expected to increase, since late hires are typically beginning teachers.
- The district’s 2023-24 retention rate for beginning teachers was 82.22 percent, a slight increase from the year prior, she said.
- Based on the data, Wood said the program’s main goal moving forward is to increase retention rates for beginning teachers from 82.22 percent to over 85 percent.
- “Our strategic plan priority for our exemplary staff focuses on recruiting, hiring and retaining top educators to ensure quality instruction for all students in an inclusive environment,” Brimmer-Kaltz said. “Our beginning teacher support is really about this priority.”
- Brimmer-Kaltz presented the results of OCS’s North Carolina Department of Public Instruction beginning teacher support audit, which is completed every five years through anonymous stakeholder surveys, artifact submission and an on-site visit.
- Brimmer-Kaltz gave an update on OCS staffing and human resources recruitment and retention.
- “One of the most important aspects for human resources departments at this point is staffing, especially amid teacher shortages and declining enrollment in teacher education programs,” she said.
- Since Apr. 15, the district has hired 106 certified staff members, including 33 beginning teachers and 20 bilingual certified staff members, she said.
What's next?
- The board will meet next on Monday, Nov. 4 at the Whitted Human Services Building in Hillsborough.
