Annual Report release coincides with State of District address
11/10/2008 10:25 PM

Superintendent Meria J. Carstarphen called for community-wide "belief in action" to realize and achieve the potential of all young people. Her 2008 State of the District Address was themed around "belief" and Carstarphen delivered it today at a breakfast. She will give the speech again at a community event 6:30 p.m. at Monroe A+ Arts School. The address coincides with the release of the district's 2008 Annual Report. The report is available online here.  Carstarphen's State of the District video is available here.

During her speech, the Superintendent outlined the progress of the district on its own accountability measures and detailed key initiatives for closing achievement gaps and ensuring high expectations for students. The speech both recognized community participation in public schools, and called for greater support. She reiterated the district's efforts to sustain its commitment to student success in the face of ever-higher student achievement expectations.

Carstarphen outlined progress on the district's aggressive Strategic Plan, which set annual benchmarks for success that go far beyond state and federal requirements. "Last year's data show that we have made progress in all student groups," she said. "While we are making gains, we are not reaching targets for all of our students. ... Those targets were based not on what was convenient to reach, but what we would need to be on pace to meet the federal No Child Left Behind law, state mandates and this community's expectations."

Carstarphen highlighted the need for Large-Scale System Change, which will ensure that across the district institutional structures are reinforced for the work of closing persistent achievement gaps.  Included in this are community engagement meetings scheduled for November and December. "This district is at a crossroads," she said. "Business as usual is not a sustainable option for achieving our mission."

Carstarphen highlighted "power" action items from the district's Strategic Plan for Continued Excellence underway or in planning this year:

• Developing and enhancing leadership districtwide;
• Ensuring cultural proficiency for all staff;
• Confirming Saint Paul Public
  
  Schools as a wise investment;
• Providing supports for all students to read at or above grade level by third grade;
• Providing effective transitions for students and their families, specifically when they enter school and move from elementary to middle school, middle to high school, and high school to post secondary;
• Improving efficiency and effectiveness; and
• Creating a districtwide model of classroom management.    

Carstarphen said that if we believe in shared accountability, schools need the partnership of families, businesses, policymakers and the community in order to see the kind of student achievement that will ensure all students are prepared for the future.

Carstarphen concluded her speech with optimism by acknowledging the many community partners that strengthen Saint Paul Public Schools. This included a Superintendent's advisory council of community leaders, and the 15 community partners in the citywide dialogue around Large-Scale System Change. They are Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servico (CLUES), Dar Al-Hijrah Cultural Center, Hmong American Partnership, Hmong Cultural Center, Minnesota Da'wah Institute, Lao Family Community of Minnesota, NAACP St. Paul Branch, Neighborhood House, Saint Paul Area Council of Churches, Saint Paul Indians in Action, St. Paul Network of Education Action Teams, Saint Paul Parks and Recreation, Saint Paul Public Schools Foundation, Support Our Schools, and YWCA St. Paul.

Carstarphen continued, crediting corporate and philanthropic organizations for their strategic support including 3M, Ecolab, Health Partners, The McKnight Foundation, The McNeely Foundation, The Minnesota Thunder, The Morning Foundation, The Panasonic Foundation, The St. Paul Foundation, The Saint Paul Public Schools Foundation, Travelers, Greater Twin Cities United Way and The Wilder Foundation.

She praised all those who have taken the step to make good on what they believe, and she challenged everyone to do the same. "We must believe that all of our students have unlimited possibilities for greatness.  And it is our collective job to help them achieve it.  It is up to us to create, together, a sense of momentum around the possibility of making great things happen for our students and their families."

The State of the District will be rebroadcast on Saint Paul cable channel 16 at 8 and 9 p.m. tonight, it will be rebroadcast on the hour beginning at 7 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 7.