DCPS Progress and Pride
One year ago, I stepped into my role as Chancellor of DC Public Schools (DCPS) with a day of service to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Alongside Mayor Bowser and surrounded by students, families, and community partners, I saw firsthand what was driving the district’s progress — a commitment from every member of our school community to embody the DCPS value of Students First.
Over the past year, the DCPS community has welcomed me, worked in tandem with me, and challenged my thinking. I met families across every ward at Ferebee Fridays and community events like the Banneker High School groundbreaking where a parent told me, “Banneker changed my student’s life.”
I held a focus group at every DCPS high school and heard from students at Dunbar High School about why they are proud of the school’s rich history and students at Ballou High School about how to rethink workforce development in our city’s evolving labor market. I visited schools in impressive modernized facilities across all 8 wards and heard from school leaders like Principal Plenty at Wheatley Education Campus about how she strives to provide excellence to her school community every day.
As I look back on the past year, we had many moments to celebrate. Toward our goal of a great school in every neighborhood, we announced four consecutive years of PARCC gains, and our district’s enrollment surpassed 50,000 students for the first time since 2006. We aimed to prepare every student for post-secondary success by expanding our number of NAF Academies and Pre-K classrooms, so that families are confident that we provide strong programming for our youngest learners through high school graduation. With a focus on equity and transparency, we launched the Connected Schools initiative and announced Anacostia and Ballou High School’s new school Redesign models that are grounded in the community’s perspective.
These are just a few of the points of pride highlighted in the sections that follow. They demonstrate that we are making notable progress on the six strategic goals outlined in the DCPS strategic plan, A Capital Commitment, which you can also read more about below.
And I know that this is just the beginning of what is to come.
This January, we will honor outstanding school leaders, educators, and school staff from across the district, as well as members of our Central Office team at Standing Ovation. This spring, our classrooms will receive a technology upgrade as part of the Empowered Learners Initiative. Students in grades 3, 6, and 9 will reach a 1:1 student to device ratio, and students across all other grades will have a 3:1 student to device ratio. We will continue to solicit feedback from our teachers and school staff as we embark on a comprehensive review of IMPACT in partnership with American University. And this June, we will celebrate our first class of Young Kings graduating from Ron Brown College Preparatory High School.
I started my role as Chancellor with a day of service and consider every day what we are doing to best serve students, educators and school staff, and families in the District of Columbia. I look forward to the progress we will lead together.
In partnership,
Lewis D. Ferebee, Ed.D.
Chancellor
DC Public Schools
POINTS OF PRIDE FOR 2019–2020 SCHOOL YEAR
DCPS is approaching the midpoint of a five-year strategic plan that was informed by student, family, teacher, and community feedback. In order to achieve the ambitious goals outlined in the Capital Commitment strategic plan by 2022, we center our work around three priorities:
- Ensuring there are great schools in every neighborhood at every grade level.
- Supporting a culture of equity and transparency in our work.
- Preparing every student for post-secondary success.
Upon joining DCPS, Chancellor Ferebee held conversations with high school students, focus groups with staff, discussions with parents, and community meetings in every ward to identify the priority areas that will be the key drivers in accelerating DCPS’ progress toward the six goals of the strategic plan during the 2019–2020 school year.
Over the past 12 months, his forward-thinking leadership is demonstrated among the many Points of Pride listed here as well as the Benchmarks of Progress being made toward our 2022 goals in the following section.
- For the fourth consecutive year, DCPS students made gains on the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC).
- After a decade of progress on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), DCPS continues to be the fastest improving urban school district in three of the four categories.
- DC Public Schools enrolls more than 50,000 students for first time since 2006.
- More than 90 percent of parents rate their child’s school positively, according to a Washington Post poll.
- DC’s per student funding is one of the highest in nation. In FY20, for every dollar in the DCPS budget, nearly 97 cents went to schools or to directly support schools.
- DCPS is investing $4.6 million in technology to provide every student in grades 3, 6, and 9 with a device, and a 3:1 technology device ratio for all other grades this year.
- Going into SY19–20, DCPS retained 93 percent of effective and highly effective teachers and 95 percent of effective and highly effective principals.
- In SY19–20, DCPS launched 10 Connected Schools to serve as resource hubs in neighborhoods across the city and collaborated with the community to define new school models through Redesign at Anacostia and Ballou High Schools.
- All students in grades 9–12 now receive personalized guides to Graduation, Career and College.
- The number of DCPS students who take AP exams grew for the 9th consecutive year, and the overall pass rate reached 40 percent for the first time.
- DCPS’ Class of 2018 had a 55 percent college enrollment rate, the highest fall enrollment rate since 2010.
BENCHMARKS OF PROGRESS TOWARD GOALS
In our strategic plan, A Capital Commitment 2017–2022, DCPS committed to ensuring that all our schools provide rigorous and joyful learning experiences in a nurturing environment every day. As we strive to ensure every student feels loved, challenged, and prepared to positively influence society and thrive in life, we want to keep our community informed about our progress toward becoming a district of both excellence and equity.
In 2019, DCPS saw continued improvement in the number of students demonstrating college and career readiness for the fourth year in a row. Across all eight wards, 38 DCPS schools made gains of 2 percentage points or more in both English language arts (ELA) and math on the 2019 Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC). Similar gains in ELA and math proficiency were also seen among at-risk and students of color.
We are re-establishing the grade-level reading baseline for K-2 students to ensure that assessments used to measure student literacy outcomes clearly communicate progress towards being college and career ready. For the 2019–2020 School Year, kindergarten and first grade students now receive a more rigorous edition of the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) assessment, while all second grade students will take the Reading Inventory (RI) assessment as a measure of reading proficiency.
For the 2018–2019 School Year, 2,170 graduates met our standards of excellence. While a 65 percent graduation rate rep- resents a decline from the previous year due to the implementation of new rigorous standards, we are con dent that our graduates are more prepared for college and career. In 2019, DCPS launched the Student Guide to Graduation, Career, and College, a personalized guide that provides students in grades 9–12 with an in-depth look at their progress toward graduation, as well as recommended action steps for six different post-secondary pathways.
Students who feel loved are more likely to attend school, be engaged, and take the risks associated with tackling challenging content. Each year, DCPS surveys students, staff, and families about social emotional learning, school climate, school satisfaction, and engagement to calculate a score on the Loved, Challenged, and Prepared Index (LCPI). DCPS also provides professional learning for all educators including trauma-informed practices and culturally responsive pedagogy.
The 2019 DC School Report Card uses the School Transparency and Reporting (STAR) Framework Rating to determine overall school performance. Across all eight wards, 67 DCPS schools received a 3 STAR Rating or higher, and 34 schools received a higher STAR Rating compared to 2018. The STAR Ratings incorporate school and student performance and are only one metric to evaluate how DCPS schools are preparing students for success on the path to college and career.
In fall 2019, DCPS surpassed 50,000 students for the first time since 2006. DCPS saw growth across all middle school grade levels and DCPS’ cohort of 9th grade students increased for the rst time in six years. Based on enrollment gures released in October 2019, 86 percent of DCPS students re-enrolled for the current 2019–2020 School Year.
Download a copy of the report, DCPS Progress and Pride: A Capital Commitment Update, online at https://dcps.dc.gov/capitalcommitment.
