RICHMOND PUBLIC SCHOOLS High School Transcript Audit Update & Items for Board Action Presented by: Dr. Tracy Epp, Chief Academic Officer Venue: Richmond City School Board Meeting Date: January 7, 2019 Richmond Public Schools | 301 North 9 th Street | Richmond, VA | www.rvaschools.net
High School Transcript Audit: Updates & Items for Board Action Transcript Audit Findings Recap An audit of transcripts at RPS comprehensive high schools revealed six distinct errors from school year 2015-2016 through 2017-2018. These errors surfaced broader questions around the program of study, the actual courses offered, counseling practices, and coding issues within Aspen (our Student Information System). The division requested a waiver from the VDOE to prevent students from losing credits, which was denied. As a result of this ruling, RPS began a process of reviewing every single high school transcript to ensure that erroneously awarded credits were removed and that any other errors were fully corrected. The issues were: • High school bell schedules were not designed so that courses could to meet the 140 Carnegie Unit requirement for a credit hour. • Courses were miscoded as worth two credit hours. • Credit was incorrectly given for courses taken multiple times. • Credit was incorrectly given for unapproved local courses. • Credit was incorrectly given for HS courses taken by MS students. • There were errors in the RPS Program of Study and Course Enrollment Guidance & Sequencing. • In addition, errors related to course weights/GPAs/class ranking that were surfaced in Spring 2018 were included in this effort. Richmond Public Schools | January 7, 2019 2
High School Transcript Audit: Updates & Items for Board Action Progress Update Based on the recommendations we submitted in September and in response to the VDOE Audit Report, we have made significant progress towards rectifying the issues of the past and setting up systems to prevent them from occurring again. Action Step Status Update Board Policy to correct bell schedules at comprehensive high schools so courses Complete meet 140 Carnegie Unit requirement for credit hours Update the RPS Transcript template to fully align with state and local policies Complete Collect documentation for local courses retroactively eligible for credit and eligible for Complete credit in SY18-19 and bring to Board for approval In Process (Target Review all transcripts for current seniors, updating and correcting, as necessary Completion 2/1/19) Ensure our annual course offering guide only includes state approved or locally approved In Process (Target courses. Completion 2/28/19) Not Started (Begins 2/1/19, Target Review all transcripts for 9th - 11th graders, updating and correcting, as necessary Completion 4/1/19) Richmond Public Schools | January 7, 2019 3
High School Transcript Audit: Updates & Items for Board Action Transcript Corrections Process Each school counseling team is following a prescribed process for reviewing every student’s transcript and tracking their progress in a central database. We met with every counselor and principal to review the process and share explicit instructions, like the review outline below: Here’s where are with the HS transcripts for Seniors Richmond Public Schools | January 7, 2019 4
High School Transcript Audit: Updates & Items for Board Action Summary of Recommendations for Board Action Action 1: Retroactively approve select locally-developed courses: Action 1: • From 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18 school years – Approval will allow students to retain credit earned. • From current school year – Approval will allow students to retain credit, if earned, at the end of the year. Action 2: Action 2: Approve the reconciliation of specialty schools’ course and credit requirements with current practice and VASBOE policy (no actual change for students; just paper reconciliation). • Add Franklin Military’s requirement that all students take a military-related course each year • Remove certain courses from Richmond Community’s requirements that have not been in effect for many years and add others that have been in effect but were never brought forward for approval. Action 3 Action 3: Amend RPS board policy 5-6.3 (passed in August) with the following clarifications (FIRST READ). • Add a clarification that this policy is not retroactive (that is, it goes into effect for the 2018-19 school year). • Add a clarification noting that IB-MYP courses (taken in 9th & 10 th grade) receive Honors-level weighting, consistent with previous practice as outlined in the 14-15 Program of Studies, but inadvertently omitted from previous and current policy. • Add a clarification that weighted courses at the Honors level will only apply to core content areas courses (English, Mathematics, Science, History/Social Science) and foreign language. Richmond Public Schools | January 7, 2019 5
High School Transcript Audit: Updates & Items for Board Action Action 1: Approve Local Courses Recommendation: Retroactively approve select locally-developed courses from 15-16, 16-17, 17-18 and 18-19 school years. Approval will allow students to retain credit earned. Context: Virginia requires that local school divisions establish a process for approving locally-developed courses (i.e., those not outlined within the state’s curriculum). While RPS has a policy outlining a process, there is no evidence that local courses have been brought to the Richmond City School Board for approval. Per the Attorney General’s ruling, RPS has the option of securing retroactive approval for such courses. The administration is bringing courses for retroactive approval based on extensive efforts to secure documentation that reasonably outlines the course purpose and content. We used the following criteria for the courses we are bringing to the Board for retroactive approval: • Original course documentation (e.g., syllabi, curriculum, course description, etc.) includes a course description and outlines the specific content/material to be learned. • Such documentation includes the specific school years for which we are seeking approval (a requirement established by the Attorney General’s response to RPS’ waiver request). Only courses for which we could secure the above documentation are being presented for Board action. Please note that there are certain requirements for when such courses are awarded credit and those business rules have been outlined with our VDOE partners. Note: Approval today does not equate to future approval, nor inclusion in RPS’s future course offerings. The SY19-20 approval will happen formally through our submission of the SY19-20 Program of Studies later this winter. Richmond Public Schools | January 7, 2019 6
High School Transcript Audit: Updates & Items for Board Action Local Courses for SY15-16 through SY17-18 Approval Course Title Sufficient Documentation for Approval Course Title Sufficient Documentation for Approval 15-16 16-17 17-18 15-16 16-17 17-18 Advanced Biology Lab YES YES YES SAT Mathematics Prep NO NO YES Advanced Calculus Lab YES YES YES Scientific Research and Design NO NO YES Advanced Chemistry Lab YES YES YES INSF Sociology NODATE YES Advanced Environmental CONTENT YES YES YES Science Lab ESL Content Support English YES YES YES Advanced Gov & Politics Lab YES YES YES ESL Content Support -Math YES YES YES Advanced Statistics Lab YES YES YES ESL Content Support Science YES YES YES ESL Content Support-SS YES YES YES Of 61 local courses offered across various years between 2015-16 and 2017-18, these are the only courses for which sufficient documentation could be found. For many courses, documentation was submitted but it either did not meet a basic standard of content, lacked a date, or both. Richmond Public Schools | January 7, 2019 7
High School Transcript Audit: Updates & Items for Board Action Local Courses for SY18-19 Credit Approval At the beginning of SY18-19, we conducted line-item audits of every high school master schedule to ensure they consisted of either state-approved courses or local courses that needed to be submitted for approval. We are submitting these courses now (listed below). Each course was reviewed for rigor and the existence of a clear curriculum and syllabus. • African American Studies • Advanced Biology Lab* • Creative Writing • Advanced Calculus Lab* • High School Jazz Ensemble • Advanced Chemistry Lab* • Independent Study • Advanced Environmental Science Lab* • Foundations of Algebra • Advanced Government & Politics Lab* • Journalism I • Advanced Statistics Lab* • Publication Production/Yearbook • ESL Freshmen Orientation** • Seminar on Contemporary Issues • Freshmen Orientation** • ESL Content Support English • ESL Content Support Mathematics *Must be taken concurrently with an AP, IB or DE course • ESL Content Support Science • ESL Content Support Social Science **For Pass/Fail only; non-credit bearing Note: Approval today does not equate to future approval, nor inclusion in RPS’s future course offerings. The SY19-20 approval will happen formally through our submission of the SY19-20 Program of Studies later this winter. Richmond Public Schools | January 7, 2019 8
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