Spring 2002 Issue

Dear NCA CASI Members: This issue of the Journal discusses views and concepts related to school improvement for ALL. When I hear this theme I think of several relevant questions. Why must we all improve? How can we improve? What will show us that we have improved? Allow me to elaborate on these questions. Why improve? We must continue to improve because all students deserve it. We must hold this idea close to our hearts as we go about our daily routines. All that we do we should do for our students. We should believe and be committed to helping each and every pupil on our campus show growth both academically and socially. Without a vision that reflects these thoughts and support from all staff members, these ideas are mere dreams. Improvement begins when all stakeholders agree that change must occur.

How can we improve? We can improve by allowing the NCA CASI Capacity Assessment Instrument and the Protocol to guide our efforts. The capacity instrument will predict our school's improvement potential and identify some areas that our school and district can implement to enhance our overall potential for growth. The Protocol can give us common terms and guidelines that will remain constant as we begin our school improvement journey. Another avenue for improvement is District Accreditation. This model aligns school and district goal setting while maintaining high standards and autonomy at the local level. This prototype takes the duplication of efforts out of school improvement, yet reinforces NCA membership standards and school improvement criteria. Using these CASI tools does not insure increased student achievement, however, it does demonstrate a school's commitment to pursuing excellence and continued student success.

What shows improvement? Tallying aggregate standard unit scores on targeted goals is one method of substantiating school efforts. In my opinion, any scores that we calculate must be used effectively to truly embrace the concept of school improvement. Test data should be used for one common purpose-to alter what and how we teach to our students. We also need to continue to press forward as we investigate possible ways to validate individual student gains. NCA CASI member schools should start implementing and monitoring individual plans for all children. Until we can validate that all of our students are ready for their next transition, there is still work to be done.

I'm sure you will find meaningful articles in this journal. Use what you glean from this document to increase your effectiveness. The role you have chosen is bigger than expected. Good luck!

Sincerely,

Eric J. Gundrum, Ed.D.
Chair
NCA Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement

About the writer: Dr. Eric Gundrum is the principal of Cheyenne Elementary School in Peoria, Arizona. He has been an elementary school administrator for sixteen years. Prior to his school administration experience, Eric taught junior high science and mathematics. He can be contacted at egundrum@peoriaud.k12.az.us.