Competency 1: Accountability

Related Task:
1.4 Ability to prepare, develop, and evaluate research designed to assess the effectiveness of the
instructional program.
Specific Task:
1.4.4 Work with a committee to conduct a district-wide assessment of the instructional program.
Narrative Description:
The Freshman Academy program at Clio High School was established at the beginning of
the 2013-2014 school year to decrease the steadily increasing rate of freshman students failing
one or more classes. Several studies have shown that the implementation of intervention
programs such as the Freshman Academy model can decrease the aforementioned failure rates
among students. Through the process of this program evaluation, I will establish a group of
teachers willing to regularly contribute to the program evaluation and assessment, preferably
those involved with the Freshman Academy. I will conduct observations of MTSS and RTI
procedures to proactively affect failure rates and develop an organized manner of objectively
evaluating the specified program. A final analysis of the evaluation will be presented to
administration and staff within the Freshman Academy.
Description and Analysis of Administrative Task
The initial purpose of this evaluation was to review and assess a newly implemented
academic intervention program in the form of a Freshman Academy at Clio Area High School,
not to evaluate the overall worth of an established program to determine a continuation of
services. That being said, the Freshman Academy program at Clio Area High School was
adopted at the beginning of the 2013-2014 school year to ease the transition of eighth-graders
from middle school to their ninth-grade year as freshmen at the high school level, a year already
established as critical in the determination of student successes, both academically and socially.

Therefore, an identified problem did not necessarily exist, but it was detrimental to the future of
the Freshman Academy program to undergo an objective critique to ensure ongoing effectiveness
and overall program longevity.
The true purpose of this evaluation was to collect data, both quantitative and qualitative,
directly from academy teachers in the form of surveys, interviews, observations, and a thorough
analysis of existing program data from the previous year. This provided an objective analysis and
summary of the Freshman Academy program and presented how integral it is to the student
experience. Quantitative data was difficult collect because of the lack of availability and lack of
data-driven results sought through academy processes.
A majority of the administrative task took place prior to one of the weekly MTSS
meetings and was formatted as a round-table discussion that provided teachers with the
opportunity for an open forum to posit any concerns they had with the program and potential
improvements that could be made to better program effectiveness and teacher satisfaction. This
was conducted without an official administrator present to foster truthful responses. Questions
were formulated around the four program goals:
Program Goal 1 - Students will become successful through strong teacher-student relationships.
Program Goal 2 - Through collaborative teaming, freshmen will become more self-confident
academically and socially.
Program Goal 3 - Students will meet high expectations through hard work, dedication, and
increased staff support.
Program Goal 4 - Program leaders will communicate regularly with stakeholders about clear
expectations, goal setting, and necessary interventions.

Each goal had not been reviewed since their development the August prior to the
implementation of the program. As a result, the conversations began by capturing the idealistic
hopes of the freshman academy juxtaposed by the realistic perceptions now held by each of the
staff members highlighted and summarized below:
Primary Issues
Many teachers within the academy have experienced burnout after a year and a half of
being a part of the program. In summary, many teachers attribute this to the amount of extra
attention it requires to be effective within a program focused heavily on intervention. Much of
the program is centered on the development of Multi-tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) and
Response to Intervention (RTI), which demands more attention throughout the course of a school
year. MTSS meetings are held weekly and require attention to those consistently struggling
academically as well as behaviorally. Psychologically, for the teachers it has become troubling to
place a primary emphasis on students struggling or unwilling to succeed because of its lack of
attention to students exhibiting positive behaviors and exemplary academic performance. This
was a unanimous consensus when teachers were questioned regarding their overall view of the
programs effectiveness and contributing factors to burnout.
Furthermore, quantitative data was an obstacle when conducting this evaluation because
only one component of the program focused on the collection of data: Decrease the average rate
of students failing one or more class to 26%. As a matter of fact, the development of these
benchmarks provides a more defined representation of how the Freshman Academy program
may achieve its desired results. Qualitative data is a more accurate representation of the type of
evaluative data the program has relied on thus far. The Freshman Academy focuses on
student/teacher relationships as its primary priority in addition to its focus on decreasing failure

rates. This type of data is rather subjective but necessary to measure whether or not the program
is meeting the objectives and benchmarks developed prior to the inception of the program in
relation to overall quality and student satisfaction.
Reflections
While evaluating any newly implemented program, it is essential to recognize that issues
will exist. The Freshman Academy model at Clio High School was based on another schools
implementation experiences, and a new program will have to be modified to service the unique
demands of a district different in demographics as well as facilities. However, it was interesting
to engage in quality, candid conversations with members of the academy to gauge program
satisfaction and success. The difficult with evaluating a program in public education is that the
variables change annually. Students exit the program at the conclusion of the year and a new
influx of students enter the program, thus introducing a new set of students with different needs
and different abilities. Most teachers support the program and what it is capable of achieving, but
a lot of the success also relies on the shared responsibility of the student.