Two Norfolk middle schools get first crack at improvement funds

Two low-performing Norfolk middle schools will not be forced to close and won't be taken over by an outside management group unless the school division decides to pursue those options.

State Department of Education spokesman Charles Pyle said Thursday that Lake Taylor Middle and Ruffner Academy would need an outside partner or could close if the division willingly entered a program to turn around schools and accepted the federal money that pays for it. On Wednesday, Pyle had said the schools would not have a choice.

The state will have $59.8 million to spread among 65 low-performing schools as part of a federal grant program, the U.S. Department of Education announced Thursday. The state will distribute the money based on the number of school divisions that apply and how they intend to use the money.

Lake Taylor and Ruffner are among 11 schools in the first tier of the state's list of 22 chronically under-performing schools.

Those schools get first crack at the money. An additional 43 struggling schools in the third tier would also be eligible for the turnaround funds, including one each in Suffolk, Portsmouth and Franklin.

"It's our hope that every division that has a school that's eligible will apply, even if it means bringing in someone from the outside to help manage a program and find more effective outcomes for students," Pyle said.

Schools in the first tier have reading and math scores in the bottom 5 percent of all state schools and have not shown significant improvement over the past two years.

The third-tier schools are either in the bottom 20 percent of state schools, based on proficiency rates, or are in corrective action for missing federal targets.

No local schools are in the second tier.

Churchland Academy Elementary in Portsmouth, Elephant's Fork Elementary in Suffolk, and Franklin High School in Franklin are in the third tier.

That means they can apply for the funds, but with less restrictive terms. Franklin High could choose to hire a coach or design its own improvement plan. The two elementaries, if they applied for funds, would be required to hire a coach to help them make gains.

David Stuckwisch, superintendent of Portsmouth Schools, said Churchland Academy already uses a coach, the required intervention for schools in that tier. "Of course, we'll apply for the grant," he said. "I'll take any money that they want to send me."

Suffolk will apply for a grant for Elephant's Fork Elementary, which also uses a coach, said Deputy Superintendent Deran Whitney.

If Norfolk applies, it will have fewer choices. It could turn around, transform or restart the middle schools with the help of one of four state-selected outside groups, choose its own group, or close the schools.

No schools in the state have yet brought in an outside firm to establish an independent program, Pyle said.

The struggling Petersburg school system is expected to bring such a plan for their middle schools to the state Board of Education in May. They, too, are eligible for the grant money.

Pyle said the options are narrower than usual for these funds. "For Tier I and II we want them to have a turnaround partner, because the fact they're on this list is a reflection of the school division's capacity to do this work on its own," he said.

Norfolk school officials said Thursday they hadn't decided what course to take. A statement posted on their Web site read, in part:

"The Virginia Department of Education has offered an opportunity for Norfolk Public Schools to apply for School Improvement Grants for Ruffner and Lake Taylor middle schools, where improving student achievement is a priority.... Norfolk Public Schools is in the process of seeking more information from the Virginia Department of Education about this opportunity, but we want to emphasize that it is a voluntary program."

Pyle said the state would send application information to the eligible school divisions in the next two weeks.

The Department of Education named four approved turnaround partners Wednesday, based on proposals: EdisonLearning, one of the nation's largest private charter school operators; England-based Cambridge Education; Johns Hopkins University in Maryland; and Pearson K-12 Solutions.

Under the federal grant, a school could turn over operations to one of the partners or allow them to begin a program such as a school-within-a-school, he said.

Partners would be responsible for providing instructional services and programs and employing teachers that meet state standards.

Pilot writers Cheryl Rossand Steven Vegh contributed to this report.

Lauren Roth, (757) 222-5133, lauren.roth@pilotonline.com