BACKGROUND
In 2013 a new era of school finance in California was signed into law. The new funding model is known as the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF). It reshapes school funding and aims to improve achievement for all students.
LCFF and its counterpart, the Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP), are anchored by the notion that California must do better for its underperforming students, who make up a sizable portion of the state’s school-age population. The LCFF significantly changes the funding formula for school districts; it identifies categories of students requiring greater resources: students who qualify for free or reduced-priced meals, students who are English Learners and foster youth.
School districts must create a three-year LCAP to describes how they intend to meet annual goals for all students, with specific activities to address state and local priorities.
2020-2024 LCAPS
Grounded in our vision for student success, SRCS undertook an extensive journey with our greater to community to develop our new three-year strategic plan - Together 2024 - which serves as an executive summary of the LCAP.
Together 2024 / LCAP Links
SRCS engaged in extensive engagement with our educational partners to create and refine our LCAP. The most intensive engagement took place from 2019-2021 to create our three-year plan; the years since have focused on refining and prioritizing our plan with the support of our educational partners.
Below is a detailed summary of our engagement efforts to create and update our LCAP:
Together 2023 Engagement - 2019-20 School Year
Throughout the 2020-21 school year, SRCS undertook a strategic planning process, which we called Together 2023. The efforts were led by an Advisory Team, and extensive engagement was key to the work. We designed a process with opportunities for students, teachers, staff, partners, community members and others that were powerful, meaningful, engaging and ultimately, successful. We strived to make sure we had an inclusive and open process to engage as many stakeholder groups as possible. We heavily publicized the workshops and meetings through our many communication channels so our greater community was aware of the process and to encourage participation at events. Translation and interpretation was provided. Overall, the meetings and workshops were very well-attended with high participation and engagement. There was positive feedback about the process and the direction we were headed.
Overall, the Together 2023 process consisted of the following:
- 4 Advisory Team Meetings
- 4 Student Voice Sessions
- 4 Community Workshops
- 22 total teacher/staff workshops (two sessions at each school)
- Monthly Leadership Team Meetings
We had nearly 80 members of our Advisory Team, who served as representatives for the following groups: students, teachers, staff, parents, partners, administrators, Board members and community members. The Advisory Team was extremely engaged and crucial to the work; meetings were designed to be informative to ensure members had the knowledge necessary to make decisions, and also action-oriented to achieve results. District Office leadership visited every school twice to meet with teachers and staff to capture their input, using individual and group activities to allow for authentic engagement. We held two different versions of community workshops at four different schools that were open to the entire SRCS community, and they were very well attended. In total, an estimated 300 people were involved in our Together 2023 process.
The essence of the Together 2023 process was to create our three-year strategic plan, which would become our LCAP. We capitalized on the LCAP-development process and also used our engagement efforts to brainstorm and develop our District Values, Core Skills; Three-Year Goals and Strategic Actions.
We used a series of activities to identify our Core Values; we used the following considerations to guide the conversation:
- Does the value inspire you to be your best self and be your best person?
- Does the value make you feel excited and motivated to work in / attend / be connected to SRCS?
- Does the value help guide decisions in the classroom, school and district?
In the end, we landed on the following District values:
- Equity: We honor and empower individual identity and experience
- Community: We welcome, value and support every member of our District
- Joy: We engage in meaningful learning through energy, enthusiasm and humor
The next task was to establish Core Skills. Originally the Together 2023 Advisory Team received much input from the community and narrowed these down to five key skills our students needed to learn to be successful in today’s world. Building on the initial work done by the San Rafael High School staff, the committee chose the skills of Effective Communicator, Critical Thinker, Productive Collaborator, Courageous Advocator and Reflective Learner. Subsequently we formed a Graduate Profile Steering Committee this year that revised these skills slightly, added problem solving and also reworded/simplified some of the other skills. We also began to more specifically identify what these skills look like in practice. Our next step is to work with our high school teachers to help them teach and build experiences into the curriculum that allow students to practice these skills, including the use of Project-based Learning.
Communicator: I share my point of view, my work, my art in ways that are clear and engaging. I listen to understand. I consider the needs, expectations, and culture of my audience. I can communicate through a variety of media, including digital, and choose the right medium for the message. My writing is well-crafted and persuasive. I speak with skill and confidence. I can present myself professionally.
Critical Thinker: I reason. I break problems into parts that can be named, studied, and understood. I take time to consider an idea before accepting or rejecting it. I consider multiple perspectives. I subject sources to careful scrutiny. I make judgments based on the analysis of data and the weighing of evidence.
Collaborator: I can work with others toward a common goal. I know how and when to step up or step back. I apply my strengths toward team success, and teammates can depend on me. I can give and receive feedback constructively. I seek a diversity of perspectives. Through respect and trust-building, I can work across lines of difference and toward consensus.
Problem Solver: I ask questions. I seek solutions to problems by considering various approaches, drawing on available resources, and thinking creatively. I apply known problem-solving techniques to new and unfamiliar contexts. Anticipating obstacles, I persist and adapt my approach as needed.
Reflective Learner: I have a vision for my future and a plan to get there, which includes attending to my mental and physical health. I nurture my passions and creative talents. Through effort, practice, and regular reflection, I improve. I learn from success, failure, and feedback. I organize my time, tap resources, and sustain the focus I need to reach the goals that I set for myself.
Community Advocate: I am a valuable member of many communities—local and global—and I work to make those communities stronger and healthier (including the beautifully diverse city of San Rafael). I develop knowledge of and take pride in my various social and cultural identities. I understand, respect, and celebrate the identities of others. I stand up for inclusion and against prejudice. I develop the skills to advance justice.
Thirdly, through the Together 2023 process we collaboratively crafted four three-year goals, which are articulated in this LCAP.
Lastly, we were in the midst of finalizing our strategic actions when the COVID pandemic hit and halted our work. Nevertheless, there was significant engagement around determining our strategic actions, which are reflected in this LCAP. To identify and prioritize actions, our Advisory Team worked through established criteria centered around data, research and alignment.
Equity Blueprint Plan
In partnership with Education Trust-West and Marin Promise Partnership, SRCS conducted an Educational Equity Audit (EEA) at San Rafael, Terra Linda and Madrone high schools in the Spring of 2019. The EEA served as a catalyst for advancing SRCS’ efforts and initiatives to understand and address opportunity and achievement gaps among District students. Through interviews, focus groups, master schedule analysis and more, the team at Ed Trust-West was able to identify key findings and recommendations in 10 categories:
- Course Access and Success
- Curriculum and Instruction
- Student Supports and Interventions
- School Culture and Climate
- College and Career Readiness Supports
- Certificated Staff Diversity and Professional Learning
- Community and Family Engagement
- English Learners and Students with Disabilities
- Alternative Schools
- Allocation of Resources
The EEA findings and recommendations were presented to the Board of Education in August of 2019 and then taken to our Equity Blueprint Planning team during the 2019-2020 school year to be vetted and prioritized. A diverse team of approximately 30 TK-12 teachers, students, administrators and parents met seven times during the course of the year, taking a pause once COVID-19 hit in March and reconvening in September of 2020. These final discussions on key priorities took place in the Fall of 2020 where students, parents, and other stakeholders helped the District create the three-year plan. While the EEA focused on our high schools, the recommendations in the Equity Blueprint Plan are TK-12 recommendations.
On November 16, 2020, the SRCS Board of Education voted to approve our Equity Blueprint Plan, which defined strategies in four areas of focus: English Learners, Equitable Access, Academic Support, and Anti-racist Curriculum and Practices. In total, 14 sessions were held for input as the Equity Blueprint was developed. The Equity Blueprint Plan significantly shaped this LCAP.
Engagement Throughout the COVID Pandemic
As we navigated the COVID crisis and our journey to return to in-person learning at our various grade spans, we conducted District-wide and targeted communications and outreach strategies to keep all our stakeholders informed, and importantly, to seek their feedback and input. The learnings from this outreach also directly influenced our LCAP.
Below is a summary of these efforts for the 2020-21 school year. Staff communications were sent via email; family communications were sent in English and Spanish via email, text message, social media and the website. We also kept principals, Cabinet members and other District leaders updated and engaged in the District’s communication efforts on reentry.
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