Brenda's Turn - PPS TAG Advisory Council Chairs Report (from 2012-2013)

Portland Public Schools

TAG Advisory Council Chair’s Report 2012-2013

To:      Superintendent Carol Smith, Members of the Board of Education, and
Kimberly Matier

CC:     PPS TAG Advisory Council

From: Brenda Ray Scott, TAG Advisory Council Chair (2012-2013)

Date:  September 17, 2013

The Portland Public Schools TAG Advisory Council Chair’s Report for the end-of-year is presented to TAG Administrator, the Superintendent, and the School to in accordance with the Council’s bylaws, which in Article II, Section 1 state, “A report of the Council’s activities shall be provided by the Council Chair to the TAG Administrator, the Superintendent, and the School Board in writing at least annually.”

In this report, the work and accomplishments of the TAGAC during 2012-2013 school year are described.  The TAGAC experienced growth from four at the group’s October meeting with 16 attendees at one meeting to 11 attendees (four TAGAC members and seven guests) at the June 11, 2013 meeting.  The following report highlights the impact of this work.

Themes

The TAGAC started the 2012-2013 working with Dr. Kimberly Matier, Director Instruction, Curriculum & Assessment in the Office of Teaching & Learning, in her new role as the district’s TAG Administrator.

Budget and Accountability:  The Council learned from its own Members about the lack of communication – in the past – to Principals and TAG Coordinators about the availability of funding for TAG at a school and how those funds could be spent. As a result, Dr. Matier has worked with the Council to improve communication and offer guidelines for how schools can address student needs, support teachers, and effectively use their limited TAG dollars in the future.

Communication:   The Council focused on ways of collaborating with PPS staff and others to increase communication between the TAG Office, School Principals, and TAG Coordinators.

Outreach:  The Council worked in a more concerted fashion to distribute meeting notices far and wide to a number of list serves and website focused on TAG students and their families.

Recruitment: In recognizing that students of color are under-identified and under-served by TAG services in Portland Public Schools, the Council worked closely with Dr. Matier to identify and implement strategies for increasing outreach to communities of color, Title 1 schools, and other venues appropriate to this strategy.

Priorities

As the result of the 2012 Survey described in the Highlights section, the following priorities were identified as key to PPS and the TAG Advisory Council working together on to better serve TAG students and families:

1.     Consistent Differentiation of Instruction for TAG Students at All Schools

2.     Equity in TAG Identification

3.     Equity of Access to Curriculum for TAG Students

4.     Parent Communication and Education

Highlights

Accomplishments

2012 Survey

The Council worked as a team with Member Mark Feldman taking the lead on working with Dr. Matier in creating survey questions for a survey that was eventually distributed to TAG families in September,  2012.  Cathy Biber, Terese Bushnell, and Amy Doan also contributed substantially to developing the survey.  The results of the survey indicated that the Council and TAG staff had a great deal of work to do increase the satisfaction of TAG students and families with TAG services.

TAG 101 (May 8, 2013)

TAG students and families were welcomed to the Marshall School campus for an invigorated version of the annual TAG 101 orientation session.  Developed in collaboration with Dr. Matier, the TAG 101 meeting included an overview and then moved to an interactive model where attendees were invited to attend one of four sessions.  The sessions lead by Brenda Ray Scott had 29 parents representing 21 schools, including Capitol Hill, Chief Joseph, Duniway, Llewellyn, and Winterhaven to name a few, in attendance.

  

Media Coverage

Portland Tribune (2/21/13):  The Council received coverage in a number of forums including a front page feature article by Jennifer Anderson, published in the Portland Tribune, with photos highlighting Dr. Matier’s leadership in addressing the concerns about TAG budgets and about the survey results.  The article also profiled the work of the Council with comments from Brenda Ray Scott.

Think Out Load (April 2, 2013):  A lively discussion of the ACCESS Academy, PPS TAG Services, and the survey results was included in a “Think Out Loud” program.

Accomplishments (continued)

ü  Increased attendance at and participation in the District’s annual TAG 101 session held as an orientation to TAG services for students and families identified as “Talented and Gifted” during the current school year;
ü  Increased participation in the Council over all as represented by increased attendance at meetings throughout the year and increased inquiries about the Council’s work;
ü  Increased the awareness and profile of the TAGAC to TAG families, the media, and the greater community
ü  An application process is being developed and lead by Dr. Matier to have prospective members apply to be appointed to the Council.

Conclusion

The TAGAC finished the year with four members and a chair elected by members of the Council.  Per the bylaws, I will continue on the Council during the 2013-2014 school year as the recent Past Chair and will lead the Communication Committee of the Council. I anticipate the TAGAC continuing to grow in its size, diversity, and impact on how Portland Public Schools provides services to TAG students. Thank you to each of the TAGAC’s members and PPS staff for your contributions to the Council’s growth and impact during the 2012-2013 school year!