Members of the Owensboro Public Schools board of education discussed Owensboro High School’s recent Additional Targeted Support and Improvement (ATSI) status at Thursday’s board luncheon. OHS received ATSI status for one group — students with disabilities.
The main focus of the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) ATSI accountability system is to develop students who are well-rounded, transition-ready and prepared with knowledge, skills and essential dispositions to succeed in the next educational setting or career pathway.
A school receives an ATSI status when it “has at least one subgroup whose performance in the state accountability system by level is at or below the summative performance of all students in any of the lowest-performing five percent of all schools identified and has been identified for targeted support and improvement,” KDE’s website explains.
“We are required — based on the ATSI status that OHS received — and the way the accountability rules change constantly, is they will look at individual groups. The individual group in question right now is the students with disabilities,” said Interim Superintendent Matthew Constant.
Constant said OPS has been mandated by the state to focus more attention on OHS’ students with disabilities group and is required to create a 30/60/90-day plan.
“What will they do in the first 30 days, and then 60, and then 90 to really get at the issue,” he said.
Constant said a team at OHS had “taken the bull by the horns” on this issue in an effort to improve things.
“I know you’ve probably heard some murmurings, you’ve told me about some murmurings going on at OHS, but they’re all for really good reason,” Constant said. “To hear that we’re in crisis or anything like that is not the case. But we are focusing on this group of students.”
Assistant Superintendent Anita Burnette said OHS was assigned a specialist from the KDE after the school received its ATSI status. The first thing the specialist suggested OPS do was travel to Meade County High School.
“They have done a fantastic job of serving their special needs population there, and their scores are very, very impressive,” Burnette said. “They are doing a different service delivery model than we’re doing, and we are very interested in implementing those models next year.”
OPS then put together an assessment team who built the 30/60/90-day plan. The team got together and requested an academic audit from KDE — something Burnette called “courageous.”
“They came in and did a two-, three-day visit of the whole school, so the assessment team has taken those recommendations and suggestions and are implementing those now,” she said.
Burnette added that the special needs teachers at OHS have been meeting to discuss the needs of their 10th, 11th and 12th grade students — all of whom will take required assessment tests that include the ACT, On-Demand and Science.
“They’ve met and have gone through the list of students, and every special ed teacher has four kids they’re mentoring,” Burnette said. “They’re coaching them and looking at IPs to make sure there are strategies, accommodations so that every kid has what they need to do well on their assessment and in their classes.”
Constant said OHS looks on par to be fine in the future and isn’t expected to receive this ATSI status again.
