DSSF Discussion Group Meeting #2: Minutes

5/10/17

The GoToMeeting opened at 3:00 p.m. and concluded at 4:30 p.m. Participants, items for discussion,
and discussion highlights are listed below.

Participants:

LEA Staff: Joseph Jones (New Castle County Vo-Tech), Lisa Morris (Delmar), Ken Hutchins
(Appoquinimink), Carisa Pepper (Indian River), Ed Emmett (Positive Outcomes Charter School),
Darren Guido (Caesar Rodney)
Not present: Keisha Brinkley (Appoquinimink), Chris Havrilla (Woodbridge)
DDOE Staff: Luke Rhine, Brittany Mauney, Terry Richard, Carolyn Lazar, Eric Niebrzydowski, Jen
Koester, Ted Jarrell, Shana Payne, Denise Stouffer, Gregory Fulkerson, Chantel Janiszewski,
Lindsay Lewis, and Elizabeth Jetter

Items for Discussion:

Introductions were made

The goal of the meeting, reviewing terminology and presentation of the business rules for
graduation rate and academic achievement, was stated
The current 4-year Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate business rules were reviewed and
discussed, including methodologies currently used to gather and report data; the methodology
for calculating the 4-year Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate is federally mandated
The current 5-year and 6-year Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate business rules were reviewed
and discussed
Suggestions from ESSA stakeholder engagement regarding modifications to how DDOE
calculates the extended year methodology were shared and discussed
The current business rules for Academic Achievement (proficiency in ELA, math, science, and
social studies) were reviewed and discussed
o Considerations for math/ELA proficiency business rules were reviewed and discussed
o Considerations for social studies proficiency business rules were reviewed and discussed
o Considerations for science proficiency business rules were reviewed and discussed
Next steps were discussed, including topics and timing of future meetings
o A Doodle Poll will be used to determine the best meeting time during the week of
5/29/17
o The topic of the next meeting will include the growth methodology and
recommendations for business rules

Discussion Highlights:
4-year, 5-year and 6-year Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rates:
o Federally mandated business rules were discussed (4-year adjusted cohort graduation
rate)
o Implications of 5- and 6-year graduation rates were discussed:
There was a concern that a school with a poor graduation year will carry the
burden for 3 years; concern was also expressed regarding whether
 extended year adjusted cohort graduation rates can have negative
consequences on a schools rating
o The need to clarify the following information in the business rules was raised:
Transparently address non-diploma track students in the business rules and
definitions
Specify September 15th as the end date for graduation calculations instead
of summer
Specify criteria for certificated students
Specify any student categories that count as non-graduating
o A suggestion to represent graduation rate as graduates + non-diploma track students +
dropouts was made
o The implications of using same-year cohorts as recommended during ESSA
stakeholder engagement was discussed; the group recommended keeping the existing
methodology
o A request to include an identifier for students who move out of country was made
o It was recommended that examples be provided to clearly illustrate how 4-year, 5-year
and 6-year adjusted cohort graduation rates are calculated
o A recommendation was made to include in a technical manual both a mathematical
formula as well as an easily understood, plain language formula so all stakeholders can
understand how graduation rates are calculated
o It was recommended that the technical manual include a clear definition for transfers
in
Academic Achievement:
o A recommendation was made that the technical manual include the business rules for
high school science and high school social studies; it was also recommended that high
school science proficiency be prorated back to 9th grade
o A concern was raised that using proration assumes a known former school, which
doesnt apply to out-of-state transfer studentsbusiness rules are recommended to
address this