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Story posted June, 2008.  Results updated August 20, 2009.

Results:
• In 2009 63.6% of 6th graders met or exceeded state reading standards, and 70.8% did so in math, up from 27% and 38%, respectively, in 2006
• Between 2006 and 2009, 8th grade reading proficiency increased over 30% and 8th grade math proficiency increased over 14% (statewide proficiency increased 10% and 5%, respectively, over that time)

School improvement demands focus. Staff members at James Cashman Middle School in Las Vegas (where 100% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch) believe that student achievement comes from challenging every student and ensuring that no student is overlooked.

Adopting this belief couldn't have come at a better time for the school. Cashman's students were struggling. The school was in the third year of school improvement, about to be taken over by the state. Teachers had been trained in a myriad of improvement programs, yet progress was excruciatingly slow.

A new administrative team arrived in January 2007 and began to use the structure of Breaking Ranks in the Middle (BRIM), the National Association of Secondary School Principals' landmark report, to analyze the status quo and plan for change. "BRIM works if you believe in the students and the three core areas as an organizing principle," said Cashman Principal Misti Taton. "While what is done for school improvement will look different in every setting, BRIM puts the pieces of the puzzle together and gives you a starting point for analysis." And analyze they did. In her first week at Cashman, Taton, who is also a BRIM trainer, introduced the entire staff to BRIM in a two-day workshop to identify areas of concern.

Collaborative Leadership
Administrators and staff members disaggregated all the school data and examined the patterns that led them to agree on some immediate modifications. An expanded school improvement planning team that represented every content area and grade level was created to coordinate efforts.

After the new school improvement planning team analyzed the data-to which most staff members had never been privy-the team presented it to the entire staff. After reviewing the data, staff members voted on all school improvement changes. Modifications included:

• Simplifying the master schedule
• Creating grade-level teams with common planning time
• Adjusting Monday start time to make time for planning
• Changing the teacher evaluation process to a coaching model in which the principal and assistant principal observe and conference together
• Designing an in-school mentoring program for new teachers
• Creating a teacher-designed professional development program in which teachers share expertise with, model for, and train one another
• Establishing strategic partnerships with external organizations
• Seeking teachers' input regarding student placement
• Involving parents in the leadership equation and school improvement plan development

Most important was the elimination of duplicate programs and competing strategies that had yielded marginal results. No longer would a student in need of reading remediation participate in three different types of support programs during the school day.

Staff members also felt that it was important to establish strong connections with families in an effort to support students. They began serving dinner at family nights-attracting more than 800 people to math night-and worked to provide access to English lessons and computer labs for parents. Counselors address various concerns during home visits, and parents can access up-to-date information about their child's attendance, academic progress, daily homework assignments, and relevant teacher notes through the Intouch system.

Personalization
Part of Cashman's strategy is ensuring that no child slips through the cracks. The academic core teams, each with its own identity, bear primary responsibility for addressing the specific academic and personal needs of students. "Interdisciplinary teaming not only ensures a safety net for our students," Taton said, "[but] it also ensures common and consistent academic and behavior expectations. The teachers on the team and the counselor have a common prep period to ensure coordination of instruction, review of student data, and planning of student interventions." Three times a year, the counselors review transcripts with each student to set individual academic goals, review grades and test scores, clarify expectations, and design a personal plan that prepares him or her for high school and beyond.

Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment
Cashman's focus on academic rigor and relevance has prompted an increase in the number of accelerated classes and the number of students enrolled in those classes. For example, 40% of 8^th grade students are now enrolled in algebra, and next year Cashman will have a math, science, and engineering magnet component to provide neighborhood students with greater access to accelerated classes.

To ensure that standards are addressed and align with those at the feeder schools and the high school, Cashman staff members engage in curriculum mapping and regularly visit nearby schools. To help students become proficient in their knowledge and use of the standards, the school offers a content and test-taking strategies program, Cougar Camp, and uses common assessments as often as possible.

A culture of collaboration has also allowed interdisciplinary team members to build content connections and reinforce common vocabulary across the curriculum. Similarly, to increase fluency and improve writing scores, Cashman has selected "no excuse" spelling words at all grade levels. Every teacher grades students on the proper usage of those words on every assignment.

Creating a climate for learning is an important component of Cashman's efforts. To boost student skills and eliminate distractions, 7^th and 8^th grade non-accelerated English and math classes are single sex. More subtle attempts to maintain a consistent focus on learning and the importance of each minute of the learning day are reinforced by relatively simple modifications, such as starting each class with a hands-on activity to encourage every student to respect the value of academic time and the importance of arriving on time.

Simplify by Sharing Leadership
Cashman's success is due to the value of shared leadership that is designed to simplify, focus, and direct instruction.

The staff at Cashman used BRIM as a guide to changing the school's culture. Once leadership was opened to the teachers, the school began to thrive. "We were inspired to make progress," one teacher commented. "We were ready for change and to feel that we could make a difference." And they did. Once empowered, the teachers assumed responsibility for a culture change that helped students make so much progress on spring assessments that Cashman made AYP-one of only 9 middle schools in the county that did so (out of 57 middle schools).

In addition to improved test scores, the culture and achievement shift made a tangible and significant difference in the lives of many students. For example, last year 180 students were accepted into magnet schools-whereas in the previous three years combined, only 5 students had been accepted in magnet schools.

"Students are resilient and will reach to the expectations that are set for them," says Taton. "Don't ever sell a child short." Preliminary results indicate that those words are not just a slogan for Taton and her Cashman team.

AUGUST 2009 UPDATE: According to Nevada's Annual Reports of Accountability, Cashman is continuing its turnaround.  In 2009, 60.2% of 8th graders met or exceeded state reading standards, up from 27% in 2006 (statewide, the 2009 proficiency rate was 60.9%, having grown only 10% points since 2006).  On the 2009 state math assessment, 47.5% of 8th graders met or exceeded standards, up from 33% in 2006 (statewide proficiency increased less than 5% over that time).  In addition, the school has seen significant improvement in 6th grade proficiency rates in recent years--in 2009 63.6% of 6th graders met or exceeded state reading standards and 70.8% did so in math, compared to 27% and 38%, respectively, in 2006 (while 2006 state-level data are not available for these tests, Cashman's 2009 proficency rates exceeded those of the state, which are 62.3% and 66.9%, respectively). 

For additional information, please contact:
Misti Taton
Principal, James Cashman Middle School
702-799-5880
tatonml@interact.ccsd.net

This story came to LFA's attention as a 2008 Metlife Foundation/NASSP Breakthrough School.

Story adapted with permission from NASSP from James A. Rourke and Marlene Hartzman's article A Change in Direction in Principal Leadership, Special Edition June 2008

Further details about this story can be found at:
NASSP's "MetLife Foundation/NASSP Breakthrough Schools: James Cashman Middle School Profile," 2008