Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016
Teacher Jenny Garcia spoke to media Tuesday  about her students' progress.
Thank You! Progress With Our Kids Shows in CMAS Growth Results

Dear Educators,

First, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude for the work you are doing for our kids in all of our schools. Your dedication and commitment are why we have been celebrating so much in recent weeks, from our largest graduating class in history to our progress on state assessments.

Our students once again demonstrated more growth than their peers statewide in English language arts and math. In fact, our students exceeded the statewide average median growth percentile or MGP on both subjects, in every grade, except one. We'll provide more details in Our DPS Weekly community newsletter Friday but here's a sneak peek at our video from Escuela Valdez.

Agreement on Highest-Priority Incentives

While we celebrate successes, we also continue to struggle with opportunity gaps for our students of color and those in poverty. I believe deeply that in order to close our opportunity gaps and continue to move forward as a district we must do everything possible to attract and retain our very best educators in our schools that need the greatest support.

We implemented our incentives to attract and retain educators in our highest-priority schools after we heard clearly from our DPS Teacher Retention Task Force that this was a critical step. As you may know, we have been discussing these incentives with the Denver Classroom Teachers Association and I am happy to report that we recently reached an agreement that will keep these incentives in place. We -- DPS and DCTA -- also made clear our intent to have these incentives last for at least five years, subject to any later agreement on ProComp or the master agreement.

A+ Denver Report on ProComp Released

DPS and DCTA also are working together to strengthen ProComp. Providing its perspective, A+ Colorado, a local education policy and advocacy group, today released a report summarizing its recommendations for the future of ProComp.
Some of the recommendations echo what we have heard from teachers and discussed previously, including:
  • Create a system that is simple, easy to understand and has a higher level predictability.
  • Better utilize compensation as a means to support district recruitment and retention efforts.
  • Focus resources on the district's most impacted schools.
Other recommendations are presented by A+ in a more theoretical manner, such as the utilization of compensation to recognize performance. Read the full DPS/DCTA joint statement.

Great teachers change lives. These are the words that begin our DPS teacher retention task force report. And this powerful fact drives the work we do every day in Denver Public Schools. Thank you for being part of Team DPS.

Best,
Tom
Join the African-American Equity Task Force; Apply by Sept. 28
In response to Dr. Sharon Bailey's recent report, DPS is creating an African-American Equity Task Force and seeking committed participants. The focus will be on developing an Equity Agreement, a compilation of recommended actions, efforts and resources needed to address the factors that are contributing to the opportunity gap.The application deadline is Wednesday, Sept. 28.  Diversity of perspective and experience is critical to the success of the African-American Equity Task Force and will be the primary lens for selection of participants.  Learn more about the task force and apply online. 

Teacher Leadership & Collaboration 
Attend the TLC Leadership Symposium on Saturday, Sept. 24!
Build and hone your skills as a DPS leader by joining more than a dozen DPS teams and departments that are hosting more than 15 leadership development sessions. Teacher and teacher leader participation is paid! Register online. Read Full Story >>

Upcoming Events
Faculty Meeting Q&A 
A feature focused on sharing your top questions from recent faculty meetings

Q. It seems as if the opportunity for Senior Team Leads (a Teacher Leadership & Collaboration role) results in a decrease of funds for other services, staff and programs. What data justifies prioritizing this program above others?

A. DPS knows that a great teacher in the classroom is one of the most important factors in our students' growth and achievement. We're investing resources in Teacher Leadership & Collaboration (TLC) because this model of distributive leadership is a key strategy in attracting, retaining and developing the great teachers and leaders we must have to ensure that all of our students have access to high-quality instruction and can succeed.
 
Senior Team Leads support teams of about five to eight teachers, leading peer-to-peer learning among teachers and providing more frequent and consistent support and the opportunity for real-time feedback that continuously improves teachers' practice. In addition, Senior Team Lead feedback comes from a fellow teacher who works with the same student population, often in the same content area. This means that the feedback is more likely to be relevant and actionable to a teacher's practice.  

Both  outside research and data collected through DPS annual surveys supports continued expansion of TLC and the Senior Team Lead role. Teachers working with a Senior Team Lead report overwhelmingly positive experiences:
  • 86% of teachers on TLC teams say their practice has improved as a result of working with a Senior Team Lead or Team Lead (End of Year TLC Survey 2016)
  • 82% of teachers on TLC teams say that working with a  Senior Team Lead has positively impacted their students' performance (End of Year TLC Survey 2016)
  • 89% of teachers on TLC teams say that their Senior Team Lead is an overall effective leader (CollaboRATE survey 2015)
Learn more about how TLC is  impacting schools and helping DPS achieve the Denver Plan 2020 goals through great teaching and leadership.

Have a question we can help answer? Email us at [email protected].

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