SCS Shares Additional Context Regarding Porter-Leath Claims |
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In response to Porter-Leath’s claims that SCS’ budget has steadily increased under the grant, below are key facts concerning the District’s additional fiscal operations and expanded programming in order to adhere to federal regulations.
Porter-Leath Excessive Administrative Costs with Fewer Services
- Federal administrative cap for both SCS and Porter-Leath is 15% combined. Porter-Leath currently operates at 13% administrative costs (serving 1,520 students) compared to SCS’ 5% admin costs (serving 1,680 students directly), which, according to Porter-Leath’s funding request/proposal, includes a salary ($208,804) for Porter-Leath’s CEO that exceeds the permissible salary cap for executives ($199,300).
- Porter-Leath has proposed the exclusion of comprehensive services for nearly 720 students (approximately $922K) along with subcontracted services for nursing, speech, and mental health services (approximately $835K).
SCS FINANCIAL OPERATIONS, INCREASED PROGRAMMING, AND IMPROVED PARENT SUPPORT
The District's programming costs have historically increased to meet internal controls/federal compliance. Internal controls were designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the following:
- Since 2014, SCS has increased programming (including teacher assistants and HR/onboarding staff) to ensure the District is in compliance with class ratios, health mandates, and disability program services, etc.
- Playgrounds are a fundamental part of the Pre-K experience. Since 2014, all Pre-K center playground equipment and fields have been a direct cost to SCS based on federal grant regulations and requirements.
- SCS Head Start grant funds were utilized to provide all Pre-K students with remote learning devices and manuals during the pandemic.
- SCS continues to provide wraparound support to families in community programs even without funding from Head Start, First 8, or General Funding.
- There was an increase in parent engagement activities (family nights, literacy sessions, community activities, etc.) in person and virtual from the SCS office during the pandemic.
- SCS streamlined registration processes by transitioning to online portals/platforms which was a direct cost to SCS.
- Eligibility, Recruitment, Selection, Enrollment, and Attendance (ERSEA) governs how programs determine eligibility, enroll children, and track attendance. The SCS team uses funding/resources to help programs assess services and recruit the children and families most in need.
NATIONAL RECOGNITION OF SCS PRE-K PROGRAMMING
Shelby County Schools Pre-K was awarded a gold medal for establishing and providing high quality preschool programs for the children of Shelby County.
Medals were awarded by City Health, an initiative of the de Beaumont Foundation and Kaiser Permanente, based on an analysis by the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER). NIEER is part of the Rutgers Graduate School of Education.
To win a gold medal, a city had to meet at least eight of NIEER’s benchmarks and have at least 30 percent of a city’s 4-year-old children enrolled in a locally- or state-funded pre-K program.
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REIMAGINING EDUCATION: SCS to Provide Direct Pre-K Services to Families After Unsuccessful Negotiations with Porter-Leath |
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Greetings Partners in Education,
After weeks of discussion with Porter-Leath officials and several of their supporters and funders, Shelby County Schools (SCS) has been unable to reach an agreement on the terms of a contract. Porter-Leath requested a substantial increase in funding to provide fewer services to Pre-K students at a higher cost which could jeopardize the SCS Head Start grant by putting the District out of compliance with federal requirements.
The annual Porter-Leath contract provides direct Pre-K services to 1,520 children out of approximately 5,600 Pre-K students served by the District. SCS has opted to bring the remaining Pre-K services in-house. Under the Head Start grant and in partnership with other Pre-K providers across the city, there will not be a disruption of services or support for students and families.
FAST FACTS
- SCS and Porter-Leath have been unable to reach an agreement on the terms of a contract for Pre-K services.
- The annual Porter-Leath contract provides direct Pre-K services to1,520 children out of approximately 5,600 Pre-K students served by the District.
- SCS has opted to bring the remaining Pre-K services in-house after unsuccessful negotiations.
- Porter-Leath requested a substantial increase in funding to provide fewer services to Pre-K students at a higher cost which could jeopardize the SCS Head Start grant by putting the District out of compliance with federal requirements.
- There will not be a disruption of services or support for students and families.
- Up to $3 million in educational cost savings has been identified by the District to strengthen services and program expansions.
- The SCS Human Resources team will share details in the coming days about career opportunities for early childhood educators and staff impacted by this transition.
REIMAGINING PRE-K AND COST SAVINGS
Superintendent Dr. Joris M. Ray recently announced a Reimagining 901 proposal to offer universal Pre-K access to all students in Shelby County. Although unanticipated, the move of bringing Pre-K services in-house is consistent with that goal.
“Our Early Childhood Director Divalyn Gordon has identified up to $3 million in educational cost savings to provide services to SCS families,” said Superintendent Ray. “Rather than paying increased administrative costs to Porter-Leath, SCS aims to apply these cost savings to strengthen services and program expansions.”
SCS PRE-K GROWTH AND SUCCESS
- SCS has layers of systems in place to drive decisions with data. Key Performance Indicators presented in April 2021 show:
- 69% of Kindergarteners who attended an SCS Pre-K program in 2019-20 were considered Kindergarten ready in reading compared to only 40% of students who did not attend an SCS Pre-K program.
- Students attending SCS Pre-K consistently outperform their peers on measures of kindergarten readiness, even after the pandemic.
- SCS Early Childhood classrooms have exceeded or maintained comparable scores to the 2019 Office of Head Start national average. SCS classrooms are scoring 1 point above the national average in Instructional Support.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
As part of our Reimagining 901 plan and capital improvement projects, our mission is to enhance academic instruction and establish 21st century learning environments. To support these efforts, SCS will be engaging a number of local community partners as we bolster economic development. Additionally, the District’s Human Resources team will share details in the coming days about career opportunities for early childhood educators and staff impacted by this transition.
PATH FORWARD
A fundamental principle of the District’s Reimagining 901 plan is rethinking the way we service children and families as we ensure the most effective and efficient delivery of teaching and learning.
SCS is grateful to Porter-Leath for their service to the children of Memphis and Shelby County and thanks their employees for their commitment to the work which will continue.
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Shelby County Schools is Tennessee’s largest public school district and is among the 25 largest public school districts in the United States. Formerly comprised of two smaller districts, Memphis City Schools and Shelby County Schools, SCS serves over 113,000 students in more than 200 schools. We are the second largest employer in Shelby County with over 14,200 employees, including 6,500 teachers. Through our strategic plan, Destination 2025, we are committed to working toward three goals: 80 percent of students are college or career ready, 90 percent of seniors graduate on time and 100 percent of graduates will enroll in a post-secondary opportunity. To reach these goals, SCS has placed a strong emphasis in five high-leverage areas: early literacy, improvement of post-secondary readiness, developing strong teachers, leaders and support staff, expanding high quality school options and working closely with families and community partners to support our schools. SCS partners with almost 4,000 volunteers and 1,300 total school adopters and community partners to help impact student achievement.
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