Page 7 - Reedley Exponent 5-24-18 E-edition

The Reedley Exponent BPanorama
St. La Salle school eighth grade students ready for graduation See B8
Section | Thursday, May 24, 2018 www.reedleyexponent.com
Parental approval
Reedley (Fresno County) CA 93654
KCUSD again earns high marks from parents on annual survey
Photo / Something Enchanted website
The live stage show "Sparkle!" – fea- turing princesses from popular mov- ies and stories – will be presented Sunday, June 3, at the Reedley Com- munity Center.
Princesses
return in
'Sparkle!'
on June 3
Contributed
The princesses are returning to Reedley.
“Sparkle!” will be presented on Sunday, June 3, at 3 p.m. in the Reedley Community Center by the Something Enchanted entertain- ment company and the Reedley Community Services Department.
Tickets now are on sale for the show, which features “favor- ite princesses” live on stage from popular movies and stories. The Something Enchanted shows have been audience-pleasers in previ- ous appearances in Reedley.
There will be singing, danc-
See PRINCESSES page B2
“Qual-
ity with
which
you are
treated
on cam-
pus” –
Results
showed
97 per-
cent of
parents
gave a
positive
response
(excel-
lent, 45
percent;
good, 38 percent; satisfactory, 14 percent). That’s up 1 percent from last year.
• “Success of personnel in pro- viding a safe/orderly environment” – This received a 95 percent posi- tive response (excellent, 38 percent; good, 41 percent; satisfactory, 16 per- cent). This was the same as last year.
• “How well the principal/learn- ing director meets students’ needs” – This also was the same as last year for a favorable response of 93 per- cent (excellent, 37 percent; good, 39
“We had a phenomenal increase in the survey results."
– Mar y Ann Carousso, administrator of student ser vices
percent; satisfactory, 17 percent).
• “How well the teacher(s) meets students’ needs” – The high rate of approval is the same as last year, at 96 percent (excellent, 41 percent; good, 39 percent; satisfactory, 16
percent).
• “Student progress (learning)
at school” – This also was rated fa- vorably at 95 percent (excellent, 38
By Felicia Cousart Matlosz
felicia@midvalleypublishing.com
Parents in Kings Canyon Unified have again given the school district mostly high, solid marks for the edu- cation their children receive and for the care and concern shown their families.
The 2017-18 parent survey, called a “performance survey,” also drew a significant increase in responses. Previous surveys, conducted since 2008, had a response rate at their highest of about 63 to 65 percent in the nearly 10,000-student district.
This year, 8,068 surveys were re- turned, for an impressive 83 percent rate.
“The survey serves as a very valuable communication tool. It allows parents to directly provide feedback to their child's school and the district in an efficient and unique way."
– KCUSD Superintendent John Campbell
“We had a phenomenal increase in the survey results,” said Mary Ann Carousso, administrator for student services.
She presented the latest results to the KCUSD governing board at the trustees’ April 24 meeting. She noted that 13 of the district’s 22 cam- puses produced their highest ever rates of returns.
The results provide a touchstone for district officials, who want to hear how parents feel about their children’s schools. The range of the 22 queries include overall school quality; how parents are treated at campuses; how well teachers, prin- cipals and other staff members meet students’ needs; how parents feel bullying is being addressed; and how
parents view the quality of school facilities.
“It’s a great system. It seems to work especially well in this district,” Carousso said.
The results are given to each principal, who then makes a report to parents. In addition, the super- intendent reviews the results with each principal as part of his or her year-end evaluation, including ways to address issues and concerns.
John Campbell, who became su- perintendent last July 1 after serv- ing in other administrative roles, after the meeting said the gathered information allows district officials “to be aware of, and be responsive to, the comments and concerns of our school community.”
“The survey serves as a very valuable communication tool. It al- lows parents to directly provide feedback to their child’s school and the district in an efficient and unique way,” he said.
The responses are submitted anonymously. But, for this one, dis- trict officials provided an option in which a parent could share a contact number to further discuss an issue.
The responses are broken down this way: districtwide, grades 9-12, grades 6-8, grades kindergarten to eighth, and grades kindergarten to fifth. KCUSD officials combine the ratings of excellent, good and satis- factory as positive replies. Other replies can be “not satisfactory” or no opinion. Sometimes, parents don’t respond to a particular query. In addition, some questions ask for specific replies, such as how may weeks of vacation are preferred at winter break.
Overall, districtwide, parents rat- ed the “overall school quality” at 98 percent, up from 97 percent in 2016- 17. The 98 percent came from a com- bination of excellent at 39 percent, good at 44 percent, and satisfactory at 15 percent.
Here are other top results from this year’s parent survey:
•
Graphic / Kings Canyon Unified School District
percent; good, 41 percent; satisfac- tory, 16 percent), almost the same as in 2016-17.
• “Quality of school facilities” – Again, parents rated this high, at 95 percent (excellent, 33 percent; good, 43 percent; satisfactory, 19 percent). That’s the same as last year.
• “Quality of information school provides to help students with cur- riculum-related activities, decisions and planning” – Parents responded positively at 91 percent (excellent, 31 percent; good, 40 percent; and satis- factory, 20 percent). That’s up from 90 percent in 2016-17.
• “How well does your school provide a broad range of services to meet the needs of all learners?” – The response was favorable at 86 percent (excellent, 31 percent; good, 38 percent; satisfactory, 17 percent). That’s an increase from 84 percent last year.
• “School communications with non-English speaking parents” – The positive response is the same as last year, at 81 percent (excellent and good, each at 34 percent; and satis- factory, 13 percent). Carousso noted that that 30 percent of respondents had “no opinion” in schools with kindergarten through eighth grade configurations, but KCUSD has the
See SURVEY page B2
More books come to Washington Elementary
By Felicia Cousart Matlosz
felicia@midvalleypublishing
Happily holding a new stack of books in her arms, young Gloria Bu- cio said she was eager to read them.
“I like to read because books are very interesting,” said Gloria, who is a fifth-grade student at Washing- ton Elementary School.
On May 16 and 17, she and oth- er girls at the school each received seven to eight books donated by Save the Children, an international and non-governmental organization that focuses on the future and well- being of children in the nation and around the world.
Save the Children has a long- running partnership with Washing- ton Elementary and had just given the campus more than 3,000 books in March.
Last week, the organization pro- vided another 2,500, all from the “American Girl” series of books.
The titles included “Beforever,” a three-book set, “The Real Z,” and a “Design by Me” coloring book. Hence, these books were given to girls at the school, which has grades kindergarten to fifth.
On May 17, girls in fifth and third grades were given their books. Does Gloria have a favorite kind
of book?
“I like all books,” she said. “I’m
very excited to read them and to
color them because some are de- sign books.”
In addition to Washington El- ementary, Save the Children has donated books to four other cam- puses in the Kings Canyon Unified School District: Alta and Jefferson elementary schools in Reedley and McCord and Sheridan elementary schools in Orange Cove.
When it comes to Washington Elementary – which has nearly 400 students – Save the Children last summer was instrumental in coor- dinating a makeover of the campus library with one of its major part- ners, the PVH Foundation. It was a joyous occasion for the school.
Veronica Lopez, the school’s learning director, said the students love the library and are delighted when new books are contributed to the school.
And, it means a lot to them that they can take the books home and build up their own libraries.
“It’s just really nice to see the kids’ expressions on their faces,” Lopez said. “They love the books.”
RIGHT: Gloria Bu- cio, a fifth-grader at Washington Elementary School, shows holds the free books she re- ceived May 17.
BELOW LEFT: These Washing- ton Elementary
third-graders also received free books. They are, from left, Saray Vargas, Ariana Arteaga, Sarai Olivares and Ariana Portillo.
Photos by Felicia Cousart Matlosz / The Exponent
The View From Here
Felicia Cousart Matlosz's column will
return.
ABOVE: Jacqui Cortez (far right), an intervention teacher at Washington El- ementary, helped bring out the books that would be distributed on May 17 in the campus library. Waiting are third-graders (from left) Sahailey Diaz, Michelle Vang, Sophia Valdenegro, Kiley Avellaneda, Izabella Contreras and Emma Avila.