Demographics
# Primary Schools: 2, # Elementary Schools: 2, # Middle Schools: 1, # High Schools: 1, # Other: 0 Grade(s): PK-12 Enrollment: 3690
The Haralson County School System, serving the hills of Northwestern Georgia, is located at the base of the "ABC Triangle," formed by the suburbs of Atlanta, Birmingham, and Chattanooga. With an enrollment of approximately 3,700 students (Pre-K to 12), the school system has six schools: two primary schools (K-2); two elementary schools (3-5); a middle school (6-8); and a high school (9-12). Programs include: Reading First (K-3); Standards-Based Instruction (Pre-K to 12); academic after-school tutoring (K-12); technology integration (Pre-K to 12); Lottery Pre-kindergarten; Schoolwide Title I (K-12); Technology courses (6-12); Blended Learning Technology Grant (9-12); Literacy and School Library Grant (K-12); Career Tech and Agricultural Education (CTAE, 9-12); Advanced Placement (9-12); Post-Secondary Articulation (9-12); Jr. ROTC (9-12); High Schools That Work (9-12), and a Freshman Academy.
VISION, MISSION, and BELIEFS
The system’s vision, “Haralson County Schools will be recognized as a leader in improving student achievement for ALL students,” demonstrates an on-going commitment to student achievement and academic excellence for all students through a continuous improvement process of collaboration with internal and external stakeholders who share accountability for a high-quality education. The system’s mission, “Haralson County Schools will produce high-achieving students who will graduate and become productive and responsible citizens,” ensures that our students will benefit from a commitment to a rigorous and well-rounded curriculum that will prepare them to compete in a global economy and improve the quality of life within their community, making it possible for graduates to secure a sustainable occupation wherever they so choose. Haralson County’s belief statements encompass our commitment to high expectations for all students and a committed community of learners and stakeholders working together for success in school and the community through continuous improvement:
· We believe all students deserve to be held to high expectations that reflect individual abilities.
· We believe every person deserves to be treated with respect.
· We believe the health, safety, and welfare of all students and employees are a prerequisite to student success.
· We believe students must be taught academic and life skills including technology to succeed in an ever-changing world.
· We believe school experience should be relevant practice for adulthood.
· We believe regular attendance is fundamental to learning.
· We believe all stakeholders share the responsibility for educating students.
· We believe effective communication is essential for all stakeholders.
GOALS
Through the development of the Haralson County School System’s Strategic Improvement Plan, the following five strategic, systemic goals areas and related performance objectives have been identified and are monitored using the Balanced Scorecard:
1. Student Achievement
· Ensure mastery of the curriculum
· Reduce achievement gaps between identified subgroups
· Improve graduation rate
· Ensure nationally competitive students
2. Student Support
· Establish timely and effective procedures to monitor student success
· Develop strategies to address symptoms of poverty
· Develop a positive culture and a safe and orderly environment
3. Teaching & Learning
· Improve implementation of standards-based best practices
· Deliver needs based, relevant professional learning
· Ensure accountability for performance
4. Student, Staff, Parent and Community Engagement
· Increase student, staff, parent, and community engagement
· Improve stakeholder perception of school system
· Improve student and staff attendance
5. Operational Support
· Ensure effective and efficient operational processes
· Ensure continuous improvement processes
These systemic goals are also supported by aligned goals and initiatives which are measured, managed, and monitored through individual School Improvement Plans and the Strategic Work Aligned to Teaching (SWAT) process. The SWAT process involves monitoring school and system initiatives and performance and reporting these data quarterly to system level personnel and the superintendent.
Programs and Services
Approximately 3,700 students ranging from three years old through twelfth grade are served in the Haralson County School System. There are two primary schools in the system for Pre-K to second grade students, two elementary schools for third to fifth grade students, one middle school for students in grades 6-8, and a high school for students in grades 9-12, which houses a Freshman Academy for ninth graders. An alternative school program, available for students in grades 6-12 who incur severe behavioral infractions, is provided by Ombudsman Educational Services and is located in a stand-alone center near the Buchanan central office site.
The system proactively addresses the need for early intervention by offering preschool opportunities which include special education prekindergarten serving three- and four-year-old students with disabilities and eight state-funded lottery Pre-K classrooms serving four-year-old students in the system. We have a Prekindergarten Transition Coach who supports all prekindergarten students in the system by collaborating with public, Head Start, and private prekindergarten programs.
The system uses local funds, in addition to state and federal monies, to try to maintain a low teacher- to- student ratio, although this average has been rising over the past two years as the system faces severe budget cuts and financial challenges through lost state and local tax revenue. The average class size in grades K-2 is 17 students. In grades 3-5 the average class size is 22. At the middle school level, the average class size is 21, and at the high school level the average class size is 23 students.
The Haralson County School System’s instructional program is coordinated through the Teaching and Learning Department. In recent years, the system’s priority has been the implementation of standards-based instruction and the Georgia Performance Standards to improve academic achievement. The Teaching and Learning Department includes federal programs, professional learning, state and local test coordination, special education, and student services which allows central office personnel to collaborate on system initiatives to meet the needs of all students.
In Haralson County School System, a significant emphasis is placed on needs- based, job-embedded professional learning. A key strategy for quality professional learning is the academic coach program. This program provides for an academic coach at all schools, and two coaches at the middle school, who lead professional learning initiatives at each school site. The academic coaches have extensive experience and training in research-based practices and professional learning best practices. The academic coaches’ primary job responsibilities are to assist, coach, mentor, and model best practices for staff. Academic coaches also facilitate instructional planning, standards implementation, and analysis and utilization of assessment and progress monitoring data. Each school allocates the most valuable resource—time—by providing a daily common planning period for grade levels and/or content areas to facilitate collaborative planning among grade/content area teachers. The common planning period is used regularly for job-embedded professional learning. Professional learning days and after school planning time are built into the school calendar to allow staff to participate in school-based professional learning which focuses on the specific needs of students and staff at the individual schools. Occasionally system-wide training is delivered to key staff members, who then redeliver training to their individual schools, such as training in working with students from poverty or training in intervention strategies. Professional learning is supported through state and federal funds which are dedicated to provide release time, substitutes, materials and trainers for professional learning.
Numerous services support academic, physical, emotional, and sociological needs of students. As a means to provide for the emotional and physical needs of students, the system employs a full- time social worker who coordinates the homeless and migrant programs. The system social worker collaborates with various external agencies such as juvenile justice, Local Interagency Planning Team (LIPT), community mental health agencies, and Georgia’s Department of Children and Family Services (DFACS) to provide support and resources for the various needs of students.
Currently, 616 students identified with disabilities are served in the system. This represents 16.6% of the current student population. These students are served in their least-restrictive educational environment through the inclusion model of co-teaching, small group instruction, and needs-based intervention segments, along with receiving individual tutoring both during the instructional day and after school. To further support students with disabilities, the system employs two Special Education Facilitators/Parent Mentors who work with teachers and parents to provide instructional support to teachers and collaborative services to students with disabilities and their families.
Other programs that coordinate to meet the needs of individual students are the Response to Intervention (RTI) process, student support teams, English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), Gifted education, Title I, Early Intervention Program (EIP), Migrant program, and the Homeless Grant program. Programming supports include Career Technical and Agricultural Education (CTAE), Advanced Placement (AP), Honors, Fine Arts, and Dual Enrollment. Students’ social and emotional needs are addressed through the K-12 guidance and counseling program, Graduate First program, STAR Advisement, counseling groups led by licensed school psychologists, and through coordination with external services and agencies. Students’ physical, health, and safety needs are addressed through the School Nurse Program, Nutrition Department, School Resource Officers, Facilities and Maintenance Department, and the Transportation Department. Defibrillators have been placed in all schools. Staff members trained in CPR are available at all schools and all bus drivers have received CPR training.
In addition to a strong academic focus, students at the primary and elementary levels are taught health and physical education as well as art, music, and media and technology skills. Connections classes at the middle school offer students the opportunity to participate in band, art, chorus, dance, technology, physical education, and health. At the high school level, offerings in addition to core classes include CTAE classes in business education, family and consumer science, construction, automotive, cosmetology, healthcare, engineering, horticulture, work-based learning, and JROTC. Chorus, drama, band, physical education, advanced placement, and dual enrollment opportunities are also available for high school students.
Community Demographics
Haralson County is a predominately rural community located between Atlanta, Georgia and Birmingham, Alabama. The county has four small towns within its jurisdiction—Tallapoosa, Waco, Bremen, and Buchanan which serves as the county seat. Bremen has its own city school system, while Haralson County School System serves the rest of the towns and county outside of Bremen city limits. Haralson County is home to approximately 29,237 citizens. The 2010 data obtained from Haralson County Development Authority, reflect a 13.8% increase from the 2000 Census. This trend is slightly behind the overall growth trend for the state of Georgia which is 18.3%. Twenty-six percent (26%) of Haralson County’s citizens are below 18 years of age and 13% are over 65. An unusually high percentage (37%) of people living in Haralson County did not graduate from high school, and another 36% have only a high school diploma or GED. Nine percent (9%) of Haralson County citizens have a Bachelor’s degree or higher (compared to a state average of 24.3%). The median income for Haralson County citizens is $38,713, and the unemployment rate is close to 12%.
The student population of Haralson County’s schools mirrors the county’s demographics which are 91% white, 6.7% black, and 2.3% Hispanic and other. Currently, in Haralson County Schools 92.4% of students are white, 3.2% are black, 2.5% are multi-racial, and 1.5% are Hispanic. Sixty-two percent (62%) of all students are eligible for free or reduced priced meals.
Summary of Student Performance
Two of the six schools in Haralson County, Buchanan Primary School and Tallapoosa Primary School, met Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) requirements for the 2009-10 school year. Historically, the primary, elementary and middle schools usually meet the Annual Measurable Objectives (AMOs) in reading/English language arts and math for the “all students” category and “economically disadvantaged students” category but fall short in the “students with disabilities” category. As illustrated in the table below, all of the primary, elementary and middle schools met the AMOs for “all students” and “economically disadvantaged students” (except West Haralson Elementary in math) for the 2009-10 school year. The elementary and middle schools missed making AYP with only one subgroup in math. West Haralson Elementary School did not meet AYP for “economically disadvantaged students” in the area of math and is in Needs Improvement Year 1 (NI-1) status. Buchanan Elementary School did not meet AYP for “students with disabilities” in math and is in NI-2 status. Haralson County Middle School did not meet AYP for “students with disabilities” in math and is in NI-8 status under state direction. Although math for the “students with disabilities” subgroup continues to be a challenge, there have been some significant gains in this area. For example, the students with disabilities at Tallapoosa Primary School went from 57.9% of the students meeting or exceeding in 2009 to 65.3% in 2010; the students with disabilities at West Haralson Elementary School went from 23.7% of the students meeting or exceeding in 2009 to 33.3% in 2010; and the students with disabilities at Haralson County Middle School went from 34.6% of the students meeting or exceeding in 2009 to 40.8% in 2010.
| AMO for Reading/ELA: 73.3% Meeting & Exceeding
| AMO for Math: 67.6% Meeting & Exceeding
| Tallapoosa Primary
|
|
| All
| 86.1%
| 85.7%
| SWD
| 72.4%
| 65.3%
| ED
| 80.3%
| 80.3%
| Buchanan Primary
|
|
| All
| 88.0%
| 85.3%
| SWD (too few students for subgroup)
| 51.8%
| 48.1%
| ED
| 85.4%
| 83.2%
| Buchanan Elementary
|
|
| All
| 86.3%
| 77.4%
| SWD
| 62.9%
| 42.9%
| ED
| 83.2%
| 73.2%
| West Haralson Elementary
|
|
| All
| 84.6%
| 68.4%
| SWD
| 55.3%
| 33.3%
| ED
| 79.9%
| 60.2%
| Haralson County Middle
|
|
| All
| 89.4%
| 80.7%
| SWD
| 62.3%
| 40.8%
| ED
| 85.8%
| 76.5%
|
Haralson County High School is in Needs Improvement Year 1 (NI-1) for this school year. Historically, the high school students perform better in English language arts than in math on the Georgia High School Graduation Tests. Because there are normally too few students with disabilities to make a subgroup, the subgroup of concern at the high school is the “economically disadvantaged students.” As illustrated in the table below, Haralson County High School did not make AYP for 2009-10 because of the performance in math. However, the high school takes great pride in the increases in the graduation rate for all subgroups over the years. The graduation rate for “students with disabilities” has increased from the lowest rate of 8.2% in 2005 to 44.2% in 2010. For “economically disadvantaged students,” the rate has steadily increased from 44.2% in 2006 to 67.1% in 2010. The graduation rate for the “all students” category has increased every year since the first AYP report in 2003 with a graduation rate of 48.7% to 76% in 2010.
2009-10 AYP Summary for GHSGT
|
| AMO for ELA: 87.7% Meeting & Exceeding
| AMO for Math: 74.9% Meeting & Exceeding
| Target Graduation Rate: 80%
| Haralson County High
|
|
|
| All
| 90.2% | 61.5% | 76.0% | SWD (too few students for subgroup)
| 67.9% | 37.9% | 44.2% | ED
| 85.3% | 46.1% | 67.1% |
Major Trends and Issues Impacting the School System
Several academic data trends have been detected across student subpopulations. The graduation rate for all students is higher than the graduation rate of economically disadvantaged students. The graduation rate and academic achievement rate for “students with disabilities” (SWD) is significantly less than overall percentages. Trend data also indicate that overall attendance rates for “economically disadvantaged” students and “students with disabilities“ are less than attendance rates for “all” students.
Over the past five years, the student population in Haralson County School System has remained fairly stable at just below four thousand students, with a slight decrease over the past two years to the current level of approximately 3700. This trend is attributed to several factors. Census statistics indicate a slow growth trend which is possibly a result of several major manufacturing plants closing in the past five years. As the recession continues to impact the small local communities in Haralson County, people are leaving the area to find work. Many who choose to stay are struggling to meet their daily needs as the unemployment rate is near 12%. This uncertain financial picture for the county affects the schools through a declining tax base and severe budget cuts which are significantly impacting school programs, faculty, and staff. It also provides for limited choices for students as they graduate and seek employment in their community. Haralson County Schools made a major decision in moving to a four-day school calendar for 2010-2011 in an effort to save money and balance the budget. The impact of this new school calendar on academic achievement has yet to be seen; the data from the 2011 state assessments and attendance will be examined in June.
There are several positive influences for the Haralson County community. West Georgia Technical College Waco Campus is an excellent resource for students who wish to pursue post-secondary education, as well as the University of West Georgia, located 20 miles south of Haralson County. Both of these institutions offer dual-enrollment opportunities for Haralson County High School students. Honda Lock has a large plant just outside Tallapoosa and is working collaboratively with the Chamber of Commerce on developing a mentor program, Empowering Adults to Change Haralson (EACH), to work with teens on problem solving and business skills. The superintendent also has established a community advisory board which consists of various business community members in an effort to facilitate communication and collaborate with the community on school and system initiatives.
Summary of Major Strengths
Haralson County is strategically located off Interstate 20 in West Georgia. There are three exits off the Interstate that lead to more populated areas of the county. The area is rich in natural resources, having an abundance of beautiful virgin land, water, and timber. Haralson County’s proximity to Atlanta (50 miles) provides potential for growth in the community.
The school system has created a Strategic Improvement Plan that identifies strategic goals across five areas to support a balanced, continuous cycle of school improvement. The system’s strategic goals have been cascaded to the school level and included in individual school improvement plans. This newly aligned plan for school improvement ensures that all schools and the system are working toward common goals. It has the potential, if implemented with fidelity, to create an educational environment that will support academic excellence for all students at all levels and, ultimately, improve the quality of life for the citizens of Haralson County.
Haralson County’s AYP reports indicate the “all students” category is a relative strength of the system in grades 1-8 in reading/English language arts and math. For the past several years, the schools have met the State Annual Measurable Objectives (AMO) in these areas on the Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests (CRCT). The strengths for the high school are English, writing, and science on the Georgia High School Graduation Test (GHSGT). The graduation rate has increased significantly since 2003. Math, while not yet at acceptable levels of proficiency for all subgroups, has improved throughout the system. Additionally, attendance rates for all subgroups have generally improved.
The Haralson County School System has notable strengths that accelerate the work and build capacity throughout the school system. Teacher and school leadership is encouraged through building level leadership teams who send representatives to the district leadership team. Continuous improvement and data analysis provide targets for needs- based, job-embedded professional learning for all certified personnel to ensure that they possess the knowledge and skills needed to successfully teach students and/or lead instruction. These opportunities are further supported through professional learning teacher teams where teachers collaboratively plan, learn, and share. Support resources within a system the size of Haralson County are limited; however, Haralson County’s system leaders have maximized the use of external support services, working closely with agencies such as Northwest Georgia Regional Educational Support Agency (NWGARESA), West Georgia RESA, Dalton Educational Technology Center (ETC), Georgia Leadership Institute for School Improvemnt (GLISI), the Georgia Department of Education (GADOE), and the Georgia School Boards’ Association (GSBA).
The Board of Education has made great strides in the past two years in their role in decision-making and preserving the executive, administrative, and leadership authority of the administrative head of the system. The board has demonstrated their commitment to excellence by participating in extensive training which resulted in being recognized as a Board of Distinction by the Georgia School Boards’ Association in December, 2010.
Summary of Major Needs
Haralson County’s location, while there is potential for growth, is feeling severe effects from the current recession which has created many challenges for our community and its schools. Changing the mindset of the community regarding the importance of education remains a continuous challenge. Many parents did not graduate from high school, and a there is a high rate of unemployment. There is a lack of parent buy-in for creating an environment where students see the need for attaining a high school diploma. While this is a barrier to success, the system is determined not to allow this to interfere with initiatives to increase the graduation rate. Math continues to be a challenge for Haralson County students. While academic achievement gains were reported in 2010, progress has been sporadic and has not been significant to the degree that AYP Annual Measurable Objectives were achieved in this area for all subgroups. The achievement gap between the “all” group and the subgroups of students with disabilities and the economically disadvantaged students continues to be a challenge. Likewise, a graduation rate of less than 50% for students with disabilities is a major concern.
The current recession resulting in lost revenue in the local tax base coupled with drastic educational budget cuts at the state level have presented many financial challenges for the school system. The school calendar has been cut from 180 to 147 school days and many administrative positions were eliminated. There have been significant cuts at the central office and school administration in the past year with a decrease in certified central office administrators in the Teaching and Learning and Personnel Departments from seven to two. This in conjunction with the loss of two assistant principals has greatly increased the workload of the central office and school staff, who have to take on more responsibilities in the area of budget, curriculum and professional learning, communication, and student support. There was also a decrease in administrative support staff from eight to six people at the central office, and the loss of one administrative support staff per school. There is a strong need to fund positions at the Central Office that will lead departments, support schools, and create a stable team of leaders and teachers in the system that will institute a “Plan, Do, Check, Act” cycle of continuous improvement, maintaining a focus on aligned, prioritized needs.
Many of these challenges are deeply rooted in the culture of the community where there exists a pervasive climate of distrust for education, government, or big business, as well as a large percentage of the citizens who do not have a high school diploma (37%). While the entire community has been hard hit by the current recession, recovery from our financial challenges requires transparency, cooperation, and trust from all stakeholders, and will most definitely be a process, not an event. While efforts have been made to involve external agencies and support services in the county’s educational system, a continued emphasis should be placed on involving parents and the community in meaningful roles in the decision-making process, thus promoting a culture of participation, responsibility, and ownership.
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