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State may take over R.I. School for the Deaf | Education | projo.com | The Providence Journal
Education Commissioner Deborah A. Gist is recommending that the state Department of Education take control of the Rhode Island School for the Deaf, a state-financed institution that has been plagued in recent years by unstable leadership and some of the lowest test scores in the state.
Gist is asking the Board of Regents for Elementary and Secondary Education to approve the rare intervention at Thursday’s board meeting, which will be held at 4 p.m. at the Sullivan School, 35 Dexter St., Newport.
In a work session with the Regents on Sept. 17, Gist said she was concerned that the school was failing to meet the needs of its students, many of whom have learning disabilities in addition to deafness or hearing problems. In addition, 70 percent of the students qualify for free or reduced lunch, because of low family incomes.
The school test scores rank among the lowest in the state, with just 10 percent of students scoring proficient in reading, and none proficient in mathematics.
“There are a lot of people there who are very committed,” Gist said. “But there are things that are happening that are not effective.”To get the Rhode Island School for the Deaf on track, Gist recommends the department “exercise its authority related to supervision, administration and control” of the school until June 30, 2010, as allowed by state law.
She wants the school director, Lori Dunsmore, to report to Ken Swanson, who oversees the state Education Department’s Office for Diverse Learners.
Gist is also concerned that the school’s board of trustees lacks the experience needed to fulfill its role, and wants the Education Department to provide training sessions for the trustees. In addition, four of the nine slots are vacant and must be filled with qualified candidates appointed by the Regents by December, Gist said.
Gist wants the department to lay out “the strategic direction for the education of deaf and hard-of-hearing children in Rhode Island” by January.
About 80 students ages 3 to 21 attend the school. Because of the students’ special needs, costs run high, roughly $65,000 a year per student. This fall, the school temporarily moved to the former Rhodes Elementary School, in Warwick, as the state constructs a $31.3-million facility at the school’s Providence location.
Last year, a team of seven New England educators with experience in deaf education spent two days at the school. They issued a 34-page report that described a “fractured community” and outlined several problems that contributed to the low levels of student achievement, including the way reading, literacy skills and critical thinking are integrated into classes.
The report cited examples of inadequate classroom instruction, a lack of technology, and a breakdown of trust and communication throughout the school.
The School for the Deaf has also suffered from leadership upheaval, with four directors and three board chairmen since 2001. Dunsmore was hired in the fall of 2007. The report said that teaching staff had resisted her efforts to change instruction and school culture.
Education Commissioner Deborah A. Gist is recommending that the state Department of Education take control of the Rhode Island School for the Deaf, a state-financed institution that has been plagued in recent years by unstable leadership and some of the lowest test scores in the state.
Gist is asking the Board of Regents for Elementary and Secondary Education to approve the rare intervention at Thursday’s board meeting, which will be held at 4 p.m. at the Sullivan School, 35 Dexter St., Newport.
In a work session with the Regents on Sept. 17, Gist said she was concerned that the school was failing to meet the needs of its students, many of whom have learning disabilities in addition to deafness or hearing problems. In addition, 70 percent of the students qualify for free or reduced lunch, because of low family incomes.
The school test scores rank among the lowest in the state, with just 10 percent of students scoring proficient in reading, and none proficient in mathematics.
“There are a lot of people there who are very committed,” Gist said. “But there are things that are happening that are not effective.”To get the Rhode Island School for the Deaf on track, Gist recommends the department “exercise its authority related to supervision, administration and control” of the school until June 30, 2010, as allowed by state law.
She wants the school director, Lori Dunsmore, to report to Ken Swanson, who oversees the state Education Department’s Office for Diverse Learners.
Gist is also concerned that the school’s board of trustees lacks the experience needed to fulfill its role, and wants the Education Department to provide training sessions for the trustees. In addition, four of the nine slots are vacant and must be filled with qualified candidates appointed by the Regents by December, Gist said.
Gist wants the department to lay out “the strategic direction for the education of deaf and hard-of-hearing children in Rhode Island” by January.
About 80 students ages 3 to 21 attend the school. Because of the students’ special needs, costs run high, roughly $65,000 a year per student. This fall, the school temporarily moved to the former Rhodes Elementary School, in Warwick, as the state constructs a $31.3-million facility at the school’s Providence location.
Last year, a team of seven New England educators with experience in deaf education spent two days at the school. They issued a 34-page report that described a “fractured community” and outlined several problems that contributed to the low levels of student achievement, including the way reading, literacy skills and critical thinking are integrated into classes.
The report cited examples of inadequate classroom instruction, a lack of technology, and a breakdown of trust and communication throughout the school.
The School for the Deaf has also suffered from leadership upheaval, with four directors and three board chairmen since 2001. Dunsmore was hired in the fall of 2007. The report said that teaching staff had resisted her efforts to change instruction and school culture.