Dr. Jim Welker of the Southeast Missouri Regional Professional Development Center (right) facilitates a discussion about school data during the April meeting of the CSIP Steering Committee. This committee includes students, parents, community members, board members, teachers, staff, and administrators. The committee will develop 3-5-year goals for the district.
Perry County School District 32 is in the process of updating the document that outlines the district’s vision for the future, with goals for the next 3-5 years, and specific action steps to reach those goals. This document is referred to as the CSIP, and it’s all hands on deck for this work, from students and parents to board members and community volunteers.
What is CSIP?
CSIP stands for Continuous School Improvement Plan. All public school districts in Missouri must have a CSIP developed with input from school, family, and community stakeholders. The CSIP then guides the development and implementation of other district documents including building improvement plans, the professional development plan, and long-range budget and facilities plans.
Beginning with the current school year, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education will award up to 30 points on the Annual Performance Report (APR) for district CSIP Plans. To earn full points, a CSIP must:
· focus on the academic preparation and well-being of each student
· include input from stakeholders
· use meaningful data (climate and culture surveys, attendance and graduation rates, assessment results, etc.) to set goals
· set clear mission and mission statements
· have a limited number of focused goals
· include action steps and strategies
· set timelines for implementation and monitoring of progress
· outline funding sources
Perry County School District 32’s current CSIP was created by a committee of 46 teachers, students, administrators, parents, and community members over several months between December 2020 - April 2021, and approved by the Board of Education in May 2021. Since that time several CSIP goals have been met, and the state changed the way it evaluates and scores the CSIP, so it’s time to update the plan for the next 3-5 years.
Dr. Jim Welker and team leading CSIP process
Superintendent Dr. Fara Jones and the Board of Education have partnered with Dr. Jim Welker, director of the Southeast Missouri Regional Professional Development Center located on the campus of Southeast Missouri State University, and his team to update the District’s CSIP plan.
Dr. Welker retired as superintendent of Cape Girardeau Public Schools after serving as an assistant superintendent at Jackson R-II School District. He has worked in education for more than 46 years. The team includes Kelli Wilson, assistant director of the RPDC; Darryl Pannier, retired superintendent from Nell Holcomb; and Dr. Seth Ward, a content specialist with the RPDC.
“Dr. Welker and his team have already met with focus groups that included board members, students, teachers, parents, community members, and administrators,” Dr. Jones said. “Members of the parent and community focus groups had either served on the previous CSIP committee or had volunteered to participate in school committees via the December 2023 Climate and Culture Survey. Now, we’re meeting with a larger group called the steering committee which includes some of those same folks along with board representatives, teacher representatives from each building, classified staff members, and administrators.”
Dr. Welker explained that the focus groups provided his team with valuable data for the CSIP revision process.
“The process involves gathering and reviewing data, conducting focus groups, involving all stakeholders, identifying goals, developing an action plan, and create a system of monitoring and implementation,” he said. “The end result should provide a focus for what the district needs to concentrate on for the next three to five years. The CSIP is an active living document that guides the work of the district.
“We encourage schools to see this process as an opportunity to answer the questions: Where are we? Where do we want to go? And, how do we get there? We help schools identify the things that really make a difference.”
Dr. Welker said that the steering committee, which meets again on Monday, April 22, will develop a short list of overarching goals for the district, and then his group will work with the board of education and administration to create specific action steps to move the district toward reaching those goals over the next 3-5 years.
“Those district leaders are best equipped to outline the steps necessary to reach the stated goals because they know of the resources that are currently available and what may be available in the future,” Dr. Welker said. “That can include staffing, space, and access to various programs.”
Finally, the CSIP plan is approved by the Board of Education.
“After the updated plan is approved, the administration and school staff begin to implement the action steps,” Dr. Welker said. “My team will assist the district in the creation of a monitoring tool so that that district can document its progress and report back to the CSIP steering committee and the community.”
Dr. Welker said his team loves to work with schools to create robust strategic plans.
“We have really enjoyed working with the board, administration, staff, parents, students, and community members on this process,” he said. “We have enjoyed learning about the district and seeing the great things going on at the Perry County 32 School District.
“It is great to see an entire community ready to work to make an already good school even better in the years to come.”