Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Michael P. Callagy, County Manager
Subject: Use of District-Discretionary Measure K Funds - Supervisorial District 5
RECOMMENDATION:
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Measure K: Adopt a resolution authorizing a one-time grant of district-discretionary Measure K funds, not to exceed $40,000, to Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center (PCRC) for implementation of the Communities In Schools (CIS) student support model in the Jefferson Elementary School District, and authorizing the County Manager, or his designee, to execute the grant agreement.
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BACKGROUND:
Measure K is the half-cent general sales tax initially approved by San Mateo County voters in November 2012 and extended in November 2016 for a total of thirty years.
On February 12, 2019, the Board of Supervisors (Board) held a study session on Measure K expenditures and anticipated revenue for fiscal years (FY) 2019-21. The Board-appointed Measure K sub-committee, consisting of Supervisor Pine and Supervisor Canepa, convened the study session to, among other things, work with staff to facilitate the Board’s development of Measure K priorities and continuing initiatives for FY 2019-21. The Board approved $3.75 million in one-time loans for grants each fiscal year for FY 2019-21, divided equally among the five supervisorial districts, for district-discretionary needs and projects. District Five has submitted a request to use its district-discretionary Measure K funds as shown below and described in the Project Summary section of this memorandum.
|
District/Project |
Amount |
|
District 5 (Supervisor David Canepa) - Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center: Implementation of Communities In Schools student support model in the Jefferson Elementary School District |
$40,000 |
This item is consistent with the criteria for district-discretionary Measure K funds approved by the Board in December 2018.
PROJECT SUMMARY:
This is a request to authorize a grant to Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center, and resulting grant agreement, in an amount not to exceed $40,000, to provide for the
implementation of the Communities In Schools (CIS) student support model in the Jefferson Elementary School District. The County Manager’s Office will administer and manage the proposed agreement.
PCRC strives every day to ensure students in school campuses throughout the County of San Mateo are creative, collaborative and confident individuals with the competencies that will enable them to thrive in a diverse and competitive world. PCRC partners with individuals, groups and institutions to empower people, build relationships, and reduce violence through collaborative and innovative processes. PCRC has been serving San Mateo County for over 30 years, starting with a community-based mediation model. Over the years the organization has grown to include other services that complement and build on mediation fundamentals. In seeking out evidence-based interventions to bring into schools, PCRC is now working to become a licensed partner to Communities in Schools, whose effective school-based model fits the PCRC vision of positively impacting vulnerable students and families. As part of becoming a licensed partner:
• CIS will certify PCRC to deploy the CIS model in identified schools
• The CIS model will be implemented through PCRC staff
• PCRC will have a CIS advisory council and 3-year initial commitment
Communities In Schools is a national organization working within public and charter schools in 25 states and within the District of Columbia. The CIS model places a site coordinator directly in a school to bring in community resources that empower success for all students by removing barriers for vulnerable students at risk of dropping out. This helps keep students in school and on the path to graduation while leveraging evidence, relationships, and local resources to drive results.
The combination of PCRC’s reputable, experienced, community-based staff and deep ties to San Mateo County, and CIS’s research and evidence-based model and national infrastructure uniquely situate PCRC to positively impact to Jefferson Elementary School District.
The specific components of the CIS model (as implemented by PCRC) include:
• Analysis of multiple sources of data in a school-wide needs assessment
• A school-wide support plan that prioritizes needs, establishes a measurable academic, behavior, attendance, and/or school climate-related goal, and outlines the supports that will be delivered to help reach this goal
• The delivery/brokering/coordination of integrated student supports as outlined in the school-wide support plan
• Case management of students with individual needs and goals aligned with the school-wide goals
• Continuous monitoring and adjusting for efficacy
• Assessment of student supports, partners, and achievement of individual student and school-wide goals
Working with school leadership and staff, site coordinators - who are based inside schools - prioritize the needs of the school, determine which supports need to be increased or improved, and identify supports that are needed but not in place. In addition to the school needs assessment, site coordinators also identify students at risk of dropping out, assess what they need and then find the right tiered supports to ensure they stay on track to graduate.
Like all counties in Northern California, San Mateo continues to experience great need around absenteeism and educational equity. Racial disparities exist and students continue to need coordinated supports in order to connect to school and to thrive there. Using the CIS model, PCRC can address chronic absenteeism by putting data and support systems in place that help schools identify and assist children who miss 10% or more days of school. By training experienced professionals as site coordinators, and placing them directly in the schools, PCRC makes a caring adult available to connect students and families with the resources they require. Students who need it the most get one-on-one attention to ensure they stay in school.
PCRC is adopting the CIS model because it fits with PCRC’s commitment to addressing both the whole student-physically, psychologically, and socially-and the whole school environment. Research has shown that this dual attention to the needs of individual students and the school is critical to reducing dropout rates and increasing graduation rates by addressing student achievement, attendance, and promotion.
Outcomes for students across the country working with the Communities in Schools model in school year 2017-2018:
|
RETENTION |
99% |
of case-managed students remained in school at the end of the 2016-2017 school year |
|
PROMOTION |
93% |
of students in K-11 were promoted to the next grade |
|
GRADUATION |
91% |
of eligible seniors graduated |
|
POSTSECONDARY |
77% |
of graduates planned to attend some form of postsecondary education |
|
ATTENDANCE |
78% |
met their attendance improvement goals |
|
ACADEMICS |
88% |
met their academic improvement goals |
|
BEHAVIOR |
90% |
met their behavior improvement goals |
These grant funds will allow PCRC to hire a Program Director who will support the hiring of site coordinators, manage site relationships, coordinate any capacity building and training, initiate community advisory councils, and handle logistics and program administration.
The full $40,000 in grant funds would be used for program expenses. PCRC is seeking approximately $60,000 in financial contributions from the Jefferson Elementary School District as well as other public and private funders (including Supervisor David Pine in District 1, the Littlefield Foundation, Silicon Valley Community Foundation, Packard Foundation, Grove Foundation, and Peery Foundation). Currently, PCRC has the full support of the Jefferson Elementary School Board as well as support from the South San Francisco School District. As a result, the first phase of these efforts will primarily be focused in North San Mateo County starting with Woodrow Wilson Elementary and one other Jefferson Elementary site which has not yet been identified. Within the first two years of implementation PCRC’s goal is to provide the CIS program in 3-5 school sites, with the long-term goal of expanding to other school districts in the county.
Anticipated Timeline and Benchmarks:
• Program Director hired - March 2020
• Assessing school needs & creating a strategic plan - March-May 2020
• Site Coordinators hired and on-site - July 2020
(one coordinator for Woodrow Wilson Elementary School; one coordinator for one other Jefferson Elementary School District site yet to be identified)
• Implementing the CIS model and delivering student supports - July 2020-June 2021
The overall goal of implementing the CIS model in Jefferson Elementary School District schools is to increase student achievement (improve academics, improve behavior, improve attendance) and reduce dropout rate (improve stay in school rate, increase diplomas, increase promotion).
Total Measure K Request: Not to Exceed $40,000
The release of funds will be contingent on the execution of an agreement providing for the County’s confirmation of the expenditure of funds for the purposes stated herein. The County will disburse the funds to the following organization for the purposes described above:
Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center
Michelle Vilchez, Executive Director
650-513-0330, mvilchez@pcrc.org
1670 S Amphlett Blvd # 115
San Mateo, CA 94402
650-513-0330
PERFORMANCE MEASURES:
|
Measure |
Target |
|
Program Director hired by March 2020 |
Complete |
|
Assessing school needs and creating a strategic plan |
May 2020 |
|
Site coordinators hired and on-site |
July 2020 |
County Counsel has reviewed and approved the resolution and agreement as to form.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There are sufficient Measure K funds for this specific FY 2019-2020 Measure K request. These funds are budgeted in the Non-Departmental Services FY 2019-20 Adopted Budget.