Graduation coaches approved, with a stipulation

BRADENTON – Graduation from high school doesn't come easy to everyone in the 12^th grade, and that's why advocates say graduation coaches are needed.

On Monday night, the Manatee County School Board decided on a 5-0 vote after nearly an hour of impassioned debate and discussion to approve the job description for the graduation coach position, one each for Bayshore and Palmetto high schools, with the amendment that the staff bring back measurable goals to the board in January.

Superintendent Tim McGonegal said that school grades are based 50 percent on the FCAT and there are other factors, including graduation rates. There are several different ways to calculate the rate, he said, and a coming problem is that with standard and special recipients of diplomas, in 2010 only recipients of standard diplomas will be counted in the graduation rate.

That means that students who receive certificates of completion, GEDs or special diplomas won't count anymore, driving the rate down.

”We need to provide additional assistance to our schools, especially to these two D schools, to have them successful in their grade,“ McGonegal said.

Lynette Edwards, the assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction, has gotten stimulus funding for the positions, he said, but that will sunset after two years. But having coaches for Bayshore and Palmetto will address the problems those schools face in getting seniors through to the next part of their lives.

Edwards will be forming teams to develop strategies for students to succeed and get a standard diploma, and will help the other four high schools through a ”spillover effect,“ he said.

”We feel strongly that these graduation coaches are needed for these two schools,“ McGonegal said.

Board member Harry Kinnan said the last numbers he got on graduation rates in the state and county was 2005-06, and they had Florida at 71 percent and Manatee County at 76.9 percent, according to the state Department of Education.

”We start with the idea that we've been doing some things right, and in fact at one time between 1998 and now, we actually had a graduation rate of 81.5 percent,“ he said. ”Again this is the most current information that I have.“

It's important to look at those two schools, he said, but it's important to look at the spillover.

Job prospects dimmer

Students need to graduate because of the higher unemployment rate for non-graduates.

”It is almost a moral issue to get them their degree,“ Kinnan said. If you graduate from college, you beat the odds. ”It would be an injustice not to do all that we can.“

The board should support all the initiatives that are put together. Still, he added, he wanted to see a way to check on accountability.

Board member Robert Gause raised the issue of ”measurables“ and whether the coaches would even have an effect.

”I'm just not sure that creating positions without goals going in is the best idea,“ he said. For the cost of a grad coach, would four substitutes do better? he asked. ”I'd hate to create positions without expectations. We should set a goal for that position.“

The Georgia example

Edwards said that Georgia tried the coaches and they raised the graduation rate.

”The graduation coach goes into the high school and also the middle school and in the middle school they're looking at overage kids and how they can be transitioned into high school programs,“ she said.

Jane Pfeilsticker said that the biggest issues students are facing are related to economic problems in the community that interfere at home, and also create disciplinary problems at school. What can the district do? she asked.

McGonegal replied that short of creating more jobs, just having someone at the school who can provide guidance.

Edwards noted that the coaches won't have a class of students, but will concentrate on GPA and credits, and getting the students what they need to get a standard diploma. Hopefully, there would be an increase in rigor, as well, she said.

Gause insisted that he wanted to see a goal before approving the position, not after.

'World of difference'

Board member Barbara Harvey said that she had spoken with Edwards and that the coach could make a ”world of difference,“ citing the case of a student at Palmetto High School who got help and is on track to graduate now.

We have to ensure that our children can reach the very top, she said.

”The position is needed and we can track it. That person is needed. I am in favor of the coach,“ Harvey said. ”You talk about getting a job if you don't finish high school. I'm talking about prison. Ninety-three percent of those in prison did not finish high school.“

Board chairman Harry Miller said that with a coach, he expects passion. ”I agree with the passion, but I also believe that there's a need for accountability,“ he said.

It would be nice to have a third coach for Southeast, McGonegal said, but there are not unlimited resources in the district.

”The No. 1 hole in the dike we need to plug is Palmetto High School and Bayshore,“ he said. ”If you're looking for rules, adopt this. We need to have these people in place, we need to give these schools some help.“

Edwards agreed. ”Our sense of urgency is on Palmetto High School and Bayshore. We need to get resources there hoping something will work,“ she said. ”We have a sense of urgency with these schools. We don't want them to turn to Fs.“

Harvey warned that something had to be done and that the board was moving into micromanaging.

”I hold you all accountable for making the difference and making those decisions,“ she said. ”I don't want a D school in Manatee County.“

We want to improve the schools, Gause replied, but it's not unusual to ask for an accountability component for any position. ”All I've heard is are you sure it's the right thing and what will it do for us. We need goals to measure it against.“

It must be measurable, Miller added. ”Things we do today must be measurable. It is appropriate for us to say, 'What's the measure?'“

Gause said that he would approve the graduation coach with a stipulation that the staff bring back measurable goals, and it passed unanimously.