Coaches hired to mentor school principals return

By Denise Dick

denise_dick@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

Coaches contracted to mentor Youngstown City Schools principals are back in the schools, this time with a common tool.

“All of the coaches are looking at each of the buildings with a common rubric,” said Debra Mettee, chairwoman of the Youngstown Academic Distress Commission.

Last month, the Ohio Department of Education temporarily suspended work by Mosaica Turnaround Partners, and a spokesman said the department wanted to better identify the expectations of what ODE wanted the company to be doing in the schools with principals.

Mosaica’s coaches have been observing the work of all school principals and were critical of three.

“They’re back on track, focusing on the positive and moving ahead,” said Patrick Gallaway, an ODE spokesman.

He said the tool developed for the coaches to use in observing the principals is “more subjective” and “more appropriate.”

The rubric, or scoring tool, lists the areas coaches are to observe in principals including research based practices, asset mapping, protocols for quality instruction and differentiated instruction with a performance standard scale from one to four. One is for unsatisfactory and four, for distinguished.

Mosaica, based in Atlanta, is one of three consultants contracted to implement an academic recovery plan for the city schools.

The Youngstown Schools Academic Distress Commission contracted with the three consultants based on recommendation of ODE.

The commission was appointed last year after the school district was rated in academic emergency and failed to make adequate yearly progress for four or more consecutive school years, based on the state’s local report card annual ratings.

Mosaica was contracted to improve leadership. The company assigned four “coaches” to spend time observing all principals.

The contract for their work is not to exceed $405,000.

A contract for monitoring and oversight of the plan went to Pearson K-12 Solutions of California with offices in Ohio. The plan, devised by the commission and approved by the state superintendent of public instruction, calls for a monitor of the plan’s implementation. The cost is about $100,000.

The $100,000 systems audit is being done by Ed Focus Initiative of East Palestine. It addresses district systems, policies and processes including board policy, administrative guidelines, staffing levels, staff evaluations, building-level student codes of conduct, staff handbooks, core curriculum and instructional resources.