LAWRENCE — Acting Superintendent Mary Lou Bergeron said there are two ways to look at the state's designation of two local schools as "underperforming."
It's either an indictment of the district, or a chance for change.
Bergeron is opting for the latter."The staff looks at it and says, 'We are doing many things right, and we want to be successful for our children,'" she said. "We are looking at it as an opportunity. Now, there are a wider array of options in terms of what we can do."
Yesterday, the state released a list of 35 schools across the state in the Level 4 category of performance, meaning they are in immediate need of remediation. While most are in Boston or Springfield, two are in Lawrence, the Arlington Elementary School and the South Lawrence East Middle School.
The schools were evaluated on a set of criteria including low math and English scores on the state's MCAS test and the number of students failing to graduate. The designation means the schools are eligible for federal grants to help them boost test scores and improve graduation rates.
If unable to improve their performance in three years, they could be placed under state receivership.
Bergeron said work has already begun to come up with a plan to fix the schools to avoid a state takeover.
First, a panel of 13 people will be appointed for each school, made up of stakeholders in the system, including someone from the Department of Education, the Legislature, school committee, parent groups, teachers, unions, and school administrators.
The group will meet and decide what are the core issues that are impeding progress at the schools.
In the case of the Arlington School, Bergeron said it had been identified by the administration "as a school that had issues. They've made some gains, but been inconsistent. We have to find out why."
South Lawrence East, meanwhile, has been "stagnant, showing very small growth, almost flat."
By the end of the summer, the panel will come up with a plan for each school that will become the basis for a grant application. If the grants are accepted by the state, sometime this fall, the schools could be eligible for up to $500,000 per year for three years in additional federal funding.
She said that money could go toward a variety of programs.
It could be used to improve teachers and school leadership, enhance academic success, or fund "wraparound services" like health care, before- and after-school child care for working parents, nutrition and fitness programs.
"It's a great opportunity," she said. "The plan looks at all the issues of why the school is slow, or not progressing as rapidly as others."
Hanging over all the planning and additional funding is receivership.
Under the law, if a school still hasn't shown significant improvement after three years, the state can appoint someone to come in and take over management of the school. Bergeron said union contracts could be suspended, administrators relieved of duty, and a new plan for the school could be written by the state-appointed receiver.
"This is high stakes," she said. "I don't think they (state officials) want to get to that point. They'd rather invest in supports that are needed to make the changes needed."
Education Commissioner Mitchell Chester agreed with Bergeron that the designation is both a warning and an opportunity. In February, the federal Department of Education released criteria for grants to help states turn around their lowest performing schools. Massachusetts is set to receive $76 million over the next three years.
A district applying for a federal grant must choose from among different turnaround strategies.
They include replacing the principal and developing new instructional models like adding more teaching time, to closing the school and enrolling the students in higher-performing schools, including charter schools.
One strategy Chester rejected was the recent decision by a Rhode Island district superintendent who fired all the teachers from one of that state's most troubled schools.
"I do not think that mass firings of teachers is the solution here," he said. "We need to harness that intellectual energy."
Bergeron agreed, saying that the unions want to see improvements in the schools and have been working closely with the administration to improve learning for all children in the district.
"They have to work with us," she said. "It takes the whole community to be successful."
