Santa Cruz County Grand Jury Credit: Maria Grusauskas, Watsonville.patch.com*

"Responses to Santa Cruz County Grand Jury Final Report for 2010-2011." Accessed June 10, 2012. http://www.co.santa- cruz.ca.us/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=nHDrhLl3fl4%3d&tabid=895 2. "Santa Cruz County Grand Jury Final Report for 2010-2011." Accessed June 8, 2012. http://www.co.santa- cruz.ca.us/grandjury/GJ2011 final/Delinquient Property Tax Penalty Cancellations.pd f Santa Cruz County Grand Jury 2011-2012 Final Report Page 133 RTC, County & PVUSD Responses to the Santa Cruz County 2010-2011 Grand Jury Report A Tale of Two Approaches to Responses Those who govern, having much business on their hands, do not generally like to take the trouble of considering and carrying into execution new projects. The best public measures are therefore seldom adopted from previous wisdom, but forced by the occasion. - Benjamin Franklin The 2011-2012 Grand Jury published the responses to the 2010-2011 Final Report this fall that exposed a contrast in the quality of public servant responses. One of the most striking contrasts can be seen in the rote responses to the Transportation Report versus the constructive responses by the Pajaro Valley Unified School District. Transportation Report Last year's Grand Jury report [2] highlighted what it saw as a lack of collaboration and execution for regional transportation planning between the County of Santa Cruz, the Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) and the cities. The Grand Jury expected each respondent to evaluate its findings and recommendations more thoroughly. However, many of the responses failed to substantively address the material in the report. Furthermore, the inconsistencies among responses confirm the Grand Jury's original finding of planning gridlock and dysfunction. An example of this type of inconsistency can be found in the response given by the RTC to Finding F3, where they disagree with a finding that is paraphrased from their own 2010 Regional Transportation Plan. The County responses were notably lengthy and bureaucratic, often failing to directly answer the question. For example, the County's 1100+ word response to

Jones, Donna. 2011. "Grand Jury prompts change in Pajaro Valley bidding process." Santa Cruz Sentinel, June 30, 2011. Accessed June 13, 2012. http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/stateofourschools/ci_18382691

Pajaro Valley Unified School District. 2011. Board meeting minutes. October 26. Accessed June 13, 2012. http://pps-pajaro- ca.schoolloop.com/file/1303568801232/1303568743253/8043284533747165554.pdf

C1. The Grand Jury congratulates all the Santa Cruz County English Learners who have persevered and successfully completed the uphill climb to English fluency. We also acknowledge all the teachers, staff, administrators, and parents who provided support along the way. C2. The State of California passed Assembly Bill 815 creating a State Seal of Biliteracy Award. As of January 1, 2012, graduating seniors who achieve the biliterate, bilingual standards will be honored with a gold insignia on their diplomas. County students in several school districts received the award this year, and PVUSD was ahead of its time presenting deserving seniors this award starting last year.

C1. The Santa Cruz County Auditor-Controller's Office should be commended for providing assistance and professional services to Lompico County Water District. Santa Cruz County Grand Jury 2011-2012 Final Report Page 58

C1. The Grand Jury wishes to commend the Santa Cruz County Office of Emergency Services, who continues to demonstrate excellence and professionalism, despite budget cuts. Their preparedness, use of community resources, organization, and foresight make this office a model for other counties. The citizens of Santa Cruz County are far safer because of their work. Santa Cruz County Grand Jury 2011-2012 Final Report Page 87

low-income students and mid-high income students by the second grade.[55] Every year California school children take STAR tests designed to assess their knowledge on English Language Arts, Mathematics, and a number of other subjects. To understand the extent of the gap across the three districts, we obtained student test results from the California Department of Education online database, which contains years of test results for all schools in California. Figure 3 shows district test results for both Mathematics and English Language Arts scores, for three student subgroups, in each of the three districts reviewed. For each subgroup (English Only, Reclassified, and English Learner) the height of the bar represents the percentage of each group that scored Proficient or above on the STAR test. For example, of the PVUSD fourth-graders who took the English Language Arts STAR test, 72% of the English Only group, 86% of the reclassified students, and 19% of the English Learners scored Proficient or above. Note that these tests are given in English, and, by definition, English Learners are not yet proficient in English. The scores for General Math, Algebra I, Geometry and Algebra II are compiled at the end of the course and are not associated with a specific grade level, since they can be taken in different grades. The Grand Jury observed the reclassified group’s unexpectedly high scores. Their scores are initially higher than English Only scores and then taper off. One reason for this can be found in the state's AYP Information Guide, [47] which states that reclassified student scores should continue to be included in the English Learner subgroup, until scoring proficient or above three times. Santa Cruz County Grand Jury 2011-2012 Final Report Page 29 Figure 3 - 2011 STAR test results Pajaro Valley English 2011 Language Arts Pajaro Valley 2011 Mathematics ■English Only RFEP English Learner English Only English Learner RFEP 100% 100% Percent Proficient or Above Percent Proficientor Above 80% 80% 60% 60% 40% 40% 20% 20% 0% 0% Grade 1 Grade 9 Grade 3 Grade A Grades Grade 2 Grade 3 Grades Grade 6 Grade & Grade 10 Grade 2 Grade 6 Grade 1 Algebra Grade A Algebra II Grade 11 Geometry General Math Santa Cruz City 2011 English Language Arts Santa Cruz City 2011 Mathematics ■English Only English Learner RFEP ■English Only RFEP English Learner 100% 100% Percent Proficient or Above Percent Proficient or Above 80% 80% 60% 60% 40% 40% 20% 20% 0% 0% Grade 1 Grade Grade 9 Grades Grade 6 Grade 10 Grader Grade 3 Grade A Grade 2 Grade 3 Grade A Grades Grade 6 Grade 1 Algebra Grade 1.7 Algebrall General Math Geometry Live Oak 2011 English Language Arts Live Oak 2011 Mathematics ■English Only RFEP English Learner English Only English Learner RFEP 100% 100% Percent Proficientor Above Percent Proficient or Above 80% 80% 60% 60% 40% 40% 20% 209 0% 0% Grade 3 Grade A Grades Grade 6 Grade 1 Grade 2 General Math Grade 3 Grade A Grades Grade 6 Grade Grader Grade 1 Source: DataQuest [56] [57] [58] [59] [60] [61] [62] [63] [64] [65] [66] [67] Santa Cruz County Grand Jury 2011-2012 Final Report Page 30 One county school has demonstrated significantly higher middle school test scores for English Learners. [68] Ceiba College Preparatory Academy charter school starts with the sixth grade and has a student population that is 94% Latino and 34% English Learner. Ceiba College Prep uses an English Immersion model, offers significantly more instruction time for all students, and provides additional tutoring and a summer academy for students needing help. The Ceiba website states: "30% of students entering Ceiba as 6th graders score proficient in Math and 25% score proficient in Language Arts. Two years later: 72% of the same students score proficient in Math and 70% score proficient in Language Arts." After a follow-up with Ceiba we learned that of the English Learners who entered Ceiba with the cohort quoted above (Ceiba 6th graders in the 2008-09 academic year), 14% scored proficient in Math and 5% scored proficient in English Language Arts in the year prior to Ceiba. After two years at Ceiba, 43% of the same English Learner students scored proficient in Math and 23% scored proficient in English Language Arts. In reviewing district websites and literature, the Grand Jury observed that, of the districts reviewed, none publish data on program effectiveness as measured by actual academic achievement levels. These districts publish no long-term trend data on program effectiveness for successive groups of children that start kindergarten together and eventually graduate together. Observations:

No districts publish data on program effectiveness as measured by long term achievement levels and historical trends. Again, parents need this information to make informed decisions in selecting the right program for their child. Drop-out and Graduation Rates for English Learners In 2011, the California Department of Education did its first statewide annual report on dropouts in California for the class of 2010, using "longitudinal" data. Longitudinal studies follow the same group of students over a long period of time. One of the subgroups analyzed was English Learners. Studies have indicated that dropout rates are significantly higher for English Learners. The study began when this group started high school (9th grade) and followed them through their senior year. The data for Santa Cruz County Grand Jury 2011-2012 Final Report Page 31 English Learners across all of California is alarming, with a 31.1% dropout rate and a 56.3% graduation rate. [70] It should be pointed out that this study was done for the high school students, so by definition those English Learners would all be Long Term English Learners. Ideally, future studies done at the state or local level would be comprised of a group of students who started kindergarten together, so data would show their relative performance through high school. We were told by some of the districts that better quality dropout data was needed in order to draw valid conclusions. [71] [72] [73] The Importance of Early Childhood Education Children start learning language at a very young age. Research points to the benefits of early childhood education. The Santa Cruz County Office of Education recently published "ASAP: All Succeed with Access to Preschool." This is a plan developed by early childhood education experts from around the county and begins: Children are born learners. A young child's brain is most flexible and impressionable during the first five years of life when brain cells are forming the connections that shape thinking, feeling and behavior. The growth in connections and organization of the brain structure in these early years creates the foundation for future development and how an individual will think, learn and function throughout life. In this sense, the early years of a child's life are truly a window of opportunity to chart a course for a lifetime of learning. The ASAP plan mentions the RAND Corporation's "California Preschool Study" (2009), [74] which traces the root of the achievement gap back to readiness for kindergarten. Based on findings in the "California Preschool Study," the ASAP plan also states: However, it's not just the availability of preschool programs that leads to positive outcomes in school and life, but it's the quality of the preschool programs that makes the difference. Unfortunately, not everyone has the opportunity to attend the type of quality preschool associated with positive outcomes. According to the California Preschool Study, children from the most disadvantaged socioeconomic groups are the least likely to attend quality preschool programs. There are a large number of early childhood education programs in the county. The Grand Jury decided to focus on Head Start, because they are a well known, nationwide program with standardized measurement criteria. The Grand Jury looked at the three Head Start programs in the county: Santa Cruz County Grand Jury 2011-2012 Final Report Page 32 Head Start and Early Head Start [77] [78]