• Attendance Rates
• Discipline Rates
• Number of FARM students
• Title I Status
• LEP (Limited English Proficiency) students
• Special Education student enrollment
• Quarterly Assessments scores - English/Mathematics 
• PARCC Scores - Mathematics/ Language Arts (Elementary grades 3, 4, 5)   

 Key Challenge #1:    Attendance Rates

Students attending Brooklyn Park Elementary School face a variety of challenges.  Regular attendance is influenced by outside factors families are facing. When students miss school, they miss instruction and learning opportunities. 

Attendance Data 

School Year	Attendance Rate/Percentage
2018	93
2019	81

As we focus on our overall Attendance Rate, we are also addressing the following data:

Attendance Rate	Percentage
Percentage of Students Who Missed 0-6 Days of School	37%
Percentage of Students Who Missed 6-12 Days of School	29%
Percentage of Students Who Missed 11-18 Days of School	15%
Percentage of Students Who Missed More than 18 Days Of School	17%

Although we focused on improving attendance for the 2018 school year, our attendance rate dropped 12% for the 2019 school year. In addressing our attendance challenges, we are focused on the following contributing factors: lack of health insurance, students supporting younger siblings at home, family mental health concerns, parent work schedules, and inconsistent employment. These factors create barriers that often lead to high tardiness and low attendance rates. 

As a school community, we recognize the barriers and challenges our students face, and we understand that good attendance is the key to academic success. BPES administrators have created a plan to best support our families and the BPES community. First, our Pupil Personnel Worker (PPW), Guidance Counselor, and School Social Worker will have lunch with students who have chronic tardiness to build relationships and encourage better attendance. Second, the staff at BPES will celebrate students with good attendance and provide incentives for families who send their children to school regularly. Third, our PTA will partner with the school to provide incentives to students for good attendance. By integrating these solutions we hope to assist our families and encourage student attendance. 

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Key Challenge #2:   Quarterly Assessments scores - English and Mathematics

BPES leadership has determined that student Quarterly Assessment scores in both English and Math are inconsistent from marking period to marking period.  Administration has concluded that students struggle with explaining their thinking and providing detailed, organized written responses.

AACPS has provided systematic professional development in both reading and math to teachers. The district has also provided resources to help support our teachers and our students. Thanks to the hard work of our staff, our BPES students have made progress; however, many of our students are not reading on grade level or meeting target proficiency levels on math or reading assessments. As we move into the next school year, we will continue our journey of growth by remaining focused on assessment and curriculum alignment. 

Our plan for growth includes BPES’ administration partnering with district resource teachers to schedule intentional walkthroughs and to provide professional development to our teachers based on instructional needs. Through weekly walkthroughs by the principal and resource team, we will monitor instruction and ensure alignment to the district curriculum. Weekly collaborative planning meetings will be held to support teachers with developing lesson plans aligned to assessments and the district’s curriculum. Professional development, aligned to teachers’ needs, will be provided to reduce gaps evident in walkthrough and assessment data. 

• Socio-Economic Issues (employment, income levels, housing costs)
• Limited English proficiency for students and/or families
• Families in Crisis (mental, physical emotional, financial)
• Access to healthcare
• Substance abuse
• Lack of technology access

Key Challenge #3:   Families in Crisis (mental, physical emotional, financial)

While our students and their families benefit from partnerships with local businesses and organizations, some of our BPES families are experiencing crises. When families are in crisis, students are impacted by challenges that may prevent them from being ready to learn, either physically or emotionally. 

Living in poverty can put stress on an entire household. Employment instability, crime, low-paying jobs, food insecurity, lack of health insurance, inadequate housing, and lack of basic necessities can provide stress and a feeling of hopelessness. Due to the stress caused by these situations, it is not uncommon for parents to turn to drugs and alcohol, which in turn can lead to addiction problems. 

As a school community, we understand the barriers and challenges our families endure. Our goal is to support our parents and provide a bridge connecting the schoolhouse to our families.  BPES partners with Villa Maria (an independent counseling group) to provide family and individual counseling and support for our parents and our school community. Our Pupil Personnel Worker, Guidance Counselor, and School Social Worker provide additional support, including working with homeless families to provide food, housing, and employment; working with local churches to provide food for the weekend; meeting with parents to discuss their concerns about how to align services to their needs; and providing parent workshop classes

• Socio-economic community issues (employment, income levels, housing costs)
• Significant changes over time in student/community demographics
• Access (or lack of access) to community health-related programs
• Unemployment and lack of access to high paying blue collar employment