DISTRICT ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT
This chapter of the report reviews the organization and management of the Fort Bend Independent School District (FBISD) in five major sections.
- A. Governance
- B. Planning
- C. District Management
- Part 1
- Part 2
- D. School Management and Site-Based Decision-Making
- E. Policies and Procedures
C. DISTRICT MANAGEMENT (PART 2)
The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) accredits more than 12,000 public and private institutions, from pre-kindergarten through the university level, in 11 states in the Southeastern United States (including Texas) and in Latin America. SACS is one of only six such regional accrediting organizations in the United States recognized by the U. S. Department of Education. Member institutions are accredited through one of SACS' three commissions, the Commission on Colleges, the Commission on Secondary and Middle Schools and the Commission on Elementary and Middle Schools. SACS recommends minimum personnel requirements for elementary schools, based on enrollment, in its 1999-2000 Policies, Principles, and Standards for Elementary Schools Accredited by the Commission on Elementary and Middle Schools.
The minimum standards for elementary schools are outlined in Standard F:20 and presented in Exhibit 1-18.
Exhibit 1-18 Source: SACS Policies, Principals, and Standards for Elementary Schools Accredited by the Commission
SACS Minimum Personnel Requirements for Elementary Schools
SACS Standard Reference F:20
Membership Principal,
Headmaster,
PresidentProfessional Admin,
or Supv. AssistantsLibrary
or
Media SpecialistsLibrary Aide
or
ClerkSecretaries
or
Clerks1 - 263 .5 0 .5 0 .5 264 - 439 1.0 0 1.0 0 1.0 440 - 659 1.0 0 1.0 .5 1.0 660 - 879 1.0 .5 1.0 1.0 1.5 880 - 1099 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.5 1100 - 1319 1.0 1.5 1.0 1.0 2.0 1320+ 1.0 2.0 1.0 1.0 2.0
on Elementary and Middle Schools, 1999-2000 School Year, Standard F:20.SACS also recommends minimum personnel requirements for middle schools, based on enrollment, in its 1999-2000 Policies, Principles, and Standards for Middle Schools Accredited by the Commission on Secondary and Middle Schools. The minimum standards for middle schools are outlined in Standard F:21 and presented in Exhibit 1-19.
Exhibit 1-19 Source: SACS Policies, Principals, and Standards for Middle Schools Accredited by the Commission
SACS Minimum Personnel Requirements for Middle Schools
SACS Standard Reference F:21
Membership Principal,
Headmaster,
PresidentAdmin,
or Supv.
Assistants
Guidance
ProfessionalsLibrary
or
Media SpecialistsLibrary Aide
or
ClerkSecretaries
or
Clerks1 - 249 .5 0 .5 .5 0 .5 250 - 499 1.0 .5 .5 1.0 .5 1.0 500 - 749 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 750 - 999 1.0 1.0 2.0 1.0 1.0 1.5 1000 - 1249 1.0 1.5 2.5 1.0 1.0 2.0 1250+ 1.0 2.0 3.0 1.0 1.0 2.0
on Secondary and Middle Schools, 1999-2000 School Year, Standard F:21.SACS further recommends minimum personnel requirements for high schools, based on enrollment, in its Standards for Secondary Schools, 1998 Edition. The minimum standards for high schools are outlined in Standard 4.10.1 and presented in Exhibit 1-20.
Exhibit 1-20 Source: SACS Commission on Secondary and Middle Schools, Standards for Secondary Schools, 1998 Edition
SACS Minimum Personnel Requirements for High Schools
SACS Standard Reference 4.10.1
Membership Principal,
Headmaster,
PresidentAdmin,
or
Supv. AssistantsGuidance
ProfessionalsLibrarians
or
Media SpecialistsSecretaries
or
Clerks1 - 299 1.0 0 .5 .5 1.0 300 - 499 1.0 .5 .5 1.0 1.5 500 - 649 1.0 .5 1.0 1.0 2.0 650 - 749 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 2.5 750 - 999 1.0 1.0 2.0 1.0 3.5 1000 - 1249 1.0 1.5 2.5 2.0 4.0 1250 - Up 1.0 (A) (A) (A) (B)
(A) SACS recommends adding one position for each additional 250 students over 1,249.
(B) SACS recommends adding one clerical position for each additional 400 students over 1,249.Based on SACS' minimum standards referenced in Exhibits 1-18 through 1-20, FBISD is overstaffed with assistant principals in elementary and middle schools and understaffed with assistant principals in its high schools. The district is also understaffed with secretaries and clerks in its elementary schools and overstaffed with secretaries and clerks in its middle and high schools. Exhibits 1-21 through 1-23 compare FBISD's staffing for assistant principals and secretaries and clerks to SACS minimum standards.
Exhibit 1-21 Source: Compiled from SACS Standards and Campus Organization Charts.
FBISD Elementary Schools
Comparison of SACS Standards to Actual Staffing
for Assistant Principals and Secretaries and ClerksExhibit 1-21 compares actual staffing to SACS minimum standards for elementary schools and shows that FBISD's elementary schools have 20.5 more full-time equivalent positions (FTE) for assistant principals and 9.5 FTE fewer secretarial and clerical positions throughout the district.
Exhibit 1-22
FBISD Middle Schools
Comparison of SACS Standards to Actual Staffing
for Assistant Principals and Secretaries and Clerks
Source: Compiled from SACS Standards and Campus Organization Charts.Exhibit 1-22 compares actual staffing to SACS minimum standards for middle schools and shows that FBISD's middle schools have 12.5 more FTEs for assistant principals and 23.0 more FTEs for secretarial and clerical positions throughout the district.
Exhibit 1-23
FBISD High Schools
Comparison of SACS Standards to Actual Staffing
for Assistant Principals and Secretaries and Clerks
Source: Compiled from SACS Standards and Campus Organization Charts.Exhibit 1-23 compares actual staffing to SACS minimum standards for high schools and shows that FBISD's high schools have 6.5 fewer FTEs for assistant principals and 27.0 more FTEs for secretarial and clerical positions throughout the district.
Exhibit 1-24 presents a calculation of the salaries and benefits for assistant principal classifications and clerk and paraprofessional classifications.
Exhibit 1-24 Source: FBISD 1999-2000 Salary Schedule.
Calculation of Salary and Benefits for Clerical,
Paraprofessional and Assistant Principal Classifications
Clerks and Paraprofessionals ES AP MS AP HS AP Variable PG2 PG3 PG4 PG5 PG24 PG25 PG26 Minimum Daily Rate $62.04 $66.23 $70.70 $75.47 $213.90 $226.09 $238.97 Number of Days 184 184 226 226 210 210 210 Salary Before Benefits $11,415 $12,186 $15,978 $17,056 $44,919 $47,479 $50,184 Workers' Comp/Unemployment Ins. Rate X 0.0055 X 0.0055 X 0.0055 X 0.0055 X 0.0055 X 0.0055 X 0.0055 Salary Before Medical Benefits $11,478 $12,253 $16,066 $17,150 $45,166 $47,740 $50,460 Medical Benefits ($147 x 12 Months) + $1,764 + $1,764 + $1,764 + $1,764 + $1,764 + $1,764 + $1,764 Total Minimum Salary, Plus Benefits $13,242 $14,017 $17,830 $18,914 $46,930 $49,504 $52,224
Workers' Compensation Rate = 1 percent; Unemployment Insurance Rate = .01 percent
ES AP = Elementary Assistant Principals; MS AP = Middle School Assistant Principals; HS AP = High School Assistant Principals; PG = Pay GradeRecommendation 8:
Implement minimum staffing guidelines for elementary, middle and high schools to reflect differences in enrollment.
Implementing minimum staffing guidelines for elementary, middle and high schools to reflect differences in enrollment among schools will allow FBISD to equitably distribute baseline administrative staffing before applying its "needs-based" analysis. Additionally, the district will be able to allocate more budget resources to the classroom after thoroughly assessing each school's administrative requirements using an equitable allocation base.
IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES AND TIMELINE
1. The associate superintendent of Human Resources reviews existing campus staffing for elementary, middle and high schools and compares to SACS standards to determine baseline needs for individual schools. November 2000 2. The associate superintendent of Human Resources, in conjunction with the assistant superintendents for Areas I, II and III, develops minimum campus staffing allocations for elementary, middle and high schools that consider enrollment and the unique needs of each school. December 2000 - January 2001 3. The superintendent approves the staffing allocation guidelines for elementary, middle and high schools and freezes hiring for any overstaffed positions and makes appropriate transfers of personnel pending full implementation in the coming school year. January 2001 4. The superintendent implements staffing guidelines for elementary, middle and high schools in 2001-02 budget process. March 2001 FISCAL IMPACT
The fiscal impact of this recommendation assumes that FBISD uses SACS guidelines to develop baseline campus staffing to realign its current administrative staffing for assistant principals, secretaries and clerks for elementary, middle and high schools. FBISD must determine how the administrative staff reductions and additions will be distributed to the respective elementary, middle and high schools. Some staffing reductions, approximately one-fourth, can be achieved in 2000-2001, but full reductions are not estimated to occur until 2001-02.
The fiscal impact calculation assumes that secretaries and clerks will be classified as PG2 positions, using the minimum daily rate and the minimum number of days to determine the base salary before benefits. Recognizing the critical function of PEIMS specialists and assistants in FBISD, TSPR does not recommend that any PG5 positions be eliminated. The minimum daily rate and the minimum number of days are used to determine assistant principals' base salary before benefits.
Potential Fiscal Impact of Eliminating/Adding Assistant Principal Positions: Elementary Middle High Total Existing Assistant Principal Positions 34.0 29.0 33.0 96.0 SACS Standard (13.5) (16.5) (39.5) (69.5) Difference Over (Under) SACS Standard 20.5 12.5 (6.5) 26.5 Minimum Salary, Plus Benefits $46,930 $49,504 $52,244 - Annual Savings $962,065 $618,800 ($339,586) $1,241,279 Potential Fiscal Impact of Eliminating/Adding Secretary and Clerk Positions: Elementary Middle High Total Existing Secretary and Clerk Positions 64.0 50.0 74.0 188.0 SACS Standard (73.5) (27.0) (47.0) (147.5) Difference Over (Under) SACS Standard (9.5) 23.0 27.0 40.5 Minimum Salary, Plus Benefits $13,242 $13,242 $13,242 - Annual Savings ($125,799) $304,566 $357,534 $536,301 Grand Total Annual Savings $836,266 $923,366 $17,948 $1,777,580
Recommendation 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 Implement minimum staffing guidelines for elementary, middle and high schools to reflect differences in enrollment. $444,395 $1,777,580 $1,777,580 $1,777,580 $1,777,580 FINDING
FBISD is a growing district with considerable ethnic, religious and economic diversity. Although the district promotes cultural diversity in its publications and public pronouncements, some principals and administrators said FBISD is not as sensitive to cultural diversity as it could be. For example, teachers, school administrators and central administrators do not mirror the diversity of the student population. Exhibit 1-25 compares the ethnic diversity of teachers, students and administrative staff.
Exhibit 1-25 Source: Director of Employee Records, FBISD Human Resources.
Ethnicity of FDISD Teachers, Students
and Administrative Staff
1999-2000 (As of 2/1/00)
Teachers Students Administrative Staff Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage Anglo 2,358 72.86% 21,098 39.86% 216 68.57% Hispanic 190 5.87% 9,090 17.17% 24 7.61% African-American 620 19.16% 14,717 27.80% 71 22.53% Asian / Pacific Islander 61 1.88% 7,931 14.98% 4 1.26% Native American 7 0.23% 76 0.14% 0 0% Other 0 0% 23 0.04% 0 0% Total 3,236 100% 52,935 100% 315 100% Exhibit 1-25 shows that FBISD has a 60 percent minority student population, but only 27 percent of its teachers and 31 percent of its administrators are ethnic minorities. More significantly, Hispanic students and Asian/Pacific Islander students represent 17 percent and 15 percent, respectively, of the student population, but only 6 percent of teachers and 8 percent of administrators are Hispanic and 2 percent of teachers and 1 percent of administrators are Asian/Pacific Islanders.
District administrators told the review team it is difficult to achieve "one-to-one" diversity ratio among teachers, administrators and students in certain ethnic categories because of the available pool of candidates for teaching and administrative positions. The administrators point to their efforts to recruit Asian/Pacific Islander and Hispanic teachers and administrators as opposed to African American teachers and administrators. The percentage of African American teachers and administrators more closely relates to the percentage of African American students within the district, while the percentages of Asian/Pacific Islander and Hispanic teachers and administrators is significantly lower than their respective percentages of FBISD's student population.
The superintendent formed the committee for Racial Harmony for Student Success in July 1998 to demonstrate the district's commitment to diversity. The committee's goals are:
- To create an environment that facilitates and encourages safe and open dialogue on racial harmony so that students will be sincerely open and equipped to work and live in a diverse world;
- To expand and improve curriculum and character education in a way that encourages and promotes communication and acceptance of cultural diversity so that students' self-esteem and academic achievement are enhanced;
- To create trust and respect among all segments of the community in a way that empowers them to embrace diversity so that a common ground of harmonious relationships is developed, thus promoting the opportunity for all students to succeed; and
- To examine and modify administrative hiring practices in the district in a way that reflects community diversity so that high-quality educational leaders can be placed in key roles.
The committee for Racial Harmony and Student Success meets twice each year, once in the fall and again in the spring.
Although the Committee for Racial Harmony and Student Success conducts semi-annual meetings, some principals and administrators told the review team that extensive, ongoing diversity initiatives targeted to hiring, promotion and training are just beginning to be implemented for management, administrative and teaching positions throughout the district. For example, the board approved a $68,000 contract to a private vendor to deliver diversity training to district administrators during its June 12, 2000 board meeting.
Even though teachers are trained to cope with classrooms of diverse students, one principal said that some teachers are having a difficult time understanding how to deal with cultural differences, which affects school management.
Recommendation 9:
Improve cultural diversity at all levels within the district's workforce and offer ongoing diversity training.
FBISD should capitalize on the efforts of the Committee for Racial Harmony and Student Success by developing a district management strategy to increase the number of minorities in central administration and school administration in all areas of the district. The strategy should include aggressively recruiting and mentoring minority employees to facilitate internal promotions.
This strategy also should be supplemented with concentrated diversity training at all levels within the district to ensure that administrators, teachers, paraprofessional and auxiliary employees understand how to work with cultural, religious and economic differences within the district's workforce.
IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES AND TIMELINE
1. The superintendent forms a task force chaired by the associate superintendent for Human Resources to evaluate diversity within the current workforce at all levels and develop a districtwide strategy to enhance diversity. November 2000 2. The associate superintendent of Human Resources, through the task force, evaluates diversity in the district's workforce compared to the diversity of the student population and communities served. December 2000 - January 2001 3. The associate superintendent of Human Resources develops a management strategy to enhance diversity so the district's central administration, school management, teachers and employees reflects the cultural diversity of the student population and students served, including training initiatives. February 2001 - March 2001 4. The superintendent approves the districtwide management strategy to enhance diversity. March 2001 5. The associate superintendent of Achievement and Development develops extensive cultural diversity training. March - July 2001 6. The associate superintendent of Achievement and Development implements ongoing diversity training for all levels within the district's workforce. August 2001 and Ongoing FISCAL IMPACT
This recommendation could be implemented with existing resources.
