School Board To Begin Search For His Replacement
posted September 20, 2005
) Photo by John Wilson Applause for Dr. Register. Click to enlarge. |
Dr. Register said it is "the right time" to move on - with county elections coming up and with "things going well" at the schools, including a recent tax increase.
He said there were "no deals" with the County Commission related to the departure, and he said pressure from commissioners who called for his ouster was not a factor.
Chip Baker, County School Board chairman, said the board would begin at a meeting at 5:30 p.m. today to work on the process to choose a successor.
He said it is hoped to have the new superintendent chosen by next April 1 and on the job by July 1.
Several County Commission members have been calling for Dr. Register to leave, though he has enjoyed the support of all but one County School Board member.
He became superintendent here in January 1997 and led the consolidation of the city and county schools.
Dr. Register said he, his wife, Paula, and son, Jonathan, "love Chattanooga and we plan to stay in this community." The Registers live on Signal Mountain and Dr. Register's son attends Red Bank High School.
Dr. Register said he wants to remain in educational work, though he said he does not have anything in specific lined up.
He said he wants a job "that deals more with education and less with politics. I think I'm better at the education."
A school press release said Dr. Register will be paid for the final year of his contract and will continue to serve as an advisor to the school system through the 2006-2007 school year.
Dr. Register said at a press conference at the central office at Bonny Oaks, "The public school system in Hamilton County is recognized as one of the most innovative and improving school systems in the country, and our public schools are ready to move to an even higher level of success. I leave the school system knowing it is poised to make great strides in educational excellence. I believe now is the right time for the system to find its next leader."
Dr. Register was given a standing ovation by staff members and others at the press conference.
Board Chairman Baker said, "We will have an orderly and business-like transition at the top of the school system. The board and Supt. Register are committed to ensuring that the school system doesn't skip a beat and that the transition is managed the right way."
Dr. Register said he is proud of the handling of the school merger. He said the high school reform effort is the best in the country, and he also cited the improvements made by low-performing schools in the Benwood Initiative.
He said, "We took two school systems that could not have been more different, and we made it work."
Dr. Register said it is unusual for a superintendent to last 10 years in an urban school system. "I guess I am just a slow learner," he said.
Mr. Baker said the board will consider:
Immediately issuing a request for proposals to regional and national search firms specializing in recruiting candidates for education leadership positions.
Establishing a committee of the whole to review the RFPs.
Hearing presentations from selected search firms at the October board retreat and finalizing the selection of the search firm by Oct. 15.
Mr. Baker said he will recommend setting up a committee comprised of key stakeholder groups to work with the search firm to review each candidate's credentials and narrow the list to 3-5 candidates for board review.
He said the final list of candidates will have on site visits to Chattanooga to be interviewed by board members and will be made available to stakeholder groups (teachers, principals, business leaders, elected officials and the business community).
Mr. Baker said, "The board will have to make this decision, but the community joins us in being accountable for the quality of public education we provide, and we will do everything possible to gather the community's views on the superintendent candidates.
"The goal is simple: find a dynamic school leader who can continue the good work that has been done for the past decade and take our school system to the next level of success."
Here are Dr. Register's remarks:
"Today, I am announcing my decision to step down as Superintendent of Hamilton County Schools and retire effective June 30, 2006, pending the Board’s action this evening. I have discussed this decision with Chairman Baker and members of the School Board, and I believe now is the right time to begin a transition in leadership for the school system in Hamilton County. My hope is that the Board tonight will move forward with the transition plan because it is the right thing to do for the school system, the community and my family.
"I have made the decision over the summer with Paula and a few close friends. I believed then, as I do now, that this fall would be the right time to begin making this transition, and recent events surrounding the school system have only confirmed that belief.
I discussed my decision with Chairman Baker in August. Over the past few weeks, we have talked with members of the Board, informed them of my decision and talked about the best way to transition leadership in the school system. I have full confidence in the School Board selecting the next superintendent to lead this system. They know where this system has been, have experienced both the highs and the lows, and have a clear vision of where the school system needs to go.
"I have admired and appreciated members of the Board of Education as they stood beside me…… And, we all know that isn’t the easiest thing to do on some days in Hamilton County.
"The public education system in Hamilton County is in a good place right now.
"Student achievement continues to improve in all schools across the system and for all students…the well off, the disadvantaged, the white, the minority, the English language learners, and the students with special needs.
"The Hamilton County Commission’s recent decision to increase school revenue gives us the opportunity to give teachers a well deserved pay raise and make us much more competitive in the recruitment and retention of quality teachers in our schools.
"We are going to spend millions to do badly needed maintenance in our schools.
"We are beginning a three-year building program that is the largest ever undertaken for this school system, including the first new high schools in more than 30 years.
"I believe we are the only school system of our size in the country that has major public-private initiatives aimed at raising student achievement occurring at all three levels of the schools system – elementary, middle and high schools. This is only made possible by having local and national philanthropic organizations that are willing to invest in the vision of this Board and school system.
"There is an opportunity now to begin strengthening the school system’s relationship with the County Commission and business community.
"I am looking forward to being Superintendent this year and to doing all I can to assist with the transition in a business-like manner because that is what is best for the school system.
"I am proud of what has happened to public education in Hamilton County during my time here. I came here in 1996 with the goal of merging two very different school systems. We effectively accomplished this goal with little legal challenge. I prepare to leave here knowing that the school system has moved past merger and into a new and better place with a future that is bright.
"I look forward to reflecting on the successes of the past decade. I also look forward to new opportunities that will keep me involved with the great cause of public education. There will be time for that.
"Today is about the future, capturing the present momentum and moving forward to do what is best for the young people we serve.
"I look around this room and see faces of people with whom I share a very strong bond. I see people who have been here since I came. I want you all to know how deeply I have appreciated your loyalty and service. I look forward to spending time with each of you over the next few months as we make this a banner year for Hamilton County Schools.
"Finally, one a personal note… Paula, Jonathan and I love this community, and we plan to say here in the future."
County School officials listed these accomplishments under Dr. Register:
1997
Schools Merger. The system coordinated, planned and implemented the successful reorganization of two dramatically different school systems at the time of merger – one predominately white suburban school system, and one predominately minority urban school system – with little disruption. Central Office administrative staff was downsized by 34 percent as a part of the reorganization at the time of merger.
Standards Initiative. The school system established higher academic standards for all students through the “Success for All Students” standards initiative implemented across the school system. Extensive involvement of staff, teachers and parents was a part of the development of new content and performance standards for students at all grade levels and in all core subject areas.
1998
Facilities Task Force. System formed a community planning task force to develop a long-range facilities plan for Hamilton County Schools which deals with upkeep of existing facilities, construction of additional facilities needed for overcrowding and shifting populations, and plans for the replacement of buildings which are no longer suitable for use as schools.
Data-Driven District. An Office of Standards, Accountability and Assessment was created to focus on disaggregating data at the district, school and classroom levels.
Magnet School Initiative. The school system was awarded an $8 million magnet school grant by the U.S. Department of Education to start six new magnet schools with the purpose of reducing minority group isolation.
Communications Plan. The system developed a comprehensive communication plan which involves the following:
Parental involvement program for all schools, business-education partners program, and a wide spread distribution of an annual report.
Increased communication throughout the community through such strategies as a weekly talk radio program, publicized superintendent’s e-mail address, bi-weekly publication of “Perspectives” and town hall meetings scheduled across the county throughout the school year.
1999
School Funding. The system successfully worked with the County Commission and County Mayor to obtain an increase in revenue for public education in Hamilton County Schools. This increase in revenue resulted in:
Reducing class size at all grade levels.
Implementing elementary physical education, music, and library programs at a higher level so that all elementary students have access to these programs year-round.
Implementing an annual technology plan to improve instructional technology across the school system.
Leadership Institute. Hamilton County Schools recognized a crisis in school leadership and developed a leadership institute to improve the professional skills of existing administrators and to build a core of future leaders for the school system. Secured a grant with the Annenberg Foundation through the local Public Education Foundation to start the institute, which also focuses on total school improvement.
Professional Development. The system developed an extensive on-going, data-driven professional development program for all teachers as a key strategy in improving the quality of teaching in Hamilton County Schools.
Everyday/Connected Math. The School Board adopted a new mathematics curriculum and provided extensive staff development for teachers in the area of mathematics instruction.
Character Education. Hamilton County Schools developed a character education program, which has been implemented in all schools in the system with extensive involvement from community organizations. The character education program has been recognized as a national model for improving character education of young people.
Pupil Assignment Plan. The system developed and implemented a comprehensive pupil assignment plan for the merged school system, which included geographic school zones and a system of magnet schools. The pupil assignment plan was developed as a result of two incompatible assignment plans from the previous systems and gerrymandered school districts due to the existence of political boundaries prior to merger. Adoption of the pupil assignment plan resulted in the closing of an Office for Civil Rights complaint filed by the former Chattanooga Board of Education against the school system.
Private Resources. Hamilton County Schools received private funding ($8 million) to build an additional elementary school in the Chattanooga downtown area in conjunction with the revitalization of the city.
2000
Magnet School Grant. The school system received a federal award of $6.5 million over a three-year period for a second magnet school program to supplement several current magnet schools, and expand to include additional programs. A total of $20.6 million has been awarded to Hamilton County Schools by the U.S. Department of Education for grants to voluntarily desegregate the system.
National Science Foundation. The NSF awarded the school system a grant that focuses on quality teaching and staff development at the district and school level in the areas of math and science. School district officials changed the delivery method of the NSF program to leverage resources to benefit teachers and students.
Consulting Teacher Model. The model was created to target instructional support at the school level. Fourteen Central Office positions were leveraged to create 38 school-level positions as part of a systemic reorganization.
Leadership Model. A site-based leadership plan was implemented to combat low student achievement and high teacher turnover at one urban school, Calvin Donaldson. The model proved to be successful, and has since been used at other urban schools.
Safe Schools. The system developed a comprehensive safe schools plan which has resulted in the placement of school resource officers at middle and high schools, the adoption of crisis management plans and awareness for all schools, and organization of the first Safe Schools Summit involving community leaders in the system’s history.
2001
Strategic Plan. A five-year strategic plan was created to address improving student achievement, recruiting and retaining quality teachers and developing a strong system of accountability. The plan was approved by the Board of Education. A clearly defined Vision and Strategic Plan created a strong focus for the school system, and excellent progress is being made toward implementation of the plan. The use of federal funds was redirected to achieve the goals of the strategic plan.
Community Education Alliance. Through the Chattanooga Mayor’s Office, the CEA provides $5,000 bonuses to high-achieving teachers willing to transfer to a low-performing inner-city school. Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise provides housing incentives to the teachers, limited free legal services are available to teachers, and other incentives are used to recruit high performing teachers.
Differential Pay Plan. As part of the Strategic Plan, the teacher’s association approved a differential pay program to reward high achieving schools. This move paved the way for the CEA’s teacher incentives.
Teacher Recruitment and Retention. Through community partnerships and with changes in the negotiated teacher contract to modify transfer procedures, the school system has significantly improved its employment practices, filling over 300 vacancies annually in a timely and efficient manner. Recruitment efforts have also paid off for urban schools, as they are much closer to being fully staffed than in years past.
Carnegie Grant. Hamilton County Schools was one of seven school systems nationally awarded an $8 million grant to reform secondary education. A strong partnership with the local Public Education Foundation has resulted in Hamilton County Schools being a national leader in system-wide high school reform.
Benwood Schools. A $5 million grant from the Benwood Foundation has provided resources to the following elementary schools: Clifton Hills, Calvin Donaldson, East Lake, East Side, Hardy, Hillcrest, Howard, Orchard Knob, Woodmore. The focus is on raising student achievement in these nine “high priority” elementary schools, and attracting quality teachers to these urban schools.
Osborne Fellows. In partnership with the Public Education Foundation and the Osborne Foundation, a select group of teachers from the Benwood Schools has an opportunity to earn a free master’s degree in the area of urban education.
2002
High School Reform. The Hamilton County School Board adopted a single-path curriculum and the concept of creating theme-based academies in all high schools. To date seven high schools have career academies that focus on specific professional or career fields. The single-path curriculum generated strong support from business leaders including the Chamber of Commerce, the Coalition for Mathematics and Science Excellence, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and parents.
Urban Education. System reorganization created the division of Urban Education to address challenges unique to low-performing inner-city schools. This office also oversees and coordinates the Benwood and Chattanooga Education Alliance initiatives with urban schools. Student achievement in the urban schools is improving as a result of this concentrated work. Thirteen low-performing schools have been reconstituted over a three-year period of time.
2003
Education Reform. Hamilton County Schools has been successful in reducing the achievement gap among various socio-economic groups. Annual test results show very positive gains for the school system as a whole, high performing schools, Title I schools and the Benwood Schools.
Student Achievement. In SY 2001-02, the entire school system showed more than a year’s growth in student achievement for all core subject areas.
Parent Advisory Council. This countywide group meets once a month with the Superintendent for in-depth discussions of specific education topics. An open forum is held to respond to parents’ questions. Excellent representation from all schools has helped create a common voice for parents across the county.
Education Summit. County Mayor Claude Ramsey spearheaded a series of public Education Summits across the county where citizens said what they wanted an ideal school system to look like. From these discussions, several Task Forces were created to take a closer look at community partnerships, school finances, technology and other areas of public education.
2004
NCLB. The number of Hamilton County Schools meeting all NCLB requirements rose from 40 to 53 in the second year of performance results as measured by the accountability standards of the federal government’s No Child Left Behind Act.
ACT. ACT results show that Hamilton County high school students made the highest composite score on the college entrance exam since the 1997 schools merger. They also achieved higher gains than their peers across the nation and state in three of the four subject areas.
NFIE. In partnership with the Hamilton County Education Association, the Hamilton County Schools received a $2.5 million grant from the National Education Association (NEA) Foundation for the Improvement of Education in June 2004 which will focus on closing the achievement gap at the middle school level.
Magnet School Initiative. Hamilton County Schools received a third magnet school grant in 2004 totaling slightly under $6 million over three years. This grant will target high school reform in three of our high schools – Brainerd, Howard and Tyner.
The current Hamilton County magnet school initiative received recognition as one of six exemplary magnet school districts across the country by the Magnet Schools of America in a publication titled, “Innovations in Education: Creating Successful Magnet Schools Programs.”
Area Faculty & Parent Meetings. Hamilton County Schools held a series of 10 area faculty and four community meetings as the first step in the budget process, meeting with more than 2,500 teachers and parents to ask for their input on the impact of recent budget cuts to the classroom and on their suggested priorities for next year’s budget allocations.
TVAAS. Students in Hamilton County met or exceeded the state average in most grades, outperforming the State in Reading/Language in grades 4, 5, 7 and 8; in Math in grades 4, 5, 7 and 8; in science in grades 5 and 7; and in social studies in grades 4, 5, and 7.
2005
School Funding. The system successfully worked with the County Commission and County Mayor to obtain an increase in revenue for public education in Hamilton County Schools. This increase in revenue resulted in:
Improving teacher salaries to make the school system more competitive in the recruitment and retention of good, quality teachers in our schools.
Addressing deferred maintenance needs by directing $3 million each year to this critical need.
Funding for a three-year building program that is the largest ever undertaken for this school system and will build schools in critical areas throughout the county.
TCAP. Hamilton County Schools scored its best performance on the TCAP achievement test. When compared with 2004, the district improved its academic scores in 24 out of 24 areas tracking on the TCAP.
All students: 88.6 percent scored proficient in Reading/Language Arts, an increase of 10.3 percentage points since 2003; 86.2 percent proficient in Mathematics, an increase of 8.5 percentage points compared to 2003.
Students in suburban schools: 91.9 percent proficient in Reading/Language Arts, an increase of 7.1 percentage point since 2003; 90 percent proficient in Math, an increase of 5.2 percentage points compared to 2003.
Students in urban schools: 80.1 percent proficient in Reading/Language Arts, an increase of 19.8 percentage points since 2003; 76.5 percent proficient in Math, an increase of 16.1 percentage points compared to 2003.
The school system continues to close the achievement gap between economically disadvantaged and non-economically disadvantaged students in Hamilton County. In three years, Hamilton County Schools decreased the achievement gap for Reading/Language Arts by 11.1 percentage points and for Math by 10.2 percentage points.
NCLB. Hamilton County Schools continue to increase the number of schools meeting the performance standards defined by the NCLB Act. The results show 86 percent of all Hamilton County Schools are now meeting all 45 standards of NCLB, up from only 50 percent in 2003.
Virtual School. Hamilton County launched its Virtual School where students can earn graduation and recovery credits, as well as prepare for state-mandated exams through the Internet. Currently, students have taken more than 1,000 online courses.
Adult High School. Hamilton County Schools launched its Adult High School to give those who have dropped out of high school a second chance to earn a full diploma. The school graduated its first class of 30 students in December 2004, and 96 more in May
CORRE. Hamilton County Schools worked in conjunction with the Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University to conduct a analysis of the district’s central office. The study praised the district for its focus on academic performance and service orientation while identifying three key areas for improvement -- communications, constituency building and community engagement, and building on the district’s service orientation.
) Photo by John Wilson School Board members Rhonda Thurman, Joe Conner, Janice Boydston and Marty Puryear, Paula Register and School Board Chairman Chip Baker |
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