NUSD Race: Programs Needed at All Schools

THE NATOMAS BUZZ | @natomasbuzz

THIRD IN A SERIES

THE NATOMAS BUZZ invited the four candidates running for the Natomas Unified school board to participate in a series of articles wherein they answer questions submitted by readers. Today’s question asked,

“What three programs/curriculum are going well in NUSD which need to be expanded to all campuses?” -Elizabeth Brushwyler

Here are the answers submitted by the deadline, in the order they were received:

Jag Bains

JAG BAINS
The Constituent and Customer Services program has improved our District’s response time to questions from parents and teachers. Contact information should be given to every new employee and every parent who enrolls their child in a Natomas school. The Bond Oversight Committee has also provided valuable independent input and should be fully staffed. When it comes to Common Core, Natomas Unified needs to reach the same conclusion that I and most parents have reached – that one size does not fit all. Unfortunately, the District has stubbornly ordered teachers to integrate decades-old textbooks with freshly-minted Common Core curricula. As a result, teachers have wasted thousands of hours on paper pushing and too much money has been spent on District copy machines that could be used in far more effective ways to educate our children. The District should allow far more latitude for teachers to interpret the coursework and deliver differentiated instruction.

Sachiko Konatsu

SACHIKO KONATSU
As a parent of a Special need student I have seen some progress for these students. We need to make sure that ALL Special needs students get the services if they have an IEP. The English Learners have acquired some progress through out the district, but needs to be consistent on secondary schools, so our EL students do not become high school drop outs.Arts and music need to be funded in ALL schools because these programs keep the students wanting to be in school. We need to bring back the computer/tech. class to the middle schools not just at the dependent charter.

Lisa Kaplan

LISA KAPLAN
Three programs that are going well in Natomas are full day kindergarten, International Baccalaureate (IB), and our Student System of Support. In 2012-13, Natomas piloted full day kindergarten at several schools. The successful pilot was expanded to all elementary campuses in 2013-14. Some of the benefits of full day kindergarten include higher long-term achievement, greater creativity, more time spent in individualized instruction, all together help close the achievement gap. In 2011, Natomas along with dedicated parents began the process to certify Inderkum HS as an IB World School. That certification process was granted in 2014. This program is being expanded to H. Allen Hight and Natomas Middle School to benefit all students interested in IB. Last year Natomas piloted individualized Student Systems of Support at several schools. This program develops a “system of support” for our students to match expectations and accountability, along with data to improve student success.

Teri Burns

TERI BURNS
I have long been an advocate for Gifted and Talented Education – GATE and I’m pleased to see it revived in our district. We’ve doubled the number of students identified and we’ve actively reached out to support their parents. We’ve increased differentiated instruction training for our teachers and are challenging these students academically. Parent CORES, our parental support program serving Bannon Creek, Jefferson, American Lakes and Two Rivers has been a great success, helping parents support the instructional program at home and become partners with their school. The engagement was evident at Back to School Night. I’m glad to see it expanded to all campuses this year. Teacher collaboration time has paid significant dividends at our pilot elementary schools allowing the ability to teachers to reflect together on individual student needs and integration of concepts across courses. This resulted in significant API score growth for all of our student groups.

Submit candidate questions for consideration to [email protected]. Two public forums are planned for the Natomas Unified School District candidates. The first, hosted by Lights of Tomorrow is set for 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 14 at the South Natomas Community Center, 2921 Truxel Road. The second, hosted by Natomas Charter School is set for 6 p.m. on Oct. 28 at the Benvenuti Performing Arts Center, 4600 Blackrock Drive.