iZONE SCHOOLS
The New York State Department of Education (NYSED) has identified SCSD as a Focus district, which means that student performance is among the lowest of all districts in the state. Of the district’s 30 schools, 19 have been identified as Priority schools, 7 of which have been designated for the iZone in the 2013 – 2016 school years. In efforts to significantly increase student achievement, iZone schools will adopt either the Turnaround or Transformation intervention model, using guidelines set by the United States Department of Education, and receive the supports outlined in About the iZone.
What are the Turnaround and Transformation models?
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Priority schools are amongst the lowest 5% of all public schools in the state of New York, requiring a different approach to the work of educating students. Operating under the certainty that all students can achieve at high levels, drastic action must be taken to rescue schools from chronic failure.
​Under the Turnaround model, a school district makes the difficult but necessary decisions to reverse the academic trend of student achievement, including: replacing the current principal; retaining no more than 50% of current staff members; increasing instructional time; and granting school leaders game-changing flexibility in staffing, time, and budgeting, among other requirements.
​Using the Transformation model, a school district must: take actions to increase teacher and school leader effectiveness; grant school leaders operational flexibility in staffing, time, and budgeting, among other requirements; and has the option to replace the principal.