Dear School Board President:

The biggest communications challenge facing our schools this year involves the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act and the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) status of our schools.

By the end of September, the New Jersey State Department of Education is expected to release its new NCLB School Report Card, which will contain school-level data on Adequate Yearly Progress. The information will be based on the preliminary results of the three state assessments administered in the spring of 2003: the High School Proficiency Assessment; the Grade Eight Proficiency Assessment; and NJ ASK 4. The data will be broken down by total school population and according to a number of subgroups within the school.

We expect a strong media focus on the AYP reports and the new NCLB School Report Card.

To help you communicate about your schools’ AYP status, the New Jersey School Boards Association has compiled the enclosed “tool kit,” consisting of the following documents:

• Communicating about…Adequate Yearly Progress under No Child Left Behind. This guide provides an overview of New Jersey’s procedures to implement NCLB, and references to information sources.
• Tips for Talking to the News Media
• Responding to the News Media: Questions-and-Answers for School Board Presidents
• Sample news releases and sample letters to parents and school district staff

NCLB will have a wide-ranging impact not only on school district communications, curriculum and planning, but also on policy. NJSBA’s Policy and Library Services Department has updated more than 40 model policies and bylaws in its the Critical Policy Reference Manual to reflect NCLB requirements. Please visit NJSBA’s Web site at www.njsba.org for information on these model policy updates.

The enclosed communications package represents the first of a series that NJSBA will issue on No Child Left Behind. Future installments will address the act’s Highly Qualified Staff requirements and its Persistently Dangerous Schools provisions. Please call the NJSBA Public Information Department toll free at 1-888-886-5722, Ext. 5202 if you need additional information.

Sincerely,

Edwina M. Lee
Executive Director

No Child Left Behind and Adequate Yearly Progress:
Communications Tools for School Boards

September 2003

Contents

Communicating about Adequate Yearly Progress

Questions and Answers for School Board Presidents

Sample News Release: Adequate Yearly Progress

Sample News Release: Schools in Need of Improvement

Tips for Talking to the News Media

Sample Letter to Parents: Adequate Yearly Progress

Sample Letter to Parents: Schools in Need of Improvement

Sample Letter to Staff: Adequate Yearly Progress

PDF of Communications Toolkit