ESSER III Implementation Plan


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2		Norwood
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4		Plans for the Use of ESSER III Funds: The United States Department of Education (USED) is requiring two plans from all recipients of ESSER III funds: 1) A plan for the safe return to in-person instruction and continuity of services The requirement for this plan is likely met by your District Reopening Plan submitted to DESE in August of 2020, along with any subsequent amendments (see Tab 3 Assurances). It will need to be revisited and revised as necessary every 6 months, including soliciting stakeholder input and considering changes to CDC guidance. 2) A plan for the Use of ESSER III Funds, based on broad stakeholder input, and addressing the following: • The district's prevention and mitigation strategies, including extent district has adopted CDC recommendations ( Step 4.4) • How the district will use its 20% reservation of ESSER III funds to address loss of instructional time with evidence- based interventions (Step 4.2 and Tab 6, Budget) • How the district will spend the remainder of its ESSER III funds for allowable expenditures (Tab 5) and budget (Tab 6) • How the use of ESSER III funds will respond to the academic, social, emotional and mental health needs of all students, especially those disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic (Tab 4.2, Tab 4.3), including:
5		• students from low-income families • students of color • English learners • students with disabilities • students experiencing homelessness • students in foster care • migratory students • students who are incarcerated • other underserved students This application, when fully and thoughtfully completed, along with your District Reopening Plans, will constitute the plans required by USED. These plans must be published on your website and must be accessible to families in a language they understand, either translated in writing or orally, as well as in an accessible format for those with disabilities. You should expect that DESE will be collecting data and other information from you as a result of implementation of your plans for and use of ESSER funds.
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7	Step 4.1 of 4.4	ESSER III regulations require that the stakeholder groups below be meaningfully consulted as part of the planning process for use of ESSER III funds. Which of the following groups have you consulted with? (check all that apply)			If you have not yet consulted with this group in planning for use of ESSER III funds, when and how do you plan to get their input?
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10			Students
11			Families
12			School and District administrators, including special education administrators
13			School leaders
14			Teachers
15			Other educators
16			School staff
17			Unions representing educators and school staff
18			Tribes*
19			Civil rights organizations (including disability rights organizations)*
20			Stakeholders representing the interests of children with disabilities, English learners,
21			children experiencing homelessness, children in foster care, migratory students, children
22			who are incarcerated, and other underserved students.*
23			who are incarcerated, and other underserved students.*
24		*To the extent present in or served by the district
25	Step 4.2 of 4.4	Evidence-Based Strategies, Interventions, and Supports: Describe how ESSER III funds, including the required 20% reservation, will be used to respond to students' social, emotional, and academic needs through evidence-based interventions, how progress will be measured, and how/if chosen interventions address disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on underserved subgroups. Select from the following list of evidence-based interventions and provide a narrative at the bottom of this step for any of your district's evidence-based initiatives that are not listed. Note: Your district's 20% reservation to address loss of instructional time must be spent on evidence-based interventions.
26		Enhanced Core Instruction			Our district is using ESSER III funds for this strategy	This strategy will address pandemic-related learning loss/disproportionate impact	What data will you use to measure progress?	Does this strategy/intervention address the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on underserved student subgroups (each major racial and ethnic group, students from low-income families, students with disabilities, English learners, gender, migrant students, students experiencing homelessness and students in foster care)? If yes, please explain which group(s) are being served, what impact is being addressed, and how this strategy/intervention will provide support.
27		Expanding access to full-day, high-quality prekindergarten			Select	Select
28		Purchasing and/or expanding use of high-quality, aligned instructional materials (any content area) and associated professional development			Yes	Yes	We will use our new Bridges math intervention materials and Renaissance CBM & Star 360 data along with local/classroom assessment data to monitor student progress. We are in process of training our nine new Intervention Specialists in using these resources along with our core ELA and math programs. In addition, we will be providing Wilson Reading trraining to a group of special educators.	Yes, these materials and our K-12 Intervention Specialists will provide direct support to our struggling learners many of whom fall into our high risk subgroups (EL, SWD, and ED students).
29		Professional development for teachers and administrators re: culturally responsive teaching			Yes	Yes	The entire faculty is participating in a full year of training from the Highlander Institute on Culturally Responsive Pedagogical Practices (CRSP). This training follows up our UDL training last year with Katie Novak.	Yes. These trainings serve the interests of all mentioned student groups.
30		Screening assessments and associated professional development (e.g., early literacy screening)			Yes	Yes	Our early childhood staff have been trained on using the CBM screener.	Yes. These trainings serve the interests of all mentioned student groups.
31		Expanding access to career-technical education (including "After Dark" district/vocational partnerships), innovation pathways, and advanced placement courses (including fee subsidies and teacher training)			Select	Select
32		Extending the school day/year and prioritizing student access to additional time by student need			Yes	Yes	We will use attendance data and student performance assessment data during the year to measure progress.	Yes. With this and other grant support we have greatly expanded our summer, vacation, and after school programming for those underserved students who need additional academic time and support to achieve grade-level standards. Principals targetted their neediest students for this additional support. In addition, the purchase of My Flex Learning (scheduling application) will enable students and teachers to better manage their school day time so that they can access approriate interventions thourgh WIN blocks.
33		Tutoring programs and support, including early literacy tutoring (including training paraprofessionals) and peer tutoring programs.			Select	Select
34		Developing or strengthening data cycles to facilitate and inform student learning and associated professional development and support personnel			Yes	Yes	We will use district data gathered through the Rennaisance platform and District MCAS data. Some grant funding will provide support for DATAWISE and Schoolzilla training for staff.	Yes, we expect that the data may help us identify student groups that have been impacted by COVID-19 learning loss and help us target services and interventions to identified students.
35		Early college programs, particularly those focused on students underrepresented in higher education			Select	Select
36		Targeted Student Supports			Our district is using ESSER III funds for:	This strategy will address pandemic-related learning loss/disproportionate impact	What data will you use to measure progress?	Does this strategy/intervention address the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on underserved student subgroups (each major racial and ethnic group, students from low-income families, students with disabilities, English learners, gender, migrant students, students experiencing homelessness and students in foster care)? If yes, please explain which group(s) are being served, what impact is being addressed, and how this strategy/intervention will provide support.
37		Developing or expanding high quality co-teaching and inclusion models for students with disabilities and associated professional development			Select	Select
38		Acceleration academies (during school year vacations) and summer learning opportunities for individualized instruction and enrichment			Yes	Yes	We will use attendance data and student performance assessment data during the year to measure progress.	Yes. With this and other grant support we have greatly expanded our summer, vacation, and after school programming for those underserved students who need additional academic time and support to achieve grade-level standards.
39		Language support programs, including dual language and heritage language programs (students learning in-home/native language) and associated professional development			Select	Select
40		Community-based afterschool programs for parents, including citizenship and ESL classes			Select	Select
41		Dropout prevention and recovery programs			Yes	Yes	Student attendance and retention data and student performance results.	Our high school is using grant funds to identify students at risk of dropping out and proving them with credit recovery options. Many of these students are in our high risk subgroups.
42		Talent Development and Staffing			Our district is using ESSER III funds for:	This strategy will address pandemic-related learning loss/disproportionate impact	What data will you use to measure progress?	Does this strategy/intervention address the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on underserved student subgroups (each major racial and ethnic group, students from low-income families, students with disabilities, English learners, gender, migrant students, students experiencing homelessness and students in foster care) ? If yes, please explain which group(s) are being served, what impact is being addressed, and how this strategy/intervention will provide support.
43		Academic support staff, including academic coaches, interventionists, student teaching residency programs, paraprofessionals			Yes	Yes	Interventionists' work schedules and performance outcomes of their student case loads.	This grant provides essential funds for Intervention Specialists and an EWL paraprofessional that cannot be covered by LEA funds.
44		Diversifying the educator workforce through recruitment and retention strategies			Select	Select
45		Strategies to staff hard-to-staff schools and positions with high-performing educators			Select	Select
46		Increasing staff and opportunities for arts, enrichment, world languages, athletics, and elective courses			Select	Select
47		Increasing high-quality common planning time for teachers and academic support staff			Select	Select
48		Developing leadership pipeline programs for schools			Select	Select
49		Labor-management partnerships to improve student performance			Select	Select
50		Conditions for Student Success - Social/Emotional and Mental Health Supports			Our district is using ESSER III funds for:	This strategy will address pandemic-related learning loss/disproportionate impact	What data will you use to measure progress?	Does this strategy/intervention address the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on underserved student subgroups (each major racial and ethnic group, students from low-income families, students with disabilities, English learners, gender, migrant students, students experiencing homelessness and students in foster care)? If yes, please explain which group(s) are being served, what impact is being addressed, and how this strategy/intervention will provide support.
51		Increasing personnel and services to support holistic student needs, including school guidance and adjustment counselors, nurses, psychologists, and/or social workers			Yes	Yes	Student discipline and behavior reporting.	We are using significant funds to proide therapeutic services to students; many of these students are in the high risk subgroups; increase in nursing and adjustment counselor services.
52		Building/strengthening partnerships with community-based organizations to increase student/family access to services for mental/physical health and well-being			Select	Select
53		Working with community-based organizations that provide enrichment during the school day and/or out of school time			Yes	Yes	student attendance in enrichment activities and academic performance reports.	We are targeting our neediest students for these enrichment activities.
54		Arranging for wraparound services to be provided at schools			Select	Select
55		Engaging community partners to build capacity among educators and support personnel to implement equitable and culturally responsive learning environments			Select	Select
56		Create transitional programs, partnering with community based organizations, for students with mental health or behavioral-related absences returning to school			Select	Select
57		Parent-teacher home visiting programs to build positive relationships between home and school			Select	Select
58		Facilities improvements to create healthy and safe school environments			Select	Select
59		Other Interventions/Strategies/Supports Use this section to describe evidence-based strategies your district will fund with ESSER III that are not listed above				This strategy will address pandemic-related learning loss/disproportionate impact	What data will you use to measure progress?	Does this strategy/intervention address the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on underserved student subgroups (each major racial and ethnic group, students from low-income families, students with disabilities, English learners, gender, migrant students, students experiencing homelessness and students in foster care)? If yes, please explain which group(s) are being served, what impact is being addressed, and how this strategy/intervention will provide support.
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67	Step 4.3 of 4.4	Equitable Use of ESSER III Funds
68		How is your district taking educational equity into account when planning for expending your ESSER III funds? For example, 1) allocating funds both to schools and districtwide activities based on student needs, and 2) implementing an equitable and inclusive return to in-person learning by, for example, avoiding over-use of exclusionary discipline and creating a positive and supportive learning environment for all students.
69		The Norwood Public Schools Central Administrative team consists of several individuals including the Facilities Director, Technology Director, Director of Student Services, Director of Finance and Operations, Director of Strategic Initiatives, EL Coordinator, and the Assistant Superintendent and Superintendent. They meet weekly and have been since the pandemic started. At each meeting the agenda includes discussion and action planning around the District’s four areas of focus for the 21-22 school year: NPS continued Areas of Focus for 2021-22: Health and Safety of all students, staff, and visitors; Social and Emotional Learning; Academic Support; Professional Development The team continues to allocate resources and put plans in place with an eye toward equity for all students and staff. In addition to deciding what District initiatives are needed, the team goes school by school deciding where to place human resources and enhance the facilities to ensure safety and equity for all. The Norwood Public Schools sent a survey to our stakeholders seeking input on our ESSER funding plan. The NPS received nearly 800 responses including a robust compilation of open responses. The data, along with input from the entire NPS administrative team, led the District to develop a comprehensive plan that would bring the most benefit to all students but particularly the most vulnerable students. Increased academic intervention, a focus on social emotional learning, and more opportunities for out of school enrichment are all part of the short and long term agenda. To start the current year the NPS staff have created school cultures and climates that are open and welcoming. Open Houses and Back to School Nights have already occurred with PTO meetings planned for the next couple of weeks. Themed days and special events are being held at each of the schools to ensure that students and families are feeling safe and welcomed. The District is working with all families around masking and testing protocols; keeping all students in school and safe are the highest priorities. In addition, the District has partnered with Mass Insight to conduct a District-wide equity audit; students, families and staff have been invited to participate in surveys, focus groups, and individual interviews. Mass Insight has also been conducting a deep data and artifact analysis since July. The results and recommendations of the audit will be shared in the winter. Mass Insght’s report around equity will help shape the District’s budget and programmatic decisions for the future.
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72	Step 4.4 of 4.4	CDC School Safety Recommendations This information will come from your District Reopening Plan as well as any supplemental/revised reopening policies for your district.
73		CDC Recommendation		Does your district have a policy or policies on this topic?	If "Yes," is it described in your District Reopening Plan?	If you have a policy but it is not described in your District Reopening Plan, please briefly describe here.
74		1	Universal and correct wearing of masks	Yes	Yes
75		2	Modifying facilities to allow for physical distancing (e.g., use of cohorts/podding)	Yes	Yes
76		3	Handwashing and respiratory etiquette	Yes	Yes
77		4	Cleaning and maintaining healthy facilities, including improving ventilation	Yes	Yes
78		5	Contact tracing, isolation, quarantine in collaboration with health departments	Yes	Yes
79		6	Diagnostic and screening testing	Yes	Yes
80		7	Efforts to provide vaccination to school communities	Yes	Yes
81		8	Appropriate accommodations for children with disabilities with respect to health and safety policies	Yes	Yes
82		9	Coordination with state and local health officials	Yes	Yes