Next week, all of our students in grades 3-6 will be taking the DC CAS. The DC CAS is our "state" assessment mandated by NCLB to measure the progress of our school and district. The students will take reading and math tests beginning on the 22^nd and ending on the 25^th. The following week there will be make-up testing for any students that missed the test. Also, on Tuesday, April 29^th, our 4^th graders will take a writing (composition) assessment and 5^th graders take a science test. During all of these days, we ask that you send your students to school well rested, well fed, and with a happy and smiling disposition (we'll take any two out of the three). We will also be restricting access to the 2^nd and 3^rd floors during the testing times we need to ensure a quiet atmosphere. If you are used to dropping off a 1^st or 2^nd grader on the second floor, please be speedy in doing so. Thanks for your understanding and support.

This morning we practiced an "evacuation drill". This is similar to a fire drill but instead of just going outside we take all the kids to St. Columba's Church. This is meant to prepare us for scenarios such as a gas leak or other threat that makes remaining on the school site unsafe.

At the PTA meeting tonight, we will be reviewing several modifications to the PTA bylaws. The bylaws haven't been updated or changed in about 10 years and I applaud the PTA Executive Board for taking this on.

After the PTA meeting, I will be hosting a meeting to talk about class configuration and class size for next year. Below is a chart that shows the number of classes and anticipated class sizes for next year (this chart may not be included in the electronic version of the letter but I'll put a hard copy in everyone's THT envelope if that's the case). The class sizes are estimates based on current enrollment and results from the "Intent to Return" forms that we sent out to parents last month. In order for us to support our budget, we need average class sizes to be around 22 or 23 students per class. With this as a starting point, I would like to be able to protect our primary grades and keep class sizes around 20 students per class, necessitating intermediate grades to be around 25 or so. The fact that we have limited control over our enrollment combined with the shortage of classrooms creates some situations that are less than ideal and calls for some difficult choices. For example, in recent years our primary classes have been as high as 26 students and as a result we've reduced the number of PK slots from 20 to 10 in order to provide overflow for kindergarten.

In terms of next year, we are in a bind because there are only two classes of sixth graders promoting out of the school and we anticipate three full classes of kindergarten enrolling in. We would need therefore a 24^th classroom space if we wished to "move up" the same number of classes from year to year in other grades. There are some spaces in the building that could be converted to homerooms such as a room for special education, the art room, and the library, but they all serve important functions in the school. Last year we faced a similar dilemma but we were spared making a tough choice because DCPS added a new demountable with two new classrooms. I won't rule out any possibilities but we need to plan as if we're going to have the same number of rooms and spaces next year as we have now.

The most logical grade to reduce in terms of classes is the current fourth grade. I polled the parents in fourth grade about two options - combining the four classes into three (creating larger class sizes of same-grade students) or creating a "split class" with another grade (keeping class sizes relatively low). The feedback was overwhelmingly for combining into three classes. At the time, I was assuming no attrition and asked about class sizes of 28. However, since then we have completed the intent to return forms and the class sizes would more likely be 26 or 27.

The SIT has discussed this issue in great detail this year and reached consensus around the idea that if we create additional space by moving programs out of their rooms or if additional classrooms are added to the school in the form of a demountable, these rooms would be first allocated to our primary grades as a means of reducing class sizes in the lower grades. In either 2009 or 2010, some of this difficulty will be alleviated when the 6^th grade moves to Deal. However, the long term solution remains in providing an addition to and renovation of our current building.

That's a pretty good overview of where we are at this time. Please come out tonight if you have questions or want to provide additional feedback.

Sincerely,
Scott Cartland
Principal

JanneyElementary School

Proposed Staffing and Class Configuration for 2008-2009

Grade	Teachers			Anticipated Class Size
PK/K Split	Wendy Morgan-Williams			20-21
Kindergarten	Rebecca Brudnick	Marijke Gero	Monica Waters	20-21
1^st Grade	Fran McCrackin	Heather Roy	Regina Rutledge	22-23
2^nd Grade	Dolda Butler	Jen Miller	Shana Zallman	23-25
3^rd Grade	Sarah Cassidy	Ermyn Roberts	Rona Walters	23-25
4^th Grade	Kate Etris	Andrea Litvack (Stock)	Laurie Young	21-22
5^th Grade	Barb Clements	Mary Osterman	Jackie Seward	26-27
6^th Grade	Pam Carpousis	Laure Hunter	TBD	19-20