ANNUAL REPORT TO DISTRICT PATRONS

NORRIS PUBLIC SCHOOLS

2002-03

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Student Progress toward State Reading, Speaking, and Listening Standards........................... 3

Achievement Test Results ..................................................................................................... 3

Student Progress in Grades 1-3............................................................................................ 4

Student Progress in Reading ................................................................................................. 4

ACT Scores ........................................................................................................................ 5

Statewide Writing Assessment. ............................................................................................ 5

Student Enrollment Figures.................................................................................................... 6

Enrollment by Race .............................................................................................................. 6

Student-Teacher Ratios......................................................................................................... 6

Average Class Sizes............................................................................................................. 7

Average Daily Student Membership and Attendance.............................................................. 7

Dropouts and Expulsions...................................................................................................... 7

Graduation Rate................................................................................................................... 8

Student Mobility Rates.......................................................................................................... 8

Student Poverty Rates.......................................................................................................... 8

Special Education Population .............................................................................................. 9

Title I Program and Population ........................................................................................... 10

Limited English-Speaking Students ..................................................................................... 10

High Ability Learner Program ............................................................................................ 10

Advanced Placement Classes............................................................................................... 11

Number of Student Days.................................................................................................... 11

Number of Staff Development and In-Service Days ............................................................ 11

Average Teacher Salary ..................................................................................................... 11

Number of Teachers and Experience at Norris .................................................................... 12

Number of Other Personnel ............................................................................................... 12

Number of Administrative Staff ........................................................................................... 12

Professional Preparation of Staff ........................................................................................ 13

Expenditure by Program ..................................................................................................... 13

Revenue by Source ............................................................................................................. 14

Assessed Valuation and Property Value per Student ............................................................ 14

Transportation Budget ........................................................................................................ 14

Student Transportation ....................................................................................................... 15

High School Courses .......................................................................................................... 15

Graduation Requirements ................................................................................................... 16

Follow-up Study of Graduates ........................................................................................... 16

Building Needs and Plans .................................................................................................... 17

Age of Buildings.................................................................................................................. 17

Americans with Disabilities Act ........................................................................................... 17

Distance Learning ............................................................................................................... 18

Internet Access ................................................................................................................... 18

Local Area Network ......................................................................................................... 18

School Improvement Goals and Progress ............................................................................ 18

Student Progress toward State Reading, Writing, and Listening Standards

The graph below indicates the average performance of Norris students in grades 4, 8, and 11 with respect to state language arts standards this past school year. There were 11 standards in grade 4, 10 standards in grade 8, and 9 standards in grade 11 that were assessed this past year. Based on the results of the assessments, students are rated as beginning, progressing, proficient, and advanced. This graph shows the overall average percent of students in each of these categories at the three grade levels.

Achievement Test Scores

The graph below illustrates the percent of students, by grade level, who scored above the 50^th percentile in the reading, language, mathematics, science, and social studies sub-tests of the Terra Nova II Achievement Test given to all students in grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 11 this past spring.

Student Progress in Grades 1 – 3

Progress was shown in the areas of reading comprehension, vocabulary and phonetic decoding in first grade this year. The number of students reading at or above grade level increased from 75 to 89 percent according to Individual Reading Inventories. The STAR reading assessment showed that 4% more students were reading at or above grade level in the spring than in the fall. Writing assessments indicated progress in writing competencies as students developed skills in writing sentences and simple stories. In mathematics, students demonstrated increased understanding of the concepts of addition and subtraction. Students also progressed in the skill areas of measurement, time and money, place value and estimation.

According to the Gates McGinitie Standardized Reading test given this spring, 79% of all second grade students were reading at or above grade level. (47% of those students were reading at the 4^th grade level or above.) Second grade students take a computerized vocabulary assessment called STAR. 77% of the students scored at or above grade level on this. (On this same STAR assessment, 38% of the students scored at or above a 4^th grade reading level.) In writing, students received instruction in 3 or the 6 Writing Traits of Writing. Ideas and Content, Organization, and Conventions. By the end of the year, a majority of second grade students were able to consistently use capital letters and punctuation correctly. In math, students studied addition and subtraction to 20, measurement, time and money, place value and estimation, and fractions. On an end-of-the year cumulative math test, 84% of the students scored at 80% or above.

The number of students reading at or above grade level increased from 90 to 94 percent according to Individual Reading Inventories and from 68 to 83 percent according to the STAR reading assessment at grade 3 this past year. According to the California Achievement Test this past spring 71% of Norris 3^rd graders were above the 50th percentile in reading. 79% of the third grade students scored above the 50^th percentile in language and 73% scored above the 50^th percentile in mathematics.

Student Progress in Reading

A core belief in the Norris Schools is that reading is the key to the universe, and that it is within our power to have at least 90% of students at each grade level reading at or above grade level. Approximately 8% of the population has legitimate learning disabilities or handicapping conditions that will hamper the ability to read. During the past four years, the staff has worked hard on standards and assessments in reading. Improved curriculum materials have been purchased at several grade levels, and summer reading “academies” have been in place in the Elementary five years including this summer.

Research indicates that it is critical for boys and girls to get off on a good start in reading. There are developmental tasks that if not mastered by the end of second grade make it difficult to catch up. Our experience would support that research evidence. Our focus on reading improvement has resulted in the most gains at the Elementary level. The percentages of students who are at or above grade level at the end of the 2002-03 school year are shown in the table below. Evaluation of students was conducted with the STAR Reading Assessment in all grades and also the Individual Reading Inventory grades 1-5.

Grade	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12
IRI (fall)	16	75	90	91	89
IRI (Spring)	75	89	94	95	97
STAR (fall)		73	68	80	74	74	78	62	67	63	63	76
STAR (Spring)		77	83	89	74	76	67	65	72	84	75	NA

ACT Scores

Approximately 60% of the 2002 graduating class took the ACT test and scored as follows compared to state and national averages. Core results are for students who completed 4 years of English and three or more years of mathematics,

Statewide Writing Assessment

The table below illustrates how 8^th grade students at Norris scored on the Statewide Writing Assessment this past school year. 91% of Norris’ 8^th grade students scored above the state cut score (4.33), which is the score at which a student’s performance is considered proficient. The average Norris score was 5.53. This was significantly higher than the state average according the Department of Education personnel. It should also be noted that 78% of Norris 11^th grade students scored at the proficient level and a writing assessment scored at Educational Service Unit 6 in Milford. That is an increase from the 69% of Norris 11^th grade students considered proficient in the 2000-01 school year

Student Enrollment Figures

The enrollment figures below were compiled on the last Friday in the month of September for

each of the given years including the 2002-03 year just completed. Note that the 1997-98 year was the first for the pre-school program and the 1999-00 year was the first for the Midlands Group Home.

Enrollment by Race for 2002-03

Student-Teacher Ratios

	Ratio
General Education	1 teacher per 17.5 students
Special Education	1 teacher per 18.0 students
Title I	1 teacher per 51.0 students

Average Class Sizes

The average class sizes for the 2002-03 school year in the table below were computed by dividing the total

number of students enrolled in each grade by the number of teachers assigned to that grade. At the

secondary level (grades 6-12), the average class sizes were computed for reading, English, mathematics,

science, and social studies classes only.

Average Daily Membership and Attendance

The following table illustrates average number of children enrolled in given grade levels during the 2002-03 school year and the average number of children in attendance each day school was in session.

	2002-03 Enrollment	Average Daily Attendance
K	120	115
1	113	109
2	106	102
3	126	121
4	109	105
5	119	115
6	139	134
7	140	134
8	131	128
9	140	137
10	148	144
11	123	119
12	122	117

Dropouts and Expulsions

The table below shows the number of dropouts and number of expulsions during the 2002-03 school year.

	Grade 9	Grade 10	Grade 11	Grade 12
Number of Dropouts	0	1	1	2
Number of Expulsions	1	2	3	0

Graduation Rate

The table below shows the number of 12^th grade students this past school year who graduated at Mid-term, dropped out prior to graduation, lacked the necessary credits to graduate when the time came, and those who actually graduated in May.

Number of 12^th grade students who graduated at mid-term	7
Number of 12^th grade students who dropped out prior to graduation	0
Number of 12^th grade students who did not meet graduation requirements	3
Number of 12^th grade students who graduated during spring commencement exercises	114

Student Mobility Rates

The table below lists the total number of students by building who moved into or out of the school district from the beginning until the end of the 2002-03 school year.

	In	Out
Elementary School	33	27
Middle School	16	9
High School	34	33

The table below lists the total number of students who, at one time or another, optioned into the Norris School District from another school district this past school year and the total number of students who reside in the Norris School District and optioned to another school district during the 2002-03 year.

Optioned Into Norris	Optioned Out Of Norris
155	127

Student Poverty Rates

The table below indicates the number of children in each building who come from families whose income and number of family members meets federal guidelines for poverty levels.

	Elementary	Middle School	High School
Number of Children Qualifying for Free Meals	33	12	29
Number of Children Qualifying for Reduced Price Meals	24	12	8
Percent Whose Income Meets Poverty Guidelines	8	6	7

Special Education Populations

The following graphs show the number of special education students per grade level and the number of students by handicapping condition for the 2002-03 school year. The majority of these students have only one handicapping condition, although some have more than one. The most common handicapping condition is SLD (specific learning disability) and is usually associated with reading and/or writing ability. Speech and Language Impaired students receive services from the school district’s speech pathologists. These graphs do not include the students at the Firth Group Home.

Title I Program and Population

Title I is a federally funded program designed to remediate reading and/or mathematics skills in students who are performing below grade level in these areas. 81 elementary students participated in the Title I Program this past year. The table below shows breaks down their participation by subject area.

Number of students who received services in reading only	29
Number of students who received services in mathematics only	31
Number of students who received services in both reading and mathematics	21

Limited English Speaking Students

There are nine students currently attending Norris who have limited English speaking abilities who qualify as English Language Learner students: six in the elementary building, one in the middle school, and two in the high school. Only the six elementary students and one high school student actually participate in the English Language Learner Program.

High Ability Learner Program

Norris is continuing the process of developing and implementing a program for high ability learners. Initially, this program will focus on students in grades 4 through 12. Mrs. Shari Head coordinated the program in the elementary grades, Mr. Tom Price had responsibility for the middle grades, and Mrs. Rachel Goracke with assistance from Mr. Tom Brazee coordinated the program in the high school. The program includes after school activities, individual mentoring, and summer camps through the Imagine It Program sponsored by E.S.U 6. Students are identified for these activities in grades 4-12 by achievement test scores, other evaluations including in-class teacher assessments of student performance, and comparisons of student characteristics with established checklists of traits of high ability learners. Norris also offers advanced and honors courses for secondary students in several curricular areas including advanced placement and college credit courses. In addition, Norris provides several after school clubs and activities. These include such things as the music mentorship program, Academic Decathlon, and Quiz Bowl teams.

Advanced Placement Classes

Norris offers advanced placement classes (classes in which a student can earn college credits by successfully completing a test), college or dual credit classes (classes in which a student can earn both college and high school credit by successfully completing class requirements), and advanced classes (classes which are for college-bound students or classes in which students can further pursue a particular skill or interest)

Psychology	Distance learning class for college credit through SECC
Sociology	Distance learning class for college credit through SECC
Advanced English 11	Accelerated or honors class for 11^th grade students
English 1010	Dual credit course through Southeast Community College
English 2100	Dual credit course through Southeast Community College
Calculus	College-bound or accelerated class for select students
Advanced Placement American History	Class in which college credit can be earned by passing test
Advanced Placement English 11	Class in which college credit can be earned by passing test
Individual Advanced Art	Accelerated class for students with art skill and/or interest
Advanced Accounting	2^nd year class for accounting students
College Accounting	Accounting class for college credit
Independent Study Advanced Programming	Programming class for advanced computer students
Advanced Clothing	2^nd semester class for clothing students
Advanced Foods	2^nd semester class for foods students
Advanced Welding	2^nd semester class for welding students
Advanced Industrial Technology	Accelerated class for industrial technology students
Spanish III and IV	3^rd and 4^th year Spanish classes
Human Life Span	Distance learning class
College Calculus	College credit class through Southeast Community College

Number of Scheduled Student Days

178 student days were scheduled during the 2002-03 school year. Classes for students begins at 8:30 and end at 3:30. Students have 30 minutes for lunch, making their day 6.5 hours long.

Number of Staff Development and In-Service Days

In addition 178 student days scheduled above, staff members work an additional 7 days, which includes pre-school workshops, staff development days throughout the school year, etc.

Average Teacher Salary

The average teacher salary for this past school year is $42389.23. This figure includes compensation for coaching, extra duties, and/or sponsorships.

TAKE TIME TO VISIT THE NORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT WEBSITE AT WWW.NORRIS160.COM.

Number of Teachers and Years of Experience at Norris

The number of certified staff members employed in each of the district’s three buildings during the 2002-03 school year is shown below plus their average years of experience. The number does not include members of the administrative staff. The years of experience pertains only to experience at Norris, not experience in other school districts. Note that the number of teachers listed for each building reflects the number of teachers who teach one or more classes in that building. Some teachers work in more than one building and are counted in the number for both buildings.

	Number	Average Years at Norris
Elementary Building	45	11.04
Middle School Building	29	11.38
High School Building	41	10.72

Number of Other School Personnel

	Elementary	Middle School	High School	District
Clerical Personnel	1.0	1.0	2.0	3.0
Health Aides	1.0	1.0	1.0
Guidance Counselors	1.0	1.0	1.0
Media Specialists	1.0	.5	.5
Special Education Resource	3.0	2.0	3.0
Behaviorally Disabled	1.0	.5	.5
Speech Therapists	1.5	.5`	.5
Pre-School Special Education	1.0
Title I	2.0
Psychologist/SE Coordinator				1.0
Technology Coordinators				2.0
Para-Professionals	23	5	7
Food-Service Workers				12
Maintenance Personnel	4	2	4	3
Transportation Personnel				21

Administrative Personnel

Professional Preparation of Staff

The table below lists the number of certified staff employed at Norris during the 2002-03 school year according to their highest degree.

Expenditure by Program

CATEGORY	AMOUNT	CATEGORY	AMOUNT
General Instruction	4,527,001	Health Services	54,855
English Supplies	30,400	Safety & Security Services	1,000
Speech Supplies	1,525	Co-curricular Activities	268,465
Foreign Language Supplies	3,700	Staff Development	26,647
Social Studies Supplies	5,470	Library and Media	245,263
Mathematics Supplies	15,473	Technology Support	121,239
Computer Science Supplies	90,850	Board of Education	40,075
Science Supplies	47,478	Superintendent’s Office	135,585
Home Economics Supplies	7,613	Assistant Superintendent’s Office	114,437
Physical Education Supplies	2,805	Building Administration	535,612
Art Supplies	7,100	Business Support Services	179,509
Music Supplies	17,000	Plant Operation	815,116
Diagnostic Services	83,820	Plant Maintenance	148,500
Orthopedic Services	38,300	Regular Transportation	607,913
Speech Therapy Services	117,118	Special Education Transportation	71,837
Auditory Impaired	30,000	Mentor Program	2,526
Visually Impaired	800	Quality Ed Accountability Act	20,000
Special Education Resource	773,290	Nebraska Learn and Serve	2,000
OH Homebound	2,691	Title I	131,090
Contracted Educational Services	860,000	Title I Neglected	10,000
High Ability Learners	21,624	ESEA Title VI National Goals	5,939
Drivers Education	8,958	Title IV-B OV-B Pre-School	104,575
Trades and Industries	67,011	School to Career	500
Vocational Agriculture	134,045	Summer School-Fundamentals	21,246
Business Salaries and Supplies	128,916	No Child Left Behind	51,191
Guidance Salaries and Supplies	207,451

Revenue by Source

The table below indicates the revenue and the amount from that source for the 2002-03 school year.

Assessed Property Valuation and Valuation per Pupil

The actual valuation of property within the boundaries of the Norris School District according to the latest figures is $436,088,253. The figure jumps to $496,171.732 when including affiliated property from the Cheney and Rokeby school districts. All property in Class I districts such as Cheney and Rokeby had to be affiliated with a K-12 school district several years ago. Some of their property is affiliated with Norris; other property is affiliated with other neighboring districts such as Lincoln, Crete, or Bennet-Palmyra.

Transportation Budget

	Regular	Special Ed
Wages	299,939	41,894
Benefits	70,974	11,311
Physical & Drug Testing	3,000
Electricity	9,500
Fuel	55,000	5,000
Parts & Tires	50,000
Repairs & Maintenance	32,000	5,000
Purchases	65,000
Insurance	12,500	2000
Other	10,000
Contracts with Parents		500
Depreciation		6,000
TOTAL	607,913	71,837

Student Transportation Information

All students who reside in the Norris School District have the opportunity to ride to and from school by bus. Each student has been assigned a designated pickup and drop off point and time. However, a number of students, especially those with a drivers’ license or school permit chose to drive to and from school themselves. Many other children are brought to school by parents on their way to work and picked up after school. Several ride with older brothers and sisters. At the present time 20 buses drive a total of 1630 miles per day to transport an average of 905 students to and from school each day. That means about fifty-five percent of the students ride the bus to and from school. In addition 4 vans transport 20 students with special needs to and from the pre-school program, a neighboring school district, or one of the three district buildings. These vans drive approximately 330 total miles per day. Nebraska State School Law requires schools to transport children who live 4 or more miles from the school site to and from school, except option students. All but 192 children live outside the 4 mile radius from school. However, the district has chosen make transportation available for all children and all children, regardless of distance residing from the school site, have been assigned a bus route. Option students are usually brought to the nearest bus stop by their parents. Many children, especially high school students, drive their own vehicle to and from school. Others are brought to school by parents or siblings on their way to and from work or school.

High School Courses

English Department	English 9, Composition 10, College Prep Composition 10, English 11, AP English 11, Senior Technical Writing, Senior Composition/British Literature, English 1010-SCC, English 2100-SCC
Math Department	Applied Math 1-2, Applied Math 3-4, Applied Math 5-6, Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, Advanced Algebra/Trigonometry, Trigonometry/Algebra III, Pre-Calculus, Calculus, College Calculus, Discrete Math, College Algebra 1150-SCC..
Science Department	Science 9, Biology, Applied Biology, Physiology, Biology II, Chemistry, Physics
Social Studies Department	Civics, Global Perspectives, American History 11, Advanced Placement American History, Modern Problems, Introduction to Psychology-SCC, Introduction to Sociology-SCC, Human Life Span-SCC.
Agriculture	Introduction to AgriScience, Companion Animals, Floriculture, Welding, Landscaping, Natural Resources, Advanced Welding, Ag Management, Ag Skills & Technology, Soil Science, Animal Science, Ag Leadership, Ag Lab Class, Horticulture
Art	Introduction to Art, Ceramics, Beginning Drawing, Individual Advanced Art, Beginning Oil Painting, Print Making, Sculpture, Graphics Design, Advanced Graphics Design, 2-D Design, Advanced 2-D Design, Advanced Ceramics, Senior Art
Business	Beginning Computer Applications, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Access, Business Management, Economic Perspectives, Accounting, Advanced Accounting, College Accounting, Business Law I, Business Law II
Computers	Visual Basic, Internet Publishing, Independent Study-Advanced Programming, Internet Publishing, Cisco Academy, Advanced Internet Publishing
Journalism	Yearbook
Speech & Drama	Speech 10, Theater I, Theater II, Speech Communications, Forensics
Family and Consumer Science	Teen Economics, Beginning Clothing, Beginning Foods, Advanced Clothing, Advanced Foods, Parenting, Child Development, Housing Design, Independent Living, Adult Living, Food Science
Industrial Technology	Engineering Drafting/Design 1, Engineering Drafting Design 1-2, Architectural Drafting 1, Architectural Drafting 1-2, Wood Technology I, Wood Technology II, Advanced Woods, Small Engines, Technology Laboratory 1and 2, Applied, Industrial Technology, CADD I, CADD II, Machine Tools 1 and 2, Principles of Electronics, Advanced Industrial Technology, Car Care, Construction Technology, Comp. Hard. Tech, IT Essentials 1-A+,
Music	Senior High Band, Flag Corps, Mixed Choir, Titan Singers, Show Choir, Music Theory, Jazz Band
Physical Education	Body Conditioning, Team Sports, Lifetime Sports, Aerobics, Personal Fitness
Spanish	Spanish I, Spanish II, Spanish III, Spanish IV
Other	Driver Education, Student Assistant, Student Tutor, School-To-Career, Study Hall, Enrichment 9, Distance Learning, Co-op, Student Internship

Graduation Requirements

In addition to the above requirements, students must earn a total of 240 credit hours to be eligible to graduate.

Follow-up Studies of Graduates

The post-secondary plans of the graduating class of 2002 (120 students) are illustrated in the graph below.

Several students attending Southeast Community College in Lincoln are in the academic transfer program, which means their credits will transfer to a 4-year institution should they so desire at a later date.

Building Needs and Plans

The ten-room addition to the Elementary Building opened in the fall of 2002. The new addition houses six Kindergarten classrooms, one 1^st grade room, one 2^nd grade room, one pre-school Special Education room, and one swing room to accommodate future needs. A new driveway off Princeton Road, as well as a parking lot, will allow parent drop-off and pick-up of Kindergarten students.

Beginning with the 2002-03 school year, the all-day-every-day Kindergarten will be implemented for the first time. Parents who prefer the current all-day-every-other-day pattern for their Kindergarteners will be accommodated.

The Elementary building project also included some renovation of existing space. One set of student rest rooms was be enlarged, faculty restrooms were added, and the nurse’s office enlarged. Two of the old Kindergarten rooms have become the new Library/Media Center, and the existing library was renovated into a 4^th grade classroom and a special education room. Now that the project is finished, each of the grades and Kindergarten has five classrooms. There are two extra rooms to accommodate the occasional larger-than-average class coming through the system. Projected enrollment numbers indicate that this addition should take care of Elementary space needs through 2012 at the minimum.

Other facility improvements include the green house, located west of the High School parking lot, for horticulture and science classes. Completion occurred during the 2001-02 school year.

Landscaping of the Norris Park area, south of the High School, is an ongoing project. The Norris Schools are always appreciative of donations of trees as memorials or for any other purposes.

As one of its goals for the 2002-03 school year, the board of education is studying enrollment trends in the secondary (middle school and high school) building and doing some preliminary planning for additional space to this facility should enrollment growth continue at its current rate.

Age of Buildings

Original elementary building (1969)

Original junior/senior high building (1970)

Shops, music, and home economics addition to high school (1974)

Middle school addition (1979)

Elementary music, computer lab, and classroom addition (1988)

High school auditorium, welding shop, and classroom addition (1988)

All weather track and football field (1990)

Elementary special education addition (1993)

District offices, distance learning, and high school classrooms addition (1996)

Elementary art and gymnasium addition (1996)

Norris Park, soccer and softball fields, marching band field (1999)

Elementary kindergarten and other classroom addition (2002)

Americans with Disabilities Act

Norris School District is in full compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act by insuring that persons with disabilities have access to all programs provided by the school district.

Distance Learning

The Norris School District has a distance-learning laboratory completed in the 1996 secondary facilities bond issue. This laboratory seats 18 students with four monitors, two cameras, and a control console. The school district belongs to the Southeast Nebraska Distance Learning Consortium, which includes post-secondary institutions, service units and about 70 other public schools in southeast Nebraska. Instruction is two-way, interactive audio and video, so that students from as many as 4 sites can see and hear each other as well as the instructor at all times. The laboratory also has been used to conduct meetings that would otherwise require travel time and inconvenience. Future use will center on expanding the offerings available from post-secondary institutions as well as staff development opportunities for the teaching staff. In addition to the laboratory, Norris has purchased a portable cart which enables distance-learning to be moved to any of classroom simply by moving the cart into the classroom and connecting it to the media outlet within the room.

Internet Access

Norris students and staff have the Internet and World Wide Web available to them through any one of approximately 350 computers located within the district. Galaxy Communications provides the hookup for the district while Microsoft Internet Explorer software is used to actually access and communicate over the Internet. E-mail access is provided through the district's Microsoft Exchange e-mail server. The district utilizes a filtering system to help insure that sites deemed inappropriate are not accessed and employs an appropriate use policy or agreement with all students and staff. The school district also has a web site on the Internet (www.norris160.org). Individual building information such as curriculum, personal web pages for staff members, activities, and other related information are available. In addition, district information related to the district office, Board of Education, hot lunch or transportation, daily bulletins, etc. are available on the web site.

Local Area Computer Network

All computers in the Norris School District are connected to a Local Area Network (LAN), which enables users to access available educational software programs and/or send e-mail to any other user or computer. All student records are now maintained on our servers and include such items as attendance records and grades. Approximately 28-networked HP print devices handle all printing.

School Improvement Goals

Norris just completed the 4^th year of a five-year school improvement cycle. During this cycle, the school has made extensive efforts to improve student reading and writing skills and to better use technology to improve the teaching and learning process. Action plans with specific strategies to improve these skills have been developed and implemented. Staff development and training has been conducted. Progress has been closely monitored. The staff is now in the process of compiling and studying the results to determine if one or more of these goals should be maintained in the next five-year cycle. Technology will be maintained as an on-going, continuous goal since it is an area that is constantly undergoing changes. As a culmination activity, an external team of people with expertise in reading, writing, and/or technology will be brought into the school district next fall to validate Norris’ progress and make recommendations with regard to future school improvement efforts.