2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

2017 Community Satisfaction Survey Report

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Background: Building on the valuable information gleaned from the 2010 dissemination of the Community Satisfaction Survey, an updated survey was made available to the public in the spring of 2017. This report will provide compiled data outlining the findings from each major segment of the survey. The goals of the survey were to obtain current opinions from both the staff and the Aspen community at large regarding the strengths and areas for improvement for the Aspen School District. The survey encompassed topics regarding: overall satisfaction, specific school functioning, feelings of welcome, areas that are performing well and areas that may need improvement.

An area that was brought to light in the 2010 survey was the dissatisfaction of the World Language program. Since that time, the District has made an effort to amplify and align those courses, which has resulted in a significantly increased satisfaction in that area.

This year, there were some new questions that pertained to the perceived value of standardized testing, whether their child has ever opted out of standardized testing, and the use of private tutors. The State of Colorado requires that the Aspen School District conduct standardized testing in order to establish accreditation and other ranking data. It is clear from the results of the survey that the community, especially parents, expressed mixed views on the topic. While understanding the need for the testing, respondents feel that it adds stress to their children’s lives and doesn’t provide timely results that ultimately affect their children’s future. The survey initiative was launched by the District Accountability Committee (DAC), a state mandated advisory committee of the Board of Education composed of parents, faculty and community representatives.

Survey Execution • • • •

The survey was administered online and was available from April 12 through May 5, 2017. Information regarding the survey was disseminated through a “blast” email, through the building principals to staff and parents, and a community-wide e-newsletter focused on non-parents. There were 68 questions that pertained just to a school and 14 questions about the District. The survey had 692 responses, with 385 responses about the District, 18 responses about the Cottage, 90 responses about Aspen Elementary School,

2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

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81 responses about Aspen Middle School, 65 responses about Aspen High School, and 53 responses about Aspen Community School. There was some duplication if a parent responded to both the District survey questions and then a particular school. The survey was completed by 285 parents, 84 staff members, 13 community members, and 3 students. All names and identifying details were scrubbed from the results.

Survey Weaknesses • • • •

The vast majority of the respondents were parents, so the results represent the voices of the community’s parent population. The questions and possible responses were not replicated exactly from the 2010 survey. There were a few added questions this year and the possible responses were increased from 3 to 6 this year (See Appendix A). The survey this year was longer than the previous survey with up to 64 items that a respondent had to answer for one school and if responding to more than one school the items could run over 100. Because of time constraints the proper principal factor analysis wasn’t executed. We can now run that analysis with our larger sample size, which may influence our questions in the future.

Respondent Statistics

The results of the survey represent responses for 24% of the student population of the district. Each school building: 12% for the high school, 18% for the middle school, 17% for the elementary school, and 44% for the community school. Satisfaction Ratings

Overall, the School District received high ratings on its performance with 71% stating that that agree or strongly agree that the district was preparing their child for success after graduation, with 13% disagreeing with that statement. Sixty-four percent (64%) said they felt welcome and 66% thought that the District Administrators were creating an environment that promotes learning. Feeling Welcome

Overwhelmingly respondents felt welcome at the schools with 82% at the elementary school satisfied or strongly satisfied and 6% were not satisfied. At the middle school 85% were satisfied or strongly satisfied and 6% were not satisfied. At the Community school 94% were satisfied or strongly satisfied and 4% were not satisfied. The high school 80% who were satisfied or strongly satisfied while only 4% were not satisfied.

2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

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The survey indicated that there was an overwhelming satisfaction with the welcome they receive when they are at the School District with only 9% feeling otherwise. A general tone for the survey was illustrated by comments such as:

“Great curriculum, great sense of community” and “overall the school district offers amazing extra-curricular, outdoor education and experiential programs that other programs do not”

Aspen High School The 2017 survey shows that participants felt that the high school is doing better in almost all academic areas compared with the results from 2010. The exception was a very small dip for Science. Also, in this survey the academic units of Visual Arts, Theater Arts, and Industrial Arts were added, so no comparison is possible.

AHS Curriculum: I am satisfied with….

100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

2010: Agree

2017: Very Satisfied and Satisfied

Out of a possible 4 rating, the high school received an average mark of 3.42 for curriculum satisfaction, with Visual Arts receiving the highest ranking with 3.77 and Musical Arts the lowest with 2.94. Respondents saw the most value in the Reading program with a score of 3.98 and least value in Theater Arts with a mark of 3.5. The survey showed that respondents felt that the students were most engaged with Visual Arts and least involved with Musical Arts.

2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

AHS Curriculum Survey: Spring 2017

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4

3.5

3

3 = Satisfied

2.5

Satisfaction

2

Value

1.5

Engagement

1

When asked if Aspen High School supports students to reach their individual academic potential. 72% of respondents Agree or Strongly Agree with the statement, while 10% Disagree.

When asked if Aspen High School prepares students for post-secondary college and career readiness, 72% of respondents Agree or Strongly Agree, while 12% Disagree. When asked, ‘I believe the Aspen High School IB program gives students the tools they need to be successful in higher education.’ 67% of respondents were in agreement, while 18% disagreed with the statement. Responses landed on one of the following three themes: • “I love the IB program. This should not be an elite program. All students should be in at least 1IB class. We should also look into MYP program.” • “Great opportunity offered for college prep and admission, AP classes would be a good addition for college credit.” • “Lots of late nights doing homework or test prep for those who also participate in team sports!”

Experiential Education got very high marks with 81% of respondents Satisfied and Strongly Satisfied, and 10% Unsatisfied. Responses for those who were not satisfied echoed along this theme, “I have yet to see the relevance to real life job training with these trips.” For most, responses ranged along the following themes: •

“I am delighted with the array of choices offered to students.”

2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

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“One of the best ways to experience the real world that is not Aspen.” “This is the best thing about AHS!!! Do not get rid of this program. It bonds kids together and is the reason Aspen HS is unique and not just an academic factory.”

Aspen Middle School In comparison with the 2010 survey, the middle school got mixed results. Satisfaction with PE/Wellness, World Language both went up with Reading, Writing, Math, Science, and ODE going down slightly.

AMS Curriculum: I am satisfied with….

100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

2010: Agree

2017: Very Satisfied and Satisfied

The respondents from the middle school viewed the value of the curriculum quite high for Reading, Writing, Math and Science with a 3.98 score, and an average rating of 3.78 for all content areas. However, respondents felt less certain with student engagement, giving the school an average of 3.39, the lowest overall score in the survey.

2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

AMS Curriculum Survey: 2017

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4

3.5

3 = Satisfied

3

2.5

Satisfaction

2

Value

Engagement

1.5

1

Outdoor education continues to be a highlight with parents, staff, and the community at large. The majority of respondents gave this program the highest marks and provided comments such, “Best public school outdoor program in the country!” and “ODE challenges our kids and helps them learn life skills.”

Overall the respondents praised the middle school teachers and commented on how much they care. Other areas of satisfaction were small class sizes, the front office staff and the principal.

Some common academic areas for improvement are the reading/writing curriculum and math, with some expressions of concern about the level of homework assigned in some grade levels.

Aspen Elementary School

The elementary school performed very well in the survey especially as it compares to the 2010 survey. Respondents were overall more satisfied in all academic areas in this survey with the biggest jumps in satisfaction being in Science, World Language, and Social Studies, which had all been areas of concern in the 2010 survey. The only slight dip in satisfaction was in the area of Outdoor Education.

2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

AES Curriculum: I am satisfied with…. 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

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2010: Agree

2017: Very satisfied & Satisfied

Areas of excellence included the caring teachers and staff, the individual attention to the students, and the relationship the staff has with the parents. “Love the attention given to each student,” and “some amazing and super dedicated teachers who love what they do!” are comments that are representative of many of the comments.

The elementary school viewed the value of the curriculum at 3.82 out of a 4-point scale. Respondents had very close scores for engagement and satisfaction at 3.55 and 3.56 respectively.

2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

AES Curriculum Survey: Spring 2017

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4.00 3.50 3.00 2.50

Satisfaction

2.00

Value

Engagement

1.50 1.00

Concern was voiced about the age of the facilities, and a perceived lack of music and theater options at AES.

Aspen Community School

The Aspen Community School ranked extremely high in the survey as it pertains to curriculum satisfaction. Respondents were 100% satisfied with the reading and writing curriculum and Math and Music just slightly behind. Respondents are more satisfied with all academic areas compared with the 2010 survey, with the exception of Outdoor Education, which went down moderately.

2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

ACS Curriculum: I am satisfied with….

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100%

95% 90% 85% 80% 75%

2010: Agree

2017: Very Satisfied & Satisfied

The overall feelings about the school were very positive with teachers, commitment to the students, the small school and class size, the principal, and the supportive culture all standing out. A common area of concern was the need for more science and social sciences incorporated into the curriculum.

The survey results reveal that overall the respondents ranked the community school extremely high in value with an average of 3.78 out of a 4-point ranking. Respondents ranked student engagement slightly lower at 3.63.

2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

ACS Curriculum Survey: 2017

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4

3.5

3

2.5

Satisfaction

2

Value

1.5

Engagement

1

ASD Preschool-Cottage When asked does the Cottage Preschool challenge students to reach their individual academic/intellectual potential? 89% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement. The Preschool/Cottage had not been included in the 2010 survey, results below are percentages of respondents who were satisfied or strongly satisfied with curricula programing.

2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

Preschool/Cottage: Percent Satisfied with the:

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72%

Communication from the Cottage Preschool.

78%

Dramatic Play curriculum

67%

Outdoor Education curriculum

78%

Use of playground time Use of play time

89%

Social emotional curriculum

89%

89%

Number sense awareness curriculum

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Parents are enthusiastic about the Cottage/Preschool staff with comments such as: “The teachers at The Cottage have exceeded my expectations. They go above and beyond to ensure my child is happy, healthy and well looked after every day she attends. This is our first year there, and I feel entirely confident in their abilities and their interest in my child. I really enjoy being a part of The Cottage.” “Love the teachers!” Several comments were directed at facilities with hopes of an upgrade: “Cottage would benefit from a facilities upgrade”

“The teachers and curriculum are great, but the buildings and equipment need updates. Rooms are very dark.”

Themes for Improvements and Next Steps Overall, respondents were quite positive about the status and direction of the Aspen School District. In addition to completing the quantitative section of the survey, 62.3% of respondents shared a statement or two about areas of strength and areas of concerns. Areas of Strengths included: • “Dedicated staff, parents and teachers who truly value education.”

2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

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“Education of the whole child - outdoor ed, experiential ed, focus on character of the child, along with great academics.” “It is highly valued and supported by the community.”

Comments regarding Areas in Need of Improvement aligned around the following themes: Strive for Improvement and Support Staff

Strive for Improvement: (N=60) “There are always ways to improve, but Aspen continues to (be) on a positive trajectory as evidenced by continued successes in and out of the classroom.” Teacher Salaries: (N=44) “Also salary needs to be improved [due] do to increase of cost of living within the valley.” Staff Retention (N=13) “Prioritize good teachers over programs.” Social & Emotional Support Student Stress (N=12) “The pressure put on students at a very young age to perform at a high level is very concerning to me.” Social Emotional Education (N=8) “Thank goodness the District partnered with others to start up the Family Resource Center and kudos to the district administration for discussing, reviewing and piloting a social emotional learning curriculum.” Perception of Substance Use (N=6) “Educate our teens, teachers and staff about the dangers of drugs and alcohol in a meaningful way that reaches them.” Communication (N=6) “It just takes more time when there is poor communication.”

Innovation Increase Innovation (N=5) “Coding…our kids should be learning coding starting in elementary school.” Alternative Educational Options (N=7) “I think we need to offer more programs to help kids excel in other post-secondary options besides a 4-year university”. Increase rigor (N=14) “Up [the] academic rigor at an earlier age.”

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Possible Next Steps Many of the areas around Need for Improvement are neither new, nor unexpected. We appreciate their place in the broader conversation about the evolution of the District and would like to address some of the topics in this summary. One thing that we want our readers to keep in mind is that some topics have disparate views, and at times present a mixed message. Teacher Salary and Retention Teacher salaries and retention are topics that the District has been wrestling with for some time. Aspen is a beautiful, rural, magical, and restricting place to live. It isn’t right for all teachers and some attrition takes place each year. An area of focus, both last year and this year, is to continue to source ways to attract and retain the quality staff that are so important to the educational health and well-being of our students. The Board of Education met with staff last spring and heard very clearly that the two most important factors in retaining staff are salary and affordable housing. We are currently analyzing opportunities to provide more affordable housing and we celebrate the continued support of the communities of Aspen and Snowmass Village in our quest to secure reliable local revenue streams for our District. The renewal of the City of Aspen sales tax, along with the Town of Snowmass Village ballot initiative, both of which successfully passed last November, allow us to continue to provide innovative programs, small class sizes and increase teacher salary. Working in collaboration with the Aspen Education Teacher Association, we have begun to craft a new salary schedule that can be competitive with districts across the state, and with the creation of an amplified Professional Advancement Plan, staff will be able to grow their skill set and be remunerated for their efforts outside of the classroom. We believe that these are all strongly held community values, and we will continue to make them a priority for our students.

Teacher retention has been a point of conversation. According to the TELL Report (2015) statistical models show weak connections between teaching and learning conditions and teacher attrition. So, while teaching conditions are important influences within the models, the models themselves do not illuminate many of the reasons why teachers leave their schools. A deeper dive into school conditions at the Aspen School District revealed that in earlier iterations of the TELL Survey, constructs in the areas of Managing Student Conduct, Professional Development/Growth, and School Leadership, while higher than state averages, could be improved. Strategies and practices were implemented over the last three (3) years to address these areas for improvement, and following a Principal Perception Survey to all staff in May 2017, several key areas saw spikes in satisfaction for leadership and teaching conditions.

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Academic rigor The District understands that our primary focus is to educate and prepare our students for the academic expectations of lifelong learning. We hire and monitor expert teachers who will stimulate and challenge our students. The District administration, along with the Board of Education, assess our students’ progress on a yearly basis and through interim and summative assessments, teacher reports, and anecdotal investigation. We adjust our academic guidelines and achievement goals accordingly. One rigorous measure for student mastery is the International Baccalaureate program. Through IB, students are encouraged to: think independently and drive their own learning, take part in programs of education that can lead them to some of the highest ranking universities around the world, become more culturally aware through the development of a second language, and be able to engage with people in an increasingly globalized, rapidly changing world. The International Baccalaureate figure below illustrates how our IB English and IB Math scores have increased significantly in the last three years as compared to the IB World Average.

2017 Aspen School District Community Satisfaction Survey Report

too much is degenerative.

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Another area of concern for our respondents was that our students are under too much stress. A certain amount of stress is productive,

According the Gallup Student Poll our students are less engaged and hopeful for their future than they were a few years ago.

The District needs to answer to those who want more rigor for their students, while understanding that each student has their own level of stress that can become detrimental. One way in which we have tackled the fine balance between rigor and stress has been to emphasize the education of the Whole Child with the introduction of a comprehensive social emotional curriculum that builds from five (5) pillars of Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, and Responsible Decision Making. You can read more by going to the Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning at http://www.casel.org/ . Substance abuse In Colorado, recreational and medicinal use of marijuana is legal for those 21 and older. Seventy Five percent (75%) of voters in Pitkin county approved Amendment 64 to legalize marijuana. There are eight (8) marijuana dispensaries within a few minutes drive of the District campus. According to the 2015 Healthy Kids Colorado Survey for Pitkin, Eagle, Grand, Summit and Garfield Counties, 39.4% of high school

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students drank alcohol in the past 30 days and 24.5% of high school students used marijuana in the past 30 days. Students who possess or consume illegal substance at school or school sanctioned events, including marijuana and other illicit drugs, are subject to disciplinary actions up to and including expulsion from school and contact with law enforcement. In addition to traditional disciplinary actions, promising practices like the Restorative Justice program are in use at all schools on campus. Restorative Justice is a process that brings together victims, offenders and community members to identify and repair harm caused by crime and conflict. As an alternative to the traditional justice system, which focuses on punishment, Restorative Justice seeks to repair harm by empowering victims and allowing offenders to take responsibility for their actions by giving them a way to make things right. Youth who are detained are five times more likely to be detained for future criminal behavior. Eighty six percent of the youth who complete a Restorative Justice process do not reoffend. Other avenue for bridging the fine balance between community values and the mixed messages that our students hear include our school based Resource Officers in each building who visit with students and parents, patrolling and safeguarding our district.

The District also hosts The Aspen Family Connection (AFC) where students and their families can access resources to help navigate the pressures of life and parenting, such as Communities That Care (CTC), a State of Colorado substance abuse prevention program that brings communities together via prevention science to promote healthy youth development. The CTC program, anchored by Community Health Initiatives, encourages parents to participate in this evidence-based approach to foster the success and health of young people from before birth through every stage of development. Communities That Care provides young people with the opportunities, skills and recognition that strengthen bonding with family, school and community. Strong bonds motivate young people to adopt healthy standards for behavior. Please watch for invitations to participate in CTC. In addition, the informational website principalsforprinciples.org and Good To Know Colorado along with the scientific work that Dr. Amir Levine at Columbia University has conducted on the effects of marijuana on the adolescent brain, all provide excellent resources for parents to educate themselves about the difficult task of raising a child in a rural and resort community.

There are other areas of concern that were addressed in the Community Satisfaction Survey beyond the ones highlighted here. Rest assured that each and every one of them has been read and deeply considered. The vast majority of comments were positive, and the fact that our District community grows each year, is proof that parents find what we offer, both inside as well as outside the classroom, appealing. But we always have room to improve and we value the suggestions and concerns that were expressed.