David Safier

by David Safier It astounds me that three TUSD principals are facing nonrenewal based on a single criterion: their students' scores on the AIMS test. Period. No consideration of other measures of academic success. No consideration of aspects of a school's education like improvements in the learning atmosphere, specialized programs, student safety or students' attitudes … Read more

by David Safier

On Monday, TUSD indicated it had slated 4 principals for removal because their schools had D grades from the state two years in a row. At last night's Board meeting, 3 of the 4 principals' contracts were not renewed, though if they receive a C or better rating from the state this year, they could be reinstated. The fourth principal, I was told by Pedicone's office, was taken off the nonrenewal list, though I wasn't told why.

I wanted to find a way of evaluating the 4 principals' effectiveness using something other than students' scores on the state test which are used to calculate the school's grade, so I spent some time compiling data from the districts' yearly School Quality Survey Summaries. The surveys, spanning 2007 to 2013, are completed by staff, parents and students. They are a series of statements which can be marked Strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree or N.A./Don't Know. I checked to see if there was a significant change in the evaluations from before and after the current principals began at that school and if there were any significant trends during their tenure.

Here's a summary of my findings:

• Rex Scott, Catalina Magnet High: Scott's evaluations are markedly better than those of his predecessor and on a par with or better than the district-wide evaluations.
• Heidi Aranda, Ochoa Magnet Elementary: Aranda has been with the school since 2002, so I couldn't compare her with her predecessor. Her evaluations vary considerably from year to year, with the high points being 2008, 2012 and 2013, all of which are significantly stronger than 2009-2011.
• Mark Alvarez, Manzo Elementary: Alvarez's evaluations are comparable to, though a bit lower than, the principal he replaced beginning in 2010. Both principals have reasonably high evaluations with very few negatives.
• Cindy Shepard-Mady, Utterback Magnet Middle: Shepard-Mady took over as principal in 2011. Her short, two year tenure may be the reason she was taken off the nonrenewal list. However, her evaluations are the only ones with a serious red flag. Her first year's evaluation is a bit lower than that of her predecessor, but her most recent evaluation took a sharp dip, with the staff giving her significantly lower marks than they did her first year.

To the extent these evaluations reflect the job the principals are doing, Rex Scott is doing an exceptional job, Heidi Aranda and Mark Alvarez appear to be competent principals who should be observed more carefully before a decision is made not to renew their contracts, and Cindy Shepard-Mady appears to have lost the confidence of her staff, which may indicate that she isn't an effective principal. Ironically, Shepard-Mady is the only principal in the group with serious red flags in her evaluations, yet she is the only one guaranteed for renewal.

Read further to learn about my findings in a bit more depth.