At a July 11 meeting in the Gordon Persons Auditorium, the Alabama State Board of Education heard a progress report on the department’s statewide school turnaround effort and was told federal reviews found the state met requirements for special education and had no errors in its first-round ESSER audit.

Dr. Mackey, an Alabama State Department of Education official, opened the report and introduced AJ Butner, who leads the department’s work on turnaround schools. "We have 15 schools that are selected," Butner said, and described the effort as a statewide initiative with "large concentrations in Birmingham and then across the Black Belt" and outlying schools in Mobile, Dothan and Huntsville.

The update described a mix of academic and nonacademic supports deployed to the 15 schools, including expanded literacy work (led by Courtney Wilbour), special-education specialists, RTI coordinators, MTS coaches, math support from Dr. Anderson’s team, computer science assistance through a "Technology in Motion" effort, and partnerships with the Department of Early Childhood, Department of Human Resources, Department of Mental Health and Amped Up Arts. Butner said the program pairs district leadership with a "thought partner" — Tim Solly — to coordinate improvement work and board members were shown a principal calendar and a curriculum-director guide designed to standardize supports across months.

"We've really been boots on the ground for about 8 months," Butner said, describing classroom observations, principal interviews and student interviews used to assess needs. "I'm going to forecast to you that many of these schools will not only be in the clear, but they will be high Cs and Bs in the coming in the very near future," he said.

Dr. Mackey highlighted two federal reviews as evidence of administrative progress. He said a U.S. Department of Education IDEA review found "Alabama meets all the requirements of IDEA," and that in the first-round ESSER audit Alabama was "the only state that got 0 errors in their first round of ESSER report." Both items were presented as reports to the board rather than formal votes.

The board also recognized Dr. Karen Anderson with a resolution naming her employee of the quarter; Dr. Mackey said legislators who saw her recent presentation called her a "rock star."

Board members emphasized that the goal is sustainable community improvement rather than short-term fixes to remove schools from accountability lists for a single year. The presenters described a focus on recruiting and retaining school leaders and teachers, aligning instruction to grade-level standards while providing multi-tiered supports, and building community trust through on-site engagement and support services.

The meeting concluded with a reminder that the next State Board meeting is scheduled for Aug. 10, 2023, at 10 a.m. in the Gordon Persons Auditorium.