District outlines targeted support plan and paid weekly PD for two elementary schools identified for improvement

Shenandoah County staff detailed a targeted support and improvement (TSI) plan for Sandy Hook and W.W. Robinson after state identification of student subgroups performing below benchmarks.

Staff said the root-cause analysis found insufficient alignment between general and special education (parallel planning) and that improving outcomes for students with disabilities requires shared instructional expectations. Both schools selected two evidence-based instructional practices: explicit decoding and word analysis for K–3 and multisyllabic/complex-text strategies for grades 4–5 in reading; and concrete and visual representations in math to build conceptual understanding.

Implementation will include weekly after-school professional development (two paid hours per week: one collaborative hour and one independent hour), facilitators at each school, classroom walkthroughs, and benchmark data monitoring. The district plans to allocate about $45,000 per school to support the plan, supplementing with Title I and other funds as needed for W.W. Robinson because it has more teachers.

Staff said monitoring will emphasize classroom practice first (walkthroughs and facilitator observations) with student data following later, and they acknowledged that state reporting and data timelines delayed identification until December.

What happens next: Staff will roll out PD (Sandy Hook hoped to start the following week, Robinson to start the week after) and will bring a multi-year plan to the board for formal approval at a future meeting (Feb. 12 noted as an action date for related approvals).