Surveys showed deep divide between teachers, administration at Williamsburg Schools

Read the full results for the Williamsburg Independent School District by clicking here.

The results of an anonymous survey given to all licensed school-based educators in Kentucky last year showed obvious discord between teachers and administrators at the Williamsburg Independent School District — a rift both sides say they are trying hard to repair in advance of a new round of surveys that will be administered this coming March.

The results of the 2013 TELL surveys — an acronym for Teaching, Empowering, Leading and Learning — showed large percentages of teachers in the school district negatively perceived leadership at the school district, felt as though access to materials needed to educate was lacking, and viewed the facilities themselves as dirty, improperly maintained and not conducive to education.

The surveys were administered last March to over 43,700 educators in Kentucky by a non-partisan group.

Some of the most alarming results:

• When asked if “the school environment is clean and well maintained,” 85 percent of teachers at Williamsburg either disagreed or strongly disagreed with the statement. The state average for those responding similarly was just 15 percent.

• 92 percent at Williamsburg disagreed with the notion that teachers “have an appropriate level of influence on decision making at the school.” The state average was just 33 percent.

• When asked if the faculty and leadership “have a shared vision,” only 26 percent agreed with that idea. Statewide, 84 percent of teachers agreed with that question on average.

• 80 percent of teachers at Williamsburg did not feel comfortable “raising issues and concerns that are important for them” according to the survey results. The statewide average of teachers responding similarly was just 28 percent.

• 56 percent did not feel the “environment of classrooms” at the school supported teaching and learning.

• 52 percent of teachers said they did not feel like they were “recognized as educational experts” as opposed to just 15 percent who felt similarly statewide.

Large majorities of teachers felt comparably negative about things like their influence over school budgeting and expenditures, input on selection of teachers, their role in leadership positions, impact on student discipline and other areas.

Denny Byrd, who is going in his 13th year as Superintendent of Williamsburg Schools, notes that just shy of 70 percent of teachers in the school district participated in the TELL survey process in March 2013 which may have skewed the results somewhat. He also said there were some retiring teachers who took the survey who may have responded more negatively than those at the beginning or middle of their careers.

At Corbin Independent Schools, 74.4 percent responded. At Whitley County Schools, nearly 97 percent of teachers responded to the survey. The state average was 86.66 percent. Results for school districts and schools with less than 50 percent participation were not reported.

“I certainly don’t think that’s an indication of the environment we have here right now,” Byrd said of the TELL results.
“It’s really improved a great deal as far as attitude and hard work. That’s a year old survey. I wouldn’t be sitting in this chair if I felt like that is what was happening right now.”

During the recent contested school board election in Williamsburg, several of the candidates said the results of the TELL surveys were troubling and, perhaps, should have served as a warning sign that the state accountability report card for the district would be bad news. Results showed the district ranks 155 out of 174 districts in Kentucky. The district’s score during this round of accountability was second worst in the state.

Bill Conn, a sixth grade science and social studies teacher at Williamsburg Schools — and president of the Williamsburg Education Association, a local arm of the Kentucky Education Association, the statewide union for school teachers — said the surveys were a “snapshot” of the particular time period in which they were taken. He said he believes teachers answered honestly, but said that great strides have been made in the past year to make improvements. The WEA represents about 90 percent of Williamsburg’s teachers.

“At that given point in time it was an accurate reflection of the way people felt,” Conn said.

“Things have changed. For the most part, the administration has been very receptive to our ideas about things like what professional development we need … at least we are at the table now. When those surveys were taken, it was crazy; and I think the TELL surveys reflected that at that point.”

Conn said teachers formerly did not feel they had a clear protocol in place for how to interact with school administrators when there was a problem or concern. Since, that process has been cleaned up and more clearly defined. If things go south, Conn said teachers are now encouraged to go directly to the Board of Education to report problems.

In addition, Conn said a “50/50 committee” has been formed, made up of half teachers and half administration (4 from each side), that meets weekly to discuss whatever issues need to be addressed. The result, he said, has been a general sense that teachers and administrators are becoming more cohesive.

“We have worked extremely hard on our union side, and I know the administration and the community all want the same thing … the ultimate goal of providing our kids with an excellent education,” Conn said. “I will be interested to see the results of the TELL 2015 surveys because I believe everybody is starting to get on that same page.”

Byrd said many of Williamsburg’s woes in the last accountability cycle could be blamed on low scores in the “Program Review” portion of the grading, which accounted for 23 percent of the overall score. Program Review is designed to encourage schools to offer students educational options in three main categories that are not typically considered part of the core curriculum: Arts and Humanities, Practical Living and Career Studies and Writing. Program Review results are self-graded by teachers in the school districts based on a rubric provided by the state. Scores in each category are scaled from 0-3.  The scores for each category are then added together. A total score of 8 or more ensures the district gets the maximum number of points in the final accountability assessment.

Byrd argues that Williamsburg self-grading of the Program Review was more brutally honest than other school districts

“I think we’ve made tremendous improvements in those things,” Byrd said. “I know it looked bad, but things are not as bleak as they seem. The Program Reviews definitely had a big impact on our final score. I don’t think we understood the importance of it right away, but it’s something we are working hard to fix.”

Byrd points to improvements in average ACT scores for juniors and seniors at Williamsburg High School, a high graduation rate, large numbers of students winning scholarship money and an ongoing program with the University of the Cumberlands where many students from Williamsburg also take college-level courses for dual credit.

2014 was the first year Program Review was included in accountability results. The entire way schools were graded on their effectiveness in educating students also changed three years ago. Byrd said small school districts with more limited finances, like Williamsburg, sometimes have a harder time making the transition.

“When we first started the transition, we were analyzing a lot of what was going on. We were a little bit slower deciding which direction we were going in,” Byrd said.

Byrd had a meeting with members of the school system’s Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO) shortly after state accountability results were released to sooth anxieties about the direction of the district. He said about 25 to 30 parents showed up.

A parent that attended the meeting, who asked to remain anonymous, said that while the question and answer session was “somewhat productive,” but said it took on a very “blame the parents” tone.

“The problem is leadership,” the parent said. “They have no leadership up there.”

Since, Byrd said everyone at Williamsburg Schools has used the accountability results as a “wake up call” to improve.

“I hope things improve. We are trying. I can’t guarantee anything. All I know is if what I see going on here right now,” Byrd said. “I think things are going to improve tremendously. I think you will see a lot of growth.”

Byrd said he’s working diligently with the Board of Education to constantly find ways to improve the district’s technology and teaching materials to ensure students are keeping pace with their counterparts in other districts.

As far as the physical issues with the district’s facilities, Byrd admitted it’s a work in progress and said more people have been hired to clean the school building and make necessary repairs.

According to the school district’s most recent facilities plan, filed with the Kentucky Department of Education in 2013, the top priority is major renovation and additions to older portions of the school including: “security upgrade, parking lot and site improvements, playground relocation, roof replacement, new exterior doors and hardware, new acoustical ceiling tile and grip, new auditorium carpet, new cafeteria flooring, restroom renovations” and a whole host of other improvements. The planned renovation, which would also include a new kitchen and cafeteria area, is estimated to cost $5.7 million.

Timeline for construction depends on offers of assistance from the state and the bonding capacity of the school district.
Conn said fixing some of the problems with the facilities has gone a little more slowly than other improvements, but noted there is some positive momentum.

“We’ve addressed the issue a couple of times and we are currently still working through it, especially the cleanliness of the school,” Conn said. “There has been progress, but it doesn’t happen overnight.”

Portions of the TELL survey results for Williamsburg from 2013 were in line with state results, or sometimes even surpassed them in a positive way.

Generally speaking, teachers in Williamsburg were roughly on par with state averages or even more positive and agreeable regarding questions about class sizes, non-instructional to prepare or being forced to do routine paperwork. Teachers also felt like community support for the school district was extraordinarily high.