Pell City Schools

The Alabama Continous Improvement Plan (ACIP) is a mandatory, data-driven plan for all schools, especially Title I schools, detailing how they'll boost student achievement by setting goals, analyzing needs (using state tests, surveys, attendance), and outlining specific strategies, with teams of teachers, parents, and staff members involved in its annual creation and review.

Title I is the largest federal aid program for elementary and secondary schools. Title I provides money to school districts around the country based on the number of low-income families in the district. Each school district uses Title I funds to pay for extra educational services for children. The purpose of Title I is to ensure that all children have a fair, equal and significant opportunity to obtain a high-quality education and reach, at a minimum, proficiency on challenging state academic achievement standards and state academic assessments.

Part A of the Title I act embraces fundamental strategies to address the needs of the children served: A school wide focus on improving teaching and learning, flexibility at the local level in tandem with clear accountability for results, more focused targeting of resources on schools with the greatest needs, and stronger partnerships between schools and communities to support the achievement of children served.

Pell City has five “Title I” Schools:

• Coosa Valley Elementary School
• Eden Elementary School
• Iola Roberts Elementary School
• Walter M. Kennedy Elementary School
• Williams Intermediate School

A local educational agency that receives a subgrant under section 2121 shall use the funds made available through the subgrant to carry out one or more of the following activities:

1. Developing and implementing mechanisms to assist schools in effectively recruiting and retaining highly qualified teachers, including specialists in core academic subjects, principals, and pupil services personnel, except that funds made available under this paragraph may be used for pupil services personnel;
2. Developing and implementing initiatives to assist in recruiting highly qualified teachers (particularly initiatives that have proven effective in retaining highly qualified teachers), and hiring highly qualified teachers, who will be assigned teaching positions within their field:
3. Providing professional development activities that improve the knowledge of teachers and principals and, in appropriate cases, paraprofessionals;
4. Developing and implementing initiatives to promote retention of highly qualified teachers and principals, particularly within elementary schools and secondary schools with a high percentage of low-achieving students;
5. Carrying out programs and activities that are designed to improve the quality of the teacher force;
6. Carrying out professional development activities designed to improve the quality of principals and superintendents, including the development and support of academies to help talented aspiring or current principals and superintendents become outstanding managers and educational leaders.
7. Hiring highly qualified teachers, including teachers who become highly qualified through State and local alternative routes to certification, and special education teachers, in order to reduce class size, particularly in the early grades.
8. Carrying out teacher advancement initiatives that promote professional growth and emphasize multiple career paths (such as paths to becoming a career teacher, mentor teacher, or exemplary teacher) and pay differentiation.
9. Carrying out programs and activities related to exemplary teachers.

Title IV Part A:

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) was signed into law in December 2015.  It reauthroized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA).  Newly authorized under subpart 1 of Title IV, Part A of the ESEA is the Student Support and Academic Enrichment (SSAE) program.  The SSAE program is intended to improve students’ academic achievement by increasing the capacity of state educational agencies (SEAs), and local education agencies (LEAs), and local communities to provide all students with access to a well-rounded education; improve school conditions for student learning and improve the use of technology to improve the academic achievement and digital literacy of all students.  More information about this act can be found on the U.S. Department of Education website.

Title IV Part B

It is the purpose of the Rural Education Achievement Program (REAP) to address the unique needs of rural school districts that frequently lack the personnel and resources needed to compete effectively for Federal competitive grants; and receive formula grant allocations in amounts too small to be effective in meeting their intended purposes.  More information about REAP and Part B of Title IV can be found on the U.S. Department of Education website.