COMPREHENSIVE NEEDS ASSESSMENT of the entire school (including the needs of migrant children) with information about the academic achievement of children in relation to the state academic content standards.
Describe the process utilized to conduct the comprehensive needs assessment for this school.

Pines Lakes Elementary is a community school that has 543 students enrolled.  Our students come from a wide variety of diverse backgrounds and cultures.  Demographic school information schools that 50% of students and families identify as Hispanic, 30% African American, 10% Caucasian and 10% Mixed Race/Ethnicity.  At the begininng of the school and for any new registration we provide families with an opportunity to disclose infromation related to Migrant status or Homelessness.  To date, we currently do not have any Migrant families enrolled.  We have several families that have reached out regarding homelessness and we have made connections with various community and district agencies to help them.

With respect to academic achievement, Pines Lakes Elementary has improved from a D to a B rated school over the past three instructional years.  In 2018, we improved our overall school score by one percentage point to strengthen our B rating.  We attribute this steady climb to data driven instruction and ongoing assessment that helps to guide instruction that meets the needs of our students.  Through data chats and formative assessment, teachers analzye trends and work to provide students with support in areas that have evidenced deficiencies.  We share this information with parents and families through a variety of means and ask them to identify areas they would like to see addressed in our school.  

Instruction by HIGHLY QUALIFIED TEACHERS in all core content area classes
List instructional staff and paraprofessionals that are NOT highly qualified (instructional staff only).

All employees on staff are highly qualified.

ATTRACT HIGH-QUALITY, HIGHLY QUALIFIED TEACHERS to the school.
Describe strategies that will be used to attract high-quality, highly qualified teachers.

The district's Talent Acquisition & Operations department, as well as a district level Teacher Recruitment Committee work collaboratively to retain and recruit highly qualified, certified-in-field, educators. Pines Lakes Elementary School’s collaboration with the district is evidenced by participation in ‘Experience Broward’ Teacher Recruitment Fairs. Vacancies are filled with candidates interviewed at the recruitment fair and referred by the district's instructional staffing department. Retention of teachers is a top priority of our school. Teachers are cultivated and nurtured at Pines Lakes Elementary School to grow professionally. We retain highly qualified, certified-in-field, effective teachers in our school by utilizing the Teacher Induction for Effectiveness and Retention (TIER Liaison) with monlthy meetings, Professional Learning Communities (Reading Coach), District Trainings (District Personnel), quarterly School-Based Professional Development (Leadership Team / Team Leaders), monlthy Teacher Recognition and Incentives (Administration).

Pines Lakes Elementary has culture that we encourage growth and development for all employees.  Several of our ESPs have become classroom teachers.  We also have partnerships with various colleges to help develop interns and the next generation of classroom teachers.  By doing so, we are able to identify, attract and recruit high quality candidates that are already familiar with school-based processes and procedures.

 

Title I, Part A
Title I funds provide additional teachers to assist students, particularly low performing students.

Staff Development funds are used to develop a comprehensive professional training program to improve delivery of instruction through a variety of workshops designed to move teachers to mastery and improve student achievement.  At the beginning of the school year we provide all faculty members with a profession development survey.  Using data from said survey, we develop a professional development committee that provides insight and recommendations for trainings on the early release and teacher planning days that permit professional development.  Our targetted PD for this year focuses on behavior training, RtI proccesses, and Writing instruction.

Parental Involvement funds are utilized to fund quarterly Pines Lakes STEM Family nights that provide parents with hands on learning opportunities and fun family events that focus on STEM project based learning.  During the evening, parents are exposed to new skills to support student learning at home. Improving the frequency and quality of family participation and increasing family literacy are also goals of our parental involvement component. Monies are used to purchase food, supplies/materials, and provide stipends for teacher presenters. We have noticed that we increase attendance by combining student showcase events like our Chorus/Drummers/Recorder clubs.  Additionally, funds are used to provide small food based incentives as well.

Title I, Part C- Migrant
(Migrant-Title I schools have been advised if Migrant students attend their school)

Thus far we have zero migrant students enrolled.  Collaboration with community agencies will take place to ensure that needed services such as health and nutrition are provided. Remediation and tutoring services will be provided as needed.

Title I, Part D
Neglected and Delinquent

Students identified as neglected and/or delinquent will be connected to a school social worker through the Student Services Department who will provide support and community resources.

Title II
(District professional development)

Teachers participate in professional development linked to improved student achievement in the Florida State Standards.

Title III
(ESOL)

All students are being instructed by certified, ESOL endorsed teachers.  Pines Lakes employs a paraprofessional who works closely with our ELL population.  This staff member impacts 127 ELL students through delivery of support and intervention programs.  This staff member serves as liaison between the school and ELL community.

Title X- Homeless
(Homeless- All Title I schools may complete with this statement)

Teachers and staff members are responsible for helping to identify homeless students and referring them to the Homeless Education program offered by the district. The purpose of the Homeless Education Program is to identify homeless students, remove barriers to their education, including school enrollment, provide them with supplemental academic and counseling case management services as well as linkages to their school social worker while maintaining school as the students stable environment.

Supplemental Academic Instruction (SAI)

SAI funds will be utilized to fund an afterschool tutoring program to assist struggling students. 

Violence Prevention Programs

Pines Lakes Elementary school implements the County Student Code of Conduct and follows the District Discipline Matrix. Pines Lakes enforces the District’s Anti-Bullying Policy and has a zero tolerance for bullying and violence. Bullying prevention programs are supported through Peer Counseling/Conflict Mediation programs, guest speakers and student behavior assemblies.  We utilize a token economy with PAW bucks, outlined in our SWPBP to provide positive reinforcement and opportunities for students to be rewarded for meeting and exceed expectations.  Our guidance counselor and support facilitators utilize LEAPs intervention programs to help students and groups of student develop stronger social skills.

Nutrition Programs

Nutritional programs and health education are an integral part of our school, specifically through the Physical Educational curriculum and federal initiatives of the Broward County Public Schools Food & Nutrition Department.

Housing Programs

Referrals are made to the school social worker, when parents are in need of housing or food.  Additionally, the front office staff takes note of families expressing a need and passes this information on to administration and/or the guidance counselor.

Head Start

We do not have a Head Start program at Pines Lakes Elementary School.

Adult Education

Parents and other adults of the community requesting ESOL, GED, or other continuing education programs are referred to the district's community school for services through our school social worker.

Career and Technical Education

Pines Lakes Elementary School is a STEM School that provides opportunities for students to examine careers in the fields of aviation, engineering, science, technology and math.  

Job Training

Through the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and SELECT + (Students Embracing a Learning Environment for Collegiate Training) students work through rigorous curriculum and use technology to build skills and also research and experience different career fields, and colleges and universities.  Students visit different engineering facilities and also participate in Career Day.  Eighth grade students participate in an annual trip to Junior Achievement (JA) Finance Park to explore different career options and receive minor training in selected fields.
 

Other

Student Listeners - Selected students participate in the Listener program as recommended through our RtI Process. We are in the process of recruiting listeners from a partnership between our school and Southwest Focal Point Community Center.

Pre-School Transition

Pines Lakes Elementary School services eight classes of Specialized PreK ESE (formerly Preschool Learning Activities Classroom Experience-PLACE) and one VPK class. The teachers conduct vertical articulation meetings during the school year to ensure that the transition from the early childhood programs to kindergarten program is smooth. A Kindergarten Orientation is also held prior to the beginning of the school year. This gives the incoming kindergarten students an opportunity to meet their new teacher and get acclimated to their classroom. Additionally, parents are given an overview of the kindergarten curriculum and expectations.

Parent Involvement Goal:
Based on the analysis of the parent involvement data, identify and define an area in need of improvement.

The goal of PLE is to increase parental involvement in school events to at least 70% for the 2018-2019 school year.  All parent involvement activities will include engaging activities that offer opportunities to learn about student achievement and available resources.  The Parent Involvement Plan was developed and reviewed with SAC prior to approval by our stakeholders.  Feedback recieved include the request for building additional partnerships with local state and college resources.