KDE group studies Owensboro Public Schools arts program

As KSN&C readers know, I have expresed serious reservations about the potential effectiveness of program reviews as a barometer of student achievement. But program reviews are a part of Senate Bill 1 and KDE is taking steps toward developing a process.

This from the Messenger-Inquirer (subscription):

A Program Review Committee from the Kentucky Department of Education visited
Owensboro Public Schools' fine arts programs Thursday as part of its work to get a feel for what a "program review" would look like.

Senate Bill 1 mandates on-site visits or program reviews for public school districts' arts and humanities, practical living/career studies and writing portfolios programs as part of Kentucky's new assessment system now being developed.OPS was recommended as having an "outstanding comprehensive arts program," said Robert Duncan, an arts and humanities consultant with KDE and a committee member.

The group sat in on classes and learned about programs...

While the arts are part of the process, they are not part of the pen-and-paper assessment.The committee is looking at programs as a whole."It's too early to tell what exactly the process will look like," [Greg Finkbonner, the Humanities branch manager at KDE] said. "Part of the process is program review development, and we're going out and visiting schools to get first-hand experience of what a program review might look like."The state envisions comprehensive arts, not an art class, said Duncan, who spent 28 years as an art teacher.The Owensboro visit is a fact-finding trip, he said. The group also plans to visit three schools in Fayette County...

Book details Owensboro Public Schools history

This from the Messenger-Inquirer by way of KSBA:

“A History of the Owensboro Public Schools,” which highlights the development and growth of the school system over 137 years, will go on sale Monday.

The 372-page book is available in hardback for $35 and softcover for $25.

“A lot of people contributed a little piece of information, a memory or a photograph,” said Julie Ellis, the district’s public relations coordinator.

Ellis and former Superintendent Bill Chandler spent large blocks of time over four years gathering pictures and reading, summarizing and relaying information for the book.

“It’s a relief to see it completed,” Ellis said.

Tuesday at a board of education luncheon. “It’s an accomplishment to get it all together into a researchable document. Hopefully it will be helpful for people for years to come.”

The project started as an attempt to help students and others who came to the board office to do research. The board and administration wanted to provide researchers with some basic information.

“Dr. (Larry) Vick also suggested starting archives, and we had a room upstairs devoted to it,” Ellis said. “And then the project grew from 150 pages to 372. We had to finally stop.”

One of Ellis’ sons had compiled a history of OPS for a research paper at Owensboro High School, and that formed the basis for her research...