Grants & Reporting Can Be Overwhelming. They Mustn’t Distract from Student Needs

Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter

Compliance management has woven its way into almost every aspect of education, bringing along a complex set of policies to navigate and multiple requirements to meet. Schools are expected to comply with state mandates, states are beholden to federal oversight and both are all driven by the mission to improve equity and opportunities for students.

The burden of compliance reporting can feel overwhelming to districts already struggling with limited bandwidth. Like 86% of districts in Michigan, Van Dyke Public Schools, where I serve as superintendent, has been identified for improvement due to student poverty and a lack of resources. As a result, we are managing multiple state mandates, as well as more than 100 grants, many of which have their own reporting system.

It can be overwhelming, but the process has opened our eyes to innovative ways to address ongoing problems. By leveraging the power of data and relying on teachers’ expertise to transform it into tailored instruction, we have given students better opportunities for success.

1. Look at your partnership agreement as an extension of your continuous school improvement plan. While the metrics and standards of an agreement may differ from those you’ve established as a district, they deliver an additional set of insights to help discern if your goals for the next 18 to 36 months are on track for success.
   
   My district takes full advantage of data in determining whether to retain, refine or replace specific educational strategies, and whether changes are needed at the classroom, school or district level. For instance, identifying the root causes of low graduation rates both systemically and individually through data analysis provided us with the insights required to apply for and receive a grant for a college, career and graduation coach.

2. Embrace educators as the experts they are. Acknowledging vulnerability is one of the most important strategies superintendents have for building a strong team. Teachers are the best evaluators in determining what’s working — and isn’t — in the classroom. Encouraging them to help guide next steps is critical to moving the needle.
   
   Engaging our teachers in data analysis has empowered them to become skilled  in interpreting the findings and applying specific strategies to their daily instruction. We have used grant money to host teacher team meetings during the summer, and pay our educators their summer rate to attend. In these meetings, teachers apply their subject knowledge expertise to help all faculty members evaluate data and use it to plan for the fall.
   
3. Build a team outside of school to help navigate funding and compliance challenges. Everyone, from superintendents to education officials in county and state government, is overwhelmed by the deluge of data to wade through. By keeping students at the center, it is possible to find common ground and new opportunities to ensure their success.
   
   I recently spoke with a member of the attendance committee in Michigan’s Macomb County schools and a neighboring superintendent about the positive impact home visits had on keeping students engaged during the pandemic. A shared wish to continue the practice to help address chronic absenteeism led to a collaborative grant request. This fall, a home visit provider came on board to help identify attendance barriers for students and provide social-emotional support to families. This partnership frees up resources for both districts in terms of funding, hiring and reporting.

Superintendents should also invite local and state legislators into their schools so they can better understand the undue pressures of compliance while learning more about their district’s successes. Legislators must see educators and administrators as the experts in the room, understand the differences among districts in their state and get a complete picture of students’ needs. When those who approve the budgets make it a priority to directly observe the impact of increased funding on academic outcomes — and the setbacks due to a lack thereof — they may approach future funding with a new frame of mind. 

The demands of compliance management and data analysis often overshadow the very work that funding was approved for. It almost feels like a self-fulfilling prophecy: Schools are allocated dollars to address significant problems, such as staff shortages or lack of appropriate resources for students, but can’t make the needed fixes because data and facts take priority over action and intervention. Superintendents must get creative to bring successful student outcomes back to the forefront by cultivating a collaborative team of experts eager to transform data into goal-focused action plans. Yes, the work is difficult, but when it comes to students’ educational futures, it is well worth it.

Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter