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APPENDIX I: CASE STUDY - CUMULUS HIGH SCHOOL
Background
Cumulus High School (CHS) is one of three comprehensive high schools in the
Cloud Unified School District (CUSD). This district, which recently celebrated its 100th
anniversary, serves approximately 26,500 students in its 20 elementary schools, four
middle schools, three comprehensive senior high schools, one continuation high school,
one magnet high school that emphasizes science and technology, a developmental center
for multi-handicapped students, and numerous preschool/childcare centers that serve
preschool and/or elementary school children.
Culumus HS is located in a suburb just outside Los Angeles and was the first of
the three high schools to open in the district. The campus opened in 1901 in the heart of
the city of Cloud as Cumulus Union High School, which served 29 students from many
of the surrounding communities. Cloud was a small country village at the time, and prior
to opening Cumulus Union High School, young people wishing to attend school had to
travel to Los Angeles for an education. In 1914, the people of Cloud passed their first
bond measure to expand the high school. By the 1920s, the school had expanded to just
over 1,000 students. Two additional bonds were passed in 1921 and 1922, dedicating
$100,000 to purchase a 21-acre lemon orchard and begin construction on the site of what
would become Cumulus High School. While the location of Cumulus HS has remained
unchanged for nearly 90 years, the site has undergone numerous construction projects to
expand and modernize its classrooms and athletic fields.
Object Description
| Title | Navigating troubled waters: case studies of three California high schools' resource allocation strategies in 2010-2011 |
| Author | Landisi, Brian Anthony |
| Author email | landisi@usc.edu; blandisi@charter.net |
| Degree | Doctor of Education |
| Document type | Dissertation |
| Degree program | Education (Leadership) |
| School | Rossier School of Education |
| Date defended/completed | 2011-03-28 |
| Date submitted | 2011 |
| Restricted until | Unrestricted |
| Date published | 2011-04-28 |
| Advisor (committee chair) | Picus, Lawrence O. |
| Advisor (committee member) |
Hentschke, Guilbert C. Nelson, John L. |
| Abstract | This study was conducted to examine instructional strategies and resource allocation in successful schools. The study was based on the analysis of three comprehensive high schools in one school district in Southern California. Each of the study schools increased students’ academic achievement over time as measured by sustained growth on California’s Academic Performance Index. The efforts of these study schools also contributed to narrowing the achievement gap.; Successful schools in this study were analyzed primarily through the lens of Odden’s (2009) 10 Strategies for Doubling Student Performance. In addition to effective organizational and instructional strategies, this study also analyzed human and fiscal resource allocation at the sample schools. The study used the Evidence-Based Model (Odden & Picus, 2008) to analyze how the schools allocated resources during 2010-2011, navigating a catastrophic economic crisis facing California and the rest of the nation. Interview data, student achievement data and information on school-level resource use were included in case studies on each of these successful schools.; The findings indicate that although the resource use patterns of the study schools were significantly fewer than what the Evidence-Based Model suggests, the improvement strategies showed many commonalities to those suggested in the body of literature on school improvement. Strong leadership from the district office supported the reform efforts at each of the school sites. This leadership came in the form of a single district focus combined with continuity of leadership, development and retention of talent within the district and a common school improvement framework.; A heavy investment of time and fiscal resources into professional development created a collaborative culture within and between the high schools in the study. The schools that were most successful in raising student achievement demonstrated a commitment to collaboration and embraced the role of teacher leaders. The most effective schools in the study had in place internal accountability structures to support the implementation of the school and district focus. It is the effective implementation of research-based strategies, not simply resource allocation that makes schools successful and contributes to further growth in student achievement. Implications for policy and practice are discussed. |
| Keyword | education finance; secondary education; educational leadership; budget crisis; instructional leadership; Odden and Picus; resource allocation; school finance; school reform |
| Geographic subject (county) | Los Angeles |
| Geographic subject (state) | California |
| Geographic subject (country) | USA |
| Coverage date | 2010/2011 |
| Language | English |
| Part of collection | University of Southern California dissertations and theses |
| Publisher (of the original version) | University of Southern California |
| Place of publication (of the original version) | Los Angeles, California |
| Publisher (of the digital version) | University of Southern California. Libraries |
| Provenance | Electronically uploaded by the author |
| Type | texts |
| Legacy record ID | usctheses-m3797 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Rights | Landisi, Brian Anthony |
| Repository name | Libraries, University of Southern California |
| Repository address | Los Angeles, California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Filename | etd-Landisi-4355 |
| Archival file | uscthesesreloadpub_Volume14/etd-Landisi-4355.pdf |
Description
| Title | Page 212 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Full text | 200 APPENDIX I: CASE STUDY - CUMULUS HIGH SCHOOL Background Cumulus High School (CHS) is one of three comprehensive high schools in the Cloud Unified School District (CUSD). This district, which recently celebrated its 100th anniversary, serves approximately 26,500 students in its 20 elementary schools, four middle schools, three comprehensive senior high schools, one continuation high school, one magnet high school that emphasizes science and technology, a developmental center for multi-handicapped students, and numerous preschool/childcare centers that serve preschool and/or elementary school children. Culumus HS is located in a suburb just outside Los Angeles and was the first of the three high schools to open in the district. The campus opened in 1901 in the heart of the city of Cloud as Cumulus Union High School, which served 29 students from many of the surrounding communities. Cloud was a small country village at the time, and prior to opening Cumulus Union High School, young people wishing to attend school had to travel to Los Angeles for an education. In 1914, the people of Cloud passed their first bond measure to expand the high school. By the 1920s, the school had expanded to just over 1,000 students. Two additional bonds were passed in 1921 and 1922, dedicating $100,000 to purchase a 21-acre lemon orchard and begin construction on the site of what would become Cumulus High School. While the location of Cumulus HS has remained unchanged for nearly 90 years, the site has undergone numerous construction projects to expand and modernize its classrooms and athletic fields. |
