ANSWER:

As a result of the FY 2019 reorganization of the Office of School Support and Improvement (OSSI), each of the three area associate superintendents is assigned a school support team comprised of three directors of learning, achievement, and administration, and nine learning and achievement instructional specialist positions. Each team collectively has expertise across content areas, special education, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) instruction, equity and cultural proficiency, gifted education, and principles of adult learning.  The instructional specialist positions are deployed within and across clusters of schools, including the following:

• Collaborate with other offices to design and deliver training to classroom teachers, including literacy and mathematics;
• Coach principals and school teams for school improvement, including data analysis, technology, and planning for and delivering professional learning;
• Support school-wide training on equity and cultural proficiency;
• Support the implementation of curriculum and assessments by observing instruction, providing feedback to teacher leaders, and modeling best practices;
• Assist with developing support plans for academic and behavioral interventions to meet the needs of students, including accelerated learners, students with disabilities, and English language learners; and
• Collaborate and coordinate with staff from other offices for the purposes of information sharing, providing updates, and coordinating supports to schools.

Multiple processes are used to monitor the impact of the work of the instructional specialists, including:

• The area school support teams meet twice a month to review school data, including student performance, leadership practices, and identify success and challenges that inform their work;
• Specialists conduct school visits and record work they are engaged in and share updates with the directors and the impact they are having; and
• The area associate superintendents meet weekly with the associate superintendents from other offices to ensure consistency of practice and inform the work of the OSSI specialists and staff in all offices with schools.
• The superintendent has met with the 27 instructional specialists on multiple occasions
  as well as the directors and associates along with the staff from the offices of Curriculum and Instructional Programs, Special Education, and Student and Family Support and Engagement to discuss this transition and how we are supporting students, staff,
  and schools. More meetings are scheduled during the coming months.