Administration Design Writing and editing Assisting principals Statistical services Data audits

Document management Translation Printing Web hosting Distribution Audit support and  compliance consulting

Administration. We'll register your accountability hosting page with the California Department of Education. We'll also register your district's SARC liaison as the contact person. And we'll provide work schedules and regular reminders of deadlines approaching. With a February 1, 2009 deadline for the 2007–2008 SARCs, managing time is more critical than ever.

Design. Good design communicates. This is especially vital in the dense statistical thicket of school data. The design team that has developed our reports has extensive experience in technical reports and visualization of quantitative data. And our design review process includes steady feedback from our parent panel and educator review team. The pay-off is evident in improved comprehension by both parents and educators. When you examine our design investment in test score reporting, you'll see how effectively the trends and patterns emerge from the page.

Writing and editing. Publishing professionals turn the specialized jargon of K-12 into the more common vocabulary spoken and read by the public you serve. The result is reporting that reads well, and which sets a tone of candor and clarity. Our editorial team applies a consistent touch by means of a style guide they've revised annually for the four years we've been in the business of accountability reporting. In addition, we're alert to the terms that may be "hot buttons" in this accountability era. For instance, we're well prepared to explain the limited meaning of concepts like Adequate Yearly Progress that may alarm your public unnecessarily.

Assisting principals. When your principals sit down to write the narrative portion of their SARC, they'll get extensive guidance from our workbook. Sample text, written prompts and ample explanations guide principals through their questions in far less time. Copyeditors will polish your principals' prose so it shines. If some of your principals would rather not write at all, we're prepared to interview them by phone.

Statistical services. Our investment in acquiring data from the California Dept. of Education enables us to bring 90 percent of your schools' facts to your reports on our own. We create some factors - like college-going rates of your high school graduates, and elementary and secondary credentials of your teachers — by delving deeper into the data sources. And we establish some benchmarks like county averages where the state hasn't issued them before. Trends of California Standards Tests enable districts with many low-scoring students identify the migration of students out of the bottom two proficiency bands.

Data audits. At times, data on teachers, students or test results will come back from the CDE in surprising form. These surprises can occur at several points in the data flow: with your teachers or principals when they file their CBEDS forms, with your district staff, with the testing firms that scan or process test results, or with the CDE staff that processes CBEDS filings. We'll identify aberrations, anomalies and statistical outliers so your team can resolve them before they're published.

Document management. Building coherent documents requires more than good writing and strong design. It takes page construction teams, typesetting specialists and software mavens who can build reports that work. The links that connect your Fact Sheets to the CDE's technical appendix known as the "template," are created by hand by our production technicians. The other links that lead to definitions or supplemental information are encoded with care. This makes for intelligent documents that work as effectively online as they do on paper.

Translations. Our translation services group is prepared to translate English into more than 18 languages. Their extensive experience with K-12 jargon, and idiomatic expressions in Spanish, give them an advantage over most nonprofessional translation firms. Their sensitivity to regional or national biases of Spanish translations gives them an extra sensitivity that's helpful when language is an issue with your public or board. (Read Education Code Section 48985 on when second language translations are required.)

Printing. Most of our clients ask us to print one of their documents, because they like the quality, price and speed of delivery. High speed digital imaging enables us to bring you two-color documents (blue and black) in crisp contrast and tight register every time. We'll deliver direct to your school sites if you like, saving you interoffice routing.

Web hosting. If your district lacks a web administrator to manage the transfer of digital files onto your servers, or if you are short of staff to add navigational links or directory pages to your district's website, we can help. Our team can load your digital files onto our server, and our designer can prepare a web page that provides your public with easy access to your accountability reports. This provides for a fast and easy debut of your documents online. See a live sample.

Distribution. Getting your accountability reports distributed to your broader public — libraries, city hall, realty firms, media — is to your advantage and is also a requirement of NCLB. We can help in several ways: preparing binder sets of all your schools' reports, preparing web pages that provide a professional interface for end-users coming directly to your SARC directory, and by managing mailings or email notifications to a list of your district's business partners, Chamber of Commerce, or key area employers.

Compliance consulting. Our expertise in the elements of compliance can help your district meet the letter and spirit of state and federal laws. By staying abreast of the latest policies and guidelines, we're able to stay up-to-date on the regulations so you don't have to. We share this knowledge with our clients through our newsletter, our data policy guide and our report program. If your board or legal counsel have questions or concerns, we're ready to help you answer them.

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