District Unified Improvement Planning (UIP) Subcommittee

DAC Responsibility:
To submit to the local school board recommendations regarding the preparation of the district’s Performance, Improvement, Priority Improvement, or Turnaround plan, (whichever is applicable).

Items to Consider

• District Strategic Plan
• Universal Instructional Framework
• Scope and Sequence
• Comprehensive Aligned Assessment System
• Graduation Guideline Requirements
• Public Facing Data Dashboards

For more information about the District Unified Improvement Planning (UIP) Subcommittee, or to volunteer as a member of the UIP Subcommittee, please email DAC.

The Chairperson of this committee is Shannon Holck.  To contact Shannon, please email DAC.

To view the 2022-23 Cherry Creek School District UIP, go to the Colorado Department of Education page:  https://co-uip-cde.secure.force.com/?dcode=0130 or download the pdf here.

To find your school's UIP, go the Colorado Department of Education page:  https://www.cde.state.co.us/schoolview/frameworks/welcome and type in your school's name.  

Budget Subcommittee

DAC Responsibility:
To recommend to the local school board priorities for spending school district moneys and for districts receiving ESEA funds, consulting with all required stakeholders with regard to federally funded activities.

Items to Consider

• District Financial Plan and Budget
• School Spending
• District Spending Priorities
• Student-Centered Budgeting

For more information about the Budget Subcommittee, or to volunteer as a member of the Budget Subcommittee, please email DAC.

The Chairperson of this committee is April Hrovat.  To contact April, please email DAC.

Family & Community Engagement Subcommittee

DAC Responsibility:
Assisting the district in updating and implementing the district's parent engagement policy.  Publicizing opportunities to serve, soliciting parents to serve on the DAC and other district parent committees and increase awareness of parent involvement in the development of student plans (IEPs, ALPs, READ Plans, ICAPs, etc.)

Items to Consider

• BOE Policy KB, Parent Involvement in Education
• School Accountability Committees (SAC)
• PTCO - Parent Teacher and Community Organization
• P.A.S.S. - Partnerships for Academically Successful Students
• Advanced Learner Family Outreach

For more information about the Parent Engagement Subcommittee, or to volunteer as a member of the Parent Engagement Subcommittee, please email DAC.

The Chairperson of this committee is Scott Graves.  To contact Scott, please email DAC.  

If you are interested in joining the Family & Community Engagement Subcommittee, please fill out this form


Colorado Department of Education Family, School & Community Partnerships Webinar

Colorado Department of Education Family, School & Community Partnerships Rubric

Charter Schools Subcommittee

DAC Responsibility:
The district accountability committee shall review an application before submission to the Board of Education.
The committee shall include one person, who need not reside in the district, with knowledge of district charter schools, and one parent of a student in the district. The parent must be a district charter school parent if the district has a district charter school.
The District Accountability Committee will have twenty (20) calendar days to review the application before submission to the Board.
Upon the committee’s completion of its review, the designated district administrator(s) shall forward the application to the Board for review during the next regular Board meeting.

For more information about the Charter Schools Subcommittee, or to volunteer as a member of the Charter Schools Subcommittee, please email DAC.

The Chairperson of this committee is Ian Lafarge.  To contact Ian, please email DAC.

Hello and Welcome to the 2024-25 School Year!

The first District Accountability Committee (DAC) meeting of the year is scheduled for Wednesday, September 4, 2024 at 6:30 pm, at the Instructional Support Facility (5416 S Riviera Way, Centennial CO 80015).

For this initial meeting, we invite you to our DAC Meet and Greet where you’ll have the opportunity to learn about what the DAC is, meet our Subcommittee Chairs, and find out how you can participate in the district’s success.

Kate Kotaska, Executive Director of Financial Planning and Analysis and DAC Budget Subcommittee advisor, will speak about the upcoming mill and bond measures that will be on the November 5^th ballot. 

CCSD Board Member, Kristin Allan, will be in attendance to share updates from the BoE.

Subcommittees for this year:

               Budget

               Family & Community Engagement

               Unified Improvement Plan (UIP)

All meetings are open to the public and everyone is encouraged to attend.

The Community Forum Schedule for the 2024-25 School Year:

               Wednesday, September 4           6:30 pm               Instructional Support Facility

               Wednesday, October 9                6:30 pm               Instructional Support Facility

               Wednesday, November 6            6:30 pm               Fremont Building (14603 E Fremont Avenue  Centennial CO 80112)

               Wednesday, March 5                   6:30 pm               Instructional Support Facility

               Wednesday, May 7                       6:30 pm               Instructional Support Facility

Subcommittee meetings will be set by the Subcommittee Chairs.

We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday, September 4th.

Presentation

Good morning DAC Community,

As a reminder, please join us for our next DAC Community Forum tomorrow (Wednesday, October 9, 2024), at 6:30 pm, at the Instructional Support Facility (5416 S Riviera Way, Centennial CO 80015).

Our meeting this month will feature:

• Ruthie Knowles, CCSD Board of Education, will provide a district update
• Preview the Cherry Creek School District’s Unified Improvement Plan (UIP) before it is submitted to the Colorado Department of Education 
• What is a UIP?
• What data is used to write the district UIP?
• What are CCSD’s goals, strategies and action steps in this year’s UIP?
• What role does the DAC UIP Subcommittee play in the District UIP?

We look forward to seeing you tomorrow evening.   For more information about DAC, please visit our website

Presentation
Agenda

Agenda

Presentation

Good morning DAC Community,

Please join us for our next DAC Community Forum on Wednesday, February 5, 2025, at 6:30 pm, at the Instructional Support Facility (5416 S Riviera Way, Centennial CO 80015) 

Our meeting this month will feature:

• Ruthie Knowles, CCSD Board of Education
• Dr. Wendy Birhanzel, Superintendent, Harrison School District 2, Colorado’s 2023 Superintendent of the Year, Task Force 1241 Chair
• Task Force 1241 Presentation
• Colorado Accountability Task Force recommends overhaul of state education accountability system
• A task force created to examine the state’s education accountability system is recommending a major overhaul, including adjustments to ratings for schools and districts to better reflect the achievement of different student groups and to provide parents, guardians, and family members with a clearer understanding of how well schools prepare students for life after high school.
• More information about the Task Force can be found here:  https://www.cde.state.co.us/communications/11-8-24-news-release-1241-task-force
• A review of CCSD’s Graduation Rates
• An update from the DAC Family & Community Engagement Subcommittee

HELP WANTED:  The DAC is searching for a volunteer to fill the Parent Member role on the Executive Committee.  A Parent Member is defined as “A parent/guardian who has a child/children attending District elementary or District secondary schools”.  Application forms are available on the DAC website or you can send an email to accountability@cherrycreekschools.org.  More information is available on the flyer below (and attached).

We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday, February 5th.   For more information about DAC, please visit our website

Good morning DAC Community,

Please join us for our next DAC Community Forum on Wednesday, March 12, 2025, at 6:30 pm, at the Cherry Creek Innovation Campus (CCIC) – 8000 S. Chambers Road, Centennial CO 80112

Our regular Community Forum will begin at 6:30 pm. 

Starting promptly at 5:45 pm, we invite you to join us on a tour of the CCIC, explore this state-of-the-art facility, and learn about new classes being added.

The agenda for this month’s meeting is as follows (and is also attached):

5:45 – 6:30 pm – Optional tour of CCIC

6:30 – 6:35 pm – Welcome and DAC Updates (Tamara Pelham, DAC Chair)

6:35 – 6:40 pm – Ruthie Knowles, CCSD Board of Education

6:40 – 7:40 pm – CCSD Department of Career & Innovation Presentation (Dr. Ashley Gehrke, Director)

Pathways of Purpose: Career & College Readiness Overview of CCSD’s Post-Secondary Workforce Readiness, MyCAP (ICAP), CTE Programs, Concurrent & Dual Enrollment, AVID, Work-Based Learning Opportunities

7:40 – 8:00 pm – DAC Subcommittee Updates

  Family & Community Engagement Subcommittee, Scott Graves, Chair

  Unified Improvement Plan (UIP) Subcommittee, Shannon Holck, Chair

HELP WANTED:  The DAC is searching for volunteers to fill Parent Member roles on the Executive Committee for the 2025-26 school year.  A Parent Member is defined as “A parent/guardian who has a child/children attending District elementary or District secondary schools”.  Application forms are available on the DAC website or you can send an email to accountability@cherrycreekschools.org.  More information is available on the flyer below (and attached).

We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday, March 12th.   For more information about DAC, please visit our website

Good afternoon DAC Community,

Please join us for the next District Accountability Committee (DAC) Family & Community Engagement Subcommittee meeting on Tuesday, March 11, 2025 at 7:00 pm.

The meeting is open to the public and we encourage you to share this with the community.  The meeting will be held virtually.  To attend this subcommittee meeting, please click on this MS Teams link:

Join the meeting now

Meeting ID: 239 637 188 748

Passcode: v6Vg3XZ6

Our focus this year is to create and support School Accountability Committees (SACs) at all schools in the district.  At next week’s meeting, we will be discussing a survey that was sent out to school Principals about School Accountability Committees (SACs) and discussing action steps.

We look forward to seeing you next week.

Scott Graves, Chair

Missy Matthews, CCSD Liaison

DAC Family & Community Engagement Subcommittee

For more information about DAC, please refer to our website

Remaining Meetings for 2024/25

April 8, 2025

Good morning DAC Community,

Please join us for the first DAC Budget Subcommittee meeting of the school year on Wednesday, October 23^rd at 5:00 pm.

The meeting is open to the public and we encourage you to share this with the community.  The meeting will be held virtually.  To attend this subcommittee meeting, please click on this MS Teams link:

Join the meeting now

Meeting ID: 248 794 897 476

Passcode: t99fZB

Our focus this year will be to seek input from the CCSD community to develop spending priorities for the 2025-26 budget.

Enjoy the upcoming Fall Break and we look forward to seeing you on October 23^rd.

April Hrovat, Chair

Kate Kotaska, CCSD Liaison

DAC Budget Subcommittee

Future Meetings: 
December 4, 2024
April 2, 2025

All meetings are scheduled from 5-6:00 pm and will be virtual (links will be published 1 week prior to the meeting).

Dear Cherry Creek District Accountability Committee (DAC) Community,

I look forward to seeing you at our next Monthly Meeting of the Unified Improvement Plan (UIP) Subcommittee.

Who: ALL are welcome!

When: Tuesday March 11 2025, 6pm to 7pm

Where: Online - Microsoft Teams

Join the meeting now   Meeting ID: 276 077  149 278 Passcode: j4KP2WY2

Topic: Meeting Planning, Q3 Priorities, Vision Screening

Please extend this invitation to other families, teachers, administrators, students, and community members.  The UIP Subcommittee meetings are open to ALL.  A variety of backgrounds and perspectives helps support continued improvement and maintains high standards of excellence in Cherry Creek. 

Mission of the Unified Improvement Plan Subcommittee

To continuously improve student outcomes using data and evidence by partnering with District Administrators, School Administrators, Families, Teachers, and Community Members

Goals of the Unified Improvement Plan Subcommittee

1. Make recommendations to improve the creation process and the content of the district accreditation plan (2-3 year plan)
2. Discuss quarterly the progress of the plan and any challenges or celebrations and make recommendations

Meeting Objectives:

NOTE: will be elevated at DAC Community Forum

1. Propose UIP Subcommittee meeting schedule for June 2025-May 2026
2. Prioritize recommendations for/from quarterly UIP review (2024-2025 Q3)
3. Discuss and finalize Vision Screening recommendations

To Prepare For This Meeting, please:

1. Consider if you would be willing and able to attend summer meetings
2. Review UIP Quarter 3 Recommendations/Feedback
3. Review CDE Vision Screening Guidelines: K-12 (Jan 2016 PDF)
   1. ABC Checklist Ages 5+ English (PDF)
   2. ABC Checklist Ages 5+ Spanish (PDF)

4. Read this agenda and (optionally) reply with any questions/concerns/suggestions for future topics to shannonholck@yahoo.com 

Important Dates:

• April 9, 2025 6pm - 7:30pm: DAC Quarterly UIP Review, Mission Viejo ES and online
• May 13, 2025 6pm-7pm UIP Subcommittee Monthly meeting (new) online

Resources:

1. Plans
1. CCSD Unified Improvement Plan (2024-2026) 
2. CCSD Strategic Plan - released November 2023
3. CCSD Literacy Plan - for years 2023-2030
2. Data 
1. Colorado Department of Education (CDE)
1. SchoolView - updates vary by resource
2. School and District Dashboard - updated Sept 2024
3. CCSD District Performance Report - updated by CDE Jan 2024
2. Cherry Creek School District (CCSD)
1. Strategic Dashboard
2. At a Glance
3. Additional Resources
1. UIP
1. UIP Workbook - ***new*** with templates and meeting agendas
2. One Year Action Plan for Partnerships - *** new*** template for family, and community partnerships to reach school goals
2. Assessments
1. CCSD Assessment Calendars
2. Parent Guide to STAR report
3. Resources for Parents
4. Resources for Teachers

Contact Information

Questions, concerns, or suggestions may be submitted to the Chair of the UIP Subcommittee via: accountability@cherrycreekschools.org.  

Planning for Success,

Shannon Holck

UIP Subcommittee Chair

Unified Improvement Plan (UIP):

View the CCSD UIP for 2024-25 here

View individual school's UIP for 2024-25 here

The Colorado Reading To Ensure Academic Development Act (Colorado READ Act) was passed by the Colorado Legislature during the 2012 legislative session. The READ Act repe​​​als the Colorado Basic Literacy Act (CBLA) as of July 1, 2013, keeping many of the elements of CBLA such as a focus on K-3 literacy, assessment, and individual plans for students reading below grade level. The READ Act differs from CBLA by focusing on students identified as having a significant reading deficiency, delineating requirements for parent communication, and providing funding to support intervention. Other components of the Colorado READ Act include a competitive Early Literacy Grant and a resource bank of assessments, instructional programming, and professional development. (from CDE's website)

• ​CDE's READ Act resources