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The Wichita Public Schools shall provide magnet school programs as deemed necessary to meet the needs of pupils at elementary school, middle school, and high school levels. These programs shall meet the board adopted curricular standards and all other requirements as established by the Board of Education. All magnet school programs must seek and receive Board of Education approval prior to implementation or discontinuance.
Note: Magnet schools are defined as schools of choice that offer either a specialized curriculum focus or a unique teaching style which require students to make application to attend in lieu of their regular assigned school. Elementary, middle and high school magnets are either neighborhood magnets (neighborhood attendance area with all others applying to attend) or pure magnets (all students must make application to attend). Students are accepted into magnet schools through a computerized random selection process.
Administrative Implemental Procedures:
1. The Superintendent designates the Assistant Superintendent of Middle Schools as the administrator in charge of coordinating magnet school programs. The Assistant Superintendent of Middle Schools will coordinate these efforts with the Assistant Superintendents of Elementary Schools and the Assistant Superintendent of High Schools.
2. Parents and/or community members may present magnet school proposals to the Board of Education. The Board may choose to refer these proposals to the Magnet School Advisory Committee for review and recommendations.
3. A district wide magnet school-community advisory committee will be formed. There will be representation from each magnet school program. Membership shall include representative groups of teachers, parents, or administrators from each magnet school, plus community lay people. A proper membership balance shall be maintained with an opportunity for volunteer participation and with lay people comprising at least 51 percent of the membership.
4. The advisory committee will meet with the Assistant Superintendent of Middle Schools at least twice each year. The first meeting shall follow the official enrollment date of September 20th of each year and prior to October 15th. The second meeting shall be held by February 15th. Other meetings may be called at the discretion of the Assistant Superintendent of Middle Schools.
5. The committee shall be responsible for making recommendations to the Board of Education on issues such as: monitoring current magnet school enrollments, assisting with promotional and recruitment activities, and hearing any proposals for new programs or the discontinuance of any magnet schools being presented to the Board of Education.
6. The Assistant Superintendent of Middle Schools will be responsible for meeting with magnet school principals on an “as needed” basis.
7. The Assistant Superintendent of Middle Schools will be involved in program staffing, program development, inservice training, and mutual support.
8. Proposals submitted to the Board of Education must include the following:
a. The proposal must be developed in response to a parental and/or community request.
b. The proposed magnet school program must differ from the comprehensive school in environment, structure, and/or teaching and learning strategies.
c. The proposal must meet the pupil and staff needs through consistency of goals, methods, and philosophy. Enrollment in the school is open to all students in the district by application and computerized random selection process.
d. An elementary magnet school proposal must be defined as a neighborhood magnet (neighborhood assigned attendance area) or a pure elementary magnet (all students must apply with no assigned attendance area for that school).
e. Evaluation of the magnet school program will include student achievement progress as measured by the norm-referenced test utilized by the district and the State Assessments.
f. The school must comply with all Board of Education policies and procedures and the Civil Rights Act concerning nondiscrimination with regard to sex, race, religious and ethnic background, and Section 504 pertaining to the handicapped.
g. Community involvement and engagement as well as parent involvement initiatives must be evident and documented.
h. The proposal must identify any unique aspects related to busing.
i. The proposal must address staffing procedures, issues, and staff development.
j. The proposal must present a time frame for implementation.
9. The Board of Education will discuss any new magnet school program or the discontinuation of any magnet school program at its first meeting in March and will vote on the final approval or closure of such program by the end of March. Any new magnet school program or discontinuation of a magnet program will be approved by the March vote. The developmental year for a new program will start the next school year. The implementation for the new program will then occur the following fall. A discontinued program will continue as a magnet school the next school year and would lose their magnet status the following school year. The Assistant Superintendent of Middle Schools will notify schools, which will not continue to operate as a magnet site, by April 15th.
Administrative Responsibility: Assistant Superintendent of Middle Schools
Latest Revision Date: February 2007 P1217
Previous Revision Date: April 2006
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