NEWTON COUNTY – When superintendent Dr. Duke Bradley III first took office, he wanted to “manifest the hopes, dreams and aspirations of the community.” 

Continuing with the goal to fulfill that statement, Bradley released his 90-day report at the Feb. 27 Newton County Board of Education meeting (NCBOE).

The 25-page report encapsulates a number of observations that Bradley has witnessed through his first few months as superintendent, with focus areas on academics, operations and culture and engagement. All of which hold the hopes to reinforce the themes of “unity, engagement and visibility.”

But before diving into the specifics of each area, Bradley wanted to commemorate the work that the NCSS has already done.

“Before I share my findings, please allow me to say that it is important to note that Newton County schools is built upon a strong foundation of success and achievement, which I am proud to be a part of,” Bradley said.

Academics

When discussing academics, Bradley highlighted the persistent literacy gaps that exist within the school system.

Data configured from the report showed that literacy rates were particularly low in grades 3, 5 and 8. All figures were below the average for the state of Georgia.

While Bradley stated that there is no one fix to the issue – as it persists statewide – he recommended to the board that steps should be put in place to focus on literacy instruction, streamline academic resources and identify instructional practices. 

Keeping in line with academics, Bradley identified some of the achievement gaps in the district. 

The achievement gap data showed English language arts (ELA) and math scores from demographics across the district. With the presentation slide stating, “We have work to do,” Bradley clarified what these social gaps are. 

“In short our Black and special education students are categorically outperformed by white students across most subject areas and grade levels,” Bradley said.

Next, Bradley highlighted the different findings of balanced academic progress with data from Advanced Placement (AP), dual-enrollment and gifted students.

Data showed that 25.7 percent of Newton County students were enrolled in at least once AP course. When compared against four counties with similar size and demographics, this was in the middle of the five districts.

A total of 10.86 percent students were identified as gifted, with no corresponding data from other counties.

However, dual-enrollment was the weakest point of the three, with 18.79 percent of Newton County students enrolled in one or more college courses as part of dual-enrollment. When compared to other counties, Newton County was the second lowest of five, with Houston County at the highest with 74 percent of students enrolled in one or more dual-enrollment courses.

Bradley told The Covington News that 74 percent “tells us it’s possible” to get students involved in dual-enrollment, but that there are institutional barriers that exist. This was seconded during his presentation on Tuesday.

“Considered together, the district provides access to a variety of advanced courses and specialized programs,” Bradley said. “However, the extent to which students can access these courses and programs is informed by several barriers that have a limiting effect; among those include program design, teacher credentials, scheduling challenges, course/program entry criteria and transportation.”

Operations

Next, Bradley discussed his findings on operations, which were extensive in wanting to create synergy among the district.

His findings showed that precision planning is important, and that “there is opportunity to establish more explicit alignment” between functions within the district.

Additionally, Bradley stated that the district lacks several key positions that harms the effectiveness within the district.

“There are multiple examples where individuals who take on critically important rules do so without the benefit of a capable designee,” Bradley said. “As you can imagine the absence of strategic redundancies creates significant organizational risk.”

Bradley told The Covington News that the district needs to look at other districts to see what works for them. Once they compile that data, the system should create “one customizable strategy” that works for Newton County Schools.

Recommendations were made to conduct a compensation and classification study, exploring the district’s readiness to purchase an Enterprise Resourcing plan, provide regular reporting and clarify certain roles and corresponding job responsibilities. 

Culture and Engagement

Of the three main areas, culture and engagement was among the strengths.

A survey in the report showed that out of 1,165 participants, 36 percent of respondents were “very satisfied” with Newton County Schools’ communication efforts. A total of 42 percent of respondents were listed as “satisfied.”

Also cited were the various listening sessions that were conducted by Bradley with one participants’ feedback stating the district keeps them “well informed,” but that “more consistency is needed” in their communication efforts.

Listed as recommendations were an exploration in communication outreach, a clarification of communication expectations and a clear social media strategy that can align Newton County Schools with one common brand.

However, Bradley highlighted communications as a strong point.

“In short, I found that district communications is a clear strength verified through both quantitative measure and direct stakeholder feedback,” Bradley said.

Final Comments

Bradley concluded the presentation by reading a letter highlighting his first 90 days in office.

Accompanying the letter, Bradley said the district can build on a foundation of excellence and that Newton County Schools can become a model school district.

“I submit to you that we can become the fastest improving school district in all the state of Georgia,” Bradley said.

Following the presentation, all five members of the board spoke with a clear vision of unity.

Vice-chair Shakila Henderson-Baker said that during the interview process that Bradley stuck out to him as the “community focus” candidate. Henderson-Baker also appreciated the transparency of Bradley and said it was a testament to his leadership.

“The truth is we’re not performing where we should but that takes a real, hard leader who is dedicated to improving those things to iron out those truths to the community, to the board and to the staff,” Henderson-Baker said. “Because if you don’t iron that out we sit here thinking we’re operating great and that we’re all good. The reality is we’re not where we would like to be, so we needed to hear that.”

District 1 representative Trey Bailey said he appreciated the thorough report and said that Bradley was the right man for the job.

“You have proven just with the work you’ve done thus far in 90 days, you’ve proven you’re the right candidate,” Trey said. “I think you’ve proven to this board and proven to our community that our best days are ahead.”

District 2 representative Eddie Johnson highlighted the difficulties of choosing the new superintendent, but said that the right choice was made.

“It was a very challenging job. A difficult one… We could not have made a better choice,” Johnson said. 

District 4 representative Anderson Bailey echoed the sentiment of the board while sharing a humorous story from Bradley’s interview

“When you [Bradley] came back for the second round you let me know then ‘I’m ready to work’ because you came without a jacket,” Anderson said.

Board chair Abigail Coggin agreed with the rest of the board.

“Yes we’ve got a challenge before us but I think we are ready to take it on and we’ve got the people in place,” Coggin said. “I’m excited for the future of Newton County Schools.”