SPANISH FORT, Ala. — From day one, the ability to hold those responsible accountable for the success or shortcomings of countywide schools has been the crux of the grassroots “Yes We Can” Baldwin County movement.

“As we move forward as a community with an unprecedented level of interest and commitment to improving public education, we must begin to create a sense of the realm of the possible. We must have a better understanding of what works in order to be able to realize the potential of our new partnership,” said Denise D’Oliveira, executive director of Supporting Educational Enrichment in Daphne’s Schools.

It’s no surprise then that Target 2 of the recently unveiled and Baldwin County Board of Education-approved strategic plan for transforming the county’s education-delivery system hinges on data-driven accountability.

Specifically, Target 2 seeks to establish a framework that “supports quality teaching, learning and graduation for all” via four specific goals:

• Create a sustainable and consistent system for monitoring student progress and performance to guide improvement efforts.
• Create a sustainable and consistent system for monitoring employees’ effectiveness using findings to guide improvement efforts.
• Create a sustainable and consistent system for fiscal and operational effectiveness using findings to guide improvement efforts.
• Develop local school improvement plans to report progress, engage stakeholders, and monitor continuous school improvement.

In the fall, the public can expect to see new accountability tools including “dashboards” posted in each school to track students’ academic progress against consistent national standards as well as a thorough and transparent board website.

Yes We Can Baldwin County is a grassroots educational improvement consortium that combines the efforts of the Baldwin County Education Coalition with both the school district and stakeholders in the community, from business leaders and nonprofits to churches and civic organizations. The coalition, meanwhile, represents each of the school system’s seven feeder patterns, giving all parties involved a voice.

“The level of change we’re talking about has to be driven by something more organic, something that grows out of the pride and ownership we already have for own neighborhood schools. What we are doing through Yes We Can is giving people a way to experience that same sense of ownership for the success of every child in Baldwin County,” D’Oliveira said.

Considering the nature of the goals, however, responsibility for the execution of this target area falls squarely on the shoulders of the school board and contacts within the individual schools.

Born of community input culled from some 85 conversations that attracted the participation of more than 1,300 area residents concerned about the condition and direction of public education in Baldwin County, the plan addresses five key areas, identified during that process as critical to improving the quality of education countywide:

• Funding
• Data-driven accountability
• Leadership
• Ensuring every child is college and/or career ready
• Communications

The complete strategic plan is available for review online at www.bcbe.org, and a 30-day public comment period began May 17 when organizers unveiled the document.