S4 Program Information
Includes funding results, expenditure report forms and the Request for Applications (RFA) .
Alignment to Current Systems
Evaluation of the California Statewide System of School Support (S4): Final Report (PDF; 1.07MB; 199pp.)
Overview
Section 1117 of the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 requires each state to establish a statewide system of intensive and sustained support and improvement for local education agencies and schools receiving Title I funds to increase the opportunity for all students to meet the state's academic content and achievement standards. This federal requirement was codified in state law through Assembly Bill 312 (Chapter 1020, Statutes of 2002), a trailer bill to the 2002 Budget Act for California, which established a Statewide System of School Support (S4) designed to support the requirements of NCLB.
Three entities work together to complete the work of S4: the Regional System of District and School Support (RSDSS), a federally funded Comprehensive Assistance Center (CA CC), and the California Department of Education (CDE), in an administrative role. The RSDSS is organized around the 11 county superintendent regions identified by the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association (CCSESA). Each region has an RSDSS Director who operates out of one of the county offices of education in each region. The CA CC facilitates the dissemination of resources and information via the RSDSS. Still under development, a system of School Support Teams will be utilized as a priority strategy in supporting school districts' efforts to serve their low-performing schools.
CDE convenes regular meetings of representatives from these entities and provides state-level information, coordination, and training on various topics related to supporting S4's mission.
In administering S4, CDE must ensure that support is provided in the following order of priority to:
- School districts or county offices of education with Title I schools that are subject to corrective action under NCLB
- School districts or county offices of education with Title I schools that are identified as PI schools, and
- School districts or county offices of education with schools participating in Title I under NCLB that need support and assistance
Support for Regional Work
California has used a regional approach to address the needs
of the state and the vast numbers of schools and school districts.
CCSESA's Curriculum and Instruction Steering Committee (CISC),
along with CDE, is in the process of guiding the development of
stronger regional systems of support in which county offices work
collaboratively to most efficiently allocate resources to those
districts and schools most in need of help.
With the goal of building school districts' capacity to effectively
support their lower performing schools, CDE is collaborating with
each component of S4 to create tools and resources to address
this need. The ultimate goal of S4 is to create a system in which
districts and schools have access to effective, efficient regional
resources to support higher student achievement.
Alignment to Current Systems
The CDE's S4 Coordinator, housed
within CDE's Regional Coordination and Support Office (RCSO),
is responsible for the overall management of S4. The Coordinator
works collaboratively with designated county office of education
staff, representatives from the CA CC, and CCSESA representatives
in order to ensure statewide direction and support.
Knowing that there exists a multitude of services and programs
currently operating within a given region, the office's work is
centered on assisting regions to bring these programs together
to more effectively align work to reduce redundancy. To further
align its strategies and practices, each RSDSS director ensures
that any school or district level work will be consistent with
School Assistance and Intervention Teams process and goals.
Likewise, the RCSO is currently working with other CDE offices to identify
common work and goals in an effort to ensure that our RCSO work
is complementary and not counterproductive.
S4 Mission
The mission of S4 is to build a school district's capacity to support its low-performing schools. This mission is realized through the dissemination of information, technical assistance, and brokering of regional and statewide resources.
Contacts
The RCSO at the CDE is responsible for overseeing S4, administering grants to support RSDSS regional work, and offering technical assistance to regions in support of their work with districts and schools. RCSO consultants are regionally assigned to be the primary contacts for programmatic technical assistance inquiries. Analysts in the RCSO office serve as primary contacts for fiscal questions. Please see the RSDSS/CDE contacts page for specific contact information.
