This past November, the California State Board of Education (SBE) approved a new Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP) template for the 2017-18 school year. Of the new features in the updated LCAP template, perhaps the most significant is the Plan Summary, a new section at the beginning of the document that includes LCAP Highlights, a District Overview, a Performance Review, Improved Services for unduplicated students, and a Budget Summary. Some Districts had already begun to include either some sort of abbreviated Executive Summary, or Gobo’s LCAP Infographics, to better help stakeholders understand the lengthy LCAP documents. And we are glad to see the SBE formalize the need for a more user-friendly summary tool, further legitimatizing the work we have been doing with our LCAP infographics for the past 3 years.
As soon as the new template was approved, Gobo went to work deciphering the changes and new requirements, determining the best way to update our LCAP Infographic tools. We also received an inquiry from the Fresno County Office of Education (COE) which resulted in collaboration on a sample Plan Summary for a California County Superintendents Educational Services Association (CCSESA) presentation. The resulting Plan Summary Infographic sample is shown below, and will be included in all Gobo 2017-18 LCAP Infographic packages to help School Districts, COEs, and Charter Schools better engage their stakeholders. Gobo’s Plan Summary has already been vetted by several COE leaders, and we will continue to work with County Offices to insure a reliable and approvable Plan Summary as mandated by the SBE.
An ironic aspect of our work is that making things easy is, well, hard. And the new Plan Summary is no exception. Despite its name, the Plan Summary still has many elements and requires a significant effort to communicate clearly and succinctly. Gobo can help Local Education Authorities (LEAs) minimize that effort. We have been able to leverage Gobo’s unique expertise from having reviewed and distilled over 100 LCAPs across California into a proprietary process that converts an LCAP into a visually rich engagement tool. A tool that is compliant with SBE and COE requirements and easily communicates the critical essence of an LEA’s LCAP.
If you are a COE and we have not already talked with you, please contact us and give us your feedback on our sample Plan Summary. If you are a District or Charter, and would like our help to more easily and effectively engage your stakeholders, you can get started or contact us with questions.
