School and District Accountability Committees (SACs and DACs)

Accountability Committee Networking Series 2022-2023

For the 2022-23 school year, the Office of Family School Community Partnerships will be offering a series of monthly virtual networking meetings for members of SACs and DACs across the state. These convenings will include content from CDE, promising practices, and an opportunity to network and learn from other committee members. To sign up and learn more visit the Networking Series Website.

School and District Accountability Committee General Resources

SACs During COVID-19 in English and Español PDF (Updated Sept 2020)
Accountability Committee Timelines and Espanol including considerations for the UIP Transition (Updated May 2022)
SAC and DAC Responsibility Resources
- SAC and DAC Composition and Responsibilities (.pdf)
- DAC Responsibilities in English and Español (Updated Feb 2019)
- SAC Responsibilities Inventory and Espanol (Updated Sept 2020)
- DAC Responsibilities Inventory (Updated Sept 2020)
CDE's District Accountability Handbook
National Standards, Goals, and Indicators for Family-School Partnerships PDF
From the State Advisory Council for Parent Involvement in Education (SACPIE):
- SACPIE Family, School, and Community Partnership Resources (.pdf)
  A list of state and national research-based resources to improve partnership structures for student achievement.
- SACPIE Best Practices Framework for Effective Family, School, and Community Partnering (.pdf)
  A best practices framework to help guide choosing the most relevant programs, actions, and resources in reaching identified goals and evaluating results.

Training Activities

SAC and DAC Leadership Training (Updated Nov 2019)
SAC and DAC PowerPoint (.pdf)
The PowerPoint is available to share with other stakeholders interested in gaining strategies to support accountability committees in their schools and districts.
SAC and DAC Inventory (.pdf)
This activity provides accountability committees the opportunity to identify their progress on completing their responsibilities. Committees can identify whether they are emerging, progressing, or excelling for each responsibility.

To receive more information about SAC/DAC trainings or these resources, contact Darcy Hutchins at hutchins_d@cde.state.co.us or 303-866-5921.

Colorado Statute: SAC Responsibilities and Associated Resources

All schools and districts are required by state law to convene an Accountability Committee. Statute requires that School and District Accountability Committees fulfill the following responsibilities defined in the left column. Resources related to each responsibility are included on the right.

Statutes	Resources
Statute: Making recommendations to the principal on the school priorities for spending school moneys, including federal funds, where applicable	Colorado Financial Transparency Here you will find revenue and expenditure information for each school, district, and BOCES throughout the state.
Statute: Making recommendations to the principal and the superintendent concerning preparation of a school Performance or Improvement plan, if either type of plan is required	Access Unified Improvement Plans and Performance Frameworks Unified Improvement Planning Resources External Resources: Process for Data-Based Decision Making in Schools Data Mining Protocol (DOC)
Statute: Publicizing and holding a SAC meeting to discuss strategies to include in a school Priority Improvement or Turnaround plan, if either type of plan is required, and using this input to make recommendations to the local school board concerning preparation of the school Priority Improvement or Turnaround plan prior to the plan being written	Parent Notification Fact Sheet (PDF)
Statute: Publicizing the district’s public hearing to review a written school Priority Improvement or Turnaround plan	Parent Notification Fact Sheet (PDF)
Statute: Meeting at least quarterly to discuss whether school leadership, personnel, and infrastructure are advancing or impeding implementation of the school’s Performance, Improvement, Priority Improvement, or Turnaround plan, whichever is applicable, and other progress pertinent to the school’s accreditation contract	UIP Evaluation UIP General Resources UIP Quality Criteria Rubric for Evaluation (PDF) Leadership and Personnel Educator Effectiveness Training Tools Infrastructure Colorado Facility Insight Tool
Statute: Providing input and recommendations to the DAC and district administration, on an advisory basis, concerning principal development plans and evaluations. (Note that this should not in any way interfere with a district’s compliance with the statutory requirements of the Teacher Employment, Compensation and Dismissal Act.)	Educator Effectiveness Rubrics State Model Evaluation System (SMES) SMES for Principals/Assistant Principals Principal Quality Standards (PDF) Principal/Administrator Induction Rubric (DOC)
Statute: Publicizing opportunities to serve and soliciting parents to serve on the SAC (per HB 15-1321, small rural districts may waive this requirement)	External Resources: Douglas County Handbook – Pg 23 Sample Recruitment Letter (PDF) How to Recruit New Board Members Building an effective Advisory Committee (PDF) Chalkbeat Colorado: understanding School Accountability Committees
Statute: Assisting the district in implementing at the school level the district’s family engagement policy (per HB 15-1321, small rural districts may waive this requirement)	Policy Family Engagement Policy Critique (PDF)
Statute: Assisting school personnel to increase family engagement with teachers, including family engagement in creating READ plans, Individual Career and Academic Plans, and plans to address habitual truancy (per HB 15-1321, small rural districts may waive this requirement)	READ Act READ Act home page READ Act information for parents Family Engagement Family-School-Community Partnership ICAP Individual Career and Academic Plan (ICAP) ICAP Letter to Parents (DOC) ICAP Implementation Toolkit (PDF) See key messages on pages 7, 8, 9 Habitual Truancy Dropout Prevention Resources External Resources: District Websites about pathways, ICAP, and Graduation Guidelines: Falcon District, D49: 49 pathways Denver Public Schools has an ICAP description District 11 ICAP webpage Poudre College and Career Readiness = ICAP Northeast BOCES: Northeast Colorado Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness Partnership

School and District Resource Links

All resources linked below are examples of practices from school districts and schools around Colorado, and are not specifically endorsed by CDE. Do you have additional resources to be featured?

Submit them here.