May 16, 2005

The Honorable Susan Castillo
Superintendent
Oregon Department of Education
255 Capitol Street, N.E.
Salem, OR 97310-0203

Dear Superintendent Castillo:

I am writing in response to Oregon's request to amend its State accountability plan under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), as amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). Following our discussions with your staff, the change that is aligned with NCLB is now included in an amended State accountability plan that Oregon submitted to the Department on April 1, 2005. The change is attached to this letter. I am pleased to fully approve Oregon's amended plan, which we will post on the Department's Web site.

If, over time, Oregon makes changes to the accountability plan that has been approved, Oregon must submit information about those changes to the Department for review and approval, as required by section 1111(f)(2) of Title I. Approval of Oregon's accountability plan is not also an approval of Oregon’s standards and assessment system. As Oregon makes changes in its standards and assessments to meet requirements under NCLB, Oregon must submit information about those changes to the Department for peer review through the standards and assessment process.

Please also be aware that approval of Oregon's accountability plan for Title I, including the amendment approved above, does not indicate that the plan complies with Federal civil rights requirements, including Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and requirements under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

I am confident that Oregon will continue to advance its efforts to hold schools and school districts accountable for the achievement of all students. I wish you well in your school improvement efforts. If I can be of any additional assistance to Oregon in its efforts to implement other aspects of NCLB, please do not hesitate to call.

Sincerely,

Raymond Simon

cc: Governor Ted Kulongoski

Amendment to the Oregon Accountability Plan

This statement is a summary of the amendment. For complete details, please refer to the Oregon Accountability plan on the Department's website: www.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/stateplans03/index.html

Annual determination of whether each LEA in the state made AYP (Element 1.6)

Revision: A district (LEA) will be identified for improvement only when all three grade spans (3-5, 6-8, 9-12) do not make AYP in the same subject for two consecutive years. If a district does not meet the minimum n of 42 test scores over two years at a grade span, AYP will be calculated and reported using all grade spans combined. In addition, AYP will be calculated and reported using all grade spans combined for all districts that are comprised of a single school.

Decision Letters on State Accountability Plans