I am very fortunate to be in a district that is transparent on making sure our district is committed to meeting the educational needs of our diverse population of learners. We spend substantial amount of time communicating to all stakeholders and learners the importance of differentiating instruction to meet the needs of all students within our district. This mission as it is written is easy to understand and easy to practice each and every day.
Our building understands the significance in developing our students to be prepared for life after high school. As a district we do a phenomenal job of preparing our students to be ready to go onto college, military or pursue a trade. Each and every day, we strive to make sure that our practices support the districts mission statement. Each year we are committed in making sure that every 11th grader is registered to take the ACT. To demonstrate our belief in the importance of such tests, we provide district and school wide practice test, small group tutoring and individual tutoring sessions. Our goal as a district and building is to make sure that every 11th grader is knowledgeable on how to navigate the ACT exam and create strategies that will be most beneficial for all students taking the test.
Within our building we are allowed the flexibility to create specific classes that meet the needs of our students. Majority of our classes are geared around the focus of making sure our students are prepared and ready for college. However, we also offer classes that are remedial for some students that lack the basic understanding in a specific subject area. This year the district allowed us to create an Applied Algebra course that focuses on basic algebra instruction for students who were not proficient in 8th grade math. The remedial course allows for students to gain an understanding of basic level algebra before moving into algebra I. This was a huge statement for our district and shows how the mission statement is a true indication of our district’s beliefs. The Applied Algebra is a rigorous course, which allows our students to receive the much needed intervention that will help them be successful in future math courses.
Another aspect to our mission and vision statement that is focused on is the large population who is not interested in attending college. In order for us to truly meet our vision, we must make every attempt to support those who do not fit into the traditional mold of attending a college or university. As a school we really focus on communicating with our kids to see what their interest are, and what they will like to pursue in the future. A large percentage of our student body attends the career academy to learn a trade that might spark their interest. Along with attempting to make strides on placing students in the right academic setting, we also focus on ways to provide social and emotional support to all students. Recently, we have incorporated Morning Mindfulness which allows us to go more in depth with the theory of E+R=O. With this thought in mind, we are attempting to have our students use their creativity and think through situations instead of reacting impulsively with negative emotions.