ACADEMIC INTERVENTIONS

IDEAS FOR INTERVENTIONS

• Student-Teacher Conferences - Home room teachers will conference with each of their home room students twice per quarter. We currently have a modified version of this already with the three-day tutoring
• Study Hall - Students who are failing classes will be required to go to weekend, during-school or after-school study hall and they will miss service learning projects and extracurricular activities.
• Peer Tutoring - We will have optional after-school peer tutoring in reading, writing and math.
• Online Tutoring - Students will have the opportunity to go online and post questions or offer feedback regarding homework
• Tutoring Hotline - Teachers will rotate who has a cell phone so that students can call on any day and ask a question regarding homework.

CLUBS

Here are some potential ideas for clubs. Students and teachers will work together to figure out which clubs can benefits students. Even though they will be extracurricular activities, clubs will fit within the school mission statement, culture and values.

IDEAS
School newspaper
Book Clubs
IMPACT Program
Social Awareness Club
Social Voice Media
Mural Club
Yearbook - electronic yearbook
Photography Club
History Day
Science Fair
Student Leadership
Debate Club / Mock Trial
Odessey of the Mind

QUESTIONS:

What else should we offer?

What would you want to lead?

IDEAS FOR COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT:

Partnerships with businesses that include:
1. Recieving donations
2. Participating in job shadowing
3. Interviewing community members
4. Using community member survey data to inform decision-making
5. Community members can volunteer necessary servies
6. Allowing these community members to join our committees
7. Participation in a Career Day
8. Allowing businesses to sponsor academic and sports competitions

Partnerships with local organizations that include:
1. Allowing the organzations to provide guest speakers
2. Allowing local organizations to offer input in the service learning plan
3. Students volunteering at local charity organizations
4. Interviews with organization members
5. Fundraising for local, national and global charities

Partnerships with Universities
1. Touring the university facilities
2. Online tutoring or Community Editors Program
3. An opportunity for our school to do research and provide data that their school can use
4. Community Advocacy and Service
5. Graffiti clean-up
6. Creation of environmental sustainability plan
7. Letters, interviews and meetings with local elected official

INDIVIDUAL PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN

Each teacher will produce a class website, a class blog, a professional portfolio and an individual professional development plan.

The professional plan should align to the teacher standards and the technology standards. A group of teachers will create a criteria for what the plan should include. It does not need to be a complex, academic document; but rather a clear, usable plan of where the teacher wants to improve in education. In addition, the plan will be integrated into the professional development courses, so that teachers do not have to work on it outside of professional development hours.

From there, teachers will have specific assessments connected to the professional plan, so that they can measure whether or not they are meeting their specified goals. The assessment portion will connect to the skills teachers need to learn and to what the students will learn as a result.

Each Individual Plan Will Include:

• Individualized self-assessment based upon the Arizona teaching standards. This will lead a teacher to realizing his or her strengths and weaknesses.
• Plan for obtaining further professional development in areas of weaknesses.
• Plan for utilizing current professional skills - whether it is in mentoring fellow teachers or improving methods of teaching these skills to the students.
• Goals for which skills the teacher will obtain by the end of the semester
• Goals for how students will use the new-found skills
• Assessment - to be filled out by students, teachers and administrators.
• Post-Assessment / Reflection regarding whether or not the teacher met the specific goals

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT CYCLE

The cycle begins with a Needs Assessment based upon data given in surveys and observations. This leads to the acquisition of new skills which then leads to the creation of an individualized plan. The plan is then assessed to see whether the skills transfer to the student level. This then leads to a better Needs Assessment and the continuation of the cycle.

TECHNOLOGY-BASED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Because technology is such a crucial component to the success of this school, we will emphasize technology in professional development, both in the introduction of new skills and as an alternative method of gaining professional development.

The main teacher source for tech-related professional development will be Teacher Commons, a site developed by the staff members themselves (working from the framework initially created by John Spencer). Teacher Commons addresses three major needs that are missing in many areas of professional development:

1. Community
2. Ideas / Resources
3. Training and Tutorials

The tagline of Teacher Commons is "a place for teachers to share," which is why we hope it grows into an online collaborative community that extends the current, physical community that is already in existence. To preview Teacher Commons (in its Alpha form) go to http://thesocialvoice.com/teachercommons By the end of this school year, the features include:

• An online database of lesson plans
• An online database of resources
• A discussion board, blog and wiki where teachers can collaborate
• Online tutorials
• A place teachers can go to ask technology-related questions
• Training pages that help facilitate the new tech-integrated Thursday professional development program

WORKSHOPS

We will periodically hold workshops that allow teachers to explore concepts in an in-depth manner. These half-day and full-day workshops will be in areas of relevance for our classroom setting. Some of the topics will be similar to the Thursday professional development, while others will deal with topics that we cannot cover long-term.

Here are some potential workshop ideas:
SEI training
Framework for Understanding Poverty
Discipline
Professional Learning Communities
Technology - Galileo, AIMS Web, specific training on things like wikis, blogs, etc.
Reachiing the ELL student
Gifted Education workshops
Content-specific, in order to introduce teachers to a few new ideas

QUESTION:
What type of topics would you like for us to cover in professional development?

INTRODUCTION TO PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

INTRODUCTION
Professional development is ultimately what will determine the success of this academy. A solid professional development program guarentees that all teachers continue to learn and grow in the craft of teaching and thus improves the quality of education for all students.
Our professional development will consist of Thursday meetings, optional workshops, mentoring and coaching (both school-based and district-based), technology-based training (including online resources) and an individualized plan suited to the needs of each teacher.

BASIC CONCEPT:
Professional development will run more like long-term classes. Teachers will have a choice of three electives classes based upon the Needs Assessments created by both staff and leadership.

MAJOR GOALS

• Best Practices - In other words, it needs to be interactive, utilize multiple intelligences and cooperative learning, etc.
• In-depth - Rather than simple, one-time-only classes, teachers will delve deeply in a continuous, semester-long study
• Accountability - The teachers will create a plan for implementation of the knowledge and will be assessed on whether the skills have transferred to the student level.

THURSDAY PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT STRUCTURE

OPTIONS: HOW TO STRUCTURE IT
Option 1 - Teachers will teach elective classes to other teachers in areas considered relevant by the school. The teacher will be more of a facilitator and the professional development will be interactive.
Option 2 - Experts (either hired professionals, administration or curriculum specialist) teaches
Option 3 - Rotating leadership, where each member of the class has one assigned day where they are a facilitator (and, if they choose, they can have a guest speaker).
Option 4 - A blended approach, where teachers will choose between three tracts (one with rotating leadership, one with an expert teacher and one with an expert who is not a teacher)

PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT

There is a mentality in many low-SES schools, that parents are the enemy, that they get in the way of education and that they prevent good teachers from doing their jobs. The truth is that in any area, there are great parents. In the IMPACT program, we have seen parents attend Family Nights, volunteer as chaperones, translate our monthly newsletters and take an active role in their child's education. Parents are the ultimate stake-holders in a child's educaiton. They raise the child, pay the taxes for a teacher's salary and offer support over the years. We, as teachers, need to remember that it is our job to serve the parents by providing the best education a child can experience.

WAYS WE WILL ENSURE PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT

• Parents will attend the initial orientation
• Parents will attend one conference per quarter
• Teachers will be responsible to contact every parent of the students in their home rooms
• The school will offer volunteer opportuntities
• Parents will be a part of the decision-making process through committees, interviews and surveys
• Parent ELL classes
• Parent computer / technology classes
• Chaperones
• Sign the weekly homework log
• Monthly Family Nights or Community Celebrations

WHY THE SIXTH GRADE CENTER?

We would like to use the current sixth grade center for a few reasons. First, the Pinnacle Prep Academy would be the smaller of the two schools (with the traditional school being larger) and the sixth grade center has fewer rooms. The current room configurations would allow for each teacher to have one room, plus a few rooms to spare (perhaps a Special Education room, a multimedia center, a Science Lab, etc.) In addition, given our starting and ending time, we believe it would be benefecial to be self-contained so that learning can occur earlier in the day without interruptions. Finally, the newer classrooms are better designed to accomodate the computer set-up that we would like to have in the future.

QUESTIONS:
-What are some reasons for choosing the sixth grade center?

FACILITIES

We would like to locate the Pinnacle Prep Academy at the current Sixth Grade Center. We have a clear concept of how we can use that facility.



FACILITIES GOALS
Goal #1 - A more ecologically-friendly environment

• School-wide recycling
• Gardens, mini-ecoystem
• Lower energy usage
• Solar panels
• Minimal paper usage

Clean, professional look

• As little tagging as possible
• Take good care of the facilities
• Framed pictures
• School mission statement painted in strategic locations

Expressive of student creativity

• Murals painted on the outside
• Mosaics - multicultural in nature
• A few key murals on the inside
• Student artwork on display in the inside

QUESTIONS:

1. What are some innovative ways to meet these goals?
2. How do you envision the facilities being used?
3. What steps do we need to take to make this a reality?

Go Back to the Facilities Page

OUR VALUES

WHAT WE BELIEVE

Values are the intangible beliefs and convictions that drive a school. They are a reflection of the school mission and philosophy and they help shape the school culture. For our school values, we will continue to use the IMPACT values. Click on each of the values to see examples of these values and how they relate to the three focus areas of college, career and community.

Involvement in the Community
Meaningful Experiences
Practical Skills
Accountability
Creativity
Technology

What is IMPACT? Check our IMPACT Website
What is our School Philosophy of Education?

SCHOOL MISSION

Ensure all students succeed in preparation for college, career and community

College

• Equipping students with the concepts, skills, behaviors, experiences for college
• Touring universities in order to envision where they could be
• Students conducting interviews with college students and professors
• Participating in community service and showing how to document it for scholarships

Career

• Practical career skills, including goal-setting, resume writing, public speaking
• Touring job sites that use math and science
• Interviewing professionals
• Job shadowing
• Career Fair and Career Exploration
• Global collaborative projects
• Student Leadership Team
• Technology-integrated curriculum

Community

• Community service hours
• Service learning trips with reflections
• Weekend community service activities
• Social studies with community service built into it
• Current Social Awareness Club and IMPACT program activities
• Student-led community projects
• Student-created documentaries

QUESTIONS

1. What modifications should we make to the mission?
2. What will it "look like" if are meeting our mission?
3. What ideas do you have in college prep, community service or career exploration?

Back to the Mission Page

FOCUS / TARGET GROUP

WHO WE WANT TO REACH

• Students who want to make a difference
• Students who would like to someday attend college
• Students who are willing to work hard and take up the challenge
• Not necessarily honors . . . yet. In other words, all students can meet high expectations.

QUESTIONS

1. What are your thoughts on this target group?
2. How do we attract the students we are aiming to reach?
3. Should there be a screening process for students? Or can we pull up any student regardless of their level when they enroll?

Back to the Concept Page

RATIONALE

Due to restructuring, we have the opportunity for a fresh start. Thus, we begin this journey asking the question, "What does it mean to have a quality education in the twenty-first century?" What is the point of education?

At this point, some say citizenship or life-long learning while others suggest it prepares students for a job or for college. This academy would embody each of those philosophies by providing students with the skills, concepts and experiences that prepare them for college, allow them to explore future career opportunities and encourage them to make a difference in the community.

This academy begins with the vision of the IMPACT program and expands the IMPACT values so that it can become the basis of the school culture. With high expectations and the right teacher, parental and community support, we will ensure that our students will have the best education they can possibly recieve.

QUESTIONS:

• What is the point of education?
• What types of challenges will we face as we embark upon this journey?
• How does education need to change in the twenty-first century?

Back to the Concept Page

WHAT ABOUT SPORTS?

If Borman splits into two, what will happen to sports? This is a very serious question that needs further discussion.

Here are some potential possibilities:

1 - No sports program, but students can participate at another middle school in the district. The down side is that we would end up missing out on some of the great school spirit and cohesion needed for our school.

2 - A smaller sports program, offering fewer sports, but still allowing for us to be very competitive. (For example, in the fall, we would offer soccer or volleyball, but not both - or we would only have a varsity team for both sports, but not a junior varsity team). The down side is whether there is the money to start a whole new sports program and whether we can build the necessary infrastructure to make it happen.

3 - Finding a way for Borman and our school to become a combined team for sports only. The down side here is whether this would be allowed during restructuring. It might not qualify in the areas of separate facilities.

NAME, MASCOT, COLORS

PINNACLE PREPARATORY ACADEMY

Although the name is negotiable, the initial name we choose is Pinnacle Prep Academy. The name symbolizes excellence and high standards. Besides, it has alliteration. Who can beat alliteration?

For a mascot we are leaning toward "The Pride," both for the symbolism attached to mountain lions and also because PRIDE is an acronymn for Personal Responsibility in Daily Excellence.

QUESTIONS:
What are your thoughts on the name?
What are your thoughts on the mascot?
What would be the best colors to use?



> >Go back to the Concept Page

INTRODUCTION

SCHOOL MISSION
Ensure all students succeed in preparation for college, career and community

Schools are powerful. They can lead to freedom or indoctrination, to a love of learning or a hatred of all things academic. A student can leave feeling inspired and hopeful or berated and judged. A school can offer a fast-food education, with cheap, artificial, factory-created, standardized fare or they can provide something authentic, high-quality and meaningful for life.

Our vision is that we will create a meaningful education that will provide all students with the skills, concepts and experiences that they need in life. Our school will be a place where they serve the community, learn practical skills, meet high standards, express their creativity, use technology and experience things that once seemed impossible.

<< Back to the Introduction