A Report

to the

B o a r d 2010-2011

No. 39 May 20, 2011

A. The Importance of Early Childhood Education – Attachment 1 is a report showing how preschool and Kindergarten programs, especially for high risk and vulnerable students, save millions of dollars that would otherwise be spent in the justice system. I draw your attention to the last page of the report and the graph on that page. The graph shows that a $1,000 investment in quality pre kindergarten programs returns a savings of $19,000 in twenty years. The statistics on the savings from an investment in quality pre kindergarten programs is staggering.

B. Special Board Meeting – The Board of School Directors has called a Special Budget Meeting for Thursday, May 26, 2011 at 7:00 PM. The Board Secretary will advertise the meeting as is protocol.

C. School Based Probation Program – We had our yearly meeting with the School Based Probation Program. Attending the meeting were representatives from Allegheny County Juvenile Court, Mr. Stephens, Mrs. Golden, Dr. Robins, and I. In general, the comments about the program were very positive on the part of both principals.

D. Contacting BCMC Students – Attachment 2 is a letter being sent from the High School under the signatures of Principal Dan Stephens and Guidance Counselor Colin O’Grady. As you can see from the letter, students are being invited to come to the High School and learn about all the alternatives available to them should they choose to take advantage of what Woodland Hills has to offer. This in no way makes a final determination of what will happen with the budget with regard to BCMC. It is only an informational program so that all involved students will be able to make the very best decision regarding their future education.

E. Title 1 Allocation Is Here – We have been notified that the Title 1 allocation is $2,334,762 for the 2011-2012 school year. This is a 6.44 percent reduction from last year. The Title 2A allocation is expected next week.

F. Department Updates – the following Department Report is included in this Update:

Attachment 3 – Technology

G. Building Highlights – The following highlights have been submitted by building principals:

Attachment 4 – Dickson Attachment 5 – Edgewood Attachment 6 – Fairless Elementary Attachment 7 – Shaffer

Attachment 8 – Wilkins Attachment 9 – Jr. High School Attachment 10 – High School

OVER

Information Update – May 20, 2011 Page 2

H. Distinguished Educator Meeting – Our Distinguished Educator, Dr. Elaine Brown, met this week with the principals at Dickson Elementary, the Junior High School and the High School. Attachment 11, Attachment 12 and Attachment 13 are the Notes from these meetings.

I. 2011 PASBO/PASA Budget Survey – Attachment 14 is the results of a statewide budget survey conducted by PASBO/PASA. This survey was released to the press today. If you have any questions about interpreting these results please call.

Technology Department Weekly Report 5-19-11 Brian finished working on an updated Fixed Asset Inventory for the Business department. He updated the 2011-12 Technology Budget and submitted it to the Superintendent and Business Manager. In addition he met with representatives from ComDoc to discuss modifications to their copier proposal. Today he is attending the monthly AIU Tech meeting at Beattie Career Center. He is currently updating all Mac images to include the newest Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 upgrade. All Macs will be able to take advantage of the newest Adobe software (Acrobat X, Photoshop, Dreamweaver, & etc.) for free. Steve installed a cable converter kit to enable our TV recording server to record Comcast's new digital formatted recordings. He continues working with Lightspeed Tech support to fine tune their reporting server. Steve and Courtland had a phone conference with a prospective VMware (Secure Server Virtualization & Cloud Management) vendor to discuss reducing our current number of physical servers. Today they are meeting with Mark Stefanik from ePals to discuss plans to implement the ePals email system and new features that have just been released. Courtland changed the arrangement of the Aruba WAPS in Dickson for better wireless coverage. He worked with Keith installing new HP POE manageable switches. Keith configured a ComDoc demo Copier for Edgewood Elementary. He also repaired a Server power supply damaged by storm water in an Edgewood basement closet. In addition he configured and installed the remaining new HP POE manageable switches and worked with Brian to determine an accurate count for remaining switch upgrades District wide. BJ met with Dan Breitkreutz about MOU's for Safe Schools Reporting that is done in PIMS. She also met with Principals to apprise them of a change to the Safe Schools Report with regards to the local law enforcement agencies and the new MOU's and Safe Schools ACS. In addition she prepared handouts for the Principals on the necessary information that is needed. She has corrected data for errors that Special Ed had for their Penn Data upload and worked on DRC online attribution for PSSA & PASA tests. She also ran Student Attribution Reports and PIMS validation reports to prepare for next PIMS collection. Courtland, Dan, and Keith have been working on helpdesk tickets for various IT related issues in all of the District Buildings.

Attachment 3

Dickson Elementary School May 16 - 20, 2011

Weekly Positive Highlights

Dickson students have been visited by a number of guest speakers this Tuesday as a part of "Journey Around the World."

o Second graders learned about Mexico and Central America from Ms. Diana

Cardenas, a parent of one of our Pre-K students. Ms. Cardenas is from Mexico.

o Dickson teacher Mrs. Delease Edwards, who is from Jamaica, spoke to the

kindergarten students and taught them a special dance. o Guest speaker Ms. Mirsalikova presented information about her country and

culture to the 5th graders. She is from Uzbekistan, and is a parent of two Dickson students -- Reyhan and Aybek Faizi.

o Fourth graders were treated to a fascinating presentation by Mr. Nanji who is

from Cameroon in West Africa. o On Monday, May 23, the fifth graders will also attend a presentation on India

given by Mrs. Godhania, mother of Rhea, a 3rd grader.

The presentations are giving the students first hand knowledge about the countries and cultures that they are studying as part of the “Journey Around the World.” These experiences are also demonstrating the rich cultural diversity of our own communities and country for the students.

Sixth graders took a field trip on Tuesday to the Highmark Sports Works where they experienced hands-on science activities such as taking a virtual tour through the human body, completing the rock wall challenge, and discovering how their weight is affected by gravity by becoming a human yoyo.

First grade Dickson students traveled to the National Aviary on Wednesday, May 18 for their field trip. Students attended an interactive learning assembly, Parrot Parade, in which one parrot talked and painted. They visited birds from around the world, experienced different world climates, and in the Wetlands the children got to hand feed some birds with worms and fish.

The Woodland Hills Foundation sponsored a trip for all the 4th grade students to visit the Woodland Hills Art Show at the Braddock Library. The students toured the art show as well as various parts of the building, including the ceramics studio, the swimming pool, the bowling alley, the French-Indian War museum, and the theater. Students learned about the history of the library, the town of Braddock, and Andrew Carnegie.

Attachment 4

The entire student body and staff of Dickson organized a very special assembly in honor of Mrs. Heidy Garth as a token of appreciation for her eight years of volunteer work at Dickson, seven as PTO President. Mrs. Garth was also a very active volunteer at Edgewood Primary and at the Junior High, sometimes serving as PTO President at two schools during the same years. The faculty hosted a special breakfast for Mrs. Garth and her family and, at the assembly, each grade level presented a specially made gift, song or poem for Mrs. Garth.

The annual 5th/6th grade dance was held on Friday, May 20 from 7 to 9 pm in the school gymnasium. The theme of the dance was Mardi Gras and Wilkins teacher Paul Serbak was the deejay. The dance is sponsored each year by the PTO to reward the work of the upper classmen.

WOODLAND HILLS SCHOOL DISTRICT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EDUCATION EMPLOYER AND WILL NOT DISCRIMINATE

ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN, GENDER, AGE, OR HANDICAP IN ITS ACTIVITIES, PROGRAMS, OR EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES AS REQUIRED BY TITLE VI, TITLE IX AND SECTION 504.

MS. J. WILSON CARTER, Principal MRS. C. GATHER, Assistant Principal

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

EDGEWOOD ELEMENTARY 241 Maple Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15218 412-731-2238 Fax 412-731-2256

TO: Dr. Calinger FROM: Ms. Carter RE: Edgewood Positive Press DATE: May 19, 2011 KINDERGARTEN NEWS Mrs. Frederick’s Kindergarten class had several guest speakers this week in recognition of Career Week. Musian/Percussionist Mr. Elliot Beck visited on Monday. On Wednesday, Mr. Rand Wilson discussed working as a photographer. Sergeant Frederick visited on Thursday to discuss what it is like to be in the military. On Friday, Ms. Becky Turner of Turner Dairy visitied to share with students the life of a farmer and on Monday, Mr. Rob Gast discussed his career of working as a carpenter and a boat builder. The culminating activity was having the students do a career self portrait. 1st GRADE NEWS: The first grade's news is Whalma the Humpback whale! In conjunction with first grade's ASSET Organisms unit, first graders experienced a large living thing. We've been observing moss, tree seedlings, water plants (elodea and cabamba), snails and guppies. The life -sized replica of the whale (powered by a box fan) was definitely not a small oraganism! The students learned about blubber, migration and echolocation. We also enjoyed singing and dancing inside the belly of the whale. We will continue the Ocean theme through the rest of the year. 3rd GRADE NEWS: Third grade is studying the rules and history of Baseball and Ms. Belsito's and Mrs. Seigfreid's class will be playing a friendly game of baseball. Next week third grade will be studying the planets and our galaxy The Milky Way! Last week, third grade learned about the different types of clouds, and did a lot of comparing and contrasting! Third grade is hard at work preparing for 4th grade. They made kites with line segments, rays, right triangles, acute triangles, obtuse triangles, and angles! Mrs. Messina was a guest reader in both Ms. Belsito and Mrs. Seigfreid's classroom! The student's loved her!

Attachment 5

WOODLAND HILLS SCHOOL DISTRICT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EDUCATION EMPLOYER AND WILL NOT DISCRIMINATE

ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN, GENDER, AGE, OR HANDICAP IN ITS ACTIVITIES, PROGRAMS, OR EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES AS REQUIRED BY TITLE VI, TITLE IX AND SECTION 504.

4th GRADE NEWS: Ms. Miskus, 4th Grade Teacher reported, My students had a wonderful Career Week. We started with a meaningful Monday morning. Lieutenant Charles Rodriguez (Enrique's Dad) is with the Pittsburgh Police and he runs the computer department there. He talked with the kids about his job as a policeman and as a "tech guy." Then Wendy Doernberg, a recently graduated lawyer, came in and talked to the kids about how the judicial system works. We also talked about what lawyers do and what it takes to become a lawyer. Josh Kuznetsov, a special needs young man, came to our classroom to talk about the work that I do with him after school. I talked about how I care for Josh and why he is so special (he has cerebral palsy, epilepsy, mental retardation). The kids were very interested in his wheelchair, feeding tube, and his Dynavox (computer communication device). Monday morning ended with Mrs. Karas (Ava's mom). She discussed being a professional ballerina and a dance studio owner. The students saw how much time and effort she puts in to running her company. We also learned some awesome ballet moves! On Wednesday morning, Private First Class Brittany Swartzwelder, of the Army National Guard, came in to speak with my students about life in the military. She explained her uniform and even showed the kids how to march and solute. She was followed by Detective John Corado, of the Swissvale Police Department. The kids learned his detective duties and how crime labs actually work (not what we see on TV). They were very intrigued by his personal stories about catching the "bad guy." Wednesday afternoon, we had our field trip to the Braddock Library for the WHSD Art Show. The kids were so overjoyed by the artwork and interesting parts to the library, especially the pool! We came back and had a visit from Mrs. Withers (Ellie's mom), who taught us about the University of Pittsburgh's Library System. There are so many ways to "Ask a Librarian." any question! 5TH GRADE NEWS: Good afternoon! We had the pleasure in my class to have Mr. Rand Wilson as a visitor who talked to us about being a stunt performer. My students loved it and thought it was such an awesome career! Also, Wes Lyons of the Pittsburgh Steelers came in to talk to our class. It was a great time of engagement and question and answer time. We learned that to be a professional athlete, you must be very respectful and an incredibly hard worker in all facets of life! 6th GRADE NEWS: On Friday May 13, 2011 Ms. Payne’s class attended their third and final team building experience with Mr. Christie. Ms. Payne reported that they worked together as a team and gave encouragement when needed. Mr. Christie said that the class was "the best group all year". Ms. Payne’s 6th grade class had two visitors during career week. Mrs. Rodocker and Mrs. Danel Payne spoke to the students about their careers. The students were very well behaved and as such, Mrs. Payne will visit with the students again! GENERAL SCHOOL INFORMATION Several members of Edgewood Symphony performed, “Peter and the Wolf” for all students on Friday, May 13th. Ms. Lana Buehner worked with Mr. Laret and several students. The students acted out different instrumental parts of the story. The Woodland Hills All-District art show is open Thursday May 19th through Saturday May 21st. The 4th graders visited the art show and were excited to see their art work displayed.

WOODLAND HILLS SCHOOL DISTRICT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EDUCATION EMPLOYER AND WILL NOT DISCRIMINATE

ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN, GENDER, AGE, OR HANDICAP IN ITS ACTIVITIES, PROGRAMS, OR EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES AS REQUIRED BY TITLE VI, TITLE IX AND SECTION 504.

Jean Marie Livingston, Principal Kelly Berthold, Assistant Principal

FAIRLESS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 531 Jones Avenue, North Braddock, PA 15104 412-271-1317 fax 412-271-6657

Positives from Fairless The volunteers from the Animal Rescue League shared some wonderful information with the 2nd grade students about the ARL, what the workers do there and about the animals that they help. They brought in a puppy and two kittens. The students were all very interested in what the volunteers had to say. The volunteers explained how the animals at the ARL come to be there and what people can do to prevent the overwhelming number of unwanted and neglected pets from ending up there. The emphasized the importance of caring for the animals that people have for pets and being responsible for them so that they do not end up at the ARL. The volunteers also gave instruction to students about what they should do and how they should protect themselves should they ever be near a stray animal. At the end, the volunteers allowed the students to pet the puppy and kittens. The students enjoyed the opportunity immensely.

Attachment 6

Dr. Deborah M. Vereen, Principal

SHAFFER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 37 Garden Terrace, Pittsburgh, PA 15221

TELEPHONE 412-371- 4535 FACIMILE 412-371- 4571

Verede@whsd.net ELECTRONIC MAIL

A Team Committed To Excellence

WEEKLY POSITIVE MESSAGE

Shaffer Elementary School hosted a visit from “Mission Vision”. The mission of the

organization is consistent with supplying, at no cost, glasses to children who need them. Ms. Susan I Henault, ABOC FNAO, Executive Director of the organization as well as her staff who included an ophthalmologist reported to the school on Tuesday, May 17, 2011 to service children whose parents provided their consent by completing eye examinations and by fitting children with very stylish glasses. A total of 26 children were seen. Of that number, 23 will be receiving their new glasses within two weeks as a result of the generosity of the organization.

Shaffer hosted the first annual Science Olympiad on Wednesday, May 18, 2011. Students

enrolled in grades 3, 4, and 5 participated in this academically rigorous event. Mrs. Cathie Pearson, Gifted Support Teacher was very instrumental in securing a grant for funding the event along with the support of Ms. Desiree White, Fifth Grade Teachers. Parent volunteers joined Ms. Blasi, Gifted Support Teacher from Woodland Hills High School and several high school teachers in coordinating the scientific event for the day. The dedication as well as assistance of all of these individuals resulted in the event being wonderful. It must be noted that the young people from the high school collaborated with the Shaffer students in a positive manner.

Efforts have been extended to provide students with enrichment opportunities in the area of

science education. Fourth, fifth, and sixth graders created science projects. These creative student generated products are currently on display in the halls at the school.

The building administration continues to host building tours for future Shaffer families as

well as those who are considering Shaffer as their school of choice.

Shaffer fourth graders attended the Woodland Hills School District Art Show on Tuesday, May 17, 2011. This event helped the children develop a greater appreciation for the visual arts.

All teachers have submitted their year-end evidenced-based Professional Portfolio which will

be utilized as part of the year-end evaluation process.

Submitted by Dr. Deborah M. Vereen,

May 18, 2011

Attachment 7

WOODLAND HILLS SCHOOL DISTRICT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EDUCATION EMPLOYER AND WILL NOT DISCRIMINATE

ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN, GENDER, AGE, OR HANDICAP IN ITS ACTIVITIES, PROGRAMS, OR EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES AS REQUIRED BY TITLE VI, TITLE IX AND SECTION 504.

MRS. KAREN E. BLOCH, PRINCIPAL

MR. GERALD CHESSMAN, ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL

__________________________________________________________________ WILKINS ELEMENTARY

362 Churchill Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15235 Phone: 412-824-3231 Fax: 412-824-3244

MEMORANDUM TO: Dr. Calinger and Dr. Wallace FROM: Mrs. Karen E. Bloch RE: Notables from Wilkins Elementary Week of May 9 – 13, 2011 DATE: 05/17/11 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Wilkins band students participated in an end of the year concert at the Junior High. Mr. Serbak's class participated in a state and capital city competition. Mrs. Bloch could not get one person out! The students are top-notch geography learners! Students at each level continue to learn on the Promethean boards, as do the teachers! These boards have enhanced the way teachers are presenting lessons and contribute to the students increased love of learning. Respectfully submitted, Karen E. Bloch Principal

Attachment 8

WOODLAND HILLS SCHOOL DISTRICT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EDUCATION EMPLOYER AND WILL NOT DISCRIMINATE

ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN, GENDER, AGE, OR HANDICAP IN ITS ACTIVITIES, PROGRAMS, OR EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES AS REQUIRED BY TITLE VI, TITLE IX AND SECTION 504.

Mrs. Dawn Golden, Principal

Mr. Shawn Brown, Assistant Principal Mr. Lawrence Washington, Assistant Principal

WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS

Week of May 16–20, 2011 My students are working on researching the Aztecs and Incas and using their research to create Keynotes and Animoto slideshows. There is a great buzz around the music department this week. We are all excited as we prepare for our concerts that are on Wednesday May 18, 2011. The students in the Chorus and Band have been working very hard to prepare their music and we feel that they will put on a spectacular performance. We are also happy to have the 7th grade band students from the Academy over the Junior High to share in our evening of music making. We look forward to seeing the whole community come out and support these talented students. The 8th Grade Semi-formal "A Night Under the Stars" was held Friday, May 13th from 6:30-10:00 at the junior high school. The evening included a catered meal, desserts and a DJ. The students along with chaperones enjoyed an evening of dancing, socializing and dressing like royalty. An enjoyable evening was had by all. The Junior High Track team had a great end of the season at the Plum Invitational. The Girls 400 relay team of Raven Russell, Tiara Martin, Natasha Rogers and Kenya Davis took 5th place. Raven also took 5th in the 100 meter dash and 3rd in the 200 meter dash. All other female participants improved in each of their events. The Boys team medaled in six events. Marcel McCaskill took 4th in the 110 High Hurdles. The 1600 relay team made up of Marcel McCaskill, Jordan Lee, Miles Sanders (Academy), and Corey Dowdy took 4th and set a new school record with a time of 3:57 (dropping its previous fastest time by 18 seconds). Corey Dowdy also took 1st in the 400 meter dash with a time of 53.3 seconds a new school record. Then, lead by Isaiah Brooks, the meet record book was rewritten! The 400 relay team of Miles Sanders, Corey Dowdy, Daron Cooper, and Isaiah Brooks took 1st and broke the meet record and school record with a time of 46.6 seconds. This is a time that would compete at most High School events! Isaiah also took 1st in the 100 meter dash, again with a new meet and school record of 11.16 seconds. Isaiah then took 1st and set both meet and school records in the 200 meter dash with a time of 23.51 seconds. Isaiah was awarded the Outstanding Track Athlete Award for the meet. Congratulations to Samantha Edinger for winning 3rd place in the ESSPA Creative Writing Contest. The guidance department continues to enter and adjust schedules/course selections for the 2011-2012 school year.

Attachment 9

WOODLAND HILLS SCHOOL DISTRICT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EDUCATION EMPLOYER AND WILL NOT DISCRIMINATE

ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN, GENDER, AGE, OR HANDICAP IN ITS ACTIVITIES, PROGRAMS, OR EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES AS REQUIRED BY TITLE VI, TITLE IX AND SECTION 504.

The 4-Sight Benchmark Reading and Math makeup testing for 8th graders were administered on May 18. The guidance office is organizing failure and summer-school listings to mail out letters and information to parents. The Gifted students took 1st place for poetry and prose in the ESSPA forensics competition The Art and Gifted classes visited Fallingwater on Tuesday, May 17th. Ms. Balas’s 7th grade Reading/Language Arts classes have kept the library buzzing this week with research on animals. They are researching, taking notes, citing their sources, creating a PowerPoint, and writing a paper. Arrangements are being made to have a Holocaust survivor speak on May 27 to the 8th graders who have been researching the Holocaust and World War II in order to better understand their reading of the dramatization of “The Diary of Anne Frank.” Final preparations are being made for the Battle of the Books on May 25 at CC Mellor Memorial Library. The food and transportation have been ordered, the students are madly reading the books, the coaches are practicing their teams, and the prizes are secured. Bring it on! For the latest Bullying Prevention Meeting, the 7th and 8th graders completed the Olweus Bullying Questionnaire. The results of this questionnaire will determine how the junior high is doing relative to eliminating bullying in the school. The students have one more Bullying Prevention Meeting before the end of the year. That meeting will occur on May 27.

WOODLAND HILLS SCHOOL DISTRICT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EDUCATION EMPLOYER AND WILL NOT DISCRIMINATE

ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN, GENDER, AGE, OR HANDICAP IN ITS ACTIVITIES, PROGRAMS, OR EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES AS REQUIRED BY TITLE VI, TITLE IX AND SECTION 504.

MR. DANIEL STEPHENS, Principal MRS. LICIA LENTZ, Assistant Principal

MR. KEVIN MURRAY, Assistant to the Principal MRS. MARLO ROBINSON, Assistant Principal

WOODLAND HILLS HIGH SCHOOL 2550 Greensburg Pike, Pittsburgh, PA 15221 412-244-1100 412-242-2344 (Fax)

M E M O R A N D U M TO: Dr. Walter Calinger FROM: Dan Stephens DATE: May 18, 2011 RE: High School Activities The following activities occurred at the high school since Wednesday, May 11, 2011:

Congratulations to Mrs. Thompson and the Woodland Hills Entrepreneurship Teams for sweeping first and

second place in the FedEx Junior Achievement Titan Business Challenge’s Grand Regional Championship

Event held on Tuesday, May 17 at LaRoche College. The Wild Card Team (Grand Champions) took First Place: Sekonda Johnson, Lauren Roney and Jamal Yesko, members of the Wild Card Team took First

Place and each winner received a $300 Best Buy Gift Card. The Two Time Winners Team took Second Place: Monte Chapman, Brandon Sachs and Anthony Young members of the Two Time Winners Team

took Second Place and each winner received a $200 Best Buy Gift Card. The teams both received a

trophy for the school with respect to their place.

Butler Entrepreneurship Day Submission

Tyler Bubin's Business Plan, "Wheel-Do-It" was submitted to the Economics PA Entrepreneurship Challenge. Regional winners will be announced on Friday, May 20, 2011. Good Luck to Tyler.

Brenton Williams, a junior studying Multimedia at Forbes Road Career and Technology Center, received

the PTI award at the recently held Visions and Voices show. Brenton has already posted a website for a

client!

DLS/eip

Attachment 10

DICKSON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Meeting Notes

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Present: Ms. Allison Kline, Ms. Lyndsey Love, and Dr. Elaine Brown

General Discussion:

Ms. Kline, Ms. Love, and Dr. Brown reviewed the results of the Foundations of Effective

Learning rating tool in detail. We analyzed the building’s desired state and its current state. The Foundations of Effective Learning tool covers thirteen principles of which four principles

were chosen to be targeted for the 2001-2012 school year. They are: o Principle 5: Motivation Matter

The CHAMPS will drive this principle o Principle 9: Good Teaching Builds on Students’ Strengths and Respects Individual

Differences Differentiated instruction will be enhanced using instructional strategies

o Principle 12: All Students Should Experience a “Thinking Curriculum” Bloom’s revised taxonomy of higher order thinking skills will be addressed

o Principle 13: The Best Results come from having an Aligned Instructional System SAS (Standards Aligned Systems) for reading and math will be continued

Ms. Kline continues to work on the Dickson Elementary Reform/Getting Results Plan development.

Compiled by: Elaine M. Brown, Ed D.

Attachment 11

WHSD Junior High School

Meeting Notes

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Present: Ms. Dawn Golden and Dr. Elaine M. Brown

General Discussion:

Ms. Golden and Dr. Brown used the Foundations of Effective Learning rating tool as a guide for today’s meeting. We discussed statements relative to WHSD Junior High School’s current state. This rating tool will give the WHSD Junior High Leadership Team good direction for planning future reform and in-service activities.

Our schedule allowed discussion of the first eight of the below listed principles. The Foundations

of Effective Learning tool covers thirteen (13) principles: o Principle 1: Effort Produces Achievement o Principle 2: Learning is About Making Connections o Principle 3: We Learn with and through Others o Principle 4: Learning takes Time o Principle 5: Motivation Matters o Principle 6: The Teacher Matters o Principle 7: Focused Teaching Promotes Accelerated Learning o Principle 8: Clear Expectations and Continuous Feedback Activate Learning o Principle 9: Good Teaching Builds on Students’ Strengths and Respects Individual

Differences o Principle 10: Good Teaching Involves Modeling What Students Should Learn o Principle 11: The Curriculum Should Focus on Powerful Knowledge o Principle 12: All Students Should Experience a “Thinking Curriculum” o Principle 13: The Best Results come from having an Aligned Instructional System

There are 42 total statements with three to six statements under each of the above thirteen listed categories; we will continue this discussion next week on Wednesday, May 25 at 9 AM.

The 13 Principles of Effective Learning tool results also will be analyzed next week to determine what areas the building Leadership Team will use as a guide for future reform activities to further student achievement.

Compiled by: Elaine M. Brown, Ed D.

Attachment 12

WHSD SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Meeting Notes ~ Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Present: Mr. Daniel Stephens, Ms. Licia Lentz, Ms. Pat Kennedy, Ms. Heather Moschetta, Ms. Erin Shaw-Tiboni, Ms. Marilyn Keteles, Ms. Deborah Fischer, Ms. Julie Kuzy, Mr. Mike Steinmetz, Mr. Robert Naill, Mr. Steve Flanders, Mr. Bill Coles, Mr. Jason McDonougl and Dr. Elaine Brown

General Discussion:

The Foundations of Effective Learning rating tool was used as a guide for today’s meeting. Dr. Brown explained to the WHSD Senior High Leadership Team that our goal for today’s meeting was to review perceptions and reach general consensus for the desired state vs. the current state of the WHSD Senior High School relative to the 13 Principles of Effective Learning.

Dr. Brown further explained that the administrators will use consensus results from their rating to help plan for future reform activities; staff commented that this current year’s in-service activities were pertinent and helpful because activities were tailored to their specific department needs. This tool will aid the administration to continue in that direction.

Very good discussion and open comments were helpful with numerous examples of why individual team members rated certain statements as they did.

The Foundations of Effective Learning tool covers thirteen (13) principles: o Principle 1: Effort Produces Achievement o Principle 2: Learning is About Making Connections o Principle 3: We Learn with and through Others o Principle 4: Learning takes Time o Principle 5: Motivation Matters o Principle 6: The Teacher Matters o Principle 7: Focused Teaching Promotes Accelerated Learning o Principle 8: Clear Expectations and Continuous Feedback Activate Learning o Principle 9: Good Teaching Builds on Students’ Strengths and Respects Individual

Differences o Principle 10: Good Teaching Involves Modeling What Students Should Learn o Principle 11: The Curriculum Should Focus on Powerful Knowledge o Principle 12: All Students Should Experience a “Thinking Curriculum” o Principle 13: The Best Results come from having an Aligned Instructional System

There are 42 total statements with three to six statements under each of the above thirteen listed categories; the 13 Principles of Effective Learning tool results will be analyzed next week to determine what areas the building administration will use as a guide for future reform activities to further student achievement with their leadership team. The administrators and Dr. Brown are scheduled to meet at 12:45 PM on Wednesday, May 25.

Mr. Stephens and Ms. Lentz should be commended for choosing a strong diverse leadership team that is able to offer outstanding relevant input.

Compiled by: Elaine M. Brown, Ed D.

Attachment 13