Executive Summary. Oak Hill Montessori School. Ms. Kathy Atherton, Director 6720 Oak Hill Blvd Tyler, TX

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1 Ms. Kathy Atherton, Director 6720 Oak Hill Blvd Tyler, TX Document Generated On February 20, 2014

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 1 Description of the School 2 School's Purpose 4 Notable Achievements and Areas of Improvement 5 Additional Information 7

3 Introduction Every school has its own story to tell. The context in which teaching and learning takes place influences the processes and procedures by which the school makes decisions around curriculum, instruction, and assessment. The context also impacts the way a school stays faithful to its vision. Many factors contribute to the overall narrative such as an identification of stakeholders, a description of stakeholder engagement, the trends and issues affecting the school, and the kinds of programs and services that a school implements to support student learning. <br><br> The purpose of the Executive Summary (ES) is to provide a school with an opportunity to describe in narrative form the strengths and challenges it encounters. By doing so, the public and members of the school community will have a more complete picture of how the school perceives itself and the process of self-reflection for continuous improvement. This summary is structured for the school to reflect on how it provides teaching and learning on a day to day basis. Page 1

4 Description of the School Describe the school's size, community/communities, location, and changes it has experienced in the last three years. Include demographic information about the students, staff, and community at large. What unique features and challenges are associated with the community/communities the school serves? Louise Dyer was approached in 1990 about buying a Montessori school in Longview, Texas. She was fascinated with the Montessori Method and after much consideration and prayer she accepted the offer and purchased the Oak Forest Montessori School in February of Knowing his mother's passion for Montessori, In 1998 Louise's son, Jay, approached her about purchasing a learning center in Nacogdoches, Texas. Although it was not a Montessori school, the school had great potential and Louise jumped at the opportunity to introduce the world of Montessori to the Nacogdoches community. Tanglewood Learning Center was acquired in 1999 and currently offers a traditional preschool program and a Montessori program. A few years later, Jay again approached Louise about acquiring a Montessori school in Clear Lake, just outside of Houston, Texas. After lengthy discussion, Armand Bayou Montessori School was acquired in Each one of the schools was established when acquired and although daunting, Louise always dreamed about building a school from the ground up. In 2005 Louise's husband Bob expressed an interest in moving to Tyler, his hometown. The two began spending a significant amount of time in Tyler and meeting new people. Many Tyler natives expressed an interest in the Montessori Method thus prompting Louise to do some research. Research indicated there was a need for a Montessori school in Tyler and the decision was made to build Oak Hill. Growth patterns and market research were examined and the land was acquired in After years of planning, the school was established in Tyler in 2008 by Louise Dyer. Louise was able to reflect on her experiences owning and operating three other schools in Texas and develop her vision for. Kathy Atherton, the Directress, has been with OHMS since its inception. She came to OHMS with 25 years of teaching and counseling experience. Becky Sherwood served as Administrative Assistant of OHMS from 2008 until she retired in May of Kathy and Becky previously worked together and the team worked well under the leadership of Louise. Louise Dyer, Kathy Atherton and Becky Sherwood worked diligently to build the foundation of the. As planned, Louise was at the school daily training teachers and laying the operational foundation until late 2009, early At that time she began dividing her time among the four schools overseeing Administration, training teachers and developing curriculum. In late 2009 Amy Dyer began working for the family and took over the financial of the school. Over the years, there has been a shift of responsibilities. As Head of School, Louise now focuses her time and energy in her area of expertise, training and curriculum development Amy, under the counsel of Louise, has taken on the responsibility of overseeing all operational policies of the school. Amy's focus is on the vision, planning and further development of the school although she works closely with the Directress and Administrative Assistant to ensure the school's day to day needs are met and policies are enforced. In June of 2013 Jessica Quijano joined the Oak Hill Montessori team as the Administrative Assistant. Kathy, as the Director of the school, manages the Day to Day operations and supervises personnel. Jessica is instrumental in maintaining records, running the office and serving as a liaison for all stakeholders. Together, Administration works daily to meet the needs of the students, staff and parents. OHMS Enrollment Trends opened its doors in At that time the school offered a preschool and primary program and served 62 students. The school saw three years of continued growth requiring the construction of an additional building in The expansion allowed for an additional eight classrooms. The school continued to grow until 2013 when there was a decrease in enrollment. Staff turnover and an expansion of a major competitor's program were identified as significant factors. That being said, enrollment is increasing again and recruitment campaigns are underway to attract new talent and students. The overall school outlook is positive. Page 2

5 OHMS Programs Offered offers a variety of programs. Children may attend 2 days, 3 days, or 5 days a week. Each option has a morning only class from 8:00 am to 12:00pm, a full day option from 8:00am to 3:00pm or an extended day option from 7:00am to 6:00pm. The preschool program serves students 18months to 3 years of age. There are 4 classrooms and 53 students are currently enrolled in this program. The primary program serves students 3 years to 6 years of age. There are 4 classrooms and 69 students are currently enrolled in this program. There are 16 students enrolled in the Kindergarten program. The OHMS Kindergarten program is unique in that the students work in their primary classrooms in the morning from 8:00am to 12:00pm and then go to their Kindergarten enrichment class until 3:00 pm. The Elementary program serves students 1st grade through 3rd grade. If an OHMS elementary student has completed the 3rd grade and wishes to continue at OHMS through 6th grade they are able to do so. There are 10 students enrolled in this program. OHMS Students Served is located in Tyler, Texas. The Census reports the city of Tyler as 54.4 square miles with a population of 99,321 in While the majority of students reside in Tyler, the school does serve residents throughout Smith County and the surrounding areas. The OHMS student population includes children from Tyler, Flint, Bullard, Whitehouse, Arp, Athens, Chandler, Lindale and Canton. Smith County was approximately 949 square miles and had population of 214,821 in The school currently serves a diverse student population of 148 children. 79% of the students that attend OHMS are of Anglo decent, roughly 21% are of non Anglo decent. The breakdown is as follows: 79 % Anglo 3.4% African American.68% Hispanic 6.8% Indian 10.12% Other The is co-educational as well. 51.4% of the student population is male and 48.6% is female. There has been a continuing trend of residents moving south of Tyler to the surrounding areas. We believe this is a good thing. Oak Hill Montessori School is on the south side of the city and is located in a prime real estate area. In two years, the Oak Hills development has added a specialty grocery store, over half a dozen restaurants, a work out facility, Merrill Lynch, a Title Company, a physician's office, multiple retail stores and a bank and middle school are currently under construction. This rapid development gives Oak Hill Montessori School great exposure and positions the school for further growth. The is positioned on four acres of land. There is an additional two acres reserved for future growth. Page 3

6 School's Purpose Provide the school's purpose statement and ancillary content such as mission, vision, values, and/or beliefs. Describe how the school embodies its purpose through its program offerings and expectations for students. The is consistent with the philosophy and mission of Dr. Maria Montessori and her work with children. Our primary goal is to help each child reach their full potential in all areas of life. Development of social, physical, cognitive and emotional growth allows the child to prepare for future intellectual tasks. This allows our students to experience learning as enjoyment and promotes self esteem. Experiences such as these allow children to create knowledge. OHMS has established and communicates the school's purpose and commitment by developing a program that enables our students to cultivate the natural desire to learn. Our purpose is to provide a carefully planned, stimulating environment using the Montessori curriculum and materials that allows the child to develop a foundation of habits, attitudes, skills and ideas which are essential for a lifetime of creative thinking and learning. Our teachers and staff recognize the child's natural curiosity and desire to learn and provide them with the materials and tools that further develop and channel that desire. We allow the child to develop and progress at his/her own pace and present materials in the concrete form. Doing so allows the child to associate the concrete sensorial concept with an abstract concept, thereby learning, not just memorizing. Page 4

7 Notable Achievements and Areas of Improvement Describe the school's notable achievements and areas of improvement in the last three years. Additionally, describe areas for improvement that the school is striving to achieve in the next three years. Notable Achievements The received its accreditation through the Better Business Bureau in August of 2013 and is currently applying for accreditation through SACS-CASI. In addition, the school was loved in the Locals Love Us Preschools category in The school was voted 3rd in Preschools Overall and 5th Overall in Child Care Centers in Most recently, Oak Hill was voted and 4th in Preschools Overall and loved in Child Care Centers in Details of the recognitions for are below: Among Locals Love Us voters, OHMS was a winner in 11 out of 25 voter groups under the Preschool category. #4 Preschool out of 25 nominees for Tyler, Texas #1 among voters years of age #4 among voters years of age #2 in householdincome/$100,000 or more #3 in householdincome/$40,000 - $69,999 #5 in householdincome/$70,000 - $99,999 #2 in zip/75758 #3 in zip/75709 #4 in zip/75762 #5 in zip/75703 #4 among voters with a Masters Degree or Higher #5 among female voters Among Locals Love Us voters, OHMS was a winner in 4 out of 25 voter groups under the Child Care category. #4 among voters years of age #4 among voters with a Masters Degree or Higher #4 in zip/75707 #4 in zip/75762 Areas of Improvement The accreditation process has been a wonderful experience. It has given the the opportunity to evaluate its policies and to acknowledge its strengths and build on them. At the same time, our self evaluations as well as stakeholder evaluations identified weaknesses and areas of improvement. In general, areas in need of improvement are communication with parents on student progress, increased staff evaluations, increased communication among staff and attraction and retention of qualified staff. Areas of improvement are addressed in depth in our continuous improvement plan. Page 5

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9 Additional Information Provide any additional information you would like to share with the public and community that were not prompted in the previous sections. None at this time Page 7