Executive Summary. Oak Valley Middle School

Transcription

1 Huron Valley Schools Mrs. Michele Butler, Principal 4200 White Oak Trail Commerce Township, MI Document Generated On May 12, 2014

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 1 Description of the School 2 School's Purpose 4 Notable Achievements and Areas of Improvement 6 Additional Information 8

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? opened in 1994, and is the youngest of the three middle schools located in Huron Valley Schools, servicing students within a 105 square mile radius, the largest land area covered by a school district in Oakland County. OVMS is home to sixth through eighth grade students in Commerce Township, Milford, Highland, and White Lake, Michigan. is located in the Huron Valley Schools district in Commerce Township, Michigan. It is part of Oakland County Schools Consortium. Oak Valley's staff is a family that provides a nurturing environment, high expectations, a caring community, and holds true to their mission and vision. Oak Valley's whole staff includes nearly 70 members, 37 of which are teachers. The teaching staff averages 14.5 years of teaching experience. The teaching staff consists of 11 male teachers and 26 female teachers. Oak Valley has 1.5 counselors, 0.7 social worker, 0.5 school psychologist, and 0.6 speech therapist. The district also provides a homebound teacher, physical therapist, and occupational therapist for students who qualify. Additional staff includes secretaries, paraprofessionals, cafeteria service workers, and custodial crew. Oak Valley currently has 744 students, with 97 of those students (13% of population) receiving special education support from six special education teachers, and five special education paraprofessionals. OVMS has 17 students (2.2%) who have a 504, and 33 (4.4%) who qualify as ELL students, having home languages including but not limited to: Albanian, Arabic, Chaldean, Filipino, German, Greek, Korean, Macedonian, Romanian, and Spanish. Our student body is 93.3% Caucasian. There are 50 total non-white students. There are also 173 students (23%) who qualify for free/reduced lunch. In 2011, facing a diminishing student population and financial challenges, HVS closed a middle school and an elementary school and redistricted, creating new boundaries for buildings. These decisions resulted in many new students and staff members coming to Oak Valley from other buildings. Transitioning all new families and staff has been an ongoing process as we have settled into these new boundaries. In March 2013, the former OVMS principal was named Executive Director of Human Resources for HVS. After a thorough interview process, Michele Butler was named the new Principal in May 2013 and began transitioning into her new role, taking full responsibility in July Oak Valley is home to the Autism Spectrum Disorder Basic Classroom program for middle school students in Huron Valley Schools. The program offers the staff and students the opportunity to help identified students further develop social skills while meaningfully interact with age appropriate peers during curriculum instruction. The program has one teacher and two paraprofessionals who work with the ASD Basic Classroom student population. Huron Valley Schools is the lowest funded school district in Oakland County. See breakdown of per pupil funding: County Highest $11,854 County Average $8,235 State Maximum $8,019 Page 2

5 Huron Valley $6,966 County Lowest $6,966 State Minimum $6,966 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. Our vision statement is our district mission: Huron Valley Schools, inspiring and building futures One student at a time Our mission statement is: Belong, Believe, Become Our beliefs are the supporting statements in the mission: At we BELONG to an academic family where all are accepted and welcomed to the world beyond our doors where we impact others. BELIEVE in the unique potential of each student and that all students need encouragement to reach their potential. BECOME powerful learners who meet rigorous academic standards and connected citizens who inspire others on their life journey. The Oak Valley staff functions as a family and work to build, maintain, and foster positive relationships among students, staff, families, and the community, as well as a challenging learning environment focused on the individual needs of the learner. We are truly building futures one student at a time. OVMS, HVS, and Oakland Schools offer professional development at the county, district, and building levels throughout the year. OVMS sets aside and provides time each week for professional learning communities to meet. The scheduled times are reserved for the following: general staff/school improvement, department, grade level team, and PLC meetings that support building improvement goals. Curriculum is aligned with the Michigan Department of Education Grade Level Content Expectations, and is evaluated by the HVS Instruction Department and the Triple A School Board Committee. Huron Valley continually collects and analyzes assessment and perception data through Pearson Inform and stakeholder surveys. Assessment data at OVMS includes, but is not limited to: MEAP, Explore, MAP Testing, district common assessments, and classroom assessments. Oak Valley provides a wide range of academic programming for students which is relevant, challenging, and incorporates innovative technology. Personal leadership has been the on-going theme of HVS, and building the qualities of successful citizens has been a focus of our caring community. In additional to quality core courses at each level, options for high school credit include: Algebra I, Spanish I, and on line learning courses. OVMS also offers electives in vocal and instrumental music, physical education, visual art, Leadership, 21st Century Skills (Technology), Skills for Success, and Academic Interventions. offers a variety of programming for students eligible for special education services: teacher consultant services, resource room teacher support, co-taught classes in core areas, a district wide ASD Basic classroom, learning resource center, social skills classes, and MI-Access classes. Professional endorsements are varied and include the areas of learning disabilities, cognitive impairments, and autism spectrum disorders. Support programs offered at OVMS consider the individual needs of each learner. For students in need of specific support programs, Oak Valley provides the services of counselors, a social worker, school psychologist, as well as Speech and Language services, and English Language Learner (ELL) support. Skills for Success (SFS) and Interventions are classes offered to 7th and 8th grade students considered Page 4

7 at-risk academically. Adolescent Accelerated Reading Initiative (AARI) is an intense reading intervention offered to all grade levels. This class focuses on providing instruction for struggling readers, with the goal of achieving significant growth reading comprehension. OVMS also offers a variety of after school activities, intramurals, tutoring, and athletic opportunities. Students have the opportunity to participate in activities they enjoy, foster social relationships while experiencing success. Page 5

8 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. has accomplished notable achievements in the areas of academics, interventions, technology, and standardized test scores. The EXPLORE mean of 17.6 is the highest mean of Oak Valley's history. In addition the scores obtained in all four core subject areas of the EXPLORE are higher than the national average. Attendance and truancy issues requiring interventions have decreased from 10% to 5% of student population in the last three years. In an effort to improve literacy, OVMS has implemented a writing initiative geared to improve student writing. The Wisdom of Writing (WOW) initiative has brought writing into all classrooms at OVMS. Each month, teachers assign writing that builds a specific writing skill: compare/contrast, sequential, descriptive, etc. Departments work collaboratively to establish a time line for writing and the monthly focus. Students from each grade are also tracked throughout their time at OVMS in an effort to gather longitudinal data. Oak Valley is also working toward integrating an accelerated math curriculum for high-achieving students. Students who are ready for higher level math are able to take pre-algebra, Algebra I, or Geometry at OVMS. Our teachers teaching Algebra I and Geometry are high school certified for these areas, thus providing opportunities for our students to earn high school credit while in middle school. Additionally, students are offered an accelerated math at 6th grade, pre-algebra at 7th grade, algebra I at 7th grade, and geometry at 8th grade. In the past few years the number of sections offered for these courses has increased to meet the needs of our students who are higher level learners. For students with academic concerns we are implementing intervention classes at each grade level to support student growth in reading and math. Students who struggle or are at risk academically are able to take intervention classes to help build the skills and self-confidence necessary to be successful. Students in 6th grade can take math interventions and AARI. AARI and Skills for Success (SFS) are offered for 7th graders, and an Interventions class is offered to 8th graders. Oak Valley has been focusing on improving our integration of technology in classrooms in meaningful ways. The staff at OVMS created individual technology goals for themselves and their classrooms. Teachers are provided the opportunity to work with the building's Technology Integrator to relate, create, and facilitate unique lessons infusing technology seamlessly throughout the curriculum. Teachers and the Technology Integrator schedule formal and informal meetings to brainstorm ideas to create student-centered lessons that use technology. The Tech Integrator assists with implementation and troubleshooting each lesson. During the school year, all middle schools in HVS introduced 21st Century Skills classes at the 6th and 7th grade levels. 21st Century classes were added at the 8th grade level during the school year. Classes focus on creativity, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration. With an investment from the district of two tech labs for the 21st Century Skills classes, students build skills in these "4 C's" that transfer into other classes and the real world. Oak Valley also uses technology as a means of communication with stakeholders. Information, updates, and initiatives are communicated via Facebook, Twitter, Message Board, Family Access, Listserve, and Moodle/Edmodo. Ongoing parent/teacher communication using Page 6

9 Skyward messaging and is an expectation. Page 7

10 Additional Information Provide any additional information you would like to share with the public and community that were not prompted in the previous sections. Oak Valley Middle school is home to eleven students via School of Choice. These students chose and applied to enroll at OVMS rather than their home school. We also have 60 students who open enrolled to attend OVMS rather than their home school within the district. OVMS is also home to one student who is homeschooled, however attends for elective opportunities. Page 8