Executive Summary. Annunciation Catholic School at Holy Spirit

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1 Diocese of Evansville David Memmer 1760 S. Lodge Avenue Evansville, IN Document Generated On August 8, 2016

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 1 Description of the School 2 School's Purpose 5 Notable Achievements and Areas of Improvement 6 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. 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? Holy Spirit Parish was established April 4, The church property of 15 acres was purchased for $22,000. On the property was a large wooden stable and an open garage made of concrete blocks. The stable was converted into the "Old Church" in September Pew rent was $10 per seat. Prior to purchasing regular church pews, folding chairs were used and people knelt on the concrete floor. The New Church was completed in October The Cross on top of Church was built so you can see the Cross from any direction. The stained glass windows were made in St. Louis, Missouri with glass from Germany. The verses on the glass windows are from the Sequence of the Mass of Pentecost. The school began September 1956, with 5 sisters and 2 lay teachers. In the early years, there were as many as 60 students in each of the 8 classrooms. In 1956, there were 306 students. The gym was dedicated in 1975 and was constructed with the money donated by the Booster Club and the Men's Club Thursday night bingo. Holy Spirit is located at 1760 South Lodge Ave on the east side of Evansville, Indiana. It is one of twenty-six schools in the Catholic Diocese of Evansville. Holy Spirit is an official feeder school of Reitz Memorial High School. In July of 2014, Christ the King Parish and Holy Spirit Parish merged into Annunciation Parish. At this time, Holy Spirit School became Campus. The school provides space for Kindergarten to grade 8 classrooms, a room utilized for Art and Music/Band as well as a room utilized for Elementary Special Education for grades K-4, a Special Education room for grades 5-8, and a Minds-In-Motion Room. The facility also includes administrative offices, teacher workroom, a gymnasium, cafeteria and restrooms. A marquee on frontal portion of the property announces up-coming events. The current enrollment of Holy Spirit is 180 in Preschool through Grade Eight. There are homerooms for grades K-8. The preschool building (Gabriel's Garden) includes classrooms for 3 and 4 year olds. The Preschool Program works towards Kindergarten readiness and establishing a strong foundation in learning and knowing about Jesus. What makes unique among the schools in the Diocese is the diversity among its school community. Holy Spirit is the only school in the Evansville Diocese which provides a Catholic Education to a surrounding community identified as being in the greatest need of assistance. Among all schools in the Diocese, Holy Spirit provides services to a school community who has the highest degree of poverty, children with disabilities, and those identified as being limited English proficient. Due to the cost maintained with providing educational services, other Diocesan schools are sometimes not able to meet the learning needs of their parish/school families. Holy Spirit is the only Diocesan School providing a full K-8 Special Education program designed to meet a wider range of special education needs. o Holy Spirit is the only Diocesan School that provides Special Education classes where students receive special education instruction in core subjects (Math, Language Arts; Social Studies, and Science) and where Special Education supports are provided for the remaining subjects for which students are mainstreamed. o 37 of 485 students in the Diocese who are diagnosed with a Specific Learning Disability attend Holy Spirit (7%). Page 2

5 The socio-economic status of the children served is represented among all social economic classes. With the expansion of the Indiana School Choice Scholarships (vouchers), Holy Spirit has seen an increase in lower income families. During the school year, a significant number of students of Government supported programs attend Holy Spirit. Government Funded Programs o 1,042 of 5,718 students in the Diocese participate in the Free/Reduced Lunch Program (18%) o 93 of the 1,042 students (free/reduced) attend Holy Spirit (8.9%) o 93 of the 183 students at Holy Spirit participate in the Free/Reduced Lunch Program (51%) o 19 of the 183 students at Holy Spirit receive Direct Certification (Housing, food stamps..) o 93 of the 351 students in the Diocese that receive free/reduced breakfast attend Holy Spirit (26%) Title I (Improving the Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged) o 77 of the 180 students at Holy Spirit (48%) live in a geographical area that qualifies them to receive Title I services. These students could qualify to receive direct services if they become identified as"being at risk." o 32 of 180 students receive Title I services attend Holy Spirit (18%) Enrollment by Ethnicity o 188 of the 5718 students in the Diocese are Latino (3%) o 24 of the 188 student in the Diocese attend Holy Spirit (12.7%) Enrollment by Race o 402 of the 5,718 students in the Diocese are identified as Non-Caucasian (7%) o 57 of the 402 Non-Caucasian students in the Diocese attend Holy Spirit ((14.1%) *Non-Caucasion (American Indian, Alaskan, Asian, Black, Native Hawaii, Two or more races, Unknown) Catholic/Non-Catholic o 4,639 of the 5,718 students in the Diocese are Catholic (81%) o 1,079 of the 5,718 students in the Diocese are Non-Catholic (19%) o 63 of the 1,079 Non-Catholic Diocesan students attend Holy Spirit (5.8%) The faculty of Annunciation at Holy Spirit consists of 13 full-time classroom teachers. Additional faculty members include a part-time physical education, part-time art teacher, and part-time band teacher for grades 5-8. The Gabriel's Garden Preschool Program is made up of two part-time preschool teachers and an aide. 100% of our teachers hold BA or BS Degrees. 90% of our teachers are trained in WHY TRY Counseling and 100% of our teachers are trained in Minds in Motion. 50% of our teachers have 10+ years teaching experience, and 25% of our teachers hold Masters Degrees. Holy Spirit is supported by public school services including Speech, OT, PT, and Title I and III services. Our school has great support from all stakeholders. This support comes in the sharing of time, talents, and treasure. This support from parents and parishioners has allowed the school tuition to remain low. However, as enrollment has declined over the years it has become more and more difficult to meet budget needs with the income collected through tuition. At the present moment, there are plans to raise tuition in the hope of alleviating some of the budgetary strains while still meeting the need for financial assistance for current and new families. Page 3

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7 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 Mission Statement for Annunciation Catholic School: Annunciation Catholic School is a ministry of our parish committed to serving our parish family and community through Catholic education. Our mission is to fully develop each student spiritually, academically, emotionally, and physically according to our Catholic faith in a safe and nurturing environment. This mission statement was created through collaboration of stakeholders during the school year following the merge of Holy Spirit Church and Christ the King Church. The mission statement and pledge of allegiance are recited by students and faculty each morning following prayer. The mission statement is also posted in every classroom and hallways. It is also incorporated into meetings and school events. The mission is reflected in school policy handbooks, websites, and all written communication. Annunciation Catholic School is truly a ministry of our parish. The leadership of the parish recognizes the evangelization tool that the school can be. The school partners with parents in providing a Catholic education to their students. Teachers and parents work together to provide for the needs of the students. Parents and community members volunteer in the classrooms to provide opportunities that might not otherwise be available. Annunciation Catholic School focuses on providing for the needs of every student. Many of the teachers are trained in Differentiated Instruction which assists them in providing interventions in the classroom. The programs of Annunciation Catholic School are attentive to the needs of the whole child, as we provide a rigorous academic program, healthy lunches, programs of physical fitness, instruction in the arts, and spiritual care in our program of religious education. The school takes its responsibility to form future leaders of society and the Church seriously. 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. Over the past three years, one of the school's greatest achievements has been the academic growth that students have been demonstrating on standardized testing. The school has worked very hard to make sure that every student is growing in his/her academic career. Annunciation at Holy Spirit is blessed to have smart boards and ipads in all classrooms. The school is in need of a long term technology plan. Finances are a concern in this matter. Another area of needed improvement concerns enrollment. The school's enrollment has dropped over the years but in recent years has maintained at approximately 180 students. Holy Spirit has been challenged with increasing numbers of school community who may be identified as families of limited financial means. Financial stability has been a significant concern for the Holy Spirit community for several years. The School Council is currently working on establishing a marketing committee that will consist of a variety of stakeholders who have expertise in that area. There is also work being done to connect with alumni from the school. Ideally, we would like to see our enrollment up to 230 students in five years. Page 6

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. In July of 2014, Holy Spirit Parish and Christ the King Parish merged into Annunciation Parish. This greatly affected the two schools at these parishes. What was once Holy Spirit School and Christ the King Catholic School became Annunciation Catholic School at Christ the King Campus and Holy Spirit Campuses. The newly formed school, not only received a new name, but new school colors and mascot. Our school's identity has been somewhat lost in the merge. Administration is working hard to become a more unified school, but it has been a challenge for all stakeholders. Both campus have a combined school Mass each grading period and continue to search for ways to become more unified. With the merge also came a newly formed School Council. This new School Council consists of members from Holy Spirit Campus and Christ the King Campus. This too has been a challenge as the School Council works to figure out how best to serve the two campuses. The School Council is currently working on forming sub-committees that will assist us in setting goals and creating a strategic plan for Annunciation Catholic School. Page 7