Monadnock Region Public Schools of Choice
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When it comes to public schools and the needs of
individual students, one size does not fit all. In every traditional school
setting, you’ll find a percentage of struggling students. Perhaps they aren’t
challenged enough, or they are overwhelmed, or a discipline they have a passion
for is not offered by the school. The goal of the Monadnock Region Public
Schools of Choice (MRPSOC) program, serving the 17-town Monadnock Region in
School Administrative Units 29 and 38, is to meet the needs of a variety of
learners by giving students educational options.
In
2002, New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg played an instrumental role in helping
the
Funding
for this five-year initiative, currently in its fourth year, comes from the
U.S. Department of Education’s Voluntary Public School Choice Program,
established under the No Child Left Behind Act of
2001. Antioch New England Institute
manages the overall project for the partners.
Currently,
the MRPSOC program supports a wide assortment of local school choice options,
including college and online courses, two arts programs, and an experiential,
community-based, small high school. To date there are ten MRPSOC-supported
programs or schools in the Monadnock Region., including three programs housed
at
In
addition, Keene State College and
School-to-Career
Sue
Kessler, MRSD
School-to-Career Coordinator
The work of the School-to-Career
Committee of the
"The Monadnock School-to-Career Committee will establish high standards for career development in which students may explore a variety of educational and occupational opportunities, learn the realities of the workplace, and identify both the technical skills and individual abilities to succeed in the modern economy."
The goal of this Committee continues to be to provide each student with the skills, abilities and knowledge necessary to make good career choices, be productive in their chosen fields and be responsible citizens.
The School-to-Career Committee has focused on refining and implementing a fully established continuum of career exploration and career awareness activities for students, grades K-12, that will enable each student to make informed decisions about their futures. Working hand in hand with area businesses and community members, these career exploration activities fit within the guidelines established by the NH Department of Education in the NH Career Development Frameworks. These Frameworks have been fully integrated into all levels of the NH state testing.
The ongoing collaboration between businesses and education helps teachers better understand the needs of the workplace and helps students recognize the relevance of academic learning. School-to-Career activities bring employers and employees into the classroom and provide opportunities for teachers and students to experience the workplace first hand, lending a new relevance and practical application to learning and emphasizing workplace skills that will apply to any choice of career. These partnerships linking our schools and area businesses are essential to the success of our students as future workers and citizens.
Each year new activities are added which build on the successes of previous years. Some examples include:
· An ongoing very successful Career Day that is held on the Keene State College campus during March. Tenth graders hear presentations from area business people describing more than 60 career fields. Students choose three different sessions to attend throughout the morning.
· Ninth grade Economics classes continue to integrate a job shadowing experience into the curriculum as a requirement for each student.
· Two new Pathway programs are being developed at MRHS. The Law, Public Safety and Security Pathway includes coursework in such areas as Criminology, Abnormal Psychology and Sociology and an English course titled Crime and Punishment. The Geographic Information Systems Pathway will include units within courses such as Geography, Astronomy and Physical Science. In each Pathway, students are provided with relevant contexts which link school-based learning with the knowledge and skills required for
continued success in the field. Articulation agreements with two-year and four-year colleges are being developed.
· Elementary students throughout the district participate in the National Groundhog Job Shadow event which extends through the month of February. Area businesses have hosted numerous students for valuable experiences observing and learning. By bringing students into the workforce to see the multitude of positions it can take to run a business, office or company, very real and tangible options come alive. Job Shadow Day helps to create a critical link between education and the real world.
·
Human Anatomy and Physiology students have
received incredible opportunities to shadow a wide range of medical
professionals through our established partnership with the
· Community and business career partnerships have afforded many classes the opportunity to take field trips to visit local businesses and to invite business people into classrooms.
· Teachers have had the opportunity to participate in an educational program called Leadership Teacher. This program offers educators a cutting-edge, real-world approach to professional development by creating opportunities for schools to network and build partnerships with business and industry. Partnerships established during these experiences have resulted in host businesses becoming involved in classroom activities throughout the school year.
· Students in each school have participated in service learning projects which connect service to the community with academic learning. Key elements of service learning projects include forming community partnerships as well as fostering career awareness for students.
· Members of the School-to-Career Committee worked last summer to assess ongoing career development activities and to plan for the coming school year.
· One of the foundations of the School-to-Career effort in our schools has been the implementation of the Monadnock Regional Workplace Skills which are posted in every classroom in our district. These are the basic elements that have been established for helping students grow into productive workers and positive citizens in our communities.
Elementary Library Services in
the
Annual Report for 2005
Our district wide, automated library system, Follett, continues to improve as we make use of a variety of services Follett offers. This fall we added Lexiles, a type of reading level, to titles in our library catalogs. Lexiles, one measure of reading ability, are generated by the MAP testing used by this district, and now staff can identify materials in the library collection that match a student’s Lexile level. Another Follett service called “Titlewise” allows us to generate data about our library collections, including percentages of the collection in various subjects, and information about the age of our collections.
The Elementary Library Services budget continues to provide free access to on-line databases for all students and staff of the MRSD. These databases include the World Book Encyclopedia online, Grolier Online databases which include science and geography specific resources, Merriam Webster Dictionary, and EBSCOhost a full-text magazine/newspaper database. Links to these databases are available from the web page called the “Reference Shelf” which you can find at : www.mrsd.org/~library/refshelf.htm
Elementary Library Services was the recipient of a grant, from the Walker
Fund of the NH Charitable Foundation, to create a circulating audio-book
collection at the two Swanzey elementary schools. Both
In an effort to promote resource
sharing, the librarians from the town libraries and the District Library Staff
meet once a year to share ideas, talk about common issues and find ways to
improve library service to our students.
We have talked about homework assignments, summer reading programs and
online databases to name a few subjects.
We meet as a group, but also allow time for the town librarian and
school librarian(s) from a specific town to spend some time together.
One big change for me is that beginning in September 2005 I started teaching library skills at the two Northern elementary schools once a week. The students are using the library’s online catalogs (OPACS), learning research skills and grade level appropriate library skills through lesson plans that also have technology integrated into them. I am enjoying using many of the lesson plans, kits and other resources that I have written or created for the District Library Staff, as well as enjoying working with students again.
All of these components mean
improved library services for the elementary students in the MRSD. If you have any questions please feel free to
contact me at the SAU #38
Monadnock
Regional Nutrition Services
Thomas A.
Walsh,
Director
The
USDA Nondiscrimination
Statement
“The U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities
on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability,
political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all
programs.) Persons with disabilities who
require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille,
large print, audio-tape, etc.) should contact USDA’s
To file a complaint of discrimination write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice or TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
BREAKFAST /
LUNCH PROGRAM PERSONNEL
Thomas
Walsh Director, MRSD
Peggy Ciampa Office
Manager
Alice Barrows Cutler, Cook/Mg Julaine Rogers
Sherrie
Bennett Emerson Cecilia Smith Emerson, Mgr / Cook
Jean
Fitzpatrick Sullivan, Cook/Mgr. Tracey Tempesta
Heather Goodell MRHS Allyn
Thompson MRHS / Cook
Catrina Hunt MRHS Cheryl Wagner MRHS
Wendy Joslyn
Susan
Kellogg Gilsum, Cook/Mgr. Melissa Wilder MRHS Manager
Maureen Lastih MRHS Kathleen
Winsor MRHS
Linda
Ouellette Mt.Caesar, Mgr / Cook Janet Young MRHS