NEWBERRY — Newberry Middle School and Mid-Carolina Middle School administration, staff and students were presented with 2018 National Healthy Schools Bronze Awards during Monday’s School Board meeting.
This award is given to schools that have met or exceeded stringent, nationally accepted, evidence-based best practices in providing healthier school meals, snacks, making physical activity opportunities available for students and encouraging staff to become healthy role models.
The National Healthy School Award also demonstrates the schools commitment to the wellness of students and staff.
“The very best part of my job is being able to recognize schools that have done an exemplary job in promoting the health and wellness of their students and staff and creating a healthier learning environment,” said Beth Berry, Alliance for a Healthier Generation. “It is my honor to be able to recognize two of those schools, we have over 42,000 schools across the country that have participated in the Healthy Schools Program and 461 of those remain as America’s Healthy Schools this year.”
She added that over half of the schools in the state are participating in the Healthy Schools Programs.
In other business, Newberry Middle School Principal Kim Hamilton gave a presentation on the EEDA (Educational Economic Development Act) Grant opportunity that Newberry Middle School and the Alternative School have been presented, the grant is over the next four years in the amount of roughly $598,000 at Newberry Middle School along with the Alternative School. The grant is not only limited to Newberry Middle or the Alternative School, but the School District and County.
The grant is sponsored through the state department and focuses on preparing students for college and career readiness.
In doing research, Hamilton said looking back at test scores from 2016, it appeared that students were struggling in the area of English/Language Arts.
“Looking at students, we found that a large population of students that are served are effected by ACEs (adverse childhood experiences), they traditionally and historically have poor academics which normally links to failing to meet their performance levels which ends up leading to at-risk youth,” Hamilton said.
Hamilton added at Newberry Middle School they have begun implementing the Xtreme Reading curriculum this year, a curriculum that helps students with reading.
The WIN curriculum, Parent University, hiring a college and career readiness coordinator with funds from the grant and job and college site visits are other avenues that are taken to help guide students and parents.
“The ultimate product that we would like to see would be to see a shift in mindset of at-risk youth and their families, research shows that children who are exposed to adverse childhood experiences, it just takes one adult, one adult to make that connection and letting them know they need to be in school,” Hamilton said. “The reality of it is, a lot of these parents have had bad experiences when they were in elementary, middle school or high school so they don’t have trust in the educational system either, so by shifting the mindset of students and parents, ultimately we will be able to increase the performance of these students in academics as well as their attitudes towards learning.”
Chief Human Resources Officer Pam Arrington also presented the 2018-2019 Hiring Profile and 2017-2018 Turnover Profile for the district.
For the 2018-19 school year, 67 new teachers were hired and out of the 67 new teachers, 25 were induction teachers, seven annual teachers, 21 continuing, eight teachers were hired under letters of agreement and there were three vacancies for a school psychologist and two speech therapists. Five international teachers were hired and eight teachers were transferred into the district, along with two new administrators and four administrator transfers. The overall percent of minorities in 2018-19 was 27 percent.
In turnovers (2017-2018), the district lost a total of 67 teachers, 13 retired, three left the profession, nine moved from the area, 19 left for another district, two were not rehired, three international teachers left, four left to further their education, four active retirees did not return, nine for other reasons, mostly personal and one person left for an administrative position/another district.
Other business:
• The Board approved the Administration’s request to contract with the Student Centered Education Consulting Group on an as needed basis for assistance with filling future employment vacancies.
• Chairman Jody Hamm certified the Delegates for the 2018 Delegate Assembly, Board members Clyde Hill and Jessie Reeder were approved as delegates with Hamm as the alternate.
• The Board approved the second reading of policy IKADD – Content and Credit Recovery.
• The Board Retreat will be held on October 8 at 12:30 p.m. at the District Office and the Teacher of the Year and Support Staff Employee of the Year Reception is scheduled for October 18 at 6 p.m. at Newberry Middle School.
• A potential make-up day is yet to be determined after a power outage at Boundary Street Elementary following Hurricane Florence.
