Chelsea High School

Freshman Academy

• Why a Freshman Academy • Goals & Foundations of the Academy

• Student Support and Academy Programs/Culture• Year 1 & Year 2

• Teacher Collaboration & Instruction• Year 1 & Year 2

• Year 3• Successes & Challenges of implementation• Questions

Why a Freshman Academy??

• National Research• CHS Data• Programs previously in place for 9th graders

• Freshman Orientation: 3 hour event, 2 days before the first day of school

• Individual teachers and staff members, guidance counselors, deans, administrators, social workers, coaches, club advisors

Chelsea High School Freshman Academy

• Year 1: Focus on students and program development

• Year 2: Began shifting the focus to instruction

Student Support

• Transition from middle to high school• Academic support• Social/Emotional support• Policies and discipline

Transition from middle school to high school

• 8th grade student and parent outreach• Monthly events held in different locations

(middle schools or high school) and at different times of day

• Familiarize students and parents with the building and high school policies

• Intro to High School Week: voluntary program that mixes academics with “high school skills”

• Freshman Orientation: 3 hour event two days before the first day of school

Academic support

• Remedial sections for core subject areas (mandatory)

• Academic Intervention meetings: students, teachers, parents (mandatory)

• Peer Tutoring program: during the day, pull-out model for 3 weeks at a time (mandatory)

• Homework Center: 4 days per week, core subject area teachers (voluntary)

Social/Emotional support

• Teacher Advocate program: one-on-one meetings for general student support (mandatory/assigned)

• Repeating 9th grade student meetings: data review and goal setting (mandatory)

• Peer Mentor program: Juniors and Seniors matched with 9th grade students for the year (voluntary)

• Social Worker groups: learning values and problem-solving (assigned/voluntary)

Policies and discipline

• Pre-referral system: • Discipline system before an official discipline

referral• Used for minor infractions• Students process behavior in order to return to

class

• Universal Procedures• Common for all Academy core classes• Support students in transition to high school

Academy Programs & Culture

• Efforts to create programs that were unique to the Freshman Academy and a culture where students self-identified as being members of the Freshman Academy.

• Emphasis on the importance of a successful Freshman year to a student’s overall high school career

• Focus on personalizing the educational experience of each Freshman Academy student

Academy Programs & Culture

• Early College Awareness• College visits (over 100 students each year)• CHS Alumni Assemblies

• Connection to 8th grade staff• Peer observations and meetings between 8th & 9th grade

teachers• Data sharing at the end of the school year (at-risk

students)

• Student Feedback sessions• Quarterly “Focus Lunches” to obtain student feedback

on academics and Academy programs

Academy Programs & Culture

• Recognition and Motivation• Monthly assemblies with topics pertaining to

academic success and future goals• Quarterly recognition awards for attendance,

grades, and effort (public recognition at assemblies)• Incentives program in class: “Devil Dollars”

• Freshman Academy parent outreach• Positive feedback for parents as well as intervention

meetings

• Academy culture & identity• T-shirts, buttons, bulletin boards

TEACHER COLLABORATION & INSTRUCTION •Established Professional Learning Communities that consist of 9th grade teachers

•Provided structured collaboration time during the school day

•Implemented early release day and after school professional development meetings for Freshman Academy staff members

What is a PLC?

A professional learning community is made up of

team members who regularly collaborate

toward continued improvement in meeting learner needs through a

shared curricular-focused vision.

BENEFITS of a PLC?The benefits to the staff and students

include a reduced isolation of teachers, better informed and

committed teachers, and academic gains for students.

Hord (1997b) notes, "As an organizational arrangement, the

professional learning community is seen as a powerful staff-development

approach and a potent strategy for school change and improvement."

The Essential Elements of a PLC:

• A Shared Mission, Vision, Values, and Goals

• A Commitment to Continuous Improvement

• A Collaborative Culture • Supportive and Shared Leadership• Supportive Conditions

A PLC is a collaborative venture.

“Isolation is the enemy of learning. Principals who support the learning

of adults in their school organize teachers schedules to provide

opportunities for teachers to work, plan, and think together.”

NAESP, Leading Learning Communities: Standards for What Principals Should Know and Be Able to Do

PLC Structure at Chelsea High School

• Interdisciplinary teams made up of core subject area teachers

• All team members teach 3 to 5 freshman classes

• Meetings are held during an administrative duty period twice per week

• Meetings are mandatory for all members (some have volunteered but not all)

PLC Meetings• Collaborate on lesson plans/ideas• Discuss common practices (UbD, Key 3)• Discuss Freshman Academy practices (universal

procedures, incentive program, recognition program, immediate interventions)

• Evaluate student data• Discuss individual students (progress,

problems, ideas, interventions)• Meet with individual students and/or parents

PLC CoachA PLC Coach is a person who supports a

PLC team in using effective teaming practices and in using data to

determine students’ progress. At times, the PLC Coach will ask questions that

allow a team to reflect on its own practices and processes (or lack of

practices & processes). At times, the PLC Coach will make recommendations based on best practice. In all cases, the PLC Coach will respect the professional

expertise of the teachers with whom he/she is working.

Challenges of Implementing PLCs

• Creating and working as teams• Understanding the importance of

de-privatization of teaching/classrooms

• Struggling with implementation of new Academy procedures

• Wanting immediate results• Sustaining energy and commitment

Additional Collaboration Time

• Year 1: Monthly early release days

• Year 2: Two staff meetings (Aug. & Feb.)• Professional Development pertaining to 9th grade staff/students

Chelsea High School Freshman Academy

• Year 1: Focus on students and program development• Year 2: Began shifting the focus to instruction

• Year 3: Separate positions• Grade 9 Coach: Instruction• Grade 9 Outreach worker: Students Focus on instruction New message to students…need for knowledge, not just credits

New school-wide vision & focus

CHS Vision of a Graduate• Chelsea High School graduates will be

self-aware, adaptive, socially competent and literate community members.

The CHS Instructional Theory of Action

• IF we have a purposeful and systematic approach to instruction with collaboration and reflection THEN our students will learn, be confident, and be ready for our future.

Goal for the Grade 9 Academy

New Programs/Services

• MassGrad Student advocates• Targeted attendance interventions• Academy-wide goal setting (core classes)• “Why Try?” groups with deans, social workers and

guidance counselors• High-achieving student support

• Honor Roll/High Honor Roll• “Above C-Level”

• Monthly staff meetings: Professional Development

Grade 9 Portfolio• Beginning the launch of a 9th grade

portfolio project that aims:• To build connections for students and

teachers about the impact that daily choices have on establishing and achieving college and career goals

• To demonstrate college-readiness and career-technical skills by showing progress made from freshman to senior year

• It is hoped that the portfolio will travel with students and be built upon throughout their high school experience

Continued growth…

• Fostering Academic Support Together (FAST)• Student Support Team model

• Coordinating systems of support vs. one-time interventions

• Maintaining programs without grant funding, such as peer tutoring

• Improved parent involvement/connection

Ongoing challenges• Obtaining longitudinal data from 3 years of the

Academy• Bridge Academy• Grade 10 house

• Attendance• Connection with 8th grade staff• Transfer/mid-year arrival students• Sustained parent involvement• Temporary grant funding

Tracking data• Quarterly grades (all classes and core classes)• Promotion to the 10th grade (required classes

AND credits) vs. repeating 9th graders• Attendance rates• Drop-out rates• Community & Teacher Advocate program

participants• Intro to High School• Peer mentor program participants

• Questions?• Comments?

Thank You

A Short Bibliography for More Information about Professional Learning Communities

Failure is Not an Option: Six Principles that Guide Student Achievement in High Performing Schools , Alan Blankstein, 2005

Getting Started: Reculturing Schools to Become Professional Learning Communities , Robert Eaker, Richard DuFour, Rebecca DuFour, 2002

Leading Learning Communies: Standards for What Principals Should Know and Be Able to Do , NAESP, 2002

On Common Ground: The Power of Professional Learning Communities , Richard DuFour, Robert Eaker, Rebecca DuFour (Editors), 2005

Professional Learning Communities At Work: Best Practices for Enhancing Student Achievement, Richard DuFour and Robert Eaker

Whatever It Takes: How Professional Learning Communities Respond When Kids Don’t Learn , Richard DuFour, Rebecca DuFour, Robert Eaker, and Gayle Karhanek, 2004