leadership in high schools

On Monday, December 1, 2008 three instructional programs at the Hewes Center of Erie 2 Chautauqua-Cattaraugus BOCES – Career & Technical, Alternative and Special Education,  met to discuss the impact of High School New Face (HSNF) on instruction, relationships with students, building configuration, 21st century skills infusion and planning for the future. 

The summary statements are below. 

Career & Technical Educatiion:  Reresentatives, Phil Stock, Jeff Angelletti and Russ LaTour, all teachers.  Phil, CTE liaison teacher,  mentioned the use of the MOOG platform, the launching of both personal and professional wiki’s to enhance communication.  The professional wiki reaches out to Jamestown Community College and is attempting to explore a Bio-Tech  opportunity with Erie 2- CC BOCES.  Absent were Kelly Joslyn, CTE liaison teacher and Connie Rice, Cosmetology teacher.  Their notes were shared by Phil regarding how their teaching and relations with students has been positively affected by the HSNF experience. 

 Jeff Angeletti, Conservation Teacher attended the Connecting cohort of HSNF and leaned abour wiki’s, blogs and the use of IPODs.  He continues to remain in contact with colleagues he met at the conference and the group has talked about skypingand its uses with international classrooms to study things like the German Black forest, conservation  and the preservation of rare trees.  An idea that he continues to promote following HSNF is to have students self-evaluate and work with him on grade distribution. 

Russ La Tour, Information Technology teacher also attended the Connecting Cohort.  He spoke about accountability of students and their ownership of their learning.  He took away the idea of the US lagging behind other nations, 13th in the world, student centered learning and discovery.  He acknowledged the general perception that BOCES students are academically behind their counterparts in public schools.  After HSNF his positive ideas are reinforced – empowering students to take the learning journey from beginning to end using their own “footprints” by understanding what they need to know in order to realize their own personal and work/job/career goals.  Russ came prepared with a hand out for teachers and all who attended the faculty meeting.  He used the smart board to show how he incorporates this technology into his lesson delivery.

Representatives from the instructional programs were teachers, Phyllis Caloren, Jim Hedlund, Rose Dorey, Amy Stormer and Sarah Parmarter.  Phyllis spoke about the Read Across America and Cornell University Reading Projects that have been initiated this year w/in the High School  English Dept.  She also spoke about co-teaching with Jim Hedlund. 

 Jim spoke about his exposure to the impact of international news eduction in Chautauqua County and the U.S.  He mentioned how China educates 10% of its population which is its “best students”  and how India has a similar focus  because poverty and lack of funding affect how and who gets educated in those nations.  Both countries competing with the Eastern Bloc countries.  America on the other hand is working with all of its students and therefore results are mixed ie. educational outcomes, graduation rates etc. 

Rose Dorey, Consultant Teacher ( Special Ed. certified) attended the cohort on Engaging the 21st Century Teen.  She talked about positive affirmations eg. positive referrals, Engaging, Exploring, Empowering and being Empathetic with students as teachers attempt to mentor them into the adult world.  Rose talked about the Model Transition Program being administered by University of Buffalo under a grant from the State Dept. of Education, which allows for direct work with 44 students at the Hewes Center who are enrolled in the high school instructional programs.  The MTP program has allowed students access to tours at local colleges like Jamestown Community College and Jamestown Business College.  The grant in its second year already, has continued to focus students self-empowerment through interactive lectures presented by Dr. Ellen Arnold.  VESID – Vocational Education Services for Identified Students, applications have increased withthe collaboration of both Rose Dorey and Amy Montgomery, Work Experience Teacher – more students are receiving financial assistance to attend college and get post-secondary training, more students are learning about community agencies and assistance available to youth in terms of housing and job readiness.  The by- product of this collaboration between general and special education, is that more students are being pulled along to “dream” big about life after school and the role young people have to play in shaping their society. 

Amy Stormer, teacher spoke of the fascinating 3 day experience she underwent in the Connecting cohort of HSNF, 2008.  Her instructional focus this year is on nurturing student sand teaching them how to think for themselves and problem solve.  This is the focus of 21st century skills and employee characteristics, companies of seek.  Amy is a special education teacher, so when she comments on teaching her students independent thinking the challenge is far greater than one might think because her students are imbued with a array of disabilities as defined by IDEA. 

Administrators present at this meeting who also attended HSNF were Jennifer Clark, myself and Director, Bob Spino.  Our study group session was moderated by Alternative Education Supervisor, Kevin Bourgoine. 

At the Hewes Campus 9 teachers attended HSNF their work is a beacon to others and a call for Change and New Innovation in terms of 21st century skills use to communicate with and motivate students who are preparing to enter a work place that none will demand of them skills that we are yet to discover. 

The good work at Hewes can only be exemplied at our other BOCES sites, LoGuidice, Barker Road, South Side Academy and Ormsby.  We the HSNF team at Hewes will challenge our collegues to have similar faculy meetings at those sites as that which occurred on Dec. 1, at Hewes Center.  From there, we shall have DLL meeting to strategize more steps toward achieving more goals through the vision of HSNF. 

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