Following the collective design process meeting last month, the Rainy River District School Board has moved forward in the process to renovate Walker School, and close Alberton Central, Alexander MacKenzie and Sixth Street.
“The board voted to move to stage two in the school closure process,” said Terry Ellwood, superintendent of education, referring to last night’s meeting at Donald Young School in Emo.
“The schools were identified in stage one. Stage two is the review and analysis of the schools. That means, this is the information gathering stage. We’re going to review all the information associated with the three schools–finances, transportation, everything,” he added.
While several committees were formed to look into stage one of the process, Ellwood noted new committees will be formed, with parents, school staff, and trustees once again involved.
These committees will look at the repercussions of closing the three schools, and amalgamating Alberton Central and MacKenzie with Walker, and Sixth Street with Huffman.
Ellwood noted the board may move to form the committees before the end of the school year. “But we’ll probably get started in earnest in September,” he added.
In the meantime, plans for an expanded Walker are looking good, said Ellwood, but the board will only look more closely at them after the closure process nears its end.
Also at last night’s meeting, Donald Young School was the recipient of the “Recognition of Excellence.” Principal Nancy Fretter and teacher Kerri Tolen, along with students from grades K-eight, presented the portfolios the students have been using this year.
The portfolio assessment method allows for a kind of report card that shows off students’ work to parents. According to the school, using portfolio assessment benefits teachers, parents and students because:
•Teachers no longer have to act as a liason between parent and child. The portfolio provides concrete evidence of students’’ work and an opportunity to communicate the curriculum expectations and assessment strategies with parents.
•Portfolios how parents what a student has learned over time–no report card jargon. Parents get to see and hear about their child’s learning. Research shows that with portfolios, parents become less cautious, more trusting and often more enthusiastic about school curriculum–a real victory for students and educators.
•Portfolios make students take ownership for their work. Students are allowed to analyze and their own performance through self-assessment which inevitably leads to goal-setting. If you do not know where you re going, it is difficult to get there.
Other meeting business included:
•a presentation by the Atikokan High School parent’s council regarding the importance of the school’s music program, which will run for the 2001-02 school year, and will only be canceled thereafter if there’s a drastic drop in enrolment.
•a report of the winners of the March 31 Regional Science Fair, including the news winners Matt McQuaker (Sturgeon Creek School) and Heidi Friesen (SCAP) will go on to represent the district at the National Science Fair in Kingston, May 13-20.
•the policy committee submitted four policies for stakeholder consideration, including policy #3.75–harassment, policy #4.16–safe school policy, policy #4.30–suspension/expulsion of students, and policy #4.55–student alcohol and drug abuse.
•the May personnel report, which notes leave of absences for caretaker Martha Siemens, OSSTF president Ed Ojala, and teachers Debbie Atatise (Lac La Croix First Nation), Paul Elliott (Rainy River High School), Willa Kunkel (Fort Frances High School), Martha Morris (North Star Community School), and Cheryl Williams (Atikokan High School).
It also noted the retirements of principals Ray Maynard (Alberton Central) and Terry Ogden (McCrosson-Tovell & Riverview), bus driver William Kempf, executive secretary Carole Wilde, and teachers Paul Murray (Crossroads), June Caul (Walker), and Mark Kowalchuk (FFHS).
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
