To help prepare students for the future, two Judson ISD schools have chosen to participate in School Action Fund grants offered by the Texas Education Agency.
Spring Meadows Elementary School and Woodlake Hills Middle School are in the midst of a planning year for grants that will encourage bold innovation on their campuses through the creation of new school models.
These two schools chose the college-going model, while the other two campuses chose the STEM model. If the planning year is completed and a continuation grant is awarded, the school will enter his two-year implementation process.
Why college prep?
The college readiness model was chosen for a variety of reasons, primarily because students feel more prepared when they enter their freshman year of high school.
“The college readiness model is a great option for students because this pathway prepares them not only for high school, but for the rigor and challenges of the post-high school experience through a non-traditional school model,” JISD Accountability and Innovation Director Dennis Jones said.
The overall theme is to give students the opportunity to live a life full of choice after graduation, whether at university or vocational school.
“Because I work on a bilingual campus, many of the families wanted a life full of choice, and I wanted to give my students that opportunity, too. “I don't know if they will go on to college or not, but what I do know is that if they want to, we will provide them with a life full of options.” Principal Sharon Balderas said. “The choice of the college readiness model came from what our community and stakeholders want for the students and children in our neighborhood.”
How to use
This model focuses on two outcomes: academic achievement and graduation.
Elementary school academic performance is based on high-quality materials in the TEA-vetted math and reading curriculum. Graduate outcomes focus on soft skills such as teaching children to be problem solvers, critical thinkers, advocates, and resilient leaders.
For middle school, the results look similar, except that students are preparing to earn upper-level high school credits. The goal is for 100% of students to take high school level math and science courses by the time they graduate from middle school. Graduate outcomes prioritize students becoming leaders, advocates, critical thinkers, and collaborators.
Both campuses work together to ensure these leadership and interpersonal skills are ingrained in the students who pass through each campus. By combining these accomplishments, both campuses hope these skills will equip students with the rest of their schooling through graduation.
“If we can work together with others, we feel like we're well on our way to success,” Woodlake Hills Principal John Griffin said.
What's next?
Part of the college readiness model includes parental buy-in and involvement, especially for first-generation students. To help parents feel included, the campus will host college workshops and field trips to local college campuses. This helps younger students start getting excited about the future and helps parents of older students feel prepared when the application process begins.
“Ultimately, we want 100 percent of our kids to be able to go to college if they want to,” Griffin said. “We know not everyone wants to go, but we want to get them ready to go.”
For more information about JISD's programs, please visit our website.
The above article was written by Sierra Rosen, Senior Multi-Platform Journalist at Community Impact, with information provided exclusively by local businesses as part of “Sponsored Content” purchased through our advertising team.