CNE Middle School is committed to the wellness and success of our students, whether it be academically, extracurricularly, or mentally/emotionally. Our students deserve to feel supported by their teachers and peers, as well as their families; and we all know Middle School can be a difficult time to truly feel that support, even if we are receiving it. That is why we are dedicated to ensuring each student feels heard and valued as they continue to grow academically.
This is why CNE Middle School’s Building Leadership Team (BLT) is excited to incorporate strategies from the Ohio Improvement Process (OIP), which provides a framework for focused and intentional student growth through collaborative team structures. Goals for the OIP start at the district level, with the District Leadership Team, a group of administrators that analyze overall data and determine the goals for the entire district. The BLT, composed of nine school staff, then evaluates if the school is meeting those goals and develops strategies to move students forward.
The BLT then rolls those plans out for the school through training and regular communication, and teachers begin implementing the new strategies. Then, Teacher Based Teams (TBT) meet weekly to discuss data, student performance, mental health, analyze plans, and enjoy learning even more about the process and opportunities. The TBT meets once a week, and the BLT meets once a month to review the information gathered at the four TBT meetings.
Per the OIP, the BLT should be made up of many individuals who come together for this common goal:
- Intervention Specialist
- Instructional Coach
- Principal
- Classroom Teachers
- Parent Liaisons
- Other Stakeholders
The Middle School’s BLT is made up of individuals who wear multiple hats, encompassing each of the expected roles. Many of our teachers/administrators are parents of students within the community, and are thus even more dedicated to the goals of the team.
The BLT takes special care as students prepare to take the AIR assessment, which is a standardized assessment for Ohio students grades 3-11. The team examines if our students are closing the achievement gap and on track to pass the assessment. If there are students who are not on track, individuals from the team will sit down with those students to discuss their goals and how they can get there.
Students are encouraged to take responsibility for their own education, whether it be creating their own plans with the help of our staff, or even holding student-led conferences where they present their progress to their families, including areas of success, areas that need work, and long-term goals.
“Learning can be fun, and we can have fun as adults,” says Principal Laura Nazzarine. “Watching kids be successful with what we’ve done is fun – that’s the goal. That’s the sign of a true culture of learning, and we’re always learning.”
Superintendent Mike Brandt makes time to attend the BLT sessions, ensuring that the team is on the right track with the DLT goals, and he shares progress with other district administrators.
“Mr. Brandt believes in systems framework,” says Mrs. Nazzarine. “That’s why we’ve come so far and have been so successful.”
The focus of the BLT meetings and plans isn’t just academics, though that’s a big part of it. Currently, the Middle School implements a period for instructional strategies. Data is pulled from students’ courses and MAP assessments, and students then participate in intervention bells where teachers work to create instruction that helps students individually with their areas of struggle.
In addition, BLT focuses on Social Emotional Learning (SEL) strategies, Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS), and staff Professional Development. The Middle School focuses on creating an environment where students feel comfortable with trusted adults, where they are able to communicate freely and trust that they are supported and valued, even during their most difficult moments. Teachers have been trained in signs of suicide and how to have conversations with students; this week, they trained students to recognize those signs and how to act when they see or hear something concerning.
Assistant Principal Chuck Boothby says, “When I look back, one thing we’ve had a breakthrough on is building the culture and looking at character traits in SEL. Once we got a handle on that, we started looking critically at academic data.”
“This is a tough time for a lot of kids,” adds Mr. Boothby. “Focusing on SEL as well as academics… we didn’t talk about those kinds of things when I was growing up. We are having restorative kinds of conversations here. When kids are being unkind, which is inevitable, we talk to them together about that. This is something we have been working on for five years.”
When two students who are having trouble together sit down with each other, and “The student who said or did something that was unkind sits and watches the other person hurt,” states Mrs. Nazzarine. “You see that person crying and it’s impactful, it changes behavior. For that moment, those kids leave with a better understanding of one another.”