At last week’s political forum there was some concern raised about housing our middle school and our high school students on the same campus. This was a concern the board talked about when we made the decision to go the 6-12 route and the benefits seem to outweigh the concerns.
First of all, it is important to understand that the building will be designed to keep the 6-8 population separate from the 9-12 population This decision was integral before we could move forward. With the exception of on the bus, the “middle school” aged student should not even see the “high school” aged students. Secondly, this configuration will allow the schools to share teachers. We are currently teaching two high school level classes at the middle school and the teachers are having to drive back and forth and the timing is sometimes a problem. Having the students and the teacher on the same campus will minimize the lag time. Thirdly, the continuous expectations will lessen the transition from middle school to high school. Across the state, 9th grade is where drop out or “fall behind” rate increases. In this combination school the transition to 9th from 8th will be almost seamless. The students will be in a different wing of the school but will have the same administrators and some of the same “shared teachers”.
By building a 6-12 building we will maximize state dollars, which will lessen the burden on County tax payers. In order to truly benefit from being Low Wealth Project Specific we need to be able to build as many instruction units (IUs) as the state will allow. By making the existing Crawford County Elementary School the Crawford County Primary School and letting it house Pre-K-2nd grade,making the existing Crawford County Middle School the Crawford County Elementary School and letting it house 3rd-5th Grade, and building a new 6-12 middle/high, Crawford County Schools will make the most of state dollars while maintaining the integrity of a safe, secure, learning focused environment.
In addition to all this, in August of 2018, across the state, there will be 45 schools that will have either a 6-12, a K-12, or a 7-12 (there is only one) grade configuration. Several of the top performing schools that are similar to our size are on that list, including Schley County, Union County, and Trion City. I currently have 4th grade triplets that will attend this school as “middle school” aged students and there is no way I would suggest this if I didn’t feel 100% comfortable with the plan.
First of all, it is important to understand that the building will be designed to keep the 6-8 population separate from the 9-12 population This decision was integral before we could move forward. With the exception of on the bus, the “middle school” aged student should not even see the “high school” aged students. Secondly, this configuration will allow the schools to share teachers. We are currently teaching two high school level classes at the middle school and the teachers are having to drive back and forth and the timing is sometimes a problem. Having the students and the teacher on the same campus will minimize the lag time. Thirdly, the continuous expectations will lessen the transition from middle school to high school. Across the state, 9th grade is where drop out or “fall behind” rate increases. In this combination school the transition to 9th from 8th will be almost seamless. The students will be in a different wing of the school but will have the same administrators and some of the same “shared teachers”.
By building a 6-12 building we will maximize state dollars, which will lessen the burden on County tax payers. In order to truly benefit from being Low Wealth Project Specific we need to be able to build as many instruction units (IUs) as the state will allow. By making the existing Crawford County Elementary School the Crawford County Primary School and letting it house Pre-K-2nd grade,making the existing Crawford County Middle School the Crawford County Elementary School and letting it house 3rd-5th Grade, and building a new 6-12 middle/high, Crawford County Schools will make the most of state dollars while maintaining the integrity of a safe, secure, learning focused environment.
In addition to all this, in August of 2018, across the state, there will be 45 schools that will have either a 6-12, a K-12, or a 7-12 (there is only one) grade configuration. Several of the top performing schools that are similar to our size are on that list, including Schley County, Union County, and Trion City. I currently have 4th grade triplets that will attend this school as “middle school” aged students and there is no way I would suggest this if I didn’t feel 100% comfortable with the plan.
Attached is a link to the Ga Post Review from March 12th where I discussed the plan. GA Post Review March 12
