2019: The Year in Review in Smithfield
It’s that time of year when every news and sports show reflects on the year that’s coming to a close. Best Movies of 2019; CNN Special Report – All the Best, All the Worst 2019; and SportsCenter – Top Plays of the Year; are just some of the shows being aired during the last week of 2019. Using this same theme, I’m providing some reflections on 2019 in Smithfield.
District Improvement – Smithfield schools continue to engage in district improvement efforts first initiated at the Future Search, which involved an array of stakeholders representing our community, parents, students, and staff. Our action plan employs strategies that guide the work of every administrator, teacher, and staff member. A district improvement team meets three times each year to help us monitor our progress as we aim for achieving our promise — Every child will be prepared for continued learning, career, and life.
During 2019, we made significant progress toward improving the instructional experience of our students by focusing the educator evaluation system on improving teaching and learning; aligning curriculum and assessments; implementing a system of interventions, support, and enrichment; and improving professional development offerings for teachers. It will, admittedly, take some time before student performance data reflects the investments that have been made but our efforts this year have resulted in substantial progress.
New math curriculum materials were reintroduced to the middle and schools, a system of assessments and interventions are catching students early who may be falling behind, and our written curriculum ensures that every Smithfield student has access to a viable and guaranteed instructional program. Each Smithfield school, as well, has a strong improvement process and each elementary school implements a plan-do-study-act (PDSA) improvement cycle grounded in research.
Now in our second year of a writing initiative, teachers have been trained in the Collins writing approach and their efforts are translating to improved student outcomes. Ranking RICAS writing item scores against other state public schools, 4 of the 7 grades tested ranked 1st-4th in the state.
Facilities – 2019 saw significant progress toward achieving the district’s vision for elementary reconfiguration. With funding approved by voters in November of 2018 and state reimbursements that are expected to exceed 50%, the district hired an Owners Project Manager (OPM) and architectural firm to develop detailed plans for renovations and additions to McCabe Elementary School, Old County Road School, and LaPerche Elementary School. The project is on time and on budget to ensure that Winsor Elementary can be closed and decommissioned by the fall of 2021.
Utilizing a COPS grant in excess of $400,000 from the US Department of Justice, an architect was engaged to redesign the entrances to Smithfield High School and Gallagher Middle School to improve security. In December, a construction company began ordering materials so that construction can begin as soon as school lets out for the summer.
Throughout 2019, an athletics facilities capital committee met to assess conditions of all athletic facilities, begin the construction of new baseball dugouts and backstop fencing, and consider options for improving the high school track and field.
In addition, outdated interior and exterior lighting was replaced with led lights at all schools, excluding Winsor.
Special Education – In 2019, 364 Smithfield students with identified disabilities had Individualized Education Programs (IEP), with 354 in in-district programs, 3 students in parent-placed private schools (at parents’ expense) and 7 in specialized schools outside of Smithfield. We now employ a school psychologist in every school and have increased our behavioral supports. These professionals provide direct services to students in addition to providing guidance to staff so that students can successfully access the curriculum and make progress within the least restrictive environment.
In addition to serving students with IEPs, Smithfield Schools ensures that children and youth experiencing homelessness are provided protections afforded by the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. Unfortunately, 2019 saw an increase in the number of families experiencing homelessness. Our hope for 2020 is a healthy home and family for every Smithfield student.
Smithfield High School – There are currently 742 students enrolled at SHS and close to a third of these students are enrolled in a Career and Technical Education (CTE) program within the high school. Smithfield High School offers six certified CTE programs:
- Finance Academy
- Engineering
- Teacher Prep
- Computer Science
- Information Technology – Cybersecurity
- Law & Public Safety
The year 2019 saw positive results achieved through an Innovation & Equity Grant, which aimed to increase the number of female students in computer science. At Smithfield High School, the number of students in the high school computer science CTE courses has gone from 65 to 82 students. The percent of females in these courses went from 9% in 2018-2019 to 27% this year.
The percentage of students meeting or exceeding expectations on the RICAS assessment is above the state average in both English and mathematics. For our current seniors, 65.6% met or exceeded expectations on the ELA RICAS assessment, administered in the spring of 2019. For the corresponding math assessment, 48.7% met or exceeded expectations. In 2019, 138 AP exams were administered to SHS students; 66 of these AP exams (48%) were qualifying scores.
SHS has secured an XQRI grant of approximately $25,000 to engage an architect to re-envision the library media space to enable future-focused instruction and career exploration. A team of educators has been working with XQRI to develop plans for courses and practices that engage learners and ready them for their futures.
Gallagher Middle School – In 2019, Gallagher Middle School housed 594 students in grades 6-8. Our current instructional offerings include the four core courses of math, English, science and social studies. Our related arts program includes physical education, health, computer science, art, library science, and music/band/chorus. Students in grades 7 and 8 may elect to learn Spanish or French. Reading and math skills classes are provided for those who need extra support in these areas.
Along with the high school, GMS was an Innovation & Equity Grant Winner. Through this grant, we are increasing the number of female students exposed to block coding, have redesigned the computer labs for functionality and appeal, and have purchased a new 3D printer, a computer-enabled embroidery machine, and Finch robots to expand the curriculum.
GMS is also a leader in science education in Rhode Island. In addition to utilizing Jason curriculum materials and online resources, GMS teachers and students participate in research projects. In 2019, Mrs. Carter and Lily Ford, our GMS Jason Argonauts, traveled to Nevada to study caterpillars. The GMS Science Olympiad team won the state science competition for the third year in a row.
McCabe, LaPerche, Winsor, and Old County Road Schools – Current 2019 K-5 enrollment is 997 students. In addition to core academic subjects, students in the elementary grades take art, music, health, library, and physical education.
The teachers at all four schools continue to enhance the mathematics curriculum as well as to refine how we teach literacy in the early grades. In 2019 we piloted new reading instructional materials, which we hope to purchase for the 2020-2021 school year. Teachers in all grade levels apply Responsive Classroom techniques for an effective and safe classroom environment.
Despite our best efforts to provide a quality instructional experience, some students struggle to meet the high expectations in math and reading. In response to these demands we have coordinated efforts to enhance our intervention programs. Both schools continue with a Response to Intervention (RTI) approach, supported by Title I funding at OCRS, to identify student learning gaps and provide targeted and systematic remediation in those areas. The foundation of this approach is the use of data for monitoring student progress and making sound decisions about the focus of interventions.
McCabe Elementary School’s pre-kindergarten program continues to provide our youngest students with rich academic and social emotional opportunities through a nationally accredited program that has been recognized by BrightStars with a 4-star rating.
Finances The financial health of 2019 was a far cry from 2018, due to a significant decrease in state aid. We are looking at another challenging year moving forward, since state aid is expected to decrease yet again. Despite these challenges, we are retaining fairly consistent staffing and appropriate investments in professional development, technology, and curriculum materials continue through careful management of funds and increased efforts to secure additional income from competitive grants.
New Staff – In addition to some changes in assignments and the engagement of some long-term subs, we welcomed many wonderful new teachers and staff in 2019. At central office, we welcomed Melissa Battiston as the new data manager and Marshall Medeiros as the new accounts payable clerk. Two new custodians joined the team: Donald L’Etoile at GMS and Gary Regneire at OCRS. McCabe welcomed two new early childhood teachers: Kaiya Day, in a one-year-only K position, Kaylie Filbert in kindergarten, and Lacey Harding and Kim Saccoia in pre-K.
Matthew Kinslow is now serving as a speech language pathologist throughout the district. Amanda Lemek is now a permanent special education teacher at OCRS while Julie Reddy is serving as a special educator at McCabe and Kayla Szylin is at GMS. Casey Miller is a new art teacher at McCabe and LaPerche, Zachariah King teaches English at GMS, and Melanie Cotnoir teaches biology at SHS. Beginning in January, Nola Palombo will join the science department at SHS, teaching physics. Robin Alves and Brianna Antonelli are new paraprofessionals at McCabe and SHS, respectively.
Everything accomplished in 2019 came accompanied by unrivaled care for our students and community along with a good dose of humor. Here’s hoping that 2020 brings academic and athletic success and continued humor and good will.
Happy New Year!
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