CONGRATS

Website: www.aamle.org/index.html
Location: P.O. Box 1385 Fayetteville , AR 72702
Phone: 479-422-0044
Facebook: facebook.com/ArkansasAMLE
Twitter: @ArkAMLE

The Structured Learning Services team consists of one teacher and six amazing support services team members. The Structured Learning program is designed to support the needs of students in the areas of communication, behavior, academics, and social skills. Harter’s Heros is a consistent theme that radiates throughout the SLS classroom, team and school. Each year students in the SLS classroom focus on their amazing superpowers and how they can use these superpowers to learn and grow, to overcome challenges, and to make a difference in the world. The SLS team is invested in the power of the middle school philosophy and mindset. The team consistently focuses on the essential attributes of what education should look like, sound like, feel like, and be like for a middle school student. They focus on responsiveness by using the distinctive nature and identities of young adolescents as the foundation upon which all decisions about school are made. This can be seen through their customized, flexible scheduling; their challenging curriculum that cultivates high expectations; their engaging instructional learning activities that are relevant, active, and motivating; their inclusive, safe, welcoming learning environment; their ability to empower students to take responsibility for their own learning and contribute positively to the world around them; and the culture they have created for students, families, and the community.

Principal Lisa Davis said, "I was asked the other day where do you get your energy when you are in the building. When things get tough and you have had an overwhelming day, how do you rally? That answer is in the Structured Learning Services classroom. If you want to see positivity and joy radiate then visit this classroom. If you want to see high expectations met with engaging and relevant lessons then visit this classroom. If you want to see colleagues lean upon each others’ strengths then visit this classroom. If you want to see stellar classroom management and effective redirection observe this classroom. If you want to see smiles spread across people’s faces and people run into hugs and start dancing for what seems like no reason follow our SLS team through the hallways and into classrooms. The SLS team is truly empowering. Come feed off the energy that emits from this team. What they do to provide equal access and diverse, personalized experiences to cultivate and achieve high levels of excellence while igniting a passion and value of learning for all students is contagious."

Davis added, "SLS is not just a team because they work together. They are a team because they respect, trust, and care for each other. At McNair we work hard and we play hard. The SLS team understands that the teacher has the greatest impact on student achievement and should be invested in and held accountable. The SLS team is consistently seeking ways to improve their practice including professional learning opportunities, attending state and national conferences, continuing their education, and taking intentional time to get to know each other as people. Ms. Harter is at the helm of this team. She not only looks at opportunities to grow herself and her team but she also invests in others’ growth and development. She often opens up her classroom to other teachers across the district and state. She has presented at several local and state conferences as well as served on several boards and panels."

SLS Team pictured (Jaye Johnson, Marla Sheely, Annabeth Raiford, Kristy Harter, Shayne Taylor-AAMLE Executive Director, Michelle McMath, & Andrew Yardley)

Greenbrier Middle School has been awarded the Prestigious, 2021 Shannon Wright MS of the Year! The Shannon Wright award is named after the heroic Jonesboro Westside teacher who gave her life in order to save her students on March 24, 1998 during a school shooting. Mrs. Wright gave the ultimate sacrifice that day. AAMLE has honored schools since its inception in 1999 who go above and beyond to meet the needs of the students they serve. The committee looks at the needs of the whole child, not just academics. We look at 16 characteristics or keys to educating young adolescents.

Schools all over Arkansas apply yearly to be considered for this award. The committee then look at the top three schools based on applications. The committee visit those schools to see in action what they wrote about and see how they are impacting students. From those visits, the onsite evaluators score the schools on a rubric, which helps to determine the overall winner. The process is lengthy and provides a great look inward at the school.

Some of the things the evaluators noted was:

• Teachers use data to make decisions about learning

• Teachers care about the well being of their students

• Parents and the Community are valued here

The students at GMS had this to say about GMS:

• Teachers make learning fun

• Teachers and principals ask for feedback. For example, “Do you like this? What can we change about this?”

• Teachers work together really well

Greenbrier MS is an "A" rating school with strong Professional Learning Communities. Staff members, students, parents, and community all shared input in the process of creating the GMS mission, vision, and core beliefs. Question stems regarding what the perfect school looks like, sounds like, and feels like to each shareholder group guided the creation while the leadership team crafts the statements. GMS strives to be the most effective turning point for middle school age students as they transition from elementary to secondary school. The shared mission and vision is the foundation of the culture of distributed leadership, including student leadership via student council, Student Leadership Team, Clubnections, and academics. The Student Leadership Team was a leading force in communicating problem areas on campus in regards to behavior and developing the PRIDE matrix. Leadership is distributed to parents through Parent Advisory Council, PTO, and the abundance of parent input tools used. PAC has the specific goal to become more informed about aspects of GMS and tell the school story in the community, while also giving input and parent perspectives to the parent involvement facilitator. Community members are able to help lead through the Clubnections program as guest speakers. A teacher leadership team represents each grade level and content/team, including elective teachers and special education, who studied Professional Learning Communities at Work, lead PLCs, developed initiatives such as Clubnection, Walk in My Shoes Night, etc. A branch of this team is the Arkansas Leadership Academy Team, which has completed the Arkansas Leadership Academy Team Institute for leadership development and to develop school improvement goals. Evidence examples of this team's work can be found in the evolution of Fast Focus Interventions and the ICU program. This team was instrumental in moving GMS from a weekly intervention period to a daily intervention period in the master schedule (Fast Focus). From there the group has made adjustments that have expanded student intervention opportunities to include science as well as math and literacy. This allows teachers more freedom to flex students in and out of groups as their needs shift, and gives students that are exceeding expectations more opportunities for relevant interventions. The ALA team has made significant logistical adjustments to ensure that ICU, the no-zero program, continues to support the completion of assignments for students without significantly disrupting the flow of the school day. In addition to this, the leadership team has expanded to include a group of teachers attending the PLC leadership development series. This team has left each session with an action plan for how to support students through the 4 question PLC model. While the PLCLDS team will focus on the agendas of team meetings and curriculum, the ALA team will continue to think about the big picture, programs, and logistics at GMS.

AAMLE is proud to announce that the 2021 annual conference will be held in Hot Springs at the Hot Springs Convention Center on November 14-16.

The AAMLE Annual Conference is the only conference in Arkansas that is specifically designed for middle level educators by middle level educators. The conference provides an excellent opportunity to grow professionally in all areas related to middle level education.

The two day conference will include a keynote presentation along with dozens of break-out sessions from innovative educators and professionals.

AAMLE is now accepting proposals for breakout sessions for the 2021 conference. Our focus will be Social-Emotional Learning, Response to Intervention and dealing effectively with adolescent learners. To submit your proposal, use the button below.

Marcia L. Tate, EdD, is the former Executive Director of Professional Development for the DeKalb County School System, Decatur, Georgia. During the course of her 30-year career with the district, she has also been a classroom teacher, reading specialist, language arts coordinator, and staff development executive director. In 2001, she received Georgia’s Distinguished Staff Developer Award, and her department won the Exemplary Program Award for the state.

Currently, through her company Developing Minds, Inc., Marcia serves as an educational consultant and has taught over 450,000 administrators, teachers, and parents, as well as community and business leaders, all over the world. Participants in her workshops often refer to them as the best they have ever experienced.

Proposal Instructions

Deadline: Thursday, July 1, 2021 by 11:59 p.m.

Submission: Email applications in PDF form to Felicia.horn@ashdownschools.org no later than July 1, 2021.

Description: The purpose of this grant is to provide fiscal support for a project implemented in an Arkansas Middle Level School to improve outcomes for mid-level students.

Award: The recipient of this grant will receive up to $500.00 to fund a strategy or program to improve outcomes for mid-level learners. The recipient(s) will be required to share their project at AAMLE’s annual conference. In addition, the recipient(s) will be recognized at the annual conference

Eligibility: Any mid-level administrator, faculty, or staff member of an Arkansas Public Middle Level School.

Proposal Guidelines:

1. Proposals should be clearly aligned with strategies to improve outcomes for mid-level learners (grades 5-9).

2. Proposals should describe how the funding will improve implementation.

3. Proposals may request up to $500.00

I. Project Description and Rationale (250 words maximum)

Describe the background and importance of the proposal. Describe the strategy or program you will implement. Discuss the alignment between the project and one of the concepts identified within the THIS WE BELIEVE: https://www.amle.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/AMLE_SMS_Summary_Color.pdf . Identify specific ways in which mid-level learners have been positively impacted by the project/strategy.

II. Timeline and Aims (500 words maximum)

Discuss how the strategy or program will be implemented and the timeline for implementation. Discuss who will participate across each stage of the implementation process. Identify the academic, social, emotional, and/or behavioral improvements expected for students. Describe plans to support sustainment.

III. Budget (250 words maximum)

Outline a brief budget narrative and justification for requested funds. Each item requested should have a one sentence justification explaining the request.

Evaluators

Felicia Horn

Renee Speight

AAMLE

Felicia.horn@ashdownschools.org

Rspeight@uark.edu

Springdale School District’s Sonora Middle School in Springdale, AR is the latest Arkansas school to be redesignated as a Schools to Watch® by the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform. The schools’ emphasis on strong academics, sensitivity to young adolescents’ needs and interests, and commitment to providing all students equal access to a high-quality education resulted in the well-deserved recognition.

Schools are recognized for a three-year period, at the end of which they must apply for re-designation and demonstrate that they are continuing to meet the National Forum’s rigorous criteria. Sonora Middle School has received Redesignation I. The following Arkansas middle schools were re-designated as Schools to Watch:

• Sonora Middle School, Springdale, AR-Redesignation I

• McNair Middle School, Fayetteville, AR-Redesignation IV

• Hellstern Middle School, Springdale, AR-Redesignation III

• Helen Tyson Middle School, Springdale, AR-Redesignation IV

• Ruth Barker Middle School, Bentonville, AR-Redesignation I

These principals, teachers and staff members along with their communities have dedicated themselves to being strong exemplars for sustaining growth and development of their students. Schools are required to submit an extensive application, undergo a site review, and display a strong commitment to the thirty-seven criteria for high performing middle schools identified by the National Forum. Their success has earned them this highly sought after designation. Each of these schools have made a commitment to the Schools to Watch Framework for continuous school improvement.

Arkansas currently has 19 schools who have this designation. Nationwide there are 495 schools who have earned this designation.

To be selected as a Schools to Watch, schools need to be:

• Academically Excellent. Is the curriculum rigorous and relevant to the real world?

• Developmentally Responsive. Do students have a safe, healthy and personalized learning environment that is responsive to the unique needs and interests of young adolescents?

• Socially Equitable. Do all students have access to high-quality classes and the support they need to achieve at high levels?

• Organized with Supportive Structure. Is there shared leadership, collaborative learning communities, targeted professional development and effective organizational structures?

These schools are available for interested educators to visit and learn about the application and see first-hand what made them a Schools to Watch. They also will be showcased as models throughout the state and the nation to promote their approaches to instruction, parent and community involvement, and professional development. The schools will be recognized at the AAMLE Conference in Hot Springs on November 14-16, 2021.

In 2004, Arkansas became a state Schools to Watch state by the National Forum to replicate the Schools to Watch program as a way to identify high-performing middle grades schools to serve as models of excellence for other schools. Currently, 17 states are involved in this school reform and recognition initiative. The program is sponsored by the Arkansas Association for Middle Level Education. For more information about the state’s Schools to Watch program, please view Arkansas Schools to Watch or contact AR Schools to Watch Co-Directors Michelle Hayward and Jessica Graham at michelle.hayward@fayar.net or jgraham@westsideschool.org .

Shayne Taylor, Executive Director, Principal Prairie Grove Middle School, shayne.taylor@pgtigers.org

Jessica Graham, Associate Executive Director, Instructional Facilitator Westside School District jgraham@westsideschools.org

Dr. Renee Speight, President, Research Associate UARK, rspeight@uark.edu

Felicia Horn, President Elect Assistant Principal North Heights JH Texarkana, Felicia.Horn@tasd7.net

Dr. Joe McClung, Secretary, Principal Farmington Junior High, Farmington

Dr. Martha Dodson, Treasurer, Sonora MS Springdale, mdodson2@sdale.org

Lekia Jones, Conference Director, Principal Union Elementary, lekiajones15@gmail.com

AAMLE encourages you to share the amazing educational opportunities, programs and photos from your Middle Schools for our upcoming Newsletters. Send submissions to Dr. Renee Speight, rspeight@uark.edu