Greetings, Mills Families!
September 11-September 15 is Celebrate Freedom Week in Texas Schools. HB 1501 requires school districts to commemorate the events of September 11, 2001 with a moment of silence at the beginning of the first class period of the day. Our campus will commemorate 9/11 through our morning announcements led by Principal Frageman. The announcement message: Today commemorates the events that happened on September 11, 2001. That day was a frightening and sad time for the people living in the United States and for many people around the world. Today we honor the memory of the lives that were lost on September 11, 2001. We remember the heroic efforts of our first responders such as police, fire fighters, Coast Guard, and EMTs. Please join us for a moment of silence.
Our school counselors will be available if any of our Mountain Lions want to further process feelings and emotions. We want to meet every student at their level of understanding and provide them with a safe space to feel them.
In order to continue with these opportunities, we ask our families each year to contribute through Enrichment Fees. This one time financial investment supports so much! Here is a short description:
- Funding the Mills Maker Space & STEM teacher, Sara Sanchez! All PreK-5th Grade students enjoy hands-on instruction in the Maker Space lab, along with enrichment support through technology applications for in classroom learning! Ms. Sanchez supports dynamic instructional planning as she also works collaboratively with classroom teachers to infuse 21st century STEM elements into teaching and learning.
- Funding the Cultural Studies teacher, Miriam Palomo! Senora Palomo teaches PreK-5th grade students Spanish language instruction, but she also incorporates a robust curriculum that explores different countries and cultures around the globe! The cultural studies program here at Mills is one of a kind. Mills Elementary School is only one of two schools in Austin ISD that provides robust language enrichment instruction coupled with unique performances in PreK, 1st, and 2nd grades!
- Extra curriculum planning time for Mills teachers! One of the highest predictors of student academic achievement is teachers' feelings of collective efficacy. These funds allow teachers/staff the time to plan effective, intentional, rigorous, and differentiated lesson plans that in turn support student learning and achievement. Mills students outperform other schools within our Bowie High School vertical team and throughout the district due in part to the intentional lesson planning our teachers engage in.
- Additional programming, resources, and supplies to supplement the district resources! Due to the diverse needs of our student body, our staff continually look for ways to enrich and diversify the Austin ISD curriculum. Our campus uses these funds to research effective and dynamic resources to purchase in order to supplement those supplied by the school district.
