Responsive Classroom InstituteChagrin Falls Exempted Village Schools hosted a Responsive…

August 15, 2013

Responsive Classroom Institute
Chagrin Falls Exempted Village Schools hosted a Responsive Classroom Summer Institute July 22-26 for more than 40 teachers and administrators from Illinois, Pennsylvania, New York, Kentucky and Ohio. The institute was held at the middle school.
The Responsive Classroom is a research- and evidence-based approach to elementary education that leads to greater teacher effectiveness, higher student achievement and improved school climate. This approach was developed by teachers in order to create an environment where children are actively involved in their learning in a classroom in which the social and academic curriculum go hand in hand.
Teachers learned specific ways to build classroom community and establish and sustain optimal learning environments in their classrooms. Topics included morning meeting, rule creation, interactive modeling, positive teacher language and responding to misbehavior (including logical consequences). Teachers also learned how to use guided discovery, academic choice, classroom organization and collaborative problem solving.
Teachers from Gurney Elementary that attended the institute included Sheri Halagan, Julie Albrecht, Kim Tressler, Vicky Pelsozy, Shelly Zdolshek, Brad Jones, Kelly Andreas and Nate Bachofsky.
The Institute was in collaboration with the Northeast Foundation for Children, Inc. (NEFC). NEFC is a nonpro?t organization and the developer and sole source provider of the Responsive Classroom approach. NEFC was founded in 1981 by four public school educators who had a vision of bringing together social and academic learning throughout the school day. Today, NEFC continues to re?ne the Responsive Classroom approach to meet the evolving needs of students, teachers and schools.
“Classrooms should be filled with challenges, and a place where all students have the ability to take risks, while reaching their full potential,” said Bob Hunt, superintendent of Chagrin Falls Exempted Village Schools. “I am proud of our staff for taking the initiative over the summer to host and attend this Responsive Classroom Institute. I’m confident that what they have learned will increase student engagement, improve academic achievement, and lead to highest quality of teaching.”
CFHS Teachers Selected to Grade AP Tests
Chagrin Falls High School teachers David King, Bobbie Serensky and Carole Fahey were selected to be Advanced Placement (AP) readers this summer.
The AP program offers 34 courses in a wide variety of subject areas. In May 2013, more than 2.2 million exceptional students from around the globe took approximately 3.9 million AP examinations. Selected college professors and high school teachers from across the country are chosen each year to devote one to two weeks of their summer to reading the tests, up to eight hours a day. Chagrin Falls High School teachers traveled to Louisville, Ky., to grade the AP exams.
David King has been an AP Studio Art reader for nine years and a table leader for the last two years. A table leader trains the readers.
“The experience is overwhelming at first. There is so much to consider when evaluating a student’s portfolio. It’s an incredible process,” said King. “Before I became a reader, I was skeptical about the process. After having witnessed the care and consideration for the student and their work, I now know it is the most efficient way to evaluate their work.”
For King, there are three different portfolios he needs to evaluate — drawing, 2D design and 3D design — and each of them have three sections. There is a rubric for each section. Each rubric section is read aloud. Examples of previously scored portfolios are used to train the readers. Some readers are looking at actual artwork and some are looking at digital images of each portfolio giving it a score between 1-6.
King read approximately 48,000 portfolios this year. Each portfolio contained 28 pieces of art, which is 1,344,000 pieces of art.
Bobbie Serensky graded more than 1,100 essays from the AP English Language and Composition Exams.
“I find the experience provides valuable insight into the teaching of writing and literature,” said Serensky. “My conversations with both high school teachers and college professors also aids in my professional development.”
Carole Fahey graded more than 1,000 AP Spanish Language, Presentational Writing, and Interpersonal Writing exams.
At Chagrin Falls High School, 221 students took 548 exams in which 86 percent scored a 3 or higher, which many colleges will award credit to the students for achieving.
“Teachers that participate in the Advanced Placement exam grading are extremely dedicated to their craft,” said Chagrin Falls High School Principal Steven Ast. “It is very beneficial to our students as these teachers return to the district with valuable information to share on the College Board’s expectations. It is also a wonderful opportunity to develop relationships and collaborate with teachers from across the country.”
Volunteers Construct Zone 2 of New Gurney Playground
Despite a rainy Saturday morning, more than 30 volunteers from both the Chagrin Falls Dads’ Club and district faculty and staff braved the wet weather on Aug. 3 to install a new playground at Gurney Elementary. The school and construction company provided all the necessary equipment, while a supervisor from the construction company instructed the volunteers as to what to do.
The work consisted of carrying poles, placing them in holes that had already been dug and then bolting platforms to the poles. After the decks were assembled, individual components were attached.
“I love these types of projects because they bring together the school and the community,” said Greg Kanzinger, president of the Chagrin Falls Dads’ Club. “Everybody wins on projects like this. The school saves money, people feel invested in the school and the kids benefit from the collaboration. Today, we saved the school $6,000, but we invested much more in the community.”
The playground will consist of four areas: An asphalt area for group games with a perimeter track for running/walking; a play system targeting all large muscle groups; a fit-play system of child-sized fitness equipment that actually generates electricity and plays dance music; and a challenging obstacle course.
“It is so exciting to see the plan now become a reality for all of our students,” said Rachel Jones, principal of Gurney Elementary.
Zone 1 was paid for from the Board of Education. Zone 2 is being funded through a collaborative effort of the PTO, Dads’ Club, Boosters, and Education Foundation. Fundraising continues for Zones 3 and 4.
“Ensuring a playground full of active and engaging play options is a necessity for the health and academic performance of our students,” said Bob Hunt, superintendent. “This new playground also will be up to current safety standards for outdoor play equipment. We thank all of those individuals, businesses, and organizations that have contributed to this project. I do believe students will really enjoy the new structure.”
Donations are still being accepted. For more information on how to donate, log on to store.renegadebrands.com.
District Earns Financial Reporting Award
A recent financial audit of the Chagrin Falls Exempted Village School District by the Auditor of State Dave Yost’s office has returned a clean audit report. District treasurer and CFO Anne Spano and the Chagrin Falls Exempted Village School District’s excellent record keeping has earned the Auditor of State Award with Distinction.
“While a school’s primary concern is its students, it must also remain accountable to taxpayers,” Auditor Yost said. “Accurate record keeping is clearly a priority for Chagrin Falls Exempted Village Schools, and I am proud to present this award to the district.”
The Auditor of State Award with Distinction is presented to local governments and school districts upon the completion of a financial audit. Entities that receive the award meet the following criteria of a “clean” audit report:
The entity must file timely financial reports with the Auditor of State’s office in the form of a CAFR (Comprehensive Annual Financial Report)
The audit report does not contain any findings for recovery, material citations, material weaknesses, significant deficiencies, single audit findings or questioned costs;
The entity’s management letter contains no comments related to: Ethics referrals; questioned costs less than $10,000; lack of timely report submission; reconciliation; failure to obtain a timely single audit; findings for recovery less than $100; public meetings or public records.
“The Board of Education is very proud of our outstanding history of excellence in financial reporting,” said Chagrin Falls Board of Education President Anne B. Thomas, Ph.D. “This Auditor of State Award with Distinction from the Auditor of State is further verification, from an independent source, that Chagrin Falls Exempted Village Schools is well managed in all aspects, including its finances and communication of those finances to our residents.”