Inside: Student AchievementPages 2-3

Scholar & Music News Pages 4-5

Awards Pages 6-7

Freshman AcademyPages 8-9

Board Seat FilledPage 10

Budget UpdatePage 11

THE GROVENews from the Avon Grove School District

www.avongrove.org • 375 S. Jennersville Rd., West Grove, PA 19390 • 610-869-2441 • Student Achievement Edition • Winter 2011

News & Notes

In a report to the School Board on October 28, Avon Grove School District officials highlighted nu-

merous academic achievements, includ-ing that the district made Adequate Year-ly Progress (AYP) in 2010; high school students’ SAT and standardized tests scores increased in mathematics, reading and writing; and the District is on track to meet its Strategic Plan goals for sec-ondary students completing higher-level mathematics courses.

In addition to the District making AYP based on results from the 2010 Pennsylvania System of School Assess-ment (PSSA) testing, Penn London El-ementary School, Avon Grove Interme-diate School, and Fred S. Engle Middle School also made AYP for meeting all of their respective targets measured by the state in 2010.

Avon Grove High School met the state’s academic performance targets for students overall in 2010, with 76.8 percent of the eleventh-graders tested scoring proficient or advanced in reading on the PSSA, an increase of 1.8 percent from 2009, and 73.3 percent scoring proficient or advanced in mathematics, an increase of 7.3 percent from 2009.

The high school met 20 out of 21 performance targets measured by the state, narrowly missing the target for Latino/Hispanic subgroup scores in mathematics by 0.4 percent. Avon Grove High School continues to score above the state average in both reading and mathematics on the PSSA tests.

Success at all levels, including an increase in overall achievement and closing of the achievement gap, can be attributed to alignment of curriculum and instruction, the use of data-informed instruction, and a well-designed system of intervention and support programs, according to District officials.

Overall, 92.6 percent of Fred S. En-gle Middle School students tested scored proficient or advanced on the 2010 mathematics PSSA, and 89 percent of students tested scored proficient or ad-vanced in reading. Based on the percent-age of eighth-graders scoring proficient or advanced, Engle ranked first among the13 middle schools in Chester County

in mathematics and second in reading. Based on the percentage of seventh-graders scoring proficient or advanced, Engle ranked third out of 13 in math-ematics and fifth in reading.

Overall, 91 percent of Avon Grove Intermediate School students tested scored proficient or advanced in math-ematics in 2010, and 83.8 percent scored proficient or advanced in reading.

Penn London Elementary School (PLE) does not get tested for meeting AYP; however, because PLE feeds into Avon Grove Intermediate School, PLE does receive AYP results based on third-graders’ performance. Overall, 92.2 percent of third-graders tested scored proficient or advanced in mathematics, and 84.2 percent of third-graders scored proficient or advanced in reading.

Students are also tested in writing in grades 5, 8, and 11, and in science in grades 4, 8 and 11. Writing and science scores do not count towards AYP; how-ever, the Avon Grove School District’s Strategic Plan calls for 95 percent of students scoring proficient or advanced in both subjects by 2013.

Compared to 2009, the percentage of students scoring advanced or pro-ficient in writing rose from 73 to 80.4 percent in grade 5 in 2010, from 81 to 89.5 percent in grade 8, and from 83 to 85.3 percent in grade 11. Science scores increased slightly to 88.4 per-cent of fourth-graders scoring proficient or advanced in 2010, 77.9 percent of eighth-graders, and 53 percent of elev-enth-graders.

Proficiency on the SAT In addition to improved state test

scores for eleventh-graders, Avon Grove’s average SAT scores also im-proved in 2009-2010 and were above

state and national averages in all three areas tested. A total of 75 percent of Avon Grove seniors in 2009-2010 had taken the SAT, compared to 71 percent statewide and 41 percent nationally.

Avon Grove has now met two of three performance targets for the SAT outlined in the District’s 2008-2013 Strategic Plan.

Avon Grove’s average writing SAT score increased from 499 in 2008-2009 to 502 in 2009-2010, meeting the Strate-gic Plan goal of an average 500 points.

In addition, the average mathematics SAT score increased from 525 in 2008-2009 to 537 in 2009-2010, meeting the Strategic Plan goal of an average 530 points.

Now that both goals have been met, new goals will be set at the Strategic Plan midpoint review.

Avon Grove’s reading SAT score also improved from an average 512 points in 2008-2009 to an average 516 points last year. The 2013 Strategic Plan target is an average of 520 points for reading.

Factors Impacting Performance

District officials indicate that im-proved student performance in math-ematics and writing at the high school level can be linked to efforts of the dis-trict’s Writing Research Committee and the Secondary Mathematics Task Force.

The writing committee has been working on alignment of the written, taught and tested curriculum for two years, and last year the district imple-mented the Collins Writing Program in grades seven through twelve. The struc-tured writing program integrates writing across the curriculum, as well as in Eng-lish classes on a daily basis.

As part of the work of the mathemat-ics task force, Avon Grove set a goal to increase the number of students success-fully completing Algebra II by the end of tenth grade to 50 percent by 2013.

Efforts have been underway to in-crease student placement in higher-level mathematics courses at the secondary level, students can now earn high school mathematics credit in eighth grade, and the sixth-grade mathematics curriculum

Avon Grove District Officials Highlight Student Achievement Progress

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� The Grove Winter 2011

News & Notes

at Avon Grove Intermediate School is being more closely aligned with the middle school curriculum.

This year, 47 percent of Avon Grove tenth-graders are enrolled in Algebra II or a higher-level course. Data shows that a total of 43 percent of students completed Algebra II or higher by tenth grade in 2009-2010, as compared to 36 percent in 2008-2009 and 29 percent in 2006-2007.

A total of 35 percent of eighth-grad-ers completed Algebra I in 2009-2010. This year, 50 seventh-graders are taking Algebra and 181 seventh-graders are taking Prealgebra, so 52 percent of the current seventh-grade class is on track to complete Algebra II by the end of tenth grade.

In addition, the sixth-grade mathe-matics curriculum is being more closely aligned with the middle school curricu-lum. This year, 69 students are taking Prealgebra in sixth grade. Last year,

about 50 sixth-graders took Prealgebra at Avon Grove Intermediate School as part of a pilot program to introduce higher-level math courses at the interme-diate level.

Starting last school year, all tenth-graders in Avon Grove were required to take the PSAT. This year, the PSAT for tenth-graders was offered on October 13. Taking the PSAT helps prepare students for the SAT and can therefore help stu-dents perform better on the SAT. PSAT results will be used to place students in honors and advanced placement courses in 2011-2012. Advanced Placement Progress

Also at the high school, data shows student participation rates in the Ad-vanced Placement Program have grown steadily, with 36 percent of all juniors and seniors taking one or more AP class in 2010-2011 compared to 20 percent of juniors and seniors in 2005-2006. The high school is offering 16 AP courses in

Fred S. Engle Middle School eighth-graders Liza Malone (left) and Kiersten Guy unwrap their protective case to reveal a survivor egg as fellow students Aly Arnold (background, left) and Kirstin Chalupa celebrate their own success along with science teacher Tim O’Leary (far right).

Eighth-graders at Fred S. Engle Middle School recently completed the fourth and final installment of the “egg drop” challenge, which is a culminat-ing activity for the Forces and Newton’s Laws unit.

The challenge is to work with a partner to design and build a package that will protect a raw egg from breaking when dropped from successively greater

heights. The objective is for the egg to remain intact after being dropped from a chair, down a school stairwell, off the school roof, and finally, from the top of a fire truck’s aerial ladder.

Students must apply their knowl-edge of forces and the laws of motion to successfully complete all phases of the challenge, and they must follow a set of specifications provided at the start of the

project. Progression to the next height only occurs if the egg remains intact.

The final phase of the challenge is made possible through the coopera-tion of the West Grove Fire Company, which provides a ladder truck as well as volunteers who man the drop zone and drop the packaged eggs one by one. This year, a total of 50 eggs made it through all four phases intact.

50 Survive Fred S. Engle Middle School’s 2010 Egg Drop Challenge

2010-2011 compared to 12 AP courses in 2004-2005.

Data shows that student participation rates in AP Exams have also increased. A total of 267 Avon Grove High School students took one or more AP Exams in May of 2010 for a total of 397 AP Ex-ams taken, compared to 95 students tak-ing one or more AP Exams in 2002 for a total of 139 AP Exams.

Even with more students taking more exams, the percentage of students scor-ing at a level 3 or higher, which can earn them potential college credits, advanced placement in college, or both, remains high.

In 2010, 83 percent of the AP Exams taken by Avon Grove students received a grade of 3 or higher. Grades are reported on a 5-point scale.

A total of 42 students at Avon Grove High School have earned AP Scholar Awards this year in recognition of their exceptional achievement on AP Exams. See page four story for more details.

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The Grove Winter 2011 �

News & Notes

College Board Names 42 AP Scholars from Avon Grove High SchoolA total of 42 students at Avon Grove

High School have earned AP Scholar Awards in recognition of their excep-tional achievement on Advanced Place-ment (AP) Exams.

The College Board’s Advanced Placement Program provides motivated and academically prepared students with the opportunity to take rigorous college-level courses while still in high school, and to earn college credit, ad-vanced placement, or both for success-ful performance on the AP Exams.

About 18 percent of the nearly 1.7 million students worldwide who took AP Exams performed at a sufficiently high level to also earn an AP Scholar Award.

The College Board recognizes several levels of achievement based on students’ performance on AP Exams, which are scored from 1 to 5 with 5 be-ing the highest score.

At Avon Grove High School:Thirteen students qualified for the

AP Scholar with Distinction Award by earning an average grade of at least 3.5 on all AP Exams taken, and grades of 3 or higher on five or more of these ex-ams. These students are Connor Bralla, Patrick Brodie, Emma Cartwright, Christine Chapman, Timothy Cochran, Andrew Doerfler, Sarah Gaffney, Jen-nifer Kelly, Elise Kennedy, Emily Lig-manowski, Teryn Nogles, Kevin Propst, and Colin Valentine.

Nine students qualified for the AP Scholar with Honor Award by earning an average grade of at least 3.25 on all AP Exams taken, and grades of 3 or higher on four or more of these exams. These students are Maxwell Campbell, Angela Crossan, Janelle Dorn, Aaron Fonseca, Michael Jeffcoats, Alison Lee, Andrew Leonard, Aaron Shrewsbury, and Erin Trouba.

Twenty students qualified for the AP Scholar Award by completing three or more AP Exams with grades of 3 or higher.

The AP Scholars are Catherine Bean, Alycia Boggs, Benjamin Breun-inger, Patrick Carr, Samuel Ciocys, Brendan Cleary, Rhiannon Fiala, Mark Gallagher, Kevin Hutter, Erin Klin-gensmith, Christopher Koetas, Cher-rnor-Maju Malekani, Jonathan Massaro, Tyler Matheny, William Mea, Megan Outten, Katherine Reid, Rachel Ruck, Laurel Squadron, and Corrin Stilwell.

Of this year’s award recipients at Avon Grove High School, five are se-niors: Brendan Cleary, Mark Gallagher, Christopher Koetas, Tyler Matheny, and Laurel Squadron.

These students have at least one more year in which to complete col-lege-level work and possibly earn a higher-level AP Scholar Award.

Eight student musicians from Avon Grove High School were selected for the 2010-2011 Pennsylvania Music Educators Association District 12 Band. They are: Spencer Coleman, trumpet; Chris Koetas, bassoon; Meredith Miller, French horn; Seana Miller, French horn; Rachel Neale, clarinet; Paul Sharp, tuba; Bianca Stern, French horn; and Alec Temme, contra alto clarinet. The District 12 Band Festival is scheduled February 10-12, 2011, at Penncrest High School.

Four student musicians from Avon Grove High School were selected for the 2010-2011 Pennsylvania Music Ed-ucators Association District 12 Orches-tra. They are: Chris Koetas, bassoon; Meredith Miller, French horn; Seana Miller, French horn; and Paul Sharp, tuba. The District 12 Orchestra Festival is scheduled January 27-29, 2011, at West Chester University.

District 12 Band & Orchestra

Students Named to District 12 & Region VI Choruses Three members of the Avon Grove High School Chorale were selected to perform in the 2010-2011 Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) District 12 Choral Festival scheduled Jan. 13-15 at Chichester High School in Delaware County. The students were selected for the District Chorus following a tryout on Nov. 20. They are: eleventh-graders Gillian Hanna - Alto 1, and Paul Sharp – Ten-or 2; and twelfth-grader Tyler Matheny - Tenor 1. Paul Sharp was also selected to perform in the Region VI Chorus scheduled February 24-26, 2011 at Immaculata University. PMEA, an affiliate of the nearly 80,000-member National Association for Music Education, is a service organization dedicated to music education in the Commonwealth. The membership includes those engaged in music instruction at all levels. PMEA District 12 serves the music educators and students of Philadel-phia, Delaware and Chester counties.

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� The Grove Winter 2011

Mark J. Gallagher Named 2011 National Merit Semifinalist

Four Seniors Named National Merit Commended StudentsFour Avon Grove High School seniors were named Commended Students in

the 2011 National Merit Scholarship Program. They are Andrew Blyskal, Daniel Bodine, Jason Cardwell, and Justin Diaz.

Commended Students placed among the top five percent of more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2011 competition by taking the 2009 Prelimi¬nary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT).

The four Avon Grove seniors are among about 34,000 Commended Stu¬dents throughout the nation who were recognized this fall for their excep¬tional academic promise.

“Recognition of high-achieving students is essential to advancing education¬al excellence in our nation,” commented a spokesperson for the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. “As demonstrated by their outstand-ing performance in our highly competitive program, the young men and women named Com¬mended Students represent some of the most academically tal-ented students in our country. We sincerely hope this recognition will enhance their educational opportunities and encourage them in their pursuit of academic success.”

The National Merit Scholarship Corporation an-nounced September 15 that Avon Grove High School Senior Mark J. Gallagher is a Semifinalist in the 56th annual National Merit Scholarship Program.

About 1.5 million juniors in some 22,000 high schools entered the 2011 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2009 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, which served as an initial screen of program entrants.

The nationwide pool of about 16,000 Semifinalists, which represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants

in each state. The number of Semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.

As a Semifinalist, Gallagher is among the group of academically talented high school seniors who have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 8,400 National Merit Scholarships, worth more than $36 million, that will be of-fered next spring.

Elise L. Kennedy, a 2010 graduate of Avon Grove High School, is the recipient of a college-sponsored National Merit Scholarship Award from the University of South Carolina.

She was among more than 1,900 additional winners of National Merit Scholar-ships financed by colleges and universities who were announced in July by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. These Merit Scholar designees join over 2,800 other college-sponsored award recipients who were announced in late May. Officials of each sponsor college selected their winners from among Finalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program who will attend their institution.

This final group of winners brings the total number of 2010 National Merit Scholars to approximately 8,400. In addition to college-sponsored awards, two other types of National Merit Scholarships were offered — 2,500 National Merit $2,500 Scholarships for which all Finalists competed and over 1,000 corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards for Finalists who met criteria specified by their grantor organizations.

Kennedy, from Landenberg, Pa., is currently studying marine science at the University of South Carolina with a concentration in biology.

Avon Grove Graduate Named 2010 National Merit FinalistBassoonist Christopher Koetas,

a senior at Avon Grove High School, was selected to perform with the Tim Janis Symphony Youth Orchestra on December 2 at Carnegie Hall in New York. The orchestra, comprised of some of the finest student musicians from Chester, Delaware and Philadel-phia counties, along with local music educators and private instructors, will perform with the Tim Janis Singers as part of The American Christmas Carol Tour. Koetas was eligible to apply for the orchestra since he was selected for the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) District 12 Or-chestra last year. Janis is a renowned composer, musician, conductor and arranger.

Student Performs at Carnegie

Eight sixth-graders from Avon Grove Intermediate School were selected to perform in the 2011 Chester County Elementary School Band Fest sched-uled February 18 at Fugett Middle School in West Chester. They are Megan Gent and Imani Klein, flute; Julia Crabtree and Sadie Slavin, clarinet; William Cavalier and An-drew Eby, trumpet; Karl Forst and Cameron Thomas, percussion. The band is comprised of many of the top second- and third-year instrumental music students in Chester County. The students will spend the day rehearsing as a band and in small ensembles and will then perform an evening concert.

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N e w sEight AGIS Students Selected

for Chester County Band Fest

The Grove Winter 2011 �

AG Senior Earns Congressional Award Silver Medal

Avon Grove High School se-nior Simon Medina recently earned a Congressional

Award Silver Medal for achieving sever-al personal goals, as well as established award criteria, in the areas of public service, personal development, physical fitness, and expedition/exploration.

Congress created the Congressional Award program to promote and recog-nize achievement, initiative, and service in America’s youth ages 14 to 23. There are six levels of awards, including bronze, silver, and gold certificates and bronze, silver, and gold medals.

Each level is cumulative, meaning time spent to earn one award carries over to the next level. Along with an hour requirement, the higher levels of the award require that activities be spread out over a minimum number of months. If different goals overlap in the same month, the month may only be counted once for the respective program area.

To earn the silver award, Medina completed over 200 hours of voluntary public service during 12 months of activity. His service activities included community beautification and child supervision.

To achieve his personal develop-ment goal, Medina spent at least 100 hours improving his English-language proficiency over a period of at least 12 months. Medina’s first language is Span-ish.

For his physical fitness goal, Me-dina improved his cardiovascular health through running and walking exercises, participating in a minimum of 100 hours of activity over the duration of at least 12 months.

To meet the expedition/exploration goal, Medina planned and participated in a camping trip to the Pocono Moun-tains for a minimum of two consecutives overnights.

Adult volunteers play an important role in the Congressional Award pro-gram. Adults advise participants on an individual basis, helping them to set challenging but achievable goals. Adults also validate participants’ activities in the four program areas.

Medina is a former migrant educa-tion student who participated in the Congressional Award Program under the guidance of the Pennsylvania Migrant Education Program, Chester County Intermediate Unit (CCIU).

According to Nicole Bartels Prum, Coordinator of Program Activities for the Migrant Education Program and current Congressional Award advisor for migrant students in Chester and Philadelphia counties, Medina’s advisor was Elaine Steinbacher, who retired in December 2009. Medina’s hours were validated by four current members of the CCIU Migrant Education Program staff.

“We have worked with the Con-gressional Award Program for 12 years because it brings a local and national ac-knowledgement to our migrant students’ achievements,” said Bartels Prum.

Ruth Nilan, ESL specialist at Avon Grove High School, taught Medina as a ninth-grader and has known him for four years. According to Nilan, he has become a leader and role model for younger students in the ESL program and now serves as a teacher assistant helping other teachers who have non-English speaking students in class.

“He is a polite, quiet, disciplined, very bright young man who constantly seeks opportunities to help others,” said Nilan.

Christy Kouba, a student support specialist with the CCIU Migrant Educa-tion Program, also describes Medina as an intelligent, hard-working young man. According to Kouba, Medina attended school, maintained good grades, and attended an after-school supplemental educational program while fulfilling his requirements to earn the silver medal.

“He does not let adversity get in his way. He takes difficult situations and turns them into opportunities for growth,” said Kouba. “He is, by far, one of the most extraordinary young men that I have had the pleasure of know-ing.”

Many other organizations also encourage participation in the Congres-sional Award program, and any young person between the ages of 13 ½ and 23 can pursue earning an award. It is

the student’s responsibility to identify an adult advisor, other than a parent, relative or peer, as well as appropriate validators. For more information on requirements, choosing an advisor, and how to register, students and parents can visit congressionalaward.org.

Medina says participating in the program has been a very positive experi-ence. “The Congressional Awards Pro-gram really helped me become a better person by improving my skills,” he said. “I would recommend this program to other students because it brings out the person you really are inside.”

Members of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate recog-nize Congressional Award participants who earn bronze and silver medals each year. Medina was honored at a ceremony in Jenkintown, Pa., in late October. Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz PA13 was among those who honored Medina and other recipients from throughout Pennsylvania.

Medina is now working toward earning the gold medal, which requires 400 hours of voluntary public service, 200 hours of personal development, 200 hours of physical fitness and four con-secutive overnights of expedition.

Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz PA13 congratulates Avon Grove High School student Simon Medina after he received his Congres-sional Award Silver Medal.

� The Grove Winter 2011

Avon Grove High School administrators and the school’s Student Assistance Program officials honored 37 students on Decem-ber 17 at the fall 2010 Avon Grove Stars recognition breakfast.

Avon Grove Stars awards are presented twice a year, once in the fall and once in the spring.Teachers, administrators, counselors, and other staff members nominate students who possess outstanding qualities, demon-

strate a positive attitude and effort, and who make a positive contribution to the school and/or community.Each honoree received a congratulatory letter and an invitation to the breakfast. In addition, students’ names, as well as some of

their positive attributes, are displayed in the showcase outside the school cafeteria. The fall 2010 Avon Grove Starts are: ninth-graders Oswaldo Almanza Medina, Shennell Butcher, Brenden Curry, Edgar Garcia,

Katelyn Patrick, Keith Ross, Danielle Scalia, and Eleanor Schultz; tenth-graders Lilia Hernandez, Savanna Ledford, Justin Neuhof, Orlando Victoria Dias, and Gloria Zamudio; eleventh-graders Mercedes Bedolla, Lauran Busath, Derrick Dean, Amanda Eiser, Sarahi Gutierrez, Liliana Guzman, Leah Keinama, Luz Lopez, Haley Miller, Holly Moidel, and Nicole Wardell; and twelfth-graders Steven Barker, Efrain Castano, Ashleigh Gentile, Kate Hesser, Dillon Hoilman, Kyle Lewis, Amanda Maroun, Tyler Matheny, Simon Medina, Emma Mulcrone, Kristine Petrella, Adam Raubfogel, and Tania Reyes.

Avon Grove High School Names Fall 2010 Avon Grove Stars

L iliana Guzman has loved visit-ing her uncle’s auto shop for as long as she can remember.

Starting at a very young age, she would watch her uncle work on cars in amaze-ment, and before she knew it, she had picked up on a few tips here and there - tips she shares on her national award-winning video, How to Change an Air Filter.

A junior at Avon Grove High School, Guzman finds herself changing tires for friends and family, enjoying her auto service technology classes at the Chester County Technical College High School, and planning to continue her education at the University of Northwestern Ohio.

In the fall, Guzman’s automotive technology instructor John Dowling rec-ommended she participate in the “Show Us Your Wheels” contest sponsored by the National Car Care Council Women’s Board.

“Liliana is motivated and hardwork-ing and is respected by her classmates for her knowledge and ability,” said Dowling. “I wanted to help open doors for her through the Car Care Council.”

Guzman took her love of cars and the skills she learned from her uncle and in the auto service technology program at the Technical College High School, and scripted, filmed and edited a two-minute video on how to change an air filter.

The rest is, as they say, history. Guz-man was selected as the 2010 winner.

The contest called for teens nationwide to show why they are passionate about their vehicles and how to maintain it in a three-minute (or less) video. The contest was a new category in the council’s annual Automotive Communications Awards program.

While Guzman is proud of her ac-complishment, the contest had more meaning for her than winning an award.

“For me, the best part of winning the contest is that I can show other girls that they shouldn’t be afraid to do something they enjoy – even if it isn’t typically a female profession,” said Guzman. “If you think you might be interested in something, just go for it; don’t let any-thing hold you back.”

As the national winner, Guzman received a 16GB iPod Nano, and her

video was shown during the Women’s Board award reception during Automo-tive Aftermarket Industry Week in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Her video is also featured on the Women’s Board web site located at http://women.carcare.org.

“She (Guzman) exemplified not only the purpose of raising awareness of ve-hicle maintenance, but also was a great example of a young female pursuing a career in the automotive industry,” said Beatrice Livioco, Multi-Media Specialist for the Automotive Aftermarket Indus-try Association, of which the Women’s Board is a committee.

“My goal is to be a great mechanic someday,” said Guzman. “Opportuni-ties like this help me share what I have learned so far to help others.”

Liliana Guzman, in her auto service technology class at the Chester County Techni-cal College High School, was named the 2010 winner of the “Show Us Your Wheels” video contest sponsored by the National Car Care Council Women’s Board.

Avon Grove Student Wins National Video Contest

by Stacy Ososkie

CCIU Communications Specialist

The Grove Winter 2011 �

Curriculum & Instruction NEWS

Freshman Academy Supports Students’ Transition to High School

Avon Grove High School implemented a team-based teaching and scheduling

model this year for all ninth-graders known as a Freshman Academy.

The purpose of the program is to help ninth-grade students make a smoother transition to high school by building upon the successful team-based structure students experienced at Fred S. Engle Middle School.

A total of four teams were formed at the high school in the spring of last year, each comprised of four teachers whose specialty is science, social studies, Eng-lish, or mathematics. Jennifer Meyers, guidance counselor, and Gary Benasutti, assistant principal for the ninth-grade, both serve on all four teams. Some teams also have coteachers who provide in-class special education support.

About 125 students are on each team. All freshmen on a given team take their core academic courses together. For electives, as well as PE and lunch, fresh-man students take classes with students from other teams and other grades. This enables students to take classes that best meet their individual career and personal goals.

Working more interdisciplinary ac-tivities into freshman-level core classes is one of three major components of the new team-based approach. The others are using data to improve student inter-ventions and enhancing school-home communication.

“This flexibility allows students to meet their educational goals in a struc-ture that provides additional support through an academic team, while still allowing for the exploration of career goals and elective classes during the freshman year,” said Tom Alexander, Avon Grove High School principal.

According to Benasutti, the teacher teams each meet for 42 minutes a day to review student progress, communi-cate with students and parents, and plan cross-curricular activities.

The team is able to get to know their students on a more personal level since they each have the same students in class. Teachers can share if a child is having difficulty in one area. By com-

(Above) Avon Grove High School freshman Morgan Guarneri shows the crystal she grew as part of a series of cross-curricular activities designed to help students make connections and reinforce learning.(Opposite page) Adam Durant shows the crystal he grew.

municating more with one another, teachers are also able to spot trends or difficulties that may carry over from subject to subject. The team can in-tervene quickly and is able to pool information and resources if a student needs academic help or social/emotional support.

During planning periods, teams are also using detailed data from the Mea-sures of Academic Progress tests – given three times a year in mathematics and language arts -- to develop intervention strategies for students needing additional support.

Some teacher teams have met with students during the day and others have met with parents and/or students on oc-casion to discuss a host of issues.

“This never happened before in this way,” said Benasutti. “Now, with the team structure and daily collaboration, we can catch things early and take ap-propriate interventions. Teachers some-times use this planning time to contact students or parents and we can get things back on track. It’s been terrific.”

The concept of a ninth-grade acade-my is not new. A number of high schools across the country have successfully used the model to help students transi-tion from middle to high school and become better prepared to take on more challenging courses and, often, a more competitive environment.

Research on these programs has shown that benefits include increased academic achievement; increased stu-dent attendance, positive attitudes, and behavior; promotion of positive feelings about self and others; increased number of students moving on to tenth-grade; increased extracurricular participation rate; and stronger student-teacher rela-tionships.

In Avon Grove, the District’s Cur-riculum Advisory Council recommended implementation of the Freshman Acad-emy.

The four teacher teams were formed last spring, a parent information night was held in late May, and teachers re-ceived initial training in early June.

Continued on page �

� The Grove Winter 2011

Avon Grove High School English teacher Tracey Happold-Brown helps ninth-grader Shane Cas-sidy make a pendant using the crystal he grew in class. Students completed a number of interdis-ciplinary activities to help build connections, including reading a short story called “The Necklace.”

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Interdisciplinary Lessons Reinforce Learning & Build Neural Connections

When Avon Grove High School teacher Tracey Happold-Brown asked her

4/5-period students to retrieve their re-spective science experiments from a pair of desks along the wall on a recent Fri-day, the small group of freshman in the English I class eagerly gathered round to pick up the crystals they had begun to grow several days prior.

As students admired their crystals, Happold-Brown gave a brief review of the experiment, went over the chemical formula, and described the ways alum – one of the key growing ingredients – was used in the past and present day.

The students then quickly got to work completing that day’s writing assignment. They were asked to make connections to science, history, mathematics and Eng-lish by answering a series of questions that involved comparisons, writing a word problem, and a writing paragraph about the scientific process.

The assignment was one of a number of integrated lessons that Happold-Brown incorporated into all her freshman English classes, including College Prep, Academic English and General English.

The practice – still in its infancy -- is part of the high school’s new Freshman

Freshman Academy

Academy program, which is designed around a team-based approach to teach-ing and scheduling.

Education consultants Elliot Meren-bloom and Barbara Kalina address the topic of interdisciplinary activities and units in their reference manual titled “Making Creative Schedules Work in Middle and High Schools.”

They say students learn best when they connect a topic in one subject to a topic previously or simultaneously learned in another subject.

Teaching in small learning communi-ties like Avon Grove’s Freshman Acad-emy enables educators to connect ideas, which reinforces the impact on students’ memory, according to researchers.

Merenbloom provided initial train-ing to Avon Grove’s Freshman Academy

teacher teams in June. The training included identifying ways to integrate and deliver curriculum, how to respond to student needs and data, and making creative use of time.

The process of identifying related concepts and realigning units or lessons so that similar topics or skills can be pre-sented in several subjects at the same time is not an easy one. Merenbloom recommends teams explore up to six possible options to make it work.

At Avon Grove, each of the four Freshman Academy teacher teams meets once a day for a planning period, which includes identifying ways to make connections across subjects.

In Happold-Brown’s classes, students also read the short story “The Necklace,” which tells the tale of a girl who lost a necklace that was lent to her and how she spent years working to pay off a replacement only to find out the original was a fake. Students read a nonfiction piece from a jewelry store brochure, and examined real and costume jewelry pieces lent by Bove Jewelers in Kennett Square. Students also read nonfiction articles on the chemical composition of gold and uses for gold throughout his-tory.

Education consultant Elliot Meren-bloom conducted the training, which included identifying ways to integrate and deliver curriculum, how to respond to student needs and data, and making creative use of time.

One reason the small learning com-munity or team approach works, accord-ing to researchers, is because students learn best when they can connect a topic in one subject to a topic previously or si-multaneously learned in another subject. (See story below.)

“This is one example of the many ways teachers are finding to integrate lessons, create exciting learning op-portunities for students, and help them make real-world connections,” said Benasutti.

The Grove Winter 2011 �

At a special meeting on January 4, the Avon Grove School District Board of School Directors appointed Dr. John Bartley to fill the remainder of the term for the Region II seat vacated by Lynn Klingensmith, who resigned from the Board on December 6. Bartley’s term will expire on December 5, 2011.

Dr. Bartley is scheduled to be sworn in as Klingensmith’s replacement at the February 10, 2011, Board meeting. He was selected from seven candidates who completed all components of the appli-cation process.

Dr. Bartley served previously on the Avon Grove Board of School Directors as an appointee in 2003. In addition to his prior School Board experience, Dr. Bartley taught high school for 17 years in Delaware and, along with three col-leagues, developed an interdisciplinary curriculum program that was awarded a grant from the National Science Founda-tion.

Dr. Bartley is currently an associate professor at the University of Delaware. He has taught general biology, elemen-tary evolutionary ecology, and environ-ments and cultures in conflict since 2001. Dr. Bartley is also the faculty coordinator for the UD Associate in Arts Program in Wilmington and is respon-sible for planning the curriculum and managing 34 full-time and supplemental faculty members. He has held this posi-tion since 2005.

Dr. Bartley has won numerous awards and grants in the field of educa-tion, including Outstanding Delaware Biology Teacher of the Year in 2000 and a Superstars in Education award from the Delaware State Chamber of Com-merce in 1995.

He has also published numerous col-umns, articles and abstracts on education in general and his areas of specialty.

He is a member of the National Sci-ence Teachers Association, Association for Supervision and Curriculum Devel-opment, and the National Association of Biology Teachers. He is also a Faculty Fellow at the University of Delaware and a member of the Hagley Museum’s Education Advisory Board. Dr. Bartley also has two sons in the Avon Grove School District.

Region II Seat Filled

Students at Avon Grove High School in West Grove, Pa., will raise money to help conquer childhood cancer by participating in the school’s “Rock the Cure” mini-THON on March 12. The event, similar to a dance marathon, was organized by Avon Grove teachers and students to honor four beloved teachers: Anne Thomas, Kim Corry, Joyce Perry and Cara Serpico, each of whom lost personal battles with cancer this past year.

Participating students and alumni, known as “rockers,” will spend five hours on their feet from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. the night of the event. Each participant will pay a $15 registration fee to help defray costs for the event, and students are raising funds by securing sponsors who agree to make a monetary donation. As of January 4, 211 rockers have regis-tered. Registration is open until February 1.

Proceeds from “Rock the Cure” will benefit The Four Diamonds Fund at Penn State Hershey Children’s Hospital in Her-shey, Pa., which works to conquer child-hood cancer by assisting young cancer patients and their families. According to The Four Diamond’s Fund Website, the fund offsets the cost of cancer treatment that insurance does not cover, as well as expenses that may disrupt the welfare of a child, such as car repairs, rent, or household utilities. The fund supports the medical team that cares for the children and funds pediatric cancer research through start-up grants and the Four Diamonds Pediatric Cancer Research Institute. According to the Website, the fund has helped more than 2,000 families since 1972, and about 100 new families receive support each year.

Avon Grove High School’s mini-THON is modeled after the Penn State Dance Marathon –the largest student-run philanthropy in the nation where danc-ers spend 46 hours awake and on their feet to raise money for pediatric cancer patients. Mini-THONs were started in 1993-1994 by students wanting to sup-port The Four Diamonds Fund through smaller-scale events. More than $4 mil-

lion has been raised since the inception of mini-THONs. “We are so impressed and grateful for the students’ dedication and generosity,” said Linda Barry, assis-tant director of The Four Diamonds Fund.

This is the first year students at Avon Grove High School will hold a Four Diamonds mini-THON. In addition to dancing, other activities are scheduled to keep the participants motivated. Rock the Cure organizers hope to raise at least $5,000 for The Four Diamonds Fund.

Members of the Avon Grove school community who are unable to “rock” can support the cause in other ways. Organizers also plan to light a Luminary Walk at 8:30 p.m. the night of the event. Luminaries can be purchased for $10 and can be customized with a person’s name and/or message of up to 20 words. Visit www.avongrove.org, click on News-room and then Rock the Cure to access registration information and luminary order forms.Donations can also be made directly to the Four Diamonds Fund. Sim-ply note “AGHS Rock the Cure” in the memo section of your check and mail it to: The Four Diamonds Fund at P.O. Box 852, Hershey, PA 17033-0852. For more information about The Four Diamonds Fund, call 717-531-6086 or visit www.pennstatehershey.org/web/fourdiamonds/home.

“Rock the Cure” @ Avon Grove High School March 12

Five-hour mini-THON to Raise Funds to Fight Childhood

Cancer in Memory of Avon Grove’s “Four Diamonds”

10 The Grove Winter 2011

RESIDENTAvon Grove School District

Nondiscrimination Policy: The Avon Grove School District is an equal opportunity education institution and will not discriminate in its educational programs, activities, or employment practices on the basis of race, color, creed, national origin, sex, age, religion, ancestry, sexual orientation, handicap/disability, union membership, or other legally protected classification. Announcement of this policy is in accordance with state and federal laws, including Title VI, Title IX, and Section 504. All inquiries should be made to Dr. Wendi Lee Foltz, Director of Personnel, Avon Grove School District, 375 S. Jennersville Road, West Grove, PA 19390, 610-869-2441.

NONPROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTAGE

PAIDPERMIT NO. 3WEST GROVE,

PA 19390

Avon Grove School District375 S. Jennersville Rd.West Grove, PA 19390

Dr. Augustus J. MassaroSuperintendent

Dr. Margaret V. SharpAssistant Superintendent Curriculum & Instruction

Board of School DirectorsRobert WeidenmullerPresidentDebra L’HeureuxVice President

Dr. John BartleyHerman Engel Dennis GerberPattie LyonsGary MooreWilliam PewBonnie Wolff

Avon Grove School District officials continue to work on the 2011-2012 general fund budget, which the school board plans to balance through additional expenditure reductions, using a portion of the fund balance, as well as a real estate tax increase.

Based on preliminary projections from early No-vember, officials anticipate a funding shortfall of about $6.5 million due mainly to residential property reas-sessments and declining real estate tax revenue, lower interest earnings, and increasing personnel costs. Other major increases in the 2011-2012 budget are expected in the tuition paid to charter schools ($845,000), vocational ($390,000), and special education programs.

For 2011-2012, assess-ments reduced upon appeal

create a loss of $431,990 in real estate tax revenue.

Over a three-year period, the district has incurred a loss of $1,679,248 in annual real estate tax revenues from residential reassessments.

Cost reductions totaling $2.7 million were already incorporated as part of the 2010-2011 budget.

District officials formed a Budget Taskforce which has been working since early De-cember to identify three tiers of additional expenditure cuts totaling $3.6 million.

As part of this process, officials asked for budget input and suggestions from school employees, parents, and members of the Avon Grove community.

To submit ideas for generating revenue and/or cost savings, visit www.avongrove.org, click on the 2011-2012 Budget Sugges-

tions button, complete and submit the form.

Current plans call for all administrative budgets, including school budgets, to be reduced by an additional 15 percent for the 2011-2012 school year. Administrative budgets were reduced by 20 percent last year to help bal-ance the 2010-2011 budget.

A real estate tax increase, limited to 1.8 percent for Avon Grove according to the Act 1 adjusted index limit, would generate $723,000 in real estate tax revenue.

If approved by the Board, the District also has the op-tion to apply for referendum exceptions to cover certain costs like special education, health-care benefits and retirement contributions.

Officials are also develop-ing contingency plans should grant funding from the federal government or the Com-

monwealth be reduced or eliminated. Alternate budget-ary plans will be developed if the Basic Education Subsidy from the Commonwealth is decreased from the 2010-2011 allocation.

School Officials Work on 2011-2012 Budget; Tax Increase Considered

Key DatesJan. 27 - Deadline to adopt preliminary 2011-2012 budget or adopt opt-out resolution stating the District will not raise taxes by more than 1.8%.

Feb. 16 - Deadline to adopt preliminary budget and autho-rize referendum exceptions, if any.

March 3 - Deadline to file request for referendum exception(s) to PDE.

May 12 - Preliminary adoption of proposed budget.

June 9 - Final adoption of 2011-2012 budget.