Happenings
I would like to take this opportunity to give you an update on some of the exciting things happening at our school.On March 3rd we will be hosting all 8th graders in the morning for a pep assembly and introduction to the high school. This is a wonderful opportunity for them to see the high school and experience all that it has to offer. That evening at 6:00, we will be hosting all 8th grade parents for freshman orientation to discuss the registration process. This is an exciting time as they prepare for registration and the move up to the high school. On Tuesday, March 8th at 4:00-7:00 parent teacher conferences will be held at the high school. Come check out your son/daughters progress and meet their teachers. Prom is also right around the corner on March 19th and I will follow with more details at a later date.
Whitefish High School’s current enrollment is 480 students who reside within 230 square miles. We have 42 highly qualified certified teachers who share a passion for learning and students. The district has four buildings used to educate our students; our high school, Whitefish Independent High School, (Alternative Learning) Whitefish Middle School and Muldown Elementary. Together, we educate over 1,603 students.
Our vision of Whitefish High School is High Expectations, High Achievement for All. Our Mission is to equip students to be life-long learners; academically and socially well-rounded citizens; independent, critical thinkers; and active participants in a global community and changing workforce. To model and incorporate our vision and mission into our curriculum we have several new programs. The Freshman Academy program is one of these programs. This comprehensive program provides each ninth grade student with a nurturing but strongly academic environment designed to provide a successful transition from middle to high school. The goal of the program is to create a safe and orderly learning environment that addresses the specific social, emotional and academic needs of ninth grade students. Incoming freshmen enjoy a number of benefits from Freshman Academy including:
Small, safe and more personal learning environment.
Leadership and individual counseling from an interdisciplinary faculty team.
Focus on consistent and productive study skills.
Development of learning plans for each student that will serve as the basis for their academic strategy and goals for their entire high school career.
Incorporation of 21st Century Literacy skills into a strong curriculum of core subjects designed to teach the skills on which self-reliance, personal leadership and successful relationships are based.
Higher expectations for personal achievement within a challenging curriculum.
Project based and collaborative learning integrated into the core curriculum.
Enhanced communication with parents and continuous student evaluation.
The leadership of Freshman Academy is a team of faculty, administration and counselors working in concert to provide counseling and encouragement based on the individual needs of students. The Freshman Academy team evaluates student test data and historic performance reports to design learning programs before each school year begins. The teams meet daily to evaluate student performance on a real-time basis and also use standardized test results and semester tests to evaluate performance more formally. This process allows ample opportunity to adjust curriculum and learning plans during the course of the year. A major benefit of this process is enhanced communication to parents who will receive more regular and detailed feedback about their child’s progress.
After one semester of the Freshman Academy program we are already seeing improved results among our freshman. Less truancy, improved attendance; major discipline issues have been reduced ; grades are up and failures down. For first semester 2010, freshman outperformed the other classes, earning the least number of F’s in relation to the rest of the school. Through our personal and individualized learning, differentiation of instruction and a system of interventions for each student we are making social and academics strides for our students.
As many of us know, the suicide rate among the citizens of Montana are some of the highest in the nation. Last year, we lost one of our students to suicide and dealt with several other emotional challenges. As a district and community, Whitefish came together and incorporated the nationally known Student Assistance Program.
The Whitefish School District recognized that the primary responsibility of school is to provide opportunities for students to reach their full potential academically, and to prepare them to become competent members of our society. The educational process must provide students with skills to make informed decisions about significant life issues that impact their academic, mental, emotional, and physical well- being. We recognize that numerous issues and struggles such as; bullying, parental divorce, grief and loss, drug and alcohol abuse, and disabilities have the potential to interfere with a student’s opportunity for success within our school system, and their future. The primary task for helping students lies within the home, though schools share in the responsibility with families to support individual student learning and development.
The Whitefish School District has adopted the Student Assistance Program as a comprehensive, primary prevention and early intervention support for our student body K-12. The program includes a systematic effort to educate, identify, assess, refer and support students who are faced with issues and behaviors that are interfering with their educational and life development.
Components of the program include:
- Support Groups K-12
- Groups for students challenged with drug and alcohol abuse as part of the district Chemical Use and Possession Policy
- Comprehensive training for all staff
- Community networking
- Education and support of families
- Curriculum Infusion
- Ongoing evaluation of district/ community need
During the last semester we ran 7 student groups for a period of 8 weeks. Over 60 students were involved and groups included Sharing, Grief, Concerned students and Insight which covered alcohol, drug or families in crisis. Facilitators included trained teachers who received three days of training last August. We made a huge difference in many of our student’s lives and the program had a very positive effect. New groups will be starting again soon. If you feel your son or daughter could benefit please give me a call and we will get them signed up.
I am really proud of our student’s academic successes. According to Jan Clinard, MT Board of Regents, our students remediation rates in college composition based on the Montana University System Writing Assessment are among the lowest in the state, Fall 2005: 6.7%, Fall 2006: 4.8%, Fall 2007:2.6%, Fall 2008: 6.9& Fall 2009: 0%. The state rate was 10.7% in the fall of 2009. Our students leave Whitefish “College ready.”
These statistics are no fluke. They are supported by ACT scores of a composite of 25.5 versus 22 for the state of MT and 21 nationally. In addition, Whitefish was one of the few High Schools in the state that met the benchmarks under No Child Left Behind and made AYP in Math and Reading. Currently, we have 2 finalists for the coveted National Merit Scholar Program and we also have 10 graduates attending military academies. Last spring, $3.5 million dollars in scholarships were offered to our seniors. That amounts to $21,985.00 per senior or $51,666.00 for those that apply. Our students are driven and motivated by a dedicated staff of teachers, staff, parents and a community which has a tradition of history and success.
With a graduation rate of 97%, 63% of our seniors plan to attend college and 23% plan to attend a 2 year/vocational school while 3 % are pursuing the military.
I could go on about our great kids but with a tip of the hat to Garrison Keillor, I will say so long from Whitefish, where all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average.
Finally, we currently find ourselves in a situation where schools are struggling to maintain, caught between the current political issues and economic realities of the day.
Whitefish has its roots at the turn of the century with the introduction of James J. Hills Great Northern Railway. Today, four generations of students walk the halls of our building. We are a school and community steeped deep in tradition. However, our infrastructure is aging quickly; built in the late 40’s and early 50’s Whitefish High School has become a relic like so many cold war facilities. I have named each wing after the President who was in office at the time of its construction. We begin the day in the Truman wing, pass through the Eisenhower and Kennedy wing to lunch and then off to PE in the Ford gym and finally the Carter Science wing. I am sure there is a Ronald Reagan remodel somewhere and we now host the Obama guidance office remodel. Education is so much more than bricks and mortar and we are proof that there is not a relationship between academic success and new pretty buildings. But we are approaching a point of critical proportions. The need to invest in our building is key to the future of education in Whitefish. The purpose of the Quality Schools Grant Program is to provide infrastructure grants, planning grants and emergency grants to public schools in MT. HB 15 contains the list of projects recommended for the Quality Schools Grant Program. This bill is currently under scrutiny and faces several hurdles and cuts before it is brought to a vote. Whitefish High School has applied for and is in consideration for a Quality Grant to redevelop and modernize our facilities. I would encourage you to support our efforts to upgrade and modernize without having to tear down unnessarily. In this case, all parties are being fiscally responsible and in no way are we throwing good money after bad.
As always, you are welcome to stop in and visit the school and classrooms, so if you haven’t been in the building lately stop in and check us out.
If you have any questions or if I can be of further assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact me at 406-471-6666.
Dave Carlson
