Home/SLCletterJanuary 23, 2007 Dear Students and Parents, As you might have read in the newsletter or heard from your students, in October Washington High School was awarded a U.S. Department of Education Smaller Learning Communities grant. What this means to us is $925,000 in funding over the next five years to ensure that all students have a small, personalized learning experience. Our goal is to use the funding to provide training for teachers, create programs that target student needs and to restructure the high school experience. One of the main components of this is the creation of student families, where groups of teachers share the same students. We are currently creating our first families. We are in the process of randomly selecting groups of 9th grade students and of creating schedules that will place them with a team of teachers who will collaborate and meet to oversee their students’ performance. The purpose is to provide the level of support and connection that most parents feel is missing from their student’s education. What does all of this mean to you?
While we know that changes can affect your son or daughter temporarily, we believe that participation in a family will have a positive outcome on his or her overall high school experience. We normally would not make these kinds of changes mid-year; however, as recipients of this grant, it is required to begin implementation immediately. We do believe that the award of this grant will allow Washington to move closer to its goal to raise student achievement and to close the achievement gap. Please support our efforts spring semester and in the coming years as we implement the objectives of our grant. If you have any questions about your son’s or daughter’s changes, feel free to contact their counselor or administrator. Thank you for your continued cooperation. Sincerely, Linda Fernandez Principal |