Gianna Cassetta

 

Head of School on Site

The countdown begins…three months to school opening. Since the last newsletter, there have been significant accomplishments:
1. Two full time staff members have started! I am delighted to pass off loads of work to Brad Fischer, SOAR’s Director of Finance and Operations, and Rossina Schroeer-Santiago, SOAR’s Office Manager (see more in the employee spotlight).
2. The entire staff of SOAR has been hired, and I pat myself on the back every time I think of them. This talented group of individuals has a great range of backgrounds and experiences—they are a Head of School’s dream. Click here to meet them on our website.
3. We have chosen a pretty awesome food service provider. SOAR Charter School will be partnering with Revolution Foods to serve our students the healthiest meals possible. Revolution Foods is working to revolutionize students’ minds and bodies, one meal at a time, by serving high quality, fresh and healthy food. To achieve this, Revolution Foods upholds strict food standards:
• They use organic and locally produced ingredients whenever possible
• Every lunch is served with fresh fruit and vegetables
• Meals meet Whole Foods Market’s stringent quality standards
• Food is prepared fresh daily; They do not serve fried, overly processed, or microwaved food
• Food does not contain high fructose corn syrup or trans fats.
• They feature foods that are free of artificial preservatives, colors, flavors, and sweeteners.
SOAR will launch the partnership with Revolution Foods with a family dinner on August 5 at 6PM. Nothing but the best for SOAR students!
4. Enrollment is drawing to a close. I’ve now met just about every SOAR family, and am so looking forward to working with this beautifully diverse learning community that is SOAR Charter School!

The enrollment sessions have been beneficial on many levels. They have given me information about the strengths and needs of SOAR’s learning community, background on particular children, and the commitment level of families. They have also given me the opportunity to speak with families very candidly about an issue that is critical to both SOAR and the quality of public education: school choice.

School choice is really about giving families access to high quality school options and the opportunity to choose the school their children will attend. True school choice is about being able to enroll your children in the school that matches your vision of the education you believe your child deserves to have.

SOAR’s enrollment sessions have helped many families make the choice about whether or not SOAR is that just right school for their children. We’ve had some in depth conversations, for example, about SOAR’s instruction approach, offerings, school day length, and student/teacher ratio. At each session, there have been a few families that decided SOAR was in fact not the right fit for their children; not the right approach, too much student independence, the hours didn’t work. The majority of families, however, have eagerly finalized enrollment.

In either case, I see this as a huge success. Parents had an opportunity before them, they did the homework necessary to make sure it is a good opportunity for their children, and then they made a decision and acted on it. That is school choice at work!

Responsive Classroom Approach
On a different note, I’m continuing to plan the 4 week teacher professional development institute that starts in July. The quote , “An educational system isn't worth a great deal if it teaches young people how to make a living but doesn't teach them how to make a life”, brings to light one of SOAR’s 6 core elements, the Responsive Classroom approach. SOAR staff implements the nationally-recognized approach to teaching that emphasizes social, emotional, and academic growth in a strong and safe school community. Our approach consists of classroom and school wide practices for deliberately helping children build academic and social-emotional competencies.

The Responsive Classroom approach was created by public school educators at the Northeast Foundation for Children, and its design is informed by the work of educational theorists and classroom teachers. Seven principles guide this approach:
1. The social curriculum is as important as the academic curriculum.
2. How children learn is as important as what they learn: Process and content go hand in hand.
3. The greatest cognitive growth occurs through social interaction.
4. To be successful academically and socially, children need a set of social skills: cooperation, assertion, responsibility, empathy, and self-control.
5. Knowing the children we teach—individually, culturally, and developmentally—is as important as knowing the content we teach.
6. Knowing the families of the children we teach and working with them as partners is essential to children’s education.
7. How the adults at school work together is as important as their individual competence: Lasting change begins with the adult community.

I am thrilled that Margaret Wilson from Northeast Foundation for Children will be joining us in July to lead the staff in our first week of training. Margaret is a Professional Development Specialist and consulting teacher for NEFC. In this role she performs a wide range of tasks, including designing workshops for classroom teachers and our presenters, teaching and leading those workshops, coaching teachers in their classrooms, doing demonstration lessons for teachers, and writing books and other materials about teaching for NEFC. She co-authored the guide for the Responsive Classroom Assessment and has two forthcoming books -- Doing Math at Morning Meeting and What Every Second Grade Teacher Needs to Know.

For research on the effectiveness of Responsive Classroom, see “Social and Academic Learning Study on the Contribution of the Responsive Classroom Approach” by Sara E.Rimm-Kaufman, available in the "Relevant Links" below.

Replication Plan Update
In the last newsletter I let you know about the plans to open two more SOAR schools in Far Northeast Denver. In February DPS announced its "Call for Quality Schools," the program which invites educators to submit proposals to start new, high-quality schools to serve the families of Denver. SOAR is specifically positioned to respond to this call. Therefore, the SOAR board of directors submitted an application to DPS in April to open two new SOAR schools in Far Northeast Denver – one to open in 2011 and one to open in 2012. The replication plan has received considerable attention and support including letters of support from City Council member Michael Hancock, State Senator Michael Johnston, and President of the Urban Legue of Metropolitan Denver Landri Taylor. Come learn more about the replication plan or come to show your support by attending the DPS “New School Applicant Showcase and Far Northeast All-Community Meeting” at Martin Luther King Jr. Early College on Tuesday, May 25 at 5 PM.

I’ll look forward to writing again next month!
Until then, warmest regards,
Gianna

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