Our blog’s purpose is to help parents navigate the Kindergarten and elementary school phase of their children’s education. In Colorado, we are given the opportunity of “choice” in our search. This program gives parents many options when it comes to choosing a school for their child outside of their neighborhood school. The process can become overwhelming with the myriad of choices including faith-based schools, private schools, charter schools, and magnet schools – each with varying programs and curriculum.  The entire process can be very mind-boggling.

We created ScoopToo.com as a result of this daunting search and discovery process endured not long ago while researching the right school for our children. After charts, graphs, phone calls, tours, interviews, testing, researching, seeking advice from friends,  it became a huge commitment and sacrifice of time. We felt strongly about helping other parents in this arena and that a collective resource for information on related topics would help abundantly.  So, therein lies the inspiration for ScoopToo.com.

Our blog consists of school profiles, parent interviews, national and local education related articles, a Two Cents series, events, posts on educational topics we’ve researched, etc.  Please grab a cup of coffee or glass of wine, kick back, and start reading.

It is our belief that the more educated you are with this process, the more empowered you will feel about making informed decisions about your child’s education. We’d love for you to spread the word about ScoopToo.com to your family, friends, and colleagues and wish you the best of luck in your journey.

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Head of School, Stephanie Flanigan, stood before the Montessori School of Denver community Wednesday night and announced the exciting news that the school will be launching a middle school in August of 2013.  The MSD Board of Trustees had voted unanimously to extend MSD’s grades from Toddler through 6th grade to Toddler through 8th grade.

The idea of opening a middle school has been tossed around since the 1980′s at MSD but until now, “the time was not right” according to Stephanie. Last night, the audience stood up and cheered with the revelation of this news; it is something they’ve been waiting for for a long time.

This will be the only Montessori middle school option in Denver and will implement best practices for a top-notch, 21st century education for elementary and middle school students.  There is an exciting new and enhanced curriculum being developed that will take students outside the walls of the school, literally and figuratively, to encourage each student to be the critical thinkers, entrepreneurs,  globally minded,  stewards of our next generation.

Along with facilities planning for the addition of the 7th and 8th grades, the school will complete a comprehensive master plan, designed to address all MSD’s program and campus needs including acquiring additional property on which to build.

Enrollment will be for 40 additional students, 20 each for 7th and 8th grade, bringing the school’s total enrollment to 340 students by August of 2014.  At this point, the Montessori School of Denver will celebrate it’s 50th year in operation, a true legacy of premier education in Denver.

To learn more, please visit the Montessori School of Denver website for frequent updates.

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School: Cole Arts and Science Academy

Website: http://www.coleacademydenver.org/

Type: Public-DPS Innovation School

Enrollment: 635 students

Tours:  Call school to make an appointment

Main Phone: 720.423.9120

Principal: Julie Murgel (2 vice principals and a principal intern)

Location:  3240 Humboldt Street, Denver 80205 (Cole and Whittier neighborhood)

Hours: ECE 8:30 am-3:30 pm; K-5th 8:15 am- 3:45 pm; Middle School  8:15 am- 3:30 pm

Grades:  ECE-5^th Grade along with DSST Middle School (6-8^th grade)

Average Class Size: Approximately 26 students per classroom (3 classrooms per grade level plus middle school)

Before/After Care:

-Kaleidoscope Corner for grades K-5

-Fit Fun and Literacy for Grades K-4 (an after-school program providing physical fitness and nutrition with homework assistance)

-Cole Beacon Neighborhood Center for 5^th-8^th grade students (funding from the Boys and Girls Club…program offers a variety of enrichment opportunities to students focusing on skill building and relationship building)

Facilities/Playground: 

There is a learning landscape west of the entrance to the school (north of the tennis courts).  Cole has a huge field north of the school that is used for P.E. outdoor learning, middle school sports and by DSST for outdoor P.E. (soccer, flag football, and baseball). There are basketball courts north of the field used primarily afterschool. A smaller playground for ECE is to the north side of the school (MLK Blvd).

Special & Core Programs:

• The Denver School of Science and Technology at Cole opened its doors this year. Currently it’s a middle school that welcomed sixth graders only in 2011 (each year it will add a grade). To learn more, click here.
• Cole became an Innovation School in August 2009. It is achieving its goals according to the District’s SPF. The school will be up for review this June 2012. Innovation schools are up for review every three years to monitor their accountability to the children they serve.
• Students partake in physical education each day. They rotate every 3 weeks for art, music and technology classes.
• In the primary years (ECE-1^st grade) there are 3 programs for the students: a traditional classroom, ELA (English language acquisition classroom), and a Spanish speaking only classroom. Students in 2^nd grade and up are provided a more traditional classroom approach. They are assessed and grouped according to need for math and science as well as literacy instruction. The second – fifth grade classrooms use a platoon model where two teachers partner; one teaches literacy and the other math and science.
• Cole is a designated American Indian Focus School. The program provides one location where all DPS students with American Indian heritage are invited to learn together.
• Afterschool tutoring by staff for students who need support.
• This school offers the Primary Multi-Intensive program for students in grades 1-3 and the Intermediate Multi-Intensive for students in grades 3-5. The children are placed by the district’s special needs team. Many are bussed in but some live within the neighborhood. The programs provide support for students that have development delays specifically cognitive delays.
• Infusions–Cole offers two separate Infusion sessions. Each session is 6 weeks long and takes place for an hour and a half, once a week.  Students choose classes based on their interests. The classes are composed of a mix of children from varying grade levels with a teacher other than that of their homeroom. Some of the past infusion classes offered included Salsa Dancing, skateboarding, photography, History of Five Points, History of Mexico, Nutrition, Horseback Riding, etc.

Impressions:

Cole Arts and Science Academy opened four years ago in the Cole and Whittier neighborhood (northwest of City Park) in Denver. The building itself was a former middle school. Two failing elementary schools in the neighborhood, Wyman and Mitchell, shut down not long ago and as a result, Cole Arts and Science Academy opened its doors hoping to provide a successful school in this very diverse community.

Cole’s exterior is old, beautiful and grand. It’s a huge school on the outside and within. As you enter the school, you can’t help but notice the various pendants hanging from the foyer’s ceiling. These pendants represent the staff’s college alma maters. As you walk a bit further, you’ll see a number of banners in the hallway boasting the words, Class of 2021, Class of 2023, etc. I learned that those years represent when the present students will graduate college, something many of their parents never had the opportunity to do. The banners and pendants are visual reminders to the students that anything is possible even a college education. This inspiration tactic from the staff reminds students that the Cole faculty believes in them. It’s the first thing students see when arriving and leaving school each day.

Elena Saenz, a family liaison, greeted me and led me on a tour of the school. She is a full-time family liaison. Her job is to advocate for families and make sure they know their role when it comes to supporting their child at home. She works with classroom teachers as well to help make sure this happens. Family outreach and engagement is a big priority at this school. Elena is bilingual like many of the staff at Cole. This comes in handy for the 60% Hispanic population that attends the school. Elena gives tours to families, too. If only every DPS school could have a family liaison!

We started our tour on the first floor. The school is complete with three levels and shaped like the letter H. The vastness of the school was a bit overwhelming. I am guessing that becoming comfortable in such a large building takes time for new families and students. With that being said, the first floor houses the primary wings: ECE for 3 and 4 year olds, Kindergarten, first, second grade classrooms, and a large auditorium. Although the school is very old, the classrooms were spacious and bright. I saw many smart boards in the classrooms, a tool growing in popularity throughout DPS. The hallways were adorned with beautiful artwork. This year, two full-time art teachers work at the school and they’ve done wonders beautifying the school hallways with projects created by the students.

One of the primary classrooms we visited had a classroom teacher from the Teach for America program. This program helps ensure that children growing up in poverty can receive an excellent education. She went through the two year program at Cole and is now teaching here full-time. I enjoy hearing stories such as this. These high achieving educators are placed in urban schools within low-income neighborhoods. Currently, Cole has a 96% free and reduced lunch ratio.

This school has 11 DTR’s (Denver Teacher Residents). This program offers yet another way to bring in motivated and passionate educators who want to make a difference (both programs are enticing high caliber educators and providing them the support and resources they need along the way). I chatted briefly with a number of staff members that day, including the principal. Everyone seemed to be very energetic, happy and proud to be working at this school. With that being said, there seems to be some teacher turnover, 11 new teachers started this school year.

On the second and third floors are the upper elementary classrooms, middle school (separate entrance), two gymnasiums, cafeteria, huge music room, two art rooms, library, two technology labs, etc.  Each floor has access to a classroom set of net books, too. I was amazed at all the technological resources this school has despite the fact there is no PTA.

Students were coming and going as we made our way through the hallways. They wear uniforms at the school. Due to the recent partnership with DSST, Cole has adapted some of their cultural system. As a result, school behavior has improved this year. Julie mentioned that the partnership between DSST and Cole is unique in that it benefits both programs. For example, Cole has been influential to DSST on family and community engagement.

Since Cole is an innovation school, they have greater autonomy when it comes to their budget, hiring and curriculum. A short time ago, students were not finding success with the district’s reading curriculum. Students were struggling with phonics. The staff re-evaluated and decided that another more structured literacy model with a strong emphasis on phonics would be more successful for the kids.  This is why innovation is important, folks. If children are lacking important skills and not finding academic success, the school should have the freedom to find something that works! Shouldn’t more turnaround schools apply for innovative status so they have the freedom to see what works, what doesn’t and make the best possible decisions for their students based on these findings? The ultimate goal is to set our children up for success, not failure.

Elena mentioned repeatedly that Julie Murgel, Cole’s principal, is an extraordinary leader who works tirelessly on searching for funding to ensure that these children are getting what they need. I could see this by the abundant resources that the school has and the partnerships Cole has created within the community.

Has Cole made progress the past few years? Yes. Is Cole setting up systems to help students reach their full potential? Yes. Does Cole have a long way to go when it comes to academic achievement? Yes. This is a school that is trying to beat the odds by creating a team of intentional and passionate educators, having strong leadership at the helm, patience in making decisions based on the best interest of the child, and hope that every child no matter race or socioeconomic status can and will learn. Julie Murgel said it all when I asked what makes Cole special. She said, “Cole is Hope. It is an example of a school defying all the odds.” I hope it does!

We welcome your comments and impressions on your experience with Cole Arts & Science Academy.

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 At times, it’s very confusing when looking at data regarding public schools in Colorado. Recently, a new website was unveiled to help bring some clarity to this task. This new system has taken all of the data collected by the Colorado Department of Education and translated it into a simpler language, a letter grade. The tool can be used for parents when searching for a school of interest for their child. Other parents may want to view it to find out if their present child’s school is making the grade.  No matter your reason for visiting the website, the information is presented in a simple way for all to understand. Please read the article below from 9News regarding the new site or click here to see if your school is making the grade! 

Simplifying your child’s school performance

KUSA – Understanding your child’s school performance is now as easy as going online. The confusing language is gone and, now, the schools just get a simple letter grade – A to F.

There is a statewide-advertising campaign already up and running with television, radio spots and billboards telling people about Colorado School Grades.com.

There were 18 groups and organizations involved in this 14-month-long process. Tim Taylor is with one of the groups: Colorado Succeeds.

“We wanted to make sure it was simple enough to understand,” Taylor said “Then there are opportunities to dig deeper. This is the first step no one should make a decision based solely on a grade a school got. It should encourage visits and additional research.”

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When Megan Talley works with special education students at Stony Creek Elementary, she knows she’s part of an aggressive approach that’s increasing academic achievement.

“It’s a very rare thing for special education students to meet, exceeds, or even meets progress,” said Talley, special education teacher at Stony Creek Elementary in Jefferson County. “To be in those categories is unheard of.”

The Colorado Department of Education examines numerous things when deciding how to score a school. Academic growth and student achievement are primary factors.

The state looks at different groups of students and decides if those students are meeting expectations, exceeding expectations, or needs improvement in areas of academic growth.

At Stony Creek, special education students met expectations in writing and exceeded expectations in math.

“The scores have gone up tremendously,” Sue Whelan, instructional coach at Stony Creek Elementary, said.

Whelan says teachers and administrators decided that what they were doing for special education students wasn’t enough.

“We noticed that structures that were in our school were not systemic,” Whelan said. “We talked about creating structures that made sense.”

Whelan says more time was created for teachers to work together on how to address student needs. She says teachers started monitoring progress of students more often. And, they created a team to intervene with students who really needed more help in reading, writing or math.

“You specifically get a group of people together to focus on that need and you go at it until that child meets that expectation, that’s going to push kids along,” Whelan said.

Stony Creek is an example of successes happening across Colorado. Overall, there are more high performing schools than last year. There are also fewer schools listed at the bottom of the list. Schools districts are classified into five categories:

1. Accredited with Distinction
2. Accredited
3. Accredited with Improvement Plan
4. Accredited with Priority Improvement Plan
5. Accredited with Turnaround Plan

Individual schools are classified into four categories:

1. Performance Plan
2. Improvement Plan
3. Priority Improvement Plan
4. Turnaround Plan.

VIEW: District ratings (Excel document)

The schools or districts listed as “turnaround” or “priority improvement” need to make academic gains quickly in the coming years, or else the state may take measures against the school or district.

VIEW: School Ratings (Excel document) (note: Aurora is listed as Adams-Arapahoe 28J)

Tally says seeing a strong school report card is encouraging.

“I love my job. I love coming to school every day. I love working with the kids,” Talley said. “But when you see growth like that, it makes it all worth it.”

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