At Saluda River Academy for the Arts, we are committed to empowering every student to achieve academic excellence while nurturing a lifelong passion for learning and the arts. Our mission of academics, arts, and advocacy aligns with the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate, as we strive to help students develop world-class knowledge and skills as well as life and career characteristics. We invest in strong relationships, provide meaningful support, and celebrate the accomplishments of all our students.
As a Kennedy Center award-winning school and an ABC (Arts in Basic Curriculum) Certified School of Distinction, we are proud to integrate the arts across all areas of our daily curriculum. This year, we partnered with ArtsNOW to provide all teachers with eight days of arts-integrated professional development. 96% of our staff indicated using arts integration strategies in their classroom increases their enjoyment of teaching. 80% specifically agreed that they would remain in teaching as a result of using arts integration strategies with their students. Students across all grade levels benefited from rich learning experiences, including performances and artists-in-residencies. These opportunities led to 97% of our students excelling or on track for fine arts standards based on the standards-based report card. Each week, students participated in classes in visual arts, music, theater, STEAM, physical education, and dance. This year, every student had the chance to perform on stage for the community, with our fourth- and fifth-graders presenting Annie KIDS at the Lexington Two Performing Arts Center.
At Saluda River Academy for the Arts, we focus on cultivating world-class skills in our students by promoting critical thinking and embracing the diverse strengths each child brings. Recognizing that every student has unique needs, we prioritize small group instruction and provide targeted Tier II and III math and reading interventions to select students. With this focus, 55% of our students were proficient in math standards and 48% of students were proficient in English Language Arts by the end of the year as measured by standards based report cards.
We are also committed to instilling a sense of service and community in our students. Each day begins with morning meetings, designed to build a strong classroom culture, foster positive relationships, and reinforce our school-wide PBIS expectations. This time provides an invaluable focus on collaboration, teamwork, communication, and interpersonal skills. As a Unified Champion School, inclusion supports our mission of advocacy through participating in the Special Olympics, partnering our 4th and 5th grade students with students with disabilities, and weekly lessons on acceptance and belonging. As a result, we saw a decrease of 20.4% of reported minor behavior incidents. We also had an increase in attendance with these two initiatives, 80% of homeroom classes at SRAA had a 95% attendance rate for 20 out of 36 weeks of the school year.
We are incredibly grateful for the unwavering support of our School Improvement Council, PTO, business partners, and the greater community. Their involvement plays a vital role in our continued growth and success. At Saluda River Academy for the Arts, we remain steadfast in our commitment to developing world-class knowledge, skills, and the life and career characteristics essential for our students' future success.
Brandon Brantly, Principal
Caitlin McCurry, SIC Chair
