Ninety Six Elementary School(NSES) is helping students develop World Class Skills as well as Life and Career Characteristics based upon the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate by providing a safe, nurturing, and academically challenging learning environment. Our mission is to empower all students to achieve their full potential and become productive citizens in today’s global society. Based on the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate, our vision is to impact students to change the world. We believe that children are our first priority in all decision making processes. NSES also believes that ensuring all children have access to a quality education, which addresses their individual needs, is a necessity.
As a professional learning community, our teachers continuously participate in various ongoing professional development opportunities designed to enhance instructional practices and student learning. NSES maintains high expectations for all students in correlation with academic performance and advancement. Together, we develop data driven goals and teaching methods that are developmentally appropriate to meet the needs of all learners. This data is obtained from multiple sources such as iReady, Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark Assessments for reading, TE21 Benchmark Assessments, and SCReady results. We implement personalized and blended learning strategies that offer differentiation and provide an engaging learning environment for all students to be successful.
Our students use critical thinking and problem solving within various activities throughout the school year. All students participate in our STEAM lab (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math) during related arts. In this lab, students get to explore and showcase individual and group creativity. Students are presented with rigorous activities that spark higher order thinking skills, collaboration, and teamwork. We encourage students on a daily basis to apply self-independence and resilience, as well as build a strong work ethic by taking ownership of their education.
Collaborating with all stakeholders plays an important role in meeting the needs of our school, our students, and our community. It is important to involve our stakeholders in every step of the educational process. Parent and community input is gathered through PTO meetings, School Improvement Council (SIC) meetings, and surveys. Goals are developed through needs assessments and survey results from our stakeholders. A major supportive stakeholder group is our Parent Teacher Organization (PTO). They provide support to our school in many ways, such as by furnishing supplies for all school parties throughout the year. They also sponsor various family events, both during and after school, to bring parents and our community members together. This year, our PTO raised over $20,000.00 through partnership and community participation in a variety of fundraising events and activities. Open House, family nights, and report card/parent conference days allow teachers to share our collaborative goals and expectations with parents.
In keeping with our vision of “Impacting Students to Change the World”, we believe in providing students with opportunities to get involved in their community. Students participate in service learning projects throughout the year such as providing goods to the local food bank and providing necessities to the local homeless shelter. Through these activities, our students have developed a sense of empathy, tolerance, and respect. Students also have the opportunity to see and interact with many of our local businesses and organizations during our annual Career Day which encourages them to begin thinking about their future endeavors.
At Ninety Six Elementary, we truly believe that it takes a village to raise a child. We are dedicated to providing an environment where children not only grow academically, but develop a sense of character and citizenship as well. As a “Community of Learners”, we strive to provide a safe and nurturing school climate where we can support our vision of “Impacting Our Students to Change the World.”
Charlene Louden, Principal
Jennifer Hallman, SIC
