The 2022-2023 school year presented itself with exciting changes that allowed our school to focus on reestablishing a culture of relationships and support for our students and families at College Park Middle School. Our teachers at College Park Middle started the year off with knowing that our goal was to decrease the students' learning gap that was created from our time during the pandemic, make sure students received incentives and rewards for improved grades and behavior and to create a culture of support for our students and community.
In keeping the South Carolina Profile of the Graduate as our framework, we worked diligently to provide deeper and more meaningful ways to structure our learning environment for our students. College Park Middle teachers and staff continued to provide rich and challenging learning opportunities as a 1:1 school while incorporating paper and pencil assignments to enhance students' learning styles. Our teachers did remarkable work. Our students learned the necessity of being flexible and adaptive in an ever-changing world! Skills necessary for success in the 21 century were put on display throughout the year. Academic interventions and enrichments were enhanced and revised to accommodate the needs of our students. We continued with offering interventions every day of the week both during and after school hours. Extra Time and Interventions (ETI) was expanded to include additional opportunities in all academic areas. ETI was a time of enrichment with an underlying focus on literacy, math, and academic assistance.
This year College Park Middle School celebrated students more than ever. Students had the opportunities to receive Tokens of Appreciation, Positive Referrals, attend Renaissance Rallies, and PBIS Quarter Reward Celebrations. More than 85% of our students received at least one token of appreciation from an adult in the building for making good choices, helping out a classmate or staff member, or exemplifying kindness or leadership traits. All of our celebrations of students encompassed Life and Career character traits like Integrity, Work Ethics, or Perseverance. In re-establishing positive relationships with students, we wanted to celebrate as many positive accomplishments as possible throughout the year.
Community outreach activities continued to be conducted in an attempt to make deeper and more meaningful connections with our families and community. Additionally, STEM activities were supported by the distribution of holiday themed supplies and accompanying activities. These could be completed at home for the entire family to participate and enjoy together. Two food distribution events were held in conjunction with the Lowcountry Food Bank. All events were highly successful!
College Park Middle continues to take advantage of being classified as a Title I school. This allows our school to continue providing our students and teachers with an abundance of additional resources to enhance our learning environment. Once again, all needed school supplies were provided to students. Our school is helping all students develop the World Class Skills of the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate by continuously providing opportunities for creativity and innovation in all of our classrooms. Students are encouraged to find new ways to solve problems. Collaboration and teamwork are illustrated through projects that are designed specifically for this purpose.
College Park Middle is thankful for a supportive and cooperative community. It is our great privilege to work with our students and families. We are committed to enhancing opportunities that support and do more and more for our community. We look forward to the opportunities that the 2023-24 school year will present to us.
Ingrid Dukes, Principal
