High School to Transcend School Walls to Help all Learners
Achieve 21st-Century Definition of Student Success
Winooski, VT, July 24, 2019 – Winooski School District (WSD) has been awarded a $500,000 grant, spread out over three years, from the Barr Foundation for the implementation of a redesigned school model for Winooski Middle High School aimed at creating a Wider Learning Ecosystem (WLE).
Through the WLE grant, Winooski School District leaders will put into action a flexible, student-centered school model that blends the lines between school, college, career, and community.
What does that mean for Winooski students? Kate Grodin, Co-Principal of Winooski Middle High School, explains: “The Barr grant is going to allow us to deepen our transformational efforts to make our school supportive and engaging for all learners. We will continue to explore community partnerships at a variety of different levels – bringing the community into the school, such as guest speakers and visitors to share their work, and bringing students out into the community to do fieldwork and internships. We are hoping to respond to the students’ desire for a well-balanced “variety pack” of experiences with this grant work.”
WSD has already been incorporating student-driven, field study experiences into different programs, and the students’ responses speak volumes. On a recent trip to Rubenstein Ecosystem Science Laboratory, incoming 9th grader, Aden Jelle, shares his excitement about the day’s project: fish dissection. “It was so interesting seeing all the parts of the fish, I’ve never done that, never looked inside a body,” he said of the experience. “I was interested in this because I would like to be a cardiologist and want to learn how bodies work so I can help people.”
WSD student Aden Jelle, 14, at Rubenstein Ecosystem Science Laboratory (7/19)
Barr Foundation has a strong interest in supporting high school students with individualized, student-centered, flexible pathways to post-secondary success. “We are excited to continue our partnership with Winooski School District through the Wider Learning Ecosystem cohort,” said Jenny Curtin, the Barr Foundation’s Senior Program Officer for Education. “Winooski’s educators and students have committed to launching a redesigned high school experience that leverages community assets as part of the core experience for all students.”
A portion of the funds will be used to hire a Community-Based Learning Coach, as well as a Coordinator to manage the logistics of the fieldwork opportunities and internships for students. The funds will also support professional development, and an Innovation Fund, which will be available to teachers and students through a proposal process.
Sean McMannon, WSD Superintendent, is enthusiastic about the possibilities the grant opens up, “We can start with a student’s passion, and then look for ways to help them develop that passion by utilizing the tremendous expertise in our community, the organizations and businesses that are already doing the things that the students are interested in learning about.
Learning and student growth work best when the whole community is involved, not just within a traditional classroom setting.”
Superintendent McMannon also believes not only Winooski students will benefit from this new model focusing on out of the classroom experiences, stating, “We might be able to help solve problems for some of our local businesses and nonprofits – getting students’ perspectives can bring fresh ideas and innovative solutions.”
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