Bd. of ed. given tour of ground breaking learning centre at RRHS

Ken Johnston
Editor

The Rainy River District School Board members stepped on a nerve or actually into a nerve centre Tuesday night while holding their regular meeting at Rainy River High School.
RRHS Principal Casey Slack gave the board a tour of the nearly completed Alternative Learning Centre (ALC) at his school.
The new learning centre has been created to provide a learning environment whereby students of various ages, abilities and learning styles can learn comfortably and at their own pace.
“We had one girl this year that would have washed out (of school),” said Slack. However, utilizing the ALC the student is doing one credit at a time at her own pace.
“After doing a needs assessment last year Bob McGreevy (now retired principal) and I decided we needed a nerve centre that provided a comfortable learning environment to help students with special needs.”
The new ALC is an old classroom that has been renovated. It has a different feeling than a standard classroom. It has ceramic tiled flooring, a kitchenette, warm soothing colour scheme, no white/black boards, an aquarium, individual learning centres, new inviting furniture and when complete will have six computers for students to use.
It has also been linked by a new door to Guidance Counselor Georgina Jarvis’ office.
Alternative Education is also going to use the space and has its secretary based out of the ALC now. In addition to the guidance counselor and secretary, the schedules of RRHS teaching staff have been set up as such that there is always a teacher in the room to help students when they need it.
Director of Education Jack McMaster had hi praise for the ALC, both before the meeting and during. “With declining enrollments this is a good way to help keep some of the kids in the system.”
Slack noted that the “comfortable” environment has been working so well that some kids in the regular system have tried to reengineer their schedules to get into the ALC. “They say they want to be in there,” said Slack. “But that is not the goal of the ALC. It is to eventually reintegrate them into the mainstream.”
The ALC may also serve to bring those students who dropped out back into the school. “As they hear about the program and that they can come back at their own level (or pace),” said McMaster adding, “All those students count on enrollment figures if registered by Oct. 31st.”
In addition to serving students who are in jeopardy of dropping out or falling behind, the ALC is also a place where students who want to work at a more advanced level can excel. It can accommodate up to 15 students at a time and while Slack says, “I am not going lie to you and say I have all the answers. This is a work in progress and we will know better in time how well it is working. All I can say is I know the students (that are using it) love it here. It is like a family environment.”
The kitchenette has been put in to allow students to have something to eat when needed. “We identified several students that were coming to school without breakfast last year.” Studies have shown a good breakfast helps enhance the ability of students to succeed.
McMaster said that if successful the RRHS ALC could serve as a model for similar centres at Fort Frances and Atikokan High Schools.
Other business
•The board gave itself a raise, passing new trustee honourariams. A Citizens Advisory Committee looked at what trustees receive across the province. The Min. of Education then gave them maximums they could a lot. The committee recommended maxing the amounts out for RRDSB trustees. They will now receive a base amount of $5,900 plus another $800 per year based on enrollment figures. If enrollment goes up that amount will too and if they go down it will drop. They will also receive $50 for attending a statutory meeting (usually about 10 per year) and another $50 if they have to travel more than 200 km. to monthly board meetings.
•Riverview Elementary School Principal Kendall Olson gave an overview of the new Teacher Induction Program (TIP). Formerly it was a demonstration mentoring project at local schools. Olson noted that, “We have been able to help shape the new program.” In fact the local coordinators of the demo program have travelled all over the region to offer assistance in getting the new program off its feet using already designed RRDSB resource materials.
The province has taken the demo programs and created the TIP which is mandatory for all new teachers. Each teacher is given an experienced one as a mentor and has to have two successful performance appraisals within two years.
•Heather Campbell was appointed Super Intendant for the RRDSB.
•Plant and Operations Manager Raymond Roy reported that the architect has nearly completed drawings for the new Best Start day care centre to be located at Riverview School in Rainy River. Two classrooms will be renovated and a 10X40 addition will be built onto the school. “It should go out for tender November 1, 2006 and be completed by March of 2007.” 16 preschool and 10 toddler positions will be available at the new centre.
•The board gave Trustee Gord McBride a round of applause and praise for his 30 years on the school board. He is not running in the upcoming elections.
•Enrollment figures across the board are not declining as fast as projected. McMaster noted that they are 30 full time equivalents above projections. “However, it is still declining but with things like the ALC here, things may continue to turn around.”