Changes in administration and curriculum in the Pioneer Valley Regional School District will characterize this new school year.
At Pioneer Valley Regional School, the district’s seventh- though 12th-grade school, a new administrative structure is being finalized.
Rather than hire a new assistant principal after Jennifer Albert-Perry’s departure, the school has rehired its former dean of students, Cathy Hawkins-Harrison, and is instituting a “lead teacher” program, to function similarly to the older “head teacher” program that had been popular among teachers.
The four lead teachers will help with administrative functions, including curriculum design and professional development, Superintendent Jon Scagel said. Teachers at the school will fill the lead teacher positions and will be paid a stipend for their extra responsibilities.
Scagel said that he and Pioneer Valley Regional School Principal Jean Bacon expect to review teachers’ letters of interest for the position this week and to implement the program soon thereafter.
Pioneer also has updated its curriculum. The school’s STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, math) initiative has been expanded with more courses for medical professions, like AP biology and an intro to medical careers class.
“We already had a really strong science program,” Bacon said. “But the introduction of AP bio and intro to medical careers are really helping us to help kids make good choices to enter into the medical field after they leave Pioneer.”
The school has also expanded its “Bridging Resilient Youth” program, which gives special attention to students who have struggled in their classes for whatever reason. The “Essential Skills” program, which supports disabled students in learning to live independently as adults, has also been expanded.
There are changes at the elementary schools, too. Warwick Community School has vastly expanded its use of volunteers, partly to fill in for the removed administrative assistant position.
“People in town, whether they have children or not, are extremely invested in the school,” said Principal Elizabeth Musgrave. “We’re a community school. That’s our middle name. This town has an extraordinarily strong community.”
In Leyden, Pearl Rhodes Elementary School has instituted a “project-based learning” teaching model, which Principal Bob Clancy describes as a formalization of what teachers at Pearl Rhodes have been doing: “in-depth thematic units with hands-on activities.”
Clancy said that he also hopes for the new model to highlight Pearl Rhodes as a destination school for students in other towns and outside the district.