A new program called the Wolverine Cup will start in March at Bayfield High School to bring students from the different grades together, and to recognize and reward school involvement and positive behavior.
BHS Principal Leon Hanhardt and colleagues described the program to the school board on Feb. 9. They also asked for board support for a proposed Wolverine Academy to start in the fall to meet needs of students who aren't doing well in a regular school setting, and students at risk of dropping out. Both programs are being adopted, with modifications, from programs at Pagosa Springs and other districts around the state.
BHS librarian Jennifer Leithauser said that for the Wolverine Cup, the school's seminar classes are being re-aligned to create teams of students, with each team to have one member from each grade level. All students will end up on a team.
"They get points through the year for things like attendance, special challenges, for attending school events to get them more involved in what's going on at school," she said. They will get points for being on a sports team or in a club, and for doing good deeds like helping someone or picking up trash. "We need to recognize more of the little things," she said.
The teams will be a place for kids to feel they belong, she said. "We have a ton of kids who need that."
Superintendent Troy Zabel said, "We're working with Pagosa. They were having major issues, and it made a huge difference there. The conversations between staff at the two schools are really powerful."
Leithauser said they are planning three Wolverine Cup challenges this spring, the first one in early March with help from the Friends of Rachel (FOR) anti-bullying club. "Our mission is to get everybody working together and be nice to each other, to get seniors working with freshmen, people who wouldn't normally interact," she said.
Hanhardt described the proposed Wolverine Academy as "a school withn a school." It would be an alternative setting with various options for non-traditional learning.
Teacher Sonnin Dahl said, "It's designed to enhance the high school experience for at-risk students with options other than just going to class." It would include academic support in core classes and some on-line classes. She continued, "We'd like to increase the opportunity for tier 3 interventions for kids significantly below reading level."
The district has three tiers for interventions to help students. All students have access to tier 1, she said. Tier 3 is for students with the most needs. "We have to look at the social and emotional component as well as academic," she said. "They go together."
The academy will have a coordinator who will work on social and emotional support for these students, and be "one consistent person who can put all the pieces together," Dahl said. "There will be options like credit recovery, on-line, internships, a blend of regular academic classes and an opportunity for alternative classes."
She said the academy will serve "students struggling with traditional high school structure, students at risk of failure, students struggling with personal issues, chronic non-participants." They must be referred by a teacher, and the student and parent have to fill out an application.
Zabel commented, "We don't want it to be a dumping ground."
Hanhardt agreed. "It can't be a dumping ground or an easy way out." He said, "This isn't an all or nothing situation. Some (students) may come in only for math. Some may take the core classes here (in the academy) and then regular electives." He expects the academy can be staffed by current school staff, including the coordinator.
He envisions the academy as a place where students can feel safe. "It's the atmosphere you set. You have to allow kids to learn at the level that they can."
Dahl said the academy will probably serve around 12 students. "Fifteen is pushing it," she said.
A space at the high school will be re-configured for the academy, Zabel said. Students could be in the academy full-time, half-time, or less depending on their needs. "There are a handfull of kids that we completely lose because we don't have this option," he said. "We've been in dire need of an alternative program."
Hanhardt said, "We'd like to move forward with this for 2016-17 and build it into the schedule." He said the board will vote on the academy at their Feb. 23 meeting. It's the old band/ music room that will be reconfigured for the academy and a counseling center, he said.
