Brian M. Stack's School Leadership Blog

This past week, the State of New Hampshire released the results from the NECAP Science test administration from May or 2010. Each year, grade 11 students take this test as part of a battery of NECAP tests (math, reading, and writing are done in the fall) that are used to determine if schools are making adequate yearly growth. These latest tests confirm that Sanborn's class of 2011 made some significant gains in each of the subject areas. Student scores are based on the following four levels: 4: Proficient with Distinction 3: Proficient 2: Slightly Below Proficient 1: Significantly Below Proficient The following chart show how Sanborn students have done over the past three years as compared to the State on this Science test. You should note that the State stayed at 24% of students scoring proficient or above, but Sanborn improved from 17% to 32% of students proficient or above. Our Science Department has already begun studying the data to determine what changes should be made to ...

There aren't too many schools in America that can say they have over 100 years of history - but at Sanborn, we are in our 127th year! Homecoming is an annual tradition that started many years ago as the "Indian Festival". It has always included sporting events, a dance or other social event, music performances, and of course, a parade. The pictures included in this post are from the 1960 yearbook - fifty years ago!!! Join us for homecoming this weeekend. Here is the schedule of events: Friday - Field Hockey Varsity and JV at Chase Field at 4:00pm Saturday - FOOD ALL DAY 8:00 - Parade down main street to the high school 9:00 - Skits in the high school gym 12:00 - Boys varsity and JV soccer at the high school 2:00 - Girls varsity and JV soccer 2:30 - Varsity football 7:00 - Semi-formal dance for all students in the cafeteria

Last night at our open house I showed the following video, entitled "Shift Happens": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBwT_09boxE&feature=related This video demonstrates just how quickly our world is changing. To prepare our kids for this kind of a future we need to be able to change and adapt to meet the needs of twenty-first century learners. The key to success as a school will be our ability to teach twenty-first century skills like: self-directed learner, community contributor, complex thinker, quality producer, effective communicator, and ethical user of technology. We have identified these to be our six school-wide expectations for learning for all students and we are embedding these skills into each of our courses and programs at SRHS . As a new feature to our progress reports and report cards this year you will notice that each teacher will report out quarterly on these school-wide expectations for learning. These grades will replace the "effort" and ...

This week we reached another milestone with our Pinnacle system implementation - we activated the Parent Internet Viewer. Parents should have received a copy of their login instructions for this new system in the mail this week. Anyone who needs this information sent again can contact my office at 603-642-3341. The new Parent Internet Viewer will be an upgrade from our old system (Edline). Parents will now have access to more accurate and useful skill and assessment information, have the flexibility to set user-defined notification preferences, and have the ability to easily interact with teachers. This winter, students will use the system to complete their course registration for the 2011-2012 school year. You can learn more about how the Parent Internet Viewer from Pinnacle can benefit you by visiting the company's website below: http://www.globalscholar.com/Who-We-Help/Parents.html Please understand that when you log into this system now, some teachers may not have grades loaded...

These days everyone is weighing in on what it is going to take to fix our failing schools. More money? Better teachers? A national curriculum? More testing? The list goes on and on. Oddly enough, what people seem to agree on most is that the system we have used for decades is just not working anymore. We need a new system. Our students achievement in core academic subjects such as math and science continue to lag behind many other countries. Furthermore, our system is flawed in that is does not guarantee learning for all - something I would bet our founding fathers with their "all men are created equal" philosophy would not be happy to hear. The good news is, I suspect you will see dramatic improvements in our educational system over the next several years, but they will come with a price - and that price's name is "change.' At Sanborn , change is coming as we shift our focus from "teaching" to "student learning." At the high school this year...

Last evening I reported out to the School Board on opening day activities and issues. Here are some of the highlights of that presentation: This year we welcome 15 new staff members and 2 new administrators to our community. They come from a variety of backgrounds and bring a wealth of experience, knowledge, and new ideas with them. They join a returning staff that is refreshed, rejuvenated , and ready to tackle the challenges they will face in their classroom. As a school, we have identified three major areas of focus for this year: we want to see growth in our achievement scores in math, reading, writing, and science; we want to improve our communication with parents and the community; and we want to focus our assessments on student learning and mastery of competencies. Monday, August 30 th , our freshmen started school. They had an opportunity to meet their advisors , find their classes and lockers, learn how the lunch lines work, and talk to their teachers about expectations for th...