Oct 12, 2006 — With a little help from St. Croix Foundation, Elena Christian Junior High (ECJH) is on its way to becoming the territory's answer to a "model school."
The foundation has created a model public school initiative to fulfill its goal of developing a strategic and collaborative approach to improving the public education system. The partnership is exclusive to ECJH; and the foundation has its fingers crossed that the idea will spread.
"We hope that if we build a model school," said executive assistant Lily Cox, "it will spread to the nearest school and then across the territory."
The foundation recently donated more than 400 pieces of testing materials to 7th- and 8th-grade students to assist in preparation for the SAT and PSAT. The materials are the next step in the foundation's restructuring of public schools into model schools.
The foundation and ECJH have been together since 2005. "The board of directors had a strategic planning retreat and noted education as its first priority," said Cox.
Cox explained model schools are updated versions of our current educational system and are equipped with all materials teachers and students need to succeed. According to Cox, model schools teach students how to apply their education to real-life situations.
The foundation, through a partnership with UVI's Cell program, designed a curriculum for a standardized prep course with workbooks in reading comprehension, critical thinking, writing styles and test-taking skills.
Test preparation is one aspect of the foundation's goal of creating a model school with ECJH. Programs such as "Phono-Graphix Super Speller," originally created for elementary schools, teaches students phonemic "codes" within each word and is being used by a number of middle schools to address poor performance in reading and vocabulary.
"Scholastic: Reading Counts" is a supplement to the Super Speller, which uses computer technology to improve reading skills. According to the foundation's literature, "the products were purchased and implemented to provide students with the motivation to pursue higher levels of achievement." According to Cox, schools that have previously used this program have seen a 30 percent increase in reading ability.
The foundation isn't just concerned with academia; philanthropy is another aspect of its initiatives. The foundation's goal is to expose children to the concept of philanthropy and charitable giving. Cox said this program is designed to "teach young people respect for others."
The foundation also aids teachers by providing them with the necessary tools to guide students in their quest for knowledge. Sending teachers to workshops, purchasing resource tools and providing training are just some of the assistance given. This year the foundation also purchased "First Days of School," a book reminding teachers how to start their year off right, so the rest of the year can run smoothly.
Cox said that while many private and public programs donate products to children, the foundation's approach to grant writing is different in that they follow the grant through until the end.
"We find out about the school," Cox said. "We don't just throw out a program; we work with the school and see if the program works."
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