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Board hears update on teaching and learning initiatives

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At the Nov. 29 Vestavia Hills Board of Education meeting, Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning Aimee Rainey talked about ways to improve the school system’s instructional offerings, including providing each school with an instructional partner, more counselors and adding special teachers to expand STEM and world language offerings.

Superintendent Todd Freeman said instructional partners would be teachers who want to take on more of a leadership role in his or her school without becoming an administrator, serving as a sort of “coach” for other teachers. Rainey said instructional partners could share educational strategies, resources and research, as well as partnering with school administrators to review relevant data to improve the learning experiences of students and closing any gaps that may exist.

In the area of world languages, Rainey said specialists could support work with vocabulary through the many spoken languages currently being offered at the middle and high school levels and could also teach Greek and Latin. These instructors could help create an effective approach to teaching essential standards and core values for world languages. Rainey said teaching world languages also provides a connection to appreciating diversity, one of the school system’s major goals.

STEM, which stands for science, technology, engineering and mathematics, provides seven benefits, Rainey said:

Rainey said she would love to see a special STEM instructor at all elementary schools. There is currently a pilot program for STEM being conducted at Vestavia Hills Elementary Liberty Park, one of the new initiatives Rainey gave an update on to the board.

Project Lead the Way, an initiative to train teachers in math, computer science and other related areas, was also discussed. The project has trained 16 elementary teachers, 13 middle school teachers and one high school teacher. Some of the courses offered as a result of the initiative include cybersecurity at Vestavia Hills High School, and app creators, medical detectives and computer science for innovation and makers at the middle school level.

Rainey also updated the board on how the school system supports students in the areas of academic support and counseling. The school system recently added an IMPACT therapist for elementary schools, a state-funded, full-time employee who serves six students each day and rotates between the elementary schools. The therapist focuses on what Rainey called Tier III services, focused on behavior, anxiety and trauma. The new position helps serve students with the most crucial needs, she said.

The school system has also provided academic interventionists, reading coaches, literacy camps and more, Rainey said.

It is time for employees to receive new devices, Rainey said, and she told the board to continue providing Mac devices would cost about $960,000, while switching to Windows would cost about $320,000. Also, the school system will receive a new domain name in 2022, switching from vestavia.k12.al.us to vhcs.us, Rainey said, drawing applause for the soon-to-be shortened name.

Recognizing student achievement, Rainey said the school system had 13 national merit semifinalists and saw a major increase in the number of students enrolled in AP classes. There were 621 students enrolled in AP courses in 2021, compared to 489 in 2020. While the percentage of students scoring a Level 3 or higher (on a scale of 1-5) on AP exams decreased from 80% last year to 72% this year, there were more exams administered than ever before, Rainey said. On the ACT, 273 students scored a 25 (out of 36) or above, with 68 scoring a 30 or higher, Rainey said.

Other Business

In other business, Freeman recognized VHELP Principal Blair Inabinet, VHHS Assistant Principal Amy England and Pizitz Middle School Assistant Principal Jason Bostic for successfully defending their dissertations and earning their doctorates in education. Inabinet received a $5,000 raise for her achievement, which was approved by the board at the meeting, bringing her salary to $112,184, effective Jan. 1, 2022.

Freeman gave an update on the use of $990,000 given to the school system in federal funds:

The board also approved a $25,746 credit for the fieldhouse roof project at VHHS, as well as a $13,181.22 credit toward the Vestavia Hills Elementary Dolly Ridge library project.

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