Standard 4: Resources and Support
Systems
The school has resources and provides services that support its
purpose and direction to ensure success for all students.
4.1 West Gadsden High School
attracts and retains highly qualified teachers. Policies and
procedures are designed to encourage teacher retention based upon
qualifications and performance. The School Leadership Team ensures
that staff members meet governing body requirements and possess
appropriate expertise for their role in the school.
There are currently 33 teachers on the faculty of WGHS. ?
hold Masters degrees or higher and ? are identified as highly
qualified. The current student to teacher ratio at WGHS
is 22 to 1.
New teachers attend an orientation at the district level. All
incoming teachers are assigned a head mentor in their department.
Teachers receive feedback from peer and administrative observations
upon which to reflect and assist in driving instruction.
4.2 West Gadsden High School's
general budget is allocated through differing central office
funding sources including the School Improvement Grant. The
Principal, in collaboration with the Educational Transformation
Office and School Improvement Grant Coordinator, determines the
best use for these funds based upon student/curriculum needs. There
is a request and purchase order process through which school funds
can be received and spent by faculty members as a financial checks
and balances. Each club/organization maintains individual budgets
that are used to support their initiatives. Along with band and
athletic funds, over 10,000+ dollars are raised annually by inside
sources. Annually, grants are sought that would enhance the
financial budget to support the school's vision.
West Gadsden High School students receive a minimum of a
50 minute instructional period for seven periods each day.
This enables the students to receive 350 minutes of highly
qualified instruction daily.
4.3 West Gadsden High School is highly
functional in ensuring that the facilities, services, and equipment
are safe and orderly. Faculty and staff are to report to the office
any maintenance concerns which are then translated to a
district-wide system for needed repair response if needed. The
custodial staff checks regularly the areas which they service to
make sure that all lighting and cleanliness issues are addressed.
Annual, major maintenance issues are addressed through budgeting.
Each month, Crisis response drills (i.e., fire drills, Code Red
Lockdown, hurricane/tornado procedures and bomb threat evacuations)
with documentation are performed with proper emergency response
personnel notified. Inspections of safety equipment are
documented. Space issues are addressed as needs/concerns arise.
4.4 & 4.5 WGHS has multiple avenues
in place to communicate with and receive information from students
and school personnel about students and their progress.
All stakeholders are able to communicate by e-mail or telephone
with school officials. Students' grades are posted on an
online gradebook, Engrade, for parents to view their child's
grades, and some teachers create an online site for students and
parents to keep up with students' class responsibilities.
Both of these sites are available from the school's website, which
is updated regularly to show the most current information.
Our phone messaging system is used to call parents with
announcements. Parents also receive informational letters and
newspapers the first day of school, and each student has an agenda
with a student handbook. We often have articles recognizing
student achievement in local newspapers and post academic
achievements on our school website. The digital marquee is
updated regularly to reflect important happenings and events at
WGHS.
While some of the teachers integrate the Newspapers in Education
program to assist as a media resource, many of the teachers at WGHS
use the comprehensive district technology component to aid in
instruction. FCAT Explorer and Florida Achieves are both
computer sites that assist in providing additional monitoring
systems for the Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test.
OdysseyWare is used to provide instruction for those students
desiring to recover credits unearned from the previous academic
year. The current set-up of WGHS offers two designated
computer labs, and each individual teacher classroom has a
SmartBoard, document camera, mounted projector, and a response
system.
4.6 & 4.7 The process West
Gadsden High School uses to ensure and monitor that each student
gets the counseling, appraisal, mentoring, staff consulting,
referral, and educational and career planning she/he needs is
highly functional. In the assigned 1st period class,
students receive comprehensive guidance activities that allow them
to receive materials, handbooks, agendas, school information,
etc. Student/teacher meetings (with the presence of an
administrator when requested) are held with students who are
exhibiting at-risk indicators. Parent meetings are also
scheduled to discuss concerns regarding individual expectations.
Students receive ACT prep meetings and have FLVS, AP, and dual
enrollment classes. West Gadsden High School also offers the
JROTC program as well as Credit Recovery.
West Gadsden High School's process used to identify
students with special needs is considered operational. Students
have individualized IEP plans and 504 Plans. Each teacher is given
a copy of these plans and students are highlighted in lesson plans
and rolls to give students all accommodations needed. Frequent
emails are sent as reminders of faculty obligations to those
receiving these services. Student's scores on tests are considered
when deciding which options and interventions are best for the
students.
Examples and Documentation
High School Lab Schedule:
http://images.pcmac.org/SiSFiles/Schools/FL/GadsdenCounty/WestGadsdenHigh/Uploads/DocumentsCategories/Documents/2012-2013%20High%20School%20Lab%20Schedule[1].pdf
Middle School Lab Schedule:
http://images.pcmac.org/SiSFiles/Schools/FL/GadsdenCounty/WestGadsdenHigh/Uploads/DocumentsCategories/Documents/2012-2013%20Middle%20School%20Lab%20Schedule[1].pdf
Master Schedule:
http://images.pcmac.org/SiSFiles/Schools/FL/GadsdenCounty/WestGadsdenHigh/Uploads/DocumentsCategories/Documents/MasterSchedule1016.pdf
Gadsden County School Bus
Evacuation:
http://images.pcmac.org/SiSFiles/Schools/FL/GadsdenCounty/WestGadsdenHigh/Uploads/DocumentsCategories/Documents/GADSDEN%20COUNTY%20SCHOOLS%20Bus%20Evacuation.pdf
Panther Pride Mentoring Program:
http://images.pcmac.org/SiSFiles/Schools/FL/GadsdenCounty/WestGadsdenHigh/Uploads/DocumentsCategories/Documents/Panther%20Pride%20Mentoring%20Program.pdf
