Innovation Grants 2017-18
Asheville Middle School- Writing and Publishing Awardees: Elaina Portugal, Caroline Scerbin The Writing and Publishing Project will offer opportunities for all students at AMS to engage in the process of publishing a book of student work representative of the entire student body. The ultimate goal is to develop a self-sustaining publishing company that will publish one book per year. Teachers Impacted: 35 Students Impacted: 200
Asheville Middle School- Theater Program Awardee: Savanah Forsythe The Theatre Program at Asheville Middle School will offer an elective class to students and host up to four theatrical productions during the 2017-2018 school year. Students will perform in productions, build sets, make and develop costumes, assist with stage direction, learn acting and voice skills, participate in improv games, and even write their own short scripts. This project will provide creative enrichment, incentivize cooperation and collaboration, and develop skills in communication. Studies have shown that consistent participation in theater arts programs greatly improves academic performance and improves standardized test scores. Teachers Impacted: 1 Students Impacted: 100
Isaac Dickson Elementary- Cultivating Mindfulness for Equity Awardee: Leslie Blaich The Cultivating Mindfulness for Equity project at Isaac Dickson Elementary intends to find out if an intentional mindfulness practice, centered on increasing one’s awareness and concern about implicit biases, can lead to equitable opportunities for academic and social success for all students. Discipline and academic data have demonstrated that not all students have equitable access to opportunities for success. Intentional mindfulness practice may increase instructors’ awareness of implicit biases, increase concern about these biases, and ultimately decrease the occurrence of subtle, persistent, and unintentional forms of inequity in their classrooms, school, and district. The grantees will participate in a book study, an eight week series of mindfulness practices, and will join their colleagues in the the initial process of the Integrated Comprehensive Systems for Equity (ICS Equity). Teachers Impacted: 10 Students Impacted: 250
Claxton- Empowering Young Learners through STEAM Awardee: Michaela Rogers The Empowering Young Learners through STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics) seeks to use STEAM activities to level the playing field for Asheville’s youngest learners and identify gifts and talents in a wider range of children. In recent years, education researchers have repeatedly confirmed that an achievement gap exists from the moment students begin kindergarten. Students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and/or minority populations thrive when given opportunities for open-ended tasks, creative thinking, hands-on learning, and authentic problem-solving. STEAM activities not only meet these criteria, but they also provide the means for delivering core curriculum in an engaging manner for all learners. Teachers Impacted: 6 Students Impacted: 120
Isaac Dickson Elementary- Generating STEAM Through Inquiry Awardees: Patti Evans, Carolyn Pressly, Jacqueline Shader, Daniel Withrow, Pat Bruder, Scott Fisher The Generating STEAM Through Inquiry project at Isaac Dickson Elementary will offer valuable professional development and mentorship opportunities to teachers interested in teaching STEAM through inquiry. Inquiry education, sometimes known as the inquiry method, is a student-centered method of education focused on asking questions. Teachers will participate in online workshops, attend hands-on workshops at the UNC Asheville STEAM Studio, and collaborate across grade levels during planning sessions. Through STEAM, an integration of science, technology, engineering, art and math, teachers will innovate and grow in a researchsupported instructional technique, and students will experience learning with a project based inquiry classroom structure. This project will support improved science learning outcomes for students and a reduced achievement gap across diverse student populations. Teachers Impacted: 12 Students Impacted: 240
SILSA- Modeling Core High School Mathematics Awardees: Shelly Nixon, ,Emily Bryant, Lee Ann Russell The Modeling Core High School Mathematics grant will take the core principles of modeling science instruction and incorporate them into the grantees instruction of secondary mathematics. Just as scientists and mathematicians learn by doing, students will construct and analyze data from real world contexts. This grant will challenge the misconception many students hold that they are either inherently “good” or “bad” at math, creating a space that encourages a practice of iterative learning through failure and revision. Students will conduct experiments, gather data, create presentations, and collaborate with their peers to master the core math standards for North Carolina. The Modeling Method has been intentionally developed to correct many weaknesses of the lecture-demonstration method of instruction typically seen in STEM classrooms. These weaknesses include the fragmentation of knowledge, student passivity, and the persistence of naive beliefs about the physical world. Teachers Impacted: 3 Students Impacted: 300
Asheville Primary School- Montessori for All Awardee: Mary Alice Sprinkle Asheville Primary School is bringing a new approach to learning by implementing the Montessori method; a scientific, unbiased pedagogy for the 2017-2018 school year. The Montessori method is an observation based learning that encourages student-led practices, by providing experiences appropriate to the student's cognitive development. Historically Montessori schools have not been an option for all interested families, as they are typically private. This grant will provide an appropriate approach to early childhood development, to a community that would not have access to this school of learning due to funds or location. This will contribute to an extensive professional development to transform the ACS Primary into a Montessori Preschool. Teachers Impacted: 2 Students Impacted: 40
Asheville Preschool- Storytelling Story Acting In The Classroom Awardees: Ana Sparkman, Megan Wiseman The Storytelling Story Acting in the Classroom project will provide developmentally appropriate literacy, language, and social emotional skill development opportunities to all Asheville City Schools Preschool Students through dictation and dramatization experiences. Through this process, students will come to understand the classroom community as a place where everyone’s voice is heard, strengthen their understanding of written language, and invent their own stories, building their self-confidence and bolstering their social-emotional development. Teachers Impacted: 10 Students Impacted: 180
Asheville High School- Student Government Leadership Development Awardees: Bill Van Cleve, Jessica Williams The overarching mission of the Asheville High School Student Government Association (SGA) is to develop student leaders. The SGA in 2017-18 will be focused on creating a student government body that is more inclusive to all students and represents the overall AHS student body population, specifically regarding race and socioeconomic status. Teachers Impacted: 2 Students Impacted: 24