POWELL www.ShopperNewsNow.com
|
www.facebook.com/ShopperNewsNow
Miracle Maker
“Read, Read, Read” has long been Nancy Maland’s motto. She’s still preaching the gospel of the written word as Knox County Schools’ executive director of elementary education and is proud to report that an early literacy initiative piloted in five elementary schools last year has expanded to nine more schools.
➤
See Jake Mabe’s story on page A-9
Coffee Break
Bill Brewer, music director at Pellissippi State Community College, genuinely enjoys working with his music students, and they love him. After he received the “FullTime Faculty of the Year” award in May 2012, the variations ensemble choir sang a tribute to him after their spring concert. They ended it singing, “We love him just because – he’s our Bill.”
➤
See page A-2
twitter.com/shoppernewsnow
A great community newspaper
VOL. 51 NO. 36
IN THIS ISSUE
|
September 3, 2012
Powell High is Rewards School Only high school in county on list
work. They’re the ones that have accomplished this.” Now Powell’s challenge is to stay at the top. Dunlap says the By Jake Mabe school will initiate periodic inPowell High School is one of tervention (progress reports ev169 schools statewide and the ery 4 1/2 weeks) to track student only high school achievement and earmark any in Knox County needs or areas of improvement. to be designated “And, for a lot of the results, as a Rewards I have to give credit to our new School by Gov. Bill (teacher) evaluation system. When Haslam and state you embrace the new system, it education com- forces you to continuously look at missioner Kevin how you get better. It basically says, Huffman. no matter how good you’re doing, Powell is among let’s talk about getting better.” Ken Dunlap the top 5 percent Dunlap says the adoption of the of schools in the state in annual new Common Core standards has growth. Principal Ken Dunlap also “raised the bar on how we test gives the credit to his teachers and and raised the bar on how we’re students. teaching. And that complements “They’re the ones doing the the teacher evaluation system.”
He also points to parental and community support as a reason for the school’s success. “They value Powell High School; they trust us to do the job we do. Instead of challenging or questioning or undermining our efforts, they support those efforts.” He also thinks the success of last year’s football team led to both community pride and to school achievement. One of his goals for the school year is to continue to foster and promote teacher collaboration. “As long as our staff is growing and getting better, the kids are, too.” Dunlap says graduation coach Jim Porter has been essential to the school’s progress. And new instructional coaches will help too. “Jim has done a phenomenal
job. At the end of students’ sophomore year, he’s on them. He helps determine whether a student (for example) might have a learning disability or an attendance issue. “(Superintendent) Dr. (Jim) McIntyre has raised the bar on everybody. And the additional support staff through the instructional coaches is a huge asset. We have created goals for everybody – art teachers, math teachers.” His staff is also examining its grading practices. “We’ve got them thinking about it in ways that 25 years ago they didn’t think about at all.” Entering his seventh year as principal at Powell High, Dunlap says accountability is the biggest change he’s seen since his arrival. “It has increased expectations, which trickles down to the kids.”
Powell wins big at home … against Halls
Let’s talk about academics...
“Georgia State?” Marvin West asks. “I think not. Let’s talk about something exciting, academics and athletics.
➤
See Marvin’s story on page A-5
Autumn is just around the corner
“It may be 90 degrees outside as I pen this column,” Bob Collier writes, “but there is no doubt that Mother Nature plans to have autumn again this year. Already the earliest yellow walnut and locust leaves are fluttering down with every little breeze. Spots of orange, black, and yellow fall colors abound in our back field.”
➤
Powell High’s Montario Washington carries the ball for yardage during a Thursday night home game against Halls. The Panthers won the battle, defeating the Red Devils 55-12. Photo by Doug Johnson See more photos on A11.
See Dr. Bob’s story on page A-6
Index Coffee Break A2 Theresa Edwards A3 Government/Politics A4 Marvin West/Lynn Hutton A5 Dr. Collier A6 Faith A7 Kids A8 Miracle Maker A9 Calendar A12
4509 Doris Circle 37918 (865) 922-4136 news@ShopperNewsNow.com ads@ShopperNewsNow.com GENERAL MANAGER Shannon Carey shannon@ShopperNewsNow.com EDITOR Sandra Clark sclark426@aol.com ADVERTISING SALES Debbie Moss mossd@ShopperNewsNow.com Shopper-News is a member of KNS Media Group, published weekly at 4509 Doris Circle, Knoxville, TN, and distributed to 8,314 homes in Powell.
Computers are tools, not toys By Wendy Smith Do students learn better if they have their own computers? Yes, says Mooresville, N.C., superintendent Mark Edwards, and he has the data to prove it. The district ranks second in the state with 89 Mark Edwards percent of students meeting proficiency standards and boasts the state’s third-highest graduation rate of 90 percent, up from 68 percent in 2006. Edwards, who grew up in Knoxville and attended
Pleasant Ridge Elementary School and West High School, was a guest speaker at the ninth annual Knox County Council PTA Education Forum, “The 21st Century Classroom.” The success of Mooresville’s “digital conversion” has been on Knox County Schools superintendent Dr. Jim McIntyre’s radar, and he plans to visit the school system soon. He called Edwards’ presentation “great food for thought. “To me, it seems like a great initiative for us to be pursuing – not as an end, but as a means to an end, where the end point is student learning and student success.” Mooresville students in
grades 4 through 12 were provided with MacBook Airs in 2009. The goal was to bride a divide of digitalization, academics and hope, says Edwards. The computers were also intended to bring relevance to classroom instruction and help students better understand real-world work. It required a cultural shift. Teachers had to let go of traditional ways of teaching, and parents had to agree to ongoing training. Students had to learn a little extra responsibility. The district has become a model for digital conversion. A limited number of visitors are given a tour each month. Representatives from 38 states have visited
so far, says Edwards. “They come in looking at the laptops, but they leave talking about the culture.” Part of the culture is collaboration. Students often work in groups and don’t sit in straight rows of desks. They use online resources instead of textbooks. Immediate feedback allows teachers to target specific needs and allows students to work at their own pace. As a result, test scores have risen in all ethnic and socioeconomic subgroups. While one laptop for every student seems piein-the-sky given today’s budgetary constraints, Mooresville demonstrates that budgets can be flexed to accommodate technology. A Charlotte, N.C., bedroom community with 5,800 students, it is mostly
working-class, says Edwards, and 42 percent of students are on free or reduced lunch. The district spends $7,463 on each student annually, or $1.25 on each student per day. Only 15 of the state’s 115 districts spend less. Knox County spends $8,508 on each student annually. McIntyre estimates that it would cost several million dollars to develop the infrastructure for Knox County Schools to provide “one-to-one” technology. For the community to get behind such an initiative, it would have to understand the return on the investment, he says. He echoed what he was recently told by a teacher: “What we need to communicate is that technology is not a toy, but a tool.”
RIGGS Drug can now meet your compounding needs! “We also offer free home delivery and bubblepacking services. Please stop by and see how we can help you today!”
I am here exclusively for you.
Stop by and check out our gifts selection 602 E. Emory Road next to Mayo’s
947-5235
An Independent
9 am-7 pm, Mon.-Fri., 9 am-2 pm Sat. Family-Owned Pharmacy Most prescriptions filled in 15 minutes or less
I solve all heating and air conditioning issues, give independent second opinions, and assist you when you have to replace your system. HOW? Go to
www.MyHvacAdvisor.com
or call
368-4374