Discover Jonesville Community Schools!

Discover Jonesville Community Schools!

By Melissa McCance

Astrong, effective school district takes more than filling buildings with teachers, students, and supplies and adding a curriculum. It requires thought, planning, and—above all—people who care about the students and do their best for them with commitment and intention. Jonesville Community Schools typify these standards.

Williams Elementary School encompasses kindergarten preparation through fifth grade. “We have a whole-child focus,” explains Principal Ryan Grimm. “Academic, physical, and emotional.” They have a balanced program that includes longer recesses and lunch periods than many elementary schools in recognition of younger children’s needs.

Assistant Principal Steve Zigray detailed the programs that enhance and complement classroom time. “We have a top-notch physical education program with a rock wall, as well as music, art, and STEM content including introducing students to coding. And we have an excellent librarian along with library resources.”

Their approach has yielded solid results: Williams Elementary is justifiably proud of being rated 4 (the highest possible) on the M-STEP test for the last two years.

“Sometimes less is more,” says Grimm. “If our classroom instruction is really clear and structured, we can give up a little academic time to focus on other aspects of the students for their well-being.”

As a PBIS school (Positive Behavioral Intervention and Support), there are systems in place to reward students for the good things they’re doing as well as offering guidance to those who need more help. Besides individual prizes, the rewards program encourages classes to work as team to earn bigger, often experience-based rewards for the whole class.

Both Grimm and Zigray spoke enthusiastically about the experienced staff at Williams. To encourage staff input and problem-solving, the school holds monthly curriculum and leadership meetings which allows everyone to address small issues before they become big problems.

“We also have great community support,” adds Grimm. “Family nights usually have 350 or more in attendance, many supplies are donated, and we had to go to two Christmas concerts in order to accommodate everyone who wanted to come.”

Despite the stereotype of middle schoolers being very difficult, the staff at Jonesville Middle School doesn’t find that to be true. Principal Emily Ramirez explains why:

“First of all, the staff wants to be here—they want to teach middle school. We understand this life stage and we know you have to roll a bit with the ups and downs. But we are proactive. We teach behavior expectations and we utilize the PBIS model to help our students be their best.”

Having a solid staff is essential. At Jonesville, all the staff are highly-certified in the core subjects they teach—not always the case these days. In addition, the school has a guidance counselor, a behavioral interventionist, and a social worker.

Ramirez describes the overall approach as wanting to meet all needs of all the children. They emphasize getting to know the students and building relationships. The WIN (What I Need) class gives every student an adult they get to know well and can reach out to when needed. They have that teacher all year, and time may be spent in mini-lessons on needed social skills, team building, and problem solving.

Middle school can be a wonderful time of exploration and discovery when students start discovering their particular gifts and interests to be developed further in high school and beyond. Jonesville offers a wide range of opportunities through nineweek electives. These classes include microbiology, small engines, Comets in Action (community service), robotics, STEM, history through literature, band, and art.

In addition to the electives, the middle school has a varying after school enrichment program. Among recent and ongoing offerings are a library club, an eclipse viewing party this past April, tailgate parties, and a very popular annual ski trip. The athletic program includes cross country, wrestling, basketball, volleyball, football, track, and cheerleading.

Once Jonesville students reach high school, even greater opportunities await. When asked about the school’s strengths, Principal Katie Griffiths immediately answered, “The depth of our programming, our solid staff, our ‘whole student’ focus, and our restorative approach to dealing with problems.”

The school offers AP classes in biology, English, U.S. history, and calculus as well as CLEP options for algebra and precalculus. There’s a well-developed industrial arts department, a music program (and the band just earned a 1 rating under the new band director!), and a public speaking course that prepares students to be poised and effective when speaking before a group. Jonesville High School participates in the dual enrollment program which allows high school students to take college classes.

The FFA agricultural science students have had success at the state and national level, and one student is the state FFA president. A recent grant allowed expansion of the barn to accommodate larger animals all year round.

Jonesville High School has a strong special education program that is moving from the traditional pull-out model with students taught in a separate classroom to a push-in approach where the special education teachers come to the classroom. The program also provides life skills education and guidance for integration into adult life after graduation.

Students needing additional help in English, math, science, history, and Spanish can utilize the Comet Success Program. This low-key tutoring program operates during the lunch period from Monday through Thursday, and students simply sign up whenever they want some extra coaching in a subject that’s giving them trouble.

Jonesville students can participate in a variety of sports. The program includes cross country, football, soccer, volleyball, basketball, bowling, cheerleading, wrestling, baseball, golf, softball, and track. Added to these more usual sports are a clay target shooting team and an equestrian team.

Superintendent Erik Weatherwax offers this summation:

“Jonesville Community Schools leads because we are student- and excellence-focused. We are always looking to improve our student experience and strive to lead whether it’s in academics and programming, athletics, or extra-curricular offerings. We are a small district with the aspirations and offerings of a big district.”