ELNORA — The 21st Century curriculum implemented at North Daviess this past school year for its freshman class has generated a lot of positive feedback, according to a reported given to the school board Monday evening.

“The staff is further along than where I thought they would be. The kids are much further along and the concerns are nowhere near what it was like a year ago,” ND principal Jed Jerrells said in his report.

Jerrells highlighted for board members snippets from an independent study done by the Center for Urban and Multi-Cultural Education from the state’s Department of Education. The study looked at all of Indiana’s six schools which have implemented project-based learning in small group settings, including Columbus, Bloomington, Arsenal Tech, Decatur Central, Rochester and ND. Researchers, in about a dozen visits to North Daviess, interviewed students, teachers and patrons in the community to study four topics including, school culture, curriculum, technology and community partnerships.

For the most part researchers were highly complimentary of ND’s progress thus far, criticizing only a few areas. Some room sizes were questioned as well as the double duty for the principal/program director, however teachers in the program were complimented. Researchers, however, said there might be a slight problem with too much direct instruction from teachers. Later this summer, eight 21st Century teachers will be returning for additional training and nine additional teachers will be trained for the new program as well, Jerrells said.

The biggest concern with parents and students at all new tech schools is group grading. At ND, currently 10 percent of a 21st Century student’s grade is for collaboration or group work.

Researchers also recommended a summer stipend be used to pay a staffer to develop an even deeper partnership within the community. ND has already received several thousand dollars in donations from business leaders like Crane Federal Credit Union, EG&G, Rick Streepy and the Daviess County Economic Development Foundation. Also, several Crane employees have offered their time for 21st Century projects and many in-kind donations have been made.

Jerrells told board members other New Tech leaders are “very impressed with what we’ve done in a short time.”

Board member Bud Woodruff said he appreciated the positive feedback, but also hoped to have a way to compare “apples to apples” in the future. Board president Darin Holder said there should be way for ND to track its own trends for the 21st Century program, instead of relying on outside research.

In other business

PERSONNEL

Teacher Russell Dart will be retiring after 37 years of service. “We appreciate all his efforts and hard work for our kids. All his heart and emotion,” Holder commented.

Also, Diane Dayton Matheis resigned as technician/technology trainer and Andrea Sutton was hired for the summer Jump Start program. Sue Dart was also appointed as the Just Say No sponsor at ND Elementary.

BUS CONTRACT

Alda Graber’s bus contract was transferred to her husband, Jack Graber.