http://www.dearbornacademy.org
At Dearborn, we deliver highly individualized and small-group academic instruction, clinical services, and social enrichment. Our students also enjoy offerings such as shop, art, physical education, and adventure-based learning. Our goal is for each of our students to build strong academic and social skills, to experience the transforming power of education, and to develop confidence in themselves academically, socially, and personally. Dearborn Academy is a program of Schools for Children, Inc., a non-profit organization committed to creating and sustaining high quality schools, curricula, and other education programs and services.
http://www.willierossschool.org
The Willie Ross School for the Deaf is a small school with an ambitious mission and a rich history. The focus of the school, since its founding by parents in 1967, has been on providing quality programs and services to the deaf or hard-of-hearing students that it serves. Willie Ross has always invested in student programs before facilities and has long acknowledged that its human resources are the most precious resource that it possesses. In the mid-1960's, a group of parents came together, united by the needs of their children who had been deafened by the rubella epidemic that swept the eastern seaboard. Their common goal was to ensure that the best possible educational programs and services were available for their children. From the initial establishment of the parent group, they shared a common goal: to have their children live at home, and they realized, well before their time, that inclusion must begin with the family before it can occur at a school. At the time, residential placement for all deaf children was the prevailing option. When the existing programs did not welcome their vision of the benefits of a day placement, they were undaunted by the rejection. The parents, confident of their decision, moved ahead and established their own day school. They recognized that it is the families' responsibility, before it is the school's, to ensure that we leave no child behind. They were united in their goal that, first, their children would be full and contributing members of their families. They were secure in their knowledge that an appropriate education would be the means to ensure that their children would become full and contributing members of their communities. As a result of their efforts, the Willie Ross School for the Deaf first opened its doors in 1967. The legacy of their vision and their dedication to improving the lives of their children through education serves as the school's beacon to this day. A tenet of the founders' legacy is the recognition that instructional models must evolve as the needs of the students that they serve evolve. They realized that a school's history, even before Willie Ross had a history, can help guide the development of new models, but a simple preservation of historical approaches cannot promote students' educational success. They learned from the residential schools' resistance to the establishment of a day program that parents must be advocates for their children to ensure they receive the most appropriate programming. The commitment to recognizing the value of different approaches is demonstrated by the ongoing development of the Willie Ross model. For example, Willie Ross began as an oral school, but over time the limitations of an oral-only approach became clear to the members of the Willie Ross community. Rather than abandon the approach completely, sign language was integrated into the methodology, and Willie Ross adopted a simultaneous communication approach. The value of both sign and spoken language was recognized. Over time, the Willie Ross School has integrated other communication approaches, as well, to enhance students' access to the instructional model. The advancements in the utilization of residual hearing through digital hearing aids, FM classroom auditory training system, and cochlear implants have been recognized and maximized in a fashion that cannot occur when only a single method is available. The value of integration for deaf students with hearing students was understood, and the value of integrating approaches to enhance instruction was adopted. This foundation led to Willie Ross's development of the dual-campus model. The school offers a center-based educational environment at its Longmeadow Campus. The Partnership Campus, housed in the East Longmeadow Public Schools, offers mainstreaming opportunities for for Willie Ross students. Willie Ross also recognizes and supports the notion that not all children with a hearing loss should be placed in a school for the deaf. Drawing on that belief, the school established its Outreach Division which provides services from infancy through age twenty-two. Whether it is a toddler, identified through universal newborn screening and being served at home, or high school students, receiving tutoring at their home schools, our services are there assisting them with their studies. The school recognizes that certain students with a hearing loss can be placed in their local school. The Outreach Division provides the support and specialization that is needed to ensure that the academic environment is responsive to the students' needs. The Outreach Division sponsors the Laurin Audiological Center, located in Pittsfield, made possible by the generosity of one of our Trustees. The cities of Springfield and Pittsfield receive extensive audiological support for their students with a hearing loss who attend their local public schools. The Curtis L. Blake Center for Audiological Services at the Longmeadow Campus services the students in the western part of the state and the Laurin Center services the students in Berkshire County. Willie Ross has grown, Willie Ross has changed, and Willie Ross will continue to search for and introduce improved instructional methods. The school welcomes all of its students by responding to their needs. The Willie Ross community celebrates the diversity of our students and recognizes that no single approach or method is appropriate for all students. We will embrace the differences by offering programs which are student driven and not insulated from change because of history. The mission of the Willie Ross School for the Deaf has always been and always will be to provide the best possible program to its students. Innovation was our history, and innovation is our future.
http://www.lwcharterschools.com
If LWCS decides to do an IB Charter School at LWHS it will be a "school within a school", and if LWCS is successful the IB Charter School will begin with the 2006-2007 school year. Because this is a new Charter it would mean $400,000 of start-up funds over two years. Should McLaughlin decide to go charter, LWCS would then have the middle school conversion and would be going for three (3) new charters. This would be able to step-up the education for all levels of our students. Ms. Dunson noted the IB curricula could be used across the schools. School not with IB would be stepped up for performing arts and it would raise the educational academia for all schools. Richard Howell questioned the urgency to move forward. Dr. Wright explained that PCSB was looking at an IB program in the East side of the school district. If we have the program we can pull other students from other cities. If we don't our students will leave to go to the IB program that is closer to them. Our students are now attending Bartow Elementary Academy, Union Academy and Bartow IB School. Much discussion evolved surrounding the inception of the IB programs K-12 for LWCS. Dr. Wright stated that we needed to do a charter 9-12 for the "school within a school" for the high school. The Superintendent recommended the following: 1) not doing an IB school within a school at McLaughlin if they join LWCS; 2) going with a separate middle start-up school away from McLaughlin for the IB middle school. This would allow LWCS to place its career path curriculum at McLaughlin along with the performing arts to make these areas stronger. The start-up IB middle school would be the flow for the students coming out of Polk Avenue and we would attract Lake Wales' students back from Union Academy.
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