News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sisters High School gave itself a good grade on the first "community report card" sent home to parents May 1.
The report card rates the school's success in: creating a caring community; setting and achieving high standards; making learning positive and engaging; and helping students enter the wider world feeling confident and capable.
SHS rated itself "strong" in all areas; "exceptional" in setting high standards.
The criteria were developed out of a series of community-school forums that began last fall, and were refined by the Sisters High School Site Council, made up of teacher, student and parent representatives.
The report card provides a detailed examination of the strengths of the school, along with an analysis of areas that need improvement.
The report noted that SHS is a safe place, where students show a high degree of respect for each other and where students are involved in a variety of activities.
The report also noted that a mentoring program should be developed to enhance student-staff relationships and support and that a program to honor teacher achievement needs to be established.
Sisters High School considers its academic program "rigorous," demanding achievement at a high level. The report card asserts that Sisters students face a grading scale that is more challenging than most other schools.
Alternative learning programs to assist students who are falling below state standards need to be established and facilities need to be improved, the report states.
The report also indicates that the constant need to raise funds to maintain programs and activities is taking a toll on staff, students and community volunteers.
The report gives high marks to Sisters' learning environment and urges continuing efforts to bring relevancy into the curriculum in the teaching of core subjects.
"The bottom line is that Sisters High (School) is and will continue to be one of the top high schools in the state," the report card states.
The community report card was developed at least in part in response to Department of Education-issued report cards, which rated Sisters schools "satisfactory."
Sisters High School principal Boyd Keyser argues that the state criteria are too narrow and do not reflect the quality of education provided.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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