Coginchaug R.H.S.  Site Plan 2008-2013

(School Improvement Plan Appears After This Description)

Last year the school implemented its Site Plan, a five-year initiative created by the high school community which was an engaging, collaborative, and inclusive process. It was informed by current research and used the core ethical values and beliefs of the district and the school about learning. Seven Action Plans were completed this past year. This detailed plan  maintains and improves the high standards Coginchaug holds. Coginchaug's Team Leaders and Professional Development Committee meet every year with Carol Luckenbach and Dr. Steve Wysowski to incorporate the Tactics and Action Steps for the up-coming year into the school's professional development plan.

For the past 12 years, Coginchaug's direction has been guided by a Site Plan which coincides with the implementation of the District's Strategic Plan while addressing the specific needs at the high school. Coginchaug is the only school in District 13 that has a Site Plan. This is a five year blueprint that gives the school the foundation to both maintain and continue to strive for higher standards over the next few years. As in the past, the school's goal is to implement new strategies and initiatives primarily based on this plan. Incorporated into Coginchaug's Site Plan are state mandates and directives from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.  Programs are implemented that are thought out thoroughly and planned well ahead of time with significant input from all of the constituents and stakeholders of the entire District 13 community.

To formulate such a plan, a representative group was assembled and met in October 2007 to create a draft plan. The group consisted of students, teachers, staff, parents, community members, Andre Hauser, Assistant Principal, Dr. Steve Wysowski, Principal, and an external facilitator who was assisted by two internal facilitators, Carol Luckenbach, Curriculum/Professional Development Director and Amy Emory, Pupil Personnel Director. The plan includes objectives and tactics that will be used to guide the school in achieving these goals and a new mission statement:

The mission of Coginchaug Regional High School is to ensure that each student graduates prepared to successfully meet the demands and the challenges of a constantly changing world by committing to high academic standards and meaningful, innovative learning opportunities in a supportive safe environment that promotes collaboration, self reliance, ethical behavior and civic engagement.

The planning team created objectives to achieve the desired results. The first objective is that all students will graduate having met district Lifelong Learning Standards and the second is that all students will embody the Core Ethical Values. These Core Ethical Values are the social expectations of the school. The planning team then formulated tactics that are statements of what will be done to achieve that mission and those objectives. The tactics are:

•    We will align and integrate initiatives and effectively involve the faculty in the school's decision-making process.

•    We will improve internal and external communication to unite the Coginchaug Community in achieving the mission and objectives.

•    We will actively engage each student in the curricular, co-curricular, social and emotional life of the school.

•     We will explore the educational uses of emerging technologies and integrate them within the curriculum.

•     We will clarify the Lifelong Learning Standards (21st Century learning expectations) throughout the Coginchaug Community and finalize the means of assessing and reporting student progress toward those standards.

 In the second phase of the Plan, Action Teams were developed in 2008 to achieve these tactics. Each Action Team was assigned one tactic to develop specific  action steps that would be implemented over the next five years. These Action Plans were later presented to the Site Planning Team, the Superintendent and the Coginchaug faculty. They were accepted on April 30, 2008, and are currently in use.

A unique and exciting aspect of Coginchaug's Site Plan is the inclusion of students, parents and community members who feel well represented in what Coginchaug does. The plan, which supports the district level Strategic Plan, is not only well known to our staff but is also widely known to students and parents as well. Region 13 has been very deliberate in setting goals for its future. In setting those goals there is a rich tradition of including the appropriate stakeholders for a broad perspective. Coginchaug's Site Plan is evidence of that planning and cooperation.

In addition the District has revised its Lifelong Learning Benchmarks to align with the work of the Partnership for 21st Century Learning. The District Curriculum Council spent the 2008-2009 school year studying various models for 21st century skills and evaluated and revised the District Lifelong Learning Benchmarks accordingly.

For the 2009-2010 School Year, Coginchaug will be working on the following three Action Plans:

•     Provide diverse and relevant professional development opportunities for teachers and staff in the area of technology.

•     Provide staff training in differentiated instruction and learning styles.

•     Increase opportunities for communication and collaboration within departments and across disciplines.

School Improvement Plan

School Improvement Plan

Building: Coginchaug                                                                                   School Year:2009-2010

School Improvement Goal(s):

• Improve student learning for our students who are at greatest risk for failure.
• We have also identified reading across the content areas and persuasive writing as skills that we need to work on along with specific areas within the disciplines tested to improve CAPT scores next year.