(MITCHELL) – Mitchell Community Schools is making great strides in improving reading and mathematics and not to break that momentum amid COVID-19 and not leave any student behind.
Mitchell Community Schools Assistant Superintendent Dr. Brent Comer said during the Mitchell Community School board meeting Monday evening that the school corporation will be receiving funds to help provide remediation for those students who need extra help in math and reading and will add some technology to support virtual school programming.
The money will help with connectivity and distance learning, but the most exciting part is the money will be used to improve student’s performance in mathematics and literacy bringing all the students to the level where they need to be, Comer added.
“We do not want to have just survived COVID-19; but we want to look back and see that we have thrived through COVID-19,” Dr. Comer said. “The focus of a school is academics even though we fill a lot of other needs for kids in our community, the core of our business is to push academics.”
The Mitchell School Corporation is revamping the math and literacy programs to where it is a true K-12 curriculum.
“Not only does the curriculum have to be revamped but the instructional practices as well,” Comer added. “I do not want people to think that we want our teachers to be robot teachers, no teacher is the same. We want them to teach using their strengths. We want them to teach core practices, and allow these teachers to have the liberty to use their own style in teaching.”
ED Momemtumn is helping the corporation do diagnostic assessments in both math and literacy. From those assessments, Equiptable Education Solutions is creating programs specially designed for Mitchell students.
The initial cost will be around $100,000 and will be paid for with CARE Act funds.
The school corporation reports that classes will begin on Monday with around 20 percent of the students taking part in the virtual format. Most of those students are elementary students.
Mitchell Community Schools is also reporting their projected numbers of student enrollment are up with 30 additional students over last year.
“This is a great reflection of what our staff and teachers are doing in the corporation,” said Dr. Comer.
Superintendent Mike Wilcox states the staff is excited and prepared for the upcoming school year.
