Open Enrollment (School Choice)

Presented to School Board

By: Eric Knight

The question that needs to be answered: How do we continue to gain open enrolled students and keep our own?

Reasons students open enroll to new schools.

1. Class Availability2. Technological Resources3. Personal Attention4. Discipline Problems

Reasons to Leave

Continue to develop our curriculum basis. Remain a leader in technology. Offer possible different educational settings

(High Plains Alternative School & Cyber School)

Continue to develop our staff (11 staff members currently hold a master’s degree)

Get parents involved and communicate with them about their students.

How do we keep our students?

Have teachers send positive notes home for students frequently.

Teachers should schedule convenient meeting and conference times to allow parent participation.

Involve parents in positive experiences in school and get them involved when a problem arises with their child.

Teachers can help!

The new football field, track, concession area, locker rooms, and ag/shop facility quality improvements.

One to one computer with new computers for Freshman and Sophomores.

Clean, warm, inviting, and safe school is a large factor in student feeling welcome.

Quality Resources

We have multiple surveys each year to ask the parents, teachers, and students what they enjoy and don’t like.

These surveys are presented at in-services for teachers and addressed at board meetings.

Teachers and the board look at ways to improve the dislike categories and ways to build on things that are liked.

How do we know what people like?

Continue to offer busing stops in border districts.

Sell our Alternative school and Cyber school to those people that could utilize these programs.

Continue to recognize all student successes and the successes of students that have already graduated.

How do we gain numbers through open enrollment?

Keep our smaller class size, even if that means adding sections in the elementary or adding to high school teacher load.

Offer individualized opportunity for students that have special needs.

Continued

Allow new families to have a mentor family in the community for questions and concerns.

Honor community members that give back to the school system.

The community can offer great resources of the school to keep students and gain students (volunteering, mentoring, and money gifts)

What role does the community play?

http://sunshinereview.org/index.php/South_Dakota_school_system

http://madvilletimes.blogspot.com/2010/05/south-dakota-open-enrollment-winners.html

http://www.senate.mo.gov/jced/Open.Enrollment.Report-12.16.2009.pdf

Resources