West Side Elementary school is a Title I schoolwide school. Each summer, we reflect on the success that we have had and our challenges in making plans for improvement. We invite family participation in the improvement planning for our school through discussions at PTC meetings and a survey each spring. Below is our Schoolwide Plan for the 2023-24 school year. If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact jroutson@maustonschools.org or 608-847-1828.
West Side Elementary Schoolwide Plan - 2023-24
West Side Elementary School serves students in grades Early Childhood through grade 2. The 2022-2023 enrollment was 276 students with 23.8% being students with disabilities and 69.3% of students identified as Economically Disadvantaged and about 1.8% are English Learners.
Vision for a schoolwide program
The schoolwide plan will strengthen core instruction by providing teachers with initial professional learning in systematic phonics instruction, continued professional development in Units of Study for Reading and Writing, providing teachers with continued professional development to implement Ready Math, and to provide students who struggle with a systematic process of interventions in reading and math.
Improvement Planning - Academic & Engagement
Each summer, the school engages in a data retreat. The school leadership team (which serves as the Title I team) reviews data from state and local assessments, behavior, attendance, and parent and teacher surveys to determine the next steps toward an overall goal of increased student achievement and student engagement in our schools. As part of the retreat, the school develops an improvement plan that includes achievement goals, engagement goals, and action steps for teachers that include professional development to achieve those goals. Input for improvement planning is gathered at PTC meetings and through a parent survey in the spring.
Family Engagement Plan
The school-parent engagement plan includes monthly Family Fun nights, parent-teacher conferences, Parent-Teacher Committee Meetings, newsletters, Facebook posts, posts to families using the SchoolMessenger app, and positive phone calls home.
- Families are invited to attend school conferences three times throughout the school year. The initial conference is a goal-setting conference that involves students and families in setting educational goals for students. These conferences are scheduled for October, January, and April. The principal organizes conferences to make time available during the day and evening for families. When a family can not make a conference during the scheduled time, teachers will work with the family to schedule a time convenient for the family.
- Family Fun Nights are a combined elementary school event held monthly. Each month hosts a different theme to build community and connections between school and family.
- Throughout the school year, teachers make positive contacts home to families. The purpose of these contacts is to build relationships with families, encourage attendance in school, and celebrate learning in a positive way. Teachers are encouraged to communicate with families through social media, apps, the student information system, phone calls, and face to face meeting opportunities.
Schoolwide Plan - Monitoring
This plan will be revisited each August during the District’s annual data retreat. The building leadership team will review data to determine the effectiveness of the previous year’s plan and set goals and strategies for the next school year. Input about family engagement as well as a survey to collect information about engagement from families is collected at the January Family Fun night. In April, families are surveyed about professional learning and improvement planning for their schools which is used during the summer improvement planning sessions. Principals also ask for parent input into professional development and what they would like to see improvements in their schools during PTC meetings.
Coordination
West Side Elementary school coordinates its Title I services with the 21st Century After School program. The after-school program coordinator communicates with the principal and teachers to provide students an additional opportunity to support student learning in the after-school environment.