Blue Ribbon Schools Program s1

U.S. Department of Education
2011 - Blue Ribbon Schools Program
A Public School
School Type (Public Schools):
(Check all that apply, if any) /
Charter /
Title 1 /
Magnet /
Choice

Name of Principal: Mrs. Susan Kaplan

Official School Name: Helen Keller Middle School

School Mailing Address: / 360 Sport Hill Road
Easton, CT 06612-1651
County: Fairfield County / State School Code Number: 0465111
Telephone: (203) 261-3607 / E-mail:
Fax: (203) 452-8403 / Web URL: www.helenkellerps.org

I have reviewed the information in this application, including the eligibility requirements on page 2 (Part I - Eligibility Certification), and certify that to the best of my knowledge all information is accurate.

______Date ______
(Principal’s Signature)

Name of Superintendent*: Dr. Bernard Josefsberg Ed.D. Superintendent e-mail:

District Name: Easton School District District Phone: (203) 261-2513

______Date ______
(Superintendent’s Signature)

Name of School Board President/Chairperson: Dr. Daniel Underberger

______Date ______
(School Board President’s/Chairperson’s Signature)

*Private Schools: If the information requested is not applicable, write N/A in the space.
The original signed cover sheet only should be converted to a PDF file and emailed to Aba Kumi, Blue Ribbon Schools Project Manager () or mailed by expedited mail or a courier mail service (such as Express Mail, FedEx or UPS) to Aba Kumi, Director, Blue Ribbon Schools Program, Office of Communications and Outreach, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave., SW, Room 5E103, Washington, DC 20202-8173.

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PART I - ELIGIBILITY CERTIFICATION / 11CT2

The signatures on the first page of this application certify that each of the statements below concerning the school’s eligibility and compliance with U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) requirements is true and correct.

1. The school has some configuration that includes one or more of grades K-12. (Schools on the same campus with one principal, even K-12 schools, must apply as an entire school.)

2. The school has made adequate yearly progress each year for the past two years and has not been identified by the state as "persistently dangerous" within the last two years.

3. To meet final eligibility, the school must meet the state's Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) requirement in the 2010-2011 school year. AYP must be certified by the state and all appeals resolved at least two weeks before the awards ceremony for the school to receive the award.

4. If the school includes grades 7 or higher, the school must have foreign language as a part of its curriculum and a significant number of students in grades 7 and higher must take the course.

5. The school has been in existence for five full years, that is, from at least September 2005.

6. The nominated school has not received the Blue Ribbon Schools award in the past five years: 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 or 2010.

7. The nominated school or district is not refusing OCR access to information necessary to investigate a civil rights complaint or to conduct a district-wide compliance review.

8. OCR has not issued a violation letter of findings to the school district concluding that the nominated school or the district as a whole has violated one or more of the civil rights statutes. A violation letter of findings will not be considered outstanding if OCR has accepted a corrective action plan from the district to remedy the violation.

9. The U.S. Department of Justice does not have a pending suit alleging that the nominated school or the school district as a whole has violated one or more of the civil rights statutes or the Constitution’s equal protection clause.

10. There are no findings of violations of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in a U.S. Department of Education monitoring report that apply to the school or school district in question; or if there are such findings, the state or district has corrected, or agreed to correct, the findings.

PART II - DEMOGRAPHIC DATA / 11CT2

All data are the most recent year available.

DISTRICT

1. / Number of schools in the district: / 1 / Elementary schools
(per district designation) / 1 / Middle/Junior high schools
0 / High schools
0 / K-12 schools
2 / Total schools in district
2. / District per-pupil expenditure: / 14674

SCHOOL (To be completed by all schools)

3. / Category that best describes the area where the school is located: / Small city or town in a rural area
4. / Number of years the principal has been in her/his position at this school: / 1
5. / Number of students as of October 1, 2010 enrolled at each grade level or its equivalent in applying school:
Grade / # of Males / # of Females / Grade Total / # of Males / # of Females / Grade Total
PreK / 0 / 0 / 0 / 6 / 81 / 60 / 141
K / 0 / 0 / 0 / 7 / 60 / 59 / 119
1 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 8 / 70 / 66 / 136
2 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 9 / 0 / 0 / 0
3 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 10 / 0 / 0 / 0
4 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 11 / 0 / 0 / 0
5 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 12 / 0 / 0 / 0
Total in Applying School: / 396

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6. / Racial/ethnic composition of the school: / 0 / % American Indian or Alaska Native
3 / % Asian
1 / % Black or African American
4 / % Hispanic or Latino
0 / % Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
87 / % White
5 / % Two or more races
100 / % Total

Only the seven standard categories should be used in reporting the racial/ethnic composition of your school. The final Guidance on Maintaining, Collecting, and Reporting Racial and Ethnic data to the U.S. Department of Education published in the October 19, 2007 Federal Register provides definitions for each of the seven categories.

7. / Student turnover, or mobility rate, during the 2009-2010 school year: / 2%
This rate is calculated using the grid below. The answer to (6) is the mobility rate.
(1) / Number of students who transferred to the school after October 1, 2009 until the end of the school year. / 4
(2) / Number of students who transferred from the school after October 1, 2009 until the end of the school year. / 3
(3) / Total of all transferred students [sum of rows (1) and (2)]. / 7
(4) / Total number of students in the school as of October 1, 2009 / 384
(5) / Total transferred students in row (3)
divided by total students in row (4). / 0.02
(6) / Amount in row (5) multiplied by 100. / 2
8. / Percent limited English proficient students in the school: / 0%
Total number of limited English proficient students in the school: / 0
Number of languages represented, not including English: / 0
Specify languages:

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9. / Percent of students eligible for free/reduced-priced meals: / 1%
Total number of students who qualify: / 4
If this method does not produce an accurate estimate of the percentage of students from low-income families, or the school does not participate in the free and reduced-priced school meals program, supply an accurate estimate and explain how the school calculated this estimate.
10. / Percent of students receiving special education services: / 9%
Total number of students served: / 36
Indicate below the number of students with disabilities according to conditions designated in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Do not add additional categories.
3 / Autism / 0 / Orthopedic Impairment
0 / Deafness / 9 / Other Health Impaired
0 / Deaf-Blindness / 15 / Specific Learning Disability
0 / Emotional Disturbance / 6 / Speech or Language Impairment
0 / Hearing Impairment / 0 / Traumatic Brain Injury
1 / Mental Retardation / 0 / Visual Impairment Including Blindness
2 / Multiple Disabilities / 0 / Developmentally Delayed
11. / Indicate number of full-time and part-time staff members in each of the categories below:
Number of Staff
Full-Time / Part-Time
Administrator(s) / 2 / 0
Classroom teachers / 22 / 0
Special resource teachers/specialists / 14 / 1
Paraprofessionals / 8 / 1
Support staff / 9 / 1
Total number / 55 / 3
12. / Average school student-classroom teacher ratio, that is, the number of students in the school divided by the Full Time Equivalent of classroom teachers, e.g., 22:1: / 20:1

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13. / Show the attendance patterns of teachers and students as a percentage. Only high schools need to supply graduation rates. Briefly explain in the Notes section any student or teacher attendance rates under 95% and teacher turnover rates over 12% and fluctuations in graduation rates.
2009-2010 / 2008-2009 / 2007-2008 / 2006-2007 / 2005-2006
Daily student attendance / 97% / 97% / 97% / 97% / 97%
Daily teacher attendance / 96% / 96% / 96% / 96% / 96%
Teacher turnover rate / 8% / 11% / 6% / 6% / 6%
High school graduation rate / 0% / 0% / 0% / 0% / 0%
If these data are not available, explain and provide reasonable estimates.
14. / For schools ending in grade 12 (high schools): Show what the students who graduated in Spring 2010 are doing as of Fall 2010.
Graduating class size: / 0
Enrolled in a 4-year college or university / 0 / %
Enrolled in a community college / 0 / %
Enrolled in vocational training / 0 / %
Found employment / 0 / %
Military service / 0 / %
Other / 0 / %
Total / 0 / %

PART III - SUMMARY / 11CT2

Helen Keller Middle School is one of five schools that comprisethe Easton-Redding-Region 9 school community. The mission of the Easton-Redding-Region 9 school community, an educational partnership of families, staff and two towns striving for excellence, is to nurture and inspire all students to realize their potential and to become self-sustaining, contributing members of a diverse, continuously changing society. This mission is accomplished by providing a challenging, dynamic and enriching education that cultivates the unique talents of each student and fosters personal integrity, intellectual curiosity, individual wellbeing and civic responsibility.

Helen Keller Middle School has a proud tradition of excellence in both academic and extra-curricular activities. There are currently 396 sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students enrolled at Helen Keller Middle School. It is set in a rural town in Southwestern Connecticut with a population of approximately 7,500 residents. This reputation is based on strong academic achievement, a dedicated and well-trained staff, and a high level of parent and community support and involvement.

Helen Keller Middle School was named after the deaf and blind activist, Helen Keller, who died in 1968 at the age of 87 in her Easton, Connecticut home, where she chose to spend her final days. The staff at Helen Keller Middle School invokes the spirit and personal characteristics of this remarkable woman in teaching students about perseverance and the importance of hard work in the face of adversities. For example, at the beginning of each school year, Mrs. Parker, the principal, challenged the entire study body to live up to the attributes of our namesake. Consequently, a genuine commitment to academic excellence and an equally strong emphasis on character development and good citizenship permeate the culture of Helen Keller Middle School.

The Blue Ribbon nomination is testimony to the school wide focus on helping each child reach his/her full academic potential. Every staff member monitors the academic progress of each child closely, differentiates instruction as needed, and maintains close contact with parents/guardians via classroom and grade level newsletters as well as phone calls and meetings. This commitment to each child is especially evident at the grade level team meetings and Child Study Team meetings; classroom teachers and support staff review instructional strategies that have been effective with students, and they challenge themselves to develop alternative ways to address the needs of children who are struggling. A visitor to one of these meetings would hear staff members ask, “What else can we do to help this child?”

However, the academic achievement of our students is only part of the Helen Keller Middle School success story. This is a vibrant community where students take ownership of many events that have become important traditions in the community that encourage boys and girls to be productive citizens. Every year, the students organize the December Toy Drive for an inner city elementary school in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The entire student body donates and wraps hundreds of toys; our students eagerly tally the number of toys that are donated and then, fifty 8th graders are chosen to travel to an elementary school in Bridgeport to meet with the children and distribute the toys. Students consider it a privilege to be selected to be part of the group that hands out the toys to the children in Bridgeport. Our 6th, 7th and 8th graders participate in many other activities that demonstrate good citizenship, such as the Food Drive for the needy families in surrounding communities, Gang Green (an environmental club), and the annual Pancake Breakfast for the entire Easton, Connecticut community. At this sold out annual event, the students decorate the cafetorium, cook in the school kitchen, and serve the pancakes to our hungry guests on a Saturday morning in November.