School of Innovation plans for move to new Springdale campus

Joe Rollins (center), principal at Don Tyson School of Innovation, gives a tour April 21 of the new campus with John Nappier (right) with Freight Farms and Jerry Martin with Vet Veggie in Springdale.
Joe Rollins (center), principal at Don Tyson School of Innovation, gives a tour April 21 of the new campus with John Nappier (right) with Freight Farms and Jerry Martin with Vet Veggie in Springdale.

SPRINGDALE -- A new school year for the Don Tyson School of Innovation will come with the addition of an online program, a move to a permanent campus and a greater focus on career education.

"This is the realization of a dream," said Joe Rollins, principal of the school, while recently giving a tour of the 143,000-square-foot building under construction on Hylton Road in east Springdale.

Don Tyson School of Innovation

• Number of students: 345 eighth- and ninth-graders

• Race and ethnicity: 50 percent white, 38 percent Hispanic, 6 percent Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, 3 percent black, 2 percent Asian, 1 percent American Indian

• Students learning English: 19 percent of student body

• Special education: 2 percent of student body

• Students from low-income families: 57 percent of student body

Source: Kelly Hayes, comptroller for Springdale School District

The School of Innovation started two years ago with about 200 eighth-graders at the Jones Center. This year it has 345 eighth-graders and freshmen. It's a demonstration site for a series of projects the Springdale School District is implementing to personalize education using some money from a federal four-year Race to the Top grant of $25.88 million.

The School of Innovation is operating as a program of the district's four junior high schools and two high schools. The Arkansas Department of Education granted the program waivers from some state regulations through a "school of innovation" law, so students can advance through courses at a faster pace.

The School of Innovation will become a conversion charter school in August, meaning it's run by the School District. Through the conversion charter, school and district leaders are developing a Virtual Institute that will be open to students from across the state and will give School of Innovation students options for face-to-face instruction, online instruction or a combination of both.

Students who live in the School District can enroll in the School of Innovation, whether they're interested in attending the physical campus, taking all their classes through the Virtual Institute or a combination, said Megan Witonski, associate superintendent for curriculum and instruction.

Students who live outside the district and want to attend the School of Innovation or its Virtual Institute must apply for a transfer into the district. The deadline is Sunday under the state's Public School Choice Act. An application form is available through the School of Innovation website.

Students who miss the deadline must get approval from the school board of their home district to transfer to Springdale, Witonski said. Springdale officials would have to coordinate with other school districts for any student wanting to take some online courses through the School of Innovation while remaining in their home districts, she said.

The School of Innovation anticipates having a student body of about 600 eighth-graders, freshmen and sophomores on its physical campus in the new school year, said Mark Oesterle, an assistant principal.

With its charter status, the School of Innovation also plans for 50 to 100 students to enroll in the Virtual Institute in the eighth through 12th grades, though the charter allows for as many as 2,000 students, Oesterle said. Plans are to phase in online courses for younger students over the next several years, he said.

"It is definitely thinking on a different plane," Oesterle said. "We've now got options that weren't available."

The online program will accommodate elite athletes who travel, medically fragile children who are homebound or students in home schools, Oesterle said. The online program will support the district's junior high and high schools when students need to catch up on graduation credits, want to take extra classes or need a class not offered at their campuses.

A virtual instructor will guide students through their coursework, Witonski said.

Students taking all their classes online will have opportunities to participate in sports and other school activities, Witonski said.

Because this is the first time Springdale will have online classes open to students from across the state, district spokesman Rick Schaeffer said the district spent $17,000 of its communications budget to advertise the School of Innovation in print and broadcast media.

Some aspects of the School of Innovation will remain the same at the new campus, Oesterle said. Each student will continue to have a school-issued laptop and receive assignments and submit work through an online platform.

Students will continue to learn through projects and solving problems, activities forcing students to think and apply knowledge, Oesterle said. Teachers will help students make connections with what they are learning at school to what happens in the real world or in a job.

"It's taking those stepping stones from these first few years and now refining that into a real high-quality model," Oesterle said.

Rollins envisions a bright campus to "create creativity," with halls and corridors also used as learning spaces, he said.

About two-thirds of the building will be ready in August, with the remainder set to open in January, he said. The front offices, cafeteria, art classrooms and three of six career education labs will be ready for the fall semester.

Each career lab is close to a large open classroom where students will go for math, science, English and history, Rollins said

Teachers will have desks in a large workroom near the open classroom. Teachers will plan together so they integrate class content, Rollins said.

The three career labs opening first will house the Environmental and Spatial Technology program; robotics and industrial technology; and skilled trades and construction.

The three labs opening in January will be for medical sciences; business, transportation, information technology and logistics; and science, technology, engineering and math, that will touch on agriculture and the environment.

In the new school year, students will take courses in three 110-minute blocks, Oesterle said. They will complete English and history courses in a humanities block, math and science courses in another block and have a final block for electives.

Courses are sequenced so students will spend their first three years completing most high school graduation requirements, Oesterle said. The last two years will give students options to take college courses, pursue industry certifications or work. Seniors will be expected to finish a senior portfolio and a capstone project.

NW News on 04/30/2016

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