JACKSONVILLE — A new alternative learning education facility opened Wednesday when the 2019-20 school year started for the Jacksonville North Pulaski School District.
A former furniture store on John Harden Drive was converted into the ALE facility. On the south side of the building is the Titan Learning Center, with four classrooms — two each for middle school and high school students. On the north end of the building is the HUB Center. The two centers have a capacity of 60 students each.
Approximately 30 students attended the ALE school on the first day of classes.
“Of all the things we’ve done, this is the best,” said Jake Smith, director of student services and federal programs for the Jacksonville North Pulaski School District. “[Jacksonville Assistant Superintendent Tiffany Bone] really took the lead on this, getting it initiated. We looked at a few properties and visited a couple of ALE facilities in the area and looked at how they are done. Then we partnered with the Arch Ford Co-op.”
The Arch Ford Education Service Cooperative is in Plumerville and serves schools in Pulaski, Faulkner, Conway, Pope, Yell, Perry, Van Buren and Cleburne counties.
Smith said the former furniture building will house ALE classes for students in grades six through 12. ALE students in elementary school will continue to attend classes at Bobby G. Lester Elementary School.
“From the facilities standpoint, we had a blank slate,” Smith said. “We’ve had guys working in there all summer. They completely stripped it out, ripped up the floor, put in new carpet and tile, new walls and painted it. It looks like a brand-new place in there.”
Smith said the district had to build new bathroom facilities to support the students and staff who will be using the school.
“They didn’t have the capacity for the plumbing,” he said. “There was one restroom because it was a furniture store. We had to bust up some concrete to hook into pre-existing plumbing so we could have adequate bathroom facilities. It’s a good place.”
Smith said the ALE program for the 2019-20 school year will cost $556,000 out of ALE money, not out of the district’s operating budget. Cheesa Williams, marketing and communications coordinator for the Jacksonville North Pulaski School District, said the school spent $100,000 to renovate the former furniture store into the ALE facility.
“This is for students who are in need of extra behavioral support,” Smith said. “One of the things in the procedure manual, the students over there — one of the things they need is a lot of positive reinforcement.”
Smith said that when the high school and middle school administrators and counselors come to the Titan Learning Center to visit their students, it’s all about encouraging them.
“A lot of of times at the school, you find yourself frequently reminding students to go to class, pull their pants up … all the little things,” he said. “The good thing about this is when an administrator goes over there, their only responsibility is to go encourage that student, check out grades and attendance, and check on any issues the student might have and encourage them.”
Smith said the goal for any student in ALE is to get back to regular classes.
Additionally, Smith said, the HUB class is for students who are falling or have fallen behind on credits that they need to graduate.
“It is for students who need flexible scheduling,” Smith said. “Those students don’t keep the traditional 8 to 4, five-days-a-week class schedule like the other students do. A lot of work is done independently, and they report one or two days a week, when they come in and meet with the teacher. The rest of the time, they are working independently.”
Smith said there were five students in the HUB class the first day of school.
“We wanted to be able to build it and make it function the way it should,” he said. “We could create the culture with a smaller class, and as we identify students, the first nine weeks or first semester, who are struggling academically with attendance. Or this might work with their work schedule or home situation. It may be a good fit in the HUB site.”
Smith said the district will conduct a placement meeting, and if a student qualifies, the district will develop an individual action plan for that student and move him or her into the HUB setting.
Smith said the partnership with Arch Ford Co-op to staff the ALE school is good for both parties involved.
“It is definitely a partnership,” he said.
Jason Burkman, director of Arch Ford, said cooperatives provide services to school districts in whatever capacity is needed.
“In this case, Jacksonville wanted us to duplicate the model program we have at Conway,” he said. “That is how we took the staffing portion of it on.”
Burkman said he’s pleased with the setup in Jacksonville.
“We staff our programs according to what standards require, and we also enter a mental-health partnership to provide wrap-around support services for those students as well,” Burkman said.
Burkman said education programs at the ALE use multiple avenues to nurture an environment that is conducive to learning and takes into consideration the individual student’s learning style.
“Our staff members use project-based learning as a hands-on approach and rotate themes for projects — fine arts, international studies, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and community service — in an attempt to try to engage the learner and figure out what areas the students are more interested in exploring more in detail,” Burkman said. “We also use a variety of online resources, including APEX, Google Classroom and Kahn Academy Classrooms. Our curriculum is customized to promote the success of each student.”
Staff writer Mark Buffalo can be reached at (501) 399-3676 or mbuffalo@arkansasonline.com.