RANGELEY — Two members of the Rangeley Lakes Region School’s leadership task force presented a report to the school board Tuesday night on professional development for the instructional staff.
Principal Charles Brown and Title 1 Coordinator Georgia Campbell made a PowerPoint presentation on six major goals:
• Examine and realign grading practices.
• Define guiding principles for the proficiency-based diploma.
• Identify grade-level content standards.
• Identify assessments that align to student learning outcomes.
• Restructure early-release days to focus on professional development.
• Implement response to the intervention process.
The 11-member team meets twice a month.
Board Chairwoman Nancy Hilliard, Superintendent Susan Pratt, Brown and other staff members recently attended a workshop on teacher effectiveness evaluation that follows the protocols of Robert Marzano. The state has mandated implementing the Marzano program for the 2015-16 school year.
Marzano is co-founder and CEO of Marzano Research Laboratory in Centennial, Colo. He has done educational research and theory on topics that include standards-based assessment, school leadership and development of practical programs and tools for teachers and administrators in K-12 schools.
Pratt said the new laws are complex and cumbersome, necessitating the long preparation.
She also reported that the high school’s nine seniors are conferring with college recruiters and planning trips to various campuses.
The ad hoc building committee met with the architects last week and set up an aggressive schedule for the next four or five months. The board approved calling a meeting of RSU 78 voters on Nov. 25 to consider approving spending $26,600 from the capital reserve fund for architectural services.
The finance committee reviewed expenses to date, including an unexpected $3,000 repair bill following a stove and refrigerator failure in the school kitchen.
The appointment of three winter coaches was approved — Jeff LaRochelle for boys’ basketball, Heidi Deery for girls’ basketball and Tracy Cavalier for cheering.
The board also approved music teacher Erin Smith’s request to take four of her students to the New England Music Festival Solo Association and Ensemble Festival in White River Junction, Vt., on Dec. 5 and 6. The students are Owen Sinclair, Natalie Brooks, Valerie Roy-Lessard and Billie Rogers. Conductors of national and international stature are contracted to lead the students in rehearsal to prepare for two performances.
Rangeley Lakes Regional School has participated in the festival for the past five years.
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