KANSAS CITY, Mo. — In an effort to boost academic performance, a Hickman Mills School is trying out a year-round model where students are back in the classroom during the summer months.
The program was approved by the district earlier this year and kicked off on June 12. It’s being paid for through a variety of state and local funds as well as federal COVID relief funds meant to support learning loss.
“We have a brand new staff so everybody's excited to be here and it's funneled down to the children and they are excited to be here,” said Dr. Michelle McDaniel, principal at Ingles Elementary School.
The year-round program calls for students to attend school during the summer months. It will add a total of 32 additional days of school with breaks scattered in between. Back in April, the school hired 80% of their teaching staff, teachers who wanted to stay and work the additional 33 instructional days had to re-interview. One of those teachers is LaVonna Woods, who said the program gave her the opportunity to take her time and not rush through material.
"I often find myself kind of rushing through curriculum, because we have to be on a timed schedule, but I wanted to experience this for myself and as well as my students and really dig into some of those areas,” Woods said.
Ripping a page out of a Californian school, the year-round program incorporates a World of Work framework where student focus on career interest like TV reporting.
As for students, they say the year-round program gives them the chance to be on the same page with everyone else, and while the goal is to generate academic success, this new chapter also holds a deeper promise.
"I want to graduate, so best start here and try to make it to the top,” student Joseph Jacobs said.
The school says so far, 300 enrolled students 180 to 200 students are showing up daily. School staff says they're doing their best to talk to parents and post fliers to stress the importance of taking part in this extension.
