Schools in the Forest zone of the Bedford County school division have high student achievement, technology use and parental involvement, but could use some improvement with instruction for special education students and those who speak English as a second language, according to an internal review.
As part of a school renewal process, the Forest zone of the school division examined its own strengths and weaknesses this spring and presented its findings at a school board meeting Thursday afternoon.
School administrators, faculty, staff, teachers and parents were involved in the process.
Mac Duis, principal of Thomas Jefferson Elementary School, said the process both validated that the zone has strengths but also found areas for improvement, such as emphasizing higher-level thinking in students, “not just memorizing.”
“I think folks across our schools learned a lot from this process,” he said Thursday. “It was a great chance to stop and reflect on what we’ve been doing, and how we do it.”
Over the next two years, the Liberty and Staunton River zones of the district also will complete internal reviews.
Also at the meeting Thursday:
- Board members reviewed membership numbers in the school district. As of the spring, the division has 10,661 students, which is 68 fewer than the district had anticipated, said Director of Finance Randy Hagler.
That also is the lowest overall attendance in the district since the 2002-03 school year.
- The board unanimously approved the re-appropriation of about $100,000 left over from the 2007-08 school year. The money will be used to paint the roof at Big Island Elementary School.
- The board also approved a request to bid for the lease-purchase financing of nine school buses.
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