Lampeter-Strasburg Principal Provides Update on School Goals and Planning Initiatives | Community news

When: Lampeter-Strasburg school council meeting, November 16, in person and broadcast live.

What happened: Principal Benjamin Feeney provided an update on the three comprehensive high school planning goals and initiatives to support them.

Objective 1: Support the socio-emotional needs of students and staff. Teen Hope, a mental health screening program for ninth graders is taking place this week. The high school will increase Student Assistance Program resources to help students who are experiencing barriers to learning by giving more hours to the assessor. School counseling services will increase so that students do not have to leave school. The school will strengthen the Counseling and Link Crew programs to ease the transition to high school.

Quotable: “It becomes a coveted role to become a mentor for some of the younger students,” said Feeney, referring to the freshmen who mentor the freshmen.

Objective 2: Meet the academic needs of all students, including subgroups. Management plans to develop a specialization program. Additional education will be offered to students to meet graduation requirements through pathways instead of exams as an alternative. Administrators will check academic offerings from all departments to ensure they match students’ post-secondary plans, whether professional, military, or college.

Objective 3: Provide students with tools to succeed in high school and beyond. As part of student graduation plans, the school offers Xello, an online program to “help students chart their way” toward achieving graduation goals, Feeney said.

Also: Feeney also mentioned that a recent activity fair increased the number of student body registrations in school clubs. In addition, teacher professional development included training on new student performance measures, a wellness workshop, and sessions on understanding refugees, simulating poverty, building empathy, and understanding refugees. technology.

Testing: Andrew Godfrey reported the results of the diagnostic test in class. The test is given three times a year to assess students’ progress towards end-of-year results. The first test usually shows what appear to be low grades, although they are in line with learning expectations.

Outgoing: The terms of board members Scott Kimmel and Patricia Pontz expire this year. “It was truly an honor,” said Pontz. “LS is a very special place, and we’ve been fortunate to have such a strong board and administration. My children have personally benefited from it and I have benefited from it, and I wish you all the best of luck for the future.