Dear Friends,
As an educator, it has always been my mission to include all children – regardless of ability level, family background or socio-economic status – in the learning process. My path has consistently focused on students with special needs and challenges: both my bachelors and master’s degrees are in special education, and I served as Director of the Florida Diagnostic and Learning Resources System (FDLRS) for several years. This is a mission held close to my heart.
It is for this reason I want to share what we do at Turning Point, Jefferson County Schools’ Alternative Education Center. Under the direction of Principal Jackie Pons and the leadership of Assistant Principal Dan Moore, the school is moving along a positive trajectory of targeted support, effective coordination and desirable outcomes.
The purpose of Turning Point is to provide students who have difficulty succeeding academically and/or behaviorally in a traditional school setting with an education setting that is tailored to meet their individual needs. All students are given specific accommodations to help them succeed in the classroom and beyond.
At Turning Point, for example, students work on credit recovery and sign behavior contracts that help them work towards getting back into the traditional school setting.
Interesting, though, is that we do have some students who choose to stay at Turning Point because of the structure, small numbers and limited distractions. We support students’ decisions to stay, commending them for analyzing problem areas and working on solutions that help them avoid repeating past problems.
I am personally very excited that Turning Point is evolving into a successful alternative model, and we embrace the lessons that administrators and students are learning along the way.
As always, please contact me if you have concerns, questions or just want to share.
You must be logged in to post a comment.