Cape school staff members present program evaluations

The Cape Girardeau School Board heard evaluations of several programs at its Monday meeting, including positive behavior support, transportation and nutrition services.

Sydney Herbst, principal of Clippard Elementary, and Rex Crosnoe, assistant principal of Central Middle School, presented their results of a positive behavior reinforcement program at both schools. The program rewards with individual students, classes and teachers for good behavior with tickets that can be applied to various rewards. At Clippard Elementary, students can help the custodian, go to the counselor for a positive visit or use the principal's chair for a day.

Staff at the schools have spent the past year training and began the program at the start of the year.

Crosnoe said he saw the program was resulting in a better environment at the middle school.

The program requires a three-year commitment. Crosnoe said indicators of how well the program is working in the schools will be evaluated after a year and are based on data from discipline referrals.

Administrative services director Neil Glass gave the board an evaluation on the district's bus transportation program.

According to Glass, communication with the company contracted to provide buses, First Student, has improved with the district since last year, when there were some problems with concerns the district had been addressed in a reasonable amount of time. Glass said after speaking with upper management of First Student that those issues have been resolved and that any concerns the district has are now being responded to promptly.

The program has 1,692 riders this year and costs about $1.3 million.

During an evaluation of the district's nutrition services and wellness program, nutrition services coordinator Lisa Elfrink said all the schools' food services are meeting guidelines set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture but expects new guidelines soon and will need to adjust the program once they are released. Elfrink said physical education activities are also meeting state guidelines.

Overall, Elfrink said she gives the program an average rating because of concerns with foods during some activities and elementary meal times not being long enough.

"There's really not a lot we can do about that because of the constraints of the length of our day, and we do have more children in our district, which has put a lot pressure on our cafeterias because they are not set up to serve that many students, and we are still putting them through in the same 20-minute period," Elfrink said.

She said the district is working around the problems by buying more equipment that will speed up the food service.

Central High School principal Mike Cowan gave an evaluation of the A+ program. Cowan said recent changes in student requirements for the program now that it is under the direction of the Missouri Department of Higher Education instead of the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education will hurt the ability of high school students to use the program.

The program provides scholarships for students to attend two-year community colleges and technical schools in Missouri. To get a scholarship, students must attend a participating school for three years, meet requirements for grade-point average and attendance and perform 50 hours of tutoring or mentoring.

The new requirement will begin with the high school senior class of 2015. According to the Department of Higher Education, students must achieve a score of proficient or advanced on their Algebra I end-of-course exam.

Cowan said the requirement is unfair and would "be a stretch" for some students who attend Central High School.

eragan@semissourian.com

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301 N. Clark Ave., Cape Girardeau, MO