Miner Elementary - A Year of Progress & Looking Ahead

Dear Miner Families, Teachers, and Staff,
​
As we enter the final stretch of the 2015/16 school year and look toward next year, we would like to take a moment to stop and reflect on all the amazing things this school has accomplished working together. All of this has been possible because this year we intentionally set out to increase the collaboration between families, teachers, staff, and the school administration.

Below is a short list of our accomplishments and attached is a much longer list of what we have done this year and what we plan to do next year. It is amazing what we can do when we work together toward our common goal of making Miner a truly great school!

• Increased family participation and support // two wildly successful fundraisers, great PTO meeting attendance, a holiday toy/clothes drive, and multiple teacher appreciation events.
• Improved communication and outreach // including a revitalized website, Facebook page and Twitter feeds (school & PTO); monthly calendar and newsletter; monthly Q&A session with the principal/assistant principal; Miner t-shirts and yard signs; multiple play dates for prospective parents.
• New partnerships // Folger Library & Theater (our official DCPS “Adopt-a-School” partner), Cultivate the City, revitalizing our garden and hosting farmers markets, NASA Science & Engineering Club.
• Stronger collaboration relationships and advocacy at all levels // Held weekly meetings between PTO leaders and school administration; Established a Local School Advisory Team (LSAT) for real parent, teacher, and staff input into the school budget and planning process (all of the LSAT’s priorities were approved for the SY16/17 budget!); continued our involvement in the Capitol Hill Public School Parent’s Organization (CHPSPO); built strong relationships with our DCPS Instructional Superintendent, DCPS Deputy Chief of Elementary Schools, School Board representative, and Ward 6 DC Council member; testified at DC Council hearings to advocate for Miner’s interests during the annual DCPS budget process.
• Established a “Vision Team” made up of parents teachers, staff, and community members to collectively determine what we want Miner to be in one year, two years, and five years. The Vision Team held multiple forums and conducted an extensive school/community survey to solicit feedback from all of Miner’s stakeholders. Their work will be ongoing in SY16/17 in order to conduct a Needs Assessment and develop a Strategic Plan to guide Miner’s future.

Although we have accomplished much, we also know many challenges and much work remains. We are in the midst of the selection process for a new Principal, and Miner is well prepared for this transition. Parents, teachers, staff, and community members are all integral participants in this process and we’re confident that Miner’s leadership team for SY16/17 will be amazing. But it takes more than just great leadership. We hope that every student, family member, teacher, and staff will be a part of the great things that will soon be happening at OUR Miner next year!

• Community School model // A newly hired Manager of Strategy & Logistics will help with school operations, assist in developing and executing our new Strategic Plan, and establish new partnerships under the Community School model to bring needed services and supports for students, teachers, and families.
• New after school and before care programs // We have already laid the foundation for a new partnership with the organization “People, Animals, Love” (PAL) to revitalize our after school programming for SY16/17. We are working to reestablish a robust before school program for SY16/17. Miner’s administration and parent leaders are committed to bringing in quality, affordable programs accessible to ALL our families.
• Communication // We are committed to improve communication at all levels, and ensure that it is timely and transparent. This will include the creation of a comprehensive and accessible school planning calendar.
• Ensuring all feel welcome and respected // We will be implementing Move This World and other programs to build skills for reducing stress for both students and teachers, and for improving Miner’s climate and culture. We will also continue to ensure the availability of ASL interpretation and try to include more Spanish interpretation, where needed. Our goal is to ensure that all voices are heard and that all feel able to share concerns and ideas and to fully participate in all aspects of school life.
• Excellence // We commit to fostering a spirit of commitment and excellence in students, parents, teachers, and staff.
• Academic supports // A new Reading Resource Teacher will be hired for next year to help struggling readers in the higher grades. There will also be additional Reggio Emilia support for PK3/4 teachers.
• Family engagement // Family engagement improved this year but we want to recruit even more parent and teacher volunteers to help us achieve even greater things! We also hope to hold several fun family engagement events.
• Health and safety // We will continue to hold DCPS accountable for testing the school’s water for lead contamination and ensure proper communication with families. Additional efforts will include helping the School Wellness Committee blossom to its full potential, bringing recycling and food waste reduction programs to the school, and improving the drop off and pickup process.

If you would like to be involved and help us start planning for next year, we’d love to have you!
Please come to the June 7 PTO meeting at 6pm in the cafeteria.

We have never been more excited about the future of Miner and hope you feel that excitement, too. Our school has so much incredible potential! But we can’t do it without you, the family members, teachers, and staff who are dedicated to our students and to our community. Together we can keep building on our strengths and successes to make OUR Miner a neighborhood school of choice!

Thank you!

Tiffiany N. Torrence
Assistant Principal

Carol Betts
WTU Representative

Kyle Serrette
LSAT Chair

Tammy Alexander
PTO CoPresident

David Treat
PTO CoPresident

Reach us at minerpto@gmail.com