Beginning this school year, all teachers meet on two Wednesdays of the month from 2:15 – 2:55 p.m. in different committees.

Principle Dr. Heather Venne and Assistant Principals Dr. Chad Brindle and Todd Molder are the ones who came up with the idea.

Brindle said that they had talked  “about getting more involvement, more collaboration with faculty across the building. We just started tossing around ideas. We are all in principal networks across the county, and we started asking questions about ideas for how to build capacity.” 

At the start of the year, the administration offered teachers committees to choose from, and teachers got to vote for their top three choices out of the ten committees provided. 

The committees

1.Anti- Bullying.

2.Climate + Control

3.Social emotional learning

4.Behavioral Adjustment

5.Public Relations

6.Trades + Careers

7.School Beneficiation

8.Safety

9.Health and wellness

10. Technology

English teacher Grant Lenoard is on the Social emotional Learning committee and he describes there goal by saying “ Our goal this year is to find ways to make SEL a more visible and intentional focus in the building relating to the way we view Self-Management, Self-Awareness, Social-Awareness, Relationship Skills, and Decision Making. We are attempting to do this through assemblies and a potential upcoming wellness fair that will speak directly to these ideas in a number of different ways.”

Committees are around five to six teachers in size. They meet in the English hallway; each committee has a room to themselves. 

At the beginning of the year, each committee decided on their own goals for the year. 

Science teacher Bev Whiteford is on the School Beautification Committee. She said their goal was to “ introduce color and positive vibes throughout the school and outside area.” 

Any ideas the committees create or plan to do must get Venne’s permission.  

These Wednesday committees are “really more time for collaboration, but to also collaborate in an effort that’s going to support the growth of the building,” said Brindle. 

Whiteford agrees and hopes that the committees will have a positive effect on the school, both students and staff. 

During summer Professional Development (PD), teachers discussed possible topics for groups to tackle. Administration then reviewed the list, combined some ideas where possible, and came up with 10 committees. 

Brindle said that the committees are  “a result of what the teacher’s saw as a need for the