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Sections Home Page Local News AP News AP Entertainment Archives Business Classifieds Event Calendar Forums Life Opinion Obituaries Photo Gallery Readers Photo Gallery Sports Tempo Weather Special Coverage 2006 Britt Festivals --> Shop Our Valley AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Search Our Valley Special Sections Distinctly Northwest Readers' Choice Homelife Magazine Joy Magazine Holiday Guide Oregon Golf Info Oregon Wine Info Other Publications Local Links Ashland News eSouthernOregon Newspapers In Education Personals Moving Here Movie Listings TV Listings Volunteer Customer Service Advertise With Us Media Kit Place Classified Ad Contact Us FAQ's Home Delivery Site Map --> Email Story to a Friend March 22, 2006 ‘Freshman academies’ may cut Medford dropout rate By PARIS ACHEN Mail Tribune When eighth-grader Stan Miller anticipates going to North Medford High School next year, fears of failure and isolation intermingle with excitement about meeting new people and taking challenging classes. "I’m excited and a little worried," Stan said. Stan, a pupil at Hedrick Middle School, will be among the first freshmen Sept. 5 to enter North Medford’s freshman academy, a cluster of small learning communities modeled after a concept that has gained popularity across the nation. Funded by a $1.68 million grant from the Oregon Small Schools Initiative, the reforms at North and South Medford high schools are meant to promote student achievement and curb dropout rates by giving students a sense of community and accountability. Instead of joining a high school of 2,000 pupils, Stan will attend classes with just 120 freshmen. Advertisement "I think the freshman academy makes the switch from middle school easier because I don’t have to get a different setup from a bunch of different teachers, and it will be kind of like middle school," Stan said. Stan and his mother, Cheryl Dozler, visited the high school Tuesday to learn more about the freshman academy and to plan a class schedule. Both high schools held information sessions on the freshman academies Monday and Tuesday. The group will share the same four teachers for core classes, including English, math, geography and science. The teachers will collaborate on lesson plans, so subject matter overlaps, and they’ll share information about students. Each teacher will act as an adviser for a class of 15 to 20 pupils. That teacher will serve as the point of contact for parents and students. School officials said they hope a personal relationship with a teacher will prompt more students to attend classes and improve their academic performance. South Medford High School began a pilot freshman academy in the fall. The academy divided freshmen into three learning communities and required an advisory period. Since then, the freshman failure rate has declined from 12 percent to 9.8 percent, while the number of A’s has gone up. South Medford officials attribute the decline to creating the small learning communities and closing the campus at lunch for freshmen. North Medford plans to close its campus at lunch for freshman next year. The freshman academy will be different at each high school. At North Medford, the freshman advisory period will focus on exploring postsecondary education and career options. The advisory period at South Medford will consist of relationship-building activities between teachers and students. North Medford will require a semester of geography, while a class called Connections will be mandatory at South Medford. Connections teaches pupils study and test-taking skills and helps them chart a career path. Both schools plan to open honors courses to all freshmen. The Medford School Board has approved phasing in three more small learning communities, most likely for sophomores, at each high school by fall 2007. School officials said they chose to open freshman academies first because the transition between the freshman and sophomore years is the most critical in terms of keeping students in school. "If you lose a student, it’s typically between the ninth and 10th grades," said Ron Beick, assistant principal at North Medford. "If they’ve failed their classes, they figure they won’t make it in the 10th grade because they’re too far behind, and they drop out." By creating a social and academic foundation for freshmen, school officials said they hope to move more students into the 10th grade. Reach reporter Paris Achen at 776-4459 or e-mail �Freshman academies� may cut Medford dropout rate ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. 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