The mission statement of Roanoke City Schools is: "Roanoke…Together… Educating with Excellence, Challenging for Success, Inspiring Learners for Life." This statement of intent is the challenge that our staff, students and community are meeting each day. It is the reason we have such an outstanding system.
Throughout the system we are implementing our "Tool for Life" initiative. We are very excited that all of our students in grades k-12 will have access to a laptop not only at school but to take home as well.. This 1-1 environment along with the sustained professional development of our educators is making our district a model of a 21st Century school system. Our school board is dedicated to giving our teachers and students every opportunity to be successful.
Please look below as we spotlight some of the "good things" that are happening in our schools.
Knight-Enloe Elementary (grades K-3)
Dr. Kim Hendon has begun her 5th year as the principal at Knight- Enloe. Thanks to her work and the outstanding staff at KES it is an exciting time to be a student. Because of the work of our staff, students, and parents in conjunction with this outstanding curriculum, our students continue to score higher than the state average on yearly assessments. For example, 93% of our students in the 3rd grade either met or exceeded the Alabama Reading & Math Test standards.
The teachers at KES continue to look for ways to integrate technology into the curriculum. In addition to access to all of our students having access to laptops , we have five 20 station I-pad labs that our students enjoy using. Our staff realizes the importance of using technology as a learning tool for our students.
Each grade level has a nine week music class that culminates with the students performing for the community at the beautiful auditorium on the campus at Handley High School. These programs are enjoyed by students, parents and staff.
Handley Middle School (grades 4-8)
Ms. Linda Crim will begin her 3rd year as principal at Handley Middle School (HMS) during the 2012-13 school year. HMS also continues to make great strides in implementing our "Tool for Life" initiative. Starting with the 2012-13 school year students will be assigned their own personal laptop each morning to use throughout the day. Our students have access to Classworks, which is research based computer software program that gives our students added assistance in meeting all math and reading objectives.
In addition to academics we offer athletics, band, drama, choral and art opportunities to our students. Our choral students perform at least two shows for the community during the year. The staff at HMS is always looking for ways to showcase the talents of its students.
Handley High School (grades 9-12)
Mr. Greg Foster will begin his 3rd year as principal at Handley High. Mr. Foster had spent the previous six years as principal at Handley Middle School. Mr. Foster is known for his enthusiastic attitude and for being an administrator who always puts the needs of his students first.
Handley High school students excel in the classroom and in extracurricular activities. This can be documented by the national recognition that HHS received from U.S. News & World Report when it was given a bronze rating. This designation was to honor HHS for being one of the top high schools in the country. One reason for this award was due to the 93% graduation rate of our 2012 senior class, please note that state average was 72%.
Students at HHS are offered an array of electives from which to choose such as dance, chorus, drama, art, community studies, etc. In addition to classes taught by staff, our HHS students have an almost endless list of electives that can be taken through ACCESS (Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators and Students Statewide).
Each HHS student will be assigned a laptop the first day of the 2012-13 school year that they will keep with them at school and home throughout the year. Students use technology throughout the school day and in the process gain the technology skills for college or the workplace. The successful completion of this goal and the sustained professional development of the HHS staff are two of the reasons these are exciting times at HHS.
HHS has one of the best athletic programs in the state. During the 2011-12 school year our football team had a perfect 15-0 record and won the 3A state championship. In addition to the success of our football program, some of the accomplishments of our other sports included our softball team finishing 4th in the state and our boys basketball team finished in the top ten. Please note that our track, girls basketball and baseball teams also advanced to the state playoffs.
It's a Great Time to Be a Handley Tiger!!!!
Roanoke City Schools
The success of our school system would not be possible without the continual support we receive from the Roanoke community. The citizens of Roanoke take enormous pride in their schools. This pride is evident in the excellent facilities throughout the system, the support given for academic initiatives and extracurricular activities, and parental involvement at all schools. The students of Roanoke City Schools are indeed fortunate!
The items listed above are just a few of the innovative and impressive initiatives that are taking place in Roanoke City Schools. The City of Roanoke expects and demands that we provide a quality education in a safe environment. This is a challenge that all employees accept and meet each day.
If you would like more information about Roanoke City Schools, please contact me at 334-863-2628 or come by the central office located at 557 Main Street, Roanoke, Alabama.
