District Administration - April 2008 - (Page 25)

dren toward student achievement. Now it’s getting to rebuild from scratch—smarter.” With St. Bernard’s middle class largely replaced by people too poor to live in anything but FEMA’s trailer parks, “we had to take children whoever they were, regardless of a lack of academic achievement,” she says. Voitier has focused on professional development with staﬀ on how to teach St. Bernard’s current belowgrade-level students, and the curriculum is consistently being rebuilt to accommodate an achievement gap much wider than it was before the storm. Her district’s survival has gone beyond providing just education. Voitier commissioned Howard and Joy Osofsky, doctors from the Louisiana State University School of Health to provide psychiatric and social services to her staﬀ and students. “It’s beyond belief what we’re seeing behaviorally. People are still living in close quarters. And even if they’re back in a regular house, ﬁve-year-olds are saying, ‘May I have a crayon, or is it under the water too?” St. Bernard’s change in teaching methods is taking place as school locations are changing. “We’re centralizing our campus,” says Voitier. “We’re rebuilding in a way that our new population dictates, better than before.” So far, three high schools have been consolidated into one school that’s open and operational. And through FEMA dollars, as well as donations from ExxonMobil and the Kellogg Foundation, and by engaging local utility companies and organizations, Voitier leveled an elementary school to build a three-story building where every ﬂoor will have classrooms, planning areas for teachers, and space for extracurriculars. Behind it will be a ﬁeld house and wrestling area, a cultural arts center replete with dance, choral, and theatrical areas, and a ﬁtness center where all second-graders will learn to swim. The New Orleans Ballet will also return to the district to teach classes and work with students as it did before the storm. The campus will open August 2009. On Her Nomination Voitier was a ﬁnalist for National Superintendent of the Year, an award co-sponsored by the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) and Aramark Education. We were a population of 68,000 people before the storm, and we have fewer than 30,000 people now,” says Voitier. “People maybe are taking note of how people can come back from the greatest disaster in the country. “This award is a recognition of the people of St. Bernard Parish; they are coming back and coming again to be productive members of this country.” DA Jennifer Chase Esposito is a contributing writer for District Administration. Raise the bar Maximize your Foreign Language and ESL/ESOL Program Effectiveness with NEW Rosetta Stone® Classroom Version 3 Rosetta Stone® Classroom Version 3 offers innovative features and enhanced management tools that accelerate language learning and provide quantiﬁable measurements of success. Easy to implement and incorporate into a teacher’s overall languagelearning curriculum. Captivates students and keeps them engaged in learning. Language-learning conﬁdence soars, overall completion rates increase, and test scores improve. The #1 language-learning software in U.S. schools. Call: (800) 811-2819 Visit: RosettaStone.com/da1 © 2008 Rosetta Stone Ltd. All rights reserved. Patent rights pending. www.DistrictAdministration.com April 2008 25 http://www.RosettaStone.com/da1 http://www.RosettaStone.com/da1 http://www.DistrictAdministration.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - April 2008

District Administration - April 2008
Contents
Editor’s Letter
Letters
News Update
Technology
Facilities & Construction
Curriculum
Inside the Law
District Profile
Administrator Profile
Profit and Loss in School-Business Partnerships
The Broad Way
Big Macs for Big Grades
Hometown Success
How Well Does This Web Site Work?
Speaking Out
Crisis Response
New Products
Problem/Solution
Computer Literature
Research Center
Calendar of Events
Products Showcase
Understanding the Times

District Administration - April 2008