Contact Information:

asheffey@taylorisd.org 

512.365.1391 x 5352 

Program Description

Spring 2023

Academics= Homework agenda checks, Grade checks, missing assignment checks, emailing teachers for tutoring appointments, Homework help, Tutoring and Math/reading interventions are done daily at the Taylor Middle School Flight School.

• Monday-Academics / Band practice / Open gym

• Tuesday – Academic/ Art /Open gym

• Wednesday – Academics / Movie and popcorn

• Thursday – Academics / Band practice / Art / Cooking prep work

• Friday – Cooking / Open gym

Open gyms are replaced with outside time when weather permits

Flight School will be sponsoring a Zumba class for parents and students, Virtual international landmark, and food tours, Black History Month presentation, STAAR boot camps, Spring Reading challenge.

The need for an ACE program at this site can be attributed to a number of needs. In the last two years COVID has exacerbated all the issues that were present before. There is a need to provide student support in the areas of academics, attendance, behavior, social-emotional wellness, and family engagement. Getting students to attend school daily has also been difficult in the first school year of returning to fully in-person learning, with attendance rates consistently in the low ninety percentages. There are also significant gaps that exist with students’ behavioral and social-emotional development upon returning to school, and as a result, approximately one-quarter of the student population has received in-school suspension this school year. Finally, there is the need for improvement with engaging families in their children’s education, particularly with reaching the families of at-risk students.

Taylor Middle School is located in the rapidly growing rural town of Taylor, Texas. The Taylor Middle School campus is bordered mostly by farmland, but across the street is the Williamson County Expo Center, a sports complex, and a newer subdivision of family homes. There are a couple shopping centers close by and many businesses, especially along Main Street. there are also several churches and a parks. Housing options for families include apartment complexes, wide-ranging sizes of houses (some of which are shared by multiple families), and mobile home parks. The uniqueness of this center’s population can be found in a description of the community and the characteristics of the families it serves. The family units at the school vary and include families with both parents involved, single-parent families, families being raised by grandparents/aunts/uncles/foster parents, and multiple families that live together.

Students are selected to participate in the ACE program based on certain criteria which includes performance on grades, assessment scores, social-emotional wellness needs, and behavioral needs. A process for enrollment of students into ACE then follows. Once a student has been identified as a good candidate for the ACE program, information about the program and the enrollment paperwork is provided to the student and his/her family. This information is available in both English and Spanish and is typically shared initially in hardcopy and email formats. Follow-ups are then made via telephone or in person. If a family decides to enroll their child in the program, they complete the paperwork and submit it either electronically or on paper. Assistance is available for families with each step of the process.

The ACE program offers the following academic activities that are TEKS-based and support and align with school day learning:

• English Language Arts (ELA) and Math tutoring are offered to provide teaching, re-teaching, additional practice, support, and extensions, as well as accelerated learning to help the students with prior gaps in these content areas.

• Homework support provides students with assistance on assignments for their school day classes, including both homework and classwork for any content area.

• Robotics gives students the opportunity to get hands-on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) experience with designing, building, and operating robots.

• Virtual Field Trips gives students the chance to explore various cultures and locales online from our school.

Both tutorials and homework support are TEKS-based and support and align with school day learning; however, a distinction is made between the two. Tutoring provides teaching, re-teaching, additional practice, support, and extensions, as well as accelerated learning to help the students with prior gaps. Homework support is assistance with students’ assignments for their school day classes, including both homework and classwork for any content area.

While a variety of enrichment activities were offered during the school year, the following are examples and descriptions of four of the enrichment activities offered:

• In Cooking, students learn about nutrition and how to cook. Various skills from core classes are incorporated such as fractions for Math, literacy with following recipes for ELA, physical and chemical changes for Science, and cultural exploration for Social Studies.

• Theater gives students the chance to learn the performance and technical aspects of theater. ELA communication skills are practiced (both oral and written) and social-emotional skills are developed such as reading body language and using non-verbal communication.

• Piano provides students with the opportunity to learn how to read music and play the piano. Math skills are integrated through the study of notes, measures, and beats.

• In Sports, students learn skills for a variety of sports and also develop character skills such as teamwork, resiliency, and dedication.

Family engagement opportunities were extended to the parents of ACE students throughout the school year. The school year started with an orientations to introduce families to the ACE program. The orientations were offered both in-person and online. Family engagement events offered in the spring were the Trunk-or-Treat and Christmas events. The Trunk-or-Treat event was the center’s Lights On Afterschool offering and was intended to raise awareness about the ACE program and promote literacy. The Christmas event brought families together for a night of fun listening to stories, doing art, playing games, and meeting Santa and Mrs. Claus. In the spring, families participated in the Muddy Miler, a fun obstacle course run in mud for the entire family. Many online workshops covering topics such as study skills, saving for college, career advancement, nutrition, and body and internet safety were also offered. Despite focusing on topics identified by the families, the participation in these workshop sessions was low; however, efforts will continue to be made to increase parent participation in the future.

The success of the ACE program can be attributed to a number of individuals. The selection of the ACE program staff is critical for an effective program. At the beginning of the school year, the site director introduced the program to school staff at a faculty meeting. Follow-up emails and conversations were then held to provide additional information to staff at the school and throughout the district. Staff that were interested and able to commit to the program were then hired for positions aligned with their qualifications. As openings became available throughout the year due to new activities being added or a previous staff member leaving, these positions were filled through a similar process. While the regular school day teachers comprise the vast majority of the ACE program’s staff, they not only lead the ACE classes but they also help ensure that the ACE program is aligned with the school day.

Other individuals made meaningful contributions to the ACE program. The campus principal and administrators helped with marketing the program to staff, students, and families. They also provided assistance with student behavior matters when additional support was needed. Many school day teachers, including some who were not part of the ACE program’s staff, greatly assisted us with supporting the students by keeping the ACE staff informed of students’ school day progress. One of the school counselors also works in the ACE program. Throughout the school year, both of the school’s counselors provided support with social-emotional wellness matters involving the ACE students, either through direct services or referring them to a partner organization. The instructional coaches not only provided the site director with data regarding the students’ progress on interim STAAR assessments, but they also led professional development activities for the ACE for the staff. 

Students from Taylor High School also volunteered in ACE. In addition to the various individuals named above, there also were community resources that contributed to the ACE program. Several local businesses have donations to support family programming including Durcon, HEB, and Condra Funeral Home.

The campus administration allowed the ACE program to use a variety of campus locations during the ACE program hours. These included the cafeteria which was used for snack and dinner. Several classrooms and the library were used for the academic and enrichment classes. The gym and athletic fields were used for sports enrichment activities. The ACE program office is located in the front office and is easily accessible to students, staff and parents.

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