Eagle Nest Elementary, Dorchester School District Two
Eagle Nest Elementary student population changed significantly over the last five years. More and more under-resourced children and their families were served by the school, and the number of children who do not speak English as their first language continued to climb. The challenges threatened to overwhelm leaders and teachers as they searched for solutions to the problems they faced. School principal Tamara Diebold learned about the Center’s resources and she used them in her school. First studying why children in poverty often struggle, and then working with all school personnel to implement the Center’s 25 strategies, Eagle Nest worked strategically to help students rise above the challenges that faced them.
Diebold says that believing in what we do matters, and that what we expect from students will determine what we get from them. High expectations for every child, every day is the only way we will break the cycle of poverty. Relationships, engaging the learner, changing the experience, and changing the brain are essential to the success of children in poverty.
Eagle Nest is proof that Center strategies work. They began their journey with an EVAAS score of 1, which indicates that there is significant evidence that our students did not make a year’s growth in a year’s time. After only a year, the school has earned an EVAAS score of 5, which indicates that there is significant evidence that our students made more than a year’s growth in a year’s time.
“The Center has provided us the tools to meet the need and close the gap. We are warriors of hope, and what we do matters! We are proud to partner with The Center of Excellence in this very important work,” says Diebold.