Education

Four years ago Waco ISD piloted a program to try and reduce the number of referrals and suspensions of students. It’s called suspending kids to school. The district says this effort has helped keep kids in class and out of the court system—and it’s helped some schools change the entire way they look at discipline. KWBU’s Jill Ament has this report on University High’s student court, where students have a say in the disciplinary process.

Starting last year, students ages 10 to 17 to couldn’t be issued Class C misdemeanors in Texas public schools. It’s kept kids out of the court system, but critics say it’s also taken disciplinary tools out of the hands of school administrators.

Since 1996 kids at McLennan County’s Juvenile Detention Center have been able to prepare for the GED through Waco ISD’s Challenge Academy. But last year the campus lost its certification and students who prepared for the GED there were no longer allowed to take the test. As KWBU’s Jill Ament reports, the school is now applying to get its certification back. 

Students who enroll in the Texas State Technical College system range from recent high school grads to older folks who’ve been out of school for years. But all of the students are trying to learn skill sets to improve their career opportunities, and usually, make more money. Last year the Texas Legislature changed the way TSTC is funded—no longer would the school be funded based on how many students were at the school or how long they stayed—but rather, the school would be rewarded for how much alumni wages are above the minimum wage.

Bell's Hill Elementary school in Waco is getting high-needs students to eat healthier and learn about where their food comes from. Today a U.S. Department of Agriculture administrator stopped by to tour the school and check out the school’s lunch program. 

A new district wide program at Waco ISD is utilizing behavioral specialists on campuses struggling with student behavior and discipline referrals. Overall -- district leaders are hoping this more ‘individualized’ approach will help boost STAAR scores at lower performing schools.  

In this edition of Behind the Story, I’m featuring my full conversation with Dr. John Jenkins, the new principal at Waco ISD’s Indian Spring Middle School.

I’m excited to be able to feature this full interview with Jenkins because he has a lot of plans for the school. And in the story we aired earlier this week on Indian Spring’s new leadership, I felt I was unable to capture everything Jenkins wants to do for this struggling campus in just 2 minutes and thirty seconds. 

Waco ISD’s Indian Spring Middle School has seen its fair share of struggles over the past few years. 75-percent of the Title 1 Priority School’s staff has been replaced for the 2014-2015 school year. But the school’s new principal is hoping to bring a vision of success to campus.