Equity Lens: a Conversation with Dr. Anthony Jones
What is equity and what does it look like in the Ames Community School District? Equity in its simplest definition is making sure that every student has what they need when they need it. You know that equity has happened when every student is successful in our school system regardless of their race, ethnicity, gender, identity, ability, socioeconomic, language, or place of origin. Equity is about justice and fairness. What does equity look like in Ames school district right now? Well, we’re not there yet. I describe equity in Ames schools like our new high school. We’ve all agreed that we need it and we are building it. There’s a huge hole at the location where the new high school will be soon and the foundation is being built first. That is what is happening with equity. Yes, there is a hole there but we are building the foundation for equity in Ames. It’s not going to happen overnight but it is coming!
Read more
Ames High Science Teacher Mike Todd receives the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST)
Four Iowa educators including Ames High science teacher Mike Todd, have been named recipients of the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST). Teachers are selected based on their distinction in the classroom and dedication to improving science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. Todd was a state finalists in 2017.
Read more
Elementary Reading: FUNdations and Reading Units of Study
After an extensive review process including feedback and input from staff, students, and community members, Ames CSD purchased the research-based Reading Units of Study for all EK-5th grade classrooms. Reading Units of Study utilizes a reading workshop model where students spend significant time reading books of their choice and writing about those books. Students also learn with teachers in one on one conferences as well as in small group instructional teams. Finally, collaborative and sharing opportunities are built into the reading workshop.
Read more
Auto Repair: from DMACC to the Garage
For much of last summer, senior Matthew Blitvich’s rust damaged Mazda Miata took up the majority of his parents’ garage. With the clear coat starting to peel and fade, Blitvich was committed to fixing it up on his own. During his junior year, he enrolled in Auto Collison, a class offered to Ames High students through the Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC). His motivation was simple: “If I did a good job at DMACC, then I could just paint it myself.”
Read more
Ames High Selected to Participate in teen Mental Health First Aid Pilot Program
Ames High will participate in the teen Mental Health First Aid pilot program run by the National Council for Behavioral Health with support from Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation. Ames High is participating in the expanded teen Mental Health First Aid (tMHFA) pilot program, the first of its kind developed for high school students in the U.S. The school is one of 40 sites selected to take part in the second cohort of the pilot program. This fall, two individuals will attend training that will then be implemented starting next spring.
Read more
The Elements of a Rebrand
The Ames Community School District is in the midst of a rebrand. It is not just a rebrand that conjures up ideas of marketing techniques including changing logos (although that is part of it), but a change in the status quo of how the District conducts business. Branding is much more than just colors and fonts. It’s how people respond to your organization. It’s the style, voice, and reputation that an institution holds in the public. In other words, a brand carries an emotional weight. Rebranding happens for a variety of reasons. One of the most common is the result of a leadership change. This summer marked Superintendent Jenny Risner’s one-year anniversary in Ames. The year has been memorable on a number of fronts but was the beginning of a fresh-eyes assessment on how the Ames Community School District operates both internally and externally, from buildings, classrooms, and our community.
Read more
Central Iowa Community Identification Card
The Ames Community School District is a proud partner of the Central Iowa Community Identification Card (CICID), along with Ames Police Department and Story County Sheriff’s Office. Being able to present a valid form of photo ID is essential to accessing many services and benefits of the community. The Ames Community School District will accept CICID as a form of identification for the purposes of student enrollment and to satisfy the ID requirement incumbent upon parents, volunteers and community members seeking admittance into our school buildings during hours of operation.
Read more
Emergency Response Classroom Posters
Emergency response is a reality that all schools have to consider. Whether it’s a tornado or fire drill or anticipating an active threat situation, having common language is important in these situations. Over the summer, in addition to completing the District’s Emergency Operations Plan, administrators reviewed their language to emergency response. These posters are being displayed across the District and in classrooms as a visual reminder of what key words mean.
Read more
Amazing Education Podcast
The Amazing Education Podcast is a new communication channel from the Ames CSD that focuses on education-related topics with a blend of local and national conversations. Each episode of the Amazing Education Podcast will be 25-30 minutes and feature a guest on a specified topic.
Read more
Mitchell Elementary Building Expansion
Mitchell Elementary School was one of three elementary schools in Ames (Edwards and Meeker being the other two) that was part of the April 2018 successful bond referendum for elementary school building additions. We reviewed current enrollment, near-term predictable enrollment, and projected future enrollment and determined the most urgent need for additional space is at Mitchell Elementary.
Read moreDiscover More from Ames CSD
