A. One of our most successful schools, during 1999-2000, has been Black River Elementary School, in Carthage. Five teachers (grades 3 and 4 and special education) working as a team, created a learner centered inclusionary environment which resulted   in a diminished number of "identified" special education students and improved learning  for all students. In the year 2000-2001, it is a goal of this Project to support Black River's five participating teachers as they roll-out this process, initially to ten  "Roll-Out" teachers, and ultimately to their entire staff.

 However, the superintendent, Dr. Carl Mangee, and Assistant Superintendent Jim Huckabee, have been so impressed with the progress of Black River, and the Board of  Education was so impressed by a power point presentation of the team, that they would  like the process spread to the entire district. As an initial step in this direction,  Principal Jan LaRoc and two teachers from Carthage Elementary School are participating with a goal of spreading the model to their entire school next year, as the district will try to involve its other four building staffs.

B. Champlain Valley Educational Services, under direction of Dr. Jim Frenck, has begun the  process of replicating our model for learner centered/standards focused classrooms in the Plattsburgh area. Dr. Frenck has engaged two BOCES staff developers, Sandy Latourelle (science) and Elaine Rice (ELA) to work with teachers (two from each of three schools - Crown Point, Northern Adirondack, and Peru) with the goal of having the teachers create learner centered classrooms while the staff developers learn our process and are able to implement it in the Plattsburgh region during the 2001-2002 school year.

C. Jefferson-Lewis BOCES and Franklin-Essex BOCES are similarly positioning themselves  to replicate our process - Franklin BOCES through its support of Brushton-Moira and it's involvement in the planning of the model; Jefferson-Lewis through a project directed by Laura Bourcy in which a few Jefferson County schools will enter the pilot program by supporting two or more teachers who will engage in the pilot process with a special focus on teaching literacy through learner centered/standards focused classroom strategies.

5. CDEP and data driven analysis as the North Star to guide the project.
 LEA Massena is providing two of the six schools which will become models for rolling out  a learner centered/standards focused approach to student learning to entire teaching   staffs. The rationale for creating learner centered/standards focused classrooms is defined in Massena's CDEP which provides direction for this entire project.

 In a statement of support from Massena's superintendent, Douglas Huntley (appendix  G, page 58), is a clear description of how this project has evolved with Massena's data driven,   long-range planning process which is being defined in its CDEP.

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