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Join Site Council and Have Your Say!
What is Site Council?
Site Council is a group of administrators, teachers, and parents that identify ways to support the school community. By providing leadership, direction and support, we define school priorities and implement ways to improve them. At its core, Site Council is about tailoring the Vernon experience to the specific needs of our students and our community.
So you do what now?
We review data, trends, and the things we hear from our community to ensure we design and implement programs that best serve the needs of our students and community.
We’re mandated by the state to:
- Develop plans to improve the professional growth of the school's staff;
- Improve the schools instructional program;
- Develop and coordinate plans for the implementation of programs under this chapter at the school; and
- Administer grants-in-aid for the professional development of teachers and classified district employees.
That means we have a say in choosing the methods and programs we use to teach the students. We’re able to determine the types of programs we offer the school community. And, we’re able to direct the ways and manner of our staff’s professional development.
This year our Site Council worked on equity in our school with our series of Community Movie Nights centered around race, community, communication, understanding, and action.
If you have ideas about issues you’d like the school to address, Site Council is the place to voice your opinion. If you’d like input on programs and curriculum at Vernon, come to Site Council meetings and have your voice heard. If you’d like to have a say about the kinds of professional development opportunities you’d like our teachers to have, express it at Site Council.
How Can I Help?
We’re looking for new members for Vernon’s 2024-2025 Site Council. If you are interested in having a say about the direction and priorities of Vernon, consider joining Site Council or coming to our monthly hour-long meetings on the second Monday of each month.
If you’d like to join, please email Ben Keefer at bkeefer@pps.net. Join Site Council now to have your voice heard!
Some continuing goals include:
- Family/School Partnerships best practices: educating and empowering families to help kids be (most) successful in school.
- Technology integration and best practices with educational technology at school and home.
- Equity training specific to parents volunteering in the classroom.
Site Council meetings take place once a month, generally on the second Monday, from 5:45-7:00pm in the Multi-Purpose Room (MPR) (see school handbook and calendar for specific dates). If you are interested in participating, please contact Ben Keefer and join us in bringing our school and community to the next level.
School Site Councils were mandated in 1991 by the Oregon Legislature with the passage of the “Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century.” ORS 329.704 states:
- “There shall be established at each school a 21st Century Schools Council.” [These are commonly called Site Councils.] “The duties...shall include but not be limited to:
- The development of plans to improve the professional growth of the school’s staff;
- The improvement of the school’s instructional program;
- The development and coordination of plans for the implementation of programs under this chapter at the school;
- The administration of grants-in-aid for the professional development of teachers and classified district employees...”
- A Site Council “shall be composed of teachers, parents, classified employees and principal or the principal’s designee, as follows:
- Not more than half the members shall be teachers;
- Not more than half the members shall be parents;
- At least one member shall be a classified employee; and
- One member shall be the principal or the principal’s designee."
- In addition other members may be “...including but not limited to local school committee members, business leaders, students and members of the community at large.”
- Members of a site council “shall be selected as follows:
- Teachers shall be licensed teachers elected by licensed teachers at the school site;
- Classified employees shall be elected by classified employees at the school site;
- Parents shall be selected by parents of students attending the school;
- Other representatives shall be selected by the council.”
Comprehensive Achievement Plan (CAP)
To fulfill the mandate of the state legislature, the Site Council has developed and will approve a Comprehensive Achievement Plan (CAP). The Plan will:
- delineate both long- and short-term school improvement objectives;
- include specific actions, specific personnel, and measurable outcomes.
The Site Council will:
- solicit input regarding the CAP from staff, parents, administration, students, and community members;
- closely monitor progress toward attainment of the objectives during the school year;
- review and revise as necessary the CAP each spring for the following school year.