County schools' report: Mission

According to the Montana Board of Crime Control, 138 crimes were committed on either college or K-12 schools within Lake County in 2007 – as reported by the sheriff’s office.

The Leader has printed a series on Lake County schools for the past month, looking at individual school districts and using statistics from the Office of Public Instruction’s most recent reports – mainly the Discipline Violation Report. These reports are generated by all public schools throughout the nation and sent to the OPI for input into their system.

The DVR reflects school discipline incidents that resulted in suspensions and expulsions; the definitions are subject to the school’s interpretation, yet a glossary of definitions for all offenses is provided by the OPI and serves as a reference guide for schools.

In most cases the reported violations do not reflect court-prosecuted crimes. Most incidents are handled within the school, my means of suspension or expulsion.

The Leader is using four of the 20 discipline violations in the report for school comparisons – those violations being aggravated assault, alcohol, drugs and theft.

The focus of this week’s school report is the St. Ignatius district and the public schools within its boundaries.

Based on OPI’s 2007-2008 DVR report, St. Ignatius Elementary School reported one incident of aggravated assault. The middle school reported one incident of aggravated assault and two incidents of theft. The high school reported one incident of alcohol on school grounds, and 12 incidents of drugs.

None of the public schools within the district passed the Adequate Yearly Progress standards of the 2007-2008 school year - a first for each school.

Based on the Lake County Public School Enrollments document: St. Ignatius public schools had an average of 467 K-12 students in the fall of 2007 – an 18.2 percent decrease from the fall of 2000.  All other school districts, within Lake County, saw a decline in enrollment over the seven-year period: ranging from 13.4 percent to 76.9 percent – except Dayton, which saw an increase of 254.5 percent in student enrollment between those dates, Charlo whose population increased by 2 percent, and Polson which neither increased nor decreased.

This is the first year in awhile the schools have not had a full-time school resource officer, yet the schools have continued their misbehavior deterrence policies, increasing drug dog usage and using cameras as a supervision tool.

“We saw drugs as a real problem last year,” said middle and high school principal Jason Sargent. He said the SRO was key in finding students involved in drug activity, and added that the high school staff held those students accountable.

“A lot of those students who continued are no longer here,” he said, adding that this year there has been very little drug activity on the schools’ campuses, with all incidents limited to possession.

“The drug dog is more of a deterrent,” he said. “We get tips and keep a close eye on students who are high risk.”

Sargent said he and staff equip students with the language necessary to avoid peer pressure as it relates to drug, alcohol and tobacco use.

“They’ve got to have an out,” he said. “I encourage them to use one-liners that give them that out. I tell them to say ‘Mr. Sargent’s watching me,’ or ‘I’d like to hang with you, but I can’t’.” He said that for the most part students don’t want to “do the things they do” but that peer pressure is a main reason they do.

“Our school mission is to use respect, responsibility, excellence and integrity,” he said. “If we expect it (from the students), we teach it.”

Sargent counts discipline referrals consistently and said most referrals are for minor behavior infractions. Last year, Sargent said 87 percent of high school students received zero to two referrals, 7 percent received three to five referrals, and 6 percent received six or more referrals. Of the middle schools students: 65 percent received zero to two referrals, 18 percent received three to five referrals, and 17 percent received six or more referrals.

Sargent said alcohol is a problem everywhere and said he is aware of the changes in our culture and how they are reflected in the schools he principals.

“Outside these walls I am concerned, as any parents of teenagers are,” he said. “We educate around the dangers and give them, as parents, the tools to deal with it.”

Middle school and elementary school counselor Susan Weaselhead said the schools’ Healthy Futures Program encourages students to participate in healthy lifestyles by going over different alcohol, drug and tobacco scenarios with students.

She said there is a new anti-bullying curriculum the school will begin in January, in which students view videos and participate in worksheets and group  conversations related to bullying.

“We give them the words to express themselves,” she said, adding that the she is always available to students to talk about peer pressure and bullying as she makes herself available to the elementary students at every recess and the middle school students during lunch.

District superintendent Gerry Nolan brings the same students empowering and proactive approach to the teaching environment. He has been influential in the “love and logic approach” the school currently began to implement in classrooms.

Four staff members went to “love and logic” training last October in Denver, where they were taught how to become instructors in the “nine essential skills for the love and logic classroom.”

This is Nolan’s first year with the St. Ignatius schools. His last position was as the principal of the Summit Preparatory (boarding) School in Montana where he played a vital role in the school’s creation and curriculum development. He has brought a unique teaching approach to St. Ignatius.

The high school has a new Mission Forward Academy, which offers on-line classes to students who may need a different learning environment.

“Public schools can’t necessarily be all things to all people,” he said of the program’s offerings. “Some kids have grown up on computers and it’s just a better learning environment for them. People learn differently and you have to meet people where they are”

He said one student who dropped out last year, has since come back to the school and is enrolled in the Academy and excelling. The students in the program use the library computers.

Nolan said he is passionate about empowering students to live by universal principles that never change - those principles found in “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens,” a book by Sean Covey. He said one of his teaching approaches is to change mistakes into learning opportunities, and several schools across the nation use this book in helping to provide students with the tools they need to be empowered teenagers - when he was the principal at Fall Creek High School, in Wisconsin they used this book in their teaching philosophies he said.

“It boils down to living your own goals and writing them down,” Nolan said. “It’s a difference of living your own life and not having someone live it for you. It’s an  approach to life that will have positive effects for anybody.”

He said the schools have not yet officially adopted the book’s philosophy to teaching, and said it is something he doesn’t want to dive into but wants to “do it right.”

“Kids make mistakes just like I do everyday.” Nolan said. “Kids are kids everywhere. We have committed professionals working here.”

The staff at St. Ignatius schools prides themselves on their high expectations of, and open dialogue, with students.

“We make constant reminders of why we’re here and that we believe in them,” Sargent said, adding that just last week during a routine meeting with students there was an open discussion - initiated by student council members - about cell phone usage during lunch hours.

After all arguments were heard, the staff agreed to allow cell phone privileges during lunch, after the students assured staff they would not misuse the additional privileges. He said during the meeting he also spoke to students about winter break and sharing kindness, which students were excited about doing.

Sargent said the schools’ curriculum makes the classrooms safe and welcoming, gives students a sense of belonging, has an emphasis on education and providing students with future plans.

“A lot of it just comes from small dialogues with students,” Sargent said, adding that the school’s mission is for students to have respect, responsibility, excellence and integrity in all they do - and said the students often meet the school’s expectations.

“I wouldn’t trade our kids for any kids in the state,” Sargent said.