Marisa Renee Brown
Marisa Renee Brown
Middle School Experience: Preston Middle School
Setting & Context
Culture and Community Culture
Home Information:
Single Family - 80528: 77% Fort Collins: 71%
80528: Majority of Homes built after 2000
62% >2000; 32% 1980-1999; 6% 1960-1979
People:
27 % have kids; 73% no kids
Fort Collins - Median age (years): 28.2
Demographics:
Demographic Characteristics:
Preston Middle School has the largest middle school student body size in the Poudre School District R-1. Racial makeup is: White (83.8%), Hispanic (7.5%), two or more races (4.1%).
Of Preston's 1,113 students,
15.18% are eligible for free & reduced lunch
21.74% are identified as Gifted and Talented
Classroom Environment:
The art room is a large open space with several expansive windows and a glass door opening to the front of the school. The room is illuminated with natural light through out the school day. There a few columns that are painted to emulate famous artworks. There are six large wooden tables with six stools at each. Every stool has been painted by past Art 2 students. There are two sinks and storage cabinets on the opposite of the windows. Every student has a space in the totes stored in the cabinets to store their supplies. There is a SMART board and a document camera in the front of the classroom. In the back of the classroom, there is a chalk board, two bulletin boards, and a library of Scholastic art magazines. Emergency resources, refocus forms, and binders for absent students are located near the hall door.
At the beginning of each class students are greeted and welcomed in to the classroom. Class often begins with a warm-up that consists of inquiry questions, art exercises, art vocabulary, and art quotes. At the end of class, there is often a closing activity followed by goodbyes and well wishes. Students feel like a part of a community because they are often encouraged to collaborate. Student opinion is valued and often taken into consideration by the teacher. Students are encouraged to self-advocate and speak up for their needs.
School-wide Policies for Management:
PAWS! Positive Choices, Attitude, Work Ethic, and Sense of Community
- PAWS is a positive behavior system implemented throughout Preston Middle School. This common language allows students to understand their behavior and make positive choices. PAWS is discussed in the lunchroom, at athletic events, and in individual classrooms.
Cell-phone use & wearing hats are decisions left to the classroom teacher. Cell phones and hats are prohibited in common areas like hallways. (Hats are allowed in the lunchroom/ commons area before and after school and during lunch).
Classroom Tardiness: Being “prompt” to class is one of Preston’s school wide expectations and life long skills. The teacher’s responsibility is to speak to the tardy behavior.
1st Offense - 1st Warning
2nd Offense - 2nd Warning
3rd Offense - Teacher contacts parents
4th Offense - Administrative intervention
All teachers have refocus forms in their classroom. When disruptive behavior occurs, teachers redirect students by having short conversations with them. If the behavior continues, students will be asked to fill out a Refocus Form. Teachers have staff partners, which students are informed about. The partnering staff has a place in their classroom where the form can be filled out with supervision.
School-wide Policies for Safe Schools:
From the Student Code of Conduct:
- Safety is everyone’s responsibility in the Preston community. When we work together honoring our differences and respecting each other we contribute to the ongoing positive legacy of our special Preston culture. In order to ensure the safety of all Preston community members, you are encouraged to report information regarding the following: threats to self or others, weapons, and drugs or alcohol possession or usage on campus. Please realize that by reporting unsafe behavior to a teacher, counselor, administrator, school resource officer, staff member, parent or other adult in the community, you are participating in helping all of us to be safe. As a school, we are dedicated to working through issues and problems with our community members and not simply getting people into trouble. Your mature choices and help may contribute to saving lives and assisting others to get the necessary support to change behaviors and to lead a healthy life. We have included a bully report tab on our website for reporting unsafe situations as well. Go to our website and click on students to see the tab.
Bullying and harassment prevention information is also available for students, staff, and parents at the Poudre School District Website
Campus Security Officers (CSO’s) and School Resource Officers (SRO’s) help keep students safe in Poudre School District.
-As part of the district’s Security Department staff, Campus Security Officers work at all school sites as the Eyes and Ears of the district. Duties include site security; vehicle, bike, and foot patrol; special event coverage; and crisis response and assistance. To learn more and to see a listing of all CSO's, refer to the Campus Security Officers' page.