As we close this year, I want to thank you for making the 2018-2019 academic year such a memorable year at Five Oaks Academy. Your commitment to excellence and to the partnership between parent and school/student has brought forth continued growth.
In May we earned our STEAM accreditation and received the following comments from SCISA’s Dr. Spencer Jordan. “Five Oaks Academy is an excellent example of a school taking advantage of SCISA Professional Development to meet desired outcomes. The faculty and students were very good ambassadors for the school and expressed notable enthusiasm and engagement. The STEAM program developed by the administration and staff is exemplary and more than meets the SCISA requirements of STEAM Certification.
SCISA’s committee acknowledges the following Powerful Practices:
1. Vertical Alignment throughout the school for the STEAM
program is impressive
2. Practical life applications were integrated into the initiative
3. Complete buy-in by faculty
4. Adequate funding for the program was evident
5. Built-in staff meetings and collaborative design were impressive as they relate to the STEAM initiative
SCISA commends the outstanding work of the Five Oaks staff in developing the STEAM curriculum. SCISA Executive Director, Dr. Spencer Jordan, and former SCISA Executive Director, Mr. Larry Watt, gave a glowing evaluation of their on-site accreditation visit of Five Oaks Academy. They said they were “speechless” because this was the best on-site visit for STEAM accreditation that they have had in the entire state. They went on to say that by adding empathy to our design process, it sets us apart from other programs. This empathy connects students to real-world applications and makes the design process more meaningful. Some of our students and lead teachers were interviewed for the evaluation and there was an extensive review of all classroom practices for STEAM.
Thank you to the students who participated in our Raise Craze fundraiser. Funds raised for their acts of kindness allow each classroom to purchase STEAM materials that furthered the cause!
Please enjoy your summer and if you are returning, we will be looking forward to seeing you in August! If this is your final year at FOA, please know you will always be a part of our community.
With much gratitude and Happy Summer!
Ms. Kathleen
