• Category 3

    Selected in 2020

  • Grades: k - 5
    School Setting: urban
    Town Population: 43,000
    Student Enrollment: 637
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 7.4%
    White/Caucasian: 52.9%
    Hispanic: 32.2%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0%
    Asian: 2.2%
    Native American: 0%
    Other: 5.3%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:14
    % Reduced Lunch: 43%
    % ELL Learners: 18.1%
    Founded: 1966
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Jeffrey Sullivan
  • CONTACT:
    25 Decicco Drive
    Leominster, MA 01453
    978-534-7745
    jeffrey.sullivan@leominsterschools.org
Fall Brook Elementary School
Leominster, MA
Our school culture is one of trust, support, and high expectations.
Describe specific programs in place to ensure that families are involved in the success of your school and students.
-PTO Sponsored Events
-Mother/Son Event
-Dad/Daughter Dance
-School Wide Escape Room
-Color Run
-Holiday Fair
-AIP
-Home Visits
-Open House
-Parent Teacher Conferences
Describe the most successful activity your school has initiated to strengthen ties to your community.
Our most successful, both in participation as well as financially, has been our annual Multiple Sclerosis "Coin Wars." Students, families, and community members/businesses have helped to raise over $60,000 throughout the past 7 years.
Describe your philosophy of school change or improvement.
Our philosophy on school change/improvement is to build consensus through communication, research/data, and establishment of student need/impact. It is important, through open lines of communication, to address all stakeholders and identify their contributions and potential impacts. Once this is addressed,
the ultimate question we always ask before making any binding decisions regarding change is; "Is this a student based decision?" In essence, is what were looking to change or improve student centered and in their best interest?
What are your school’s top two goals for the next year?
Generally, our overarching goal is to re-establish connections with our students and families. We felt like we had a ton of momentum heading into last spring that was obviously interrupted by COVID.
Specifically we want to address attendance as we anticipate this being a concern. Some poor habits may have developed around participation, engagement, and overall investment in learning. We will focus on getting students into school and engaged.
Our second goal is to implement a year-long plan to assess individual student strengths and weaknesses. We know that COVID has adversely affected so many of our students at different rates, before we can address these "gaps" we need to individualize it through formative and summative assessment.
What is the single most important factor in the success of your school that others could replicate?
Our single most important factor is threefold!

-High Expectation for student accountability (everything we do is in the best interest of students both academically and socially.)
-Standards based instruction
-Relationship based.
Describe the program or initiative that has had the greatest positive effect on student achievement, including closing achievement or opportunity gaps, if applicable.
The program or initiative that has had the greatest impact on student achievement, specifically in closing any gaps, has been our Assessment team. Over the past few years we have strategically constructed the team to represent each grade level (1-5) as well as Special Education and ELL teachers. We analyze MAP, MCAS, and other summative assessments and target areas of need.
With respect to the cohort of recognition; "excellence in serving special populations of students," we examined our writing standards, attendance interventions, and specifically identified our lowest 25% performing students.
Teachers brought back to their grade level teams new interpretations of what an essay specifically represents with reference to MCAS. We examined narrative writing and the rubrics with which they are valuated. For attendance, we created an Attendance Intervention Program collaborating with DCF as well as other community supports. Finally, we strategically targeted our lowest 25% using

Identify the critical professional development activities you use to improve teaching and student learning.
-Unpacking Standards
-Vertical Teams
-CPT
-Peer Observation Program
-Teachers strategically develop schedules to accommodate SPED/ELL services
-Strategic and collaborative schedule design amongst teachers
Describe how data is used to improve student achievement and inform decision making.
Data is collected and filtered though grade level teams, interventionists, and ultimately the Assessment team. At that level, the Assessment team focusses on trends and/or consistent areas of strength or weakness. Through conversation and analyzation, recommendations are made to grade level teams with the support of administration.
As an obvious example, we looked carefully at who our chronically absent students were the prior year. We assessed all variables that might contribute to their absences. We developed next level relationships with families to mitigate those issues (purchased alarm clocks, established wake up calls, went to pick up certain students etc.). Ultimately, we developed an AIP (Attendance Intervention Program) to further support those families with ongoing concerns. While not punitive, it did involve outside agencies coming into the process to offer support/services.
Describe your school culture and explain changes you’ve taken to improve it.
Our school culture is one of trust, support, and high expectations. The genuine investment by staff in our students/families is clear from the moment you walk into the building. Some of the many things we do to cultivate a sense of community are as follows;
-School wide staff scavenger hunts (typically around vacations, holidays, or whenever needed!)
-"Falcon phone call" - this is a weekly program where administration calls a family in each class to express that the students has exercised great effort.
-Amazing Math Race- Math/Phys Ed related Olympics
-Student of the Month
-Routine celebrations of student of staff work
-Christmas Exit/Enter tickets- Admin come into the room and assist for a designated amount of time or take over the class for the same amount of time.
Stats
  • Category 3

    Selected in 2020

  • Grades: k - 5
    School Setting: urban
    Town Population: 43,000
    Student Enrollment: 637
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 7.4%
    White/Caucasian: 52.9%
    Hispanic: 32.2%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0%
    Asian: 2.2%
    Native American: 0%
    Other: 5.3%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:14
    % Reduced Lunch: 43%
    % ELL Learners: 18.1%
    Founded: 1966
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Jeffrey Sullivan
  • CONTACT:
    25 Decicco Drive
    Leominster, MA 01453
    978-534-7745
    jeffrey.sullivan@leominsterschools.org