• Category 1

    Selected in 2016

  • Grades: pre k - 8
    School Setting: urban
    Town Population: 9,000,000
    Student Enrollment: 670
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 10%
    White/Caucasian: 1%
    Hispanic: 2%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0%
    Asian: 86%
    Native American: 0%
    Other: 1%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:28
    % Reduced Lunch: 92%
    % ELL Learners: 36%
    Founded: 1886
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Catherine Moy
  • CONTACT:
    247 West 23rd Place
    Chicago, IL 60616
    773-534-9200
    camoy@cps.edu
Haines Elementary School
Chicago, IL
Providing students with project and problem based learning has made real-life connections between the world and the classroom.
Describe specific programs in place to ensure that families are involved in the success of your school and students.
There is a strong presence on the school’s Local School Council, Parent Advisory Council and Bilingual Advisory Council at Haines. Parents are informed monthly with a reading connection that can assist them with fun activities. We communicate with parents through teachers’ monthly newsletters, school’s website, social media, etc. We invite parents throughout the year to school-wide performances, science and history fairs, family nights, and Field Day.
Recently, parents have been invited to have meetings with the administrative staff by grade level. Creating a safe space for parents to be informed about their child’s academic and social experience has been acknowledged to be successful.
We would like to create additional family opportunities, such as dances and movies so that more parents can participate.
Describe the most successful activity your school has initiated to strengthen ties to your community.
The most successful activity our school has initiated to strengthen ties to the community is communication with parents and community stakeholders monthly via the Haines Herald, the school’s newsletter. Besides informing the community about all we do during the school day, it has acted as a monthly invitation to the community to join us for open house, arts festival, family night, or literacy night presented by teachers, staff, and students. The community activities our school host take place after school hours to make them accessible to all parents and community members. We would like to invite the Chinatown community to play an integral part of a successful partnership.
Describe your philosophy of school change or improvement.
Change is inevitable. It is important to be transparent with students, staff and community member. As a school leader, it is important to come up with solutions for problems and not dwell on the problems for students and teachers. Teachers have an opportunity to change student’s live daily and the teachers should be supported when taking risks.
What are your school’s top two goals for the next year?
One goal is to continue to sustain the level of rigor at Haines School as a Level 1+ school within Chicago Public Schools. Another goal is to provide students at Haines 1:1 technology devices for our intermediate; 3rd and 4th grade, and in the primary classrooms have access to at least 10-15 devices. Along with students having devices, it would be great if the technology lab would be a space where students are involved in robotics, 3D printing, as well as coding.
What is the single most important factor in the success of your school that others could replicate?
One factor in our success is the high expectations from all teachers and staff members of our students at Haines. Providing students with project and problem based learning has made real-life connections to the world into classrooms.
Haines WILDCAT motto:

Winners don't give up! We try again and again, day after day, after day.

Inspire one another. We should lift each other up DAILY.

Learning is my responsibility each day.

Dream big! Set goals! Take action!

Collaboration- parents, students, and teachers working together.

Attitude:Always positive and believe that all children can learn.

Trust people doing what they say they will do.
Describe the program or initiative that has had the greatest positive effect on student achievement, including closing achievement or opportunity gaps, if applicable.
There is a student-centered approach at Haines. One initiative that some of our middle school students participate in is the Free 60 Program. Free 60 Program was designed by teachers and utilizes student data to meet the needs of our learners. The “60” in Free 60 reflects the 60 minutes a day dedicated to students working on individual goals in reading and math set by themselves and their teacher. The first 30 minutes students work on educational programs that are monitored by the teacher. At the end of the 30 minutes, students reflect on their learning. The second half of Free 60 gives students the opportunity to work on a project or problem based learning PBL activity.
Explain how Title I funds are used to support your improvement efforts.
We have used Title I funds to provide support for students, teachers, and parents at Haines School. We created an after- school program to ensure that targeted grades continue to meet and exceed scores on district-wide NWEA and state assessments. The school continues to purchase instructional materials- digital and nondigital to assist with instruction, interventions and assessments. We provide family nights to promote family engagement as well with Title I funds.
Identify the critical professional development activities you use to improve teaching and student learning.
It is important that professional development activities are purposeful and ongoing.We create a yearlong calendar with specific topics that will help facilitate teaching and learning at Haines School. The members of the Instructional Leadership Team plays an integral part of professional development. Teacher leaders in the building help facilitate professional development during grade level meetings which provide opportunities for teacher teams to grow professionally and improve student learning. Teachers participated in Capturing Kids’ Heart during the summer as well as Responsive Classroom to assist with the social emotional learning of the students at Haines. There is also a technology team that provides in-house professional development on technology, such as the use of smartboards, Google apps, tools and supports for personalized learning and support for project or problem-based learning (PBL) school-wide.
Describe how data is used to improve student achievement and inform decision making.
Data is examined closely and disaggregated to uncover several trends in order to narrow the focus on student groups and individuals, their areas of strength and needs. As part of our MTSS process, students are tiered by using a battery of data, and then given more individualized and focused goals and interventions. Students and teachers set goals together and developed a plan to meet or exceed target on standardized tests where the data is shared on a data wall or sheet in every classroom.
Describe your school culture and explain changes you’ve taken to improve it.
It is important that students and teachers take ownership of their learning and be acknowledged of all the accomplishments. There has been changes in administration and we are working on building rapport and foster healthy relationships among the staff and students. Teachers collaborate weekly with one another as well as with the administration. It is important that students and teachers are recognized throughout the school year.
Stats
  • Category 1

    Selected in 2016

  • Grades: pre k - 8
    School Setting: urban
    Town Population: 9,000,000
    Student Enrollment: 670
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 10%
    White/Caucasian: 1%
    Hispanic: 2%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0%
    Asian: 86%
    Native American: 0%
    Other: 1%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:28
    % Reduced Lunch: 92%
    % ELL Learners: 36%
    Founded: 1886
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Catherine Moy
  • CONTACT:
    247 West 23rd Place
    Chicago, IL 60616
    773-534-9200
    camoy@cps.edu