• Category 2

    Selected in 2020

  • Grades: 9 - 12
    School Setting: suburban
    Town Population: 6,735
    Student Enrollment: 678
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 0.5%
    White/Caucasian: 91.1%
    Hispanic: 3.7%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0.5%
    Asian: 0.5%
    Native American: 2.5%
    Other: 1.2%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:16
    % Reduced Lunch: 18%
    % ELL Learners: 1%
    Founded: 1893
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Shawnda Zahara-Harris
  • CONTACT:
    203 East 8th Street
    Laurel, MT 59044
    406-628-3500
    shawnda_zahara@laurel.k12.mt.us
Laurel High School
Laurel, MT
Created Locomotive Strong - Be responsible, be respectful, be a graduate.
Describe specific programs in place to ensure that families are involved in the success of your school and students.
Laurel High School continues to grow opportunities for families to be involved in school activities. Our use of the google and infinite campus platforms give families immediate access to student learning. We also communicate frequently with families on the progress of students. Our virtual parent-teacher conferences were a huge success and we will expand these for parents in the spring. Our social media presence is ever increasing and families find they are better able to stay connected using these platforms. Our district holds several community-based meetings throughout the year to discuss three major areas including budget, building, and curriculum. LHS parents have a high rate of participation at these events.
Describe the most successful activity your school has initiated to strengthen ties to your community.
LHS is an integral part of our community. Many of our school clubs participate in community service projects. Our FCCLA club recently made Christmas stockings for the Salvation Army to give to the homeless in the area. Student clubs are very active in this way. We also collaborate with local businesses on projects such as our ProStart Program. We receive food donations from local grocers and meat packing plants to use in our program. This program is geared for budding chefs and those planning to work in the food service industry. Big Brothers Big Sisters students work with families to provide mentoring for elementary age students. Student Council, National Honor Society, Link Crew students participate in food distribution programs for needy families and clean up projects around the community throughout the year. Our athletic programs provide quality experiences for our community not only through championship seasons but also through community give back programs as well.


Describe your philosophy of school change or improvement.
School change and improvement should be driven by a combination of students, parents, and teachers working together to find what is best for the students. Using a combination of the suggestions to make school life better is our best approach. Data is a vital part of the change process. Using a variety of source data types is the best approach. The more we build positive relationships with students, parents, and colleagues, the faster positive change will happen. Additionally, Laurel High School believes that innovations and ideas impact students in different ways and that staff should be given the flexibility to try new approaches with students with as few of obstacles as possible to maintain a high level of active engagement by all students A collaborative approach to change is what we find works best and a regular review of the implementation process helps us refine strategies for best use throughout our school.
What are your school’s top two goals for the next year?
LHS continues to prioritize the whole child in its approaches to school improvement. One goal is to continue to provide social-emotional supports on campus for students. This happens through strategic planning and partnership building with community based programs as well as on-going training for all staff members in the identification and social emotional support of at-risk students. A second goal is to improve literacy skills across all content areas through strategic professional development and data analysis. Reading in the content areas is vital to a skilled workforce and success of students in post-secondary endeavors.
What is the single most important factor in the success of your school that others could replicate?
At LHS our priority is to build academic confidence in every student every day. Providing a blended learning environment that is based on the needs of individual students helps build confidence and success in learning. Individual learning plans help provide enrichment and intervention when needed. STEAM is a concept that can be replicated easily by other schools. 30 minutes of time 3-4 days per week for relationship building, academic intervention and academic enrichment help connect students to relevant supports. The wrap-around model helps students feel safe, secure, and confident in their academic learning environment and allows staff to connect with students at a deeper level. And finally, administrative support for innovative approaches where staff members are allowed to be creative, to think outside the box, and offering opportunities for ALL students no matter their skill level.

Describe the program or initiative that has had the greatest positive effect on student achievement, including closing achievement or opportunity gaps, if applicable.
STEAM time is a teacher developed initiative that provided 30 minutes of time 4 days per week to provide enrichment and intervention opportunities for all students at LHS. STEAM time allowed students to go see teachers that they were missing work in or missing an assessment in. It gave them opportunities to get caught up without taking away from precious class time. Also, it allowed teachers an opportunity to help students who just weren't quite getting it. It allowed us one-on-one time with those students. Additionally, we have worked very hard to add Dual-Credit class opportunities at all levels. We feel it is important that all students gain academic confidence by completing a dual credit course that offers them relevance to their chosen post-secondary path. The number of student participating in these courses has tripled in the last couple of years.
Explain how ESEA federal funds are used to support your improvement efforts.
At Laurel High School, we use ESEA funds to provide in-class supports for struggling students. We offer a variety of in-person and on-line options for students to help rebuild their academic confidence and keep them on track to graduation with their cohort groups. A blended model is vital to this success with support from staff members. After three years of planning, LHS implemented a 1:1 initiative using chrome books for all students. We feel this has helped connect students more effectively to the expectations of the modern student.
Identify the critical professional development activities you use to improve teaching and student learning.
Staff members have developed State approved standards and Board approved curriculum documents provide the roadmap describing what students will learn, while the yearlong context maps serve as implementation documents to prescribe how the students will learn. The yearlong context maps vary in style and complexity, but for most teachers, these instructional tools provide pacing guidance, vocabulary emphasis, key skills and concepts for learning, and essential knowledge expectations. They help teachers fulfill the promise to parents and students that students are studying the state approved curriculum. LHS staff members participate in weekly early release opportunities to improve instruction as well as extended summer learning. Additionally, our building leadership team examines walk-thru data to create professional learning goals based on this data.

Describe how data is used to improve student achievement and inform decision making.
We have been working hard to use data to improve instruction on a more regular basis. Departments strategically meet throughout the year to place students in correct classes that will lead them to success and be the best option for them on their road to graduation. We also use data to help find holes and gaps in their knowledge to try and fill those as best we can in the time allotted One of our most successful activities throughout the year is the use of the Early Warning System Data. Our staff gathers to review the list of at-risk students, identify those they have the most contact with and find those who appear to be falling through the cracks. We then as a staff initiate a plan to build relationships with these at-risk students and work to increase their academic success. Every spring we also meet with our middle school department teachers to create an effective transition plan for our 9th grade students based on data. This approach helps students find better success.

Describe your school culture and explain changes you’ve taken to improve it.
Created Locomotive Strong - Be responsible, be respectful, be a graduate. Over the last four years we have worked hard to implement a variety of wrap-around supports for all students in additions to the improvements in academic offerings. We provide in-depth mental health supports for students through our student services program and partnerships with community mental health providers. Additionally we encourage student participation in the many clubs, organizations, or sports teams on campus as we feel that students are more successful when involved with one of these groups. Many staff members work hard to create an environment of inclusion that allows all students to be treated equally, fairly, and that can feel comfortable in asking questions and being themselves. Our administration allows us to try new things, be creative and think outside the box. We are not constricted in any way. Our school has a very supportive culture for connecting teachers to each other.
Stats
  • Category 2

    Selected in 2020

  • Grades: 9 - 12
    School Setting: suburban
    Town Population: 6,735
    Student Enrollment: 678
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 0.5%
    White/Caucasian: 91.1%
    Hispanic: 3.7%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0.5%
    Asian: 0.5%
    Native American: 2.5%
    Other: 1.2%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:16
    % Reduced Lunch: 18%
    % ELL Learners: 1%
    Founded: 1893
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Shawnda Zahara-Harris
  • CONTACT:
    203 East 8th Street
    Laurel, MT 59044
    406-628-3500
    shawnda_zahara@laurel.k12.mt.us