• Category 1

    Selected in 2022

  • Grades: k - 4
    School Setting: suburban
    Town Population: 14,680
    Student Enrollment: 267
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 3.4%
    White/Caucasian: 85.4%
    Hispanic: 1.9%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0%
    Asian: 1.1%
    Native American: 0%
    Other: 8.2%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:18
    % Reduced Lunch: 52.1%
    % ELL Learners: 0%
    Founded: 1949
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Nathan Stump
  • CONTACT:
    441 Reed Road
    Mansfield, OH 44903
    419-589-6517
    nstump@madisonrams.net
Mifflin Elementary School
Mansfield, OH
"Lead, Learn, Love"
1. Tell us about your school’s success.
The shutdown experienced during COVID caused many setbacks, both academic and social-emotional. Through a concerted effort on the part of all levels of stakeholders at Mifflin Elementary, we have seen many of these deficits fade over time. During the 2021-2022 school year, results from the report card issued by the Ohio Department of Education showed a five-star rating in both achievement and progress with third grade scores being 5.4% higher than the state average in ELA and 19.1% higher than the state average in math and fourth grade scores being 23.9% higher in ELA than the state average and 27.3% higher than the state average in math. In all subject areas, 33.1% of students scored advanced on state testing with an additional 26% scoring in the accomplished category. Progress also showed a positive gain of 4.04, showing significance statistical evidence that students are growing more than expected.
2. Talk about the greatest contributing factor(s) that promoted positive change in your school.
The greatest contributing factors that promoted positive change within the school was an agreement between all levels of stakeholders that expectations would remain high for all students and forming relationships built on our school motto "Lead, Learn, Love" would increase both student motivation and staff morale. Refusing to lower our expectations has allowed all staff to effectively communicate what students need to be successful, and parental stakeholders underlines the desires that they wanted their children to be held to high standards of achievement and growth. As a school team, Mifflin staff understood the assignment: students needed to be successful at school in all domains from a holistic perspective. This common understanding underlined every decision that staff made in order to promote the universal interests of Mifflin students.
3. How has ESEA funding supported the school's success?
Title I funding culminates in the form of Literacy Night, helping to provide supplies for the event as well as books to take home that allows families a first-hand perspective on the happenings of a Title classroom. Special transport bags were also purchased to assist students in taking home books each night to read with a friend or family member, and a love of reading emerged where students were able to bond with their reading partner over these books that were only made possible through this funding. An online data management system was also purchased so that Title staff was able to use a common platform in which to provide, view, and analyze running records on a weekly basis. This strategy allowed for collaboration to thrive between Title staff, general education teachers, and administration to recognize patterns for grouping, specific skill deficits that needed addressed, and common language to emerge.
4. What professional development activities were used to improve teaching and learning?
Professional development activities have centered on the unique needs present within Mifflin Elementary including the following: Anita Archer's Explicit Vocabulary Instruction, Carol Ann Tomlinson's perspectives on differentiation and The Equalizer, shift from traditional learning objectives to the KUDs (Know/Understand/Do) statements, intervention practices for students of all levels, including those that are high-achieving and/or identified as gifted, student goal setting and self-progress monitoring, Tier I and Tier II PBIS supports and interventions, cultural considerations and implicit bias recognition, curricular initiatives including Fundations, Heggerty Phonological and Phonemic Awareness, Wilson reading, and enVision math, and i-Ready implementation and analysis training.
5. Talk about the cultural shift leading up to your school's success.
The COVID shutdown may have temporarily separated stakeholders physically, but it united us in our determination to do what is best for our students and firmly establish our vision of student success upon return to in-person learning. We immediately viewed the academic and social-emotional deficits of our students upon returning to in-person learning in the fall of 2020, and we used this time to not only identify these issues, but research and evaluate different strategies in which we could best support these needs that we had never previously faced. Through communication with all levels of stakeholders, it was evident that there was much commonality between perspectives that may have been different prior to the shutdown, and a cultural shift was evident where understanding emerged rather quickly. This gave school staff the intrinsic fuel to tirelessly help students in individual progress, and more personalized and intentional learning resulted.
6. How has community involvement strengthened your success?
The community has proven to be a vital component to the success of Mifflin Elementary where its input and desire for positive student outcomes has laid the foundation upon which staff has built learning opportunities for all students. Creating a structure through Title supports has brought the community into the learning process where the value of reading each night at home fosters a love of reading and positivity and welcoming families into the school for events such as Literacy Night shows that reading is both enjoyable and inclusive for everyone. The community has, in turn, provided fiscal support for activities that enhance the holistic educational perspective of our students including multiple field trips for every grade level, children's author visit, and experiences where hands-on learning is brought into the building for all students to enjoy. All of these opportunities would not be possible without the support of the Mifflin community.
Stats
  • Category 1

    Selected in 2022

  • Grades: k - 4
    School Setting: suburban
    Town Population: 14,680
    Student Enrollment: 267
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 3.4%
    White/Caucasian: 85.4%
    Hispanic: 1.9%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0%
    Asian: 1.1%
    Native American: 0%
    Other: 8.2%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:18
    % Reduced Lunch: 52.1%
    % ELL Learners: 0%
    Founded: 1949
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Nathan Stump
  • CONTACT:
    441 Reed Road
    Mansfield, OH 44903
    419-589-6517
    nstump@madisonrams.net