• Category 3

    Selected in 2020

  • Grades: pre k - 8
    School Setting: rural
    Town Population: 1,320
    Student Enrollment: 44
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 0%
    White/Caucasian: 100%
    Hispanic: 0%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0%
    Asian: 0%
    Native American: 0%
    Other: 0%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:15
    % Reduced Lunch: 0%
    % ELL Learners: 43%
    Founded: 1972
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Joel Bailey
  • CONTACT:
    36926 266th St.
    Platte, SD 57369
    605-337-3391
    joel.bailey@k12.sd.us
Cedar Grove Colony Elementary School
Platte, SD
School culture at Cedar Grove Colony School is family-oriented.
Describe the most successful activity your school has initiated to strengthen ties to your community.
The Cedar Grove Community is like family. The houses are located in close proximity to the school building so it makes school-home connections very convenient.

The colony teachers have immersed themselves in the colony culture and continuously build relationships and rapport with the colony families. The families are part of the success that takes place within the school walls and we celebrate those successes together.
Describe your philosophy of school change or improvement.
School change begins with developing relationships and rapport with students and parents. Keeping the parents informed and involved with the learning process truly makes school change a joint effort.
What are your school’s top two goals for the next year?
1. To have every student pass the WIDA Assessment

2. To improve the number of students who score proficient or advanced on the South Dakota State Assessment
What is the single most important factor in the success of your school that others could replicate?
School-family connections and involvement
Describe the program or initiative that has had the greatest positive effect on student achievement, including closing achievement or opportunity gaps, if applicable.
Programs are great, but the best asset we have in regards to student achievement is the committed, experienced teaching staff at Cedar Grove Colony School. The teachers have immersed themselves in the Hutterite culture and make extraordinary efforts to build/maintain relationships with the students and families. In turn, they are able to have open dialogue with the families about any acadademic gaps that need to be addressed. The families are willing to assist the teacher when working on school assignments at home.
Explain how ESEA federal funds are used to support your improvement efforts.
Identify the critical professional development activities you use to improve teaching and student learning.
For the past four years, the district has implemented individualized professional development based on areas of improvement within teacher evaluations and teacher's exploratory goals.

Allowing the teachers to set their individual goals ensures that the work they are doing to improve is relevant and focuses on instructional improvement.
Describe how data is used to improve student achievement and inform decision making.
The district looks at the WIDA Assessments, Smarter Balance Assessment results, and district-wide assessments to identify academic areas of improvement. We use this data to find weak standards withing our curriculum and then create an action plan to fill those gaps with supplemental materials and instructional strategies.
Describe your school culture and explain changes you’ve taken to improve it.
School culture at Cedar Grove Colony School is very family-oriented. The district and colony work together to ensure all of the students' needs are met. We continue to build on family-centric education by creating opportunities for parents to participate in their child/children's educational experience.
Stats
  • Category 3

    Selected in 2020

  • Grades: pre k - 8
    School Setting: rural
    Town Population: 1,320
    Student Enrollment: 44
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 0%
    White/Caucasian: 100%
    Hispanic: 0%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0%
    Asian: 0%
    Native American: 0%
    Other: 0%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:15
    % Reduced Lunch: 0%
    % ELL Learners: 43%
    Founded: 1972
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Joel Bailey
  • CONTACT:
    36926 266th St.
    Platte, SD 57369
    605-337-3391
    joel.bailey@k12.sd.us