KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Knox County Schools announced a new plan meant to improve its Region 5 schools. Historically, KCS said it had not "articulated a clear vision of success" for its schools in the region.
They said students in Region 5 have continued to perform behind peers in academic achievement as well as college and career readiness. They said 62 graduates out of 314 from Austin-East Magnet High School and Fulton High School were considered prepared for college or a career.
They said while developing the strategic plan they spoke with more than 130 students, 53 teachers, 15 faith leaders, ten public officials, six higher education leaders, 18 non-profit leaders, 54 families, 14 principals and nine business owners. They said family focus groups were conducted in English, Spanish, Swahili and Kirundi.
"Our kids are resilient within Region 5 because they do face unique challenges," said Dexter Murphy director of Region 5. "Oftentimes, those barriers are at the homefront. Not all of our students, but a lot of our students, come to school with those barriers and trauma that they've experienced as well. So what we want to do is make sure we have supports in place within our strategic plan and make sure that we're removing those barriers to learning."
They said they found that 72% of students wanted more guest speakers and career opportunities, and 23% of students feel their schools' behavior system helps them. They also said 96% of Region 5 teachers asked for differentiated professional development.
They also said 100% of community leaders said there was a need for high-quality teachers who understand students' cultural contexts.
After those interviews, they said that they created "The Region 5 Way." It details a five-year plan focused on establishing high academic expectations, improving retention and recruitment of educators, creating career and college pathways for all students, developing systems to meet children's needs holistically and establishing partnerships with families and community members.
"We put a team around them to make sure they have the whole child-support needs met," Murphy said. "Whether that be trauma, whether that be any barriers to impede success, whether it be lack of food options or things of that nature. So that's what we're going to wrap our arms around our students within Region Five and make sure we have that whole child-support team in place at every school to provide the support they need."
Region 5's schools are listed below.
Elementary Schools
- Beaumont Magnet Academy
- Belle Morris Elementary
- Christenberry Elementary
- Green Magnet Academy
- Lonsdale Elementary
- Maynard Elementary
- Sarah Moore Greene Magnet Academy
- Spring Hill Elementary
Middle Schools
- Holston Middle
- Vine Magnet Middle
- Whittle Springs Middle
High Schools
- Austin East Magnet High
- Fulton High
KCS plans to hold community meetings at 5:30 p.m. on different days to discuss the new Region 5 plan. They will be held at Austin-East Magnet High School on May 15, May 16 at Lonsdale Elementary and May 18 at Sarah Moore Greene Magnet Academy. They said two or more board members could be present at the meetings.
They said that through the plan they hope at least 80% of third-graders would be approaching grade-level standards in ELA and at least 60% of eighth-graders approach standards in math.
"We want to make sure we're exposing our kids at the kindergarten through the sixth-grade elementary level, as well as the middle school level as well, to make sure we're exposing them to those career pathways early on, so they can see what success looks like, and also have that interest along the way," Murphy said. "That way, when they get to high school, they can choose a pathway of their interest based on what they've experienced from kindergarten and on up through high school."
They also said all Region 5 educators would receive extended contracts with additional pay, and they hoped to make sure at least 25% of new teachers in the region would be either bilingual or teachers of color. They also said they hoped to make sure all schools in Region 5 reach an average daily attendance rate of at least 93%.
KCS said they are forming implementation teams made up of KCS teachers and administrators, as well as community members, to work towards their goals. They said they planned to take the next steps on the plan during the upcoming school year by expanding Pre-K access, conducting staff culture training for leaders, extending contracts for teachers, creating individualized learning plans for some students and developing "high-quality math" curricula in schools.
"We want people that can quite high-quality relationships with our students," Murphy said. "Research states that it takes one adult, only one adult, that has a high trust and high relationship building aspect to them to make sure that they can move the needle with our students."