WORTHINGTON — Administrators at Worthington Middle School have developed a plan designed to improve communication and safety among students and staff, Principal Jeff Luke told the school board instructional committee meeting Monday morning.
Because WMS is a Title 1 school (at least 75% of students are on free/reduced lunch), the state requires staff to write a "school improvement plan." Given public concerns about safety in the school, including a violent incident during the last week of school in May, administrators wanted to focus the plan more on "belongingness."
Surveying several classrooms, staff learned that very few WMS students feel they have an adult in the building that they can turn to. The school plans to use advisory time to help kids work on getting along with others, learn when to report incidents and to whom and generally work on communication.
"This is just a start," Assistant Principal Brett Perish told the committee.
"I appreciate the steps you guys are taking," board member Adam Blume told Luke and Perish.
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The full board will continue to discuss what else may be done to improve morale at WMS in coming school board meetings. They meet next at 5:15 p.m. Tuesday in the high school media center.
