• Category 1

    Selected in 2015

  • Grades: pre k - 7
    School Setting: rural
    Town Population: 1,600
    Student Enrollment: 430
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 9.5%
    White/Caucasian: 87.4%
    Hispanic: 0.5%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0.5%
    Asian: 0%
    Native American: 0.9%
    Other: 1.2%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:20
    % Reduced Lunch: 60%
    % ELL Learners: 3.3%
    Founded: 1995
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Chester King
  • CONTACT:
    6219 Hwy 184 E
    Donalds , SC 29638
    864-379-8500
    aferguson@acsdsc.org
Cherokee Trail Elementary School
Donalds , SC
Cherokee Trail Elementary School believes teachers empower themselves to provide a quality education with opportunities for high achievement through decision making and reflection of positive learning outcomes. Empowering teachers is more than allowing one to plan their own classroom routines and instruction.
Describe specific programs in place to ensure that families are involved in the success of your school and students.
Meet the Teacher- CTE creates an annual Open House where parents and students are invited to come and “Meet the Teacher”. This is successful year after year due to excited students who are eager to start the new school year.
“Literacy Night” and “Math and Science Night” are events where students participate in academic activities to enhance their learning. Families are invited to school to participate in activities, read student’s reach projects, and learn about ways to help students learn at home.
Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) – PTO program attendance are encouraged through musical numbers by various grade levels throughout the school year.
School Improvement Council (SIC) – Members from the community, parents, and school members serve on the SIC committee to plan and implement quality public education in South Carolina. The mission of the SC School Improvement Council is: "To facilitate meaningful parent and community involvement in our state’s public schools by providing resources, tools and strategies to local School Improvement Councils and other stakeholder groups." CTE’s SIC is committed to use resources, tools, and strategies to create a five year renewal plan, provide a report to the community about the progress of the plan, and monitor and evaluate the success in reaching the plan’s goals and objectives.
Cherokee Trail Elementary has varied classroom and school-wide programs in place to ensure that families are involved in the success of each student. Teachers promote classroom activities, instructional schedules, and school events through newsletters and websites that are regularly updated for family viewing. All students are issued a home-school communication planner where the student can copy homework, school papers and notes can be sent home, and communication from the home can be given to the teacher. Through our school’s automated calling system, School Messenger, parents receive notices about school and district events or if their child is absent or tardy. Teachers have access to a database of student phone numbers and phones in each classroom that are used to notify parents for positive praise and concerns.
Cherokee Trail Elementary families are routinely invited to attend school events such as Math and Science Night, Young Author’s celebrations, and Career Day. In addition, our active Parent-Teacher Organization also sponsors fun community nights where school personnel and families are encouraged to mingle such as Family Movie Nights and Family Christmas Ornament Craft Night. Our music and art departments also plan fine arts performances by various grades that highlight the creative talents of our students. Also, our school promotes literacy through a “Read to Succeed” program that combines nationally sponsored reading programs with local classroom initiatives such as the 100 Book Challenge in kindergarten and the 30 Book Challenge in fourth grade. These reading programs involve parents in the process of helping their children become literate readers. Finally, families are invited to attend open house informational sessions and parent-teacher conferences that provide ongoing, data-based information about their child’s progress. Our school’s attendance rate for these conferences is 99.5%. Our teachers schedule these conferences around family work schedules, using early morning, late afternoon, and evening hours as options so that every family can have the opportunity to attend. For parents with transportation issues, teachers use phone calls as a means to speak with parents about their child’s progress.
Our local community stakeholders also promote family involvement at our school. The local Lion’s Club, in coordination with our Parent-Teacher Organization, sponsors a “Terrific Kid” program to recognize individual students. These students are nominated by teachers based on the criteria of good character, personal responsibility, and respect for one’s self and others. Families are invited to attend a special program where the Lion’s Club representative and Guidance Counselor read a short description of the nominated student’s positive behaviors and reward the student with personal attention. Parents are given a car magnet to proudly display on their vehicle. Another example of community stakeholder involvement is our annual Career Day in the spring. Family members and local community workers are invited into our school to talk about their occupations and what school subjects they use in their chosen job. Local churches participate in a weekend food program that sends snack bags home with needy students on the weekends to help supplement the meals that parents provide. These sources also provide needed school supplies, clothes, field trip funds, and Christmas toys to help our student population. Finally, mentors, community and parent volunteers, and the America Reads tutors from a nearby college assist children and families in developing the whole child both academically and personally. They provide a positive role model, academic instruction and homework assistance, and a listening ear to children whose parents work to provide for their families. By addressing not only the academic needs of children, but also their character, nutrition, and dreams, our school strives to remain parent –friendly and accessible so that all children can succeed.
Describe the most successful activity your school has initiated to strengthen ties to your community.
The most successful activity our school has initiated to strengthen the ties to our community is the ongoing cooperative involvement within the community. Erskine College and Seminary is a small college located in Due West, SC. Cherokee Trail Elementary (CTE) has a close educational relationship with Erskine College and its students. Many Erskine students are involved with Cherokee Trail students through various educational programs. One of the programs, America Reads, America Counts, gives the opportunity for tutors from Erskine to team with students from Cherokee Trail. Each tutor is expected to encourage CTE students in the subject areas of Reading and Mathematics, and support children in their school development. Tutors work directly with kindergarten through sixth grade CTE students to improve their reading and math proficiency skills. Tutors perform one-on-one work with individual CTE students, group work, or class activities. Students in the Education Department work closely with our school through their field experience. Cherokee Trail provides opportunities for student teachers from Erskine (and other surrounding colleges) to complete their teaching requirements in Early Childhood and Elementary levels of study. Professors from Erskine also team with teachers from CTE and teach lessons to the students. The Chemistry professor teaches lessons with several classes each year. The Music professor teaches lessons and shares classical music and music history with classes. The Athletic Director helps promote a health centered environment. He allows Erskine students the opportunity to teach physical skills to the students and to conduct a Field Day event each year. Erskine students have provided a Health Fair to promote health centered attitudes. These are some of the many activities that show how close ties to Erskine College provide a cooperative environment which promotes learning and success for all students involved.
Another program that is successful in strengthening ties to the community is through CTE's “Terrific Kids” program, sponsored by the Due West Lions Club. This program recognizes outstanding students at our school every month. Parents are invited to a ceremony to recognize the “Terrific Kids” at CTE. “Terrific Kids” is a student recognition program that promotes character development, positive self-esteem, and perseverance. Students work with their classroom teacher and establish goals to improve behavior, peer relationships, attendance, or schoolwork. The objective is to honor as many students in the school as possible. The Terrific Kids program provides teachers with a tool to reward students for special achievements that may otherwise go unnoticed. The Terrific Kids Program is successful because: ★ Students learn to set and achieve goals ★ Students compete with themselves ★ The program encourages development of partnerships between the business community and the school.
Describe your philosophy of school change or improvement.
Our Mission: The mission of Cherokee Trail Elementary School is to support and challenge students every day to learn lifelong skills to become creative, responsible, and productive citizens.
Our Beliefs: We believe:
• all students, regardless of race, age, creed, or ability can learn and be successful
• all students have worth, dignity, and uniqueness
• all students deserve a safe and positive environment for learning
• home environment expectations and attitude play an important role in student’s development
• diversity of students must be reflected in the staff, programs, and priorities

School change or improvements begins with collaboration. Teachers at CTE collaborate with each other, parents, the community, and administrators. Collaboration is one of the hardest things to do, but our school feels improvements are strengthened by opening the door to working together. One person alone can’t reach each student. The process of gathering and interpreting data, implementing instructional practices aligned with student needs, and adjusting programs based on student performance is used at CTE to ensure students develop lifelong skills to promote success and well-being.
What are your school’s top two goals for the next year?
The top two goals for the next year are:
Goal 1: Implement the state’s reading plan - The Read to Succeed legislation (Act 284) requires that the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) with the approval of the State Board of Education develop, implement, evaluate, and continuously refine a comprehensive state plan for prekindergarten through grade twelve to improve reading achievement. The South Carolina State Reading Plan has been developed to guide the support of the State Department of Education for districts and schools. The South Carolina State Reading Plan also provides guidance to district and school plans as they work to support the reading and writing development of their students with research-based, outcomes-oriented strategies.
Goal 2: Increase technology – CTE would like to offer greater online experiences for rich academic learning. Using technology in the learning process would create more engagement, personal opportunities in the learning, and allow learning to become relevant in the nature of student’s being successful as they are college and career ready.
The school's purpose and direction is to lead the school through the challenges posed by an increasingly complex environment. Curriculum standards, achievement benchmarks, program requirements, and other policy guides from many sources generate complicated and unpredictable requirements for schools. The school must respond to increasing diversity in student characteristics, including cultural background and immigration status, income challenges, physical and mental disabilities, and variation in learning capacities.
Our purpose at CTE is to provide every child with an education that extends beyond each school year. We strive to prepare students to be the next generation of leaders by creating life-long learners and promote success and well-being.
What is the single most important factor in the success of your school that others could replicate?
CTE believes teachers empower themselves to provide a quality education with opportunities for high achievement through decision making and reflection of positive learning outcomes. Empowering teachers is more than allowing one to plan their own classroom routines and instruction. Empowering teachers is about having the encouragement from administration to exercise:
Innovative ideas- peer tutoring, pair-share-read, field trips, 100 Book Club
Exhibit a passion for TEACHING (which so many have lost)- student teachers from local Colleges/Universities
Becoming excited about learning- project base learning, character dress up, community projects
Caring about the students and their learning- home and school relationships are positive and supportive
With empowerment comes responsibility and reflection: Why did this work?, How did it work?, Can it be changed for the better? Reflection on how the data supports the teacher’s thoughts about the success of the activities or program.
Empowering teachers allows ownership to take over and a new drive to find a way to be successful and create lifelong learning. The mission of CTE is to support and challenge students every day to learn lifelong skills and become creative, responsible, and productive citizens. As we empower our teachers, we allow teaching to be creative as the mission of CTE is accomplished and the needs of our students are met daily.
Also, our school is focused on the development of the whole child. Although teachers design instruction around standards and best practices, we are more than prescribed educational standards. CTE teachers chose to become educators out of a strong desire to help students become productive, successful citizens. Teachers evaluate the needs and talents of each individual child and create opportunities for growth and success. These opportunities are directly correlated to the needs of each developing child. Art, music, character development, fitness, and rich, rigorous academic opportunities are provided for all students. Because our focus is on the children, the children feel loved and respond in a positive manner. Since all teachers, staff, and parents have a common goal of seeing that all students are successful, a family like atmosphere is created at our school. You see smiles on our teacher’s faces and our student’s faces. We have a genuine interest in each other. There is a consistency of staff satisfaction in the area of the learning environment. According to the PASS report card survey, the staff was 93.5% satisfied in 2012, 91.7% satisfied in 2013, 100% satisfied in 2014. Each year indicates a consistency in the overall satisfaction and/or approval of the learning environment of the school. The administration at CTE also shares this goal of the development of the whole child; They realize the importance of giving teachers the necessary time to evaluate the needs of each child and make plans to address the needs of all. They serve as a support system and make an effort to keep interruptions and distractions from interfering with the focus teachers have on their students. When students go home feeling good about their day due to productive, positive interactions with other students and teachers, parents are happy. 99.5% of the parents attend school conferences. Parent surveys indicate that parents are pleased with the purpose, operation, and the preparation of students to become successful. Teachers and parents are friends who communicate and work together. A positive, caring learning environment is the single most important factor that other schools would do well to replicate.
Describe the program or initiative that has had the greatest positive effect on student achievement, including closing achievement or opportunity gaps, if applicable.
The initiative that has the greatest effect on student achievement is CTE’s innovative administrative leadership style that encourages creativity and flexibility in educational design. Teachers are given opportunities to explore new ways of teaching and freedom to implement new ideas in the classroom. Teachers are free to experiment with new techniques, keep what works, and discard what does not work. Just as we have a diverse student body, we also have great diversity in our teaching staff. The unique talents of all our teachers are used to develop programs that are aligned with our school’s mission of helping all students grow into productive citizens and life-long learners. Our teachers are life-long learners who have a sincere desire to give every student the best educational experience possible. They care about their students, and they have a love for their children, learning, and teaching. Therefore, there is not one program that CTE uses to affect student achievement. The combination of many activities, programs, and assessments designed by a talented and motivated staff make a difference in student achievement at CTE. The first step to continuous progress is a variety of formative and summative assessments that are consistently used to identify strengths and weaknesses. Teachers and administrators work together as a team to identify problem areas and design solutions. Teachers at CTE are dedicated professionals who stay abreast of the latest research in best practices through self-directed professional development that relates to the grade level and/or subjects they teach. The principal and curriculum coordinator respect the teachers’ expertise and have an open door policy that allows teachers to share ideas for improvement. Teachers feel free to request assistance and are supported in innovations and experimentation in the classroom. Likewise, teachers work together in horizontal and vertical grade-level groups to design curriculum and instructional structures that best fit the needs of each student and use the talents of all staff members for the maximum impact on student growth. Our school is determined to leave no child behind. To ensure equitable opportunities for all students, we have an active Student Support Team made up of our guidance counselor, special needs teachers, extracurricular teachers, our curriculum coordinator, and classroom teachers who meet on a regular basis to discuss specific students who are struggling socially, emotionally and/or academically. We work together as a team to design interventions and assessment strategies that will enable all students to stay on the road to success. We are conscious of the need for positive relationships with parents and the community we serve. We know that communication is key to success; therefore we continuously look for better ways to maintain good relationships with all stakeholders. In addition to providing information about the progress and mission through the annual school report card and student handbook, all teachers have websites that allow parents to access information about their child’s particular class activities, homework assignments, and study aides. We have several school wide events each year that bring in parents and friends to support our students and build healthy relationships between school staff and the families we serve. Some examples of this are book fairs, math and science night, field trips, movie nights, and athletic field day. In summary, a combination of data analysis to identify needs, innovative programs to strengthen curriculum and instructional design, dedication to our mission of equitable and challenging opportunities for all students, communication to develop partnerships, the unique talents of our staff, and team work ensures student success at CTE. Walking into our school, one will not see a cookie cutter approach to learning. Instead, rich and varied menus of opportunities are available for all.
Explain how Title I funds are used to support your improvement efforts.
Funds are designated to have smaller classrooms, support technology needs, and encourage parent involvement. We believe student success is directly related to each of these areas. Student data is monitored and instruction is tailored to meet each student’s needs.
Title I funds have supported improvements at CTE by providing funds to support learning opportunities and incorporate technology to enhance learning, through on-line collaboration and in person, group, and individual learning. Overhead projectors, interactive boards, and computers were installed in all classrooms to assist classroom instruction. Some classrooms are equipped with IPADS, document cameras, digital cameras, and laptops. The infrastructure offers educators more diverse methods for delivering high quality instruction and engaging students in the learning process. The goal of CTE is to expose students to the use of technology as they develop and become life-long learners. Example of Title I Funds in use:
• eCYBERMISSION is a free, web-based, Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) competition for students in grades six through nine. Sponsored by the U.S. Army and managed by RDECOM. eCYBERMISSION is designed to share the importance of STEM education with the leaders of tomorrow and encourage them to understand the real-life applications of these subjects. Students compete for state and national awards by working in teams to identify a problem in their community and using scientific inquiry to propose a solution. eCYBERMISSION is an Army Educational Outreach Program (www.usaeop.com). Cherokee Trail teams won First and Second-Place in the state of South Carolina in the 2012 eCybermission online math and science competition sponsored by the US Army. The First Place Team was "The Geek Squad.” The Second Place Team was “The Greenhornets.” “The Geek Squad” did an experiment on methods for middle school students to reduce paper waste on a daily basis. They each won a $1000 savings bond. The Greenhornets' project dealt with ways to prevent wildfires from spreading from their containment area. They each won a $500 savings bond. Science and Math teachers were team advisors for the project, as well as, the other six teams that entered the competition from Cherokee Trail.

Title I funds have reduced student-teacher ratios. Several years ago CTE had student-teacher ratios approaching 25:1 and with the use of Title I funds our current ratio is 15:1. All classes/grades have three teachers and there is an instructional assistant for middle school classrooms to assist with small group instruction.

Title I funds have improved home connections and parent involvement.
• Student planners are purchased each school year to ensure parent/teacher communication every day.
• Necessary materials and supplies are purchased for parent night. An annual Math and Science night is held each spring where students in grade 3-7 showcase their scientific investigation and research to the local community.

Title I funds have increased positive student achievement by providing incentives. Some incentives have included: honor roll medal and certificates, pencils, attendance incentives, individual student recognition in various subjects, tangible incentives, such as 100% juice slushies and class pizza parties, and school wide events like Field Day.
Identify the critical professional development activities you use to improve teaching and student learning.
Professional development is conducted on a needed basis for teachers and staff.
Common planning time is provided throughout the building to ensure academic discussions, address needs and concerns, and celebrate successes.
The district plans and provides professional development throughout the school year.
81% of CTE's teachers have advanced degrees. The teachers have a passion to not only motivate students to learn, but teach them how to learn. Students are engaged in learning as the teachers make instruction relevant, meaningful, and memorable.
Professional development activities include district wide meetings, grade-level meetings, one-on-one discussions, and team work sessions. Ten teachers have pursued and met the rigorous standards for National Board Certification in their teaching area.
Examples:
• Reading Curriculum-Project Read, Project Write, Best Practices workshop, state-led textbook training, and Common Core workshops provided by the SDE.
• Math Curriculum- Best Practices workshop, state-led textbook training, and Common Core workshops provided by the SDE.
• Data—Data-Notebooks and MAP training workshop
• Technology--SMART Technology workshop, gradebook workshop and refresher courses on PowerSchool.

A desire to grow professionally is self-driven, and the motivation to learn is ongoing. Teachers at CTE care for their students, and have a passion for their learning. They use data to know where their kids perform and how to drive instruction.
Describe how data is used to improve student achievement and inform decision making.
Data Driven Curriculum – Individual student data is used to drive instruction. Students are consistently held at high expectations and the majority of the students meet or exceed the expectations.
CTE uses summative data, such as: MAP, DRA, and state standardized test, to group students for academic classroom instruction, remediate or accelerate their learning path, and to report progress to parents.
CTE uses formative data, such as: benchmark assessments, chapter test, weekly test, etc., to monitor student progress and redirect instruction. Formative data and summative data are reported to parents and student growth is ensured.
The district compares data throughout the school year to monitor and adjust the curriculum. CTE uses data notebooks, data walls, and inform parents of the child’s progress using data collected throughout the year.

Describe your school culture and explain changes you’ve taken to improve it.
Cherokee Trail Elementary (CTES) is a rural school with a population of approximately 429 students in grades K4 through 7. Elementary School includes grades K through 5th (305 students); (K-4=20 students); Middle School includes grades 6th and 7th (104 students). The Administrative team consists of a Principal and Instructional Coach. The school houses a full-time Guidance Counselor, part-time Reading Coach, and a Media Specialist. 82% of the teachers have advanced degrees with 12 of the teachers having National Board Certification in various areas. The School Community is made up of several small town areas. The unique quality of the community is that the area houses a small Presbyterian College, Erskine College and Seminary, and the designated high school that students from this school will attend is located within the community.
Cherokee Trail Elementary School is successful through hard work of the students and the strong dedication of the teachers. CTE is successful and known for Academic Performance. This achievement is possible because of the commitment of the parents, the students, and the teachers to the educational process. We strive to ensure that the needs of every student at our school are addressed in a caring and professional manner.
Our students have been recognized for a variety of accomplishments during the academic year. Ten students participated in the Duke Talent Identification Program. A fourth grade student placed sixth in the Regional Spelling Bee. Cherokee Trail teams won first and second place in the state while competing in the Ecybermission on line math and science competition sponsored by the US Army. All of these programs are conducted at school but supported by families.
Our faculty, staff, and students volunteered their time and efforts in school-wide and community projects. Cherokee Trail Elementary collected and contributed food for the annual Due West Community Thanksgiving Dinner, for the Connie Maxwell Children’s Home, and for the needy families at the school. The Junior Beta Club also collected additional food for the United Ministries Abbeville Food Bank. A substantial cash donation was raised by our young folks showcasing their athletic ability for Hoops for Hearts. These projects were successful because of the willingness of our students to give to those in need.
CTE strives to have a positive school culture through morale, professional satisfaction, and effectiveness, as well as student learning, fulfillment, and well-being. School leaders, teachers, and staff model positive behaviors and promote student safety.
Stats
  • Category 1

    Selected in 2015

  • Grades: pre k - 7
    School Setting: rural
    Town Population: 1,600
    Student Enrollment: 430
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 9.5%
    White/Caucasian: 87.4%
    Hispanic: 0.5%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0.5%
    Asian: 0%
    Native American: 0.9%
    Other: 1.2%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:20
    % Reduced Lunch: 60%
    % ELL Learners: 3.3%
    Founded: 1995
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Chester King
  • CONTACT:
    6219 Hwy 184 E
    Donalds , SC 29638
    864-379-8500
    aferguson@acsdsc.org