In a Monroe County School Board meeting that took place Thursday night, a new five-year plan was finalized. The plan included more than 20 pages of goals to improve the school system, as well as planned strategies to meet the goals. These goals include improving the facilities at more than six county schools, increasing graduation and attendance rates, and to secure sufficient funding.

One of the most concerning problems that the board’s new plan seeks to fix is the low graduation rate in Monroe County schools. The board came up with almost 20 different strategies designed at bringing the graduation rates up to the State of Tennessee’s standards. 

These strategies range from increased summer school opportunities to a career planning system, but some of the key methods are:

• To provide before and after school tutoring programs

• To encourage teacher use of alternative teaching strategies

• To establish regular communication with parents

• And to create performance reports for each school.

Another rate the board is trying to improve is the attendance rate at schools. The board plans to meet the state’s attendance standards by, among other strategies, creating incentives programs to reward student attendance.

Besides working to meet Tennessee’s standards for attendance and graduation, the county School Board also seeks to improve student achievements to meet No Child Left Behind’s standards, as well as those of the state. 

In order to boost students’ achievement, the board is to create:

• Workshops to help students prepare for the ACT

• An Industry-School Partnership Program

• An Incentives Program to reward student achievement

• Programs in decision-making, career planning, self-esteem, and test taking

• An emphasis on writing across the curriculum

• And an emphasis on hands-on learning and student involvement

In order to fund all of the new programs, incentives and other new strategies, the School Board plans on increasing community and business partnerships. Also, the board plans to develop an annual budget that will help them manage their funding.