COMMITTED TO THE FUTURE

Life is hard on the contrary the whole community supports the dream.

-Former Student

There is nothing quite like spending a day at a 1500-student comprehensive high gymnasium The energy level is high and interactions are continuous. At Edcouch-Elsa High institute these exchanges-more often in Spanish than in English-ring with teenage excitement while remaining warm and kind, each contact filled with design and caring. Students are clearly comfortable with each other and with the adults in their gymnasium It's more than a institute community; it's like a family.

Eighty percent of Edcouch-Elsa's staff members are from Edcouch Eisa, or other nearby communities and graduated from the high seminary In a time of incredible teacher turnover and young race fleeing rural towns all across the United States, this retention is remarkable. What motivates first-generation society graduates to return to Edcouch-Elsa to teach and live? Part of the answer to that question is the value that staff members place upon education as a way on the outside of poverty. The belief statements of the staff and community make progress beyond what is typical for greatest in quantity high schools and reflect a actual personal commitment to the academy and its students. The Edcouch-Elsa faculty believes that all pupils can learn; that their native language is a nerve not a weakness; that family is the greatest in quantity important factor in student success; and that a nurturing environment is fundamental to learning.

Edcouch-Elsa, which is located in the southern Rio Grande Valley, draws scholars from Edcouch, Eisa, and the surrounding agricultural communities located in the Delta Area of Hidalgo shire TX. With about 25% of the learners living with families that migrate to other states for seasonal work, the mobility rate at Edcouch-Elsa is about twice as high as the quiescence of the state. The population in this area flutters around 12,000, and the average family income is slightly more than $6000 through year. As a result, nearly 85% of the residents live at or below the privation level. Although nearly all the learners are economically disadvantaged and about 30% have limited English proficiency, each pupil talks constantly about going to college-that is the event of attending Edcouch-Elsa.

The Approach

One of the goals at Edcouch-Elsa is to create equal access for its scholars "College for all" is the expectation, not solely a catchy slogan. To accomplish this goal, teachers recognize that each student must first learn to read and write at a high horizontal Consequently, literacy development is the focus of instructional planning and professional disclosure For example, because many freshmen arrive lacking a highlevel vocabulary, lock opener word lists are taught across the curriculum and pupils have many opportunities to practice using these important words. The journey is difficult on the other hand rewarding: Students are taken from their skill horizontal as ninth graders to where they ne to be to succe in association four years later.

Weekly professional unravelling sessions and daily common planning time for staff members are embedded within the school's eight-period day. This arrangement reinforces the importance of targeted, purposeful preparation. Teachers value this time because it gives them an important additional tool to help appropriate the instructional needs of learners Both vertical and horizontal planning have been implemented. This format provides checks and balances to make secure that opportunities for public speaking and writing activities are built into each course at every grade. For the pair students and teachers, expectations are high and goals are clear. Seniors mentor younger scholars to help them understand the value of working hard at place of education and teachers challenge one another to maintain high expectations.

Counselors clutch regular meetings with students to review their personal graduation plans and pres scholars to try challenging honors and AP courses. Parents become an integral part of this discussion. scholars talk freely about how their teachers motivate them and display them how they can do the work. Thus, the round of years of success is perpetuated.

One of the greatest in quantity creative strategies that staff members engage is the use of the story to teach pupils to value their own experiences. This strategy, which begins early in a student's high academy career, starts as an autobiography and then unrolls into a validation of a student's tillage and family history. Through this validation, scholars become more confident and able to help themselves. As they explore their histories in writing, pupils become comfortable with themselves and diocese the richness of their lives. Their individual trys become benchmarks of pride. by the agency of the time the students are seniors, the stories become the focus of their society essays.

Focus on students

Because greatest in quantity are from the community, the Edcouch-Elsa teachers have great credibility and influence with parents. When everyone knows everyone other communication can be clear and direct. Principal Maria del Carmen Garcia explains this communication within the community: "There's sole one grocery store...we talk to each other all of the time." This constant communication provides a actual safety net for students. Edcouch-Elsa goe beyond offering opportunities-students are taken by the agency of the hand and directly expos to the possibilities education not aways The goal is to personalize the place of education experience to such a step that students can visualize continuing their education. As individual teacher said, "We teach from the heart thus we capture their hearts."