At the June school board meeting Canyon View Principal Jim Jones presented some ideas he believes will help with the ninth grade issue until a permanent solution is reached. At the May school board meeting it was discussed how ninth graders feel disenfranchised from the junior highs.
Last year it was decided all ninth graders would go to the high school to be part of athletics there. One issue with this is the Canyon View students get out of school at 3:20 p.m. and Emery High gets out at 3 p.m. Most sport practices start as soon as school gets out. By the time the ninth grade students get there they are at least a half hour late to practice if not more. This is one issue that keeps some students from participating. Principal Jones asked if the students participating in high school athletics could leave school at 3 p.m. He proposed to move the Learning Strategies class to eighth period and increase the time from 15 to 20 minutes. In the learning strategies class they receive reading instruction Monday, Wednesday and Friday and writing instruction on Tuesdays and Thursdays. If the activity bus leaves at 3 p.m. with these students they can arrive on time for practices.
If this is done, the students won’t miss any of their classes. Principal Jones has talked to the bus transportation department and they don’t have a problem with it. Principal Davis at the high school and Principal Mecham at San Rafael Junior High are behind the idea. This will help accommodate those students that participate and keep them in their classes.
Superintendent Kirk Sitterud said Canyon View’s school start and end times were adjusted for the bus schedules. School board member Marie Johnson said it sounded like a terrific idea.
Teacher and coach Neal Peacock said the students will get a learning strategies class at the high school too. Peacock said scheduling is a nightmare for golf when they are waiting around for the ninth grade students to get there to attend practice.
The other aspect of the ninth grade discussed was with the sports programs. The sports teams are going to be A or B teams. The school will be getting away from varsity and junior varsity teams. Teams will be based on competitiveness not grade in school.
Seventh and eighth grade students can play either on an A or B team. Schools will declare before the season starts if they have two A teams, two B teams or one of each. A larger school like Mont Harmon may have three or more teams.
League schedules will be created after each school declares how many A or B teams they have. In order to reduce travel, multiple teams A or B may meet at one school and play round robins.
Ninth grade students from the Emery District may play on an A team. If Canyon View or San Rafael have more than three ninth graders participating they will be required to sponsor two A teams.
This will not apply to football where there is only one team. It will apply to volleyball and basketball. Ninth graders can wrestle at the junior high or high school.
Superintendent Sitterud thanked Principal Jones for all the work he has put into the proposal and for working it out with the Carbon County schools.
Superintendent Sitterud said they have been following up on the issues with the ninth grade and the sixth grade and looking at how to proceed. Superintendent Sitterud said the district is considering hiring a consultant to do an independent study of the issues. He feels an independent review and study which involves the administrators, schools and the public will be beneficial.
Finding out what it means staffing wise, with a middle school concept is needed and which additional endorsements, if any, teachers would need to get. He also recommended they take a team to the Uintah school district as that district has been in a two year process of integrating the ninth grade students and will be implementing it this year.
After sufficient data and information is gathered a determination can be made as to what a good time table for implementation would be. Superintendent Sitterud said, “This is just a concept we have discussed. No decision to pursue this course yet and no details have been discussed or determined yet.” (concerning the independent review and study)
Board President Laurel Johansen thanked Superintendent Sitterud for responding to the ninth grade issue.
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