Criss Elementary gives Chamber committee update
PARKERSBURG - Criss Elementary School presented a virtual update Wednesday to the Mid-Ohio Valley Chamber of Commerce Schools and Business Committee.
Principal Heather Grant spoke with committee members online via Zoom, highlighting Criss Elementary’s achievements and challenges so far this school year.
“We have worked so hard to transform our school into one top schools in the state,” she said. In 2009, Criss Elementary was academically ranked 220 out of more than 400 schools in the state of West Virginia. By 2015, Grant said, the school had achieved a ranking of 129, and in 2019 was ranked 8th in the state academically.
“We are now one of the top 10 elementary schools in the state of West Virginia now,” she said. “To go from 220th to 8th is phenomenal.”
Grant said Criss this year is one of three West Virginia Schools being considered for National Blue Ribbon status, one of the top honors a school can achieve.
“We are absolutely planning on winning that, and hopefully you’ll see our name in the news soon,” for being a National Blue Ribbon school, she said.
Grant credited Criss Elementary’s hardworking teachers and staff for the school’s achievements, as well as the active involvement of parents and community members
“We are truly a family here,” she said. “Because we are a smaller school we are able to be very inclusive. We have a high parent involvement here. Our parents feel very welcome.”
Grant said the school as a whole has worked to prepare all grade levels for the General Summative Assessment, the annual state exam which gauges academic achievement. Though the exam is administered to students in grades 3-5, teachers have worked to prepare all students for the GSA.
“We really developed a rigorous curriculum from kindergarten on up to make sure those kids get those foundational skills to be successful,” she said. Grades 1-5 have been departmentalized, meaning teachers concentrate on specific subjects like math or reading, she said.
Grant said about half of Criss students qualify for free and reduced-price meals, but the school currently does not receive federal Title I funding which is earmarked for high-poverty schools. As a result, the school relies heavily on its business partners: Astorg Auto and Huntington Bank.
“They could not be any better business partners,” she said.
The school also is bolstered by a Parent-Teacher Association which has been recognized at the state level for its efforts. Business partners and the PTA have allowed the school to afford numerous upgrades and improvements to its facility, as well as providing volunteers for events and programs.
“It’s not just money, it’s their presence here too,” she said.
Grant said the COVID-19 pandemic posed numerous challenges for the school as both teachers and students worked to adapt to new technologies and an online platform. Many students are being raised by grandparents who may not have the technology background to help students, or families without reliable internet or cell phone service. Many children were in day care while schools were closed, so officials have worked with numerous area day cares to provide mobile hotspots so students can do school work during the day.
Wood County Schools ended its blended learning format in mid-February, and students not enrolled in virtual school or online programs are now back in the classroom five days a week.
“We could not be happier to have our kids back,” Grant said. “We’ve always said, the best way is to have them here and we can teach them.”