Reaching and Teaching in Suttons Bay

The RTSL supports secondary schools in collaborative problem solving for struggling learners. The initiative helps schools adopt RtI at the secondary level. The three instructional area targets are English language arts, math, and behavior intervention. Solutions are anticipated to lead to both change in the school culture and success for each and every student in the building. A key to this work, according to co-directors, Leisa Gallagher and Doug McCall, is setting up a culture of student engagement that includes relationships, data review, and the ability to recognize warning signs when there is trouble. The ultimate goal is for students to become more invested in their education, resulting in greater achievement.

Suttons Bay began its engagement with RTSL in the fall of 2007. In reflecting on their success in just two years, Gallagher highlighted that Suttons Bay looked at student performance in four areas:

• Their use of data, which includes student performance in personal social skills, student engagement, and stretch learning (learning outside of the classroom and world language instruction).
• Their systematic engagement of student subgroups, most notably their Native American students.
• Their innovative efforts to engage struggling learners.
• Their formation of collaborative general and special education teams to identify and address issues among their struggling learners.

McCall added that leadership was also a key factor, and the timing was perfect. The disproportionality citation occurred close to the time that Mike Murray began as superintendent and Raphael Rittenhouse began as high school principal. Both are innovators who brought a vision of leadership that actively sought to engage other stakeholders in the problem-solving process.

School teams are trained by RTSL to create a new culture within the school for the purpose of improving student-teacher relationships. “By constantly framing observations of their struggling learners within the school improvement plans,” Gallagher said, “these teams are poised to revolutionize their cultures.” Suttons Bay teams took risks in making changes and have successfully adopted many of the Reaching and Teaching strategies into their daily operations. They are systematically building trust within the team and with their struggling learners. The emerging result is a renewed culture of high expectations for all students in their core academic work. Their success is evident in many ways.

Suttons Bay School District From the Leadership Perspective

The Leelanau Enterprise newspaper reported on January 15, 2009 that “The number of Suttons Bay School District minority students in special education
is dropping.”

In the 2005-2006 and the 2006-2007 school years, approximately 20 percent of the students at Suttons Bay Public Schools were Native American. However, Native Americans constituted more than 41 percent of the students receiving special education services in those two years. Last fall, that percentage dropped to 30.41.

Murray, who joined Suttons Bay in 2007, noted that “The problem is complex, so the solution must be complex. The gap is beginning to close. We’re now more in line with the state. We’re working very hard on this problem.” He went on to say that “a change of focus on individual learning styles and remedial programs such as READ 180, along with the introduction of multi-age classrooms and early childhood programming, have contributed to the improvement.”

“We’ve become more adept at assessing exactly what skills students have learned and not learned, so we know better how to target interventions,” Murray said. “Separating students with moderate learning disabilities slows their progress, whereas keeping these students in the general education classroom with supports leads to higher levels of learning. We are not yet to our goals, but we are headed in the right direction.”

Rittenhouse, Principal at Suttons Bay High School since the fall of 2007, is involved with RTSL in the district. When an RTSL initiative workshop asked participants the question, “What do you need to move ahead?” Rittenhouse recalls responding, “The first and most important task is for Suttons Bay High School to agree upon the basic tenets regarding what is best for kids, such as the belief that every student can be positively impacted.”

Rittenhouse said that he came to understand the absolute importance of “a candid dialogue around our beliefs about our kids.” He recalls that initially the district was not connecting the dots on behalf of struggling learners in a way that was relevant to kids and families. One important cultural change that Rittenhouse observed as the months progressed was the shift from “discussion” (conversation or debate about a topic) to “dialogue” (exploration of a subject or resolution of a problem). This deeper “dialogue” approach is now integrated into the system. Staff talk about kids with a sense of “ownership” for their progress.

Rittenhouse feels that a key element of being a building leader is the ability to listen constructively. “I find that listening and paraphrasing back in a respectful, non-threatening manner, reinforces a common understanding of any topic of conversation. It’s important to respond  in a way that expresses a desire to nurture the student.” Rittenhouse went on to say that this approach allowed him to talk about even the most difficult topics with families.

“There is nothing ‘off the table’ when you communicate that basic intent to your kids, to your families, and to your staff. Ultimately they need to have enough continuity that they can predict how their leadership is going to react… You have to find those core principles and values that are going to drive you as a school.”

“In terms of operationalizing systemic reform, it starts with the basic intent to be all about the kids,” Rittenhouse said. “Once you listen carefully, then you have earned the right to implement. To be effective, you first have to earn that right. Then, however the implementation takes place, it is more of a dialogue, and more sensitive to the various constituent groups.”

Listening to staff dialogue, Rittenhouse observed that the things that attracted a lot of people to the teaching profession were success stories that they heard along the way. When you get into the classroom, it seems to become more about classroom management and control. People can really get jaded. “But,” he said, “when you put teachers back in touch with things that work, people start experiencing that success, and it empowers them!”

Staff are moving away from the assumption that the principal is going to handle all the discipline. Staff now volunteer to do an afterschool detention in order to replace in-school suspension time. In effect, staff recognize the importance of keeping kids in front of the instruction. This approach, along with coordinating afterschool transportation and communicating with parents, sends the message that class time is very important. It avoids taking the student away from classroom instruction as a punishment. Class attendance has increased. This is just one example of an effort to expand leadership around the building,” Rittenhouse said. “We are all involved in that process, and it is also good for kids. No more in-school suspension. Office time-outs might be needed once in a while, but the time kids are spending outside the classroom is being reduced.”

Rittenhouse is committed to ensuring positive change at Suttons Bay Public Schools. “I have been promoting the idea that we get students involved on our School Improvement Team next year,” Rittenhouse said. “They could come to some of our Professional Learning Community meetings to offer input. Student leaders and other students miss out if they don’t hear how the teachers talk about certain issues. In the absence of participating, decisions can be played in a negative way. We want this to be an open, transparent process and get more student involvement in school decision-making.”

“It is important to acknowledge that there are times when the nurturing role of a leader requires holding the line, upholding the standard, and you may have to fend off certain attacks on that. It comes down to your approach. Are you going to have a power trip or are you going to inform people that the line exists in a respectful way and actually listen and witness their struggle? These are some of the valuable lessons learned from RTSL.”

Suttons Bay From the Native American Community Perspective

Community involvement has been key in the continuous improvement process for Suttons Bay Public Schools. A dialogue needed to take place with the local tribal community, and Murray initiated the conversation with Derek Bailey, Tribal Chairman of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians.

“Superintendent Mike Murray has been instrumental in his support and respect from our perspective,” Bailey said. “He has even attended Council meetings. A hand was extended. That’s great.”

Bailey attended the Suttons Bay Public Schools through upper elementary school. “I know as an individual who grew up in Suttons Bay that it’s a different time now in 2009. When I was a student, there was an initiative to bring the Red Sky teachings into the schools. This was a very humble teaching about the basic principles of love, bravery, humility, and respect. At that time, the initiative didn’t get past the school board. Today, to have the Anishinabemowin language as part of the Suttons Bay language curriculum, with both native and non-native students showing an interest in our indigenous language, that’s overwhelming.”

An agreement was reached with the Grand Traverse Tribe to begin incorporating the native culture and language into the school curriculum. A brief history of the Ottawa and Chippewa Indians states, “We are the people of the Three Fires Confederacy, the Odawa (Ottawa) the Ojibwa (Chippewa) and Bodowadomi (Pottawatomi) people. The tribal language is known as Anishinabemowin.” A teacher was sought out from a tribe in Canada where the language has been preserved. Plans are currently underway for incorporating more of the tribal culture and heritage into social studies and history curriculums.

“This outreach speaks volumes to our growth as a community,” Bailey said. “We still have room for growth, but we are part of a new era. There was a misunderstanding about our students. I applaud these efforts to reach out, and I am hoping to promote all of us working together. We have to be holistic in this day and age. The message of our collaboration needs to go on. Think of the pebble in the water, the ripple effect. I hope that our work together stimulates thought, and a change in perspective.”