Students at Center Grove High School have the opportunity to take any of 26 Advanced Placement courses the school offers, and can also take dual credit classes that give them credit at Indiana University.
Students are also able to take rigorous courses through Project Lead the Way, which provides a series of classes that some of the highest achieving students can take in biomedical engineering and computer science. Center Grove Community Schools, however, is looking for ways to even better assist students who are classified as high-ability learners, said Nora Hoover, assistant superintendent for teaching and learning.
School officials put together an 11-question survey, which they have started distributing to students in high-ability classes from sixth through 12th grade, as well as parents and teachers of those students. They expect to receive those surveys back by the time spring break rolls around in late March, Hoover said.
The survey asks students if they are challenged in the courses they are taking, if those classes help them develop time-management skills, creative thinking and critical thinking skills, and if those classes lead students to develop an elitist or privileged attitude, among other questions, according to the survey.
There have been 1,191 seats taken by students in advanced placement classes and 1,687 seats taken by students in honors courses during the 2019-20 school year. The seats taken by students in these classes do not equate to the total number of students, as many students are taking more than one high-level course, Hoover said.
Administrators at Center Grove’s two middle schools and high school will analyze the results of the survey with help from Amanda Trimble, the school’s special programs coordinator. Once it determines areas that need improvement, Center Grove schools will begin taking steps to address those concerns during the 2020-21 school year, with those changes being implemented over the next three to four years, Hoover said.
“The survey will help fill in the big picture of all the work we need,” Hoover said. “Something our district is working on is how do we meet the safety and security and support (needs) for all our students; what are their social-emotional needs? We don’t have the answer right now, it’s a complex issue.”
The schools may need to add guidance counselors to account for those needs in high-ability students, who may have increased anxiety due to the rigor of their classes and any additional causes of stress in their personal lives, she said.
Anything Center Grove schools chooses to do as a result of the survey, however, will have to be done within its budget. In November, Center Grove schools missed out on $24.8 million in potential property tax money after voters in White River Township voted against a referendum that would have given the school district money for additional counselors and expanded mental health services. Center Grove planned to use the rest of the money to add security monitoring technology and more school police officers.
Although Center Grove schools may have a lot to offer, there is always room for improvement, Hoover said.
“To say we’re fine with anything is not something we say often at Center Grove. We can always do better or do more. We’re always looking for ways to improve,” she said. “We don’t have an exceptional program by being satisfied.”
