Chalk the Walk Tuesday

“India – Kolam chalk art – welcome”by McKay Savage is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Announcement-

Greetings dear neighbors, we’d love to invite you to join us on Tuesday between 5:30 – 6:30 to create chalk welcome messages for the students of St. Andrew’s School, who will be back to school this Wednesday, August 7! Let’s greet and encourage them! We will have chalk, just show up and share a drawing or greeting. Meet in front of the school at the corner of Idlewood and Cherry. See about it! — with Chris Milk.

Click here for FaceBook event page.

St. Andrew’s School Hosting Event Tomorrow Evening

Tomorrow (Thursday) evening at 7 pm, the St. Andrew’s School is hosting “a community conversation” at The Woman’s Club at The Historic Bolling Haxall House (211 E. Franklin Street).

Here is more information:

The Carol Wingo Dickinson Thought Leaders Series
Cradle to Career: Equity and Social Justice in Early Childhood Education
Thursday, April 11, 2019
7:00 p.m.
The Woman’s Club at The Historic Bolling Haxall House

Please join us for a thoughtful conversation on how our community can work together to ensure
that all of our children are given equitable educational opportunities that lead to future success.

Featuring:
The State of Early Childhood Education in Virginia
Kathy Glazer, President, Virginia Early Childhood Foundation

Keynote Address
Dr. Beatrice S. Fennimore, Professor of Education, Indiana University of Pennsylvania

With a panel discussion moderated by
Dr. Cynthia Weldon-Lassiter, Ed.D., Head of School, St. Andrew’s School

Panelists
Mrs. Q’Sheka Banks, Family Member, St. Andrew’s School
Dr. Andrew Daire, Dean, VCU School of Education
Dr. Beatrice S. Fennimore, Professor of Education, IUP
Dr. Kate O’Donnell, Principal, St. Andrew’s School

If you would like to attend this event, please RSVP to Ashley Landes at development@St-Andrews-School.org or 804.648.4952 ext. 123.

Suggested admission is $35 per person.

If you would like to give the suggested admission, please make your check payable to St. Andrew’s School, 227 South Cherry Street, Richmond, VA, 23220 or click here to give online.

This inaugural event was named after Carol Wingo Dickinson, a lifelong community servant who, along with her family, supported the St. Andrew’s School community for almost 20 years. During her time at St. Andrew’s, Carol served as a Lunch Buddies volunteer, joined the Board of Directors in 2011, and assumed the role of Board Chair in 2017. Her knowledge, experience, and dedication to the school made her an invaluable leader and advocate for providing access to quality, life-changing education to our students. The Thought Leaders Series honors her memory and invites the whole community to work together for social justice and equity in education.

St. Andrew’s School is a well-established equity-driven community organization that engages in positive community change by providing access to high-quality K through 5 education and forges relationships that strengthen the greater Richmond community’s cradle to career continuum through the perspectives of equity and social justice in education.

Radio IQ WVTF: “At This Elementary School, Every Kid Learns the Violin”

Virginia Public Radio station WVTF aired a nice story about the Advanced Music Ensemble/violin program at St. Andrew’s School this morning. You can hear it again on 92.5 FM at 8:44am, 5:44pm, or read/listen by clicking here.

Here’s an excerpt:

The St. Andrews program was founded in 2013 by Amanda Ellerbe. Ellerbe says the violin packs a punch in terms of a musical education.

“Movement, notation, connecting music to other other art forms,” she lists.

Ellerbe based the program off El Sistema, a now global movement that began in Venezuela in the 1970’s – when one man used music education to connect with at-risk youth.

Students at St. Andrew’s also come from disadvantaged backgrounds. Ellerbe says music is a clear way for them to realize that despite systemic inequality, if they work hard they can change their lives.

St. Andrew’s School Is Seeking An Art Teacher

From the employment ad:

The Art Teacher will be responsible for developing in each student an interest in and the ability for creative expression in visual terms, using skills and techniques of artistic expression consistent with school guidelines; to develop aesthetic understandings and appreciations; to discover and develop talents of students in the field of art.

St. Andrew’s School, established in 1894 and located in the Oregon Hill section of Richmond, is one of a handful of schools in the country providing independent school education to children from families with limited financial resources through a full scholarship for every child. Employing a whole-child approach to education our faculty and staff work together to create a positive community of learners through our primary shared value: mutual respect. The faculty and staff enhance the culture of the school while creating high-quality learning experiences for our students.

Required Qualifications:

Minimum requirements: -Extensive experience working with elementary grade children -Personal traits for nurturing the growth of children and working cooperatively with adults -A passion and joy for working with young people; flexibility; patience and enthusiasm for learning Preferred: -Bachelor’s degree in a visual arts discipline -Teaching certification in Elementary Education -Knowledge of the Responsive Classroom approach to academics and social-emotional learning Essential Job Functions: -Develop students’ artistic skills by cultivating creative expression and fostering an understanding of textures, shapes, and colors through different projects in painting, drawing, sculpture, and other areas -Provide instruction by which students develop aesthetic concepts and appreciations and the ability to make qualitative judgments about art -Know, apply, and teach elements of design and principles of art -Provide individual and small-group instruction to adapt the curriculum to the needs of students with varying intellectual and artistic abilities, and to accommodate a variety of instructional activities -Instruct students in proper care and use of tools and equipment -Evaluate each student’s performance and growth in knowledge and aesthetic understandings, and prepare progress reports -Plan and present art displays and exhibitions designed to exhibit students’ work for the school and the community -Communicate with stakeholders on student progress -Participate in curriculum and other developmental programs, such as after school art club -Participate in school-wide activities, including but not limited to school-wide events, morning/afternoon duty, etc. -Experience working in an urban setting with elementary school children from households with limited financial resources -Creates a positive educational environment for teaching, creating, and learning -And other duties and responsibilities as assigned

Salary: To be discussed

St. Andrew’s School Begins Its Semester This Week

St. Andrew’s School has orientation for families tomorrow and first full day for students on Tuesday.

This a good reminder for motorists to slow down on Idlewood and look out for pedestrians.

From the St. Andrew’s School webpage:

Extended learning time in the form of a longer school day and a longer school year is shown to have many benefits, both for students and for their families. This year 75% of our students are enrolled in our Extended Day program, attending school until 5:30pm. Next year, our goal is for 100% of our students to participate.

Congratulations To St. Andrew’s 5th Grade Graduates!

Another St. Andrew’s School year filled with learning, laughing and success has come to a close.

By the way, I apologize for missing this earlier story:

St. Adnrew’s School teacher Ms. Ellerbe was recently announced as a quarterfinalist for the 2018 Music Educator Award™ presented by The Recording Academy® and The Grammy Museum®. The Music Educator Award was established to recognize current educators who have made a significant and lasting contribution to the field of music education and who demonstrate a commitment to the broader cause of maintaining music education in the schools. Congratulations Ms. Ellerbe!

Recent Commentary From St. Andrew’s School’s Weldon-Lassiter

Head of St. Andrew’s School, Cyndy Weldon-Lassiter, recently had a column published in the Times Dispatch on the benefits of an Expanded Learning Time program.

Excerpt:

Much attention has been paid to the phenomenon of summer learning loss, which occurs over the long vacation break and can result in students losing two to three months of academic skills and knowledge. Summer learning loss can impact all students, but it predominantly affects those from low-income circumstances.

Many families don’t have the financial resources necessary to fill their children’s summers with enriching camps and travel experiences that augment lessons learned in school. An extended school year can mitigate summer learning loss and aid in closing the achievement gap for students whose families struggle with poverty.