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12.28.2001 10:39
Principal tasked with turning around
a high school with an identity crisis
BY ALEX KUFFNER
Journal Staff Writer
RICHMOND
-- Before he became a school administrator, Bob Mitchell was a football coach.
In 1988 when he took over the high school football program in Stonington, Conn., the Bears hadn't had a winning season in five years. Four years later, in 1992, they were crowned state champions in their division for the first time ever.
Since being hired as principal at Chariho Regional High School a year and a half ago, Mitchell has tried to navigate a similar turnaround.
"When I came here, I knew that just like any other school there were problems," he said. "My job is to help make everyone better."
But his plans to improve the school couldn't have come at a more difficult time. In March, a regional accrediting agency -- the New England Association of Schools and Colleges -- placed the high school on probation mainly because of its aging, crowded facilities. The agency had drawn attention to those problems in 1995, but little was done about them.
Just three months after the school was placed on probation, voters rejected a building plan that could have solved those problems. The plan included a sprawling $40.5 million high school, but the high cost and uncertainty over Chariho's future led to its failure.
And then in October voters in Charlestown decided by an overwhelming majority to secede from the school district it had been a part of since 1960.
With these blows to Chariho, you could forgive Mitchell for losing hope. But he says he had no control over what happened, and he's adamant about making improvements where he can.
"This is a marathon, not a sprint," he said. "It's going to take time."
Mitchell has made some basic changes with far-reaching effects. He's tried to improve attendance by tightening the policy for missing school. He tries to emphasize student achievements and calls parents to let them know about the good things their kids have done.
He's increased the time devoted to training teachers. Each year, he says, teachers need to learn new methods so they meet state educational standards. With better trained teachers, student learning will improve.
Lately he's focused his attention on changing the atmosphere of the high school. That means building school spirit, but it also means making students understand they have an investment in what they learn.
"One of the challenges for us is to make students realize these connections to their lives," said Mitchell.
They also need to know how they'll be graded and why.
Those ideas are embodied in the new school slogan, framed on a wall in Mitchell's office: Clear expectations. All kids. All of the time. No excuses!
Under Mitchell's watch, there have been setbacks. Although test scores are up, a group from the state Department of Education criticized the school in April for promoting rote learning. That led to the renewed emphasis on state standards for education and a change in teaching styles.
Some teachers found the change from lectures to a focus on class discussions and student presentations hard to adjust to.
"When people are used to doing things a certain way it can be very difficult," said Mitchell.
Mitchell, 45, has been an educator for 17 years with stints as a health teacher in Chariho and as assistant principal at Stonington High School and Westerly High School. He wants to draw from his experience at those other schools to transform Chariho's academic programs.
His plans include initiating block scheduling to give students longer class periods for each subject, focusing on technology in classrooms and having students give more class presentations.
He also wants faculty members to team-teach courses. It was an important teaching method in Stonington, says Mitchell, a way to coordinate teachers' expertise. For example, an English teacher and a history teacher could team up to teach an American Studies course.
They're proposals that haven't been tried in Chariho before. Still, Mitchell is confident they'll work. As long as there's improvement, he's doing his job, he says.
"When I don't feel like I'm making a difference anymore, then I have a responsibility to let someone else try," he said.
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