Mena School District Delivers Positive ‘Report to the Public’

BY MELANIE BUCK –

The Mena School District gave their annual Report to the Public on Tuesday, October 21. Superintendent Benny Weston opened the meeting and welcomed those in attendance. The annual report gives the public an opportunity to hear pertinent information about each school in the district. Each of the four campuses in the district were represented by their respective principals who each gave reports of the condition and operations of each campus.

Louise Durham (LD) Principal Jimma Holder talked about the curriculum of the schools. All campuses have curriculum with the foundation of the Common Core State Standards. Comprehensive Literacy, Cognitive Based Instruction, and Arkansas Frameworks are part of state standards that are being utilized within each school. These curriculums have shown success within the district, apparent by the amount of awards received by the state in the last year. LD has 562 students enrolled from Pre-K thru 2^nd grade. LD students exceeded state averages in all areas of testing.

Holly Harshman Principal Paulette Sherrer presented Health and Wellness plans that have proved a key factor for educators throughout the system. Each campus has been surveyed and have shown areas of improvement and also, areas that still need to be improved. These plans include safety, health and physical education, nutrition, and family and community involvement. Sherrer also gave the report for HHE which houses 378 students in 3^rd – 5^th grades. Areas of student testing have exceeded all state averages, as well.

Mena Middle School was represented by Principal Mike Hobson. MMS, with at total of 375 students, has shown improvement in many areas of studies, most meeting or exceeding state averages.

Shane Torix, Principal of Mena High School gave the report for MHS, stating they have a total of 549 students in grades 9-12. MHS has a graduation rate of 90.97%. The Alternative Education (AE) program at the high school has shown great success with 4 out of 6 graduates last year currently enrolled in college. The AE program has been recognized by the state with several awards in recognition of the success of the program.

Nathan Stone gave a report of the technology used within the district stating that all schools will be up to state broadband standards within the next few months.

The Mena School District has a legal ‘projected’ balance of $3,713,082.86. The amount includes the ‘sinking fund’ and represents the district, state, and local obligation to carry over a percentage of the district’s budget for emergencies and to cover shortfalls.

Some of the awards received by the district include: 2013-2014 ‘Beating the Odds’ award for Holly Harshman and Mena Middle School; 2013-2014 ‘Top 10 High-Achieving’ award for HHE 5^th grade math and ‘Top 10 High-Achieving Math & Literacy’ for HHE 5^th grade; 2013-2014 ‘Top 10% Primary’ and ‘Top 10% Elementary’ schools in the state for LD and HHE.

Already for the 2014-2015 school year, MMS has earned ‘Top 5 Overall Middle Schools in the Southwest Region’ for 6-8^th grade math; ‘Highest Ranking School in the Southwest Region’ for HHE 5^th grade math; and ‘2^nd Highest Ranking Overall Middle School in the Southwest Region’ for 6^th grade math.

Superintendent Weston said of the district’s success, “We have wonderful students and staff and are so proud of Team Mena.” Weston also thanked the staff of the district for their dedication and hard work that insures the success of the entire school district.

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Jeri Pearson

Jeri is the News Director for Pulse Multi-Media and Editor of The Polk County Pulse. She has 10 years of experience in community focused journalism and has won multiple press association awards.

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