OUTLOOK: Deerfield-Windsor, Sherwood will push technology in classrooms

ALBANY — With capital improvements such as the new Graham Lowe Fitness Center behind them, Deerfield-Windsor School officials anticipate numerous new initiatives and the expansion of some facilities and programs opened in 2015-16. The school is also taking a hard look at remedying the school’s falling enrollment in its lower grades.

Tuition at the lowest grade levels has been significantly reduced for 2016-17 to enable more families to afford a Deerfield education for their children.

“Over the past five years, enrollment at our upper campus has been at record levels,” Deerfield Headmaster Dave Davies said. “Enrollment at the lower campus has been dropping since the recession of 2008-09 as the economy suffered. That and an 8 percent drop in the birthrate has hit our K4 (pre-K) through second grade enrollment hard. Our board decided to reduce the K4 tuition by $5,000, which is a cut of 30 to 35 percent.”

Davies added that the upper grades would probably raise tuition by 4 percent, which he said would be the lowest increase in the past 10 years.

Information on tuition rates is available on the school’s website.

Davies said thanks to a grant, the middle/upper school campus recently opened a design lab. This flexible learning space features movable, modular furniture, multiple forms of technology, and a green screen to accommodate the broadcast journalism elective.

Broadcast journalism students have already produced a testimonial video on Joe Farris, the “St. Jude Santa,” and a promotional lower school video. DWS recently renovated the library/media center to accommodate collaborative learning and more computers for student use.

Davies said members of the baseball team will travel to the Dominican Republic this spring to engage in international outreach and service through baseball. The team will work on several construction projects and compete against teams from the Dominican Republic.

The administration and faculty is currently engaged in a major study of time use and scheduling and expects to make significant changes to benefit student wellness and optimize learning. The school is working with the University System of Georgia to maintain its HOPE Scholarship retention rate, currently more than 90 percent.

Middle school students will find an expanded list of exploratory courses in the fall. Courses are still in the design phase, but offerings may include robotics, gardening, science fiction, theater and coding/computer programming.

The middle and upper school advisory program will be expanded and improved. Each student from grades 6-12 has an advisor who meets regularly with his/her advisory to discuss various topics of concern, monitors student progress and serves as a communication point with parents.

The lower school continues to expand its use of the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) Room, a dedicated room for students to explore these areas of learning. Fifth-grade students produce a weekly news program about school events that is available to parents electronically.

Sherwood Christian Academy

Sherwood is also coming off an ambitious capital project which saw the lower campus absorbed into the upper school on Old Pretoria Road.

“Following an 18-month construction project that added 30,000 square feet of new instructional space and renovated another 60,000 square feet of existing space, we are focusing on curriculum, science instruction and technology to enhance our instruction,” Sherwood Headmaster Brian Dougherty said. “We have as a goal to have student devices (Chromebooks) in place in grades 6-12 in the next couple of years to create a completely digital classroom experience.

“We are currently working on a plan for the infrastructure to set the stage for this change. Not only would it change the instructional environment, it would allow us to go to e-textbooks and to move toward paperless.”

Dougherty noted the school is working on ways to develop its curriculum

“We are working with a state-of-the-art curriculum development program called Curriculum Trak to finish our online curriculum guide that is being completely aligned with state and national standards,” he said. “This work is a key initiative to enhance our academic program for teachers, students and parents.

The school is also adding additional equipment and technology to improve its science instruction in the secondary school and just finished a complete renovation of its secondary science lab.

“We want to be sure it is equipped with the latest equipment and technology for our students in grades 6-12,” Dougherty said. “We are committed to having a rigorous, relevant, hands-on science experience for our students.”