Welcome back to another great school year at South Milwaukee High School.  This school year has really gotten off to a great start.  The high school is energized and ready to tackle the new initiatives that were created last year and fully implemented for this school year.  As a district, and high school, we are fully committed to our new mission and vision.

Mission:  We, along with our community, commit to deliberate excellence for all learners by engaging and educating the whole person to succeed in our dynamic society.

Vision:  The vision of the School District of South Milwaukee is to create a dynamic environment where the world becomes the classroom so the classroom impacts the world.

Out of our visioning process, four areas of focus were identified.  

Curriculum Expectations refers to a rigorous, universal and standards-based curriculum, research-based instructional practices and strategies, and common assessments used to monitor student achievement. 

Character Education refers to teaching how to know, believe and do your best for self and others.

Community Engagement refers to partnerships with students, parents, school district staff, community members and alumni.

Cost Effectiveness refers to the decisive criteria that determine how we use our time, facilities, human resources, and fiscal resources.

The high school will be spending a large percentage of time focused on the areas of Curriculum Expectations and Character Education.  Administration will be working with other district leaders to provide professional development for the staff around the following areas (linked to the district initiatives):

    a. Curriculum Development Focused On
        i. The Common Core 
            1. The impact on all curricular areas
        ii. Best Practices Around
            1. Rubrics
            2. Active Reading Strategies
            3. Questioning Skills
            4. Other (TBD based on need)
    b. Curriculum Development Process
        i. Assess, Align, Refine
            1. Understanding By Design (UbD)
            2. Learning Targets
            3. Essential Questions
            4. Build Your Own Curriculum—The Tool
            5. Other (TBD based on need)
    c. Response to Intervention Focused On
        i. A.S.P.I.R.E. Supports
            1. Academic
                a. Prevention
                     i. Preventing complacency
                b. Intervention
                     i. Intervening earlier to, hopefully, get students back on track
                c. Extension
                     i. Challenging students in their areas of strength
    d. Response to Intervention
        i. A.S.P.I.R.E. Supports
            1. Behavior
                a. Character Education
                     i. Teaching students how to know, believe and do their best for self and others

The professional development that the staff receives on the above areas will help to support the school improvement goals (again, linked to the district initiatives), which will focus on measureable objectives in the areas of:

1. Reading
2. Writing
3. Math
4. College and career readiness
5. Character
6. Community Engagement

In order to assess progress on the goals, the high school will be using the district accreditation process with AdvancED.  As a high school, and district, we will be measuring our success against five standards: 

1. Purpose and Direction
2. Governance and Leadership
3. Teaching and Assessing for Learning
4. Resources and Support Systems
5. Using Results for Continuous Improvement

While there is a great amount of work to be accomplished, the staff is ready to take on the task.  It is only through strong ties to the district that the high school can be successful. 

Thank you for visiting our website to learn more about South Milwaukee High School.  Updates will be provided throughout the year on this site.  Please be sure to utilize this tool to keep yourself informed about these, and all, initiatives and events going on at the High School.