In the ‘R’ hallway of Plant City High School, upperclassmen have hung a banner near the front doors: Welcome, freshmen!
Throughout the hall, students have posted signs with study tips for incoming ninth-graders: use your locker. Get an agenda. Don’t be late.
This year, PCHS will debut its Ninth Grade Academy, a program dedicated to helping incoming freshmen succeed in ninth grade and beyond.
Set for Success
Before this year, ninth grade classes were all over the school. Now, the majority of the ninth grade core classes — math, English, history and science — are confined to the ‘R’ hallway. The students’ lockers will be in the same hall.
“Tardies were a huge issue,” Plant City High School Principal Susan Sullivan said. “They only will come out of (that) hall for three or four of their classes, usually electives and some sciences.”
Besides helping students make it to class on time, keeping all freshmen in one hallway allows teachers to get to know their students better.
Plant City High School has implemented school-wide procedures and grading policies for ninth grade teachers so students are used to a consistent grading scale. In addition, ninth grade teachers will communicate with one another about major upcoming projects so the students’ workload is divided evenly throughout the year.
“I think it will benefit teachers as well as ninth graders,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan said students who finish with a grade point average higher than a 2.0 after the ninth grade year are likely to graduate. Prior to the start of this school year, only 70% of the school’s freshmen were finishing with a 2.0 minimum. And not all students go on to college — only 30% of students went to a four-year college, while others joined the military, entered the workforce or went to a two-year institution.
While helping students earn a diploma in four years is a top priority for the school and the district, the Ninth Grade Academy will help students figure out what they want after they leave 1 Raider Place.
Paving the Way
Every two weeks during the school’s club period, ninth-graders will take part in School Connect, part of the
Frameworks program.
School Connect is designed to help students understand their graduation requirements: what classes they need to take to graduate, what courses they should focus on for college admission and what it means to earn school credits.
Beyond that, School Connect will help students determine what they’re passionate about. Students will set goals and revisit them every nine weeks. As they progress throughout their high school career, they will take classes designed around helping them meet their goals.
The program focuses on more than just helping students get into college or helping them join the military. Plant City High School is offering new programs that allow students to earn certifications to help them when they join the workforce.
Focused on the Future
The school hopes to bring in business owners and industry representatives to show students opportunities that exist post-graduation in the Winter Strawberry Capital of the World.
“If we’re going to prepare them for life … we want to make them aware of what their options are,” Sullivan said. “We’re just trying to set them up for success.”
Plant City High School offers vet assisting and cosmetology programs. This year, the school also is introducing an electrical program. When students decide what they want to pursue in the future, they can partake in elective courses to earn certifications from sports marketing and business to carpentry and health licensing. Eventually, the school hopes to add an academy of finance program and a welding program.
By entering the programs as a ninth-grader, students will be able to earn certifications and eventually have apprenticeships in their respective fields by the time they are a senior. Much of their success, Sullivan said, comes from making students aware of their opportunities.
“A guidance counselor, assistant principal, success coach and Ninth Grade Academy lead teacher all will work specifically with ninth-graders to support and encourage them,” Sullivan said.
Besides offering additional programs, the school wants to align business leaders with students to help them further prepare for their future.
“We really want to prepare them to be able to have a good career, live in this community and be a contributor to it,” Sullivan said. “So many of our upperclassmen have said (ninth grade) is so crucial to setting the right course to graduation. The more successful they are as a ninth-grader … the more likely it is that I’ll get to hand them that diploma. And that’s pretty cool.”
Contact Emily Topper at etopper@plantcityobserver.com.