by Jeanna White “What letter is this, and do you know what sound it makes?” the teacher asked as she pulled a lettered popsicle stick from the jar. One preschooler answered, “That’s “M” for Munching Mike,“ while five others quickly made a “MMMMMM” sound. “Letter Zoom” is just one of the many ways Pinebrook preschool […]
by Jeanna White Only their huge smiles betray their excitement as 120 students wearing matching red camp t-shirts and Indian headbands enter the gym in quiet, single-file lines. It’s time to celebrate all that they have accomplished during Davie County’s Read to Achieve 2016 summer camp. The camp is designed to help third graders who […]
by Jeanna White The room is quiet. Heads bowed, faces scrunched in concentration, eight students are busily working — some are reading, some are writing, some are spelling, but all are learning through Camp Pathfinder. Hosted by the Triad Academy at Summit School in Winston-Salem, NC, Camp Pathfinder was created to serve rising first through […]
They move in unison. Sixty little bodies stretch and bend with the music.
This “morning stretch” helps prepare the attendees of Davie County’s Read to Achieve camp for a day of learning, fun, and success.
Davie County’s Read to Achieve Camp employs a holistic approach to reading. Attendees actively learn through visual arts, dance, drama, music and creative writing, in addition to tailored instruction through Hill Center Reading sessions and small group literacy circles. Campers develop self-confidence and learn techniques to reduce test anxiety.
In a continuing effort to ensure that ALL school children are given the opportunity to read and succeed, the Mebane Foundation has invested $1.9 million into its most exciting partnership to date; a collaboration between The Hill Center and the Mooresville Graded School District, which is recognized both nationally and internationally for its 1-to-1 student technology initiative.
Launched in 2015, this three-year, $8.4 million literacy project unites these two high performing education organizations in a district-wide effort aimed at improving the reading achievement of struggling readers within MGSD elementary and intermediate schools.
As a result of last summer’s phenomenal results, the Mebane Charitable Foundation has approved a grant of $90,000 to support Davie County’s 2016 Read to Achieve summer camp for third graders who have failed to meet state requirements in reading to advance to the fourth grade.
During the summer of 2015, more than 30% of the county’s non-proficient students reached the required reading achievement score to move on to fourth grade, while other campers received extra assistance during the school year with another 15% of those students passing the Read to Achieve test in the months following camp.
In its ongoing effort to find the best means to help all students learn to read and succeed by the third grade, the Foundation continues to make investments in partnerships with schools other than traditional public schools and systems.
Partnerships with private and charter schools have seen tremendous success in student growth and have provided valuable information toward developing literacy best practices.
Sixty-five percent of today’s jobs require Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math skills, and 16 of the 30 fastest-growing careers demand substantial math and science education. And this is only the beginning. A STEM education will be essential in the work world of today’s children.
The Mebane Foundation believes that it must actively engage students in STEM-related academics and enrichment experiences in order to nurture interest, enthusiasm, and pursuit of STEM careers. We believe that optimum 21st century STEM learning occurs for all students only when optimum 21st century STEM teaching occurs in all classrooms. We believe that we have a profound responsibility to ensure learning for all students by creating, implementing, and supporting innovative and top-quality professional development for all teachers, centering upon inquiry-based methodologies, various technologies for student engagement, integration of STEM curricula across subjects, and the use of community STEM professionals as compelling classroom resources.
As part of our four-year funding agreement, The Hill Center was also charged with designing a continuation of the HELP project to address teacher training with a similar methodology, Reading Achievement Programs (RAP), in grades K-3 in all six Davie County elementary schools. Training began in the summer of 2005 for 26 elementary teachers, who began implementing the intensive reading intervention program when the school year began.
When RTI reported impressive results, the program was extended through 5th grade at all six schools. As a result of the intensive nature of the program, often involving a 4-to-1 student-teacher ratio based on the students’ reading levels, reading specialists in the program began forming what are now known as “RAP Clinics.” These interventions included classroom teachers and assistant teachers under strict supervision of highly trained RAP teachers, providing group support to many more struggling readers in the early grades. Eventually, at least one elementary school used the same RAP Clinic model with community volunteers working under the guidance and supervision of a RAP-trained reading specialist. This approach enabled the schools to provide benefits from these proven reading interventions to many more children.
Initiated through its $750,000 challenge grant and a vision for enhanced learning through far more effective use of technology, the Mebane Foundation collaborated with Davie County Schools and Appalachian State University’s Reich College of Education to create a first-of-its-kind academic degree for 15 Davie County teachers and a profoundly innovative and extravagantly successful program of interactive technology they helped implement in 100 percent of the school system’s classrooms.
The program, Mebane Masters, has changed the face of education in Davie County, grades K-12, since it was launched in 2008. Providing a holistic method of teaching to technology savvy students, Mebane Masters has earned overwhelmingly positive responses from students, teachers, administrators and community.
As a result of Allen Mebane’s vision to have all students in Davie County reading by age 8, the Mebane Foundation and The Hill Center began a four-year $750,000 partnership in 2003 to develop and implement a comprehensive early literacy and reading program for Davie County Schools, located in Mocksville North Carolina. Research indicates that […]
Launched in 2004, the Mebane Technology Challenge was not only delivered cutting-edge technology to every classroom in Davie County Schools, but it also brought the community together to achieve a vitally important common goal – improving education for thousands of children throughout the county while at the same time ensuring the effort would be sustained […]
Sixty-five percent of today’s jobs require Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) skills. Three-quarters of the fastest growing occupations demand substantial math and science preparation, and those numbers are expected to rise. A STEM education will be essential in the work world of today’s children. The Mebane Foundation has a rich history of employing and […]
Davie County’s Cooleemee Elementary had an enrollment of 520 students in kindergarten through the fifth grades in February 2009, and 72-73 percent of them were considered “Economically Disadvantaged” (receiving free and reduced-price lunches) by the State of North Carolina. Statistically, students who fall into that category are more likely to be academically at risk. Report […]