Hollister High School implemented several strategies to focus on freshmen students in order to lower the dropout rate. These included creating a freshman academy with separate teachers, implementing a summer transition program, providing extra help time during the school day, and utilizing data to identify at-risk students. The strategies led to decreases in failure and dropout rates over time.

1. Focus on Freshman:
The battle ground for success.
Chris Ford and Sean Woods
Hollister High School
cford@hollister.k12.mo.us

3. Purpose of Reading:
Listen to how the father
responds to his child each time.
Specifically,
what is the father doing
to help his child?

21. Shhh…
The End

23. Put your name as the character listed here. What did you
imagine to be?
How did someone help that dream or stifle it?
How can you encourage the dreams of YOUR Alexander’s?

24. What dreams do HHS students
have when they enter the doors
of our high school?

26. Hollister is located in
SW Missouri across
the lake from
Branson, Missouri.
Branson

27. 2011-12
Student Demographics

28. Hollister High School Enrollment
378

29. Percent Free/Reduced Lunches
72.1%
67.1%
64.3%
63.3% 63.0% 63.1%

30. Hollister High School
Failure Rate
14.0% 13.9%
4.5%

31. Hollister High School
A/B Rate
48%

32. HHS Graduation Rate
92.9% 95.5%
89.6%
82.2%
76%

33. Bridgeland, DiIulio, and Morison (2006) interviewed high school
dropouts to find out why they didn't finish school
Did not like school 51.2
Could not get along with teachers 35.0
Could not get along with students 20.1
Was suspended too often 16.1
Did not feel safe at school 12.1
Was expelled 13.4
Felt I didn't belong 23.2
Could not keep up with school work 31.3
Was failing school 39.9
Bridgeland, J.M., DiIulio, J.J., & Morison, K.B. (2006).

34. Drop Out Facts
• Choices made at or around 9th grade can
impact student’s lives forever.
• The estimated tax revenue loss from every
male between the ages of 25 and 34 years of
age who did not complete high school would
be approximately $944 billion, with cost
increases to public welfare and crime at $24
billion (Thorstensen, 2004).

35. Drop Out Facts
• More than one semester “F” in core subjects and fewer than
five full course credits by the end of freshman year are key
indicators that a student is not on track to graduate
(Allensworth & Easton,2005).
• Low attendance during the first 30 days of the ninth grade
year is a stronger indicator that a student will drop out than
any other eighth grade predictor, including test scores, other
academic achievement, and age. (Jerald, 2006).

36. Drop Out Facts
• 75% of America's state prison inmates are
high school dropouts (Harlow, 2003).
• If literacy levels in the United States were the
same as those in Sweden, the U.S. GDP would
rise by approximately $463 billion and tax
revenues would increase by approximately
$162 billion (Alliance for Excellent Education,
2003e).

37. • Hollister's solution to the Drop Out Rate?

38. • Hollister's solution to the Drop Out Rate?
Focus on Freshman

39. What do you know
about Freshman?

40. Freshman Failure Rate
23%
7.5%
7%
5.7%

41. Researched Strategies for a Focus
on Freshman
• One strategy to address the challenges facing freshmen is the
creation of ninth grade academies that are apart from the rest
of the high school or the creation of separate stand alone
schools. (Reents,2002) One hundred fifty four ninth grade
only schools were operating during the 2004/2005 school
year. (NCES, Common Core of Data).
• In schools in which transition programs are fully operational,
researchers saw a dropout rate of 8%,while schools without
transition programs averaged 24% (Reents, 2002).

42. Focus on Freshman
• Relationships
• Summer Transition
• Freshman Team (Focus Team)
• Extra Help
• Instructional strategies (best practices)

44. Extra Help
– During School
• T.N.T time (Tigers
Need Time)
– After School
• Transportation
• Snacks

45. Extra Help Snacks

46. Scheduled extra help
time during the
school day.
TNT
Tigers Need Time
25 minutes a day
4 days a week

47. Freshman Team
• Freshman Teachers
– Meet during lunch period
– No lunch supervision
• Analyze Data
– ‘F’ list
– Office Discipline Referrals
• New position – Freshman Lifeguard

48. Freshman Academy
Team Meeting
10-11-11
• Updated ‘F’ List (5 min)
– Differences in last list
– New names?
• Update on AM (5 min)
– Parent reaction
– Student reaction
– Behavior card (CI/CO)
• Discipline Data (10 min)
– Areas of emphasis you see
– Areas of emphasis in the data
• Other parents to schedule meetings with (5 min)
– Who wants to head this up?
– Documentation
• Next meeting (2 min)

49. Freshman Lifeguard
• One hour a day
• Analyzes our ‘LIST’ of missing work and cross
references it with our ‘F’ list
• Sets up times with students before and after
school for Extra Help
• Contacts parents
• Refers students to counselor/admin

50. Summer Transition Program
• Summer Transition Program
• First Year - 13/118 students transition program.

51. Summer Transition Program
• Summer Transition Program
• First Year - 13/118 students transition program.
• Second Year - 38/124 students in transition program.

52. Summer Transition Program
• Summer Transition Program
• First Year - 13/118 students transition program.
• Second Year - 38/124 students in transition program.
• Third Year - 63/140 students in transition program.

53. Summer Transition Program
• Summer Transition Program
• First Year - 13/118 students transition program.
• Second Year - 38/124 students in transition program.
• Third Year - 63/140 students in transition program.
• Fourth Year – 88/132 students in transition program.

54. P.A.W.S. - Providing A Winning Start
What is P.A.W.S.?
• A summer program to prepare freshman for.
– Study Skills
– Lockers
– High School procedures
– Team and leadership building.
– Service Learning Project

55. Students who attend will receive the
following:
• A ½ credit of an elective • Skills to work
toward graduation. effectively and
• A ½ credit of health or efficiently with others.
PE. (both are required • Leadership training
for graduation) through a multitude of
• Skills to enter high sources.
school successfully. • An extended life plan
• Tools to assist with complete with steps to
organizational skills. reach their goals.

56. White River Valley Trail recognized
with national award
• In addition to the Corps of
Engineers, the trail received
support from the Branson
and Hollister chambers of
commerce and visitor
bureaus, local city
governments, Volunteers
for Outdoor Missouri,
students from Hollister
school and College of the
Ozarks, Boy Scouts working
on Eagle Scout projects, and
other volunteers.

57. Best Practices
• Assessment Learning, Stiggins
• Power Standards, Ainsworth
• Balanced Math Approach, Ainsworth
• Comprehensive Literacy
– Reading and Writing Workshop Model
– Literacy Strategies in the content areas
• Power of ICU

58. Power of ICU
Always Ask….
• …What do you owe?
• …Who do you owe?
• …What do you need?
• …How can I help?
• Jayson Nave
• Danny Hill

60. • Post an
agenda for
the class
period in the
classroom.

61. New to HHS this year
• Modified Block Scheduling

62. Hollister High School
2011-12 Bell Schedule
(Monday-Wednesday)
Five Minute Bell- 7:55
First Hour – 8:00-8:49
Second Hour – 8:53-9:41
Third Hour – 9:46 – 10:34
TNT – 10:38-11:06
Fourth Hour – 11:10 – 12:23
(First lunch – 11:06-11:32)
(Second Lunch -11:32 – 11:57)
(Third lunch – 11:57 – 12:23)
Fifth Hour – 12:28-1:16
Sixth Hour – 1:21-2:09
Seventh Hour – 2:13-3:01
Extra Help – 3:15-4:00

63. Thursday Friday
Five Minute Bell - 7:55 Professional Clubs - 8:00-8:39
First Hour – 8:00-9:25 Five Minute Bell - 8:39
Third Hour – 9:31 – 10:56 Second Hour – 8:44-10:09
Fourth Hour – 10:12– 12:08
TNT – 11:02-11:34
(First lunch – 10:43-11:12)
Fifth Hour – 11:40 – 1:30 (Second lunch – 11:12 – 11:40)
(First lunch – 11:34-12:00) (Third lunch – 11:40 – 12:08)
(Second lunch – 12:00-12:25) Sixth Hour – 12:15-1:40
(Third lunch – 12:25 – 12:50) Professional Development
2:00 – 3:30
Seventh Hour – 1:36-3:01
PASS – 3:15-4:00

64. • Double blocking Algebra 1 for at risk
freshman
– Acuity Algebra Readiness Assessment
– MAP scores from 7th and 8th grade
– Summative Grades

65. Algebra 1 Failure Rate
14
12
10
8
2010-11
6 2011-12
4
2
0
1st Semester 2nd Semester

66. Using math skills in the classroom

67. Hands on Activities

68. Next Steps
• Continue to encourage students to come to
our summer transition class.
• Set up pull out times for freshman to be pulled
out of non-core classes to make up
assignments.
• Become more proactive in seeking out
potential students to focus on in the 8th grade.
• Continue to “TENACIOUSLY” seek out ways to
provide extra help and extra time to students
who need it.

69. School Wide Changes
• Professional Learning Community
• A + School
• HSTW Initiative
• SWPBS
• Required fourth math graduation requirement
• Required fourth science graduation requirement – Class of
2017
• Project Lead the Way – 2013-14 school year
• Focus Teams

70. A new paradigm at HHS

71. Contact Information
Chris Ford, Assistant Superintendent
cford@hollister.k12.mo.us
Sean Woods, High School Principal
swoods@hollister.k12.mo.us
Tamhra Barnett, Life Guard
tbarnett@hollister.k12.mo.us
Ginger Williams, Life Guard
gwilliams@hollister.k12.mo.us