Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) and Response to Intervention (RtI) are introduced at the middle school level. Eighteen VPS schools have adopted PBIS or both PBIS and RtI and are in various stages [...]
Three elementary schools practicing Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) are named exemplars, signifying the highest level of implementation. Peter S. Ogden, Minnehaha, and Harney elementary schools become model PBIS schools for the rest [...]
More students take on and complete the district’s most rigorous coursework. Over the past decade, the percentage of high school students enrolled in Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) courses increases from 6 [...]
The number of schools ranked good to exemplary jumped from five in 2008 to 20 in 2013, equaling 12,000 more students being served in higher-ranked schools.
In the district’s annual climate survey, nearly 90 percent of parents say that their child is safe at school.
Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) expansion continues. AVID includes approximately 1,000 students at the following schools: Marshall and Martin Luther King elementary schools; Alki, Discovery, Gaiser, Jason Lee, McLoughlin, and Thomas Jefferson middle schools; [...]
The number of middle school Challenge and Honors section registrations increases from 1,152 in 2008-09 to 2,432 in 2012-13.
A new teacher and principal evaluation system is implemented district-wide.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awards a $50,000 grant to fund a pilot project at Fort Vancouver High School’s new Family-Community Resource Center (FCRC) to promote regular student attendance and achievement. A new [...]
Lewis and Clark High School launches with a new blended learning model. The magnet school combines online instruction, group discussions, and teacher support. College-focused Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) and Advanced Placement (AP) courses [...]
On-time and extended (five-year) graduation rates increase. The on-time graduation rate increases from 64 percent in 2010 to 73 percent in 2012, and the extended (five-year) graduation rate increases from 69 percent in 2010 [...]
Free full-day kindergarten expands to all 21 district elementary schools. An increase of funding from the state allows for the implementation of full-day kindergarten at all elementary schools.
Vancouver Public Schools (VPS) hosts an unprecedented third National School Boards Association (NSBA) Technology Leadership Network site visit. After NSBA visits in 1993 and 1999, VPS is selected for its sustained commitment to the [...]
The weLearn 1:1 rollout begins at Alki Middle School, where sixth-graders receive iPads to use at school and home.
The community approves Vancouver Public Schools’ first technology levy. The six-year technology levy funds mobile computing solutions, professional development, and infrastructure support, as well as computer lab upgrades, standard classroom equipment, a learning management [...]
Eleven new teachers achieve certification by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. There are 88 nationally certified teachers district-wide. National Board certification signifies advanced knowledge, skills, and practices.
Schools practicing Response to Intervention (RtI) display gains in scores on state tests. In the 2011-12 school year, RtI schools outperformed non-RtI schools by 6.12 percent in reading, 4.09 percent in math, and 2.87 [...]
The Family-Community Resource Center (FCRC) network expands to Hazel Dell, Lincoln, and Minnehaha elementary schools. By the 2012-13 school year, the number of FCRC partnerships reaches 659, with approximately $3.5 million in annual partner [...]
Vancouver iTech Preparatory, a magnet school, opens with a focus on science, technology, engineering, and math. iTech Prep’s curriculum blends all curricular areas into project- and problem-based learning. Students are given individual laptops. Curiosity [...]
A new teacher and principal evaluation pilot program begins. The system is designed to help move principals and classroom teachers from a self-assessment model to one guided by frameworks, or common languages for discussing [...]
Vancouver Public Schools is one of 40 school districts and education agencies selected for the League of Innovative Schools. The league is a prestigious alliance of school districts committed to working with entrepreneurs and [...]
The number of students meeting benchmarks for kindergarten readiness increases from 6 percent between fall 2011 and fall 2012. Thanks in part to an expansion of the Jump Start program through a grant from [...]
Superintendent Steve Webb receives the Student Achievement Award from the Washington Association of School Administrators (WASA) Region 112. WASA Region 112 honors the superintendent for his leadership in creating the Opportunity Zone to mobilize [...]
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) pilots begin in some classes at Alki Middle School and Columbia River and Skyview high schools.
Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports (PBIS) is integrated with a complementary program called Response to Intervention (RtI). In RtI, grade-level teams monitor student behavior and progress toward literacy and math benchmarks. Using data, the [...]
Vancouver Public Schools’ (VPS) safety efforts earn top marks from the Washington State Crime Prevention Association. The association bestows its highest honor, the award for Non-Law Enforcement Program of the Year, on VPS.
The Washington Association of School Administrators (WASA) honors Superintendent Steve Webb. In one year, Vancouver Public Schools took three top awards in Washington state. Superintendent Steve Webb was named Administrator of the Year (2011); [...]
Vancouver Public Schools’ Family-Community Resource Centers (FCRCs) win an honorable mention in the American School Board Journal’s 2011 Magna Awards. The Economic Policy Institute’s Broader, Bolder Approach to Education also recognizes the FCRCs as a national [...]
The three-year retention rate for the 2008-09 cohort of new Vancouver Public Schools (VPS) educators is 89.6 percent. VPS provides newly hired educators with extensive support, including a teacher induction program, teacher mentor program, [...]
The Family-Community Resource Center network expands to Harney Elementary School and Discovery and McLoughlin middle schools.
K–12 anti-bullying focus begins. Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS), a program designed to shift school culture and reinforce respectful and positive actions, is adopted. Five elementary schools begin PBIS training and implementation, establishing [...]
Vancouver Public Schools creates the Opportunity Zone to increase family and community engagement, ensure high-quality instruction, and provide flexible learning environments. The Opportunity Zone includes 14 elementary, middle, and high schools with large concentrations [...]
The first weLearn Technology Showcase demonstrates how students and teachers use technology in the classroom.
Vancouver Public Schools implements one-to-one technology pilots, including laptops, iPods, and Mobi tablets. Over the next two years, the district also installs wireless networks and standard technology, including projectors, laptops, and interactive whiteboards, in [...]
Discovery becomes an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School for the Middle Years Programme (MYP). Similar to the IB program for high school students, MYP offers a rigorous academic program for middle school students. Students [...]
Jump Start, a kindergarten-readiness program that had existed in the district since 2005, expands to 16 Title 1 schools. Kids who participate in Jump Start are nearly twice as likely to be at the [...]
The Family-Community Resource Center network expands to Martin Luther King, Peter S. Ogden, and Eleanor Roosevelt elementary schools.
Read and Play programs offered by Educational Service District 112 increase partnerships with families with children ages 5 and under.
Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) begin. Teachers receive focused time to collaborate and work together in PLCs twice per month to address the needs of each student.
Mandarin Immersion Program begins at Franklin Elementary School. Students have the opportunity to achieve true bilingualism and biliteracy in Mandarin and English, which may lead to greater academic gains. Research shows that students in [...]
