On July 1, Mark Twarogowski officially took the reigns as Denver Academy's fourth headmaster. In an interview last month, Dateline Editor Elizabeth Barry sat down with Mr. Twarogowski to learn more about his background and his vision for DA.
You're currently working toward your Ph.D. in Education at the University of Denver. How's that going?
Well. I'm about halfway done and while it adds to my already busy schedule, I enjoy it. I love being in school and working at a school.
In pursuing that degree you frequently work and liaise with teachers from other schools. From your interactions, what's different about Denver Academy?
Our work environment is much more supportive for teachers. Many teachers in other schools feel constrained by rules and standardized testing; they don't have the freedom and autonomy to make instructional choices that will better serve their students.
But, shouldn't rules and standardized testing help hold teachers accountable?
Yes, but it shouldn't be the only accountability measurement. At DA, we don't view it as any more important than student engagement or social and emotional development, for example.
What are we doing right as a school?
We are student centered. We look at the individual needs of students. We recognize natural variability. We hire amazing teachers. By recognizing the individuality of our students, we can differentiate instruction to allow for all students to learn and develop their individual potentials.
How do you differentiate instruction with 14 students in a classroom?
Fourteen students in a class is a lot less than 25 when it comes to teaching. Beyond that, we group students with peers, so that the range variance is small from the start. Within the classroom, our teachers have a lot of techniques that help an entire class of students move through similar content, while meeting individual needs along the way.
Sounds impressive. How do our teachers learn to do that?
Well, picking the right teachers from the start is about 60 percent of the formula. All of our teachers, whether they've taught before or if they are just out of college, go through a DA instructional boot camp and internship. We have an advantage in that we've been teaching students with learning differences for over 40 years and we've culled that experience down to a pretty sound recipe for success.
Where can we improve as a school?
We talked about standardized testing earlier. I think we can do a better job of using the data we collect from various tests--IOWA, PLAN, EXPLORE--to help inform instruction. We currently use it quite well to ensure correct student placement in classes, but I think we could use it more effectively as an informative tool to help lesson planning and student achievement.
I'm also intent on increasing our endowment to help make our school more affordable for families and to ensure that our institution remains an educational haven for many years to come.
What's in store for the rest of your summer?
I love going to the beach. I'm lucky to be heading to Outer Banks in North Carolina with my family later this month. It's the one time during the year where I'll be relaxing and reading some good fiction.
Also, I'm looking forward to the DAPA Welcome Back Picnic on August 18th at 4:00 p.m. It's a great, laid back way for families, faculty and staff to start the year. Just bring a picnic dinner and chairs/blankets to the Quad. Dessert is on us!
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