On Monday our International Baccalaureate coordinator, Sarah Huffman, received word that Roosevelt has been officially authorized as an IB Middle Years Programme (MYP) school.  This marks a milestone in our school's journey of growth.  Five years ago when I arrived at Roosevelt, we were beginning down the Middle Years Programme pathway.  The challenges in front of us were daunting.  We needed to develop a curriculum to align with the complex MYP course guides and adjust our teaching and assessment strategies to reflect the pedagogical guidelines provided by the International Baccalaureate Organization.  

As a staff, we have worked extremely diligently to improve our collective practice over the past few years.  Teachers have blazed the way as they have worked collaboratively to plan, implement and reflect on curricular units.  They have adjusted their teaching strategies to more effectively ensure that all students learn at high levels.  Some examples of this include our very thoughtful approach to teaming and co-teaching as well as our school wide focus on shared inquiry strategies across the curriculum.

The authorizing team that visited Roosevelt in early October was very impressed with the quality of classroom instruction they observed.  I am very proud of this.  All three authorizers are IB teachers from quality secondary schools.  They have seen strong teaching practice.  Yet, they were most impressed with the instruction they saw in our classrooms.  

I am very excited to be able to announce that Roosevelt is an authorized MYP site.  This is  recognition of the quality of work our teachers do every day.  Roosevelt is certainly a quality learning community in which adults and students strive to grow.

Please enjoy your Thanksgiving holiday.

Sincerely,

Michael