Demographics

Evergreen Elementary School is located in the northwest part of Washington about 25 miles southwest of Gig Harbor in the community of Lakebay, Washington.  There are about 230 students, preschool through fifth grade that attend Evergreen, who live the rural areas surrounding the school.  The population ranges from middle to very low-income families.  Approximately 55% of our Evergreen students receive free or reduced lunch.    Multi-ethnic students (20.57%) come from the Native American, Hispanic, Asian and African American heritage.  79% of our students are Caucasian.   The transient rate is 51% (percentage of our highest grade that has been enrolled for two years or more). 

Title I and Special Education

Evergreen Elementary is in its 11th year as a School Wide Title I School.   With this status we have made great strides towards excellence.  This School Wide status has given Evergreen the chance to melt programs together to best meet the needs of our students.   With this status we are able to provide Title I services to 100% of our students.  We have approximately 20% of the Evergreen population being served by Special Services.

As a School Wide Model Evergreen has in place:

   A comprehensive building reading plan

   Comprehensive on going assessment

   Blending of instruction for Title and Special Education

   Planned "Reading Block” times per grade level (90 min)

   Early identification of below grade level students at all grade level, specifically those K-2

   Interventions for students who are significantly below grade level

   Monthly SWAT meetings with classroom teachers to discuss student progress and grouping

   Support for the classroom teacher

   A "Reading Teacher" for every child

Evergreen Staffing

Evergreen's staff is highly professional and dedicated.  Staff participation in professional development workshops and regional conferences is very high.  Many of the staff lives in the immediate vicinity so they are well attuned to the community's educational needs and expectations.

This will be Principal Jacque Crisman’s ninth year at Evergreen. Ms. Crisman comes to Evergreen with three goals; to put the children of Evergreen first, to have an open door for students, staff, parents, and community, and to help create a community where everyone is a learner.

The 2007/2008 school year staff will have 10 FTE classroom teachers.  The Evergreen staff is also fortunate to have:

   1.0 FTE - Title I Teacher

   1.0 FTE – Special Education Teachers

   1.7 FTE– Elementary Enrichment Specialists (P.E., Music and other enrichment- health/art)

   0.1 FTE – Challenge Enhancement Teacher

1.0  FTE – Counselor

0.5 FTE – Instructional Coach

   Several Itinerants – Nurse, Psychologist, Speech Therapist, and Occupational Therapist.

   Many Instructional Assistants

Accomplishments

©                          Evergreen is the first school in the district to implement a School-wide Title I project. The project supports a multi-tiered reading program that reduces reading class size and matches student needs with appropriate instructional programs.  Our school has created a plan that includes reading instruction for every child at their reading level.   Lessons are developed in our Guided Reading Room to meet the needs of each child.   We are fortunate to have a .8 Title I Coordinator/Teacher on staff.   Susan Brummitt works with our staff members to meet the needs of our students.  Cathy Carter, our Special Education teacher also works part time with Title/LAP funds.

©                          Evergreen has received a federal Reading Is FUNdamental (RIF) grant for ten years.  With the help from Angel Guild in Key Center, we are able to provide a Reading Is Fundamental Day four times during the year.  During each session volunteers come to the building to read with children and help them each select a book to take home.

©                          Evergreen's WASL test scores have risen steadily since first tested in 1997 and received a certificate and letter from the governor that Evergreen has reached its reading goal for the past two years.

©                          Evergreen is the recipient of a 21st Century Grant and the Pierce County Violence Prevention Grant  that allows Evergreen to have an after and before school program call AFTER OURS. The After Ours Program provides academic and enrichment activities for students on a daily basis. This past year over 120 students participated in the After Ours program. It also boasts of having over 40 volunteers helping to make the program a success.  This past year we were fortunate to have extended our After Ours program to three nights; “Eagle Academy” which focuses on literacy, “Count On Math” which  focuses on mathematics instruction and one night of After Ours Enrichment.   We also started a program called “Conference Camp” that runs during parent/teacher conferences.  With the support of After Ours we have been fortunate to co-sponsor our academic nights which doubled in participation.  We are looking forward to this summer where we will be extending our summer school program which will last the whole summer to help kids retain their skills from year to year. 

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Community Use

Since the student population at Evergreen has a high rate of turnover and the community is a mix of long-time residents and transition families, it is important that the school is highly visible and stable. Staff and parents are working to increase community involvement in the school. Youth groups and community organizations use the facilities evenings and weekends. For information about community use, call the school at 530-1300.

With the addition of the After Ours program Evergreen is able to offer academic and enrichment classes after school for the students of Evergreen. With the help of After Ours the school is able to provide parenting classes and parent/child information and enrichment classes as well.

Partnerships

Community in Schools – partner helping to provide a reading mentor program to work with our at risk students.

Children’s Home Society – partner with the use of our Readiness to Learn and PIRC people.  Both of these social workers help with our at risk families and support for our Early Childhood Program.

Building Condition

Originally constructed in 1955, Evergreen consisted of six classrooms, restrooms, a multipurpose room, library, kitchen, administrative area and mechanical/electrical room. A building addition in 1987 provided four more classrooms and reorganized existing spaces into more usable areas. In 1993, two new double classroom portables were placed on site to accommodate program offerings and alleviate some of the crowding. The other two single portable classrooms and the re-locatable gym are in poor condition.

In 2001 work was done to one of the single portables to help us create a new computer lab. The upgrades made the lab into a place where Evergreen students can learn about the latest in technology.

In September, 2001, the new Evergreen Gym was open.  A grand opening in conjunction with our yearly open house had over 500 visitors in one evening.   Since the opening the gym has been used by the school and community for evening and weekend events.

In June, 2006 we celebrated our 50th year as an elementary school in the Peninsula School District.   Our building has never looked better.

How To Get Involved

Parents and community members are encouraged to volunteer at Evergreen in many ways. This past year we had over 130 volunteers working at Evergreen.  Here are some ways that parents and community members can help and to get involved:

Being Involved at School

©                          Our PTA provides support with specific programs that need parent/volunteer participation, such as Parent Mentor Program and RIF (Reading is Fundamental). For more information, please call 530-1300.  Ask to leave a message for our president; Mark Michel.

©                          After ‘Ours is always looking for parents and community members to share their knowledge and skills with children.  Please contact our After Ours site coordinator, Julie Kries,  at 530-1300 for more information.

©                          Please call our office or the classroom teachers for other volunteer opportunities

Being Involved at Home

Evergreen provides several opportunities for parents to learn about the school and how to best support their children.  

©                          Parents in the Know – meets once a month with topics that are beneficial to helping children at home.

©                          Coffee With the Principal – meets once a month as a forum to discuss the school and to find out what is happening.

©                          Family Academic Nights – each year Evergreen hosts a Reading Night, Math Night and Writing Celebration Night.   This is a good way to learn about how to best support your child in the areas of Reading, Math and Writing.

©                          Open House and our Ice Cream Social – at the beginning of each year Evergreen hosts an ice cream social for our students and families to get to know the teachers.   An open house is always scheduled for the end of September for families and the community to visit the school.

©                          Parent Teacher Conferences – Parent/Teacher conferences are held each November and March.   This is a perfect way to connect with your child’s teacher and to find out how to best support your child at home.

©                          Love and Logic Parenting Classes – Each January/February Evergreen hosts a parenting class that focuses on the Love and Logic philosophy. 

©                          Parent Compact – Each fall parents are sent a compact to sign and return to the school as part of our Title I plan.   This compact is a commitment from the parent, teacher and students to work towards student achievement.   It is a commitment to do as much as possible to support the learning of the student.