Nathanael+Greene+Middle+School+Fall+2011

Nathanael Greene Middle School 721 Chalkstone Avenue Providence, RI 02908 =Aaron Rudnick=

=Introduction= Nathanael Greene Middle school is one of six middle schools in Providence. The current principal is Nicole Mathis-Thomas and the assistant principals are Edward Halpin and Santa Iadevaia. Nathanael Greene currently has 842 students attending and 60 teachers with a student to teacher ratio of 13:1. The school runs on a schedule divided into six periods where the students eat lunch during the fourth period. Nathanael Greene is the only middle school in its district that has an academically advanced program which is called the gifted program. To get into the gifted program, the school looks at the standardized test scores of the graduating fifth grade class and invites those with high enough scores. With this context statement, I hope to inform anyone looking for information on Nathanael Greene Middle School. =**Community Background**= There are certain areas of Providence that have higher income than the average in the city, such as the East Side, but the majority of Providence has a low income. The median household income in Providence is $26,867 compared to Rhode Island's which is $42,090. The per capita income in Providence is also lower than Rhode Islands. Providence's is $15,525 and Rhode Island's is $21,688. There are many families in Providence below the poverty line. There are 23.9% of families below poverty line but only 8.9% in the state of Rhode Island. In Providence, 29.1% of individuals are below poverty line while only 11.9% of individuals in Rhode Island are below the poverty line. Providence is a very diverse city. About 50% of people in Providence are White followed by around 38% Hispanic, 16% Black/African American, 6.5% Asian and 1.5% American Indian/Alaska Native. This is very different than Rhode Island which is 81.4% White. In 2000 there were 51% of children in single-parent families living in Providence compared to only 30% in Rhode Island.

=District Summary= The Providence School District has much lower NECAP (New England Common Assessment Program) scores than the Rhode Island as a whole testing. In the 8th grade only 45% of students were proficient in reading compared to 74% in Rhode Island. Only 36% of students were proficient in writing compared to 61% in Rhode Island. In math, only 26% of students in Providence were proficient while 54% were proficient in Rhode Island. That's less than half. The teacher to student ratio in Providence is 1:15 compared to 1:11 in Rhode Island. Student eligibility for subsidized lunch means that the student qualifies, based on family income, for free or reduced-price lunch. In the Providence District 83% of students are eligible for subsidized lunch compared to almost half that in Rhode Island at 43% eligible. In Providence, 14% of students receive ESL or bilingual education services compared to only 5% in Rhode Island. The number of incidences of suspension in the Providence District at the Middle School level is 8,339 but only 56 in Barrington and only 8 in Central Falls. The attendance rate for middle schools in Providence is 91% compared to 94% in all Rhode Island middle schools. The property value per student in the Providence District is $382,463.51, and the per pupil expenditure is $15,451.10.

School Analysis
Historically, Nathanael Greene has been viewed as the better middle school in Providence. The gifted program caused an influx of higher performing students and students from higher income familes even though this is not the local school for many of these students. More recently, the renovations at Nathan Bishop Middle School have caused many of these students (often from the East Side of Providence) to attend Nathan Bishop (their local school) rather than Nathanael Greene. Despite this, Nathanael Greene is still an extremely good middle school. Nathanael Greene's NECAP scores are much higher than Providence's. Nathanael Green had 60% proficient in math at the 6th grade level which equaled the state average and almost doubled Providence's proficiency which was 34%. Nathanael Greene consistently outperforms Providence. The average difference between Nathanael Greene and Providence in each category is almost 16%. One thing that Nathanael Green can pride itself on is the fact that it has 0% of teachers with emergency certification. This means that every teacher at the middle school is qualified to teach. The teacher to student ratio at Nathanael Greene is 1:13 compared to the state's at 1:11 and Providence's at 1:15. To understand why Nathanael Greene is so different than the district it is in, the makeup of the school must be analyzed. First of all, Nathanael Greene has a program called the Gifted Program which takes a higher caliber of student and challenges these students to do better. Secondly, many of these students are drawn from the East Side of Providence which is a statistically more wealthy neighborhood than the rest of Providence. This means that these students are often better equipped for school and bring the NECAP scores of the school up. The fact that the school has a specialized program for more driven students also brings these scores up. Also, to provide better services for these more driven students, the school does things like have more teachers to provide more individualized learning. The Gifted Program creates somewhat of an anomaly in the Providence School District. == ==

Conclusion
Nathanael Greene Middle School is a very good option for students entering middle school in Providence. The fact that many students must be invited to attend the school means that the curriculum is much more rigorous and even students who are not in the gifted program attend a school with a high academic environment. Nathanael Greene provides a challenging curriculum in the arts, sciences, languages, and humanities. Students who need help are provided it. Nathanael Greene is often considered a feeder school for Classical High School which is considered one of the best high schools in the state. It is clear to readers that Nathanael Greene is one of the best schools in the Providence district in all subjects of the NECAP testing. Nathanael Greene Middle School is a great choice for any student willing to challenge themselves to do better and reach higher.

=References= //U.S. Census Bureau Fact Sheet//. (2005-2009). Retrieved from [|http://factfinder.census.gov] //RI Kids Count: Indicators of Child Well-Being, Profile of Providence, RI.// (2010). Retrieved from [] //Infoworks Live: Nathanael Greene Middle School//. (2009-2010). Retrieved from [|http://infoworks.ride.ri.gov/school/nathanael-greene-middle-school]

**Author: (Aaron Rudnick)** **Editor: (Amanda Smith)** **Total Score for this Evaluation:** 29_/35 pts

=== **Introduction = REPLACEWITHSCORE/ 5 pts.** === Constructive comments about report's introduction: 4
 * 5 - Intro provides an overview of the upcoming analysis, including what school/district/community is being analyzed, what aspects are being analyzed, and who the report is intended to inform. || 4 - Intro names the school/district/community and previews the scope of the report, but does not describe who the report is intended to inform. || 3 - Intro names the school/district/community but not much else. || 2 - Intro fails to name the school, district, and community. || 0 - No introduction section is apparent. ||

=== **Organization = REPLACEWITHSCORE / 5 pts.** === Strengths and constructive comments about report's organization: 5
 * 5 - Report includes an Introduction, a Conclusion, and sections for the School, District, and Community. Within each section, paragraphs logically group the information presented. || 4 - Report includes all of the sections mentioned previously, but does not break down information into paragraphs within each section. || 3 - Report is missing one of the sections. || 2 - Report is missing more than one section. || 0 - Report does not include any sections. ||

**Mechanics = REPLACEWITHSCORE / 5 pts.**

 * 5 - All information in the report is cited using APA styled- citations after the information and in a Reference section at the end of the report.

and

There are extremely few typos and misspelled words in the report. || 4 - Most information is cited using APA style.

and/or

There are a noticeable number of typos or misspellings. || 3 - Some citations in the References section are not in APA style, e.g. URLs are listed without the title of the website.

and/or

There are many typos, misspellings, or other writing errors. || 2 - Most of the report's information is not cited, or APA style was not used. || 0 - Report does not include a Reference section. || Strengths and constructive comments about report's organization: 5

=== **Conclusion = REPLACEWITHSCORE / 5 pts.** === Strengths and constructive comments about conclusion: 4
 * 5 - Conclusion reviews analysis of school, district and community and describes why findings should be important to reader. || 4 - Conclusion reviews analysis of school, district and community. || 3 - Conclusion does not refer back to report findings. || 0 - No conclusion section is apparent. ||

=== **Creativity = REPLACEWITHSCORE / 5 pts.** === Strengths and constructive comments about presentation: 4
 * 5 - Report is written in an engaging style. || 4 - Report has some interesting sections. || 3 - Report generally reports information without seemingly without purpose. ||

=== **Thoroughness = REPLACEWITHSCORE /10 pts** ===
 * 5 - Report includes at least ten different facts in each section (school, community, district) and

compares each figure with another relevant figure (e.g. state or national average) and

states whether or not the school is meeting NCLB standards. || 4 - Report includes at least eight different facts in each section and

compares most figures with relevant values and

states whether or not the school is meeting NCLB standards. || 3 - Report includes at least six different facts in each section and

compares some of the figures to other relevant figures || 2 - Report includes at least four different facts in each section and

compares some of the figures to other relevant figures. || 0 - Report includes less than four different facts for any section or

fails to compare any figures with other relevant figures. || 9 **Author: (Aaron Rudnick)** **Editor: Mary Loveley** **Total Score for this Evaluation:** 35/35 pts

**Introduction = 5/ 5 pts.**
Constructive comments about report's introduction: 4
 * 5 - Intro provides an overview of the upcoming analysis, including what school/district/community is being analyzed, what aspects are being analyzed, and who the report is intended to inform. || 4 - Intro names the school/district/community and previews the scope of the report, but does not describe who the report is intended to inform. || 3 - Intro names the school/district/community but not much else. || 2 - Intro fails to name the school, district, and community. || 0 - No introduction section is apparent. ||

**Organization = 5 / 5 pts.**
Strengths and constructive comments about report's organization: 5
 * 5 - Report includes an Introduction, a Conclusion, and sections for the School, District, and Community. Within each section, paragraphs logically group the information presented. || 4 - Report includes all of the sections mentioned previously, but does not break down information into paragraphs within each section. || 3 - Report is missing one of the sections. || 2 - Report is missing more than one section. || 0 - Report does not include any sections. ||

**Mechanics = 5 / 5 pts.**

 * 5 - All information in the report is cited using APA styled- citations after the information and in a Reference section at the end of the report.

and

There are extremely few typos and misspelled words in the report. || 4 - Most information is cited using APA style.

and/or

There are a noticeable number of typos or misspellings. || 3 - Some citations in the References section are not in APA style, e.g. URLs are listed without the title of the website.

and/or

There are many typos, misspellings, or other writing errors. || 2 - Most of the report's information is not cited, or APA style was not used. || 0 - Report does not include a Reference section. || Strengths and constructive comments about report's organization: 5

**Conclusion = 5 / 5 pts.**
Strengths and constructive comments about conclusion: 4
 * 5 - Conclusion reviews analysis of school, district and community and describes why findings should be important to reader. || 4 - Conclusion reviews analysis of school, district and community. || 3 - Conclusion does not refer back to report findings. || 0 - No conclusion section is apparent. ||

**Creativity = 5 / 5 pts.**
Strengths and constructive comments about presentation: 4
 * 5 - Report is written in an engaging style. || 4 - Report has some interesting sections. || 3 - Report generally reports information without seemingly without purpose. ||

**Thoroughness = 10 /10 pts**

 * 5 - Report includes at least ten different facts in each section (school, community, district) and

compares each figure with another relevant figure (e.g. state or national average) and

states whether or not the school is meeting NCLB standards. || 4 - Report includes at least eight different facts in each section and

compares most figures with relevant values and

states whether or not the school is meeting NCLB standards. || 3 - Report includes at least six different facts in each section and

compares some of the figures to other relevant figures || 2 - Report includes at least four different facts in each section and

compares some of the figures to other relevant figures. || 0 - Report includes less than four different facts for any section or

fails to compare any figures with other relevant figures. || 9