December 1, 2007

Dear Parents,

I greatly appreciate this opportunity to provide you with a brief introduction to our “Options” program at Bishop England High School. The program, designed to provide an inclusive educational experience for students with mild to moderate cognitive and developmental delays, was implemented this fall and has proven to be far more successful than we could have imagined.  Below I have provided an overview about the academic, social, and extracurricular dimensions of the program.  The combination of these components has, we believe, created a wonderful environment for students of diverse abilities to learn and grow in a nurturing, challenging environment.

The goal of the Options program is to include students with special needs in the regular curriculum to the greatest extent possible.  The program director works with parents to develop individualized “student success plans” (similar to IEP’s, but with a focus on both academic and social goals), and we integrate Options students into classes in ways that best suit their intellectual needs.  At a minimum, students are offered inclusion opportunities in courses such as theology, art, drama, music and physical education.  We strive to have students participate in additional college prep classes, for example, world history, English, and biology.  We have been delighted at our success this year in offering inclusive opportunities for our Options students, as these students are enrolled in regular classes for the majority of the day.  As you might expect, many of our Options students do need some additional support for continued academic progress, particularly in language and math, and we are fortunate to be able to provide more individualized instruction within the program.

The Options curriculum is language-based with emphasis on processing information through listening, speaking, reading, and writing.  Our individualized courses are conducted in small groups with a maximum of 6 to 1 student to teacher ratio and use a variety of hands-on activities, cooperative learning, and interactive technologies to meet each student’s needs.  The program is unique because the curriculum focuses mainly on academic rather than vocational content; however it does include vocational experience through careers classes, field trips and life-skills math.

Although the Options Program is not designed to provide a high school degree to most of our students, it provides students with the confidence and skills to succeed in life after high school.  We evaluate each student on an individual and regular basis, and tailor the academic program to suit the needs and skills of the student.  Thus it may be possible for an Options student to earn a high school degree if the student is capable of completing the academic requirements established by the school.  For every student enrolled in the program, there is an expectation of continued academic progress each semester, and we are committed to providing the support and instruction necessary to facilitate that progress.  In addition to the expectation of continual academic progress, students accepted into the Options program are required to meet the school’s already high behavioral standards established for all students. 

The choice to begin the Options program has provided a very unique opportunity for our school community to more fully embrace our mission challenge of demonstrating high levels of mutual respect for all individuals. College prep students have accepted this challenge by volunteering to serve as academic mentors and social peer buddies for the Options students - an experience that is often life-changing.  Through the use of peer mentors, students in the Options program are encouraged to be highly involved in academic, athletic, social and service activities. In addition to facilitating these social organizations, we have also encouraged our Options students to participate in the extracurricular activities and sports teams at Bishop England.  Currently, Options students are highly involved as participants in our religious retreat team, choral group, swim team, sailing team, and serve as managers for both our boys’ and girls’ basketball teams.  Such involvement provides a sense that these students have become integral members of our school community. Those of us who have been around adolescents for any length of time understand that acquiring a sense of  belonging is perhaps the most important element to success in a high school environment.

Should you think that Bishop England High School might be the best choice for your son or daughter, we invite you to gain a more complete perspective by visiting our website (www.behs.com) and opening the Options Program link that can be found under Academics. Please feel free to give me a call (849-9599, ext. 18) if we can provide any additional information or arrange a campus tour.  

 With warmest regards,

 David Held, Principal