Cape Elizabeth High School - Cape Elizabeth, ME

Cape Elizabeth High School is a public high school in a suburb just south of Portland, Maine.

Like all schools, CEHS faces this problem: how do we support students who need more time and support to learn? CEHS has made strides in addressing this issue.

Those strides begin with a caring faculty whose work is grounded in a clear understanding that teachers' work is not measured by what was taught, but by what students learn. That understanding was implicit within CEHS's faculty culture for many years. As we studied and learned about Professional Learning Communities, however, it became an explicit, deeply understood, and commonly accepted starting point for all our work.

And then we got practical: in a school where so many students are involved in after-school activities, what are the available times during the school day when students can access needed support? First, with community support, we created an Achievement Center, a support site students can access any time during the day for assistance from peer tutors or adult educators assigned there each period. Second, we created a thirty-minute block in the school day, which we call the Achievement Period. During that period, no classes are taught, students are organized in advisory groups and, four days per week (Friday is advisory activity day), students and teachers can connect for the needed help.

These are not all the ingredients that help us meet students' needs for additional support, but they are critical ingredients that reflect our commitment to all students.