Story Photos
 Huntington Middle School Prinicipal Elaine Cockrell emerges from "Opportunity" period Friday after taking attendance (pictured below). Greg Ebersole / The Daily News
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Huntington's Cockrell named region's top principal
Friday, November 21, 2008 11:36 PM PST
By Leila Summers
Printable version
E-mail this articleStudents at Huntington Middle School have extra study time every school day, thanks to a new program adopted by Principal Elaine Cockrell. “Opportunity” time gives students a half-hour before or after lunch to study, meet with teachers or catch up on missing assignments.
It’s an innovative idea that is major reason other middle school principals from across Southwest Washington recently named Cockrell “Principal of the Year” for 2008.
“It’s because I’ve got a lot of good, hardworking teachers,” Cockrell said on Friday, deflecting credit for the award.
Huntington Vice Principal Rob Birdsell nominated Cockrell for the honor, saying the program and other strategies are generating “great changes” at the North Kelso school.
“With great changes and great schools you have to have great leadership,” Birdsell said.
The number of students failing classes has declined, and students scores on standardized tests have improved in all subjects except math, Cockrell said. The school still hopes to use Opportunity and “Monday math” sessions to boost math scores, she said.
Teachers are asked to watch for struggling students and ask or require them to attend Opportunity, and Cockrell has outlined other intervention techniques for at-risk students, if needed.
Opportunity is optional for students with a “C” grade point average or higher and who are current with their assignments. Those students can use Opportunity as a supervised free period for activities such as playing on computers, in the gym or simply hanging out with friends.
“It’s basically a reward, an every day reward” for academic success, Cockrell said. “They love their friends. The best reward is to give kids more time with their friends. It’s using peer pressure in a positive way.”
Opportunity originated as a strategy to improve school math scores on state standardized tests, but Cockrell, who has been principal at Huntington for nine years, hasn’t notice any math improvements since Opportunity went into effect in the fall 2007.
The program is modeled after one in Wenatchee and has since been adopted at Coweeman Middle School, though Coweeman’s program is at the end of the school day.
To fit in the half-hour block, Huntington has started school earlier, reduced time between classes from five to three minutes and removed one of its three lunch periods.
It seems to be catching on well with students and staff, Birdsell said.
“The program would be no place without teachers to support it, to meet with the kids,” he said.
Cockrell’s award covered the St. Helens region of the Association of Washington Middle Level Principals, which includes middle school principals from schools in Vancouver, Battle Ground, Camas and all Cowlitz County school districts. From here, Cockrell will compete for the association’s statewide title.
Huntington eighth-grader Omar Rocha, 13, said he enjoys the extra study time. On Friday, he voluntarily went to study hall during Opportunity time to prepare for a test on a book called “The Pigman.”
When Rocha isn’t studying, he likes to use the half-hour in the computer lab or to play with friends at the gym, he said.
“This place is quiet and good to study in,” he said.
my 2 cents wrote on Nov 22, 2008 5:43 AM:
traci98632 wrote on Nov 22, 2008 8:01 AM:
Well deserved Elaine! I'm sure Erin and Matt are VERY proud of you as is Lorin and Bud. What a nice way to wake up this Saturday morning. Keep up the great work!
Traci Tansill "
ProudKelsoMom wrote on Nov 22, 2008 12:13 PM:
The Rodgers Family "
northnurse wrote on Nov 22, 2008 1:21 PM:
Thank you, Principal Cockrell, for serving your students in a progressive and positive way. "
FanInTheStands wrote on Nov 22, 2008 2:36 PM:
Lucky7 wrote on Nov 22, 2008 3:08 PM:
amyk wrote on Nov 22, 2008 3:55 PM:
Ella Mentry wrote on Nov 22, 2008 8:03 PM:
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