School Visits

School Visits have been a long standing feature of the Fall Forum. What better way to take our practice public and demonstrate what the 10 Common Principles look like in action than to open our doors to each other? The following schools welcome your visit and questions.

Noble High School, North Berwick, ME
Noble High School is a five- year public school of 1088 students grades 8-12, serving the towns of Berwick, North Berwick, and Lebanon in southern Maine. Major employers include Pratt & Whitney, Hussey Manufacturing Company, and Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Noble is accredited by the New England Association of School and Colleges and by the Maine Department of Education and Cultural Services. Noble High School is a member of the Coalition of Essential Schools and the New England League of Innovative Schools. As this visit will take place during the school’s regular late start day, participants can expect to take part in Noble’s regular professional development activities as well as the opening 90 minutes of the school day. Noble’s areas of expertise include vertical learning academies/teaming, proficiency-based grading, performance-based assessments, academic support blocks, interdisciplinary instructional units and graduation portfolios.

Casco Bay High School, Portland, ME
Casco Bay High School (CBHS) is a small and rigorous public high school that reflects the increasing diversity of Portland, Maine (population: 64,000). Founded in 2005, CBHS is a school of choice for about 400 students (9-12). At Casco Bay, we challenge and support our students to become college ready through our 3Rs: Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships. The Class of 2009 was our first graduating class, and nearly 100% of our graduates have been accepted to college. On the annual Maine High School Assessment, Casco Bay students have routinely exceeded state and district averages as well as demographic expectations in reading, writing, science and math. Casco Bay High School is proud to have been chosen again as a Mentor School in the Expeditionary Learning national network of schools (www.elschools.org). In 2010, Casco Bay was featured by Edutopia as part of their Schools that Work series, and in 2014, CBHS was selected as one of twenty “Deeper Learning” schools in the country. Visitors can expect to do a learning walk of our classrooms as well as engage with a variety student and teacher artifacts. The day will also include an opportunity to interact and raise questions with students, staff and faculty. Casco Bay is especially proud to share its work related to the CES principles or on any of the following topics: project-based learning, interdisciplinary learning, faculty and student teaming, advisory, proficiency-based grading, differentiated instruction, one-to-one computing, PLC’s and collaborative governance.

Pre-Conference Workshop: Thursday 8:00am – 4:15pm

CES Student Summit: Five Freedom Fighters for Democracy and Equity

This day-long, student-designed and facilitated Student Summit will take a deep dive into the 10th Common Principle: Democracy and Equity. Participants will explore responsible and active citizenship through lens of the five freedoms of the United States Constitution.  Together students will create avenues to engage with their peers in exercising their rights responsibly inside and outside of the school setting while developing their skills for using their individual and collective voices effectively and with integrity in co-creating their public global world. Brought to you by students from Making Community Connections Charter School (MC2). Pizza lunch will be included.