Dear SOE community,
I am pleased to announce plans to partner with Rockingham County Schools (RCS) in opening the UNCG-RCS Partnership School at Moss Street Elementary in Reidsville. A team from the SOE presented initial plans of the Partnership School to the RCS Board of Education yesterday evening. The Partnership School – also called a “Lab School” – will feature innovative approaches in curriculum and instruction, hands-on teaching and learning, and professional development opportunities for area educators. The school will seek to engage students in literacy, science, technology, engineering, the arts, and math as well as providing other services including counseling, nutrition, and additional support for students and families. A media release can be found here.
The proposed school will occupy the existing Moss Street facility and serve approximately 400 students in Kindergarten through 5th grade. With a start date of August 2018, we are on a quick timeline. Partnership and collaboration will be core to the Partnership School, as we work along side Rockingham County Schools, the Reidsville and Moss Street Elementary community, all departments of the SOE, and numerous units and departments at UNCG. This is an incredible opportunity for us to promote a measurable positive impact on children and families in the Reidsville community, and our success will rely on strong partnership every step of the way.
As you can imagine, there is much coordination and planning to be done and this will involve your expertise and input beginning in the very early stages. Carl Lashley and Christina O’Connor are serving as Co-Chairs of the Partnership School Team. They have been instrumental in moving us to this point in the process and will serve as primary points of contact for the UNCG planning process. The Partnership School Team will present information at two interest meetings and will regularly disseminate Partnership School information to our faculty and staff. The first Interest Meeting will be held on Tuesday, September 5 at 2:00 pm in 301 SOEB. The second Interest meeting will be held on Wednesday, September 13 at 10:00 am in 301 SOEB. If you have interest in learning more about, or engaging with, the Partnership School, I encourage you to mark you calendars for one of these two dates.
A year from now we will be opening the doors to a new school that will provide incredible opportunity for learning and growth for thousands of children in the coming years. We will inspire young minds, engage innovative approaches to teaching and learning, and build countless paths of opportunity. I look forward to working with you all in bringing this vision to life.
With warm regards and much enthusiasm,
Dr. Randy Penfield, Dean