Polo Ridge Elementary
On a Quest from Good to Great
By Virginia Franco
When Principal Nizy John entered the doors of Polo Ridge Elementary in southeast Charlotte, the school had already been designated for three of its five Nizy John years in existence Principal as an “Honor School of Excellence,” the highest ranking that can be earned in North Carolina. A first time principal, Nizy has spent the year refining what is already a success story, following through on a message inspired by CMS Superintendent Dr. Heath E. Morrison to go from “good to great.” To achieve this, “communication is huge,” John notes, “beginning from the front office and going across the school.” So she is working collaboratively with the PTA and maintaining an open door for parents, she says.
“The collaboration between the administration and the PTA continues to be strong,” Nicholson says. “We have more than 20 committees that run different activities, including our Fall Polo Fest and other non-direct fundraisers like the Book Fair and Easy Money. The school boasts PTA participation from 100 percent of custodial and cafeteria staff included in its 627-person membership. “People tend to equate involvement with stayat-home parents,” Nicholson notes. “We have it across the board from grandparents to those who volunteer even after their kids have left Polo Ridge . . . everyone is invested.”
garden serves as an outdoor classroom. The school’s garden club has produced a diverse vegetable garden and the harvest is donated to the Second Harvest Food Bank. “The garden shows them NC agriculture as well as the whole plant cycle,” White explains.
Polo Ridge Painting
Constant Improvement
Hands-on STEM
Flower Garden at Polo Ridge
Managing Growth
Polo Ridge stands out as a STEM School (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics,)” and has Wendy White on board as one of only 20 K-5 Science Facilitators CMSwide.
Polo Ridge’s enviable blend of outstanding staff, parents, students, and community members allows it to continually strive to achieve the best possible educational experience for each child as part of a greater quest for excellence. White synopsizes thi s journey well. “We are constantly trying to improve,” she says. “Although our scores and growth have been at the forefront, we continue to raise them as a team by always looking for ways to help the kids.”
Former PTA President and mother of three CMS girls Traci Nicholson agrees. Nicholson chose Polo Ridge following her family’s relocation from California. “Polo Ridge made a great first impression,” she recalls, “The kids were all smiling in the hall, and when we walked into a classroom during our tour the kids were happily engaged to the point that they didn’t even look up at us.”
different perspective.”
Strong Involvement
Polo Ridge has the largest amount of registered volunteers in all of CMS,” John says. To ensure they are kept in the loop, John has focused on executing strong communication from the office and the classroom via Connect Ed phone messages and face time via a monthly parent coffee. Nicholson concurs. “John has done a lot toward initiating solid communications – including an up-to-date website to make sure all parents, working or not, are never at a disadvantage.” Another focus and a source of pride is the partnership between the PTA and the school that together worked to provide teachers with everything they needed from iPad Minis garnered via the Charlotte Rotary Cup’s “Teachers Cup” to EOG test prep and library materials, Lego story building sets, music equipment, and even rugs for a grade level.
A Global Perspective
A Holistic Culture
As a former assistant principal at Ballantyne and David Cox Elementaries, and a teacher in Virginia and in India, John knows first-hand that each school brings with it a unique culture. Whether a school is new or has been around for years, “the culture is the defining factor.” “I couldn’t have asked for a better school as my first experience,” Johns says. “The culture since I’ve been here has been very positive.”
John hoped to share some of her global experiences with Polo Ridge-while diverse in its population, also includes many children who have been raised primarily in the U.S. To this end, Polo Ridge hosted its first “International Polo Parade,” where parents of all 1,000+ students attended for the first time as a group to watch as children paraded the handcrafted flags of countries from around the world. “Every grade level learned a continent and each class learned about a country,” John explains. “The experience offered the kids a whole
Much of Polo Ridge’s staff have been here since the beginning and have experienced first-hand the school’s fast paced growth – from both a population perspective and the changes brought forth by Wendy White CMS initiatives Science Facilitator including Bring Your Own Technology or BYOT. To support teachers during these changes John offered technologyrelated professional development for teachers before launching a BYOT initiative following Spring Break. The program began in the fifth grade and is proceeding steadily. John is also tweaking classroom groupings for the fall of 2013 – transitioning from a 3-5 ability grouping model to heterogeneous flex groups offering differentiated instruction.
Let it Grow
With just a small classroom that doubles as a science lab, White offers students hands-on activities aligned with the STEM Leadership Core Program. From developing questions for the Science EOG to securing new vendors for science kits, White works to support students 11830 Tom Short Road with science lessons Charlotte, NC 28277 that are interactive and interesting, and 980-343-0749 provides resources to teachers to make http://schools.cms.k12.nc.us/ them comfortable poloridgeES/Pages/Default.aspx teaching science.” Principal: Nizy John Polo Ridge obtained a $7,000 grant from Lowe’s in 2012 and used it to build an 18-bed garden. Complete with picnic tables and space dedicated to butterflies and hummingbirds, the
Polo Ridge Elementary
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