which means if a paraprofessional or an enrichment
facilitator is absent, Pennington needs to scramble
to figure out who is available in-house to fill that role.
At Pennington, Craig, O’Donnell, the school’s social
worker, and other support staff typically cover
classes, interventions, or enrichments, but this
shifting leads to gaps in other places and impacts
student learning and staff schedules.
Provide wrap-around services. Pennington
considers itself a full-service community school.
This means it offers a rich array of resources and
programs for students and families such as an
in-house food, clothing, and hygiene bank; adult
learning classes; and budget resources. Click here to
explore what is provided each year.
Parent and family voices were instrumental in the design of Pennington’s model.
Hear how one parent thinks about the school’s evolution and how her children have responded.
Additional Resources
• Pennington Elementary School Profile:
http://www.jeffcopublicschools.org/schools/de
mographics/elementary/pennington.pdf
• Teaching With Poverty in Mind, a Pennington
favorite, by Eric Jensen.
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