SCHOOLS TO WATCH – INDIANA SCHOOLS TO WATCH
MODEL SCHOOL – VISITOR’S GUIDE
Highland Hills Middle School
2014-2015 School Statistics
Designated in 2015
Community: Suburban
Enrollment: 1549
Grade Levels: 5-8
School Schedule: traditional
Highland Hills Middle School● New Albany Floyd
County School Corporation● Floyd County
Mr. Bill Krammes, Principal
bkrammes@nafcs.k12.in.us
3492 Edwardsville-Galena Road, Georgetown, IN 47122
Tel (812) 542-8501
School Characteristics and Replicable Practices
Academic Excellence
 We have a clearly defined vision which points to
one clear outcome, individual excellence. Each
day teachers and students have a clear learning
focus in each class, which is centered on Big
Ideas and Essential Questions. The learning
goals have been outlined through a common and
collaboratively planned district pacing guide.
This level of intentionality allows for greater
focus and ultimately on academically excellent
students.

Student Demographics
 2.3% Hispanic
 92.4% White
 0.8% African American
 1.8% Multi-racial
 1.9% Asian
 18.0% Free/Reduced Lunch
2010-2011, 2011-12, 2012-13 4-Star School
2015 National and State Schools to Watch
DOE – “A” School
ISTEP+Scores
Math
2012
2013
2014
95.5%
96%
96%
English/LA
87%
89%
89%
Science
86%
85%
86%
Soc Studies
86.5%
84.5%
86%
Attendance
97.0%
97.0%
97.2%
District-wide collaboration has allowed us to set
aside time to narrow the focus of learning goals for our students. Through teacher led prioritization of
standards, we have placed a focus on teaching fewer priority standards which enables us to go deeper into
instruction and learning as well as having more clearly defined learning goals. Students gain an
understanding of what they are learning and why they are learning it through the classroom posting of
“target skills” and Essential Questions.
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Schools to Watch – INDIANA SCHOOLS TO WATCH Highland Hills Middle School

Through pacing guides, Rigorous Curriculum (RCD) Units, and high expectations of teachers, students
have daily opportunities to encounter demanding work that increases in rigor and complexity. This
prepares them to be highly competitive in our globalized society.

In 5th and 6th grade, students are placed on two person teams. Each of the two teachers in these teams are
responsible for teaching two subjects, either E/La and Social Studies or Math and Science. Due to the
structure of these teams, it is natural that cross-discipline learning connections are embedded into the
curriculum and daily instruction. As students transition to 7th and 8th grades, they encounter 7 periods
with teachers who focus on one content area. At the older grade levels, teachers have embraced the
integration of the new Indiana Literacy Standards with their own content standards. We have begun
implementation of Rigorous Curriculum Design (RCD) Units to allow for project/inquiry-based learning.
This integrates content learning with literacy skills in reading of complex text and applied writing skills.

RCD Units incorporate a great deal of informational text in the daily learning activities. Teachers have
been trained in CLOSE Reading and the annotating process. Performance Tasks also authentically assess
student comprehension and analysis of these texts. Furthermore, Performance Tasks assess student ability
to communicate learning through writing activities and presentations. District-wide training has been
provided in RCD development and has been a focus, particularly at the middle level (7th and 8th grades),
for the past two years.

The New Albany-Floyd County School Corporation has fully implemented Common
Formative Assessments (CFA) throughout all schools in the district. CFAs are given in all math and E/La
classes. They ensure student achievement in these skill-based courses in order to assure readiness for
rigorous application of the skills in secondary Science, Social Studies, and other content based classes.
Pre- and Post- tests are given every 4-5 weeks. Teachers in these areas collaborate on writing and grading
the CFAs as well. In math, benchmarks data is collected even more frequently. The best example is the
use of Daily Math Review (DMR’s). In content area classes, common authentic assessments are partially
implemented at this point. Authentic assessments of inquiry/project based instructional units are being
created to tighten our focus on College and Career Readiness.

In skill based math and E/La classes, Data Walls and Data Folders allow for student self-assessment of
learning compared to academic standards as well as the proficiency of other students. In content based
classes, common RUBRICS are being developed to provide students to assess their work against the
expectation of success.

CFA data guides Core Plus (grades 5/6) and E/La and Math Lab (grades 7/8) placement. These classes
provide additional time to successfully learn the content and skills, which the students have not yet
reached a level of proficiency. Students also have the opportunity to participate in the Read 180 or
Systems 44 class if they are dramatically below the anticipated level of achievement in their reading level.
Students needing less intervention are frequently given in class differentiation to reteach concepts.

Our school corporation has placed a priority on teacher collaboration and the Professional Learning
Community (PLC). Departments meet twice weekly to collaborate on effective instructional methods and
analysis of assessment data. We also have “Systems to Systems” meetings between teachers/school
administrators, and then school administrators/district administrators to analyze student learning. Time is
also given throughout the school year and summer in which departments can collaborate across the
district.
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Schools to Watch – INDIANA SCHOOLS TO WATCH Highland Hills Middle School
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Developmental Responsiveness
 The goal for every grade level is to ensure that close relationships are built and maintained between
students, parents, teachers, counselors, and administrators. The specific efforts that have been made to
reach these goals include: “Pawsitive” postcards sent to students and quarterly counselor lessons to allow
each counselor interaction time with all students in the building. Two-person teams in 5th and 6th grade
also ensure stability for students as they transition from elementary to secondary school.

In addition to our in-house Special Education Coordinator, and our RTI process, we have taken the
initiative to participate in a school-wide study of the book “What Great Teachers Do Differently” by Todd
Whitaker. This monthly professional development has been extremely helpful in our learning and
discussions about how to handle student problems.

Highland Hills’ staff and students participate in and support numerous programs that help students and
their families when they experience difficulties. These programs include “Blessings in a Backpack”
which provides needed school supplies for students, community service learning requirement at the 7th
grade level, Lions Club partnership, and canned food drives. We have a unique partnership with an
organization called Miles for Merry Miracles. This organization provides meals and gifts at the holiday
season for community members who struggle economically. The young man who started this program
was a Highland Hills student and has since relied on Highland Hills for major volunteer support as well as
several members of the adult and student leadership team.

To create an effective classroom environment for student learning, we make sure that routines and
strategies are clearly taught. In 5th and 6th grades, teachers use the “First 20 Days” program. Teachers
send out informational packets that clearly state the expectations as well as listing them on their websites
in addition to clearly explaining them to their classes. We have a simple “7 for 7” approach that outlines
the 7 basic ground rules, which are based on the foundation of respect, for the 7th grade. Our Assistant
Principals also have an assembly for each grade level at the beginning of the year in order to make sure
that all students are aware of school rules and expectations.

Quarterly “Hot Topic” conversation time is built into our schedule to allow students the opportunity to
meet with an adult in a small group setting. During these sessions, students are able to discuss issues that
are pertinent to them such as social media or bullying.

We have award winning performing arts courses and clubs available to our students. The visual and
performing arts teachers provide numerous opportunities for students to develop their skills and showcase
their successes. We offer opportunities for students to participate in activities that focus on a wide variety
of interests such as Chess club, Science Olympiad, Campus Life, Intermural sports, and team sports. We
are also very proud of the unique performance opportunities of our Hand bell and Men’s Choir.
Social Equity
 Faculty and administrators are dedicated to helping every students produce proficient work. The highlight
of our efforts in this area is our Safety Net program. Safety Net is a time during lunch that is provided
with certified teachers available to ensure that students not only get their work done, but also the extra
time and help they might need in order to achieve success on assignments.
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Schools to Watch – INDIANA SCHOOLS TO WATCH Highland Hills Middle School

We have numerous opportunities and resources for our students who need additional support in learning.
Core Plus classes as well as Reading, E/LA, and math labs are fluid and data driven based on formative
assessment of standards based learning. Cadet Teachers from the feeder high school also work alongside
teachers in offering extra support for struggling learners.

Strategies implemented by teachers with an intentional goal in providing a varied learning environment
include: flipped lessons, Problem Based Learning (PBL), Poster Math, Guided Reading, Rigorous
Curriculum Design, and Core Plus.

Through Common Formative Assessments, both traditional and authentic, we are able to continually
assess the students’ mastery of learning. The observations and data collected also allow us to modify our
instructional methods to help meet their needs. A great deal of district supported collaboration has been
put into developing these assessment methods and analysis of the results.

Numerous interest-based classes, activities, and opportunities are available to our students. Student
elective choices include Choir, Orchestra, Band, Handbells, Physical Education, Visual Arts, World
Language, Teaching Assistant opportunities to tutor and support teachers, Business Technology, and
reading classes.

We really want to know all of the Highland Hills students well. Each student is respected and
appreciated. We have a motto that we “Name ‘Em and Claim ‘Em” which means that we know students
by name and claim responsibility for their personal social and learning success. Even though we are the
largest middle school in the state of Indiana, our students are not just a “number” to us. Our
administrators are visible and engage students to build relationships throughout the day. We also have a
RADAR Room, which shows students in need of intervention and their learning needs and growth.

The faculty at HHMS values the contributions of all of our students. We recognize not only student
success, but also effort and improvement. We have a Positive Behavior Support program to reward effort,
character, and citizenship in addition to academic success that we call “PAWSitive Points.” Students can
turn in these “PAWSitive” points tickets for various rewards such as donut breakfast parties, books, extra
time in the art room, bringing a friend to the Wii Room during lunch, etc.
Organizational Support
 Dedication to communication and shared leadership, such as in our Building Committee and the
Leadership Team, helps maintain a focus on our shared vision and purpose.

We have Three Big Ideas and Four Critical Questions that drive everything we do in our school.
Big Ideas:
- Focus on learning
- Focus on collaboration
- Focus on results
Four Critical Questions:
- What do we want all students to learn?
- How will we know if/when they learned it?
- How will we respond when they do not learn it?
- How will we respond if they already know it?
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Schools to Watch – INDIANA SCHOOLS TO WATCH Highland Hills Middle School

Effective instructional and administrative leadership promotes excellence, quality, and professional
growth. We have quarterly “System-to-System Meetings” both between teachers/administrators and
school/district administrators. We are also home to 4 of our district’s Teacher Leaders and our district
Rigorous Curriculum Design trainer.

Our school leadership, both district and school, support an atmosphere of collaboration. We have been
given dedicated Professional Learning Community (PLC) time twice each week. This is time for teachers
to meet in departments as well as grade level teams.

We not only place value on our employees as life-long learners, but life-long learning is actually built into
our evaluation tool. Teachers are assessed partly on their dedication to learning things that are of unique
interest to themselves such as fishing, running, writing, traveling, etc. We realize that when we dedicate
time to life-long learning ourselves, we can model and inspire our students to do this as well.

We frequently engage in “critical conversations” and tackle controversial topics in staff meetings to
challenge outmoded beliefs and engage in conversations that constantly help us move forward and avoid
the pitfall of complacency. While this is difficult, Dr. Griffin is committed to working on the relational
skills necessary to allow for a trust level where these conversations are possible.

We constantly review and re-evaluate our vision and practices. We are very responsive to needs that are
exposed in our data.

We have a strong mentoring program in place for our new teachers. New teachers, whether new to the
building or to the profession, meet monthly for professional training in our school. A unique challenge
arose two years ago and we had fifteen new teachers to our school. Our administrators had one of our
teachers, who holds an administrator’s license, work as a mentor coordinator and instructional coach with
these teachers. She coordinated monthly professional development, modeling of lessons, instructional
coaching through observations, and mentor training and support.

Parents, student council, community members, teachers, and administrators frequently engage in ongoing
conversation to promote success for our students at HHMS. We have an active PTO and numerous
participants in our strategic planning process.
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