New Manchester High School Begins Second Year Of AVID Success

DOUGLAS COUNTY, GA — Eight teachers from New Manchester High School recently attended an AVID institute in Tampa, Florida, last June to learn to inspire and prepare students for higher education. AVID aspires to prepare students traditionally underrepresented at colleges and universities for success in high school, college, and the workforce

While at the Institute, teachers participated in content-specific workshops and updated their school’s AVID site plan. Rachel Rogers, AVID Coordinator and 2016-2017 Teacher of the Year for the Douglas County School System, lead the group of educators.

Tennile Edwards, English/Language Arts teacher at NMHS, says AVID training prepared her classroom success. “I learned more practical strategies during the three days of professional learning in this conference than I did all four years of my undergraduate teacher preparation.” Other participating teachers shared comparably glowing remarks about the best practices they studied in Tampa.

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The eight instructors who went to the AVID conference last June join the existing site team of teachers who benefitted from the same training summer of 2017. After the institute, this committee organized an open house for rising ninth graders interested in the program and interviewed applicants to see if they fit the AVID profile. The site team will be instrumental in rolling out AVID initiatives to their departments and the entire school.

The forty freshmen who became part of the program at the beginning of the school year joined the forty sophomores who started AVID a year ago. As these students progress through the program, they will prepare for standardized tests, putting themselves in a position to earn scholarships. “By the time my AVID students graduate from high school,” states Mrs. Rogers, “they will be equipped with the confidence, knowledge, and skill set to satisfy four-year college entrance requirements and to succeed at the post-secondary level.”

Photos: AVID Coordinator Rachel Rogers center reads Shannon Baker right and Qiana Worlds (left) in a brain storming activity at the AVID institute.

AVID Teachers (standing from left) Tennielle Edwards, Whitney Swift, Alyicia Richards, John Green, (seated from left) Tahira Chandler, Shannon Baker, Qiana Worlds, Rachel Rogers.

Photos courtesy Douglas County School System