Three teams of Carroll County administrators have been selected to present their innovative strategies at the prestigious statewide Continuous Improvement Conference, kicking off today.
Mandy Young, instructional coach at Carroll County Middle School, will share a coaching system she developed alongside an education recovery specialist, designed during the school’s recovery from Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) status. Meanwhile, Assistant Principals Will Yager and D.C. Craig will showcase the successful PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports) and behavior systems introduced at CCMS in the last year. Assistant Superintendent Jonica Ray and Supervisor of Instruction Jeannie Rohrer will present on the systematic approach they use for walkthroughs and professional learning community (PLC) monitoring across all district schools.
This marks a significant achievement for Carroll County Schools, as it has been years since one of its representatives was chosen to present best practices at this level.
“Our faculty and staff continue to move the district towards our goal of #cctop10,” said Carroll County Schools Superintendent Casey Jaynes. “This commitment to success is demonstrated in that we had three of the “Best Practices” presentations at the Continuous Improvement Summit.”
Each team had to apply to be considered as presenters and, after all submissions were reviewed, those deemed to have the strongest best practices were selected. "We’re taking home two of these, which is really amazing,” Young said of the CCMS teams’ selection. “Not only did we get chosen to speak, but we’re being spotlighted in the program as a must-see for other attendees.”
Young’s presentation ties directly into the walkthrough tools developed by Ray and Rohrer, emphasizing how they work together to coach teachers and improve classroom practices. Ray noted that the systems and processes they’ve spent nearly four years refining are now ingrained across the district, providing a consistent framework that’s been embraced by staff.
“The power is in the consistent process being used district-wide,” Ray said, highlighting how this alignment is often a challenge for school districts. Their success in monitoring PLCs and walkthroughs, they believe, was key to being selected as best practices presenters.
Yager and Craig’s presentation will focus on the behavior system they introduced at CCMS last school year, aimed at addressing behavioral issues in a structured and consistent manner. "We saw there was a need to create consistency across the building, and it’s been very successful,” Yager explained. The system includes a flowchart for staff to determine whether certain behaviors should be handled in the classroom or by administrators, along with a PBIS points system that rewards students for positive behavior.
“That’s been a huge culture builder for us,” Yager added. Craig emphasized that the success of the program was largely due to teachers’ willingness to adapt and embrace the new system. "Staff were asked to implement multiple new systems and, without hesitation, each individual embraced the change,” Craig said. “There’s a lot of positive momentum and every single staff member plays a vital role in our success.”
All three teams will be recognized with a $500 check during a special ceremony, where they’ll be honored by Kentucky Commissioner of Education Dr. Robbie Fletcher