Jenkins changes more than name

The differences between this year and last year at Charleston County's discipline school go far deeper than its new name.

Daniel Jenkins Academy, formerly Murray Hill Academy, has a new principal, new policies and a renewed sense of purpose.

The county school board abandoned its contract earlier this year with private company Community Education Partners to run the North Charleston school, and the school district took control this fall. The for-profit company's efforts resulted in little to no academic growth, and district officials aimed to make improvements.

Although it's still early, tangible and visible changes are evident. All of the school's teachers are certified, highly qualified and new to the school. Classes are smaller. Student learning is a higher priority.

"It's a whole new focus, and the focus is on instruction," Myrna Caldwell, the school's new principal, said.

The school serves sixth- through 10th-grade students from across the county who have been recommended for expulsion but instead were offered admittance to the school. Jenkins Academy enrolls about 150 students with the capacity to serve 240; Community Education Partners could serve up to 324 students but typically maxxed out at about 250.

But there's more fluidity in the students who are attending the school this year. Community Education Partners required students stay 180 days before they could return to their neighborhood schools. The school district allows students to leave after nine weeks if they've shown growth and addressed their previous problems. The school already has released about 15 students, and it expects to release about 30 more at the end of this semester.

Another difference is the mind-set around expelling students from Jenkins Academy. About 30 students have been expelled this fall. More consequences follow misbehavior this year, and Caldwell said the school doesn't allow students to jeopardize the safety or education of others.

Students who act out in class no longer will miss an entire day of instruction by going to an in-school suspension room. School officials instead send students to a "recovery" room for a class or two before they are returned to their regular classes, Caldwell said.

School officials have changed course in the programs they started when they saw room for improvement. Jenkins Academy began offering hour-long, daily classes on social and behavioral skills, but the master's level counselors who teach the classes felt concerned they had little time to meet with students one-on-one and in small groups. Caldwell responded by changing the schedule to allow more counseling time.

"We're trying things and figuring out how to make them better," she said.

The district added credit recovery courses to the school, which means students can make up classes they previously failed. About 25 students take the computer-based classes, and credit recovery teacher Matt Whitehead said students seem interested in the lessons because they see their efforts directly linked to their success or failure.

Math teacher Mary Carter, a veteran teacher from Tennessee in her first year at Jenkins Academy, said it's easier to teach some days than others, depending on what's happening in her high-poverty students' lives.

She breaks her lessons in smaller segments and assigns work that students can relate to in an effort to capture their attention, she said. She makes concessions that deviate from a traditional classroom, such as allowing students to move more or stand while they work.

"That's OK," she said, "as long as they're on task."

Reach Diette Courrégé at 937-5546 or dcourrege@postandcourier.com.