ECS 🦅 Half Year Hawk Highlights 2024
Amanda Cribbs, EdD
Superintendent
Email: amanda.cribbs@ecspgh.org
Phone: x557
Dear ECS Families,
Today marks the beginning of the second semester, and the past five months have been incredibly special. At the beginning of the school year, ECS entered its 15th year of operation, and with it came a mixture of past and future thinking. ECS has always been rooted in eco-literacy, out-the-door learning, and its mission to grow empathetic, global citizens. These core district principles will never change, but how we accomplish this pedagogy consistently evolves to ensure students receive a modern-day, holistic education.
Today, I’m writing to share with you some of the moments captured in our K–12 community over the past 23 weeks.
District Celebrations
In October, our community learned about Mr.McCann's intention to retire at the conclusion of the school year. Under his guidance and leadership, ECS bloomed from a small K–3 program to a K–12 school district. As we celebrate Mr. McCann and his tenure and dedication to ECS, we look forward to taking on the next 15 years of education.
ECS continues to dig deep into its archives to reflect on its past and grow as a community. To celebrate 15 years of ECS, you may have seen several staff videos on social media. If not, check each year out and keep an eye out for more to come during the second semester: 2008, 2009/2010/2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014/2015/2016.
U.S. News & World Report ranked ECS's K–5 schools as the best charter elementary in Pittsburgh and #5 charter elementary in Pennsylvania! ECS's Middle School was also ranked #17 on PA's charter middle schools list earning it a Best Middle Schools Badge!
Primary School Celebrations
At Primary School, community meetings continue to be a staple for our students and staff to build relationships and share a common celebration time together. Students advocated for our Earth during the climate strike, and they celebrated the annual Pumpkin Parade. I was also pleased to learn that Primary met the criteria for implementing School-Wide (SWPBIS) Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports and was recognized as a Tier 1 Sustaining site. The Primary School also received the Dollar General Literacy Foundation 2023 youth literacy grant! Funding received supported access to culturally relevant, developmentally appropriate, and inspiring texts to build early literacy, increase the decoding and encoding skills of readers, and expand comprehension and fluency in reading.
Intermediate School Celebrations
Alongside the Primary School, the Intermediate School was also named as a Tier 1 Sustaining site for its SWPBIS. Over the course of the past few months, the Intermediate School has gotten into the ECS Hawk spirit by receiving new cafe tables, participating in its annual food drive, being sorted into their houses, and getting out into the community on several field trips including the Carnegie Museum.
At the end of November, the authors of the First Cat in Space book series, Mac Barnett and Shawn Harris, visited the Intermediate School. Students got to meet the authors and ask questions after a book reading.
Middle School Celebrations
In addition to new academic and interest-based electives, the Middle School pioneered its Environmental Citizenship program which includes Robotics and Coding, Food and Cultures, and a new Maker's Space, the Remix Lab. As an evolution of students' experiences at Intermediate's Edible School Yard and Thinking Lab, Food and Cultures and Remix Lab build on their current knowledge with technology integration and academic rigor aimed at challenging students in grades 6-8.
Along with the newly formed 8th grade academy which prepares students for their transition to high school, 8th graders are enjoying hands-on, real-world learning experiences through Quest Labs! These off-campus activities not only teach students how to use public transit but also help them understand how their actions have a ripple effect in our world through their work with community partners.
Finally, the middle school also piloted a girls' flag football team and a boys' basketball team this past fall. The basketball team hopes to compete in the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) next school year.
High School Celebrations
This year, ECS was pleased to have its very first girls' varsity sport, volleyball! With the expertise and support of coaches, Coach Hannah Berg and Assistant Coach Amanda McAllen, the team competed in the SWPAA league. Speaking of athletics, the ECHS Hawk Basketball team returned for its second year of competing in WPIALs, and students enjoyed their second year of planning and attending a winter formal dance. This year's theme was a Starry Night.
Academically, ECS is proud to continue its dual enrollment program through Chatham University. As we look forward to the end of the year and graduating our first class, access to these advanced courses is key as students venture into post-graduation careers and education. ECS is also overjoyed to learn that many of our seniors have already been accepted in various schools, some of which are Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Staff Celebrations
Finally, I would be remiss to not mention our faculty and staff successes as well:
Several of our staff members have welcomed new babies into their families including Mr. Brown (Middle), Laura Brienza (BikeECS), Jessica Duke (Middle), Eve Norman (Primary), and Mark Devine (Intermediate).
Dr. Virginia Hill, ECS Chief Academic Officer (CAO), was named as a 2023 New Pittsburgh Courier Women of Excellence.
This year, staff have participated in Peer to Peer kudos where they submit celebrations and appreciation for their peers. These submissions are then posted in a monthly internal staff newsletter. To date, more than 24 staff members have submitted information in celebration of each other.
As I reflect on this past semester, I know there are many moments, successes, and celebrations that I’m not capturing in this communication. However, I am proud of all of our community's accomplishments so far this school year, and I truly look forward to the amazing achievements, including ECS's first high school graduation, that are still to come. Thank you for your commitment to educating for sustainability and for being a part of the ECS family.
Sincerely,
Amanda Cribbs, EdD
Superintendent