North New Summit School will open a resource building this fall to house all of its resource staff and provide students with individualized instruction.
The building has always been on campus, but summer renovations have turned the building into a place where students with dyslexia can find specialized therapy, said Susan Floyd, the school’s director.
With the new resource center came the school’s first therapist for students with dyslexia. The school already had an instructor for dyslexic students, but a therapist can provide intensive one-on-one therapy.
The instructor usually deals with an entire class, which is still only five or six students due to the school’s small classroom model.
The school has also become certified as a “vendor for special needs scholarship” by the Mississippi Department of Education, Floyd said. The school had to apply for the scholarship. Students who meet specific requirements set by the MDE can receive money to attend the school.
In addition, the school has been granted new projectors in classrooms and new computers for its elementary lab.
It is also getting more tech-savvy with a new fingerprint security system. With the system, only teachers and administration will be able to access the building once it automatically locks at a certain time.
Floyd said the new alarm system was added to ensure that students are provided with the safest possible environment.
Enrollment has continued to rise, with 130 students expected in the fall. Enrollment was 110 last fall and 90 the fall before.
North New Summit also has students enrolled on-line. Because it maintains an “open enrollment” all year, enrollment usually increases toward the end of the year, said Floyd.
To accommodate the growing population without compromising its value, the school has added four new staff members to its team. The school will welcome two new elementary teachers, one high-school instructor, and the new therapist for students with dyslexia.
•Contact Chloe Ricks at 581-7124 or cricks@gwcommonwealth.com.
