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Congratulations to Frayser Elementary & Geeter Junior High!

2005-06 MCS Blue Ribbon Schools of the Year

With commitment comes results, and the proof lies with principals at two Memphis City Schools named Blue Ribbon Schools of the year for the 2005-06 school year.

Ms. Elaine Stewart-Price of Frayser Elementary School and Sargent Kenneth Pinkney of Geeter Junior High School each received a $5,000 check from FedEx for leading a host of outstanding achievements at their schools last year.

Recognizing the enormous task of pushing forth the objectives of the district’s Blue Ribbon initiative in its first year, FedEx teamed up with MCS to reward the elementary school and secondary school that was most successful in implementing the plan. Based on data* from the 2005-06 school year, a committee of PBIS coaches, academic superintendents and select members of the Superintendent’s Leadership Team determined that Frayser Elementary and Geeter Junior High were tops in the district when it came to meeting the following standards set forth under the Blue Ribbon plan:

Thrilled by the honor, Principal Price stated that her strategy for success is simple. “You can’t learn if you’re not in school,” Price said. “We as a staff make it a point to provide a fun, exciting and engaging environment for our kids so that they want to be in school and be a part of what we’re doing every day.”

Principal Pinkney encouraged his students to strive for the best by applying the same mantra to his school that he followed during his 22 years with the U.S. Marines – “Always Faithful.”

“We believe in our kids and constantly find ways to show them that we care,” Pinkney said. “Part of that philosophy is putting some of the responsibility in the students’ laps to make school an enjoyable place to be.”

According to Principal Price, community and teacher support was and still is the driving force behind positive change at Frayser Elementary. A perfect example is “Camp Turnaround.” Price says Camp Turnaround is a mentoring program for students who “have a hard time making good choices.” The program pairs every teacher in the school with at least one child who is struggling to keep in line with school behavior policies. The students are allowed to meet with the teacher whenever they need to, whether it’s for tutoring purposes or simply for some advice on every day life.  

“Camp Turnaround has made a huge difference at our school,” Price said. “Our kids really saw that teachers cared for them, and this helped them develop a really special bond that led to better performance. We noticed an immediate decrease in office referrals, and we started seeing a lot of positive results.”

Camp Turnaround mentors are also permitted to spend 30 minutes on two days each month with a child outside of school to learn more about them.

At Geeter, teachers and staff members have been taught the “6-8 Step Rule,” which states that every child must be greeted by at least six to eight people before he or she goes to class.

“The 6-8 Step rule is one way that we felt we could increase positive interaction with the students right at the beginning of their school day,” Pinkney said. “It’s all about the positives. We want to see improvement, and we want to reward success and let our students know that we are paying attention to them.”

Both principals have also made it their mission to set a positive example by remaining vocal and visible for their students on a daily basis.

Principal Price talks to her students every morning and afternoon on the school’s intercom, passing along the goals for the day and stressing the “Frayser Hi-5,” which are a set of character guidelines that all Frayser Elementary students are expected to follow.

Principal Pinkney goes one step further, walking the streets of his school’s community every morning before school and for an hour after school lets out in the afternoon to make sure students make it to and from Geeter Junior High safely.

Incentives such as prizes, uniform-free days, spotlight announcements, school dances and six-weeks celebrations have also helped to encourage higher attendance and academic success among students at both Geeter and Frayser.   

As part of their reward, both Geeter Junior High and Frayser Elementary have received large banners recognizing their schools as 2005-06 Blue Ribbon Schools of the Year. Principals at both schools will display the banners prominently throughout the entire 2006-07 school year.

The $5,000 check presented to schools by FedEx can be used for anything that will promote the main objectives of the Blue Ribbon plan.

*The selection committee for the 2005-06 Blue Ribbon School of the Year award used the following data to determine which schools made the largest improvements under the Blue Ribbon plan: