A Message from Mr. Bell

[Principal's Message] [Press Release] [Mission Statement] [Sports Schedules] [CSRD Grant] [Guidance Dept] [Guiding Principal and Portfolio Docs] [Key Club Page] [DRHS Snow Sculptures]

Welcome to Dexter Regional High School's website. My name is Stephen Bell. I have been an administrator at DRHS since 1999 and I have been in education in the state of Maine as a social studies teacher, coach, advisor, assistant principal and athletic director since 1990. The high school has an enrollment of approximately 320 students supported by 40 plus faculty and staff.

Over the past several years many educational innovations have occurred at DRHS funded by a federal comprehensive, School Reform Demonstration Grant and a Great Maine Schools Grant funded by the Gates foundation and the Mitchell Institute. The grants helped make the following initiatives possible:

• Aligned curriculum to the Maine Learning Result's (MLR's) and established a core curriculum for all students

• Insured that the curriculum is fully coordinated

• Established the Advisor/Advisee Program

• Helped students develop a Personal Learning Plan (PLP)

• Helped students develop a Portfolio

• Initiated Student Led Conferences (SLC's), Job Shadowing, and Senior Exhibitions

• Developed a comprehensive Local Assessment System

• Developed Common Core Assessments

• Moved class structures towards heterogeneity in grades 9&10

• Developed a system of data collection to measure the effectiveness of the changes

• Established a Leadership team (comprised of faculty, staff, administrators, students & parents)

• Initiated Professional Learning Communities (PLC's)

• Homework Hotline / Edline

Educational highlights from the past few years include being named a High Performing School in May of 2007 by the University of Southern Maine based on the research of Dr. David Silvernail (one of only sixteen in the state of Maine). In the spring of 2005 DRHS was recognized by the Commissioner of Education Susan Gendron as one of the top 25 improved performance schools. Dexter Regional High School and all other Maine high schools are currently using the SAT as the state's assessment for compliance with the federal No Child Left Behind Act. In the spring of 2006, 100% of the juniors took the SAT's and in the Spring of 2007, 99% of the juniors took the test. 2008 will be the third year of testing and we will have enough data at that point to start making educational decisions based on the results.

The 2007-08 school-year is the second year of NWEA (NorthWest Evaluation Association) testing in SAD#46. All 9^th & 10^th graders participate in this testing which covers math, reading and language usage. The NWEA's are being used in approximately 100 Maine schools. The results from the test can be used in many ways. One current use for DRHS is to help identify Gifted and Talented students. The test is also an accurate predictor of success or failure on the PSAT and SAT. With the test information in hand, teachers can identify strengths and weaknesses of a group or individuals which in turn will be addressed in the classroom. All assessment data produced by the tests will be available to students, teachers and parents.

Dexter Regional High School fully supports the ideals and practices found in the Maine Learning Results, the No Child Left Behind Act and Maine's "Promising Futures". Our Mission Statement is posted on the website and can be found throughout the school. Our curriculum is designed to challenge all students. With that in mind, all students at DRHS are asked to complete a rigorous set of core classes prior to graduating from our high school. Those minimum requirements include the following:

• 4 years of English

• 3 years of lab Science (Physical Science, Biology, Chemistry)

• 3 years of Math (Algebra, Geometry, Algebra II)

• 3 years of History (East & West world, US History I, US History II)

• 1 Health/Character

• 1 Phys Ed

• 1 Fine Art (chorus, band, art, dance, film & drama)

• 4 years of Advisory (2 credits)

• 1 Computer/Keyboarding

It is the belief of our staff and administration that all students be given the opportunity to stretch themselves to their fullest both academically and socially. Our staff of "Highly Qualified" teachers work diligently to ensure that students are appropriately challenged and sufficiently assessed to meet the standards established by the State and local Community. For students who choose to go above and beyond the core curriculum, we have the following advanced/honors level classes to offer:

• AP History

• AP Calculus

• AP English (gr. 11 & 12)

• AP French

• Advanced Biology

• Honors Chemistry & Physics

• Psychology & US Government

• Pre-Calculus

• Honors challenge