As an administrator at Windsor Middle School since 1995, I have witnessed the genesis of ENVoY and its growth since that time. Since the initial training, teachers saw the inherent value of what they were being taught. Unlike many staff development efforts, ENVoY involves very little extra planning and it can be used in every discipline across the school every day.
Since that time, practically all of my teachers have been trained repeatedly with several teachers acting as onsite coaches. Because teachers see and believe the practicality of the program, they spread the word to their colleagues.
Time and time again, they report that they have more energy at the end of each day, feel less stress in their jobs, have more time for curriculum and instruction, spend less time on classroom management and develop better relationships with their students.
Because of the pervasiveness of ENVoY techniques on our campus, it is a common professional language for us all. We use ENVoY techniques in parent conferences, in faculty meetings, in student assemblies, in parent presentations, in the office and on the schoolyard.
As a result of ENVoY, more time is spent on curriculum throughout the school. Students enter classrooms and find entry directions posted and get right to work with no reminders from teachers. Transitions throughout class periods are smoother and quicker. We have seen an improvement in our writing, reading and math assessments and attribute part of this increase to the common implementation of ENVoY.
Because verbal cues are posted in every room on campus, substitutes have reported fewer discipline problems. Perhaps the most striking example of ENVoY strategies that I observe each day is in the physical education classes. Often one teacher is leading a class of 60 eighth graders during whole group instruction; students focus intently on the teacher and get into their activity with no delay or additional instructions. These daily occurrences emphasize how powerful ENVoY can be with students.
ENVoY helped to transform Windsor Middle School from being known as one of the most difficult to work in with 5 principals in one year to being recognized as a California Distinguished School in 2001. Teachers and administrators at Windsor Middle School want to be here!”
– Loren R. Barker, Principal, Windsor Middle School in Windsor, California