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Principal takes Powell in new direction

The goals - restore order and become an A school. Except for a few naysayers, most agree the middle school is in a better place.

SPRING HILL - Eighth-grader Crystal Sliney recalls her first two years at Powell Middle School without much fondness.

Lots of kids, herself included, often got their "butt kicked," the slender brunette shared. Fights occurred with unnerving regularity. The administration, she said, usually looked the other way.

"This school was a wreck. That old principal was terrible," Crystal said bluntly. "This year is a whole lot better."

Many on campus are happy with the way things have changed.

Science teacher Richard Peterson simply smiled and said, "I love this," as his students walked quietly in a straight line behind him across campus.

Just three days into classes, special education teacher Qiang An announced while passing among well-mannered teens in the newly landscaped courtyard: "This is my fourth year here, and this is the best."

It is often said a school's success starts at the top. Under the same principal for 15 years, Powell by most accounts had stagnated.

Enter Michael Ransaw, the 34-year-old Broward County transplant whom superintendent Wendy Tellone hired to shake things up.

His earthquake was magnitude 7.

In just a few short weeks, Ransaw guided the school to a new course schedule, a new mascot, newly landscaped grounds and even a new staff - fully 28 percent of the school employees did not work there last year.

Perhaps most notably, the new leader pushed for a new attitude. High expectations and strictly enforced rules undergird the entire system.

"We made the kids and their parents a promise this year," said assistant principal Earl Deen, the lone holdover from last year's administrative team. "We will (treat) education as important or more important than they do, and we are going to provide an environment that is conducive to learning. We are going to be an A school this year, and you can't have an A school when there is chaos."

During the first week of school, every teacher gave every class a thorough review of the school's policies and procedures. At the end of the week, Powell's 1,250 students took tests on the rules - four times.

That way, Ransaw reasoned, no one could claim ignorance.

Ransaw required teachers to stand outside their doors to monitor students passing time. He assigned more staff to the cafeteria to oversee meals. He appointed four administrative assistants to help him and two assistant principals run the school. And he became a visible force on campus, walking the grounds frequently to ensure everything is running smoothly.

"It's not an elementary mentality," he said, acknowledging that many of his methods are used to control lower grade levels. "It's about having order. ... This is just something that is supposed to be done."

He points proudly to students walking calmly but intently to their classrooms, to the relatively quiet and well-behaved cafeteria crowd, and to the focused, "on-task" classes as proof that things are working as intended.

Not everyone is thrilled, of course.

"They act like we're at a boot camp," eighth-grader Kevan Wiley said. "They, like, yell at us."

Retired principal Cy Wingrove was never that mean, seventh-grader Mystie Thompson said.

"We get treated like a military school," Mystie said. "Every little thing you do, you get in trouble for, and I think it's messed up."

Seventh-grader Matthew Valentine agreed, noting that a year ago students would not get in trouble for "the littlest things," as they do now. The rules were fine for maybe a week, he said.

"Then it started to be a pain for all the kids," he said.

But many more contend the changes have made Powell a different school, for the better.

"Now that the school has a stricter principal, things are straightened out because there aren't a lot of fights," eighth-grader Katie Moore said.

Parent Kim Ferris sent Ransaw an e-mail after the principal came before the School Board to defend his no-excuses enforcement of the county dress code, which had generated a handful of complaints.

"I just want to thank you for your time and effort and being on top of things at the school," Ferris wrote. "It will be an honor to have you at Powell. For these kids you are exactly what they need, someone with disciplines and rules."

Teachers also have been pleased.

Just a year ago, distractions outside language arts teacher Donna Dasher's classroom were many. So she had some concerns when Ransaw ordered all of the window blinds removed so he could see in and, just as meaningfully, the students could see out and see him.

"People stared outside the window all the time," Dasher said. "Kids skipping, kids running through the woods last year; you would not believe the distractions. But we don't have that with discipline being better."

Science department head Deborah Chesteen said the emphasis on rules helped students and the staff get on the same page, and it set the tone for how Powell will be run.

"I am finding that we are able to do more and the students are actually focused," said Chesteen, who moved to Powell from Central High School this year. Ransaw's ideas "came at the right time."

Ransaw said he could tell from the start that Powell needed an overhaul.

A student survey showed 70 percent did not believe that students respected each other while on campus, for instance. Teachers told him the school lacked direction.

Powell's C in the state accountability system, while the three other county middle schools earned B's, was the final signal. Something drastic needed to take place.

The discipline piece was just one part.

Working with the staff, Ransaw decided to change the academic program, too. The biggest difference was a switch to block scheduling, where students take eight courses but only four every other day - much like college.

The classes last 86 minutes rather than 43. That gives teachers more time to complete lessons and students the chance to ask questions and finish their work. As a sidelight, it also reduces the amount of time students are out of their classrooms and prone to trouble.

"Block scheduling allows us to do so many different things in our class," math department head Regina Vanlow said. "You can get a whole lot of things done. I really like it."

Dasher, the language arts teacher, said she opposed the idea when it first came up.

"After the second week of school, a lot more teachers were in favor of it than in the beginning," Dasher said. "I'm even starting to like it, and I was one of the biggest holdouts. ... We can do three things in one day. It keeps rolling. There's a continuity."

Michael Ransaw, new principal at Powell Middle School, acknowledges that many of his methods are used to control lower grade levels. But, he says, "It's not an elementary mentality. It's about having order. ... This is just something that is supposed to be done."

Students have a mixed reaction.

Eighth-grader Erik Barreto said he likes the block schedule.

"Classes are longer. There's more time to learn, more time to get to the new sections of the book," he said.

But taking classes every other day can be confusing, eighth-grader Britni Walters said; it is easy to forget which day it is and bring the wrong books.

Ransaw also decided to give a higher profile to performing arts and Microsociety, two specialty programs at the school. Microsociety allows students to create their own government and business community.

"Everything is new this year," Microsociety coordinator Beth Varn said. "We are starting from scratch. The students are rewriting the constitution. They have already started meetings on this."

Last year, the program was run two days a week. This year, all students must take an eighth-period Microsociety class, based on employability skills and character education, and they receive grades.

"I'm optimistic that it will challenge everybody to do their best," Varn said.

She was enthusiastic about the school as it moves ahead.

"Definitely, there's a lot of new things going on at Powell," she said. "Mr. Ransaw is a dynamic individual. He approached the staff and got us all on board. We're all ready to move ahead on the changes that he sees and we all see for Powell Middle School."

Ransaw expects immediate results.

"I'm very fortunate," he said. "The students, faculty, staff and parents have accepted the challenge. I'm telling you, we have turned the corner. We are going in the right direction."

- Jeffrey S. Solochek can be reached at 754-6115. Send e-mail to solochek@sptimes.com