Principal Boosts Community Activity At Sheridan Elementary

There’s nothing grandiose about the office of Sheridan Elementary Principal Brian Melody.

It’s small, the windows look out on the school parking lot, and it’s just off the main traffic path of 500 schoolchildren. But it’s here that Melody quietly goes about the business of making a big difference in the East Central neighborhood.

The work that Melody has done at Sheridan the past two years has not gone unnoticed. The Spokane Area PTA Council honored Melody with its annual Principal of the Year award last spring.

With experience as a classroom teacher at Westview, Adams and Moran Prairie elementary schools, two school years ago Melody embraced the opportunity to be Sheridan’s principal, a job that Melody admits has its special challenges.

But he’s met the challenges with ideas and enthusiasm, and the elementary school, in some ways, now resembles a center of community life.

“I have a passion for this community,” Melody said during a rare break from visiting the 20 classrooms at Sheridan, welcoming new students to the school and taking care of administrative duties.

“It’s important to me that the parents and staff feel a part of what’s happened at this school, that they share ownership of this school.”

Indeed, if Melody has an overriding operating philosophy, it’s to bind community and school so tightly they are no longer separate.

“When I came here, I had a vision for the school to become a place in which the community had a lot of ownership,” Melody said. “I have done my best to find the needs here and to look for resources to plug in to meet those needs.

“This is the natural place for the community to gather.”

To that end, programs were begun and were nurtured.

“We do a lot of evening activities like family readings and family volleyball with an educational component,” the principal said. “We teach parents how to be teachers at home.”

Because of Sheridan’s location in a low-income neighborhood, the school also qualifies for Title 1-funded programs such as gang- and drug-prevention for students in grades four through six, and some evenings there is a family liaison to work with parents of Sheridan students.

Some students spend time with a tutor who specializes in English as a second language.

In addition, Sheridan is the only elementary school in District 81 with a federal Even Start program, through which parents can take English as a second language. And Sheridan has a Title 9 Indian education program that brings representatives from the district’s Indian education staff into the classroom to teach Native American culture.

Melody’s biggest challenge? “Sometimes it takes experience to find the resources,” he said. “We are a school from 9 to 3, then a community center for activities for families.

“East Central is a great community, with wonderful families, wonderful kids, and there is a great staff at this school.

“There’s a lot of pride here, and sometimes that is not the message we hear. The kids here take ownership. They like this school.”

Computers have Global Access

Computers in all District 81 schools now have links to the Internet through Global Access.

A five-minute informational video explaining the educational benefits of the program will be shown daily through Sept. 22 at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. on cable channel 15 and at 7:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. on cable channel 17.

Cooking from A to Z Hutton Elementary and the Rockwood Clinic have teamed in the Community Partners program, and to help raise money they’ve produced a cookbook, “Alphabet Soup.”

The proceeds go to the Hutton School parent-teacher programs.

“Alphabet Soup” costs $10 and is available at the school, 908 E. 24th, or by calling the school, 353-4434.

McGruff parents needed

It’s not too late to sign up for the McGruff Home Parent Program. Participating homes provide havens for children who might find themselves in a frightening situation or an emergency.

A McGruff decal in the front window lets children know they can go to those homes for protection if they feel threatened.

To sign up, contact the elementary school nearest you.

Education notebook is a regular feature of the South Side Voice. If you have news about an interesting program or activity at a South Side school or about the achievements of South Side students, teachers, or school staff, please let us know. Write: Education notebook, South Side Voice, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210. Call: 459-5489. Fax: 459-5475.

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