Daniel Hand High School
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Jennifer Aguzzi
Elisa Brako
Michelle Catucci
Gail Dahling-Hench
Michael Docker
Kimberly Dunn
Denise Earles
Jason Engelhardt
Susan Groll
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John Harris
Steven Isleib
Doreen Mantilia
Gail McGrimley
Chris Pagliuco
Pamela Rottier
Tom Scarice
Cynthia Schneider
Mary Jane Welch
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As part of the self-study process for NEASC, the DHHS
school community examined strengths and areas for
improvement.
 Time for Teacher Collaboration
 Impact of the Gap
 Review of Monitorial Duties
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The Starr Report examined these areas of concern as well.
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This analysis has never been done before.
Students
Ratio
Monroe
1309
16 to 1
15 to 1
New Fairfield
975
14 to 1
998
15 to 1
Newtown
1731
15 to 1
Cheshire
1516
16 to 1
Madison
1290
14 to 1
Fairfield
1503
1328
14 to 1
13 to 1
Pomperaug
1383
15 to 1
Farmington
1309
15 to 1
Simsbury
1582
16 to 1
Glastonbury
2202
17 to 1
South
Windsor
1539
15 to 1
Granby
785
15 to 1
Trumbull
2150
15 to 1
Greenwich
2673
14 to 1
West Hartford
1572
17 to 1
Guilford
1113
14 to 1
District
Students
Ratio
Amity
1649
14 to 1
Avon
1088
Brookfield
District
MADISON
1 Trimester
3813
2 Trimesters
7626
DRG B
3 Trimesters
11,439
District
Semester
Full Year
Avon
3758
7516
Cheshire
3780
7560
Fairfield
4004
8008
Farmington
3870
7740
Guilford
3848
7696
Region 5
3905
7809
Region 15
4293
8586
School
Hand
Choate
N.D. West Haven
1 Trimester
2 Trimesters
3 Trimesters
3813
7626
11,439
1800
2250-Science
3600
4500-Science
5400
6750-Science
3249
6669
9918
Town
Prep Minutes
Monitorial
Minutes
Lunch
Collaborative
Time
Avon
48
36
25
48/0
Cheshire
55
55/0
25
0
Fairfield
44
44
44
0
Farmington
43
43
43
43
Guilford
57
57
28
0
Madison
60-70
30-100
30
0
Region 5
57
43
28
29
Region 15
49
39
30
49/0
Student Performance
Students with 210 day gap
210 Day Gap
16%
(9 students)
All others
84%
Students with 210 day gap
Grade Change
Increased
7/9 (78%)
Remained the same
1/9 (11%)
Decreased
1/9 (11%)
Students with 210 day gap
210 Day Gap
16%
28 students
All others
84%
Students with 210 day gap
Grade Change
Increased
11/28 (39%)
Remained the same
11/28 (39%)
Decreased
6/28 (21%)
Students with 210 day gap
210 Day Gap
16%
21 students
All others
84%
Students with 210 day gap
Grade Change
Increased
9/21 (43%)
Remained the same
6/21 (29%)
Decreased
6/21 (29%)
Students with no gap
Grade Change
Increased
40/124 (32%)
Remained the same
41/124 (33%)
Decreased
43/124 (35%)
Students with 150 or 210 day gap
150 or 210 Day
Gap
16%
26 students
All others
84%
Students with 150 or 210 day gap
Grade Change
Increased
9/26 (35%)
Remained the same
8/26 (31%)
Decreased
9/26 (35%)
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Infinite Campus Training
Collaborative Master Scheduling involving all
departments
Discussions with School Counselors to review
student/family requests
Hand scheduling for a small percentage of
students
Individual Student Schedule Review
Review World Language Model
Period
Trimester 1
Trimester 2
Trimester 3
AP Physics (B)
AP Physics (B)
AP Physics (B)
AP Calculus (BC)
AP Calculus (BC)
AP Calculus (BC)
AP Macroeconomics
AP Macroeconomics
Empty
04
French 5H
Health 12
French 5H
05
1st Tri Lunch/Band
2nd Tri Lunch/Band
3rd Tri Lunch/Band
AP English
AP English
AP English
01
02
03
06
Period
Trimester 1
Trimester 2
Trimester 3
World Literature
World Literature
World Literature
P.E.10
Spanish 1
Spanish 1
Lunch/SH
Lunch/SH -
Lunch/SH -
Health 10
Geometry
Geometry
Biological Systems
Biological Systems
Biological Systems
Global History II
Global History II
Intro. TV Studio
01
02
03
04
05
06
Period
Trimester 1
Trimester 2
Trimester 3
01
Spanish I
PE 10
Spanish I
02
Clay
Global History II
Global History II
03
Geometry
Geometry
Study Center/Lunch
Bio Systems
Bio Systems
Bio Systems
Study Center/Lunch
Study Center/Lunch
Draw and Design
World Literature
World Literature
World Literature
04
05
06
Course Variety:
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Many students take more than the minimum core subjects
because the trimester model offers the opportunity to take
more classes in an area of interest
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Students have the opportunity to explore possible career
interests through a greater variety and quantity of electives
including sophisticated technology courses.
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Some of the newly added electives incorporate the STEM
(Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics) national
guidelines
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We may have the same number of AP courses compared to
other semester schools, but the trimester model allows our
students to have the opportunity to take more AP courses.
Gap advantages:
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Some students opt for the gap trimester to better
accommodate sports and other extracurricular activities that
may be particularly time consuming in one trimester/season.
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Possibility for a struggling student or a student who is out of
school due to illness/injury to have the opportunity to start a
course again at the same or lower level in the second trimester
and to complete the course on time by the end of the school
year. (Starr report)
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Allows greater opportunity for some students to do internships
and work study programs.
Improves School Climate:
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Lower student to teacher ratio enhances student-teacher
relationships (allows development of more personal
relationships and allows instructors to give more meaningful
feedback on assignments) (Starr report)
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Reduced student discipline referrals due to less unstructured
hallway time (Starr report)
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Day is less fragmented because of fewer classes and fewer
transitions between classes (Starr report)
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Decreases stress level since students have fewer core classes to
prepare for and juggle (Starr report)
 Student Quote: “Electives provide a break from stressful
classes.” (Starr report)
Special Education Benefits
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More time for special education instruction and related
services
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Student can focus on coursework for fewer core
subjects per trimester
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Remediation and intervention support is possible prior
to the onset of a core class or during the gap of a core
course
Longer class time:
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Allows for more time for discussion and in depth analysis
(Starr report)
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Allows for multimodal discussion (Starr report)
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Allows for more individual attention for students (Starr
report)
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Options for current faculty to teach an 11th Course
 Enrollment
 Maternity Leave
 FMLA
Electives: CTE, ART, MUSIC
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Celebrated programs
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Interdisciplinary Study for courses or units
 STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math;
 Marine Science course;
 Collaboration with drama program for sets and the pit
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Strands that allow for advanced study
 College Credit Option: College and Career Pathways Program
with Gateway, UConn E.C.E. and Middlesex Community College
 AP offering in Art; juried shows
 State, Regional, and National Competitions for Music
Core Subject Area
English
Social Studies
Math
Science
Percentage of Graduates who exceed the Minimum requirements
Credits (Min. for Graduation) 2010
2011
2012
2013
4.5
28.17% 26.06% 21.47%
27.50%
3.5
71.28% 87.62% 76.90%
92.48%
3.5
89.05% 83.39% 93.87%
88.00%
3
91.87% 95.11% 93.87%
95.00%
*Data reflects only credits earned at DHHS. (Students who earned less than the graduation requirments are transfer students.)
Credits
6.50
5.50
5.00
4.50
2010
0
5
75
157
2011
0
5
73
172
2012
1
4
65
205
2013
0
5
82
189
Credits
6.75
6.50
6.00
5.75
5.50
5.00
4.50
4.00
3.50
2010
1
0
0
1
22
44
0
85
66
2011
0
1
3
0
19
44
155
46
23
2012
0
5
2
0
20
34
38
154
47
2013
0
1
4
0
26
73
165
26
14
Credits
6.50
5.50
5.00
4.50
4.00
3.50
2010
0
0
9
143
100
20
2011
0
5.5
5
117
126
32
2012
1
4
65
205
31
9
2013
0
3
7
144
126
23
Credits
7.50
7.00
6.75
6.50
6.25
6.00
5.75
5.50
5.25
5.00
4.75
4.50
4.25
4.00
3.75
3.50
3.25
3.00
2010
2
0
0
0
0
42
1
30
15
25
25
55
20
7
21
7
9
8
2011
3
1
0
5
1
50
9
18
21
29
16
69
24
13
17
12
4
7
2012
0
0
1
6
1
46
4
24
17
37
17
74
22
22
18
9
8
7
2013
0
0
0
2
2
51
2
40
13
41
25
50
35
11
12
16
0
4
Credits
8.00
7.00
6.00
5.00
4.50
4.25
4.00
3.50
3.00
2.00
1.00
2010
0
0
1
2
0
0
127
0
95
35
10
2011
1
0
1
2
0
2
148
0
88
52
5
2012
0
1
0
4
1
0
162
1
89
41
12
2013
0
2
2
2
0
0
159
0
98
34
6
Credits
7
5
4.75
4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
2.25
2
1.5
1
2010
0
0
0
2
4
12
19
19
0
49
59
86
2011
0
2
0
5
7
17
27
32
0
47
55
108
2012
0
3
0
2
6
14
26
42
0
47
73
104
2013
1
2
1
2
1
15
32
38
1
53
57
108
Credits
9
8.5
8
7.5
7
6.5
6
5.5
5
4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
2010
1
1
2
3
5
6
1
11
9
21
28
16
14
13
21
30
91
2011
3
1
1
4
6
6
4
9
17
31
39
14
20
21
20
33
69
2012
0
3
7
5
3
6
6
14
17
25
41
14
21
11
26
38
79
2013
4
1
5
4
3
5
5
8
11
20
34
11
7
15
32
42
0
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Capstone is an independent senior year project that
includes research, a written component, a
presentation, and development of a product.
Are some monitorials unnecessary?
-Locked campus
-Little traffic in some areas of the building
Can necessary monitorials be covered by non-certified staff?
What about study halls?
-Considering Learning Labs in permanent centralized locations
-Rotating teacher coverage
Collaborative Time-within departments and cross curricular
-With monitorials reduced/eliminated, schedules are more flexible