More than 150 people attended the Whole Child-Whole Village Comer Conference in Hartsville, South Carolina on November 4, 2011. The conference brought together staff members of Southside Early Childhood Center, Washington Street Elementary School, Thornwell School for the Arts, and West Hartsville Elementary School, Darlington County School District central office administrators. Camille Cooper, the SDP’s director of Teaching and Learning and the implementation coordinator for Hartsville, welcomed participants to the conference.
Carol Ray, the principal of Asheville High School in North Carolina and a member of the Comer School Development Program National Faculty, gave the keynote speech to a capacity audience in the Hartsville Middle School auditorium. Tara King, the PULSE Coordinator in the Darlington County School District, introduced Ray who described how she and the staff of two elementary schools in Asheville had used the SDP framework and process to close the achievement gap between African-American and white students.
"It was helpful for them to hear from Carol what can be accomplished when people implement the Comer Process faithfully," said Camille Cooper.
“I was captivated by Carol Ray’s presentation. She had me laughing, nodding my head in agreement and occasionally shedding tears as she took us through the implementation of the Comer SDP at Hall Fletcher Elementary School. I could relate to her experience of overwhelming challenges. The message of ultimate success as exemplified in Hall Fletcher’s improved proficiency scores inspired me. I believe that Hartsville will be the next success story,” said Sharman Poplava, the executive director of the TEACH Foundation, the nonprofit organization administering the PULSE initiative that supports implementation of the Comer SDP in four Hartsville schools.
Following the keynote speech conference participants rotated among three 50-minute workshops on the School Planning and Management Team (SPMT), the Student and Staff Support Team (SSST), and the Parent Team conducted by Dr. Fay E. Brown, Jeff German, and Jan Stocklinski respectively. Camille Cooper conducted several sessions about the District Planning and Management Team with administrator who will serve on the system-level oversight committee. While half of a group completed SDP surveys administered by Dr. Christine Emmons, the SDP’s director of program evaluation, Cyn Savo, the SDP's Communications, gave a presentation on the life and work of Dr. James P. Comer to the rest of the group.
“As I reflect on the Hartsville Comer Conference, a Mattie Stepanek quote comes to mind: ‘Unity is strength. When there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved,’ said Tara King. “The 2011 Hartsville Whole Child-Whole Village Comer Conference was a great example of collaboration, one of the three guiding principles of the Comer Process. Numerous individuals joined together to prepare supplies and refreshments, set up technology, and organize registration. This work showed that anything can be accomplished when everyone unites for the betterment of the group. Collaboration was also evidenced by the unity of the SDP Faculty and National Faculty, Carol Ray, and Hartsville Comer Schools to provide a phenomenal professional development session for all members of the school community to create a positive impact on the lives of our students. The unity of these organizations showed a commitment to the Comer School Development Program philosophy and wisdom of the African proverb ‘It takes a whole village to raise a child.’”
The four schools will participate in celebration of the first year of implementing the Comer Process on May 23, 2012 at Coker College in Hartsville. The event will highlight the progress the schools have made and provide the schools with the opportunity to share best practices and lessons learned.