The SIM Impact Award
2020
Shawsville Middle School, Shawsville, VA
Read More about 2020 awardees
2014
Goodnight Middle School, San Marcos TX
Simon Middle School, Kyle TX
Knox Wiley Middle School, Leander, TX
Read More about 2014 awardees (.pdf)
2013
Brooklyn Junior High School, Brooklyn Park, MN Janet Jones
Read More about 2013 awardees (.pptx)
2011
Central Academy Middle School, Botetourt County, VA
James River High School, Botetourt County, VA
Liberty Middle School, Hanover County, VA
Patrick Henry High School, Hanover County, VA
Read more about 2011 awardees (.pdf)
2010
Holland Public Schools, MI
2009
Connecticut Technical High School System
Watch the 2009 Award Video
2008
Alameda Unified School System - CA
Alameda Unified School District has committed to at least five years of implementing SIM in all of its middle and high schools. It launched its SIM expansion with a professional development session for 90 teachers and administrators. The district has kept the ball rolling throughout the past year with monthly coaching and monthly support meetings, and several Alameda teachers are on track to become certified SIM Professional Developers. District administrators have made it clear that this is no “flavor of the month” program. Watch the 2008 Award Video
2007
Riverbank High School - CA
Riverbank High School has embraced the work of the KUCRL and become an outstanding example for all who desire improved outcomes for schools and students. Riverbank has adopted and incorporated numerous components of SIM throughout the school .
Read more about 2007 awardees (.pdf)
Watch the 2007 Award Video
2005
Cobb Middle School-Tallahassee, FL
Cobb Middle School is a model of schoolwide SIM implementation. Cobb’s SIM adventure began in the 1980s, when it included instruction in the Sentence Writing, Paraphrasing and Word Identification strategies in its exceptional student education classes. Additional strategies and Content Enhancement Routines were introduced beginning in 1996. The school’s early efforts laid the foundation for the exciting SIM instruction taking place throughout the school today. For the past four years, all of Cobb’s teachers have used Content Enhancement Routines—including Clarifying, Concept Mastery, Unit Organizer, Course Organizer, Vocabulary LINCing, and Framing—in their classes. All teachers also use the Framing Routine to teach social skills expectations. A reading class features instruction in the Test-Taking, Sentence Writing, Word Identification, InSPECT, Paraphrasing, and LINCS Vocabulary strategies, and all classes support and encourage generalization of these strategies. Because of its focused efforts, Cobb has seen reading comprehension rates improve, writing skills infused throughout the curriculum, and research-based programs and strategies offered throughout the school.
Science department of Turlock Junior High-Turlock, CA
Through a comprehensive, collaborative effort to infuse SIM throughout their classes, the highly innovative and committed teachers of the Science Department at Turlock Junior High School are leading the school in the area of literacy. They care not only about the science that the students are learning but also about the literacy and social skills their students possess. SIM Professional Developer Cathy Spriggs began working with the content teachers in the 1990s. Since then, teachers have aligned their content with the state curriculum and with each other and continue to develop a strategic science program. Recently, the Science Department led the entire school in the area of writing. After learning about the Paragraph Writing Strategy, teachers designed a Frame to be used for writing good paragraphs and taught the process to their students. Then, they decided to have students write paragraphs at least once a week. Students now use Frames to organize their projects and writing assignments. The departments’ efforts have resulted in great increases in students’ ideation, details, and paragraph coherence.
2003
St. Tammany Parish Public Schools-Covington, LA
St. Tammany Parish has planned for SIM to become the core curriculum for special education in grades 7 through 12. Five schools have adopted SIM school-wide and four other schools are moving in that direction. A significant number of teachers and speech therapists at two elementary, two junior high, and three high schools have implemented both Content Enhancement Routines and Learning Strategies in an effort that involves 80 teachers and 4,000 students. SIM Professional Developer Hilly Bernard, with the support of Margo Guillot, assistant superintendent of schools, and Jeanie Bernard, supervisor of special education, offers multiple days of staff development with follow-up each year. He also has facilitated the development of a study skills curriculum based on SIM called Strategies of Success. SOS is required at the high school level and encouraged in the junior highs. An indication of SIM’s success in the parish can be found in the numbers: In 2001, 80 teachers enrolled in SIM professional development. By 2003, that number had grown to 200.
Olathe USD-Olathe, KS
For the last seven years, this district has provided extensive Learning Strategy and Content Enhancement staff development opportunities for its elementary and secondary resource staff and general education staff. Learning Strategies and Content Enhancement Routines have been embedded in district curriculum charts for strategies that assist struggling learners. In just one example of the scope of SIM’s integration in the district, many district staff members are comfortable using Content Enhancement devices for specific purposes and do so on a regular basis. SIM implementation has been supported by Allison Banikowski, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction; Gerry Reynaud, executive director of special services; and Erin Dugan, director of special services. SIM Professional Developers who have been involved in the Olathe effort include Barbara Ellett and Mary Whitaker along with intern Cristan Phillip.
2000
Karen Mortimer-Casey Family Program
1999
Summit School and Sharyl Kennedy-Dundee, IL
Under Sharyl's leadership, SIM has been implemented throughout Summit School, touching the lives of many students. The school, which now has 120 students, was founded in 1968 by a group of parents who saw the need for a school for children with learning disabilities.
1998
Osseo School District-Osseo, MN
An accessible version of the documents on this site will be made available upon request. Please contact the KU CRL Professional Development Research Institute, at simpd@ku.edu to request the document be made available in an accessible format.