Monsanto School of Excellence

Sprouts of beans, radishes and lettuce grow in pots along the hallway of Patrick Henry Elementary at 1220 N. 10th St.

Sometimes teachers hold class in the sunlit hallways to save on energy from classroom lights. The halls are painted sky blue, and nature sounds stream from the sound system throughout the school.

This is Patrick Henry’s first year officially as a “green” pilot school, but much has changed since Esperansa Veal became principal four years ago.

“When we weren’t a green school, we didn’t do much recycling,” said sixth grader Jaquis Avant, head of the school’s 30 Student Leaders. “Now everything that can be recycled, we recycle.”

Avant said his favorite part of the school is that it’s green.

“We can help the world be a better place and make it a good place for the next generation,” Avant said.

When Veal took her position in 2006, she decided three things.

First, the school had to be a place where children wanted to go. She partnered with various groups to paint the walls and put in roses and shrubbery, among other beautifications. Second, all the teachers had to be fully on board with the school’s mission. And third, the community had to be intertwined with the school.

Last year, all three ingredients were solidly in place. And as she expected, the school reached the state’s annual yearly progress requirements – one of 12 schools out of 73 St. Louis public schools to do so.

“AYP came out of a result of all the pieces working together,” Veal said. “It’s not just the teachers really delving into teaching, but it’s also the students taking responsibility and wanting that as much as anybody else.”

Some of the phrases she keeps verbally handy: Don’t let anything stand in your way. And, don’t let what happen in your past dictate your future.

“If you are pushing that, the students will eventually accept it as being true and work towards self-realization,” Veal said.

On September 17, Patrick Henry Elementary will receive the Monsanto School of Excellence Award at the St. Louis American Foundation’s Salute to Excellence in Education Scholarship & Awards Gala at America’s Center.

Wanting to learn

In 2002, 18.4 percent of the school’s students reached the state’s proficiency level. In 2010, it was 67.4 percent. About 92 percent of the student population is African American, and it was 100 percent until two years ago. About 74 percent of students receive free or reduced lunches.

Robin Roberts, third-grade teacher, had the highest performing class on the Missouri Assessment Program tests last year. He said he was able to tap into self-motivation for the students.

“That was a blessing for me,” Roberts said. “They just took off. You just have to set the stage where kids are really into wanting good grades. As a result, it helped with classroom management. They were diligent. Those are some of the keys to it.”

As part of the school’s mission, Roberts will visit every one of the students’ homes at least once in the school year. For the struggling students, he will probably visit their homes five or six times.

“They see that connection between home, teacher and school, and they are motivated to do better,” Roberts said.

His focus in his classroom is mirrored in the entire school – peer mentoring. In his classes, the students mentor each other. And this fall, he will also lead the student ambassador program, where students will go to other SLPS schools and give presentations about green initiatives.

Already at the school, students hold town hall meetings every morning. Sometimes students make presentations on changes that need to be made in the schools or proposals for school events.

“We put together a party for Valentine’s Day. It was fun. We had kings and queens and all types of stuff,” Avant said.

As a leader Avant is also responsible for keeping his fellow students in check.

“I want to be a good role model,” he said. “They shouldn’t be bad in class. I meet with them outside of their classes for 10 minutes and tell them to be good and help them become a better person.”

Besides this, Avant is also in charge of training the leaders-in-training how to assemble the Blessings in a Backpack. Each week, the leaders put together backpacks full of food, donated by Blessings in a Backpack, for students with reduced lunches to take home on the weekends.

Outside Links

In four years, Veal has engaged in several partnerships. Church on the Rock in St. Peters has donated thousands of dollars in gym equipment, safety lighting around the school, paint and uncountable volunteer hours. One Saturday, 300 volunteers spent all day cleaning and painting the school before the year began.

“She told us her vision,” said Mari Espinoza, outreach director for the church. “She was going to help the children grow and know they could achieve their dreams.”

About 20 students from Washington University’s Department of Architecture partner with the elementary students to design and build gardens and greenhouses at the school. Each grade level has a different focus, ranging from recycling for kindergardeners “green and the world” for sixth graders.

Veal’s charm has attracted many people to the school, even those who lost faith in the public schools.

Joyce Page home-schooled her granddaughter, Joschula Page, from the second to fifth grade. After enrolling in the virtual school program last year at Patrick Henry, she was able to meet Veal and was impressed by her presence.

“She’s a house of fire,” said Joyce Page, now an active volunteer. “She has a heart for the kids, especially for those most people wouldn’t take time for. She has the same repose with the staff. She has reached out in the neighborhood and has all kinds of hands to make this a pilot school.”

Tracking the students

Veal also attributes reaching AYP goals to a new system that she and her staff work with to analyze the MAP score information. In one room, tables, graphs and cards for each student hang from the walls. The staff charts each student’s strengths and challenges, along with the class group’s strengths.

By seeing it on the wall, they can all visually track students moving forward or backwards. The teachers also keep binders for each student, which includes individual plans for the students.

But to really understand, one Saturday Veal came to school and laid out all 300 of her students’ scores and binder information.

“It was eye opening,” Veal said.

After looking in depth, she would pass certain students in the hall and think of what skills they needed to work on. Sometimes she gives them little activities to work on.

“I told the teachers, you need to pull all that up, sit with it, look at it, analyze it,” Veal said.

She believes that all students want to be to be successful. But it’s up to teachers to find those areas and build a foundation for students.

Ultimately, Veal would like to have her own campus, with a high school, middle school, elementary and early education center. Joyce Page believes that not even the intimidating location of the school will stand in Veal’s way.

“People think of where it is and go Eeee,” Page said. “It’s like a well-kept secret, but I don’t think it will be for long.”

Tickets for the Salute to Excellence in Education Scholarship & Awards Gala are available by calling 314-533-8000. More than 1,100 have already been purchased for the special evening. General seating tickets are $85, Corporate/VIP tickets are $150.