Holly Hills Elementary School (4062)
6161 EAST CORNELL AVENUE
DENVER, CO 80222
602
Total Students Served
Pre-K - Grade 5
School District:
Cherry Creek 5 (0130)
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School Profile
About Holly Hills Elementary School (4062)
A MESSAGE FROM:
Holly Hills Elementary School
2024-2025
Holly Ridge/ Hills Elementary (The Hollys or HRP/HH) is unique in the Cherry Creek School District in that it is comprised of two individual buildings functioning as one school. Holly Ridge Primary serves students in grades PK-2 and Holly Hills Elementary is where grades 3-5 are taught. The Hollys draw a diverse student population from four distinctly different communities in the metro area. 637 total students attend the Hollys. One of the many things students and staff enjoy at the Hollys is a …
rich diversity. In fact, Holly Ridge/ Hills has a student population that represents a multitude of cultures found throughout the world. With over 20 different languages spoken, one can envision the cross-cultural collaboration that occurs on a daily basis at both buildings. We value student and community voice. The ethnic breakdown is as follows: 50% Hispanic, 27% White, 11% Black, 3% Asian, less than 1% Native American and 7% Multi-Racial.  The Hollys staff strives to provide a wealth of educational experiences for each child. The schools offer a variety of programs and opportunities that enrich the academic experience for all students. These programs include gifted/talented, English language acquisition, targeted reading and math instruction, integrated arts (Art, Music, PE, STEM) specialized instructional support for students with special needs and an integrated learning center for students with adaptive learning needs. We educate our students and provide them with individualized and intentional instruction to meet each student's needs.  The curriculum and instruction provided to Hollys? students is based on the Colorado Academic Standards. Teachers provide students with culturally relevant instruction that is implemented through a literacy workshop model. We use a variety of instructional resources including but limited to: Fundations, Orton Gillingham, Heggerty Phonemic Awareness, HMH Into Reading, Bridges Mathematics, Social Studies Inquiry Journeys and the FOSS Science program. The Hollys also offer a unique model of instruction for second language learners. Co-teaching is an English Language Acquisition (ELA) endorsed instructional approach to providing meaningful instruction for English Language Learners (ELLs). The Hollys implemented the Co-teaching model of instruction at the beginning of the 2007/08 school year. Co-teaching has been the working model of instructional support for ELLs ever since. We have a similar co-teaching model for advanced academics services and gifted/talented support.  The Hollys? staff recognizes the value of a positive school climate and endeavor to create an environment in which students and parents feel welcome and safe. Each staff member is committed to developing positive relationships with students and families promoting partnerships that ultimately translate into students feeling comfortable, taking risks and experiencing repeated success through an autonomous motivation to engage and succeed. During each month of the school year, administration, the school-wide reform team and parent groups reflect on the academic success of the students and plan professional development according to the needs that surface in those meetings.  Attracting High Quality Staff Highly qualified staff members are recruited at the district level. Credentials are verified by district HR and screening interviews are conducted to enhance the potential for an excellent match. Staff members participate in numerous professional development initiatives throughout the school year to provide insight and understanding as it pertains to happiness in the workplace. Staff members are also matched with mentor staff members and professional learning community teams at the Hollys.  Attendance at School If students are to have the opportunity to reach their potential, they must regularly attend school. All healthy students are expected to be at school. Hollys? administration, classroom teachers, mental health staff, and the school nurse collaborate to educate parents and students on the importance of attending school. 94% percent of Holly Ridge students and 94.3% of Holly Hills? students attend school daily. The Hollys? attendance team meets quarterly to review student attendance records. A comprehensive plan is in place for students demonstrating attendance issues.  Safety Safety at the Hollys is paramount to success. In an effort to provide a safe and welcoming environment, the Hollys have a multifaceted plan in place to ensure safety and success. The plan is divided into two categories: physical and emotional safety. The Hollys? safety plan, which is developed and constantly adjusted by the Hollys? safety team, is a living document that supports the safety of our students and staff. The school principal, assistant principal and building engineer meet, bi-weekly, to inspect and discuss the state of the building. Fire, secure parameter, lock down and playground evacuation drills are practice monthly. Immediate feedback is provided to staff and students upon the conclusion of each drill practice session. Parents who attend the Hollys? Accountability, PTCO and PASS meetings are informed of our practice and performance during safety drills. We also communicate safety practices in our monthly newsletters.  Emotional Safety The Hollys are Positive Behavioral Interventions and Support (PBIS) schools. The Hollys? philosophical approach to student discipline promotes recognizing and celebrating students for making good/ appropriate choices, but implements rigorous and restorative consequences when students choose poorly. This plan is school-wide and embraced with fidelity by all staff. Students receive constant and consistent follow up and education to support the success of the PBIS initiative. We celebrate the success and honor those students who exemplify the behavioral characteristics that support the caring community. In addition to PBIS, the Hollys teaches and embeds the Second Step curriculum. Second Step is a program rooted in social-emotional learning (SEL) that helps transform schools into supportive, successful learning environments uniquely equipped to encourage children to thrive. More than just a classroom curriculum, Second Step?s holistic approach helps create a more empathetic society by providing education professionals, families, and the larger community with tools to enable them to take an active role in the social-emotional growth and safety of today?s children.  Support for Students & Families The Hollys currently have a multitude of opportunities available to parents to be an active part of the school environment. The Hollys? PTCO and Accountability Committee meet monthly to discuss school improvement, internal processes, and fund raising endeavors. In addition, each grade level team hosts a family night designed to share support tips with parents that are intended to increase knowledge of the curricular program and academic expectations. These events are held one time annually per grade level and provide engaging opportunities for parents to learn more about reading, writing and math instruction. Grade level performances, in which curricular goals are realized through integration with the arts, are an enjoyable opportunity for parents to watch their child perform and demonstrate core knowledge on stage through singing and acting. Cross discipline collaboration between classroom and integrated arts teachers makes these performances possible. The Hollys provide two opportunities for parents and teachers to meet to discuss student progress during the school year. In addition to this, an open house/back to school night and periodic parent information nights provide numerous opportunities for parents and staff to build meaningful relationships. Finally, the Hollys? Equity team hosts monthly Voices of Color meetings specifically for our families of color. The purpose of these meetings is to strengthen the school?s relationship with our families of color and to discuss instructional approaches that will most effectively support the learning needs of our students of color. It is our hope through the work accomplished during these meetings that we will elevate and accelerate the achievement of our students of color, thus narrowing and eventually eliminating the racial achievement gap that exists at the Hollys.  Transition from Preschool to Kindergarten There are two distinct preschool programs operating on the Holly Ridge campus. The Cottage serves as a preschool hub for the Cherry Creek School district. 60% of the students attending the Cottage preschool program live within the Hollys? school boundaries and will attend kindergarten at Holly Ridge. The second preschool program serves the families living in the Glendale community. These preschool classrooms reside in two, two-classroom mobiles just yards from the Holly Ridge permanent facility. 100% of the students attending this component of preschool will attend Holly Ridge upon becoming a kindergartener. Both preschool programs host a Back to School Night to communicate teaching efforts to build student skills in literacy and math. The Holly Ridge school social worker, psychologist, occupational therapist, and speech language pathologist provide services to the preschoolers at both facilities. The Hollys? administrative team and nurse provide support to both preschool programs when needs are communicated. Holly Ridge kindergarten teachers collaborate with the preschool teachers to ensure a successful transition from preschool to kindergarten. This includes parent information meetings, as well as Special Education transfer meetings. In the late spring, preschoolers visit Holly Ridge and take a tour of the building. During their visit, the preschoolers spend time in a kindergarten classroom to support the transition from preschool to kindergarten for the next school year. In May, the Holly Ridge kindergarten teachers, school nurse, mental health and administrative teams host an Open House for incoming kindergarten parents and students. During this event the Holly Ridge staff provide a presentation detailing the information parents and students need to know to be prepared for the upcoming school year. Time is provided for parents to ask questions and get to know the staff. During the first two days of school, the Holly Ridge kindergarten teachers meet one on one with each kindergarten student to proctor the LSA screening test. The teachers use the results from this assessment to map out the instructional needs of each student to begin the school year.  Climate and safety is important to the Hollys? staff. Each component is taken seriously in the hope of providing students and families with a sense of security, knowing every opportunity will be available for students to experience success.  Molly Drvenkar Principal
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