Birmingham City School District

Birmingham Public Schools (BPS), formally the Birmingham City School District,[1] is the public school district for Birmingham, Michigan. Beyond Birmingham, the district provides public school services for Southfield Township, Michigan, which encompasses the villages of Beverly Hills, Bingham Farms, and Franklin; and parts of these municipalities: Bloomfield Hills, Bloomfield Township, Southfield (city), Troy and West Bloomfield Township, Michigan.[2] The current superintendent is Dr. Daniel Nerad.[3]

History

In 1834, the first "district" school in Birmingham opened. This school was housed in John Hamilton's old log house at Hamilton Road and Old Woodward Ave. Rev. Lemuel M. Partridge served as the teacher. In 1855, the brick "Old Red Schoolhouse" was built at Maple and Southfield roads and served as a school until 1869. The Allen House, part of the Birmingham Historical Museum, now stands where the school was. A new school was in 1869 and became the site of Birmingham's first high school. That first high school later became known as Baldwin High School, then in 1951, Birmingham High School, and in 1959, Seaholm High School. The former Baldwin High School later became Birmingham's first middle school.

Through the 1930s other districts had their own elementary schools and sent paid tuition students to Baldwin High School in the Birmingham district. Throughout the 1940s, other school districts in the area were encouraged by the state to join Birmingham's school district. Southfield joined in 1943, Bloomfield Village in 1946, Franklin in 1945 and Walnut Lake in 1947.[4]

Schools

Birmingham Public Schools runs eight elementary schools, one 3–8th grade school, two middle schools, two high schools, and one alternative high school. Each elementary school hosts a half day preschool program [5] and the district also runs a preschool program out of Midvale BPS Early Childcare Center.[6]

  • Groves High School
  • Seaholm High School
  • Lincoln Street Alternative school
  • Berkshire Middle School
  • Derby Middle School
  • Birmingham Covington School
  • Beverly Elementary School
  • Bingham Farms Elementary School
  • Pembroke Elementary School
  • Pierce Elementary School
  • West Maple Elementary School
  • Quarton Elementary School
  • Greenfield Elementary School
  • Harlan Elementary School (New building opened 2007, replacing original 1957 building)

Curriculum

The Birmingham Public Schools Strategic Plan[7] calls for a curriculum which is updated and challenging for all students. Curriculum planning and staff development, incorporating developmentally appropriate practices, occur progressively beginning at the kindergarten level. Students in the district have access to a comprehensive arts program,[8] music education,[9] physical education,[10] health life management classes[11] and world languages.[12]

The experiences and knowledge young children bring to school, combined with their natural curiosity, are the foundations for learning in the primary grades. The BPS program is designed to help develop children's potentials. The emphasis is on learning experiences which help children make connections between existing knowledge and new skills and information. All subject area outcomes are clearly defined, but learning is linked across these subject area boundaries. Classroom experiences are designed to be mutually reinforcing. In this manner, children see the connections between skills learned and their importance in real life.

The district incorporates technology throughout the curriculum beginning in elementary school. All classrooms throughout the district utilize Promethian Boards, a type of interactive whiteboard.

Engage

At Birmingham Covington School, grades 5–8 experience the Engage program. Engage is a program of 21st Century skills including science, engineering tech, education tech, and communications. It is problem/project based and uses cooperative teams with ongoing documentation and reflection.

!gnite

In 2009 the district introduced a unique program called !gnite.[13] This program was developed after the success of the Engage program at Birmingham Covington School.

The !gnite initiative strives to create flexible learning environments through the use of technology.

Character Education

In 2011, the Character Education Partnership [14] awarded three BPS schools the title of National School of Character. Pierce Elementary School, Bingham Farms Elementary School and Pembroke Elementary School joined Birmingham Covington School, Beverly Elementary School and Greenfield Elementary School as National Schools of Character within the district. As of 2011, the district holds the following Character Education awards:

NumberAward
6National Schools of Character
6National Schools of Character Finalists
1National Profiles in Character Winner
2National Honorable Mention Schools of Character
7State Schools of Character (2 repeat winners)
40Promising Practice Awards

Character Education is an integral part of the Birmingham Public Schools community, culture, and curriculum. The district incorporates a program guided by the 11 Principals [sic] of Character Education.[15]

References

  1. ↑ MICHIGAN SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL DISTRICTS: a map. michigan.gov
  2. ↑ "Map" (Archive). Birmingham City School District. Retrieved on 29 June 2015.
  3. ↑ "Birmingham Public Schools - Central Administration". Birmingham.k12.mi.us. Archived from the original on 25 December 2013. Retrieved 15 August 2012.
  4. ↑ Birmingham Historical Museum & Park; Birmingham School District (2006). Birmingham Historical Museum & Park.
  5. ↑ http://half-day-preschool-programs.birmingham.schoolfusion.us/modules/groups/integrated_home.phtml?&gid=1700182&sessionid=5b2b6392d0346786a9e3751beb1d167b&t=5b644f6675b18e611685eed1d291c427
  6. ↑ BPS Early Childhood Center – Index. Ecc.birmingham.schoolfusion.us. Retrieved on 6 June 2012.
  7. ↑ Birmingham Public Schools Strategic Plan 2008–2012. birmingham.schoolfusion.us (June 2008)
  8. ↑ Birmingham Public Schools – Art Education. Birmingham.schoolfusion.us (28 May 2012). Retrieved on 2012-06-06.
  9. ↑
  10. ↑
  11. ↑ Birmingham Public Schools – Health Life Management. Birmingham.schoolfusion.us (28 May 2012). Retrieved on 2012-06-06.
  12. ↑
  13. ↑ Welcome To !gnite Archived 12 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine.. birmingham.schoolfusion.us
  14. ↑ Character Education Partnership – http://www.character.org
  15. ↑ Character Education Partnership (CEP)'s. Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education Archived 11 August 2010 at the Wayback Machine.. opi.mt.gov

Coordinates: 42°31′04.4″N 83°14′40.0″W / 42.517889°N 83.244444°W / 42.517889; -83.244444

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