A BRIEF HISTORY of PROJECT '79
The goals of the Westfield school system include a commitment to develop each child's learning potential to the fullest extent possible. With that commitment comes the realization that no single approach to learning will work for all students. Just as programs have been developed to meet the particular needs of gifted, learning disabled, and remedial learners, Project '79 is an attempt to reach yet another group of students—those whose intelligence ranges from average to above average, but for a variety of reasons are not succeeding academically.
The program was conceived in the mid-1970s when Westfield Superintendent Laurence F. Greene identified the need to support students at risk of dropping out of WHS. Led by Alan Lantis, a team of teachers spent nearly two years researching various alternative education settings throughout the northeast. They learned that a successful program needed to support the cognitive as well as affective domains of students: this new program had to be rigorous, relevant, and based on solid teacher-student relationships.
The program was conceived in the mid-1970s when Westfield Superintendent Laurence F. Greene identified the need to support students at risk of dropping out of WHS. Led by Alan Lantis, a team of teachers spent nearly two years researching various alternative education settings throughout the northeast. They learned that a successful program needed to support the cognitive as well as affective domains of students: this new program had to be rigorous, relevant, and based on solid teacher-student relationships.
There are many factors, often unrelated to school, that impinge on young people, affecting the way they learn. With disconnected students, these factors often make the learning process secondary. Project '79 is an attempt to reach these students by combining a strong academic program with an equally strong humanistic approach in a setting where individual impediments to learning can be identified and addressed. As they explore their strengths in a supportive learning community, students grow more successful as members of Westfield High School who contribute to our program and the world at large.
As the result of its small footprint and collaborative structure, Project ’79 is ideally positioned to innovate. In the early 1990s Project ‘79 developed the Senior Project that was later adopted by the entire WHS English Department. Since 2004 we have engaged resident artists to guide our students and staff to produce public works of theater, poetry, sculpture, painting, and film. During summer work trips from 2008 to 2012, we were the first public school group to partner with Foundation for Peace in the Dominican Republic. We built a school, medical clinic, and water purification center. When they were juniors, the Class of 2014 became the first cohort of students selected to pilot BYOD in all their classes. Our current goals include preparing students to use technology for collaboration, inquiry, and personal organization/task management. As we look to our future as digital citizens, we want to explore virtual learning as a means to engage more students more fully in a wider range of creative challenges.
As the result of its small footprint and collaborative structure, Project ’79 is ideally positioned to innovate. In the early 1990s Project ‘79 developed the Senior Project that was later adopted by the entire WHS English Department. Since 2004 we have engaged resident artists to guide our students and staff to produce public works of theater, poetry, sculpture, painting, and film. During summer work trips from 2008 to 2012, we were the first public school group to partner with Foundation for Peace in the Dominican Republic. We built a school, medical clinic, and water purification center. When they were juniors, the Class of 2014 became the first cohort of students selected to pilot BYOD in all their classes. Our current goals include preparing students to use technology for collaboration, inquiry, and personal organization/task management. As we look to our future as digital citizens, we want to explore virtual learning as a means to engage more students more fully in a wider range of creative challenges.