The Chalkboard Project

The activities were part of the junior high's rewards program: for students who earn all Cs or higher.

It is funded by the CLASS Project, an experimental program in Tillamook School District 9 aimed at helping teachers and, ultimately, students become more successful.

CLASS - which stands for Creative Leadership Achieves Student Success - is funded by the Chalkboard Project, a non-profit foundation dedicated to improving Oregon schools. CLASS chips in $5 for every student eligible to
participate in the Tillamook Junior High program.

The students had four reward days last year, including visits to the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria and the Oregon Zoo in Portland, as well as a play day at various locations in Tillamook.

Junior high principal Elroy Thompson said 80 percent of the school's students earned high enough grades to participate in the final reward day of the 2008-2009 school year. "This year, it's much better," he said.

On the Dec. 7 reward day, 86 percent of the school's 305 students took part. Only 40 students didn't post grades high enough to join the others and thus remained in school.

Thompson added that thus far this year, 165 of the junior high students have earned grades no lower than B.

Tillamook Junior High School has been on an accelerated campaign to improve student performance since the 2003-2004 school year when, Thompson said, in one term there were 162 failing grades in math and language arts subjects.

"Last year," he said recently, "94 or 95 percent of student grades were Cs or higher."

At Tillamook Junior High School, students can skate for a day ... if their grades are high enough

Tillamook Headlight Herald