Programs

 Curriculum | Instructional Programs | Programmatic Levels | Instructional Support

Instructional Programs

Advanced Placement
Advanced Placement courses are those which are advanced in terms of content and performance expectations of classes normally available for a given grade or age level; they provide credit toward graduation and possible college credit; they include those courses recognized or offered by the College Board, postsecondary schools, and other foundations or corporations of recognized scholastic standing.

Advanced placement courses are designed to advance the achievement in subject areas in which a student has satisfied at least two of the following three criteria: (1) Exceptional ability and interest demonstrat­ed through past performance, (2) prerequisite knowledge and skills to perform honors or advanced placement work, and (3) recommendation by teachers of the student.

Curricula may include advanced placement courses offered through the College Board or other recognized academic founda­tions, corporations, institu­tions, or businesses whose courses are generally accepted as leading to advanced placement or standing in a postsecondary institution, accelerated instruction­al courses offered via satellite, and other courses and arrange­ments approved by the West Virginia Board of Education which provide students opportunity to advance their learning beyond that offered through the regular curriculum.

Elementary/Middle School Alternative Program 4-8
The Putnam County Schools Elementary and Middle School Alternative Education Program is a day-time intervention experience for those students not receiving exceptional education services in grades four (4) through eight (8). Students who qualify for this program are not succeeding in the regular educational setting due to multiple academic and/or behavioral problems.

The Alternative Education Program 4-8 is a temporary authorized departure from the regular school environment designed to provide educational and social development for students whose lack of academic success and/or disruptive behavior places them at risk of not succeeding in the traditional school structure and in adult life without positive intervention.

High School Alternative Program 9-12
The Putnam County Schools High School Alternative Education Program is an evening program housed at Hurricane High School. It is designed to provide educational, behavioral, and social development activities for students who are not succeeding in a regular school setting due to multiple academic and/or behavioral problems, have been expelled from their home high schools, or are returning adjudicated students. The high school program is a voluntary program that may be offered as an alternative to the student's being expelled from school.

The Alternative Education Program is a temporary authorized departure from the regular school environment designed to provide educational and social development for students whose lack of academic success and/or disruptive behavior places them at risk of not succeeding in the traditional school structure and in adult life without positive intervention.

Career and Technical Education
Putnam County Schools' Career and Technical Center is located in Eleanor, West Virginia . Students from the four county high schools may attend the technical center as part of their adolescent education program. The center also serves post-secondary and adult students by providing technical and vocational training in numerous programs. Classes are typically offered in 90 minute sessions five days a week. Students may earn college credit or certification for some programs. Financial assistance, career and guidance counseling, and tuition waivers are available for those meeting qualifications.

Community Education
Putnam County Schools offers a variety of evening classes for residents of Putnam and surrounding counties. Course offerings vary with community need and interest, and encompass areas such as physical fitness, art and music, foreign language, driver's education, and computer literacy. Courses are taught by skilled instructors, trained in the fields they instruct. Pre-registration is required for all classes. Registrations are held in mid-September and mid-January. Each course has a nominal fee. For schedule and information, click here or call Kay Christy at 586-0500 ext. 150.

English as a Second Language
ESL services are provided at each school on as as-needs basis by a certified ESL instructor. ESL Instructors deliver a comprehensive program for children with limited English proficiency, using instructional management system models that lead to increased student learning. The teacher serves as a liaison between the parents or guardians and the educational community, assists regular teachers of LEP students in modifying their instructional programs and in assessing and grading LEP students.

Exceptional Education
Consistent with federal and state law, Putnam County Schools has established and maintains programs for exceptional children between three (3) and twenty-one (21) years of age. These special programs include special classes, regular classroom programs, home teaching, or visiting teacher services for exceptionalities as recognized by the West Virginia Board of Education.

Provisions are made for educating such exceptional students (including the handicapped and the gifted) who differ from the average or normal in physical, mental, or emotional characteristics or in communicative or intellectual characteristics.

The Director of Exceptional Education has established formal procedures for searching and screening those students who are eligible for exceptional education services. The Director assures that procedural due process guidelines are followed in all cases where the student or parents do not agree with their child's program or placement. Each exceptional education student has an Individualized Education Program (IEP) that is reviewed annual­ly. In all cases special instructional programs shall be in the least restrictive environment.

No student is evaluated or initially placed in special education programs without written consent of parents or guardians. Where parental or guardian consent is not forthcoming, due process procedures as recommended by the West Virginia Department of Education are followed.

The Putnam County Board of Education has adopted the Regulations for the Education of Exceptional Children. It has also approved a comprehensive set of policies and procedures for the implementation of state and federal regulations. Details of specific programs and the State Standards may be procured from the Director of Exceptional Education.

Gifted Education
Gifted Education falls under the auspices of Exceptional Education. In Putnam County Schools, the elementary and middle school gifted classes are housed at Winfield Elementary School. Students enrolled in the program through the IEP travel to Winfield Elementary from their home schools once weekly. High school gifted students are expected to enroll in advanced placement and honors courses at their home schools.

Homebound Instruction
Putnam County Schools provides home-teaching or visiting-teacher services for students who are homebound due to injury or who, for any other reason as certified by a licensed physician, are homebound for a period that has lasted or will last more than two (2) weeks.

Five (5) groups of students eligible to receive home/hospital instruction:
  1. Students with injuries, communicable illnesses, or health prob­lems/conditions which prevent the student from attending school for more than two (2) weeks. This group includes regular education students and disabled students.
  2. Students who are temporarily removed from school while undergoing evaluation required by safe schools violations.
  3. Disabled students placed in an Interim Alternative Education Setting (IAES) for safe schools violations.
  4. Students enrolled in the Alternative Education Night Program.
  5. Students who have been expelled from school.
Provision of home/hospital instruction for any student requires documentation or verification by a licensed physician of an injury, health problem or a condition that requires that student to be homebound or hospitalized for a period that has lasted or will last more than two (2) weeks.

Pre-Kindergarten Putnam County Schools offers pre-kindergarten services to children with special needs. Students who are suspected of having developmental milestone delays may be referred for developmental screening by parent, private facilities, Head Start Centers, or agencies. Putnam's special needs preschool program falls under the auspices of Exceptional Education.

Some Title I schools offer pre-kindergarten services as part of their school Title I plans. Putnam County Schools is currently developing a plan to offer universal preschool services to all 3 and 4 year olds.

School to Work
Putnam County's School to Work program is an integral part of the kindergarten through adult curriculum. School-to-Work is designed to help students see the connections between school and their future career goals. It helps them identify their talents and strengths and develop the personal skills they need to become successful in life. At the elementary level, the school-to-work focus is career awareness; at the middle childhood level, the focus is career exploration; at the high school through adult level, the focus is career preparation for post-secondary education and employment.

Summer Programs
Extended School Year In compliance with The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Putnam County Schools provides extended school year services to students whose IEP teams determine that special education and related services in excess of the regular school year are necessary to maintain identified critical skills as described in current Individualized Education Programs. While very few students qualify for extended school year services, all disabled students are considered for services. All students are reevaluated for eligibility each year. Extended school year services are provided under the auspices of Exceptional Education.

Jump Start Jump Start is a no cost, three week summer program designed for elementary students who have completed first through fourth grades and are in need of some extra help in reading and math prior to the next school year. Jump Start programs are held in various locations throughout the county, based on enrollment. Breakfast and lunch are provided free of charge, but transportation is not provided. Registration forms are sent home from schools in late spring.

Summer Academies Putnam Summer Academies are enrichment opportunities for Putnam County Schools elementary age students. Two academies, which run for two-weeks each, focus on either the arts and humanities or science and technology. Both academies are provided free of charge, and students must enroll in at least one academic course per academy. Click here for the current brochure.

Summer School - Middle and Adolescent Summer school courses are offered on a tuition basis for middle and adolescent students who need to make up credits or who have not been able to obtain all credits needed for graduation. All summer school sessions maintain the same standards as those offered in the regular school term. Summer school course offerings are subject to demand.

Transitional Kindergarten Transitional Kindergarten classes are designed for students who have had difficulty completing the Putnam County Schools kindergarten program, who are not being retained in kindergarten, and who do not qualify for any other services. This no cost, three week program is held in various locations throughout the county, based on enrollment. Lunch and breakfast are provided free of charge, but transportation is not provided. Teacher referral is necessary for enrollment. Enrollment referrals are sent for eligible students in late spring.

Title I
Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965 addresses the education challenges facing high-poverty communities by targeting extra resources to schools and school districts with the highest concentrations of poverty. Putnam County currently has six Title I schools, each of which has a federally approved plan to close the achievement gap and bring all students to mastery. All Putnam County Title I schools are whole-school programs.

Virtual School
Putnam County Schools offers West Virginia Virtual School distance learning courses via Internet to eligible high school students. Classes offered are those not available at the school site due to staffing or scheduling considerations. The West Virginia Department of Education oversees the program, which the local school facilitates. Interested students may learn more about the program at the West Virginia Virtual School or by speaking with the school's Virtual School Coordinator.

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