Past Program: June 19, 2017
Dr. Romules Durant

TPS Proud! Moving the District in a Progressive Direction

Dr. Romules Durant is passionate about education. The most vital thing we need to do, he said, is show more interest in early childhood education: cradle to career. He said the best intervention is prevention. You have to instill education in a child early, when their brains are developing in order for it to sustain in the long run. In NW Ohio, there are 35,000 children who are ages newborn to 5 years old. 13,000 of those children are living in poverty. The district aids 2,000 of those children a year in early education, the rest are entering schools at age 6, and 80% of them need intervention. The intervention sets the children back even further. Dr. Durant compared this to a car assembly line—you have to make sure
the engine is working before putting it all together.

Not only is the district working on pre-school aged children, they are making sure that the ones that are already in school are getting all the education and help possible. In 6th grade, students are given assessments that diagnose all their strengths and identify careers that align. They take the results and match them within their 36 career tech programs. This ensures students will be working towards a career they enjoy and will excel in.

In 7th and 8th grade, students have the option to take high school courses. Some students will get to 9th and 10th grade
and take college level courses. TPS offers 12 associate degrees that students can graduate high school with. TPS has “freshman clusters”, a group of teachers from each core department who share the responsibility to make sure individual students graduate by sharing and applying their knowledge as a group.

Dr. Durant is passionate about education and TPS. It all begins with early childhood education he said, which increases
graduation rates, college enrollment, job opportunities and employment.