Indian Trail Middle School Principal Becky Vrbas barely breaks her stride recently as she bends down to scoop up a minuscule scrap piece of paper littering her school hallway.

When Vrbas came to the school four years ago she made it clear that improving reputations, test scores, attitudes and, yes, even cleanliness, was the job of every last soul — students, teachers, paraprofessionals, secretaries, custodians and more — in the building.

The change, Olathe School District administrators said, is clear.

This fall the school was honored as a “reward school” by the Kansas Department of Education. The distinction was given to the top 10 percent of Title I schools in the state that showed either high progress or high performance. Indian Trail was named for its progress or growth during the last several years.

Math scores went from 74.3 percent proficient in 2009-10 to 90.7 percent last spring. During the same time, reading scores went from 86.4 percent to 95.6 percent proficient, according to district records.

Olathe Assistant Superintendent Erin Dugan said the growth at Indian Trail was rooted in strong relationships formed among staff, students and parents. Once that bond is formed, Dugan said, the school was able to focus on data to target how students could move ahead.

“They build this incredible caring community of learners that have relationships with the adults and students,” Dugan said.

The concern has to be genuine or the kids won’t respond, Dugan said.

“We have kids for six, seven hours a day and kids come to us with a variety of needs and we have to know the students well enough, have relationships well enough, in order to know what their needs are,” she said.

Kids can’t learn if they’re hungry, she said. And they can’t focus if they’re worrying all day about not having track shoes for the meet after school.

If staff know their students and their families well enough, she said, “we can meet those kinds of needs so that then we can get on to the business of math and reading comprehension.”

On the data side, Dugan said the school staff dug into statistics and test scores. They sat down together regularly to review how individual students were faring in classes.

“They know where every kid is and exactly what they need,” Dugan said. “They know down to the skill and standard that every student needs in order to make improvement.”

Vrbas gives all the credit to students and staff.

“The kids are doing the work. The staff are doing the work,” she said.

When Vrbas was named principal four years ago she sat down and had a frank conversation with the staff and parents about test scores. She wanted everyone to know where they were and what the expectations would be moving forward. She needed everyone’s buy-in.

“You can’t change scores if everybody isn’t on the same page,” she said.

The school had struggled during the last decade as the neighborhood demographics also shifted, bringing new challenges that required different academic strategies to reach children.

Vrbas knew that in order to make meaningful change everyone needed to feel safe, trust one another and take pride in what they were doing.

“I’m a team player. I know that you are always as strong and as successful as your weakest link,” she said.

Staff encouraged students to get involved in clubs and activities to help take more ownership in the school. Band membership alone went from 28 members to 120.

The longtime coach and physical education teacher took a competitive but respectful approach to improving the school environment.

Vrbas set goals for math and reading scores. She wanted the school to have 90 percent of students at a proficiency level within one year.

Students who reached 92 percent or above were treated to a bowling outing. The school had to rent two bowling alleys to accommodate all the students.

Vrbas also rewarded students who proved they were on the right path by making impressive gains. If someone went from 20 percent to 60 percent she didn’t leave them out.

“They’re going bowling,” she said, noting that success of that nature should be celebrated.

The principal also played into the competitive spirit of middle school students by offering a massive trophy to students with the best test scores.

Getting to know kids and families provided the groundwork for change, Vrbas said.

Teachers take note when a child comes to school without a coat in the thick of winter.

The school begins to form relationships with parents the day a child enters the schools. Later, if a student is struggling, Vrbas calls the family in for a meeting to create a plan for improvement. This summer she met with about 48 students and their families.

Vrbas typically asks the student what they can do to improve performance. Then she turns to the adults.

“What can you do for your student?” she will ask parents. “And what can your teacher do for you?”

The school offers tutoring and homework help after school. By January the school focuses that after-school work even further if a student appears to be falling behind on skills required for the state assessments.

The staff also doesn’t hesitate to reach out to a family if they have an inclination that something has changed at home and is affecting a student’s performance.

“If there’s something that you’re struggling with, let us know,” Vrbas tells parents.

Surrounding businesses and religious groups have also stepped up to offer mittens, food, mentors and more.

The school has also worked to increase its parent involvement. That looks differently at Indian Trail than it might in the most affluent parts of Olathe.

“We have a lot of parents that work two or three jobs,” Vrbas said.

If they don’t show up at a parent meeting she knows it’s not for lack of concern. The staff will often ask parents to participate in different ways, including contributing home-baked bread to a soup supper at school.

It helps that Vrbas lives in the school’s attendance area. Her students see her walking her dog down the street and they trick-or-treat at her house. She spots them at the convenience store and has been known to stop them in the neighborhood to check on the volleyball score.

Community members see Vrbas tending to the school’s flower beds on the weekends. And they see teachers cars in the parking lot well after the sun has gone down.

The work has not been easy, Vrbas said. But the staff, students and community have all played a role — a critical one.

“You can’t change scores if everybody isn’t on the same page,” she said.

To reach Dawn Bormann, call 816-234-7704 or send e-mail to dbormann@kcstar.com.