Great Things Going On
I want to begin this week by offering kudos to our building principals for the great work they did bringing our staff back together and focusing them on the the start of the new school year. At times during the past week I enjoyed seeing the elementary staff competing in a return to school ice-breaker in the auxiliary gymnasium. I also spent time in the middle-high back to school staff meeting and enjoyed seeing Center High School principal Kevin Jones sharing communication duties with new Skoglund Middle School principal Luis Murillo. By the end of the day Friday it looked like everyone was ready to greet kids early Monday morning.
Last Tuesday Center Schools hosted a Kagan Cooperative Learning-Classroom Engagement training session that attracted 75 educators from Colorado and other western states. By hosting the session and attracting non-Center Schools educators we were able to secure 7 free training slots to get many of our new staff members up to speed on these important instructional tools. A big thank you goes out to director of instruction Lori Cooper for arranging this event!
Last Tuesday Center Schools hosted a Kagan Cooperative Learning-Classroom Engagement training session that attracted 75 educators from Colorado and other western states. By hosting the session and attracting non-Center Schools educators we were able to secure 7 free training slots to get many of our new staff members up to speed on these important instructional tools. A big thank you goes out to director of instruction Lori Cooper for arranging this event!
I also want to thank Lori for arranging an opportunity for all of our staff members to learn more about how to more effectively use iPads as a classroom instructional tool. Additionally, Lori recruited 3rd grade teacher Jessica Stevens and middle school teacher Linda Donaldson to train all of our teachers on Thursday in the use of the eNetColorado-Dream platform for accessing our curriculum and regional common assessments. Learning how to use this tool will be helpful to our staff members as they continue working with teachers from other districts through our regional Race to the Top collaborative. On Thursday evening the Haskin Elementary staff welcomed more than 100 parents to campus by holding a wonderful “Back to the Books” orientation event.
On Friday morning it was great to once again see all of our staff members assembled in the Center Schools Commons as we held a welcome back gathering and celebrated the many wonderful accomplishments of the past school year. Highlights we focused on included wonderful TCAP student achievement and growth, our effective implementation of SB 191 style evaluations, our work related to the Race to the top of the Valley consortium, our various Legacy Foundation Healthy Schools awards, CHS’s fifth straight CDE Center of Educational Excellence award, Daniel Newmyer’s acceptance as an Einstein Fellow, our K-12 one to one device program, our work with the Boettcher Teacher Program, our work related to the SLV Blended Learning Grant, the $250,000 in scholarships our graduating seniors earned this year,
our second consecutive Daniel’s Scholar, our state science fair chemistry division champion, our state champion wrestler, and the wonderful seasons our boys basketball and baseball programs experienced.
On Friday evening new Skoglund Middle School principal Luis Murillo held a parent meeting during which he shared his personal journey toward an education, expressed his desire to work in our community, and encouraged parents to support the work that is taking place at Skoglund. The meeting was well attended and many parents were very appreciative of the effot put forth by Mr. Murillo.
On Friday evening new Skoglund Middle School principal Luis Murillo held a parent meeting during which he shared his personal journey toward an education, expressed his desire to work in our community, and encouraged parents to support the work that is taking place at Skoglund. The meeting was well attended and many parents were very appreciative of the effot put forth by Mr. Murillo.
Big Things We Are Working On
Our major focus has been on opening the buildings and kicking off the 2014-14 school year. On Monday August 11th all children in grades K-5 will begin normal classes at Haskin Elementary School. On the same day only students in grades 6-12 who are required to attend Jump Start because of their performance on state assessments will need to begin attending.
Other big items we are working toward include preparing for our next all valley PLC session that will take place on August 14 in Del Norte, and preparing for our August 12th board of education meeting and pre-meeting work session related to setting priorities for the board-superintendent relationship for the coming year.
Other big items we are working toward include preparing for our next all valley PLC session that will take place on August 14 in Del Norte, and preparing for our August 12th board of education meeting and pre-meeting work session related to setting priorities for the board-superintendent relationship for the coming year.
The Past Week
During the past week we continued to orient our new teachers to their work in the Center School District. This effort included teaching them how to effectively plan lessons using clear objectives tied to the curriculum, and how to measure student learning by implementing effective daily formative assessments. They also received their first day of training in how to engage all students in lessons through the use of Kagan cooperative learning techniques, and how to better use technology tools to support student learning and lesson delivery.
I began my week in Denver by chairing the quarterly Colorado School Safety Resource Center Advisory Board meeting. I then did a full-blown district vision, mission, and core belief orientation for new teachers on Wednesday morning. All staff members returned to work on Thursday and on this day teachers learned how to use the eNetColorado Dream platform for accessing curriculum and quarterly assessments. On Friday we held our traditional all staff gathering and on Friday at Noon the good folks from the Center United Methodist Church provided a potluck lunch for all the people who work at Center Schools. This treat was greatly appreciated, and was accompanied by the donation of school supplies to be offered to some of our more needy children. I understand this was the 35th consecutive year this event took place.
I began my week in Denver by chairing the quarterly Colorado School Safety Resource Center Advisory Board meeting. I then did a full-blown district vision, mission, and core belief orientation for new teachers on Wednesday morning. All staff members returned to work on Thursday and on this day teachers learned how to use the eNetColorado Dream platform for accessing curriculum and quarterly assessments. On Friday we held our traditional all staff gathering and on Friday at Noon the good folks from the Center United Methodist Church provided a potluck lunch for all the people who work at Center Schools. This treat was greatly appreciated, and was accompanied by the donation of school supplies to be offered to some of our more needy children. I understand this was the 35th consecutive year this event took place.
The Week Ahead
During the coming week I will be working to finalize the process by which SLV teachers will validate their quarterly assessments, and will stay late Monday evening to work with Moffat Schools superintendent Kirk Banghart and Centennial Schools principal Curtis Garcia to train regional PLC leaders how to guide their cohorts through this process when we convene in Del Norte on Thursday.
On Tuesday I have my monthly marathon of meetings day, kicking off with our first SLV Superintendents Advisory Council meeting of the year in Alamosa at 9 AM, and ending with our regular August board of education meeting that evening. On Wednesday I will be meeting with alternative school director Joy Werner and adult education instructor Richard Blakeslee about processes for providing child care for adult learners. I will also be spending a lot of time on this day preparing for our all Valley teacher gathering that takes place in Del Norte on Thursday. On Friday I will be meeting with director of finance Betty Casanova about business office personnel annual evaluations.
On Tuesday I have my monthly marathon of meetings day, kicking off with our first SLV Superintendents Advisory Council meeting of the year in Alamosa at 9 AM, and ending with our regular August board of education meeting that evening. On Wednesday I will be meeting with alternative school director Joy Werner and adult education instructor Richard Blakeslee about processes for providing child care for adult learners. I will also be spending a lot of time on this day preparing for our all Valley teacher gathering that takes place in Del Norte on Thursday. On Friday I will be meeting with director of finance Betty Casanova about business office personnel annual evaluations.
Extra Points
This weekend was a tough one for many folks in Center. Unfortunately on Saturday former Haskin Elementary School teacher Jim Hood passed away. Mr. Hood taught 4th and 5th grade students for many years and was also our elementary computer skills teacher for a period of time. Jim was also deeply involved in the Kiwanis Club of Center. At this difficult time we offer our deepest sympathy to his family, especially his sister Cheryl Shearin, another former Center Schools employee.
On the very same day Center Schools custodian Gerald Hammer’s mother Tomasita passed on. Tomasita had only recently discovered she was suffering from pancreatic cancer, and Gerald quickly brought her to Pueblo for medical assistance. Unfortunately she lost her battle on Saturday. Gerald, we want you to know our thoughts and prayers are with you and I have no doubt the entire Center Schools family will do all it can to support you at this tremendous time of need.
Finally, my father Adam J. Welsh died on Saturday as well. At age 93 his health had been on a downhill slide since mid-February after he suffered a ruptured hematoma, landing him in a hospital for about a month, then transitioning to a long term care facility since then. Extremely active right up through February, Dad ended up wheelchair bound, while also suffering from periodic dementia for the last 6 months.
On the very same day Center Schools custodian Gerald Hammer’s mother Tomasita passed on. Tomasita had only recently discovered she was suffering from pancreatic cancer, and Gerald quickly brought her to Pueblo for medical assistance. Unfortunately she lost her battle on Saturday. Gerald, we want you to know our thoughts and prayers are with you and I have no doubt the entire Center Schools family will do all it can to support you at this tremendous time of need.
Finally, my father Adam J. Welsh died on Saturday as well. At age 93 his health had been on a downhill slide since mid-February after he suffered a ruptured hematoma, landing him in a hospital for about a month, then transitioning to a long term care facility since then. Extremely active right up through February, Dad ended up wheelchair bound, while also suffering from periodic dementia for the last 6 months.
If you’ll humor me a bit, I would like to tell you a little about this man my kids called “Papa.” He was actually born on a family farm in Brooklyn, New York in 1921 (hard to find one of those nowadays). He graduated with a high school diploma from the New York City school system. As best I understand, his high school was simply identified by a number (something like PS 127). The middle child of seven siblings, his brothers and sisters always told us he was a bit of a hell raiser as a young man. After surviving the depression by helping to support his father who worked in a paint factory, he soon was inaugurated as a member of the “greatest generation” when he volunteered for the U.S. Navy several months before Pearl Harbor was attacked by the Japanese. He served as an airline navigator and radio operator in the South Pacific and was honorably discharged after the war ended. He married my mother, Anne, shortly after the war, then worked for 25 years as a machinist in a factory in the New York metropolitan area while raising 6 children. He and Mom transplanted the family to Tucson, Arizona in 1972, pinning their financial hopes on the success of a New York style delicatessen that quickly failed. However, after finding work at the University of Arizona as a custodian, he completed raising his kids, supporting 4 of them to earn college degrees while one became a skilled electrician. Dad retired from his custodial job at the age of 62 in 1983 and spent the rest of his life fiddling around his back yard shop and doting on his grandchildren (a total of 20) and great grand children (8 at the time of his death). A “traditional World War II era” father, what I cherish most about Dad is how he loved my mother, even nursing her for the better part of 5 years as she drifted away from us as a result of Alzheimer’s disease. Though an imperfect man at best, if Adam J. Welsh was anything he was a good role model. From him I learned the value of hard work, how to love my family unconditionally, and how to honor my wife while also driving her a little crazy. I can only hope everyone was fortunate enough blessed with a man who was as good a role model as my father was for me.
We want to thank the many friends, colleagues, and community members who have already reached out to us with their condolences. It looks like the family and I will be heading to Tucson on the weekend of August 23rd to gather and celebrate his life in our own unique way.
Please pause a moment this week to appreciate those close friends and family members who surround you, and thanks for listening once again!
George
We want to thank the many friends, colleagues, and community members who have already reached out to us with their condolences. It looks like the family and I will be heading to Tucson on the weekend of August 23rd to gather and celebrate his life in our own unique way.
Please pause a moment this week to appreciate those close friends and family members who surround you, and thanks for listening once again!
George