Great Things Going On
Congratulations are due to Center High School junior Gabriela Bucio upon being recognized with a national award at the Friends First-STARS National Conference held in Denver, Colorado during the last week of July. STARS is a national organization, including a chapter in Center, that focuses on providing students with tools to to make positive life choices to lead them toward successful futures. It turns out Gabby was given the first ever STARS Mentorlife award! This award was created to honor one student per year who has exemplified the core values of the STARS program. The Friends First organization believes the Mentorlife recipient should be a young man or woman who always has someone investing in them, who is also willing to invest in others. Gabriela has served on the STARS National Conference Youth Staff and is a wonderful example of a STARS Youth Mentor. As the recipient of this award she also received a $500 scholarship to help support her upcoming college career. Congratulations Gabby!
Our local STARS program exists in no small part because of the tremendous efforts of Center Schools contracted counselor Katrin Ruggles' ability to secure grants that benefit the academics, health, and wellness of our students and staff members. Last week Mrs. Ruggles also attended the STARS National Conference in Denver then flew off to Orlando, Florida for the American School Counselor Association National Conference. At this event she had the opportunity to network with and share best practices with school counselors from all over the country. She even got to witness a keynote presentation by first lady Michelle Obama, who thanked school counselors for all the work they do to support the education efforts of children, and who talked about a new "Reach Higher" initiative that focuses on supporting low income children in their effort to gain access to higher education.
Speaking of Orlando, Haskin Elementary School teacher Ashley Lane also made use of her suitcase last week, traveling there to complete Kagan Cooperative Learning certification training for the benefit of the students of the Center School District. It has long been a goal of the district to ensure all students are fully engaged in classroom learning activities, and our entire teaching staff was able to benefit from comprehensive training in Kagan strategies two years ago, thanks in most part to the Haskin Elementary Turnaround Improvement Grant. Kagan classroom strategies are excellent tools by which teachers can change the classroom environment from one in which only a few highly motivated learners engage in daily lessons, to one where all students participate equally and are held responsible for concepts being taught. Knowing that each year new teachers will come to the district, we have been looking for a more affordable way to train and support our instructors in the use of Kagan engagement strategies. The training Ashley received last week will allow us to train and coach our new staff members, right on-site, at a tremendous savings. Thank you Ashley for taking time out of your summer to do this!
Big Things We Are Working On
Our regular July board of education meeting takes place this Tuesday at 8 PM in the Fyock Community Library Community Room. The major things we hope to accomplish at this meeting include the rehiring of all district classified employees, hiring substitute employees for the 2014-15 school year, formally hiring all varsity head coaches, considering bids related to the possible purchase of two trip buses and two fleet vehicles for the transportation department, and hiring Early Steps to School Success program coordinator Alondra Chaparro into the district as an employee because the district is taking over the implementation of that grant from the Save the Children Foundation.
The Past Week
I was on vacation last week, celebrating the 4th of July in balmy Tucson, Arizona with my father, daughters, family members, and good friends. On the way home I also had the opportunity to make the trek to Alpine, Arizona where my administrator mentor and good friend David Santa-Maria is spending time recovering from surgery he had earlier this spring to remove a cancerous brain tumor. He is looking great and in good spirits about his potential recovery, and it was fun spending time with him and his wife Karen, and to wet a few fishing lines while in the cool mountains of Arizona.
While I was vacationing our custodial staff was continuing their work to get the school looking brand new once again in time for our first day with children on Monday August 11th. Additionally, our dedicated administration office staff spent time closing the books on the 2103-14 fiscal year, opening the books on 2014-15, and preparing the board packet for this week's meeting. I also noticed that director of technology Julio Paez and his staff have already placed orders for new student technology devices to put in place for the coming school year.
While I was vacationing our custodial staff was continuing their work to get the school looking brand new once again in time for our first day with children on Monday August 11th. Additionally, our dedicated administration office staff spent time closing the books on the 2103-14 fiscal year, opening the books on 2014-15, and preparing the board packet for this week's meeting. I also noticed that director of technology Julio Paez and his staff have already placed orders for new student technology devices to put in place for the coming school year.
The Week Ahead
Though I am coming back from a week away from work I am fortunate not to be faced with a hectic schedule. My hopes for the week are to begin working on some tasks I put on my long term "to do" list earlier this spring. Some of these items include working on historical items related to the school district, reviewing and possibly making recommendations for changes to our board and administrative policies related to curriculum and calendar, ordering some signage that we never received for the varsity gymnasium-commons area, and finalizing teacher and administrator evaluation reports for CDE related to our being an SB-191 pilot district.
Thanks for listening once again!
George
Thanks for listening once again!
George