Great Things Going On
This week I want to thank Center Schools Director of Facilities Richard Brandt for the wonderful preparation he put into our two-year warranty walkthrough that took place this past week. In observing how he interacted with the folks from GE Johnson and the various electricians, plumbers and controls engineers it was clear to me that Rich has attained extensive knowledge of how our mechanical systems should be working. He also did a great job of communicating the many minor classroom issues that need to be addressed, and at the end of our session we felt confident all warranty work will be completed by the first day of August, in plenty of time for school to begin.
Although we are in the midst of summer, Alondra Chaparro, our Save the Children Early Steps to School Success Director, is still engaging future readers through the operation of her program and by conducting parent child group sessions. Alondra operates her program out of the old alternative school facility and is doing wonderful work supporting local parents to raise active readers.
Congratulations are due to recent Center High School graduates Louise Vazquez and Maya Martinez upon being awarded San Luis UniServ Unit Ethnic Minority Advisory Council scholarships! Louise Vazquez is the daughter of Center Schools teacher Zoraya Vazquez. She plans to pursue nursing and premedical degrees in order to become a registered nurse and, subsequently, a medical doctor with the Doctors Without Borders program. Maya Martinez is the daughter of Center Schools teachers Gail and Diego Martinez. She plans to study business administration at Adams State University, influenced by her many leadership commitments during her high school career. These scholarships were made possible for these young ladies through the generosity of cash donations from teachers throughout the San Luis Valley!
Congratulations are due to recent Center High School graduates Louise Vazquez and Maya Martinez upon being awarded San Luis UniServ Unit Ethnic Minority Advisory Council scholarships! Louise Vazquez is the daughter of Center Schools teacher Zoraya Vazquez. She plans to pursue nursing and premedical degrees in order to become a registered nurse and, subsequently, a medical doctor with the Doctors Without Borders program. Maya Martinez is the daughter of Center Schools teachers Gail and Diego Martinez. She plans to study business administration at Adams State University, influenced by her many leadership commitments during her high school career. These scholarships were made possible for these young ladies through the generosity of cash donations from teachers throughout the San Luis Valley!
Finally, big thanks go out to Academic Resource Center director Joy Werner and Center Virtual Academy director Chris Vance for the extra duty work they did this year serving as Colorado Legacy Foundation (now Colorado Education Initiative) evaluation liaisons. In this role Joy and Chris spearheaded the good work that was done in the San Luis Valley related to the new state teacher evaluation measures of student learning portion of the process. In their work they helped refine a ground breaking evaluation calculator, instructed teachers in its use, and screened teacher work related to it in order to speed up the local evaluation process. At last week’s Integration Summit Joy and Chris were honored for their outstanding work and I had the pleasure of presenting the results of their labor related to this project.
Big Things We Are Working On
At last Thursday’s board meeting we approved a 2014-15 school year budget as well as our federal programs application. We also had a wonderful live sneak preview of the "Cinderella the Musical" performance our district summer drama club is preparing to present in July. With our warranty walkthrough complete I am now beginning to focus on finalizing department director and classified evaluation processes, and making recommendations for classified staff work agreement extensions to be placed before the board at the July meeting.
The Past Week
Last week I met with district nurse Alice Burch about the new state evaluation process for school nurses, travelled to Vail to present at the Colorado Education Initiative Integration Showcase on the topics of How to Build and Sustain Capacity for the State Evaluation System and Integrating Education Reforms: Effective Leadership and Community Engagement Strategies, participated in our two-year warranty walkthrough Rich Brandt on Thursday, and worked on end of year regional Race to the Top grant tasks on Friday.
The Week Ahead
On Sunday and Monday I will be working on June payroll items. On Tuesday and Wednesday superintendents from all over the state will be meeting at Battle Mountain High School in the Eagle County School District for the purpose of developing an advocacy plan for the future of education programs and finance in Colorado. On Thursday and Friday I will continue to work on end of fiscal year reporting tasks related to school safety, district accreditation, the valley race to the top grant, and federal programs.
Thanks for listening once again and have a great week!
George
Thanks for listening once again and have a great week!
George