Great Things Going On Now
With graduation and continuation ceremonies behind us Center Schools is already focusing on the 2012-13 academic year. The Center Schools summer instruction program began last Tuesday when staff members reported for work, grouped students, and set up their areas for instruction. Because of construction issues, our summer program is being conducted in the Center Masonic Lodge, the Center United Methodist Church and the St. Francis Jerome Catholic Church. I would like to extend the district’s sincere gratitude to these organizations for opening their doors to our children in this time of need.
The Center Schools K-8 summer program is being conducted for the purpose of supporting students for whom there is evidence of need for extra attention in reading and math. The instructional program runs from 8 AM to noon each day, with lunch
The Center Schools K-8 summer program is being conducted for the purpose of supporting students for whom there is evidence of need for extra attention in reading and math. The instructional program runs from 8 AM to noon each day, with lunch
served from noon to 12:30 PM and children being transported home or released at that time. Reading
interventions are conducted using the Lindamood-Bell intervention model, while
the focus on math has been number sense and the fundamentals of addition,
subtraction, multiplication and division.
Research shows that students performing below grade level need extra
time and attention to catch up to their peers. The Center Schools K-8 summer program has a laser focus on
providing exactly this.
One other mention I would like to make this week is to offer a big thank you to Center Schools director of finance Betty Casanova for the great work she did balancing the May payroll process while also completing a preliminary budget to be reviewed at a special meeting last week. These are gigantic tasks and I appreciate how she balances them and finds a way to keep us on track with state required timelines.
One other mention I would like to make this week is to offer a big thank you to Center Schools director of finance Betty Casanova for the great work she did balancing the May payroll process while also completing a preliminary budget to be reviewed at a special meeting last week. These are gigantic tasks and I appreciate how she balances them and finds a way to keep us on track with state required timelines.
The Past Week
The week of May 28 through June 4 was another busy one. Many construction matters were addressed including offering tours of the new building offered to various community groups and individuals, as well as holding our bi-weekly construction planning meeting. On Wednesday at noon we held a special board of education meeting to adopt a preliminary budget for the 2012-13 fiscal year. On Thursday I made a trip to Brighton to participate in a panel discussion on “The Rural Education Challenge.” On Friday I spent the entire day preparing for Saturday’s Center Beginner Triathlon by marking the course, preparing food for participants, putting together registration bags, and preparing volunteers for their support tasks.
Big Things We Are Working On
Our greatest focus in the past few weeks has been to offer a preliminary budget to the board of education for consideration and adoption. In order to do so we first try to pin down anticipated revenues and balance them with anticipated expenditures. During the past four years this has been more challenging because of the significant cuts we have experienced due to the economic slowdown. Since the 2008-09 fiscal year Center Schools has been operating on roughly $800,000 less per year. This year we are expecting to have approximately the same amount of dollars to work with as we did last year. We expect our local share of tax dollars to stay the same, while our state share should go up by about $30,000. Unfortunately this increase in state funding will be negated in our budget by a $30,000 decrease in federal programs funding. Having basically the same amount of dollars to operate with this year as last has left us in a situation where we expect to be able to keep every effective employee on staff for the 2012-13 school year. This is exciting for us because the wonderful work being done in Center Schools quite simply comes down to the great people we have working on behalf of our children.
Another big part of the annual budgeting process is the completion of the annual federal programs application. We’ll be spending the next two weeks trying to get this tied out in time for the final budget adoption that will take place before the end of June.
One other task we are taking on during the month of June is an attempt to revise all Center Schools class composites. We are hoping this task can be done in time to have the pictures of as many Center Schools graduates displayed in the new school as possible.
Another big part of the annual budgeting process is the completion of the annual federal programs application. We’ll be spending the next two weeks trying to get this tied out in time for the final budget adoption that will take place before the end of June.
One other task we are taking on during the month of June is an attempt to revise all Center Schools class composites. We are hoping this task can be done in time to have the pictures of as many Center Schools graduates displayed in the new school as possible.
Construction News
The major construction matters we are dealing with right now include the discussion of keeping the old alternative school building where it is, or possibly relocating it.
On the demolition front, we have been slowed down a bit as more asbestos coated piping has been located in Haskin elementary school and this will need to be abated before the building actually falls.
We are also trying to get ahead of safety issues before we occupy the new building so we have Center Schools behavior resource specialist Jaime Hurtado working to mount fire evacuation and emergency protocol documents in each classroom before rooms are occupied.
Speaking of safety, many of you might have seen how the new school playground is emerging on the West side of the facility. This will, no doubt, be a tempting place as it gets completed even before the entire construction process is done. We ask that parents and community members do their best to discourage children from entering the site to play before construction is done.
Finally, the folks at CenturyLink installed our new district phone system last week. Please be patient with us for the next few weeks as we learn how to operate it.
On the demolition front, we have been slowed down a bit as more asbestos coated piping has been located in Haskin elementary school and this will need to be abated before the building actually falls.
We are also trying to get ahead of safety issues before we occupy the new building so we have Center Schools behavior resource specialist Jaime Hurtado working to mount fire evacuation and emergency protocol documents in each classroom before rooms are occupied.
Speaking of safety, many of you might have seen how the new school playground is emerging on the West side of the facility. This will, no doubt, be a tempting place as it gets completed even before the entire construction process is done. We ask that parents and community members do their best to discourage children from entering the site to play before construction is done.
Finally, the folks at CenturyLink installed our new district phone system last week. Please be patient with us for the next few weeks as we learn how to operate it.
The Week Ahead
On Monday afternoon I will be participating in a dress rehearsal United States Department of Education webinar on teacher and administrator evaluation processes in rural settings. On Thursday I will be part of a team of three rural administrators from all over the United States teaching lessons learned in the process to put in place systems as have been enacted through Colorado’s SB 191.
Our building administrators will be working this week to fill open grade level and MS/HS ESL positions this week. I will be meeting at the Center Volunteer Fire Department on Wednesday evening to continue work on an upcoming active shooter drill that will take place on our new campus. On Thursday I will attend an Even Start board meeting in Alamosa. On Friday I will be travelling to Pueblo in preparation for follow up Governor Hickenlooper TBD sessions that will take place on Saturday.
Our building administrators will be working this week to fill open grade level and MS/HS ESL positions this week. I will be meeting at the Center Volunteer Fire Department on Wednesday evening to continue work on an upcoming active shooter drill that will take place on our new campus. On Thursday I will attend an Even Start board meeting in Alamosa. On Friday I will be travelling to Pueblo in preparation for follow up Governor Hickenlooper TBD sessions that will take place on Saturday.
Extra Points
The annual Center Beginner Triathlon took place this past Saturday at the Sand Dunes Recreation Pool in Hooper. Sixty participants from all over the state of Colorado and beyond took advantage of this early season event to set a goal to get in shape. The Center Consolidated School District was well represented at this event. I am pleased to say Center Virtual Academy director Chris Vance, Haskin Elementary instructional coach Sarah Vance, former Center Schools board of education president Janet Kuntz, Haskin Elementary principal Kathy Kulp, and Haskin Elementary 3rd grade teacher Christy Mikeljack accomplished their goal of completing their first sprint length triathlon!
As for many things in life it takes hard work and dedication to achieve such a goal as completing a triathlon. It is my belief that when we do things like this in our personal life, our professional skills benefit as well. Waking up early to do a strength workout, pushing ourselves during the last mile of our run workout, and overcoming our fears of swimming or biking teach us the lesson that when we put forth our mind and effort, we can accomplish anything. Congratulations Chris, Sarah, Janet, Kathy and Christine: your hard work and dedication motivated me to do my training as well. Thanks also to the good folks who operate the Sand Dunes Swimming Pool, our most wonderful crew of AmeriCorps workers, and my many good friends who pitched in to make this year’s event the biggest and best we have ever had. If anyone out there thinks they would like to work toward completing a triathlon go to the website www.centertriathlontraining.com to see how it all works.
Thanks for listening again.
George
Thanks for listening again.
George