Great Things Going On
With the arrival of our new Americorps team an after school Art Club has already begun. All students looking to explore their creative side are welcome to participate.
Last week Center Schools conducted a Thanksgiving food drive to benefit the Center Food Bank and through the competition that pitted staff members against one-another a total of 1,500 food items collected.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with our district’s continual improvement processes, I want to remind you that our annual academic improvement plan begins at the building leadership team level. Haskin Elementary School and Skoglund Middle-Center High School each have their own team and the greatest work we have been doing to improve learning opportunities for children have derived from the work each of these groups are doing. Members of the middle-high BLT meet roughly every other month at 7 AM to conduct their work. Elementary BLT members gather occasionally after school or during the school day to conduct their work.
Last week Center Schools conducted a Thanksgiving food drive to benefit the Center Food Bank and through the competition that pitted staff members against one-another a total of 1,500 food items collected.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with our district’s continual improvement processes, I want to remind you that our annual academic improvement plan begins at the building leadership team level. Haskin Elementary School and Skoglund Middle-Center High School each have their own team and the greatest work we have been doing to improve learning opportunities for children have derived from the work each of these groups are doing. Members of the middle-high BLT meet roughly every other month at 7 AM to conduct their work. Elementary BLT members gather occasionally after school or during the school day to conduct their work.
Center Schools, thanks to an Expelled and At Risk Student Services grant secured through the hard work of Katrina Ruggles and her team of Vista workers, now has a Parent Involvement Liaison. It is now Brenda Padilla’s job to engage and support Center Schools parents. One way she is doing this is by creating a text notification system in which parents can enroll to receive messages from the school about various happenings. To get started all parents of Skoglund Middle School students need to do is text @cparentsms to the number 720-408-2301. Center High School parents can do the same, except they need to text @cparentshs to the same number.
The whole San Luis Valley received great news this week as the University of Colorado at Denver announced its HELM physical education support program received additional funding. HELM has done wonderful work creating professional learning communities, developing curriculum, and supporting outstanding physical education instruction for schools all throughout our region. As SLV Race to the top of the Valley collaboration facilitator, it is my observation that the regional PE team has done some of the most amazing work in support of improved instruction that is happening in the state.
The whole San Luis Valley received great news this week as the University of Colorado at Denver announced its HELM physical education support program received additional funding. HELM has done wonderful work creating professional learning communities, developing curriculum, and supporting outstanding physical education instruction for schools all throughout our region. As SLV Race to the top of the Valley collaboration facilitator, it is my observation that the regional PE team has done some of the most amazing work in support of improved instruction that is happening in the state.
Big Things We Are Working On
Early this week Center Schools teachers and administrators will meet to discuss staff member compensation. Each year after pupil count is completed we get together to discuss salaries, of course with an eye on being able to maintain an appropriate level of human resource support for providing our students with the instruction they need to be successful. This year our student count is up significantly, which translates into more dollars available for instruction, and probably no district’s staff deserves to be rewarded more for its effort than that of the Center School District because of the outstanding improvement in student learning outcomes that have been achieved.
Center Schools is also closely following a decision that will soon be made regarding the Solar Reserve project that is proposed to occupy land within its boundaries. On December 9th the Colorado Public Utilities Commission will make a decision regarding Solar Reserve’s offer to provide Xcel Energy with power through the project. This matter is of high interest to our district as the additional value that will be added to the districts overall property valuation, the opportunity to prepare students for high tech jobs, and the educational partnerships that will be established with Solar Reserve will great effect the surrounding community. It is believed Solar Reserve will contribute roughly $900 million to Colorado’s economy through construction jobs, long-term power plant operation jobs, enhanced tourism and tax base, and other sources. It would create roughly 1,400 jobs directly and indirectly in Colorado. Of these figures, roughly $330 million in economic benefits and 800 jobs would flow to the San Luis Valley.
Center Schools is also closely following a decision that will soon be made regarding the Solar Reserve project that is proposed to occupy land within its boundaries. On December 9th the Colorado Public Utilities Commission will make a decision regarding Solar Reserve’s offer to provide Xcel Energy with power through the project. This matter is of high interest to our district as the additional value that will be added to the districts overall property valuation, the opportunity to prepare students for high tech jobs, and the educational partnerships that will be established with Solar Reserve will great effect the surrounding community. It is believed Solar Reserve will contribute roughly $900 million to Colorado’s economy through construction jobs, long-term power plant operation jobs, enhanced tourism and tax base, and other sources. It would create roughly 1,400 jobs directly and indirectly in Colorado. Of these figures, roughly $330 million in economic benefits and 800 jobs would flow to the San Luis Valley.
The Past Week
On Monday several superintendents from around the San Luis Valley were on our campus to take part in a walkthrough coaching process. On Tuesday I attended the San Luis Valley Superintendent Advisory Council meeting in the morning, our District Accountability meeting in the early evening, and our regular November board of education meeting at night. On Thursday the Center Schools administrative team traveled to Ellicott to participate in a district knowledge sharing session. The experience was great as we picked up a few ideas that we can use here in Center, and a lot of what we are doing well was validated in our minds. On Friday I was back in Center working on Race to the top of the Valley collaborative tasks.
The Week Ahead
As stated above, on Monday I will spend the day in salary negotiations with Center Education Association leaders. On Monday evening I will be dropping in on a Lindamood-Bell tips from home parent workshop. On Tuesday I have a full day of instructional walks scheduled, bringing along teachers from the elementary, middle, and high schools. I will be back on campus again on Tuesday evening to participate in Haskin’s family math night. On Wednesday I will be attending the Southern Superintendent’s meeting in Pueblo where I will facilitate conversation between regional superintendents and our legislative representatives. I will then return to Alamosa early in the afternoon for a measures of student growth meeting related to SB 191 implementation, and then I will attend a BOCES board governance training session in the evening. Thursday should offer plenty of time to catch up on paperwork and Friday we hope to conduct a special board of education meeting to swear in our new and continuing board members.
Next week is Thanksgiving break and I will be doing all I can to focus my attention on my family.
Thanks for listening once again. Have a great week!
George
Next week is Thanksgiving break and I will be doing all I can to focus my attention on my family.
Thanks for listening once again. Have a great week!
George
