Great Things Going On
I want to begin this week by thanking our Vista workers Arabia, Matt, Matthew, Courtney, and Raffi for the great work they did putting a welcome back students video together for the first day of grade 6-12 school. They worked with many of our students to illustrate key behavior rules and expectations and produced a product that was both entertaining and informative. Thanks for putting forth that extra effort!
While at our 6-12 welcome back assembly Center High/Skoglund Middle School math/science teacher Daniel Newmyer was visited by US Representative Scott Tipton’s office and presented with a congressional declaration congratulating him on his hard work as a teacher, and for being recognized as the San Luis Valley Teacher of the Year.
Finally, Fall sports are in full swing and it is a pleasure to see how many of our students are engaged in the activities we offer. A big thank you goes out to Cross Country Coach Dennis Schoenfelder, Soccer Coach Jaime Hurtado, Volleyball Coach Annie Rice, Cheerleading Coach Kimberly Duran, and Football Coach Lee Flood and their coaching staff for all the hard work they do to offer positive outlets for our students.
While at our 6-12 welcome back assembly Center High/Skoglund Middle School math/science teacher Daniel Newmyer was visited by US Representative Scott Tipton’s office and presented with a congressional declaration congratulating him on his hard work as a teacher, and for being recognized as the San Luis Valley Teacher of the Year.
Finally, Fall sports are in full swing and it is a pleasure to see how many of our students are engaged in the activities we offer. A big thank you goes out to Cross Country Coach Dennis Schoenfelder, Soccer Coach Jaime Hurtado, Volleyball Coach Annie Rice, Cheerleading Coach Kimberly Duran, and Football Coach Lee Flood and their coaching staff for all the hard work they do to offer positive outlets for our students.
Big Things We Are Working On
At this week’s District Accountability Committee and Board of Education meetings Center Schools will be pouring over student achievement data to consider how it will assign accreditation ratings to each building
The Center Schools Board of Education certified its ballot for the upcoming school board election. Current at-large director James Sanchez has chosen to run for the four year Director District B Board seat and will be doing so unopposed. The two-year At-Large seat he is vacating will be a competition between Joe Trujillo and Phil Varoz.
Many of you may have noticed how we have been struggling keeping the grass green on our campus. It turns out our irrigation well has been sucking some sand and causing damage to our sprinkler heads. Rich Brandt and Tony Garcia have been working real hard to remedy this situation, but we are betting the actual solution might be a bit costly as it may be time to put a sand filter on the well, and to possibly deepen it.
The Center Schools Board of Education certified its ballot for the upcoming school board election. Current at-large director James Sanchez has chosen to run for the four year Director District B Board seat and will be doing so unopposed. The two-year At-Large seat he is vacating will be a competition between Joe Trujillo and Phil Varoz.
Many of you may have noticed how we have been struggling keeping the grass green on our campus. It turns out our irrigation well has been sucking some sand and causing damage to our sprinkler heads. Rich Brandt and Tony Garcia have been working real hard to remedy this situation, but we are betting the actual solution might be a bit costly as it may be time to put a sand filter on the well, and to possibly deepen it.
The Past Week
Tuesday was the first day of school for all 6th through 12th grade students who did not have to attend Jump Start. That morning the middle/high packed the Center Schools Auditorium for a welcome back assembly.
On Tuesday evening I attended the Colorado Association of School Boards Fall regional meeting in Monte Vista.
On Wednesday I focused on the details of an SB 191 Liaison grant offered by the Colorado Legacy Foundation. Center Schools employees Joy Werner and Chris Vance are spearheading this effort for us, as well as for the Del Norte and Mountain Valley school districts. On Wednesday afternoon I worked with staff members to develop printing and copying policies aimed at conserving costs and district resources.
Thursday and Friday didn’t go as originally planned. On Thursday I was part of a focus group of Colorado superintendents offering feedback about a book being written to train superintendents and school boards to work well together. On Friday I conducted a lot of Race to the top of the Valley work, including focusing on our Valley wide iPad initiative. I also enjoyed spending time Friday evening at our home volleyball and football games.
On Tuesday evening I attended the Colorado Association of School Boards Fall regional meeting in Monte Vista.
On Wednesday I focused on the details of an SB 191 Liaison grant offered by the Colorado Legacy Foundation. Center Schools employees Joy Werner and Chris Vance are spearheading this effort for us, as well as for the Del Norte and Mountain Valley school districts. On Wednesday afternoon I worked with staff members to develop printing and copying policies aimed at conserving costs and district resources.
Thursday and Friday didn’t go as originally planned. On Thursday I was part of a focus group of Colorado superintendents offering feedback about a book being written to train superintendents and school boards to work well together. On Friday I conducted a lot of Race to the top of the Valley work, including focusing on our Valley wide iPad initiative. I also enjoyed spending time Friday evening at our home volleyball and football games.
The Week Ahead
This is homecoming week in the world of Center Schools. The week’s festivities include dress up days such as pajama day on Monday, favorite sports team day on Tuesday, hat day on Wednesday, designated class color day on Thursday, and blue and white day on Friday. We’ll have our traditional parade on Thursday September 12th at 2:30 PM, and our annual community pep rally will take place that evening at 6 PM in the gym.
Homecoming week will culminate with three home athletic contests on Friday, including a soccer game at 3:30 PM, volleyball games at 4 PM and a football game beginning at 7 PM. A special treat this year includes a fireworks show that will be put on by the Center Volunteer Fire Department after the Friday night football game!
If holding homecoming doesn’t make our week busy enough, we are also hosting our annual Open House event this Wednesday beginning at 6 PM. We invite everyone to join us at the school commons for a hamburgers and pot-luck dinner, to visit classrooms, and to gather in the auxiliary gymnasium for door prize drawings. Many of our local businesses have pitched in some wonderful prizes and rumor has it the district may be giving away a brand new iPad mini!
As for my personal week, on Monday my main calendar event is to meet with folks from a company called Curriculum Loft to see what they offer as far as curriculum resources and apps that can be accessed by our students through their iPads and laptops. On Tuesday I have my monthly marathon of meetings that will include the san Luis Valley superintendents advisory council n the morning, a Saguache County Commissioners meeting in the afternoon, our district accountability meeting in the early evening, and our regular September board of education meeting in the evening. On Wednesday I will focus on wrapping up some construction project loose ends, and preparing for and attending Open House. On Thursday I will be meeting about our San Luis Valley Mental Health services contract, attending the homecoming parade, and attending the community pep rally. On Friday I meet with san Luis Valley Colorado Education Association Uniserv Director Dennis Carlson, and look forward to attending home soccer, volleyball, and football contests in conjunction with homecoming. For those of you wanting to catch the cross country squad this week, they will compete in Gunnison on Saturday morning.
Homecoming week will culminate with three home athletic contests on Friday, including a soccer game at 3:30 PM, volleyball games at 4 PM and a football game beginning at 7 PM. A special treat this year includes a fireworks show that will be put on by the Center Volunteer Fire Department after the Friday night football game!
If holding homecoming doesn’t make our week busy enough, we are also hosting our annual Open House event this Wednesday beginning at 6 PM. We invite everyone to join us at the school commons for a hamburgers and pot-luck dinner, to visit classrooms, and to gather in the auxiliary gymnasium for door prize drawings. Many of our local businesses have pitched in some wonderful prizes and rumor has it the district may be giving away a brand new iPad mini!
As for my personal week, on Monday my main calendar event is to meet with folks from a company called Curriculum Loft to see what they offer as far as curriculum resources and apps that can be accessed by our students through their iPads and laptops. On Tuesday I have my monthly marathon of meetings that will include the san Luis Valley superintendents advisory council n the morning, a Saguache County Commissioners meeting in the afternoon, our district accountability meeting in the early evening, and our regular September board of education meeting in the evening. On Wednesday I will focus on wrapping up some construction project loose ends, and preparing for and attending Open House. On Thursday I will be meeting about our San Luis Valley Mental Health services contract, attending the homecoming parade, and attending the community pep rally. On Friday I meet with san Luis Valley Colorado Education Association Uniserv Director Dennis Carlson, and look forward to attending home soccer, volleyball, and football contests in conjunction with homecoming. For those of you wanting to catch the cross country squad this week, they will compete in Gunnison on Saturday morning.
Our Core Beliefs
Our second core belief states, “with our support ALL children can achieve at high levels and be successful in life.” As I have often said this means we in Center Schools know it is what WE do with kids at school in the time we have them that makes the ultimate difference academically. As I’m sure you all know, here in Center Schools we have some of the most wonderful parents in the world who push and support their children toward success both in school and in life. Unfortunately we also have some children who don’t have that kind of support at home. However, no matter the child’s circumstance, we at Center Schools believe that in the end WE have the greatest influence on what and how much a child learns academically. This is the main way we hold ourselves accountable for the outcomes of our students.
Thanks for listening once again!
George
Thanks for listening once again!
George