Weekly Update: June 16, 2017
Weekly Update: June 16, 2017
Dear Board of Education, Families and Friends:
PLC Facilitators and Instructional Coaches Meeting:
This past Monday our administrators, building leadership PLC facilitators and instructional coaches met together to develop a further understanding of roles and responsibilities. The staff participated in team building activities, recognizing activities aligned to mission and values, and establishing team meeting goals. The staff also had an opportunity to learn that next year we will be focusing on High Reliability Schools, literacy, professional development in instructional practices, and school learning environments. It was a fun day! The team will follow up this August 11, 2017 to establish goals, roles as leaders, and professional development responsibilities.
Literacy Development:
The administrative team met with a representative from our AEA to explore further training options for staff in the area of literacy. The elementary principals reviewed pilot materials that could be used during the training sessions that will be held over the course of next year.
Emergency Planning:
The administrative team met with the police and fire department to develop a more cohesive emergency plan that will be reviewed later this summer. I want to thank our police and fire departments for their continual collaboration with the school district to ensure the safety of our students is a priority.
Board Meeting:
This past week our Board of Education met and approved the iPad purchase for Davis Elementary School. The Board also voted in Doug Cameron to serve the remaining term for Meg Jones Bair, who moved out of the district area 3 location. I look forward to working with Doug in this capacity. Other highlights from the meeting were that the Board approved the 8th grade Spanish Material resources, copier lease agreement, and the ISU student teacher placement agreement. Check out the full Board Agenda on the district’s website.
Curriculum Committee Meeting:
I met with the the Board of Education’s curriculum committee this week to discuss the Spanish curriculum adoption and literacy training pilot materials for next school year.
Regional Partnership Planning:
The Iowa Valley Collaborative met this past week to discuss the Regional Partnership Planning for our region as a result of legislation that centers on Career Technical Education. I have been elected to chair this committee for our region. Our first step was to approve the planning partnership bylaws. Next, we will be collecting data around programming and numbers of students who participate in CTE programs from the region.
Classroom Learning Environment Session at the Drake Library
This past week we held our first classroom learning environment session. There were about 20 community members in attendance that included our administrative team. I am hoping that more of our community, teachers, business members, and public will join us for the August 30 or September 6 session from 6:00-7:30 pm at the Drake Library. We would like for these sessions to be filled! Please come join the fun on August 30 or September 6th. I would very much appreciate your input!!
Baseball/Softball
Summer Fun: It was a beautiful night this past week to watch the games. Great job to all our players and coaches. Happy Summer!
Have a great weekend: Don’t forget Grinnell Games and Summerfest are happening this weekend. I hope you enjoy it.
Sincerely,
Janet
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Janet M. Stutz
Superintendent
Grinnell-Newburg Schools