Weekly Update: March 9, 2018
Weekly Update: March 9, 2018
Dear Grinnell-Newburg Families and Friends:
Happy Friday! It is that time of year again as we turn our clocks forward this weekend to begin Daylight Savings Time. Let’s hope for warmer weather just around the corner. We are just two weeks away from Spring Break.
It is my best hope that you have the opportunity to see “The Little Mermaid” this weekend. I attended opening night and I have to tell you it is one of the best high school musicals I have ever seen. The talent of this cast and crew is simply amazing. Not only was the singing, dancing and acting impressive, but the stage set and scene transitions were impeccable. Wow, what a show! I hope you have a chance to see it tonight or tomorrow night beginning at 7:00 PM.
Grinnell High School is hosting the South Central District FFA Leadership Conference on Saturday, March 10, 2018. I look forward to participating as a judge in this leadership conference tomorrow from 8:00am-1:00pm. Best of luck to our students.
Board Meeting March 14, 2018
Please know that the Board meeting next Wednesday will have an early start time of 5:00 PM. This will be a short meeting in order for members to attend the Chamber Event.
Bailey Park Students learn from High School Students:
Thank you to our high school students for working with our Bailey Park students this week as they taught the characteristic of Trustworthiness! We are grateful that our high school students continue to find ways to model for our younger students!
Professional Development Monday Highlight
Our teacher Vanguard Cohort worked on personalizing instruction with Apple tools. It included exploring the accessibility tools that are built into the iPad and MacBooks that our students use. This group of teachers from across the district have been meeting on professional development days to enhance instruction with technology. Their work has directly impacted many student lessons and projects this school year.
Admin Meeting:
The administrative team once again reviewed our safety plan and focused on teacher, administrative and office preparedness. We are working on providing further information to assist our families on what procedures to follow in the event of an emergency.
SIAC Meeting:
I would like to thank the SIAC committee for meeting last week to review safety and security procedures and information. This meeting generated some great discussions on how we can continue to work with families to communicate information. We are developing an informational flyer that will be shared at our next SIAC meeting in April (TBD). We hope that you can join us to offer feedback regarding safety and security in Grinnell’s Schools.
Another topic discussed was how parents and guardians can Talk to your children about violence. We hope that you find this resource helpful. Please watch for the next SIAC meeting date and location in next week’s update.
Pagliai's Donation to Grinnell School District
Pagliai's has graciously informed us that they will assist with our non-fiction reading effort at Davis Elementary. We have received grants for our K-2 schools and middle school, and this donation will complete our need for non-fiction resources in our classrooms. Please see attached flyer for information on how Pagliai’s is supporting our students reading program.
Central Rivers Superintendent’s meeting:
This week I attended our monthly superintendent’s meeting in Cedar Falls. Items this month focused on safety and security, and legislative updates. We also discussed the upcoming Literacy conference for our ELA teachers. I would like to encourage our ELA teachers to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to attend this conference. You can find more information and details located here. Please discuss this opportunity with your principal. This conference has well known Literacy experts presenting. The event will be held June 13 and 14th. It is worth the time!
Legislative update:
Please know that I am concerned about HF 2369 that has passed the House and is now circulating to the Senate. This bill will change the procedures for Bond Election Dates. This bill would state that the only time a school districts could host a bond referendum election would be in November. The bill passed the House on a 52-43 vote and has been referred to the Senate Local Government Committee. I have contacted Senator Kapucian (tim.kapucian@legis.iowa.gov) and asked him not to support this bill. The district should be able to have the authority to ask our voters to go to the polls regarding a bond referendum under the current format. If a bond does not pass later this year, this would cost the district more money in construction costs as we would have to wait a year before we could go back to the polls.
Don’t forget to visit the Virtual Backpack for new events! As Spring is upon us, there are new events for you to consider.
Upcoming events: Please visit the Calendar page on our website for further details
March 8-10 - The Little Mermaid Performance
March 13 - Senior Band Concert
March 14 - Meeting of the Board of Education 5:00 Start Time
March 15 - 5-8 Band Concert
March 17 - Night of Jazz Band Concert
March 21 - Meeting of the Board of Education
March 26-30 - Spring Break
Have a wonderful weekend!
Sincerely,
Janet
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Dr. Janet M. Stutz
Superintendent
Grinnell-Newburg Schools