Good things!

Saturday morning, I had the opportunity to attend a legislative coffee with Senator Costello and Representative Dolecheck. I always appreciate hearing from them and engaging in a bit of conversation about legislative issues. Of course, I take great interest in hearing them discuss topics related to public education and school finance. School finance is tight, and additional funding is needed. Representative Dolecheck was quick to verbally support the need for additional funds, and the HSB 587 was filed that sets SSA at 2.5%. This is a very good start, and the funds will be put to good use. The question remains, is 2.5% SSA enough to support Iowa schools? It is a question we need to wrestle with and find answers to as a State. It isn't an easy conversation.

It was exciting to have one of our teachers, Sarah F. Martin, receive the Golden Owl Award on Monday.  She received a cash award of $500 from NationWide and United Group Insurance.  She is now eligible to compete as Iowa's Agriculture Educator of the Year in April of 2020.  Mrs. Martin represents our district well, and we appreciate all she does for our students.

It seems much of my time has been spent planning with CA Nelson and DLR for the renovation work we are starting.  It is exciting to see things begin to come together and learn what the impact on staff might be.  I have asked different people for feedback about the samples we have looked at together.  It was a lot of fun to see their reaction and talk with them about some of the changes. Their insight has been helpful, and the smiles have been rather delightful.

A Few Highlights from the Board Meeting

January marks the period where we are involved in a considerable amount of planning and budgeting for the next school year.  One area of focus for us right now includes how the district's Modified Supplement Aid for At-Risk will be used.  The board took action to approve the service plan for the 2020-2021 school year last night. This includes continuing to support the extended school year camps at the JK-8 grade levels, the district's home school liaisons, the alternative high school program (Flex Education), and funds to expand Flex Education services to support middle school students.  Some funding was also reserved to partially fund a school resource officer position.  The district is working with the City of Shenandoah and Police Department to determine how this might work and the amount of funding necessary for the position to be added.  It will require the use of some money from the general fund to add the School Resource Officer position.

Writing has increasingly become an essential part of the curriculum and is also included in the ISASP testing required by the State.  The administrative team and Instructional coaches have investigated Write to Learn, a software that can be used to strengthen writing instruction and generate instant feedback for students. Our instructional coaches presented about this software at the board meeting this week. I was very pleased the purchase was approved. There are TLC funds that are available to pay for this expense.

Several months ago, the district was approached about passing a School Classification Equity Resolution. It is a resolution that asks the IAHSAA and IHSGAU to reconsider how schools are classified for athletic participation.  Adam Van Der Vliet, Darrin Bouray, and I were able to attend a session at the IASB convention about this and felt that it was an appropriate conversation for our district to consider.  After some discussion with the high school administration and coaches, the general consensus was to move forward to support the resolution. We believe it is in the best interest of our student-athletes and programs. The Board formally passed the resolution on Monday evening.  It will be interesting to see the impact of this decision long term. 

The consent agenda and all other action items were approved.  This includes some new staff members. Rob Addy will be joining our staff as the Director of Maintenance and Operations, and Trent Blackman will be driving van routes for us. It is also good to see Gaylen "Kim" Terry rejoin our staff part-time.

And Hello to 2020!

And hello to 2020, what a great year it is going to be!  I will spare you the social media trend of showing you pictures of me from 2000, 2010, and 2020. However, I do want to share with you some of what I have been thinking about these last few weeks.

I tend to like January. It has that fresh, new, sparkly feel to it that makes me what to sing a bit.  It is an opportunity to put some things that distract me aside and focus on what I really need to do to accomplish established goals. I am not necessarily talking about "resolutions."  Putting aside distractions is really taking a moment or two to identify what holds one back from taking that next step that will lead to a greater outcome.  I want to focus some of my energy this year on letting go of things that are perhaps unnecessary and interfere with my ability to connect and focus on that which is most important at home and at work.

As educators, we are continually in the process of shaping and developing young people's hearts and minds. This is essential work, and our relationships need to be authentic. I want to spend more of my time focused on connecting with people (students, staff, & community) because people matter and are important. It is part of the work that makes a difference.