Thursday, April 12, 2012

If you have not yet completed the single gender classroom survey would you please do so by Monday.  We need ALL staff members to take the survey, please.  This is part of the Federal requirement attached to the law that allows us to offer single gender classrooms. 

WE NEED YOUR HELP!  A few of the staff members who attended the levy information meeting on Wednesday asked why the meeting wasn't mandatory.  You  have been sent the PowerPoint and Q&A sheet from Dr. Bauscher after spring break.  We are ready and willing to arm you with answers and information. 

Did you know that 40 Middleton School District staff members did not vote in the March election?  That is potentially 40+ (including family members) YES votes.  This election will take twice as many yes votes to pass since it is a Primary election and voter turnout will be larger.  Every yes vote is important!  We need you to help us.  We need every staff member - not just resident staff members, but every staff member - to identify through conversations, three community members that are positive toward the levy election.  The

 committee will then send reminder post cards and give phone calls to help make sure we get the yes vote to the polls the day of the election.  If you need help on how to start these conversations please ask Jenny Easley, April Chainey, Catherine Hicks, Lisa Foote or myself.  Please take this seriously.  We have this one last chance to obtain levy approval.  If it fails in May we will be finding areas to cut another 1.6 million dollars from our budget.  Some say we need to tighten our belts.  Mine feels too tight already.  How about yours?
 
A reporter from the Idaho Statesman was in the building today doing a story on our single gender classrooms.  The story is expected to run in Monday's paper.  The Statesman picked up the idea from a story written for the Idaho Leads webpage. 
Our kindergarten teachers are looking into the scheduling possibility of offering single gendered classes next fall.  Parents seemed interested and supportive during registration. 
 

End of the year is approaching faster than I would like.  Here is some information to assist with your planning.  The end of the year checklist has been modified.  Most of you will see that there are things you no longer have to do which should help.  Lisa and Yvonne have the class profile sheets prepared on the t:drive.  You may begin to enter data as you receive testing information.  T:drive/share/classprofile 12-13.

Tonight we registered 63 kindergarten students for next fall.  This is 13 more than this time last year.  The District has been considering the addition of one FTE for our school for the 2012-2013 school year. Obviously until the levy passes no jobs will post and no hiring decisions will be made. 
The District will be moving a modular unit from the Middle School to the Heights property the end of May.  This will help us with our current overcrowding issues for next year.  There are many factors to determine its use, but it is now set up as a second computer lab.  Molly has agreed to leave the computer tables for our use.   If wiring and cabling is in place we will use the computers to provide an intervention lab.  With computers on one side we could offer music the second portion since headphones would minimize the distraction.  If we add a classroom I would like to consider moving two classes of the same grade level out to our current unit so that we have a 'team' rather than isolation effect.  This would bring Title I inside reducing the class time lost to travel to and from.  Besides, Cindy and Konnie have done their time with umbrellas and cold weather transfers.  :)  This is all in planning stages.  I'm happy to hear your thoughts.