Initial Reaction to School Start Date Change

As many of you have probably heard, Governor Branstad has directed the Iowa Department of Education to no longer allow waivers for an early school start date.  School districts are now being told they can start no earlier than the week of September 1st. 

Judging from our community's reaction to my initial calendar proposal last year, the Governor's decision will not be a popular one here locally.  If you recall, my initial calendar proposal had Central starting later and ending later (last week of June).  I revised the calendar because your feedback stated you wanted out of school no later than early June.

I strongly believe voted school board members should make calendar decisions that meet the needs of the communities they represent.  Information I consider in making this decision includes:

• Last night the Central School Board voted in favor of a first reading to expand our college course offerings from 6 college credits to 24 college credits.  Most of these college classes are taught in conjunction with Northeast Iowa Community College.  Unless community colleges are also required to change their calendars Central students taking online classes will have several weeks of courses when other students are in or out of session.  As we look to expand college course opportunities for our students, we need the flexibility to develop a calendar that supports college level learning.
• Sports practices start late July/early August with games also starting in August.  To my knowledge the athletic associations are not being held to the same standards as the school districts.  So we will have practices and games a month before classes even get started.  This will have a negative affect on school spirit and culture. 
• An argument for a later start date is the loss of instructional time due to early dismissals for heat.  This is not an issue at Central, since both buildings have air conditioning.
• Parents state students are ready to get back to school in August.  Teachers state students shut down when the weather gets nice in June.  
• Colleges begin summer courses in early June.  Unless four-year colleges and universities change their summer schedules, both teachers and students will be unable to attend summer school classes in June since school will continue to be in session.
• No research or data shows students starting school in early September learn more or better than those starting in August.
• The difficulty of employing high school students for the tourism industry is invalid for students in our school district.  Jobs in tourism are not available for the youth of our community.  Jobs like the community pool which opens Memorial Day weekend are available.
• The existing law already allows school districts near tourism attractions, e.g., Iowa State Fair, Adventureland, etc. a starting date allowing students to be employed in tourism.  I believe it is inappropriate for the state to dictate when all school districts start because many school districts in tourism areas have chosen not to start later to accommodate the tourism industry.
• A clear message is being sent by local school districts that an earlier start date is better for their students since 99% of Iowa School Districts have requested the early start waiver for this school year.

I believe local control of our schools districts should mean just that.  Let the voters hold our voted school board members accountable for the decisions we make locally.

Pay For College Night

Central will be hosting a "Paying for College" night on Tuesday, December 16th.  This night is open to ALL parents.  Paying and planning for college should start the moment your child is born, and if you are like me you have not done this!  On this night we will have experts that will share simple ways you can prepare for paying for college, no matter if you have a senior or a new born.

1.  6:00-6:30 pm 529 plan info via skype session with Heather Doe from the Iowa College Student Aid Commission - all families need info on saving for college, the ease of setting this up, the best people to hold the 529 so it does not count against financial aid for a student, and how it can be used....she will cover all bases.

2. 6:30-7:00 College classes in high school - 6-11 grade families.   Both NICC and UIU will be present to talk about offerings and readiness.  Mrs. Metcalf will address philosophy that we are not a college but these are offerings that extend what is taught at Central when students are ready, counseling available to understand readiness, how a four year plan helps.

3.  7:00-7:30 Scholarship Searching - Mrs. Metcalf & college reps - tips on how to begin, what you need where to look...for seniors and any interested junior parents.

 4.  6:00-7:15 Applying for the FAFSA- ICAN rep will present this session for seniors and any interested junior parents.

Iowa Food & Fitness Highlights Central

I am always proud when Central gets good press!  A big thank you to Cassie Panther and her work in promoting wellness at Central.

Enjoy the articles: http://iowafoodandfitness.org/wegrow/author/cassie-panther/

3D Printer Coming to Central!

I was notified today that Mr. Ungerer received a grant for a new EKOCYCLE Cube 3D Printer.  This will be a valuable tool as Central looks to expand STEM and Project Based Learning intiatives.

Here is the email:
3D Systems and The Coca-Cola Company are pleased to partner with FIRST® to support theFIRST® Robotics Competition and the FIRST® Tech Challenge, bringing 3D printing technology to FIRST teams in the US and around the Globe.  Congratulations on being awarded an EKOCYCLE™ Cube® 3D printer, which uses post-consumer recycled plastic for its printer cartridges. We are excited to see how you use it to prototype and build your robots!

A very big thank you to Mr. Ungerer for writing the grant and bringing this opportunity to our students!

Welcome Back!

I hope everyone enjoyed the full week of fall break.  As an educator, breaks like these help us reflect on our practice and stay energized throughout the school year. 

With three full weeks until winter break I will be busy preparing for our Department of Education Site-Visit as well as working with teachers in aligning our curriculum with the Iowa Core and placing a stronger emphasis on the individual student.  The Central School Board will also host a work session that will focus on our vision and give clear goals to achieve that vision.  Sometime in the next three weeks Central will also find out if they are awarded the Teacher Leadership and Compensation grant. 

One of the most exciting happenings is Central's work with Struxture Architects.  The timing of this work couldn't be any better based on your feedback in our Parent Survey.  Many of you commented on the fact that we needed a better flow to our school building and that is exactly what Struxture is trying to address.  Struxture Architects will be meeting with our Facilities Committee sometime before winter break.  If you are interested in being a part of this committee please let me know.  Currently I would like to have more students, parents, and business leaders represented on the committee.

As you can see a lot of exciting work taking place at Central.  I am thankful for all of the support each of you give our school district.

Sincerely,
Mr. Trenkamp