Wrapping Up the 2016/2017 School Year

On May 9th I attended Central’s Awards Night, one of my favorite annual ceremonies.  It is a great opportunity to recognize and reflect on all the hard work our students have put into their academics and extra curricular activities.  This night also highlights the wonderful community support given to Central staff and students.  It truly does “take a village to raise a child.”

2016/2017 has been another crazy school year (I think I say this every school year) that has just flown by.  This graduating class would have been freshman when I first arrived, so this year has a little extra meaning watching them grow throughout their high school career.  As I have watched our students grow, I reflect that Central has also made a lot of growth and change as a school system.  I’d like to take a moment to share my thoughts on those changes.

Next school year, Central will see some new faces as we will see a fair number of retirees at the end of this school year.  Our school district will lose 109 years of Central experience through the retirements of Mrs. Duff (elementary teacher), Mrs. Yanda (MS/HS English), Mrs. Franta, (vocal music teacher), Mrs. Carolan (nurse), and Mrs. Engelhardt (kitchen).  We will also be losing Ms. Huster (counselor), Mrs. Wingert, and Mrs. Scherf (para-professionals) as they look to continue their careers in other places.  I cannot say enough great things about these staff members and the contributions they have made to Central.  All will be deeply missed!  We will welcome in the following new faces for the 2017/2018 school year: Mr. Hirka (MS/HS English), Mr. Douglas (vocal music teacher), Mrs. Bergan (nurse), and Mrs. Cobie-Nuss (counselor).

Central will also continue to work in strengthening our parent and community relationships as well as moving our education system from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset.  In a growth mindset, teachers believe that ALL students can be good at anything, and it is our responsibility to foster that belief in our students.  Our Teacher Leadership program is leading our professional development and we are learning together with neighboring school districts.  Central will also continue to work at making our district a safe place for students and staff through more ALICE training, but we will also be adding a mental health and wellness component to that training.

As we work to grow the human resources at Central, our K-12 building will also begin seeing major changes in the 2017/2018 school year.  This past week I met with a group of architects and engineers as they began the process of developing specific specs for our remodel project.  The goal is for them to work with staff over the summer to finalize the remodel plan and have that plan go out for bid early December.  Bid opening would tentatively take place in early January, with construction possibly starting sometime around March.  This project will take roughly three years to complete.  While remodels are never fun, the end product will be well worth it!

Thank you for all your support over the 2016/17 school year, and I hope you are as excited as I am about the future of Central Community School District.

Election Tomorrow, Please Vote!

Dear Central Families,

Tomorrow residents of Central will be asked whether or not to support a $6 million dollar bond referendum to address facility concerns in regards to our K-12 building.  The Central School Board has hosted numerous public forums to seek community feedback as they explored solutions to a building that has 22 different levels in 3 stories and sections of the building approaching 100 years old.  A 40 member Facilities Committee was formed in June and worked to develop a plan at the lowest possible cost while still addressing all the compliance/code issues facing our K-12 building.  From the Facilities Committee a Citizen's for Central Committee was formed and they worked incredibly hard to ensure voters had the appropriate information to make an educated decision when they go to the polls.  Tomorrow's election will mark the end of a two-year process!

The changes proposed through this remodel will make our K-12 building 100% accessible for not only our students but also all taxpayers who frequently use our facilities.  The proposed changes will also add much needed security for our students and staff.  An additional +4000 square feet of academic space will be added through the proposed remodel to better serve our students.  These changes along with new mechanical will set Central's K-12 building well into the foreseeable future.

Central Community School District is in the bottom 20% of school district tax rates in the State of Iowa.  If this vote passes, our tax rate will still be below the State average and lower than most of our neighboring school districts.  The additional tax rate will mean a $5.87 monthly increase to the average residential property owner in the Central School District.  I encourage all voters to contact the Assessor's Office and determine your tax impact before you vote, my guess you may be surprised at how little this will cost you-- I know I was!

Every strong community has a strong school district.  We are proud of the fact that Central ranks among the best both academically and financially.  We are proud of our incredibly low dropout rate and incredibly high participation rates in fine arts and sports.  Because of these accomplishments I am asking that each of you get out and vote tomorrow.  If you have not been able to attend a tour of our building, please contact me before you vote and I will be happy to give you one.  If you are not registered to vote or unsure where to go, contact the school at 245-1751 and someone will help you.  This vote is that important! 

   

As always, thank you for the ongoing support you give our students and staff at Central.  We are great because of you!

Sincerely,

Nick Trenkamp, Superintendent & Elementary Principal

Tax Impact of the Central Facility Plan- Is the glass half-full or half-empty?

In less than two weeks the voters of Central Community School will be asked to support a $6 million dollar bond project to address a variety of concerns with the K-12 building, which has parts of the building approaching 100 years old.  Public schools are funded through taxes and improvements to those schools are also done through taxes.  Central's current tax rate is among the bottom 20% of schools in the State of Iowa at $11.06 per $1000 of assessed value.  Approval of the $6 million facility project would bump that rate up to around $13.50 per $1000 of assessed value.  This would still keep Central below the State average and below the rate of many neighboring school districts.

While supporting this project will increase our taxes, it will also have a positive effect on our home values.  According to data from a 2013 Realtor.com survey, schools have a major impact on home values and attracting new families to your community.  Here is a summary of what was found in the survey:

• 91% of home buyers said school boundaries were important.
• 22% of home buyers state a home's proximity to a school a major factor.
• 29% of people who bought a home said the quality of the school was the deciding factor.
• 1 out of 5 buyers would pay 10% more for a home in a good school district.
• 1 out of 10 buyers would pay +20% more for a home in a good school district.
• 1 out of 3 buyers would settle for a smaller home to have access to a good school district.
• 1 out of 5 buyers would give up a garage or bedroom for a good school district. 

Another research article titled "Do Schools Affect Property Values" by Ken Corsini also shows a school has a "substantial effect on the value of homes".  This study found that during the recent housing crisis, homes with a good school weathered the falling real estate market significantly better than homes without.  This data was so compelling Corsini began using school performance as a major factor in real estate investing.

Instead of being short-sighted with an increase in taxes, I'd encourage homeowners to think about how much equity has been put into their pocket because of Central Community School District.  The studies I mentioned above found a direct correlation between great schools and higher property taxes.  For those of us with kids in the school district (or young families shopping for a community to live), we are typically willing to pay more in order to have a great school for our kids to attend.  The problem is getting voters who have lived in the community and are no longer attached to the school, to see that the school is still serving them a major benefit.  That benefit as I have stated comes in the added equity of their homes as well as attracting new families to fill vacancies created by a retiring workforce.  Who will take over our grocery store, pharmacy, movie theater, coffee shop, etc. when we have no school to draw new families into our community?  The answer to this question is found in every rural community across Iowa who has lost their school. 

I encourage all voters to take a tour of the building (every Saturday and Sunday 11:00-1:00 through April 4th) or check out our Virtual Tour Guide.  After reviewing the issues our K-12 building faces please contact the Auditor's Office to find the exact tax impact this will have on you.  For my home that will be around $20 more a month, which in my opinion is a fair trade for maintaining/increasing the overall value of my home.

No Common Ground

I was asked by a retired Central teacher to write about the what affect 1.11% State Supplemental Aid will have on Central as well as my opinion on other current political issues.  Honestly I was very torn whether to write anything or not as I have made a New Year's Resolution not to discuss politics on Facebook or Twitter.  Social media has become a very ugly place where we as a people can no longer have a conversation and would seem we no longer posses the ability to find Common Ground.  So as I write this I am going to try to keep my political positions out, and just provide the facts and details surrounding Central.

State Supplemental Aid- The Governor set 2% in his budget we ended with 1.11%.  Neither rate really affects Central in the short term due to our loss of enrollment.  At both rates we would have been at a 1% budget guarantee.  Instead of worrying about State Supplemental Aid, the Central community should be worried about bringing young families into our school district.  Elkader has started this work by forming a housing committee and piloting a program with business specialist, Jim Thompsen of Main Street Iowa.  This is an excellent first step as Jim frankly points out "everything you have tried before this hasn't worked or I wouldn't be here".  The state legislature has to work within their budget and as superintendent my #1 concern is our enrollment and positively promoting our excellent school district and communities we represent.  Simply put, I can't control State Supplemental Aid but feel maybe I could have some control on our enrollment?

Chapter 20 (Collective Bargaining)- No matter what side you sit on this issue we need to remember this affects our teachers who here at Central make up a good portion of our Central community.  Each day they spend a large amount of time with our children and outside of that time they are our family and friends.  As superintendent I am encouraging our school board to take a wait and see approach on this legislation and I plan to continue having an excellent relationship with our teachers and staff.  We are a team here at Central.  I've shared with other superintendents that if this bill goes through as currently written we have been put into a position of "walking on glass" as we must balance the culture of our districts against financial stability of our districts.  This legislation is a perfect example of No Common Ground as Democrats refused to negotiate Chapter 20 for years and now that control has swung Republican we are seeing an extreme change being presented instead of two parties working together to find common ground.  Had both parties worked together to address some of the inequitable issues with Chapter 20, we wouldn't have extreme changes.

Sales Tax Extension- I hear a bill has been introduced to eliminate the sunset of sales tax but with restrictions.  Central is in favor of eliminating the sunset but is not in favor of restrictions.  We feel that if the school board does not spend those funds appropriately, then voters have the power already to vote out board members.  For those of us who pay property taxes, this is a very important bill as this funding stream has limited the need for school districts to bond for extra money, keeping our property taxes down.

School Vouchers- There is talk and I believe a bill to promote school vouchers and school choice.  While these types of ideas are being implemented in Washington DC, Chicago, Los Angeles, etc. these ideas are wrong for rural Iowa.  School Vouchers create a system of Have and Have-Not.  Students with parents that have the means and knowledge to take their children somewhere else do so and leave behind lower income students in our public education system.  Politicians then use low test scores of public schools against higher test scores of schools who can pick and choose their students to further promote vouchers and school choice.  When I started my administration career I worked at Sacred Heart in Oelwein.  The public school bussed our kids, did all of our Title 1 services, did all of our special education services as well as all of our nursing services.  As a private school we could pick and choose our students and if we didn't want a student we simply kicked them out.  In our public schools we don't pick and choose students, instead we welcome all students and work to give every student an opportunity at the American dream.  Roughly 94% of Iowa students attend our amazing public schools.  We need to hold our representatives accountable to support Iowa's strong public education system and vote out those who promote vouchers as a way to dismantle public education and those that promote a system of Have and Have Not.  Sorry, this one did get a little more opinionated than I said I would but having experience in both private and public I feel the need to share those experiences.

The GOOD NEWS!- Bills have been presented for State Funding Equity and Transportation Equity.  I have talked in previous posts about both of these.  The State Funding Equity got a lot of attention when Davenport's superintendent stated he would break the law.  Central like Davenport was set at the lowest per-pupil rate and a bill has been introduced to fix that over a period of time.  The same bill also addresses transportation inequities across our State.  I need to do a little more research on these bills but this will mean extra per-pupil funding for Central's students.

As superintendent I will continue to work at being as efficient as possible with our tax dollars while providing an excellent education to our students.  I am so thankful for our community and parent support and promise we will continue to work and represent you.

Snow, Ice, Fog, & Mr. Trenkamp's Name in Vain!

This has been a tough couple weeks of weather calls and we are still not through January!  As I am writing this I just finished a long morning cruise, roads look pretty good but now fog has entered the picture.  All I can say is spring can't come fast enough!

Due to some recent fanfare on Facebook, I thought I'd share what actually goes into a weather call. Contrary to the Carnival Skit the students did on me last year (which was hilarious), I actually do more than drive around my block twice😀!  The following is a breakdown of the process in making weather calls for Central.

1) Northeast Iowa schools get excellent support and updates from the National Weather Station in Lacrosse.  These include up-to-date emails, powerpoint presentations, and live webinars specific for schools.  I also like to use the app Weatherbug, which is based at the MFL Mar-Mac High School building in Monona.
2) A group decision.  Superintendents, administrators, and transportation directors from around the area are out traveling roads as early as 3:30am.  Our phones go crazy between 5:00am and 6:00am as we compare conditions across our districts.  We are also in contact with our county and state road crews as well as our bus drivers.
3) Decision time.  After traveling roads and consulting with the group, I make the best possible decision with the information I have at that time.  Once that decision is made, I call Mr. Yanda and he notifies the radio station while I send out information on School Messenger and head back to the office so I can get on my computer to notify our local news stations.

As you know, Mother Nature has the last laugh.  An example of this was in a recent late call to cancel.  We always try to have our decisions made by 6:00am, 6:30am the absolute latest.  I was leaving St. Olaf at 6:30am and just got off the phone with our transportation director stating we are sticking with going on time.  Not fifteen minutes later came the ice and road conditions changed instantly.  Central, along with Clayton Ridge and MFL Mar-Mac scrambled to call our busses back in and we were forced to make a late call on weather.  Mother Nature got the best of us that day, but we were still luckier than some of our northern neighbors who didn't get hit until after they had busses already loaded with kids.

Most snow, ice, and fog conditions you will find Central is relatively the same as our neighboring districts.  One area which I fully admit I am different in making weather calls is cold weather.  I am told each school day in Iowa approximately 300 people break the law by driving through a stopped school bus, and these are regular school days.  My wife who drives an hour to work in the morning knows exactly where she meets a bus each day.  By going 2 hours late for cold weather, I now put those busses out where travelers at that time are not used to seeing a bus on their route.  I feel this is an added danger as these people are many times not aware of the laws regarding busses on the roadways.  Also, in most cases the weather only warms up a degree or two in this two hour span.  Does that degree or two justify putting busses on the road where travelers are not used to seeing them and putting working parents in a position where they need to find coverage for their kids for two hours?  Obviously I do not believe it does.  Some of my neighbors do and each school district is different with amount of walkers and distance they walk to school, stops, etc. so I respect their decision.  

Lastly I'll end with stating guardians always have the final say.  It is impossible for my transportation director (who is also shared with Ed-Co) and I to travel every single road before making a weather call.  If you feel your area is unsafe to put your child on a bus or send your teenage driver to school, then please don't!  All we ask is that you call the school and let us know and we will respect and support your decision.

I also hope we can agree to disagree at times without negativity posted on Facebook and other public social media.  Talking negatively about our school district and spreading misinformation only hurts the learning environment and culture of Central, and really shows a bad example for our kids.  I really hope this shines some light on weather calls here at Central and I thank all of you for your understanding and support.

Iowa 2017 Legislative Session set to being

On Monday, January 9th the Iowa 2017 Legislative Session will begin.  Last year republicans had control of the house and governor's office with democrats in control of the senate.  This year, republicans have control of all three houses.  It is my opinion that our democracy works best when split control exists.  This forces both branches to work together and compromise, decreasing the chances of bad legislation in favor of the far right or far left political views.

Central is a member of the Rural School Advocates of Iowa (RSAI) network.  It has been my experience that many of the things coming out of Des Moines favor our larger urban schools and are heavily out of touch with the realities we face in rural Iowa.  We need those who support rural schools--especially parents, to speak up and share the advantages of our rural schools and demand that our children be treated equitably.  Below you will find a video from Rural School Advocates of Iowa laying out their priorities for the 2017 session.  I'd like to briefly touch on some of these priorities and why they are relevant for Central taxpayers.

1. Transportation Equity- As you can see by the map provided by RSAI, Central is dark blue meaning we pay the highest level of per-pupil funding just to get our students to and from school.  This takes away from hiring teachers, increasing class offerings, curriculum, and other educational costs.
2. State Penny Sales Tax- For those of us who like lower property taxes, this is a big deal!  RSAI shares the effect on decreased property taxes the State Penny has had.  We are now seeing our property taxes increase as each year we get closer to the sunset of the State Penny.  Iowa Public Schools and their supporters should also not be interested in selling our souls to get an extension, meaning allowing other uses such as water quality at these funds just to get an extension.  The State has already set aside money for addressing water quality, why do they need to take it from schools?
3. Iowa Funding Formula Equality- You may have seen this one in the news with Davenport's superintendent, Art Tate publicly stating Davenport would break the law to ensure their students are funded equitably.  While I am too young in my career to go breaking the law and losing my license, I agree with Mr. Tate and appreciate the stance and attention he is bringing to this issue.  Central, like Davenport is one of the 170 of 330 school districts not receiving the highest level of funding.  That robs Central of $75,775 a year, which again could be used toward another teacher, educational supplies, and class offerings.  
4. Operational Sharing- Central currently shares the following; business manager, human resource manager, transportation director, curriculum director, and school counselor.  If Central did not receive operational sharing incentives, we would not be able to fund these positions.
5. New State Assessment- It is looking more and more like the Iowa Assessment (which used to be ITBS) will be replaced with Smarter Balanced, a new state assessment.  This is a big topic so I will dedicate a Blog article to this in the near future.
6. 3rd Grade Retention & Summer School- Central was a part of the State's pilot program last year and along with the State we had mixed results.  As RSAI correctly points out, there is no funding for a summer school program and running a quality program has a significant cost.  Research also shows retention simply does not work, so in my opinion this is bad legislation.  
7. Quality Preschool- Please stop in anytime so I can share with you Central's early literacy data.  I credit a lot of our success to our preschool program.  Many of you may not know that preschool students are only funded at half the cost of all other students.  I support RSAI's position of fully funding preschool.   

Please take some time and get informed about the issues public education faces and get involved.  As parents and taxpayers, your voice makes a difference.  Please do not hesitate to send questions through this Blog, my email, or even stop in for a conversation.

Central's representative's:

michael.breitbach@legis.iowa.gov 

michael.bergan@legis.iowa.gov

kristi.hager@legis.iowa.gov

New Class Offerings at Central

Central Community School District will be offering these new classes starting with the beginning of the second semester.   Students are encouraged to sign up for any of these classes during the schedule change week of January 3- January 6.    If you have any questions about these classes, please talk to Mr. Yanda or Ms. Huster.

Psych of Human Relations (College & HS Credit)

3 hours credit from NICC

This class covers all types of interactions among people, their conflict, cooperative efforts and group relationships.  Class starts on Feb 27, 2017.

Pre Employment Strategies (College & HS Credit)

2 hours credit from NICC

This is a hybrid class that is a basic introduction to skills necessary for an entry-level employment position.  Networking with local employers will be a key component of this class.  Class starts on Feb 27, 2017.

Welding Fundamentals (College & HS Credit)

2 hours credit from NICC

This class will be taught by a certified instructor from Mobile Track Solutions in the Central Industrial Arts area.   This class will run from 8:00 a.m to 8:58 a.m.  Monday-Thursday and will focus on the welding techniques that are used in the industrial world.

Industrial Technology Cabinet Making Class (College & HS Credit)

5 hours credit from NICC

This class will be taught at the Clayton Ridge School and is part of the NICC Construction Diploma Program.   It is a class to develop skills that can be used for a lifetime around the home or workplace, with projects individualized to student interest with approval of the instructor.

Dr. Ryan Wise, Director of the Iowa Department of Education visits Central

Yesterday afternoon Central was visited by the director of the Iowa Department of Education, Dr. Ryan Wise.  Dr. Wise has been a key figure in Iowa's Teacher Leadership System and is making an effort to visit all Iowa school districts over a 5 year period.  In Dr. Wise visit we discussed STEM/PBL, Early Literacy, TLC, CTE, At-Risk/Drop-Out prevention funding, and Operational Sharing.  I'd like to share with our stakeholders what our leadership team and students shared with Dr. Wise.

STEM/Project Based Learning
Central's 4th/5th grade students shared their recent STEM project titled Mystery Build.  In this project students were placed into teams of three and were given a mystery build (rocking chair, swing-set, rocket, bridge, etc.) as well as a $10 budget.  They were given a list of materials they could use to meet the requirements of their build, each material coming with a cost.  Struxture Architects came to Central and launched the event discussing the challenges of remodeling our own K-12 building.  Students followed a scripted plan for their build and ended by presenting their final project to a panel of judges, their peers, and family members.

Students from Ms. Gritzner's Global Science classes also presented the many PBL projects they are currently developing and sustaining.  Last year Central received the Governor's Award for having the 1st student developed compost in Iowa, decreasing tons of waste at Central.  A team of students is now working on using worms to more efficiently break down the compost.  Other projects include but aren't limited to working with Clayton County Supervisors on recycling tires, working with Clayton County Pheasants Forever in developing habitat, energy efficiency, etc.

Early Literacy

Taken from 2016 IASB Convention

It was with great pleasure I was able to share Central's early literacy data with Dr. Wise.  Central Elementary has successfully implemented a new reading curriculum with aligned interventions that meet the needs of individual students.  Dr. Wise was impressed with our summer school data as well as our overall results with Fundations and Wilson.  Dr. Wise and I also discussed concerns with high stakes 1-minute tests (which I have previously written about) and he assured me I would be happy with new guidance coming from the Department of Education on this.  I shared retention based on a 1-minute test was simply unacceptable and we need our students to be more than just good test takers.

TLC

Dr. Wise met with four of our six full-time teacher leaders.  Again, Central is unique from the State as we are participating in a four district consortium for TLC.  While this has had challenges in regards to budgets, our teacher leaders shared how attending four different districts has grown their capacity and how they have been able to use that to help teachers and administrators in the consortium.  Everyone agrees this will have a positive effect on student achievement.

CTE

I shared with Dr. Wise the challenges of the new CTE guidance for rural schools.  Central students currently do not have access to a CTE center, which puts our students at a significant disadvantage compared to the districts that do have access to these centers.  I did share that we are partnering with Mobile Tack Solutions, Clayton Ridge, and NICC.  Through that partnership we will have one of Mobile Track Solutions certified welders teaching a welding class next semester.  I also asked for less restrictions on the use of our technology to teach classes, specifically offer/teach classes.

At-Risk/Drop-Out Prevention

Dr. Wise had the opportunity to meet Ms. Briggs, Central's new Family Liaison.  I shared that Ms. Brigg's position was created due to fewer restrictions on the At-Risk/Drop-Out Prevention funding streams.  Ms. Briggs is able to work with families in a way that previously Central was unable to meet those needs through current staffing.  With the rise in mental health concerns and poverty, it is crucial we maintain flexibility with that funding stream.

Operational Sharing

Lastly I hit the importance of continuing and extended Operational Sharing.  Currently Central shares a business manager, human resource manager, curriculum director, school counselor, and transportation director.  Without Operational Sharing we would not be able to maintain many of those positions.

I give a lot of credit to Dr. Wise for making an attempt to visit each school district in Iowa (and wish our politicians would do the same).  While I do not always agree with everything coming from the Iowa Department of Education, Dr. Wise and his staff have always been welcoming and willing to listen to my concerns/ideas.  It was a pleasure to "show-off" all the great things we are doing at Central-- even for myself it was nice to take a step back and reflect on all the wonderful things we are doing for our students.

Behavior Changes and Tracking at Central Elementary

Central Elementary Families,

Central Elementary has made some minor changes to our behavior system that I would like to share with all of you.  Hopefully everyone knows Central Elementary is a PBIS (Positive Behavior Intervention & Supports) school.  Our PBIS motto is CCS (Caring, Commitment, & Safety) and we hold CCS assemblies celebrating our students once a month where we welcome you and the community to attend. 

The focus of our PBIS training is to not concentrate on negative behaviors, but instead focus on the positives.  Research shows that almost all behavior (positive or negative) is attention seeking.  Think of a toddler crying, what happens more times than not when you leave the room they are in?  They quit crying until you come back into that room or they chase after you and start crying again once they see you.  This behavior is attention seeking and if you give negative behavior attention, kids will use negative behavior more.  Behaviors in schools are pretty much the same as behaviors at home and we work really hard to not give attention to the negatives, but instead focus on the positives.

Central is blessed with an excellent student body.  Because of that we often take behavior for granted here at Central Elementary.  Our team felt this year we needed to focus on being more consistent with behavior as a staff and more consistent upholding our common area expectations.  We purchased and have implemented a behavior curriculum called “Stop & Think” for all elementary grade levels.  At the elementary level, our most important step is to teach our students what is right and what is wrong. 

How we track behavior has also changed.  In the past, if a student got into trouble a referral was sent home.  A referral was sent home for both minor and major behaviors, using the same sheet.  This year we decided to do a better job of separating the two.  Students no longer receive a referral for minor behavior, instead students are given time to reflect on their behavior and a teacher is given time to reteach the student.  Depending on the grade level the student may bring their reflection home and share that with you, but remember this is not a referral.  Referrals still exist for major behavior problems.  If a student gets a referral, that means they have been sent to the office and I am now involved.  Depending on the level of severity I may call home or sometimes I may just send the referral home and ask for your signature back.

I’ve heard in the past from parents sharing concerns about tracking students.  Yes, we track behavior data and let me explain why.  Through tracking data I can see the following:

• Time of day behaviors occur
• Day of the week behaviors occur
• Staff member giving the behavior
• Behavior type
• Behavior location
• Consequence for behavior
• Number of behaviors a student has

The PBIS team uses this data to make staffing decisions, training for our staff, focus areas for our CCS assemblies, etc.  These decisions are not submitted to the State and typically behavior is not kept in a student’s permanent file, exceptions to this are if a student has a behavior plan and/or IEP.

I want to end by saying thank you for taking the time to read this and for your ongoing support at home.  We have had 59 days of school as I write this and only 12 major behavior referrals.  That is an awesome statistic!  Please remember if you have a concern about behavior to always start with your teacher first as more times than not I will not have the details they will have.  If problems consist after discussing with your teacher, please email me, call, or stop in.

Sincerely,

Mr. Trenkamp