Welcome Back!!
I hope everybody had a wonderful summer vacation and enjoyed some much deserved time off! I'm looking forward to getting back into the swing of things with all of you! (I'm sure you all feel the same way.)
Viking Cheers!! Focus on the Fabulous!
Susan Banning posing in her new, CLEAN
office. We had to document this.
To begin our new school year, I would like to recognize a few members of our staff who took their personal time this summer to continue our mission of meeting the needs of all our students and providing them with the best educational experience possible.
First of all, I’d like to recognize Susan Banning. She made a couple of trips to Denver over the summer to help one of our students get some of his medical needs addressed. She helped transport one of our students and his family to Denver, on two separate occasions, to get him to the Children’s Hospital and assess his hearing condition. This turned out to be a huge blessing and the student was able to receive medical attention, an assessment and hearing aids without the expense, thanks to her commitment to our kids. Thank you Susan! I know a number of other people helped to make this happen, including Mr. Welsh, Mrs. Weatherford, and Mrs. Burch. Thank you all!
Jaime Hurtado has been working hard this summer to make sure our new building is secure and that we are all prepared in case of an emergency. He did a great job organizing the active shooter drill in July. This event involved all of the Center Emergency Services and it was a learning experience for all involved. There was great community involvement and the experience opened our eyes to some of the situations we need to be prepared for in the future. Thanks to everyone who took time on a Saturday to participate.
Thanks to Katrina Ruggles who worked throughout the summer on grants and on providing our students with unique opportunities that will help broaden their horizons. I had the opportunity to participate in the rafting trip down the Rio Grande with one of my son’s, Tyler, the AmeriCorps folks, and a number of middle and high school students. Most recently, Katrina traveled to NYC with some of our students as they had the chance to learn about life outside of the San Luis Valley.
First of all, I’d like to recognize Susan Banning. She made a couple of trips to Denver over the summer to help one of our students get some of his medical needs addressed. She helped transport one of our students and his family to Denver, on two separate occasions, to get him to the Children’s Hospital and assess his hearing condition. This turned out to be a huge blessing and the student was able to receive medical attention, an assessment and hearing aids without the expense, thanks to her commitment to our kids. Thank you Susan! I know a number of other people helped to make this happen, including Mr. Welsh, Mrs. Weatherford, and Mrs. Burch. Thank you all!
Jaime Hurtado has been working hard this summer to make sure our new building is secure and that we are all prepared in case of an emergency. He did a great job organizing the active shooter drill in July. This event involved all of the Center Emergency Services and it was a learning experience for all involved. There was great community involvement and the experience opened our eyes to some of the situations we need to be prepared for in the future. Thanks to everyone who took time on a Saturday to participate.
Thanks to Katrina Ruggles who worked throughout the summer on grants and on providing our students with unique opportunities that will help broaden their horizons. I had the opportunity to participate in the rafting trip down the Rio Grande with one of my son’s, Tyler, the AmeriCorps folks, and a number of middle and high school students. Most recently, Katrina traveled to NYC with some of our students as they had the chance to learn about life outside of the San Luis Valley.
Rewind
There have been a lot of things going on throughout the summer and in the last few weeks. I had the chance to attend the Thinking Strategies Institute at Adams State with Kevin, Katrina, Linda and Joy. This training reinforced for me the work that we are doing in our Language Arts and TI classes to actively engage our students in the reading and thinking process.
Please take a moment to introduce yourselves to our new ESL teacher, Cynthia Gallagher.
She will be a great addition to our amazing staff, and despite what Susan says, her name is Cynthia.
I had a great time at the CASE conference. Thanks to George and our school board for giving us the opportunity to attend this conference each year. I attended a number of great sessions that provided me with valuable information on how to refine some of the things we are already doing to support all children so that they can achieve at high levels.
The Ribbon Cutting Ceremony last weekend was truly an impressive event and I feel blessed to have been a part of this process. Our new facility is just amazing and we will be able to provide our students with quality instruction so that they can all achieve at high levels.
Thanks to Marsha Felmlee, Diane Parker and Linda Donaldson for helping with the Jump Start planning last week. We spent the day on Thursday looking at data and staffing patterns to design a solid schedule for our Jump Start program.
I was really impressed that students were coming in last week to complete their NWEA testing. Thanks to Becky Reed and the library staff for getting that organized in such a timely and efficient manner.
On Friday, I had the chance to travel to Denver and attend the Lunch and Learn session at the McRel institute. Once again, I was reaffirmed of our efforts in the information that was presented. I felt like our district was already doing so many of the things they were presenting about. One area that I hope to continue to do research on is in reading in the content area, and this was one part of the presentation that I felt had beneficial information that will further our efforts. I was able to meet with the presenters and get some resources that will support our efforts.
Please take a moment to introduce yourselves to our new ESL teacher, Cynthia Gallagher.
She will be a great addition to our amazing staff, and despite what Susan says, her name is Cynthia.
I had a great time at the CASE conference. Thanks to George and our school board for giving us the opportunity to attend this conference each year. I attended a number of great sessions that provided me with valuable information on how to refine some of the things we are already doing to support all children so that they can achieve at high levels.
The Ribbon Cutting Ceremony last weekend was truly an impressive event and I feel blessed to have been a part of this process. Our new facility is just amazing and we will be able to provide our students with quality instruction so that they can all achieve at high levels.
Thanks to Marsha Felmlee, Diane Parker and Linda Donaldson for helping with the Jump Start planning last week. We spent the day on Thursday looking at data and staffing patterns to design a solid schedule for our Jump Start program.
I was really impressed that students were coming in last week to complete their NWEA testing. Thanks to Becky Reed and the library staff for getting that organized in such a timely and efficient manner.
On Friday, I had the chance to travel to Denver and attend the Lunch and Learn session at the McRel institute. Once again, I was reaffirmed of our efforts in the information that was presented. I felt like our district was already doing so many of the things they were presenting about. One area that I hope to continue to do research on is in reading in the content area, and this was one part of the presentation that I felt had beneficial information that will further our efforts. I was able to meet with the presenters and get some resources that will support our efforts.
Forward Focus
We will begin our Kagan Traing at Adams State on Monday morning. I look forward to seeing all of you!
Jump Start will begin on Monday, August 13th. We are making plans to have registration for 7th, 8th and 10th-12th graders on Friday, August 24th. The 6th grade orientation will be held on Thursday, August 30th. More information will follow.
Jump Start will begin on Monday, August 13th. We are making plans to have registration for 7th, 8th and 10th-12th graders on Friday, August 24th. The 6th grade orientation will be held on Thursday, August 30th. More information will follow.