The Wawasee Community School Corporation Board of Education met on Tuesday, October 14, 2008, in the Wawasee Middle School lecture room.
President George Gilbert called the meeting to order, WMS students Chad Eppley and Jacob Schwartz led the pledge, and principal Tony Cassel offered the invocation.
Donations were received from Mr. and Mrs. Douglas Schrock ($1000) and the Knights of Columbus ($500) for the WHS athletic department and an anonymous donor ($710) for the WMS Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
Minutes, support personnel recommendations, certified personnel recommendations, and claims were approved.
1028 Hearings on proposed facility projects were held. Architect Kari Vilamaa and financial consultant Phil Gutman discussed the scope and financing of the various projects. One patron spoke in opposition to the projects, due to the poor economic conditions at present. At the conclusions of the hearings, the Board voted to proceed with the projects as described. Resolutions to move forward with bonding, an additional spending appropriation for 2009 to begin the projects, and advertising for an energy savings company were also adopted.
The financial report through September was received, along with a 2nd reading for a policy to set criteria for accepting transfer students.
Dr. Bob Cockburn discussed results from the beginning of the school year NWEA assessments.
Director of Curriculum and Instruction Joy Goshert brought the Board up to date on workshops and curriculum work.
The Board will send several representatives to the October 21 Indiana School Board Association workshop in Plymouth.
The next regular meeting of the board will take place at 5:30pm on Tuesday, November 11, at Syracuse Elementary School.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Monday, October 06, 2008
What is Happening at the Top?
The largest school districts in the country have traveled different directions, enrollment -wise, over the past 20 years. New York City, with just over 1 million students, has grown by 6% since 1987. (Wawasee, with 3200 students, is about 300 times smaller than the New York City system.) Los Angeles has grown by 17% to over 700,000 students. Chicago, third largest, has dropped over 7% to 400,000 children. Miami, Clark County(Las Vegas), and Broward County (FL) have jumped by 31%, 69%, and 50%, respectively. Houston with a 4% increase, Hillsborough County (FL) up 40%, Hawaii (all one school system) up 10%, and Philadelphia down 11%, round out the top ten school districts in the country. Philadelphia's enrollment of 185,000 is over 57 times the size of Wawasee. Wawasee Community Schools have an enrollment now about equal to that of 20 years ago.
Nationally, big city school districts have remained stable in population, while rural districts have lost enrollment. Suburban districts have experienced a steady growth during the past 20 years.
Nationally, big city school districts have remained stable in population, while rural districts have lost enrollment. Suburban districts have experienced a steady growth during the past 20 years.
Teen Parents Succeeding Grant
The Teen Parents Succeeding program serving Wawasee High School student/parents is receiving a grant award from the Indiana Youth Institute on Thursday, October 9, at 3:30pm at the TPS facility on 604 S. Poplar Dr. in Syracuse. Please feel free to join the celebration! Thanks to a hard-working board for supporting our young people when they need help the most.
What a Difference a Year Makes?
As a school system, we report to various governmental units the number of students who qualify for free and reduced price lunches. One of the Wawasee Community School Corporation elementary schools increased the percentage of free/reduced lunch students from 2007-08 school year to the present year by almost 8 %. That is a statement about our present economic conditions in general and the effect on our students in particular.
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