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Tripoli Community Schools Striving for excellence...in rural schools
October 2014
Superintendent/MS/HS Principal’s Comments By Troy Heller
District’s Financial Status and Overall Budget First, let me compliment our Tripoli School Board for some difficult decisions that they had to make this past year and, unfortunately, we are going to have to make similar decisions this coming spring. I would like to invite all of you to our September 29, 2014, budget workshop starting at 5:30 p.m. in the Community Room (seating will be limited). Larry Sigel will be our guest speaker. Larry is known for his expertise in the school financial world. Larry is a straight shooter and will inform the district and those in attendance his recommendation for our future. Larry’s partner, Margaret Buckton, was in attendance this past year and recommended that we reduce $200,000 in 2014 and another $200,000 in 2015. This past year we did reduce the budget about $215,000. My prediction is we may need to go higher than $200,000 this year. In the next few paragraphs, I would like to explain a little bit of the past and present budget. Our district has actually held off with budget reductions about as long as possible; but the future is looking very difficult due to our low numbers that our Elementary is currently encountering. Since 2008, when I took over as the superintendent, we have lost 78 students. Over the last six years, our Elementary numbers have fallen the most, with our class average in 2008 being 36; and now it is 27. Our lower Elementary classes are at numbers below 25. If we were to use the rounded number of $6,000 per student (actual just shy of $6,400), which the state gives to a school district per student, we have lost approximately $468,000 over the past six years due to the loss in enrollment. However, that is only part of the story. If we were to add these losses up over the six years, our total loss would be closer to $2,500,000. Also, during these six years, our governor cut the budget across the board by 10%, adding to this expense would be district raises each year, and we lost the 101% guarantee (will explain at the financial meeting). In addition to the financial predicament in 2011, the AEA dropped hiring special-‐needs teachers for districts in the AEA 267, which, in turn, added another $300,000 to our local budget. So, as you can see, we have had several things that we couldn’t predict (AEA and governor), but we have done a pretty good job of predicting our class-‐size numbers each year. I’m sure that most of you know and understand that a district does not make money unless our student numbers increase. This current year (unofficial) we are going to be down around five. This is the scary part – over the next several years, my prediction is that we will go down from 434 to 367 or another 67 students ($428,000). It does not appear that we are going to gain any students over the next seven years. I would like to bring more positive financial information to the community, but, unfortunately, this is reality. I have been communicating this to the Board, the staff, and the Community Club for three to four years. It is something that has been obvious but somewhat muddled due to some federal monies thrown into the picture in 2010 and 2011 called ARRA funds.
Our intentions for our budget work session are to help all of those who live in the district to better understand where the district is financially. We feel this will be of benefit when the Board and the administration have to make tough decisions this spring. Community Weight Room Our Wellness Committee met on Wednesday, September 17, 2014, to review our weight room rules, membership rules, and our weight room needs in our community facility. This past year we had 61 paid community members. We feel that in our first year of existence, we were successful but would like to reach the goal of 100 paid members. To do this, we again are offering a promotion to entice community members to join our facility this year. If you are currently a member, we are going to offer you a one-‐year membership for the price of 11 months in 2015; and if you are not currently a member and you sign up by December 1, we are giving you 13 months for the price of 12 months. Our memberships are only active from January 1-‐December 31 each year; but if you sign up at a different time during the year, your rates will be prorated. We also will be open from 4:00 a.m.-‐11:00 p.m. starting January 1, 2015, which allows more options for our community members. We are excited about offering this facility to our community and hope you have a chance to utilize our gym and weight room. Opportunity Friday/Reading and Math Intervention (6th-12th grades) We are on the way with our Opportunity Friday philosophy. We have had a few changes with our system, trying to make things better to provide the best interventions for one-‐on-‐one teaching and learning. Naturally, it is seldom one on one, but we are trying our best to make sure this time is utilized as an academic intervention to help those students in need. Across the state, districts are being scrutinized by the Department of Education over the test scores on the Iowa Assessment Test (NCLB). Each year more schools are added to the SINA school list. However, this past year our MS/HS students (and teachers) worked very hard to improve our scores, and our MS was dropped from the Math SINA list and was put on Delayed SINA for our MS Reading students. What this means is if we continue to improve our assessment scores in math and reading, our MS will be taken off the list entirely. (Just a note – our HS has never been on the SINA list.) With the above being said, we, again, will be implementing our Opportunity Friday and Impact Intervention strategies this year. “OF” has already started on Friday, September 5, and the Impact List will start on October 10. I think most of you know how the Opportunity Friday List works; and if not, you can read about it on our website. As far as the Student Impact List goes, our district (as many others do) uses the ITBS and MAP scores, as well as teacher recommendations to determine which students have not scored in the proficient range on the test. These students will then be required to attend Opportunity Friday from October 10 through the month of March. Again, school districts across Iowa are having to set up systems of interventions to help improve math and reading scores. This is part of our system, along with after-‐school interventions and summer school. In the very near future, each family with a MS/HS son/daughter on this list will be receiving letters to help you better understand our system. It is our job to continue to provide the needed interventions to help all these students with reading and math strategies so they can effectively pass the Iowa Assessment test this spring. This may cause anguish or discomfort for your son/daughter because they may believe they are being singled out, but on the contrary. As stated above, it is vital that we provide these interventions. Some parents may be getting a letter that states their son/daughter will be required to stay on Friday for “OF” because of their test scores this past spring and this fall. We are hoping that this process/partnership with students/parents will help the overall outlook for each
individual student’s academic success and provide the needed scores to help the district stay off of the SINA list. If you have any thoughts/concerns, please give me a call at 882-‐4202.
“1:1 Computer System” We believe that our roll-‐out in August was a success and hope your son/daughter is enjoying the use of their computer. We are really seeing some improved 21st century learning in our classrooms. Things did not go perfectly but better than expected and I am pleased with the overall turnout (teachers and students). If you ever have questions about the family’s responsibilities in our 1:1 computer system, you can find all of the details on our website. Hot Spots – if you are still in need of the Internet in your home, please call 882-‐4202 and ask for Kim or David. We have a few hot spots left Parent/Teacher Conferences set for November 10 and 11 Parent/Teacher conferences will be held November 10 and 11 at the Tripoli Community Schools. Conferences at the Elementary will be scheduled for each parent, while at the middle/high school, conferences are not scheduled unless a special request is made by a parent. All conferences will be held in the teachers’ individual classrooms. Middle/High School Conferences 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p. m. Elementary Conferences 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. The MS/HS report cards will go home on Friday, October 24. There will be NO SCHOOL on Friday, November 14. An added feature this year is Ms. Tomkins will be helping parents learn how to sign up for rSchool, Iowa Alerts, JMC Grading Program, and learn the parent part of Schoology. She will be in the Community Room each night of conferences from 4:00-8:00 p.m. Bullying and Harassment What is bullying? What is harassment? Bullying and harassment occur when one child or group of children repeatedly hurts another child through actions or words. Bullying may involve physical aggression, such as fighting, shoving or kicking, verbal aggression, such as name calling, or more subtle aggression, such as socially isolating a child. Tripoli Schools have once again spent time in our in-‐service and homerooms reviewing with our staff and students what bullying and harassment look like. As parents, if you are aware of any situations that you feel your child is being bullied, please contact the school. We address every situation.
Driver’s Education Classes This year the instructor for Driver’s Education is Tom Judisch. Classes will be similar to last year. A letter will be sent home explaining many of the details of the program, but we would also like to have a parent/student meeting on November 11 at 6:30-‐7:30 p.m. in the cafeteria. The
meeting will outline the expectations of the class, and parents will be given an updated schedule. The sign-‐up sheet will be on the bulletin board outside of the business manager’s office at the MS/HS. Students who are interested in being in Driver’s Education must have their fee paid prior to the first class. All interested students will be receiving a letter in October.
Community Service – Tripoli’s Annual Character Education Project This year our MS/HS students will have another exciting year of helping our communities. We are setting this project up for sometime in October. If you have a project, please call the MS/HS at 882-‐4202. JMC If your son/daughter did not give you their updates, you can find their grades on the Tripoli School’s website. If you have not signed up for our JMC Grade Program, please contact Kim at the MS/HS at 882-‐4202. This program allows you to monitor your son’s/daughter’s grades. Teachers are required to put grades in four times a quarter, however, most put grades in weekly. Iowa School Alerts Just a reminder to sign up for the Iowa School Alerts on our website. This program allows you to get an instant message through your cell phone when school has been delayed or canceled. If you have questions, please call the school at 882-‐4202. rSchool rSchool is our activity calendar. You can sign up on our school’s web-‐site at www.tripoli.k12.ia.us. This will allow you to get updates on your cell phone or emails of canceled activities, updated activities, or postponed activities as soon as they are made at the school level.
Upcoming Events: MS/HS Calendar October 1 & 15 12:45 p.m. Dismissal October 8 Picture Retakes October 9 Healthy Walk Day (MS/HS) October 15 12:45/12:50 p.m. Dismissal October 17 End of 1st Quarter October 22 1st Quarter Grades Go Home October 29-31 EWALU November 10-11 Conferences 4:00-8:00 p.m. November 11 Driver’s Education Meeting 6:30-7:30 p.m. November 14 No School
Elementary News by Sarah Figanbaum Panther Path (PBIS – Positive Behavior Interventions and Support) Staff members at the Tripoli Community School District voted to implement a PBIS program this year because we wanted to create a school-‐wide atmosphere of teaching and recognizing positive behaviors within the school setting. Our PBIS team has established a common language and set of expectations for students that will reduce school and classroom behavior disruptions, increase classroom-‐learning time, and educate all students about acceptable school behaviors. All staff members at Tripoli Community Schools will establish regular, predictable, and positive learning environments. Staff members will explicitly teach our behavior expectations and will recognize those positive behaviors when shown by students throughout the year. At the Elementary level, our PBIS team has selected four behavioral expectations to teach and model to students. These expectations ask our students to “Be Positive,” “Be Accountable,” “Be Teachable,” and “Be Honorable” (abbreviated for the acronym PATH). When students display these behaviors, we refer to this as students following the Panther PATH. As part of our Elementary program, all students are explicitly taught what it looks like to act positively, to be accountable for one’s own actions, to be teachable, and to act honorably in all areas of our school. These lessons are taught with school-‐wide lesson plans and through teacher and student modeling. Student-‐made videos, bulletin boards, and posters displayed throughout the school will also help remind students to stay on the Panther PATH! Students may be individually acknowledged when they display behavior that is Positive, when they are being Accountable for their actions, or when they are acting in ways that are Teachable, or Honorable. Elementary staff members may acknowledge and compliment students who are demonstrating these Panther PATH behaviors by giving them specific, positive feedback, along with a Panther PAWS Ticket. PAWS tickets may be redeemed for various fun activities, such as having lunch with a special friend.
Fundraisers Campbell Soup Labels, Milk Moola, Ink-‐Jet cartridges, and Big G Box Tops will be collected again this year. Students may start bringing their labels and box tops this week. Once again, we will only keep track of school-‐wide amounts. We will not keep track of individual or classroom contributions.
Book Swap! The Elementary building will once again hold weekly book swaps this year. Every Friday, Elementary students may choose to bring in one gently used picture or chapter book to visit our Book Swap Cart, where they may swap their book for a new one!
We are always looking for donations of gently used picture and chapter books for help fill our Book Swap Cart. Book donations can be dropped off anytime in the Elementary office or in Mrs. Haaland’s classroom. Thanks so much for your help with this project! Please Consider Joining PAC 4 Kids (Tripoli’s PTA) PAC 4 Kids is Tripoli’s parent/teacher organization. It is newly formed last year and meets the second Monday of each month in the Elementary library at 7:00 p.m. Please consider joining! You may contact the Elementary office for additional information and membership forms. Looking for Volunteers The Elementary is looking for adults who would like to volunteer their time helping in a classroom. If you are interested, please contact the Elementary office.
Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) and Annual Progress Report (APR) Beginning in the 2005-‐06 school year, districts were required to assess all students in grades 3-‐8 and 11 in reading, science, and mathematics. The Tripoli Community School District uses the Iowa Assessments, previously known as Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) for grades 3-‐8, the Iowa Tests of Educational Development (ITED) for grade 11. The district also uses the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) for grades 3-‐11 to measure progress. The tests results are reported and reviewed by the Iowa Department of Education. After reviewing district data, it is determined whether the district met achievement targets in math, science, and reading, participation rates, attendance, and graduation rates. Tripoli Community Schools receives results in mid-‐July. For the school year of 2013-‐14, Tripoli met all target goal areas. Additional information pertaining to the AYP is written into the Annual Progress Report. This report can be accessed on our district’s website beginning the month of November or by contacting the school. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Sarah Figanbaum at 882-‐4203.
Web-site Please take a moment and visit the Elementary website. You will find updated information, a calendar, handbooks, and much more. Visit us by accessing the district page at www.tripoli.k12.ia.us and clicking the Elementary page link. Club Choice Fundraiser Elementary students participated in the Club Choice Fundraiser during the month of September. Our preliminary figures show that it was very successful. Products will be delivered on September 30. With your support of the fundraiser, we will be able to purchase new technology equipment, send students on field trips, and purchase student resources. Thanks for all your support!
School Counselor’s Comments by Kara Marsh
High School News
Scholarships Please encourage your senior student to start searching and applying for scholarships. There is information in the Counselor’s office pertaining to a variety of scholarships and how to conduct scholarship searches.
Financial Aid Night Tripoli High School will be hosting a Financial Aid Night on Wednesday, January 14, 2015, at 6:00 p.m. in the Community Room. A representative from Iowa College Access Network (ICAN) will be here to inform parents about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This is an excellent resource to help with any questions that you may have for helping your student pay for college.
Silver Cord The Silver Cord Award is a Service Award that is awarded at graduation. It is available for 9-‐12 grade students. Students in grade 9-‐11 need to start working towards the Service Award this year to receive a Silver Cord upon graduation. Each year students will complete 50 hours of service. The school counseling office and the ABC Club of Tripoli sponsor the Silver Cord Award. All service needs to be pre-‐approved, and forms can be found in Mrs. Marsh’s office.
NCAA Juniors and seniors who are thinking they will play at the Division I or Division II level should be registered on the NCAA Clearinghouse. Here is the site address: www.eligibilitycenter.org. Please let me know if you have any questions as to the registration or eligibility. There are many factors that make a student eligible to play college sports, and high school academics are a huge factor.
Positive Behavior Supports Intervention (PBIS) We are off to a great start with our new behavior initiative. Our motto is “We Lead, We are Accountable, We Earn Ours, This Belongs to Us.” Our goal, as a school, is that teachers will be using a common language, and expectations are clear to all students.
Elementary News This month’s lesson is on Self-‐Confidence and Self-‐Acceptance. Please contact me with any questions or concerns.
School News
Are you Detailed, Organized, Enthusiastic and Like to Socialize? We would love to hear from you! Tripoli Community Schools Fine Arts Boosters are responsible for running many of the concession stands at events at the school. Adult volunteer help is needed in all areas including, but not limited to, working the concession stand during the ballgames, stocking shelves, picking up items from stores, grilling meat, making phone calls, and many other duties. Volunteer once or many times, you decide! Come have some fun! Call Karen Stumme, 319-‐939-‐3361 or email [email protected]. We would love to hear from you!
Health Information from Mary Jean Murch - School Nurse
Kindergarten and 9th Grade Dental Screening Students in ninth grade and those entering kindergarten are required to have a dental screening. In 2008 the Iowa Legislature passed a law requiring dental screening to be completed for these students. Dental forms are available in the school office. Please have your dentist complete the form at the time of the visit and return it to school as soon as possible.
Flu Shots Flu shots are now available from the Bremer County Visiting Nurse Association and from your private health care provider. Please consider getting a flu shot for yourself and other family members in your family. Influenza is caused by a virus, which can be spread by coughing, sneezing, or nasal secretions. Droplets can also be deposited on environmental surfaces. Protect yourself and your family members by being vaccinated for the flu.
Middle School/High School News
Yearbook Reminder – Tami Tomkins To order your 2015 Yearbooks, you will need to complete an order form and submit it to Ms. Tomkins to enter your Yearbook. Forms are available in the High School office and can be paid for by cash, check, or through Payschool. If you elect to pay through Payschool, you will still need to turn in an order form for your book to be ordered. Personalization can be entered on the form for an additional cost. Cost of the Yearbook for 2015 is $40 until October 10, when the price will go up to $45. BONUS: Any orders received before October 10 can get up to four FREE icons with the purchase of one line of personalization. You can still pick up a 2014 Yearbook at the cost of $50, on a first-‐come, first-‐served basis. Thank you for your continued support of the Tripoli Panther Yearbook.