District prepares for portable classroom at Woodside
School officials have been investigating several options that could bring portable classrooms to Woodside Elementary School as early as next fall. As Woodside population continues to grow, Business Services Director Bryan Ruud and Buildings and Grounds Manager Jeffrey Grove traveled to Illinois to look at lease or purchase options for a four-classroom addition.
School Board members will learn more about the district’s option at the Feb. 19 meeting when they are expected to vote on the matter.
District accepts developer’s detachment offer
School Board members accepted an offer from a developer to detach a 1.52-acre parcel from the Hamilton to the Elmbrook School District. Brad Wilson, developer of Bradon Preserve, located directly adjacent to Lisbon Road, requested the detachment so that the 27-lot subdivision being developed would be served by only one school district. In December Wilson offered the district $5,000 as reimbursement for future tax revenue loss. School Board members accepted a $13,568 offer that Wilson presented to the district in January.
The Village of Menomonee Falls recently permitted detachment of the same parcel after the City of Brookfield agreed to pay Menomonee Falls for future tax revenue loss.
Enrollment down slightly since September
School district enrollments this January are down by nine students over the September count. Human Resources Assistant Superintendent Dean Schultz presented a report showing student enrollment going from 4,324 in September to 4,315 in January.
Changes in school enrollment show that:
- Willow Springs is at 257, up 1;
- Lannon – 269, down 2;
- Maple Avenue – 468, up 2;
- Marcy – 461, the same;
- Woodside – 657, up 1;
- Templeton – 950, down 3; and
- Hamilton – 1,253, down 8.
The district saw an increase of 107 students this year compared to the last school year.
Unpaid school fees dropping
Five students from the class of 2006 still have unpaid fees owed to the district that total $216, but the per-student average dropped by nearly 50 percent over the previous year. The district changed collection procedures to include six invoices each year to students with unpaid fees. In addition, students with unpaid fees are not able to participate in graduation ceremonies, and balances greater than $50 are turned over to a collection agency in July. These are among the measures that have helped the district reduced the amount of unpaid fees, according to School Board member Michael Hyland.
Three approved for early graduation
The early graduation requests of three Hamilton students were approved. Hamilton Principal Candis Mongan reported that Holly Grass, Nicholas Romagna and Amanda Simon met all the requirements and conditions of the School Board policy that allows students to graduate in January of their senior year.
Teachers recognized
School Board members recognized the accomplishments of Hamilton science teacher Kimberly Leannais and family and consumer education teacher Kathy Rankin who earned their national teaching certification this year. The teachers earned the teaching profession’s top credential by achieving certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS).
In describing their accomplishments to the School Board, Mongan said the teachers were “judged by their peers as accomplished in their fields.”
“These two clearly understand what rigor actually means,” Mongan said.
A voluntary process, National Board Certification is achieved through a rigorous, performance-based assessment that typically takes more than a year to complete and measures what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do. Teachers who earn this advanced teaching credential are among the best qualified in the nation to improve instruction, raise student achievement and improve teaching practices in their classrooms, schools and districts
Personnel news
In personnel business, the School Board:
- accepted the retirement requests of Hamilton social studies teacher Steven Younk, Templeton sixth grade teacher Maxine Kay, Woodside third grade teacher Thomas Noonan, Templeton sixth grade teacher Cynthia Worzella, Hamilton social studies teacher William Bodette, Hamilton Spanish teacher Mary Label, Woodside second grade teacher Jo-Ann Zeisloft, Templeton physical education teacher Jeanne Johns, Maple Avenue physical education teacher Mary Beth Ahmed-Yahia, Hamilton communication arts teacher Joanne Nolde, Maple Avenue music teacher Terry Fojtik and Hamilton graphic art teacher Byron Olson;
- accepted the resignations of Hamilton French teacher Daniela Sandru and Maple Avenue assistant cook JoAnn Adams; and
- appointed Andrea Diedrick as a Templeton full-time cleaner.