October 30, 2009
I read a quote this week that is very timely: “It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.” (Mahatma Gandhi) Probably those who appreciate that quote the most right now are those who are suffering with the flu! Our student attendance is actually running just slightly below normal, but seems more staff are being hit themselves or are taking care of family members who have the flu. Please continue to take good care of yourselves!
I spent all of Wednesday morning in the Allen/Hardin County area in preparation for the opening of our Adult Education Practical Nursing Program in Hardin County. Amy Main, Adult Ed. Health Occupations Coordinator, and I visited a medical/dental clinic in Lima which will hopefully be replicated in Hardin County. They’re excited about partnering with us for clinical sites for students. Amy and I also looked at some potential sites for the nursing program, which will open its doors in January. (And then Amy and Lori Ludwig continued to look at sites all afternoon!) We’re really excited to be able to take this training opportunity to residents in the north end of our District!
Our Board Meeting Wednesday night was really a fun one. In addition to our Students of the Month and regular reports from administration, Shelly Swaney made a presentation to Donna Beale, who has earned culinary ProStart certification both individually and for her program. I don’t know all of the details of the certification, but I know it has required a lot of training and testing on Donna’s part and a lot of additional hours on the part of her students. Congratulations to Donna and her students—this will certainly open many new doors for them as they move into their culinary careers!
We also heard from Richard Johnson, Adult Ed. Heating Ventilating and Air Conditioning instructor at South Campus, and one of his students (also Richard). I wish you all could have heard the comments this student made! He’s a 38-year-old displaced worker who expressed his gratitude for the training opportunity, told us how he’s already using the skills he’s learning in a part-time job, and also told us how his young son thinks it’s really neat that his dad is in school and asks him every day if he “earned any A’s today”. This gentleman embodied what, to me, lifelong learning is all about. Life throws us curveballs, but we can readjust. And when we do, we teach all of those who are watching us, especially those with young, impressionable eyes, the tremendous value of learning and gaining skills. I wish Richard the very, very best of success.
It’s going to be an eventful weekend! We’ll have a holiday (Happy Halloween!), a time change (don’t forget to set your clocks back one hour—and enjoy that extra hour!), and a new month. Here’s a useless but interesting bit of trivia—according to the National Confectioners Association, $2.225 billion dollars will be spent on Halloween candy this year. Parents, brace yourselves!
Have a great weekend, and don’t forget to vote next Tuesday!
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Friday, October 23, 2009
October 23, 2009
Welcome to another Friday—I hope you’re all staying healthy! I read a scary statistic the other day—apparently the flu virus can live on a dollar bill (or probably most surfaces) for up to 17 days! Yuk. All the more reason to follow Nurse Amy’s advice and wash, wash, wash those hands!
On Tuesday morning I had the privilege of seeing some of our Lead Ambassadors present to sophomores at Waynesfield-Goshen High School to prepare them for our upcoming Sophomore Career Days. What a great job they did! I think kids listen most to their peers, and these young people were so articulate in sharing their experiences at OHP and telling about our programs. I overheard one young lady saying very emphatically that she just had to get into her first-choice program because “this is what I’ve wanted to do for my whole entire life!” It was neat to see the excitement among those kids—our future students! Thanks to our ambassadors for representing us so well.
On Tuesday I also met with our Student Advisory Council, and as always it was a lively discussion. In addition to talking about technology issues, t-shirts (they’ll be getting them), a graduation party on campus (that won’t be happening), and other issues on their minds, they also talked about their overall OHP experience. I thought you should know that one student shared (and the rest concurred) that he definitely feels our teachers care about students and that they really know their stuff. So go ahead and break your arm patting yourselves on the back!
Wednesday I attended the annual meeting of the Educational Tax Policy Institute. I just became aware of this organization last year, and I was really impressed with the publications they put out. They are a non-profit group made up of representatives from Buckeye Association of School Administrators, Ohio School Boards Association, Ohio Association of School Business Officials, Ohio Education Association, Ohio Federation of Teachers, and school district around the state. Their purpose is to educate state policy-makers and the public about the implications of proposed changes to state and local tax policies in Ohio’s public school districts. Through the services of an economist, this group is able to positively impact policy for schools. One recent example was the adjustment to the average teacher salary used in the Ohio Evidence Based Model for funding. I was pleased to hear that they are very aware of the current flat-funding model for career-tech and the fact that we do not have representation on the School Funding Study Council (although it’s hopeful we’ll have representation on the subcommittee where the work will really get done.) ETPI is also collecting and distributing information about the real impact on education of bringing gambling to Ohio. Interesting stuff—you can check it out on their website at www.etpi-ohio.org.
I visited WPKO/WBLL Thursday afternoon, along with Mike Minnich from NetGain Information Systems on behalf of United Way of Logan County. In order to get the employees’ attention and hopefully add some entertainment to our request to support United Way, we donned “Vote for Louie” buttons and t-shirts and danced in to the two-step. I don’t put on a goofy t-shirt and dance for just any cause—but United Way is one that is near and dear to my heart. I hope you will all give whatever you can to support our community in this time when needs are greater than ever.
I’ll end with a neat experience I had this past weekend. I decided I’d better get on the ball and buy some pumpkins. There’s a roadside stand at the end of a driveway around the corner from our house which has had pumpkins for several weeks. It was curious to me that I never saw anyone out there to make sales. I stopped to see what they had, and there was a money can (with several dollars in it) and a sign that read, “Take what you need, leave what you can.” What a great philosophy in this time of struggle for so many. Actually I think that’s a great philosophy for life—think what a difference it would make if everyone took only what they needed from the world and left far more for those that will follow.
Enjoy your weekend!
On Tuesday morning I had the privilege of seeing some of our Lead Ambassadors present to sophomores at Waynesfield-Goshen High School to prepare them for our upcoming Sophomore Career Days. What a great job they did! I think kids listen most to their peers, and these young people were so articulate in sharing their experiences at OHP and telling about our programs. I overheard one young lady saying very emphatically that she just had to get into her first-choice program because “this is what I’ve wanted to do for my whole entire life!” It was neat to see the excitement among those kids—our future students! Thanks to our ambassadors for representing us so well.
On Tuesday I also met with our Student Advisory Council, and as always it was a lively discussion. In addition to talking about technology issues, t-shirts (they’ll be getting them), a graduation party on campus (that won’t be happening), and other issues on their minds, they also talked about their overall OHP experience. I thought you should know that one student shared (and the rest concurred) that he definitely feels our teachers care about students and that they really know their stuff. So go ahead and break your arm patting yourselves on the back!
Wednesday I attended the annual meeting of the Educational Tax Policy Institute. I just became aware of this organization last year, and I was really impressed with the publications they put out. They are a non-profit group made up of representatives from Buckeye Association of School Administrators, Ohio School Boards Association, Ohio Association of School Business Officials, Ohio Education Association, Ohio Federation of Teachers, and school district around the state. Their purpose is to educate state policy-makers and the public about the implications of proposed changes to state and local tax policies in Ohio’s public school districts. Through the services of an economist, this group is able to positively impact policy for schools. One recent example was the adjustment to the average teacher salary used in the Ohio Evidence Based Model for funding. I was pleased to hear that they are very aware of the current flat-funding model for career-tech and the fact that we do not have representation on the School Funding Study Council (although it’s hopeful we’ll have representation on the subcommittee where the work will really get done.) ETPI is also collecting and distributing information about the real impact on education of bringing gambling to Ohio. Interesting stuff—you can check it out on their website at www.etpi-ohio.org.
I visited WPKO/WBLL Thursday afternoon, along with Mike Minnich from NetGain Information Systems on behalf of United Way of Logan County. In order to get the employees’ attention and hopefully add some entertainment to our request to support United Way, we donned “Vote for Louie” buttons and t-shirts and danced in to the two-step. I don’t put on a goofy t-shirt and dance for just any cause—but United Way is one that is near and dear to my heart. I hope you will all give whatever you can to support our community in this time when needs are greater than ever.
I’ll end with a neat experience I had this past weekend. I decided I’d better get on the ball and buy some pumpkins. There’s a roadside stand at the end of a driveway around the corner from our house which has had pumpkins for several weeks. It was curious to me that I never saw anyone out there to make sales. I stopped to see what they had, and there was a money can (with several dollars in it) and a sign that read, “Take what you need, leave what you can.” What a great philosophy in this time of struggle for so many. Actually I think that’s a great philosophy for life—think what a difference it would make if everyone took only what they needed from the world and left far more for those that will follow.
Enjoy your weekend!
Friday, October 16, 2009
October 16, 2009
First and foremost, I want to thank you all for a terrific job with our evacuation drill this morning! In planning the drill, we had hoped for one of those cool, crisp, sunny fall days. Instead we got fog, mist, and COLD! (We all have a good excuse for a bad hair day.) We always learn from these drills (that’s the point!) We’re pleased with the way the drill went, and we take comfort in knowing that in a real evacuation situation we would have a clear procedure and a safe place to relocate our students. We hope the hot cider and hot chocolate waiting for you when you got back were just reward for your efforts!
Monday I attended a Logan County Families and Children First Council committee meeting. The Council is embarking on a data-collection process whereby they identify community needs and set a specific plan to address those needs. I’ve been asked to serve on the “Young People Succeeding” Committee, which will gather data to determine success rates of our youth in various school and community programs. We were asked what data we could provide about our students’ success, and I was very proud to share that we do collect a significant amount of data on our students. Of course we have our Performance Measures data which is required for both the State and U.S. Departments of Education. But they were also impressed with the amount of internal data we’re collecting to determine how we can better serve our students. I’ll look forward to having our data included as part of the report. While it will certainly identify our challenges, I know it will also tell a great story about our student successes!
Monday evening I attended the Champaign County FFA Administrator’s Dinner as a guest of our Agriculture Education programs at Graham. What a nice evening! The students “ran the show” and had clearly done a good job of planning. It was nice to see so many administrators and other school personnel from across the County show up in support. The keynote speaker was from the Ohio Farm Bureau and his topic was current ballot Issue 2. I learned a lot about this issue and agriculture in Ohio in general. I won’t try to influence your vote, but I hope you’ll read up on both sides of the issue if you’re not familiar with it—and talk to some local farmers—before you vote.
I serve on the Logan County United Way Board, and this year I’ve been ask to contact small businesses to encourage them to support a campaign within their businesses. I’ve been doing so (along with other Board members), and I can’t tell you how many times the door has been opened for me because these businesses are aware of our programs, have hired one of our students, have had employees trained here, or have employees serving on advisory committees. It’s good to experience this evidence of the “circle of influence” of our District and the quality programs we offer!
Robin Curley, Animal Management Technology teacher, shared an e-mail with me that she had received this week from a former student. It read, in part (and I’ve not corrected for grammar):
I was in your animal care class in 92 and 94.I hope you remember me because wow I can't forget about you. You was a awesome teacher. You don't know how much you mean to me. I was abused in every way you can think of at home it was hard but you always put a smile on my face each day and made me feel like I was someone.
Also when I was in school I wanted to learn better and my parents just thought I was dumb. They would not try to help me get better. You always try to help me. You made me feel like the other kids. Thank you.
I can remember as a teacher that hearing from a former student and knowing I’d made an impact was the truest compensation for teaching. I’ve said before and I’ll say again—never underestimate the impact you can have on a student with the smallest acts of concern and kindness. Thanks for sharing, Robin!
I’ve gotten my flu shot, have you? It was pretty painless, actually. We were fortunate enough to have a flu-shot clinic for our staff here at the Bellefontaine Campus on Tuesday. Many thanks to Amy McCarthy, Health & Safety Coordinator, for organizing this clinic!
On that note, have a great weekend—stay warm, dry, and healthy!
Monday I attended a Logan County Families and Children First Council committee meeting. The Council is embarking on a data-collection process whereby they identify community needs and set a specific plan to address those needs. I’ve been asked to serve on the “Young People Succeeding” Committee, which will gather data to determine success rates of our youth in various school and community programs. We were asked what data we could provide about our students’ success, and I was very proud to share that we do collect a significant amount of data on our students. Of course we have our Performance Measures data which is required for both the State and U.S. Departments of Education. But they were also impressed with the amount of internal data we’re collecting to determine how we can better serve our students. I’ll look forward to having our data included as part of the report. While it will certainly identify our challenges, I know it will also tell a great story about our student successes!
Monday evening I attended the Champaign County FFA Administrator’s Dinner as a guest of our Agriculture Education programs at Graham. What a nice evening! The students “ran the show” and had clearly done a good job of planning. It was nice to see so many administrators and other school personnel from across the County show up in support. The keynote speaker was from the Ohio Farm Bureau and his topic was current ballot Issue 2. I learned a lot about this issue and agriculture in Ohio in general. I won’t try to influence your vote, but I hope you’ll read up on both sides of the issue if you’re not familiar with it—and talk to some local farmers—before you vote.
I serve on the Logan County United Way Board, and this year I’ve been ask to contact small businesses to encourage them to support a campaign within their businesses. I’ve been doing so (along with other Board members), and I can’t tell you how many times the door has been opened for me because these businesses are aware of our programs, have hired one of our students, have had employees trained here, or have employees serving on advisory committees. It’s good to experience this evidence of the “circle of influence” of our District and the quality programs we offer!
Robin Curley, Animal Management Technology teacher, shared an e-mail with me that she had received this week from a former student. It read, in part (and I’ve not corrected for grammar):
I was in your animal care class in 92 and 94.I hope you remember me because wow I can't forget about you. You was a awesome teacher. You don't know how much you mean to me. I was abused in every way you can think of at home it was hard but you always put a smile on my face each day and made me feel like I was someone.
Also when I was in school I wanted to learn better and my parents just thought I was dumb. They would not try to help me get better. You always try to help me. You made me feel like the other kids. Thank you.
I can remember as a teacher that hearing from a former student and knowing I’d made an impact was the truest compensation for teaching. I’ve said before and I’ll say again—never underestimate the impact you can have on a student with the smallest acts of concern and kindness. Thanks for sharing, Robin!
I’ve gotten my flu shot, have you? It was pretty painless, actually. We were fortunate enough to have a flu-shot clinic for our staff here at the Bellefontaine Campus on Tuesday. Many thanks to Amy McCarthy, Health & Safety Coordinator, for organizing this clinic!
On that note, have a great weekend—stay warm, dry, and healthy!
Friday, October 9, 2009
October 9, 2009
Welcome to another (foggy) Friday! Hope it’s been a productive week for all of you.
I want to start with a great student story. Early last Friday morning I was walking into the Airport Café in Urbana for a breakfast meeting. I saw some high-school-age students walking out, and I asked them if they were students in our Aviation Occupations Programs. Sure enough they were, and they shared with me that they meet for breakfast every Friday morning before class. While we were eating breakfast, the waitress asked us if those students were ours. We claimed them (of course), and she went on to tell us they were the most polite students she had ever seen. She said even one of the other customers had made a point of telling the students how well-behaved they were. I think we could put just about any of our students in a similar situation and they’d make us just as proud! Be sure to tell them so when they do.
Wednesday evening I attended the Logan County Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting. This is always a great event at which some of our local leaders are recognized. The theme was “Your Story is Our Story,” and local businesses and other organizations were invited to put a plaque about their businesses at the tables (we were well represented!) One of the neat things mentioned was that there are nine companies that have been in business in Logan County for over 100 years. Can you name any? This year, the Chamber Ambassador of the Year Award went to Carrie Reynolds with Alan Galvez Insurance, the Integrity in Business Award went to Alan Galvez Insurance, and the Richard J. Rupp Leadership Award went to Rick Gildow, President of Transportation Research Center. Communities are only as strong as their leaders, and we’re fortunate to have citizens of this caliber giving of their time and talents to Logan County!
Thursday morning I attended a “Community Conversation on Workforce” in Dublin which brought local businesses and education leaders together to talk about how to bridge the gap between the two groups in preparing our future workforce. One of the business representatives was from a software development company, and she talked about how much difficulty she had navigating the K-12 educational system to facilitate high school internships at her company. My ears perked up, of course, and I spoke to her afterward about how we in career-tech are well positioned to have our students participate in internships (and you can bet I got her contact information!) We also heard a really good speaker (Mark Milliron with Catalyze Learning International) who described several projects around the country which have helped companies to work with schools to prepare the young workforce for the road ahead. As he said (and we all know), in the United States we have an industrial age school system model on an agrarian calendar attempting to prepare students for an information age. That presents a lot of challenges! We work hard in career-tech to be sure our students are prepared for the rapidly changing workplace they’ll work in, and this presentation challenged me to make sure we do an even better job at that!
A big part of Dr. Milliron’s presentation dealt with educational technology. We’re one of the few schools brave enough to give students e-mail accounts to use while at school. While I know this gives our Technology Department a fair amount of grief as they try to police the “over-users” of e-mail, it also provides a wonderful opportunity for us as staff to interact with students. I hear from students now that I know I never would have without e-mail. Recently, I received an e-mail from a senior in Animal Management telling me she wants to do her senior project on attracting wildlife by enhancing their habitat. She is specifically interested in attracting birds, and she asked if there was an area on campus she could do her research. (And she thanked me for my time!) What a neat project. I was happy to connect her with our Facilities & Grounds Department so that she could identify areas on campus to do research, and I was also happy to provide her with a resource through Adult Education (a gentleman who has taught ornithology). I’m so glad she included me, and I wish her the best!
Standing in line for lunch one day this week, I saw a young lady use the hand sanitizer we have available at the beginning of the lunch line (and it prompted me to do the same). I asked her if she’d had her flu shot, and she said she wasn’t sure she wanted to. She asked me if I’d ever had one and if it hurt. I assured her if it hurt very much, I wouldn’t have gotten one! I know I sound like a broken record, but we all need to head Nurse Amy’s advice during this flu (and allergy and cold) season and get our flu shot, wash our hands frequently, keep our hands away from our faces, and get plenty of rest.
On that last note, hope you have a restful, enjoyable weekend!
I want to start with a great student story. Early last Friday morning I was walking into the Airport Café in Urbana for a breakfast meeting. I saw some high-school-age students walking out, and I asked them if they were students in our Aviation Occupations Programs. Sure enough they were, and they shared with me that they meet for breakfast every Friday morning before class. While we were eating breakfast, the waitress asked us if those students were ours. We claimed them (of course), and she went on to tell us they were the most polite students she had ever seen. She said even one of the other customers had made a point of telling the students how well-behaved they were. I think we could put just about any of our students in a similar situation and they’d make us just as proud! Be sure to tell them so when they do.
Wednesday evening I attended the Logan County Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting. This is always a great event at which some of our local leaders are recognized. The theme was “Your Story is Our Story,” and local businesses and other organizations were invited to put a plaque about their businesses at the tables (we were well represented!) One of the neat things mentioned was that there are nine companies that have been in business in Logan County for over 100 years. Can you name any? This year, the Chamber Ambassador of the Year Award went to Carrie Reynolds with Alan Galvez Insurance, the Integrity in Business Award went to Alan Galvez Insurance, and the Richard J. Rupp Leadership Award went to Rick Gildow, President of Transportation Research Center. Communities are only as strong as their leaders, and we’re fortunate to have citizens of this caliber giving of their time and talents to Logan County!
Thursday morning I attended a “Community Conversation on Workforce” in Dublin which brought local businesses and education leaders together to talk about how to bridge the gap between the two groups in preparing our future workforce. One of the business representatives was from a software development company, and she talked about how much difficulty she had navigating the K-12 educational system to facilitate high school internships at her company. My ears perked up, of course, and I spoke to her afterward about how we in career-tech are well positioned to have our students participate in internships (and you can bet I got her contact information!) We also heard a really good speaker (Mark Milliron with Catalyze Learning International) who described several projects around the country which have helped companies to work with schools to prepare the young workforce for the road ahead. As he said (and we all know), in the United States we have an industrial age school system model on an agrarian calendar attempting to prepare students for an information age. That presents a lot of challenges! We work hard in career-tech to be sure our students are prepared for the rapidly changing workplace they’ll work in, and this presentation challenged me to make sure we do an even better job at that!
A big part of Dr. Milliron’s presentation dealt with educational technology. We’re one of the few schools brave enough to give students e-mail accounts to use while at school. While I know this gives our Technology Department a fair amount of grief as they try to police the “over-users” of e-mail, it also provides a wonderful opportunity for us as staff to interact with students. I hear from students now that I know I never would have without e-mail. Recently, I received an e-mail from a senior in Animal Management telling me she wants to do her senior project on attracting wildlife by enhancing their habitat. She is specifically interested in attracting birds, and she asked if there was an area on campus she could do her research. (And she thanked me for my time!) What a neat project. I was happy to connect her with our Facilities & Grounds Department so that she could identify areas on campus to do research, and I was also happy to provide her with a resource through Adult Education (a gentleman who has taught ornithology). I’m so glad she included me, and I wish her the best!
Standing in line for lunch one day this week, I saw a young lady use the hand sanitizer we have available at the beginning of the lunch line (and it prompted me to do the same). I asked her if she’d had her flu shot, and she said she wasn’t sure she wanted to. She asked me if I’d ever had one and if it hurt. I assured her if it hurt very much, I wouldn’t have gotten one! I know I sound like a broken record, but we all need to head Nurse Amy’s advice during this flu (and allergy and cold) season and get our flu shot, wash our hands frequently, keep our hands away from our faces, and get plenty of rest.
On that last note, hope you have a restful, enjoyable weekend!
Friday, October 2, 2009
October 2, 2009
Wow, it’s October already! Feels like it, too. I don’t like to rush things, but I sort of consider October the beginning of the holiday season. Seems like it’s a blur from now through Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and then we’ll be into the New Year! But let’s just enjoy the changing leaves for the here and now.
I know most of you are familiar with the Sloan Trust that provides us with a generous amount each year to purchase equipment for eligible programs. Last Friday as I was on my way to Columbus for a meeting, I got a call from Harold Marker, one of our local Sloan Trustees. He had a visitor from the Sloan Trust office in Boston (Kim Gluck), and he asked if Kim could possible take a tour of our building. Shelly Swaney quickly arranged a tour to show her some of the labs with recently purchased Sloan equipment. Shelly shared with me later how impressive our students and staff were in expressing their gratitude and excitement with Ms. Gluck about the opportunities the Sloan funds make possible. I want you all to know how proud I am that I can always contact you at the drop of a hat and know that guests will be well taken care of—that means a lot and reflects so well on the entire District!
This is the time of year that Lisa McCullough, EMIS Coordinator, tallies the Professional Development Points earned during the past school year. Thirty-two of our staff members earned the Professional Development stipend by accumulating required points (including technology points). Way to go to all of you who “made the grade,” and thank you for the time and effort you put into keeping your skills and knowledge current! (Thanks also to Lisa for the great job she does tracking these points for all of us every year.)
I don’t know what you’re hearing or reading about the state budget, but not much of it is good. I do want to share with you that I received an e-mail from State Superintendent Deb DeLisle this week describing some preliminary impact on schools if the video lottery issue doesn’t pass. I’m not advocating you vote one way or another—just wanted to clarify that the predictions were based on that issue.) Fortunately, her e-mail did state that career-technical funding could not be cut any further this year or the state would risk losing $44 million on federal career-tech dollars. So we’ll just hold on for the ride for now and plan for the worst but hope for the best!
Let’s end on a positive note (and we have lots of those!) Lynda Arehart, Guidance Counselor at Bellefontaine Campus, copied me into the following e-mail she sent to Heather Reed (Administrative Office Specialist teacher) about a phone conversation she had with a student’s parent:
I just received a phone call from Allison’s mother that I wanted to make you aware of. Her call was full of praise for you and your program. She said that Allison is so excited about OHP and everything that she is learning here, including the opportunities for college and the support that she has been given. I wish I could express her enthusiasm in my email, but since I can’t, I will tell you that I could sense her joy over the phone!!
That’s a great story and I’m so glad Lynda took the time to share with Heather. I had a similar experience myself this week. While I was having my “natural” hair color put back in one evening, the nail tech at the salon shared with me that her son (a senior) had decided somewhat late to enroll in our Aviation Occupations Program in Champaign Co. She was worried about him because he just hadn’t seemed to find his direction in life. She said he loves the program and she’s never seen him so excited about anything! She’s thrilled that he’s now considering the Air Force after high school. Did my heart good to hear that story!
Enjoy your weekend, and remember—in mid-January these temperatures will sound balmy!
I know most of you are familiar with the Sloan Trust that provides us with a generous amount each year to purchase equipment for eligible programs. Last Friday as I was on my way to Columbus for a meeting, I got a call from Harold Marker, one of our local Sloan Trustees. He had a visitor from the Sloan Trust office in Boston (Kim Gluck), and he asked if Kim could possible take a tour of our building. Shelly Swaney quickly arranged a tour to show her some of the labs with recently purchased Sloan equipment. Shelly shared with me later how impressive our students and staff were in expressing their gratitude and excitement with Ms. Gluck about the opportunities the Sloan funds make possible. I want you all to know how proud I am that I can always contact you at the drop of a hat and know that guests will be well taken care of—that means a lot and reflects so well on the entire District!
This is the time of year that Lisa McCullough, EMIS Coordinator, tallies the Professional Development Points earned during the past school year. Thirty-two of our staff members earned the Professional Development stipend by accumulating required points (including technology points). Way to go to all of you who “made the grade,” and thank you for the time and effort you put into keeping your skills and knowledge current! (Thanks also to Lisa for the great job she does tracking these points for all of us every year.)
I don’t know what you’re hearing or reading about the state budget, but not much of it is good. I do want to share with you that I received an e-mail from State Superintendent Deb DeLisle this week describing some preliminary impact on schools if the video lottery issue doesn’t pass. I’m not advocating you vote one way or another—just wanted to clarify that the predictions were based on that issue.) Fortunately, her e-mail did state that career-technical funding could not be cut any further this year or the state would risk losing $44 million on federal career-tech dollars. So we’ll just hold on for the ride for now and plan for the worst but hope for the best!
Let’s end on a positive note (and we have lots of those!) Lynda Arehart, Guidance Counselor at Bellefontaine Campus, copied me into the following e-mail she sent to Heather Reed (Administrative Office Specialist teacher) about a phone conversation she had with a student’s parent:
I just received a phone call from Allison’s mother that I wanted to make you aware of. Her call was full of praise for you and your program. She said that Allison is so excited about OHP and everything that she is learning here, including the opportunities for college and the support that she has been given. I wish I could express her enthusiasm in my email, but since I can’t, I will tell you that I could sense her joy over the phone!!
That’s a great story and I’m so glad Lynda took the time to share with Heather. I had a similar experience myself this week. While I was having my “natural” hair color put back in one evening, the nail tech at the salon shared with me that her son (a senior) had decided somewhat late to enroll in our Aviation Occupations Program in Champaign Co. She was worried about him because he just hadn’t seemed to find his direction in life. She said he loves the program and she’s never seen him so excited about anything! She’s thrilled that he’s now considering the Air Force after high school. Did my heart good to hear that story!
Enjoy your weekend, and remember—in mid-January these temperatures will sound balmy!
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