Revised Plan B

Dr. McKibben has tweaked Plan B to decrease the size of Jefferson. The result is as follows:
Demographics for B-2

School/Students/ Hispanic Students /Median Household Income
Jefferson/ 312 /44/ $43,519
Menominee 347 /50 /$46,299
Washington 351/52/$43,769
Webster 337 /59/$47,421

Blog Bits

Board Highlights
The Board of Trustees met in regular session last evening at Plymouth High School. In addition to its regular business, the board conducted a hearing on redistricting. The majority of those patrons present favored Plan B. Concerns were expressed about the potential size of Jefferson.

The Board adopted the 2006-2007 school calendar.

August 15 First Teacher Day
August 16 First Student Day
September 4 Labor Day (Paid Day)
October 18-19 Student ½ Day
Parent/Teacher Conf.
October 20 Fall Break
November 1 In-service Day
November 23-24 Thanksgiving Break
December 1 In-service Day
December 25-Jan 5 Winter Break
January 17 In-service Day
February 16 In-service Day
February 19 President’s Day
March 6 In-service Day
March 26-30 Spring Break
April 6 Good Friday (snow make-up)
April 19 In-service Day
May 24 Last Day for Students
May 25 Last Teacher Day


The board employed ForeSight Engineering to serve as civil engineer for the rehabilitation of the Soccerplex.

The next board meeting will be at Jefferson Elementary on February 16, 2006 at 7:00 p.m.


Construction Update

Last Thursday and Friday at Webster, Washington, Lincoln and Plymouth High School, a walk-through was conducted by the construction manager and corporation administrators. The Punch Lists were updated. Contractors will begin concentration on those incomplete items or those items in need of correction.

At Riverside, the project is complete with the exception of the installation of white boards.

At Jefferson Elementary, the ceiling grids in the new edition have been installed. Light fixtures are now in place. The new fire alarm system has been completed. Windows in the new edition are installed. Carpeting and casework will arrive the first week of March. Painting will be completed during the next two-week period. Contractors are anticipating the delivery of the HVAC classroom units during the next month.

At the new Menominee, a major concrete pour in the Kindergarten and administrative area is scheduled to take place on Wednesday. The work on the roof over the western section of the building will take place as weather permits. Plumbing and electrical rough-ins continue throughout the building. Sheet metal work is in progress in the dining room, art, and kitchen areas. Bulkheads are under construction in the dining room and commons area. The windows for the building have been delivered. Installation of the windows will take place in the near future. Preparation for concrete pour #3 is underway. The masons are completing the brick veneer on the south side of the building and installing the non-supporting walls in section A.


Change Order Report
The change order report is as follows: At Plymouth High School there have been a total of 17 change orders for a cost of $42,685.29. At Webster, Washington, and Lincoln, there have been a total of 35 change orders for a cost of -$9,825.49. At Jefferson, Riverside, and new Menominee there have been seven change orders for a cost of $9,235.00

Student Wellness Programs

The Indianapolis Star continues the series on childhood obesity.

Blog Bits

Each school district in Indiana is required to develop a corporation wellness plan for students. A committee of staff members is currently involved in that effort. Information sessions will be scheduled with each PTO prior to the completion of the plan. The Indianapolis Star is running a series of articles which provide background for the requirement. Stay tuned for further updates.

Redistricting Update

The Board of Trustees will conduct a public redistricting hearing during the Monday, February 6th meeting at 7:00 PM in the Plymouth High School cafeteria. Dr. McKibben has prepared two scenarios which meet the goals of buildings of approximately the same size, socio-economic, and ethnic composition. Both of the plans are displayed below. The maps can be enlarged by double-clicking the illustration.

Redistricting Map A

Redistricting Map B

Please note the eastern boundary of the Webster district is US 31. A walking area bordered by nursery, South Michigan, and Oakhill is assigned to Webster. The zone area will be divided between Webster and Menominee to balance the buildings.

Missing Maps

The proposed re-districting maps are being e-mailed this evening. We apologize for the delay.

Blog Bits

Webster & Washington Elementary Schools
Congratulations to the Webster staff. Sue Ellen Reed announced yesterday that Webster has been named a 4-star school. This honor reflects the hard work of the staff, students, and parents of the Webster community. To be designated as a 4-star school, the school must be fully accredited, meet adequate yearly progress, and perform in the top 25% of all the schools in the state in each of the following four areas. Student attendance rates, mathematic proficiency scores, English/Language Arts proficiency scores, and the percent of students passing both English/Language Arts and mathematics.

Washington missed being named a 4-star school by .08 of a percent on the attendance rate. Congratulations to the Washington staff, students, and parents for their efforts.

Construction News
A walk-through is scheduled with the construction manager and administrators on Thursday. The process will begin at Plymouth High School and move through each of the Phase I buildings during the day. And if not completed on Thursday, then the process will continue on Friday. The purpose of the walk-through is to compare actual work with punch list completion items that have been reported and add or delete to the punch list.

On February 7th, bidders will be taking part in a reverse on-line auction for the educational equipment for Riverside and the new Menominee schools. On February 21st, the district will be receiving requests for proposals for the equipment in the television studio at Plymouth High School.

Blogging with our local representative

Steve Heim, who represents our district in the General Assembly's House of Representatives, has established a blog to enhance communication with his constituency. We encourage you to read Steve's blog regularly and communicate your concerns or words of encouragement. A link to the blog is located to the right of this article.

Cooperative Purchasing

There are two bills in the Indiana General Assembly that directly encourage Indiana schools to do more in the area of cooperative purchasing. Portions of these bills enable schools to build upon past cooperative purchasing efforts. Indiana Education Service Centers have been active in this arena by pooling resources with member districts and private schools for 25 years. Plymouth Community School Corporation has been an active member of the Northern Indiana Educational Services Center for 25 years. Through our association we have saved thousands of dollars on a yearly basis, not only through cooperative purchasing of equipment and materials, but through many other services and products. If we focus only on the cooperative purchasing done by our school corporation during the 2004-2005 school year, $96,472 in savings were achieved. These savings were made on items such as school buses, cafeteria food and supplies, waste removal, copy paper, light bulbs, carpeting, school furniture, and thousands of other items. Through NIESC we have access to a web based purchasing system that allows us to purchase thousands of materials at bid prices or at reduced catalog prices. Many of these items are on statewide or multi-state bids.

We have actively pursued these savings for years. A ten-year history would show savings approaching $572,178 for Plymouth Community School Corporation. Yearly savings have grown significantly as more opportunities have been added. While there are concepts found in HB 1006 and SB 323 that need continued work and clarification, the cooperative purchasing portions of the bill will enable Indiana schools to do even better and save more dollars to be used directly for instruction. That is what we have worked to do in the past and will continue to do in the future.

Board Highlights

The Board of Trustees met in regular session last evening at Menominee Elementary. In addition to its regular business, a report on the Menominee School Improvement Plan was given by Mrs. Kruger and Mrs. Durbin. They explained the results of the ISTEP+ and the interventions the staff at Menominee is undertaking to improve student achievement in that building.

Three new courses, Entrepreneurship, Peer Tutoring, and Beginning Orchestra, were approved at Plymouth High School.

The board accepted Conflict of Interest statements from board members and school administrators.

Dr. Hill gave a report on transfer students. This year there are 58 ½ students who are cash transfer-in or placement-in students. The district is paying the tuition for 17 students placed in settings outside the district.

Eric Wolfe, construction manager for the building project gave a report on the progress at the new Menominee building. The construction has been hampered by Mother Nature. High winds blew down a wall in December workers are battling muddy conditions. Mr. Wolfe presented a schedule that will result in the completion of the project in time to register students August 1st and open school on August 16th.

The next board will be held on Monday, February 6th at 7:00 p.m. in the Plymouth High School cafeteria. During that meeting a hearing on redistricting will be held.

Town Hall Meetings

On behalf of the Board, thank you very much for attending the Town Hall meetings. Dr. McKibben was able to garner valuable input that will be used in the design of two scenarios for Board consideration in February.

A special thank you is extended to Ed Rodriguez for serving as the interpreter for both sessions.

The new scenario maps will appear on the blog as soon as they are available. The target date is February 2nd.

Welcome to the Blogosphere!

Keep up-to-date with the Pilgrim boys' basketball team. Please double -click "Pilgrim's Basketball", located in the index to your right.

Latest Scenario with road names

Meeting with Webster PTO

I had an opportunity to meet with the Webster PTO last week. It is apparent that the strong PTO, along with the dedicated staff, has contributed to Webster’s success. We discussed redistricting and the selection of a new principal.

The PTO members shared the characteristics of a new principal as the search begins. Those characteristics included a person with elementary teacher or elementary experience,
-who cares about kids;
-who is willing to get experience;
-who is willing to search for opportunities for the building;
-who is someone like Donna;
-who will do the work;
-who is willing to keep some of the old but bring in new ideas;
-who is excited to work with the PTO;
-with high moral standards;
-with a calm demeanor;
-who is a good listener;
-who is flexible and willing to try new things;
-who will bring new ideas;
-with a diversified background;
-with some foreign language experience;
-who is a servant leaders;
-who is a nurturer

I wish to express a “thank you” to the members of the Webster PTO who took the time to be willing to share.

Prepared by John Hill.

6+1 Traits Writing Rubric

Students and parents will start seeing a new writing rubric in the next months. The 6 Trait s of Writing model was developed by researches from the Northwest Regional Education Laboratory in Portland, Oregon in the mid 1980’s. The +1 was added several years ago. The research-based writing assessment is designed to be comprehensive, reliable, and teacher and student friendly. Plymouth Schools adopted it because it provides teachers and students a researched-based rubric that uses common language from grades K-12.

The following is a brief definition of each trait.

1. Ideas: Ideas make up the content of the piece of writing – the heart of the message.

2. Organization: Organization is the internal structure of the piece, the thread of meaning, the logical pattern of the ideas.

3. Voice: Voice is the soul of the piece. It’s what makes the writer’s style singular, as his or her feelings and convictions come out through the work.

4. Word Choice: Word choice is at its best when it includes the use of rich, colorful, precise language that moves and enlightens the reader.

5. Sentence Fluency: Sentence fluency is the flow of the language, the sound of word patterns – the way the writing plays to the ear, not just the eye.

6. Conventions: Conventions represent the piece’s level of correctness – the extent to which the writer uses grammar and mechanics with precision.

+1. Presentation: Presentation zeros in on the form and layout – how pleasing the piece is to the eye.

To read more about this new writing assessment, visit the website for the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory at www.nwrel.org/assessment/department.php?d=1

Blog Bits

Board Highlights

The Board of Trustees met in regular session last evening.

In addition to its regular business, Todd Samuelson was elected board President for 2006. Frank Brubaker was selected as Vice President, and Ron Gifford was selected as Secretary.

Kandi Tinkey was appointed Treasurer, and Lori VanDerWeele as Deputy Treasurer.

Larry Pinkerton will be the board representative to the Student Advisory Committee.

Joe Morris was appointed legal counsel.

Ron Gifford was appointed as legislative liaison.

Frank Brubaker will be the board representative for the Student Services Committee.

A schedule for regular board meetings was adopted.

A report on ISTEP scores was presented by Mr. Tyree.


Employees in the Administrative Office

Kandi Tinkey is replacing Donna Mattix as the Corporation Treasurer.

Lori VanDerWeele has been transferred to Deputy Treasurer and will be in charge of payroll.

Wendy Haenes is the new receptionist.


Construction Update

Jefferson Elementary – the installation of the new fire alarm system was started over winter break. The shipment of windows for the new addition is scheduled for January 11th with installation on January 16th. The construction manager anticipates the installation of ceiling grid and overhead lights during the next two week period.

Plymouth High School – The floor surface is being installed in the multi-purpose room. Upon completion, the weight room flooring material will be installed. The Fritz tile installation in the north lobby is near completion. Workers will continue to install tile in the multi-purpose room entranceway and in the hallway in that wing. The divider has been installed in the cafeteria. Installation of the divider in the ensemble room is underway. Wood has arrived for the performance area in the studio theatre. Data and phone line installation is progressing for the new wings. The new light poles in the parking lot have been erected. They should be functional within the next week.

Riverside Intermediate (Menominee) – The parking lot poles have been erected. They should to be functioning within the next week.

The new Menominee – The building of the last exterior wall has been started. The brick veneer on current exterior walls is 80% complete. The concrete floors in the boiler room, kitchen, receiving area, dining room, art room, mezzanine, and hallway between the art room and dining room have been poured. The boiler pads have been poured. The boilers have been set and some of the air handling equipment has been set in the mezzanine area. Installation of the roof continues over the northern half of the building.

Washington, Webster, and Lincoln – Punch lists have been updated.


Congratulations!

Dr. Suellen Reed has nominated Webster Elementary to be designated as a blue ribbon school by the federal government. Webster Elementary has been recognized for its ability to close the achievement gap among its diverse populations.

Mary Kay Luchenbill, second grade teacher at Webster, has been nominated for the Disney Teacher Award.

Our custodians have worked extremely hard during the winter break to refresh our buildings.


Town Hall Meetings

The Town Hall Meetings, “Redistricting - A Work in Progress,” are scheduled for January 16th at 5:30 p.m. in the Jefferson cafeteria. January 16th at 7:30 p.m. in the Menominee cafeteria. January 17th at 7:00 p.m. in the Webster cafeteria.

All parents and patrons are encouraged to attend and ask questions. Dr. McKibben uses the information collected from each meeting to develop scenarios. If you have a question for Dr. McKibben, please email your question to jhill@plymouth.k12.in.us and it will be forwarded to him.

Blog Bits

Town Hall Meeting #2
Above is the latest proposal Dr. McKibben presented at Town Hall Meeting #2. If you have any questions or comments for Dr. McKibben, please forward them via email to jhill@plymouth.k12.in.us.


Christmas Break Hours
Our office will be open from 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. during winter break. The office will be closed on Friday December 23rd, Monday December 26th and Monday January 2, 2006, in observance of the holidays.

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Town Hall Meetings #3, #4, #5

Three more Town Hall Meetings (Redistricting – A Work in Progress), have been scheduled. On January 16, 2006 at 5:30 p.m. town hall meeting #3 will be held in the Jefferson cafeteria. Later that evening, at 7:30 p.m., town hall meeting #4 will be held in the Menominee cafeteria. On January 17, 2006 at 7:00 p.m., town hall meeting #5 will be held in the Webster cafeteria. All community members are encouraged to attend one or all of the town hall meetings. These town hall meetings are co-sponsored by PASS.

Based upon the comments at each meeting, Dr. McKibben will update scenarios for future elementary redistricting.

If you have any questions you would like to submit to Dr. McKibben prior to the meetings, please send them to jhill@plymouth.k12.in.us.

Blog Bits

Redistricting Comments
Some have asked why is redistricting of the elementary schools necessary? We currently have elementary schools of four different sizes. One is over 500, one over 400, one in the mid 300s and one in the high 200s.

Next year, all elementaries will be approximately the same size. This alone will require redistricting in order to balance the size of buildings.

Since all students in grades 5-12 will be assigned to the same building, those buildings reflect the makeup of the school district. It is important the elementary buildings students attend reflect the school community. This requires that we redistrict in such a way that the buildings are balanced for socioeconomics and ethnicity.

Town Hall Meeting #2
Dr. McKibben presented his latest proposal for redistricting. Members of the community have made several suggestions. Dr. McKibben will use the input to design new scenarios.

Three future town hall meetings will be scheduled. Two will be held on January 16th and one on January 17th. The exact times and locations will be announced at a later date.

Some have emailed and thought that the maps being presented represented final decisions. This is a work in progress.

It is important, as a community member, that you attend those meetings and share your ideas.


Thank you to PASS and the staff at Washington Elementary for hosting last evening’s meeting.

Blog Bits

Two Hour Delay
Plymouth Community Schools were on a two hour delay this morning. The Marshall County Highway Department and Plymouth City Street Department were out early plowing roads and streets. Both north/south, east/west roads had experienced some drifting and time was needed to complete the plowing for the busses.

Board Highlights
The board met in regular session last evening. In addition to their regular business, the board approved an end of the year resolution to transfer funds and pre-write checks, increase the contribution for bus driver insurance from $2,000 to $3,000, and set the date for the organizational board meeting on January 5, 2006 at 7:00 o’clock p.m. in the board room.

Facility Update
In Plymouth High School multi-purpose room, the classroom, locker rooms, weight room, storage room, restrooms, and the hallway, the ceiling grid and the light fixtures have been installed. During the next two-week period, the same installation will take place in the new lobby. Quarry tile has been installed in the locker room and restrooms. The installation of the flooring surface in the multi-purpose room and weight room will begin during winter break. In the broadcast area, the cabinetry has been installed. During the next two weeks, the vinyl tile will be installed in the studio. In the ensemble and speech area, the cabinetry and the sub floor has been installed. The painting is completed in the ensemble room.

At Jefferson, the block fill is completed. The overhead plumbing and electrical runs are 90% complete. During the next two weeks, the fire alarm will be installed and the faculty restroom will be available for use.

At Riverside, the light poles will be installed as soon as weather permits.

At Webster, Lincoln, and Washington, punch list issues are still being addressed.

At the new Menominee, section A is enclosed. The floor pours will begin. The rebuilding of the exterior walls that were blown down in the windstorm will be completed in two work days, weather permitting. Plumbing and electrical rough-ins continue.

Town Hall Meeting #2 – Redistricting, a Work in Progress
The second town hall meeting will be held at Washington Elementary at 7:00 o’clock p.m. on Monday evening, December 12th. For those who are unable to attend, you can submit comment via the comment section on the blog or an email to jhill@plymouth.k12.in.us. Future town hall meetings will be scheduled after the first of the year.

ISTEP+ Scores
All parents will have received ISTEP scores by next Wednesday. If for some reason a parent has not received a score, please contact the building principal.

Boys Basketball Game
The game with Peru will be played at its scheduled time – GO PILGRIMS!!

Town Hall Meeting - 12-12-05

PASS and Plymouth Community School Corporation will be co-sponsoring Town Hall Meeting #2, Redistricting – A Work In Progress on December 12th at 7:00 p.m. in the Washington Elementary cafeteria.

At Town Hall Meeting #1, Dr. McKibben explained the process for developing redistricting maps; offered a base line proposal, and took comments and questions.

Based upon the input from Town Hall Meeting #1, Dr. McKibben will be presenting a revised scenario.

All members of the community are encouraged to attend the meeting. If you have a question that you would like to submit to Dr. McKibben prior to the meeting for his response, you can email the question to jhill@plymouth.k12.in.us, subject: redistricting question.

On November 23rd, members of Business Professionals of America provided the 9th annual Thanksgiving Feast to the Plymouth High School Faculty and Staff. Thank you to the members who brought in dishes to make the traditional feast the best. Special thanks to Nona Hollenbaugh for her leadership. If there are parents out there who helped, thank you! This is a great way for our high school faculty and staff to share food and fellowship. And, even though staff members were "stuffed", they look forward to the feast again next year!

Thanksgiving

We found the following to share with you:

“It’s only right, at this special time of the year, that we pause for a moment and ask ourselves what it is that we have to be thankful for. If there is a special day for giving thanks, let us know at least what it is for which we give that thanks.

The answer is not always at our fingertips. It is not always clear. We read the headlines of newspapers, we listen to the voice from the radio, and we watch the TV screen and what do we see? We see crimes so horrible that it sickens every decent man and woman. We see the results of war and natural disasters mirrored in the horror-stricken faces of its victims. We see tragedy, upon tragedy, hunger, poverty, and degradation. We see several workers losing their job. This is what we see, and certainly the doubt must come that we have little to be thankful for in this far from perfect world. We can understand how this feeling could arise, for certainly, there is much in this life which causes us pain and frustration.

There is much which we regret and condemn, and make no mistake about it; there is much that is good and worthwhile in this world, if we look for it. Especially in our community we can find individuals who give of themselves in every way. We find people who risk their own lives to save others or the victims of unexpected tragedy. We find people who, when tragedy strikes, are there to provide relief and comfort to those who suffer. We find people who time and time again have been there when they were needed and have asked nothing in return except the chance to serve again.

This we can find if we choose to look for it. We can find love conquering hate every day. We can find homeless children in our community, it is true. But we also find men and women with hearts full of love. A love so large it incorporates those children so that they are adopted and raised in families that are thankful for a chance to share that love with a child. For every negative act, we can find an act of kindness, an act of giving, and act of love. It is there that we look for it.

What can we be thankful for? We can be thankful for each other. We can be thankful that in this world filled with tragedy we have people whose lives are a triumph. We can be thankful that for every individual who takes from society in terms of crime and terror, we have 10, 20, 100, and 1,000 who give each and every day of their lives, in terms of love, care, selflessness, and concern for others. Let us all rejoice for these wonderful things and be thankful during this time of the year and throughout the entire year. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.”

Principal for a Day

Plymouth Schools hosted its Fifth Annual Principal-for-a-Day today. Each principal and assistant principal hosted a visitor from 8 am – 12 noon at the individual schools and then met at the corporation office for a light lunch and discussion. Each visitor experienced various aspects of a principal’s daily life. Pictured are the visitors who participated in Principal-for-a-Day.

From left to right, back row: Gary Cook, Charles Ripley, Tony Ross, Mark Senter, Dennis Emmons. Front row: Carol Anders, Mishelle Bergeron, Dwight Laidig, Laurie Sutter.

Board Highlights and Facility Update

Board Highlights

The board met in regular session last evening. In addition to conducting its regular business, the board recognized Harold Schmidt, Jim and Bonnie Yeazel, Amy Gerard, Stephanie Drudge, as outstanding volunteers at the elementary schools. The board also recognized the Webster elementary staff for being cited as a model elementary school by the Center for Evaluation and Educational Policy.

Special recognition was given to Marcia Holloway, Sandy Rowe, Marcia Pownall, Sandy Geist, and Melody Kruger, who will retire at the end of the current school year.

Mrs. Portteus, Mrs. Scheetz, and Mrs. Rowe provided the board with a follow-up report on the class of 2005 and a report on SAT scores.

The second reading of revised policies was completed. The board’s next meeting will be on December 8, 2005 at 7:00 p.m. in the Administration office board room.


New Facility Update

At the New Menominee School the northeast end of the building will be enclosed by the end of November. Meeting this benchmark is progressing. The southwest addition received damage during last Sunday’s wind storm. A 90’ wall and a 40’ wall have fallen. Cleanup has begun. The masons report they can have the walls rebuilt in two weeks and stay on schedule.

At Jefferson, the new addition is enclosed. Work is moving forward on the installation of mechanical, plumbing, and electrical systems.

At Plymouth High School, the multipurpose room painting has been completed. Ceiling panels and the overhead ducts have been installed. In the new shower rooms, the ceramic tile and shower controls are installed. Carpeting and casework has been installed. In the broadcast studio, during the next two weeks, the lights will be installed in the multipurpose room; other equipment will be hung from the ceiling. The painting will be completed in the lobby. The installation of the ceiling grid will begin in the multipurpose hallway and extend into the new lobby area. The casework will be set in the ensemble room and installation of the quarry tile will be completed in the multipurpose wing restrooms and locker rooms.

The Process Begins- Proposal #1

Dr. Jerry McKibben, demographer, has been employed by the district to assist in the re-districting process. He has been charged with developing attendance area that will result in schools of similar size, diverse population, and socio economic make-up. This will allow Plymouth Schools to make available the same quality programs to students in each building. In addition, the staff can be used more efficiently. Above is proposal #1, the beginning. Based on input received from the Town Hall meeting, Dr. McKibben will develop a new proposal which will be shared at a future public meeting. Thank you to PASS for co-sponsoring this and future town hall meetings. We encourage all community members to attend the meetings and participate in this important process.

Current Attendance Areas

The current attendance areas for elementary students are illustrated above. The enrollments in the four buildings are unequal. The make-up of the buildings vary.

Blog Bits

The New Menominee Elementary

During the high winds this weekend, two walls on the southwest corner of the building were blown down. The building corporation maintains builder’s risk insurance to cover these misfortunes. Those areas will be cleaned up and rebuilt immediately.


Celebrations

The district received the following from Senator Richard Lugar:
“Congratulations on the Plymouth Community School Corporation being recognized for significantly narrowing achievement gaps by Standard & Poors during the 2003-2004 school year. This is a single honor in which you should take a great deal of pride. The school district can not thrive without the active participation of the administration staff and volunteers of area schools on behalf of the students in the community they serve. This recognition is a direct result of the hard work and dedication of the community to ensure that each young person, no matter race or social economic class, has access to an excellent education. Congratulations on this extraordinary honor and I wish the Plymouth Community School staff and students every continuing success.”


The Indiana Chamber of Commerce has also recognized Plymouth High School as an honorable Best Buy School in its 2005 7th edition. Congratulations to the staff and students of PHS!


The Center for Evaluation and Educational Policy in its Special Report, “Is the achievement gap in Indiana narrowing?," cited Webster Elementary as a “model elementary school.” Webster was selected as a model elementary school in closing the achievement gap when considering its significant number of students (48%) who qualify for free or reduced lunch price meals compared to the state average (34%), and the high performance of this student population in ISTEP+. Congratulations to the Webster staff and students!

Blog Bits

Board Highlights

The Board met in regular session last evening. In addition to conducting its regular business, the Board recognized Lane Wiley, a Webster student, for his community service.

Suzi Clevenger presented her report on the Alternative School. She reported current enrollment figures, the number of students successfully completing ISTEP, future enrollment projections, and program changes that will be required by the State of Indiana.

Donna Burroughs updated the Board on the planning for the 5/6 building. The Board named the building Riverside Intermediate School. The mascot is the “Rockets”; the motto is “Launching into the Future”; the school newspaper is the “Rocket Rumblings”; and the yearbook is the “Rocket Review”.

The Board heard the first reading of revised and new policies. A majority of those policies were the result of new laws enacted by the last legislature.

Interesting Reading
The South Bend Tribune published an article featuring the study tables offer at Plymouth High School. Thank you to Mrs. Portteus, Mr. Masson, Mr. Fishback and the many student volunteers from the Key Club and National Honor Society for devoting their time for the betterment of our students.

An Exciting Adventure Begins

Seven Plymouth teachers started their first Interdisciplinary Collaborative Program (ICP) class in the Plymouth Board Room on Thursday, November 3. The ICP classes are funded by a five-year federal grant entitled Training for All Teachers. The focus of this grant is to train Indiana teachers to work with English as a New Language (ENL) children. Grant money was appropriate for Indiana since it has the 4th largest ENL population in the United States.

The ICP grant coupled with the TACIT grant provides a free certification in ENL through Indiana University, Bloomington. The seven teachers from Plymouth embark on course work through various forms of instruction including in-person instructors, Internet instruction, and distance learning instruction. A large component of this training is Internet collaboration with the other 43 Indiana teachers across Indiana.

Mary Gifford, another Plymouth teacher, and an alumnus of the ICP grant program and will assist with the instruction and collaboration. Plymouth teachers in the program include Dwight Beguin, Dena McLochlin, Tricia Deisch, Jeanne Tanner, Maria Garcia, Carla Lange, and Kelly Arce.

Teacher / Staff Blogs and Websites

AWESOME! Teacher / Staff websites and blogs!!

Technology is on the move for the Plymouth School Corporation! Below are links to teacher and staff websites and blog pages.

Please take a moment to view each site and notice how helpful they can be for parents and students for homework and information during off time and after hours. ENJOY !


The Plymouth Truth
Corporation Blog
http://plymouthin.blogspot.com/


Judy Harness
Mrs. H's PRIDE and Art
Art Teacher - Elementary
http://www.mrshsprideandart.blogspot.com/


Jane Johnson
Johnson Journal
Second Grade Teacher at Menominee
http://www.johnsonews.blogspot.com/


Tom Johnson
The Paint Spot
Art Teacher - LJH
http://www.thepaintspot.blogspot.com/


Linda Espich
Mrs. E's Blog
Third Grade Teacher at Menominee
http://www.espichclass.blogspot.com/


Mary Kaufman
Brad Fackler
Guidance Counselors at Lincoln Junior High
http://www.plymouth.k12.in.us/~mkaufman/COUNSE~1.HTM


Tina Morales
Guidance Secretary
Guidance Office Blog
http://www.phsguidanceoffice@blogspot.com.com/


John Barron
Health Teacher Plymouth High School
Rockie Head Football Coach
R-R-R-R-ROCKIE Football Blog
http://www.plymouthrockiefootball.blogspot.com/


Grand Masson
Geography Class Blog
http://www.grantmasson.blogspot.com/
Grant Masson
U. S. History Class Blog
http://www.mrgrantmasson.blogspot.com/



Dave McKenzie
Speech & Debate Team Blog
Speech/Debate Coach
Speech/Drama/Lanaugae Arts
PlymouthHigh School
http://plymouthspeech.blogspot.com/


Nona Hollenbaugh
Business Professionals of America Website
Plymouth High School Business
http://www.bpa.org/
http://www.bpa.org/


Nikki Rumpler
Teacher Website
Webster Elementary School
User Name: rumpler
Password: science
www.scholastic.com/classpages


Cindy Wagoner
Pride of Plymouth Music Program Website
Plymouth High School Music
http://www.plymouthbigred.com/


Tara Sharp
Teacher Blog
Lincoln Junior High School Math
http://ljhmathclasssharp6.blogspot.com//


Jeff Hunter & Teresa Dennie
Teacher Blog
Menominee Elementary School
http://www.dandhinfo.blogspot.com/


Ben Waymouth
Media Specialist Blog
Waymouth's Window
http://www.wwindow.blogspot.com/
Media Center Website
www.plymouth.k12.in.us/~bwaymouth


Laura Kruyer
Plymouth High School Social Studies Website
www.plymouth.k12.in.us/~lkruyer


Paul Patrick
Plymouth High School Science Website
www.plymouth.k12.in.us/~ppatrick


Bob Garrity
Lincoln Junior High Science Website
www.plymouth.k12.in.us/~bgarrity

Blog Bits

United Way
With the PHS student total not included, Plymouth Community School United Way donations and pledges are at $17,727.03 up from $14,679.43 last year. Congratulations and thank you on behalf of all the community agencies and the Marshall County United Way..

Facility Updates
At Plymouth High School lunch will be served in the renovated cafeteria on Tuesday. The canteen will not be available for the first few weeks. The new multipurpose room is being painted. Cabinetry is being installed in the new broadcasting area during the next week. Ceiling grids have been installed in the training room and new locker rooms. The final coat of blacktop is being installed today.

At Menominee, there is some plumbing that remains to be completed. The new parking lot lining and light installation will occur during the next two weeks.

At Jefferson, the steel and metal decking has been erected. Roofers will be installing the new roof and the masons will complete the interior walls during the next two week period.

At the new Menominee, the footers and foundation walls have been completed. The ramp areas are being constructed. Masons continue to build walls in both the A and B wings. As an area is made available, steel is erected and metal decking is installed. Roofers are on-site closing in areas as they are made available.

Contractors are following up on punch lists in all the other buildings.

Town Hall Meeting
PASS and Plymouth Community Schools will be co-sponsoring a town hall meeting on November 14th at 7:00 p.m. in the St. Joseph Hospital Education Room. This will be the first meeting addressing redistricting. Jerry McKibbin, the demographer, will present Re-districting, a Work in Progress. He will review preliminary numbers and explain the process that he goes through as a demographer in developing scenarios. He will share a base scenario and request public input at the meeting. All are encouraged to attend.

Awards
Lane Wiley, a student at Webster Elementary has been selected for the October 2005 Future Leaders Award. Indiana State Treasurer, Tim Berry will present the award and a check for $1,000 to Lane on Wednesday, November 16th.

The State of Indiana has awarded Webster Elementary a Reading is Fundamental Grant. This will provide books for distribution to the students at Webster.

WalMart presented Washington with a computer and printer last week.

Miscellaneous
Angie Becktel has identified an interesting writing website. It contains six trait writing activities http://www.writingfix.com/.

Blog Bits

Cold Weather

The cold weather has set in and we have received several phone calls about the temperature in the school. As we work with new boilers and old boilers, both present a challenge to heat the school evenly and immediately. As you know natural gas prices will be up substantially this winter so the thermostats will be set at 69 degrees to conserve energy. Our recommendation is for staff and students to bring a sweater or sweat shirt with them.

High School Physical Education Blues

Several parents called yesterday with concerns about fumes in physical education class at the high school. The construction manager informed us that the paint fumes from the multi-purpose room were not dangerous; however, he has closed several vents leading from the old school to the new school and that has eliminated the fumes.

Play and Football Game Parking

Friday night should bring lots of students and parents to Plymouth High School to see the drama department's Beauty and the Beast and then see the Rockies beat East Noble. The play starts at 6:30 and patrons should park in the south parking lot. The sectional football game starts at 7:30 and patrons should park in the north and east parking lot.

Changes and Challenges

Fall break for us was a time of reflection. As we have reviewed the school year thus far we see changes and challenges before us.

Primary teachers have been involved in implementing new reading strategies. Members of the elementary and middle school staff have spent time sequencing curriculum for the development of benchmark exams. Several of our staff members have spent time planning the new 5/6 grade building. Other staff members have had to work around construction projects.

As we have observed our staff members working extremely hard; we acknowledge that change can be difficult and frustrating. Thank you to the many staff members working extremely hard for the improvement for our students.

We have also been faced with external changes which have presented challenges. The spiraling cost of fuel for our vehicles and utilities for our buildings create new challenges. Staff members have made difficult choices in selecting field trips. Community members have stepped up to help fund those same trips. We are extremely fortunate to be members of a district and a community where the internal and external forces have come together to provide our students out of school experiences.

The devastating hurricanes and the needs of our community organizations that continue to rise create challenges for charitable organizations. Again, students and staff of Plymouth Community Schools have stepped up to the challenge by contributing to the victims of Katrina and to the Marshall County United Way. Staff members have pledged or given $11,395 to the United Way campaign this year. Thus far, student campaigns have netted $5,456 in donations with two buildings yet to report.

We express our deep appreciation to staff, students, and community members for stepping up to the changes and challenges of this school year.

Blog Bits 10-14-05

Board Highlights
The board met in regular session on October 6, 2005. In addition to conducting its regular business, the board recognized Nate Pearson and Erin Dunning, Plymouth High School Business Professionals of America students who have compete successfully at the state and national levels.

The board approved an agreement with Cyberlink. Cyberlink will provide Plymouth Community Schools with high-speed Internet access in return for the use of the corporation’s towers.

Literacy Conference
Last week 23 teachers and six administrators attended the Literacy Conference sponsored by the Indiana Department of Education. They heard leading experts in the area of reading from throughout the country.

Help
We are in need of substitute bus drivers. Individuals who become a substitute bus driver make themselves eligible for future routes. If interested contact Rick Scott in the transportation department at 936-3115.

Congratulations
The students at Webster Elementary have contributed $1,017.54 to the Marshall County United Way Campaign. In addition, 100% of the Webster staff participated in the drive this year. Campaign chair Jim Wagner and educational campaign chair Larry Pinkerton met with the Webster staff this morning to express their appreciation for the staff’s efforts.

Board Meeting
The October 20, 2005 meeting of the Board of Trustees has been canceled due to conflicts with fall break. The next regularly scheduled meeting of the board will be November 3, 2005 at 7:00 p.m. in the board room.

United Way, it's what matters locally

Most of our lives and certainly during recent years all over the world we have witnessed great crisis. We have a great crisis right here in the United States. We think it’s wonderful to look around the Marshall County community and see the outpouring of generosity in helping the victims of Katrina, Rita, and other storms that have ravaged the southern coast of the United States. There are many organizations that are working to help the victims of these disasters, but we think that it is important to remember that we will be confronted with problems here locally especially with the rise in heating costs and other local problems. There are going to be more people in our community that may need help. We are asking everyone to be generous with United Way, which is the center for all the help going to so many people through our local member agencies. We hope as our fall campaign continues, you will remember that the local needs will not go away, they may even deepen. It is important to support the annual community campaign, the United Way – it’s what matters locally.

Principal for a Day

We are still looking for several volunteers for this year's Principal for a Day program. The day of the program is November 18, from 8 - 1. Please see the blog post from September 18 for details of the program. Call Amy Pratt to reserve your spot at 574-936-3115.

NEW TEACHER BIOGRAPHY

Anne Gasway


Family
Anne and her husband Casey have two sons, Cooper, 5 years, and Willem, 2 years

Education
Indiana State University, English Education and Creative Writing

Hobbies:
Reading, writing, running, camping, fishing

Your Comments
I was born and raised in Crawfordsville Indiana. I went to college at Indiana State University on both athletic and creative and performing arts scholarships. During my stay I was active not only with the track and cross country teams but also with Students of Fine Arts.

I graduated in the winter of 2001 and started teaching at Northview High School in the fall of 2002. While at Northview High School I taught English in an LD self-contained classroom. I was also head girls track and cross country coach.

After two years my husband and I decided, “Hey you only live once. Let's see what it's like to live somewhere else." So we moved to Colorado. It lasted 6 months. There really is no place like home.

We were glad to get back to Indiana. We're even happier to be in Plymouth. I have taught in my share of high schools, and I know Plymouth is one of the best.

Blogbits

Welcome to the blog-o-sphere! The Plymouth High School Speech and Debate teams have created a blog that currently contains a calendar of all speech events. In the near future, the blog will have a weekly update with information on practices and tournaments. Welcome to the world of blogging!!

New Facility News
The district will occupy the new music wing at Plymouth High School next week. From October 3rd to October 7th, equipment will be moved into the new areas. Classes will begin meeting in the new areas on October 10th. The target date for moving in to the remodeled cafeteria is November 1st.

What is in a name?
Fourth and fifth grade students are having an opportunity to be involved in recommending a name for the 5/6 building. Some of the names that have been suggested from students are Pilgrim School, Liberty Intermediate, Centennial Intermediate, Harrison Intermediate, Plymouth Intermediate, Patriot Intermediate, Independence Intermediate, Hoosier Intermediate, Sally Ride Intermediate, Christa McAuliffe Intermediate,Reagan Intermediate, Kennedy Intermediate, Plymouth Rock Intermediate, Franklin Intermediate, Roosevelt Intermediate, Lewis & Clark Intermediate, Rockie Intermediate, Mayflower Intermediate, Riverside Intermediate, Marshall Intermediate, Tecumsah Intermediate, Potawatomee Intermediate, and Horris Corbin Intermediate. These suggestions are in addition to those that many of you have submitted.

As part of the naming process, students will also be involved in identifying a mascot, school motto, newspaper name, and yearbook name.

Miscellaneous
For those of you who enjoy satire and wish to keep abreast of educational happenings in Indiana and around the country, we invite you to read the Super's Blog. The link is located on the right side of this page.

Career Readiness

As a part of the high school's career readiness program, approximately 200 juniors participated in a mass job-shadow the last three days.

Mrs. Michelle Tanner handled the majority of the work load at the high school's end and deserves accolades for her tenatious approach to making the first mass job-shadow successful. Her job included working with students and their occupational desires, contacting businesses, and then organizing the students to be out of school one of the three days that ISTEP was being given to freshmen and sophomores.

A follow-up thank you letter from the students will be sent and feedback from each student will be examined so plans for next year's juniors can be initated.

A big thank you goes out from the school corporation to Mrs. Tanner and all of the businesses who took part in this very meaningful day. This is the type of partnership that helps students get a first-hand look at a carrer they are choosing. It also helps students focus on jobs in Plymouth and Marshall County to help eliminate part of the brain-drain.

More can be read about this in the South Bend Tribune as Mrs. Ida Chipman is preparing a story. Thank you Marshall County for all you do to help children!

Mock Disaster

The PHS health careers class students were "victims" in the community mock disaster held Tuesday evening. Students used our the moulage kit to plaster themselves with fake burns, embedded glass charts, and actual pumping arterial bleeds. The students screamed in pain, pretended to die, and go into shock. One student actually portrayed premature labor so realistically that they took her by ambulance first to quiet her down!

At the site, the students were to be victims of a school bus explosion. They were doused with diesel fuel and a suspicious white powder, necessitating decontaminating by haz-mat teams.
Dr. Holm, our county medical director, and the EMA's worked with incident command to clear the site. PHS students were all taken by ambulance to SJRMC and put through the decontaminating process. Air Angels and Good Samaritan were there with the helicopters and the students were able to sit in the helicopter and talk to the paramedic.

After the disaster, the students and Mrs. King, the school's health occupations instructor, attended the debriefing at the First United Church of Christ where they learned what the Red Cross does in the event of an emergency. The church became an emergency shelter at that point and students were signed in to the shelter, just as they would have been in New Orleans last month. It was an amazing learning experience for our students.

Enrollments up

Last Friday was the official “count day.” Preliminary results show that Plymouth Community Schools has one hundred five (105) more students than it did at this time last year.

The enrollments are as follows:

Jefferson – 232 students
Menominee – 573 students
Washington – 384 students
Webster – 427 students
Lincoln Jr. High – 833 students
Plymouth High School – 1,026 students
Total Corporation Students – 3,475

The enrollment results will be sent to the Indiana Department of Education and will undergo a reconciliation process. Final numbers will be determined at a later date

New Teacher Biography - Cathy Deardorf

NEW TEACHER BIOGRAPHY

Cathy Deardorf



Family
Cathy and her husband Larry have been married for almost 17 years. They have four wonderful daughters, Leticia 16, Ciersten 14, Leah 12, and Cendra 9.

Education
Cathy graduated from DeKalb High School in 1987. She earned her Bachelors degree in Secondary Science Education from Tri-State University (Angola, IN) in 1996. She was licensed to teach biology, general science, and computers. Cathy earned her Masters degree in Administrative Education Leadership from Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne in 2003. She finished her K-12 principal licensing in 2004.

Why did you become a teacher?
“When I began college, I chose the field of education because I was influenced by some wonderful teachers at DeKalb High School. They had a big impact on my life. I wanted to be the same type of positive influence for my students. The decision for me to move out of the classroom into administration was a difficult one to make. I loved teaching, but with administration I can work with students in so many different ways and on so many different levels, not just with my curriculum. I also get the opportunity to work more directly with the wonderful staff and community of Plymouth. Since coming to Plymouth, I know I made the right decision.

Cathy's Comments
“I love working with the students and staff at Plymouth high School. Coming into a new position, there is always a lot to learn and everyone has been very supportive. Thank you for making me feel welcome.

Want to be Principal for a Day?

On November 18, Plymouth will host the 5th consecutive "Principal for a Day" program. The day each fall was officially proclaimed by the late Governor Frank O'Bannon to provide greater community involvement and understanding of the principal's role in leading Indiana's schools.

Community members will spend their morning with one of Plymouth's principals starting at 8:00 AM and concluding at 1:00 PM. At that time all participants and volunteers will gather at the administrative building for a luncheon and discussion of the day's events. The press will be invited so pictures will be taken as well.

If you want to be a "Principal for a Day" contact Plymouth Community School Corporation by calling Amy Pratt at 936-3115. All volunteers must be 21 years old and live in the Plymouth School district.

Blog Bits

Highlights of Last Evening’s Board Meeting
The school board met in regular session last evening. The highlights of the meeting are as follows:

- The board approved monthly claims and personnel.

- The board heard a report on the school improvement plan at Washington Elementary. Mrs. Riise explained the use of the DIBELS assessment and the three-tier intervention model.

- Mrs. Riise also reported that the students at Washington Elementary have raised over $1,000 for victims of hurricane Katrina.

- The board gave permission to publish Notice to Taxpayers of Additional Appropriation from the rainy day fund.

- The next board meeting will be on October 6, 2005 at 7:00 p.m. in the Administration Building.


Construction Update
At Washington, Webster, Lincoln schools, the contractors are still working on items that have been identified on the punch list. Principals have contacted the construction manager with unresolved issues in their buildings.

At Menominee Elementary, the interior work is substantially completed. The contractors are installing the new parking lot. Projected completion of this installation is late October.

At Jefferson Elementary, the masons will complete the construction of the load bearing walls during the next two-week period. The pouring of the concrete floors will begin. Trusses are scheduled to arrive on site on November 1st. The new addition should be under roof by the end of November.

At Plymouth High School, the music wing is moving closer to completion. Carpeting has been installed in three of the large instructional areas. Vinyl floor covering will be installed in the choir room next week. Work on the driveway around the music wing is nearing completion. Weather permitting the base coat of asphalt will be applied in another week. The target date for completion of the music wing is October 1. The contractors have completed the electrical rough-ins in the cafeteria area. Wall board is being installed at this time. Target completion date of the cafeteria is November 1. The masons are wrapping up their work in the multipurpose wing. Mechanical, plumbing and electrical workers are installing their equipment. Electrical rough-ins have been completed in the broadcast classroom and studio. Contractors are installing wall board. During the next two week period, painting and installation of ceiling grids will begin in that area.

The construction of the load bearing walls continues in Section A of the new elementary. This process will continue during the next two weeks. All the footers and foundations in the classroom wing will be completed next week.

ISTEP
Students in the Plymouth Community School Corporation will be taking the ISTEP tests next week. Please be sure your children are getting plenty of sleep and a good meal each morning

New Teacher Biography - Grant Masson

NEW TEACHER BIOGRAPHY

Grant Masson


Family:
Grant is married to wife Debbie for 15 years. They have two children, Scott 8, and Sean 6.

Education:
Boraughmuir High School (Scotland), IUSB Bachelors in Social Studies, World History, U.S. History, Government, Geography

Why did you become a teacher?
To give back to the Country that has given me so much, namely allowing me to become a citizen in 2003. One of the proudest days in my life.

Your Comments:
"I am so excited to be teaching at PHS! The school feels like a family where both staff and pupils are nurtured to succeed! I believe firmly in the principle, “By Example, We Lead” and hope to foster this in the children I teach. "

New Teacher Biography - Elizabeth (Holmes) Miller

NEW TEACHER BIOGRAPHY

Elizabeth Miller
4th Grade Teacher at Menominee Elementary


Family
Elizabeth is married and has one daughter who attends Webster Elementary.

Education
Graduate of Indiana University, South Bend, May 2004

Why did you become a teacher?
I became a teacher to inspire a life-long love of learning in students. My goal is to encourage students to achieve their personal best in all they do.

Thank You!!!

At the football game Friday night, the generosity was overwhelming. The PHS Key and Ambassador clubs raised over $1500.00 to be donated to the Red Cross for victims of Hurricane Katrina. Thank you, to all of you who chipped in to support those IN NEED!!!!Plymouth is a great COMMUNITY!!!

New Teacher Biography - James E. Radican

NEW TEACHER BIOGRAPHY

James E. Radican - Social Studies at PHS



Family:
James’ wife is Tammie and she is a Special Education teacher at LaVille High School. James and Tammie have two children, Christian 10, and Ian 8.

Education:
Bremen Senior High School, class of 1983
Ball State University, Bachelors Degree in 1988
Indiana University South Bend, working toward his Masters Degree in ESL

Why did you become a teacher?
Outside of family, teachers have made the greatest impact in my life. Teachers in both public education and religious instruction have been my role models. I have respected the profession and admire those that excel in the field.

Welcome to the Blogosphere!

The PHS library has established a blog, Waymouth's World. A link to the blog is located on the right side of this page. Welcome!

New Teacher Biography - MaryPat Glaub

NEW TEACHER BIOGRAPHY

Mary Pat Glaub - Choral Director at PHS



Family:
MaryPat's husband is John, they have been married for 28 years and have five children, Carrie 27, Patrick 26, Chris 24, Anthony 18, and John 15. Mary and John also have one grandchild, Elija 15 months.

Education:
Bachelors and Masters at Indiana University

Why did you become a teacher?
I want to share my love of music and give students positive musical experiences that will last a lifetime.

Your Comments:
It’s great to be back in the classroom!!

Blog Bits

Blueberry Festival
We wish to thank all staff members, parents, friends of the school district, and students who assisted with the various projects during the blueberry festival. Your efforts provide valuable resources for school organizations during the coming year.

School Board Highlights
The board met in regular session on September 1, 2005. Highlights of the meeting are as follows:

~ The board approved monthly claims and personnel items.

~ An agreement with Cyberlink for Internet service was tabled for further information.

~ A hearing was conducted on an additional appropriation for the technology fund. At the conclusion of the hearing, a resolution was adopted approving the appropriation.

~ The 2006 Budget, 2006 Capital Projects Plan, and the 2006 Transportation Plan were approved.

~ The board approved a list of revised and new policies recommended as a result of legislative changes.

~ The board approved the use of Menominee school for the balloon launch by the Blueberry Festival Committee.

~The board approved several transfer tuition student requests.

~The board heard a facility update and approved affidavits for payment on the construction project.

The next board meeting will be held on September 15, 2005 at 7:00 p.m. in the Washington Elementary cafeteria.

Construction Update
At Washington, Webster, Lincoln, and Menominee schools, the contractors are completing the items on the punch lists. Principals have also been contacting the construction manager with unresolved issues in their buildings.

At Jefferson Elementary the contractors are now building the load-bearing masonry walls. Electricians and plumbers are following-up with rough-in work.

At Plymouth High School the music wing is nearing completion. Carpeting will be installed at the end of the week of September 5th. The contractors are developing the roadway and constructing sidewalks around the music wing. The roofing over the new multipurpose room wing is nearing completion. Target date for occupation of the music wing is October 1st. The target date for the use of the remodeled cafeteria is November 1st. December 31st is the completion date for the remainder of the project.

At the new elementary school, the construction of the load-bearing walls continues in section A. The gymnasium, boiler room, cafeteria, art room, and music room walls have been completed. The contractors are currently working on the outside walls of the Kindergarten rooms. All foundations in the building will have been installed by September 26th.

What is DIBELS?

Last week all Plymouth elementary students in grades K, 1, 2, and 3 were given the DIBELS assessments. DIBELS is an acronym for the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills. The assessments consist of a set of standardized, individually administered measures of early literacy development. They are designed to be short (one minute) fluency measures used to regularly monitor the development of pre-reading and early reading skills.

The measures were developed upon the essential early literacy domains discussed in both the National Reading Panel (2000) and National Research Council (1998) reports to assess student development of phonological awareness, alphabetic understanding, and automaticity and fluency with the code. Each measure has been thoroughly researched and demonstrated to be reliable and valid indicators of early literacy development and predictive of later reading proficiency to aid in the early identification of students who are not progressing as expected. When used as recommended, the results can be used to evaluate individual student development as well as provide grade-level feedback toward validated instructional objectives.

In the next few weeks parents will receive a letter explaining how their child performed on the assessment. More importantly they will receive the school’s plans to meet the individual student needs.

Blogbits

United Way

Bobby Byers, 5th grade student at Menominee Elementary, was one of the speakers at the United Way Kickoff Luncheon. Bobby represented the Marshall County Boys & Girls Club and the students at Menominee. He explained the importance of his membership in the Boys & Girls Club to him and his family. He asked those in the audience to support the Boys & Girls Club by giving to the United Way. We encourage each of you to help Bobby by participating in this year’s United Way campaign. “Step up to the plate, it’s what works.”



Field Trips

Some have contacted our office about the cost of field trips. An electronic field trip may cost anywhere from zero to $200. Many zoos and museums offer electronic field trips. The CILC in Indiana provides a catalog of available electronic field trips. Live field trips involve the cost of drivers, fuel, maintenance, etc. Our drivers receive $20.30 as a two hour minimum, plus $10.15 per hour thereafter. Maintenance costs on our buses are approximately $.24 per mile. Our present fuel price is $1.98 per gallon. Busses average about six miles per gallon. We greatly appreciate those individuals and organizations who have expressed interest in supporting our field trip programs during these times.



Corporation Website

Specific information about our schools and the district is available on the corporation website. Amy Pratt is the Administration Building webmaster. Members of Janice Curtis’ computer application class have developed the building websites.

Construction Update

A construction meeting was held Thursday morning, August 25, 2005, at 9:00 a.m.

Webster, Washington, and Lincoln Junior High
Contractors are following-up on punch list items that were created by the architect or reported by building principals to the construction manager. This process will continue for the next few weeks.

Plymouth High School
The cabinetry is being installed in the instrument and uniform storage areas. The rough-in plumbing in the new restrooms of the music wing has been completed. Masons are following right behind. The sidewalks and curbs are being installed around the music wing. The new west entrance has been secured with new doors. The steel joists over the multi-purpose room were installed this morning. The roofers will complete the roof over the music wing and then move to the multi-purpose wing. Mechanical and plumbing contractors will continue their work throughout both wings. The new speech practice rooms have been dry walled and are scheduled for painting tomorrow. The installation of cabinetry in the costume storage area has been completed. During the next two week period floor covering, lighting fixtures, and ceiling pads will be installed in that area. The broadcasting area has been framed. Electricians are completing the electrical rough ins.

Jefferson Elementary
The plumbing and electrical rough-ins have been completed. The masons are scheduled to mobilize next week.

New Elementary
The contractors are pouring footers and installing foundation walls in Section B, the classroom area. Masons are continuing to build walls in Section A.

This reminder – the south parking lot at Plymouth High School will be closed Saturday for re-lining.

National Commission on Writing

Recently the National Commission on Writing examined the role of writing in the workplace and developed the following suggestions for state policy dealing with writing education.

1. Every state should revisit its education standards to make sure they include a comprehensive writing policy that doubles the amount of time and resources devoted to writing while requiring a writing plan in every school.

2. State policy should require teacher education programs to provide instruction in writing theory and practice for all prospective teachers.

3. State policy should also require a writing plan in every school, insist that writing be taught in all subjects and at all grade levels, and require courses in teaching writing for all prospective teachers.

4. Assessment of students must go beyond multiple-choice, machine-scorable items to include requirements that students actually produce a piece of prose during the assessment.

Plymouth seems to be on the right track!

Tara Sharp, sixth grade math teacher at Lincoln, initiated her classroom blog this afternoon. Tara joins Terri Dennie and Jeff Hunter in the blogoshere. Links to the classroom blogs are to the right.

Work is scheduled to begin tommorrow on the repair of the Scoccerplex stadium. The projected completion of the repairs is eight work days.

Kindergarten ELL students began their extended day program this morning. Students who require assistance with language skills qualify for the program. Our staff is highly successful in helping students aquire the level of skills required for successful school experience.

High School Parking Lot

The south high school parking lot will be closed Saturday, August 27th, for re-lining. Please make arrangements to use the north entrances on that date. Thank you.

ISTEP

ISTEP is just around the corner so principals and counselors are creating the testing schedule for ISTEP in each building. The testing window for grades 3-9 runs from September 19 - 30. The testing window for the 10th grade ISTEP or the Graduation Qualifying Exam is September
20-22.

It's very important that all children are present during the testing days as the school is not only judged on the results of the test, but also with the percentage of students who take ISTEP.

If you have questions or concerns about any aspect of the ISTEP testing process, don't hesitate to call your building principal.

PHS Richard Tobias 936-2178
LJHS John McNeil 936-3113
Jefferson Paula Neidlinger 936-2443
Menominee Melody Kruger 936-3787
Washington Michelle Riise 936-4072
Webster Donna Burroughs 936-2520

Plymouth Community Schools Recognized

Standard & Poors school evaluation services announced today that Plymouth Community Schools is one of 19 Indiana districts that has been identified for significantly narrowing the gaps of achievement between economically disadvantaged students and their higher-performing classmates while simultaneously raising the average proficiency rates of the student groups being compared.

To be recognized in Standard & Poors Analytical Report, the districts must serve all grades K-12, enroll 30 students on average, per student sub group being compared per grade, reduce the achievement gap in overall reading and math proficiency rates by at least five percentage points between 2002-2003, and 2003-2004 school years, and simultaneously raise the reading and math proficiency rates in both the sub groups being compared over the same period.

“Closing the achievement gap is one of the most persistent challenges in American education today” said William Cox, executive managing editor of Standard & Poors evaluation services. Given the complex nature and extreme difficulty in closing these gaps, Standard & Poors believes its important to pay tribute to those districts that have made progress in this area.
Congratulations to all staff for your efforts.

Opening Week

We had a very successful first week of school. Friday evening we closed with an enrollment of 3,431. This is up from 3,343 on count day last year. We have several new teachers working in the district.

Anne Gasway is teaching English at Plymouth High School.

Grant Masson, Robyn Keller, and James Radican are all working in our Social Studies department at Plymouth High School.

Eric Doades is the new choir teacher at Lincoln Junior High.

Cathy Deardorf is serving as the new assistant principal at Plymouth High School.

Many teachers, custodians, teaching assistants, principals, have worked extremely hard in preparing for the opening of school. Thank you to all who contributed to making the opening a success.

Construction Update

A construction meeting was held August 11, 2005, at 9:00 a.m.

The contractors have committed to having buildings ready when school begins next week.

Lincoln Junior High
A fence will be placed around the transformer. Some walls need patching next to the dry food areas. Vinyl floor covering will be installed in the cafeteria office. The case work will be set in room A142. The ceiling grid and case work in the nurse’s office will be installed tomorrow.

Webster Elementary
Techs will be on site today to start up the air handling units in the new classrooms. The wood trim will be installed today.

Washington Elementary
The seeding of the area around the school will begin on Saturday. The stucco soffit on the canopy will be finished today. The fence around the gas meter will be installed on Saturday. Vinyl floor tiling in the kitchen area will be completed today. The rails for the cafeteria will be delivered today and installed shortly thereafter. The air conditioning units in the new classrooms will be charged and started up today. The contractors have guaranteed air conditioning for the entire building at 7:00 a.m. Monday morning. The architect will be conducting walk-throughs to create a punch list today and next week.

Plymouth High School
The installation of case work is taking place in the new music wing. Repairs will be made on the northeast parking lot over the weekend. That area will not be available for cars.

Reminder, all staff members should park in the parking lot between the administration building and the high school for the first day on August 16th. Entry to the high school can be made through the southeast doors.

The next construction meeting will be Thursday, August 18, 2005.

Why the Migrant Work Survey?

I’ve had several people ask why we had parents complete the Migrant Work Survey during registration. So, I thought it was time to pass on some information that I learned this summer.
The state receives federal dollars for the Title I, Part C Migrant Grant. We receive money from this grant to help pay for migrant education during the school year and the summer. This year the amount of money that Indiana received from the federal government decreased from the amount of money we received last year even though we have more students. Why? Well, as a state, we are not doing a good job of documenting the migrant students in our schools.

By definition, a migrant student is one whose family moves to a new community looking for or securing a job in the field of agriculture. By this definition anyone who moves to Plymouth for a job at Del Monte, Pioneer Seed, Dean Pickles, or Ready Pac could qualify for migrant grant dollars.

Since Plymouth has hundreds of employees working in agricultural businesses, our migrant numbers should be higher than they are. Hopefully, the completion of the work survey will help identify students who qualify.

So, why does the federal government give money to schools to help educate migrant students? Migrant students often start the school year in one school and move to several other schools throughout the same year. This disruption in education is a looming factor in poor grades, retention, failure, and drop-outs. Identifying these students and helping them make this transition from one school to the next is costly, but very important for their educational needs.

As state support decreases we have to look for every possible source of income that we can find. If we can do a better job of identifying migrant students in our school, we can look for additional dollars in the future.

Construction Update

Jefferson Elementary - the two rooms undergoing renovation have been painted. Once the floor coverings are installed at Menominee, those persons will move to Jefferson and complete installation of the floor coverings at that location.

The footers and foundation walls are completed. Plumbers and electricians are in the process of installing the plumbing and electrical rough-ins.

Menominee Elementary – the vinyl tile has been installed in the new science room. The installation of the lockers has begun. The installation of carpet in the new music room began this morning. Once the carpet is installed, the vinyl mop board will be put in place in all rooms. Menominee, for the most part, is completed. We have possession of all the rooms except the new music room.

Washington Elementary – Carpet has been installed in both of the new special education rooms. Workers are installing the tile in the cafeteria. The ceiling grid is going up in the storage room, the nurse’s office and conference room. Electricians are installing light fixtures. Plumbers have installed most of the fixtures with the exception of the sinks in the nurse’s office and the special ed rooms. Once the installation of the tile is completed in the cafeteria, the carpet in the hallways, teacher work room and lobby will be installed. The plastering in the overhang is being completed this week.

Lincoln Junior High – Punch lists have been developed for the band and choir room. Final hook-ups are being made in the kitchen. The final preparation of wall board is being completed in the new nurse’s office. Painting will begin tomorrow. Ceiling grid will also be installed tomorrow in the nurse’s office. Cabinetry will be installed late this week in Miss Gilbert’s room and in the nurse’s office.

Plymouth High School – Workers are completing the masonry in the north entrance. Concrete is scheduled to be poured late this week in that area. Cabinetry is being installed in the music wing. Electrical rough-ins are in process in the new broadcast classroom, the speech practice rooms, and the music wing. Possession of rooms in the music wing will begin in mid to late September with all being occupied by October 1st.
The New Building Site – Work continues on the installation of footers, foundation walls, and block masonry walls. The water line and sanitary sewer are being installed at this time

Construction Update

Contrary to rumors in the community, construction is moving at a pace that will enable us to open school as scheduled.

At Washington Elementary, 80% of the drywall is up. Many of those walls have been mudded, painted, and covered with vinyl. The rough-in plumbing is completed. Ceiling grids are scheduled to be installed next week with case work and carpeting to follow. Tile is being installed in the cafeteria as of this writing. Plumbing and electrical hook-ups in the kitchen area will be completed this week. The clean-up and sanitizing of the kitchen area will follow shortly thereafter. The project is expected to be ready for the opening of school.

At Lincoln Junior High, the music and choir room are 95% completed. We are awaiting the delivery of lockers for the locker room. The kitchen hook-ups will be completed this week. The rough-in plumbing in the nurses office has been completed. The construction of the new walls in that area has begun. Sanitation and clean-up of all areas will be completed by the end of next week. The installation of the tile in the cafeteria area will be completed today. All areas are scheduled to be completed for the opening of school.

At Webster Elementary, the Fritz tile is being installed this week. Final clean-up begins next week. The addition is scheduled to be ready for opening day.

At Plymouth High School, the outside work on the music wing is nearing completion. All rooms have had the block filler applied. Two of the rooms have received a final coat of paint. Installation of ceiling grid began today. Casework stored in the hallways will be moved to the music rooms next week. The rooms will not be available on opening day; they will become available one at a time with the total wing available no later than October 1st. Mr. Tobias had anticipated this problem and has worked on an alternative room schedule. During the next week, sidewalks around the music wing will be installed. Part of the north parking lot will be undergoing asphalt repairs and sealing next week.

At Menominee Elementary, carpet in the new music room and vinyl floor covering in the science lab will be installed next week. Lockers are to be delivered August 8th. The wall coverings are to be installed next week. All inside work at Menominee is scheduled to be completed prior to the beginning of school. The addition to the parking lot will take place after the beginning of the school year.

At Jefferson Elementary, the floor covering in the current Kindergarten and first grade rooms will be installed next week. Mrs. Holloway’s first grade room will have no windows during the coming year, the old windows were blocked in and became part of the wall for the new addition. When the project is completed, there will be new windows in the west wall of the room. The relocation of utilities has been completed. The building pad is in place. The installation of footers and foundation walls will begin next week.

At the new elementary school, all the exterior footers and foundation walls have been completed in Section A. The masons are building the exterior walls. They have started in the northeast corner and will work toward the southwest. The installation of the water line has begun.

The northeast parking lot at Plymouth High School will be unavailable due to construction the week of August 1st.

Free Breakfast and Lunch

The United States Department of Agriculture along with the Indiana Department of Education provides free breakfast and lunch for schools who qualify. Plymouth qualified this year for the program and has taken advantage of the offering for our children.

After the first five days we have averaged feeding 70 children for breakfast and 125 children for lunch.

Construction Update

A construction meeting was held on June 30, 2005 @ 9:00 a.m.

The focus of this meeting was Phase I.

Lincoln Junior High
The kitchen equipment has been set up. The process of hooking up the equipment has begun. The ceiling tile has been installed in the music and choir rooms. The wall and floor tile has been installed in the new locker room. The demolition has been completed at that site. The process of hanging new doors has begun. All the roofs have been installed. The music and choir room case work has been delivered and the binder coat is in place in the parking lot.

During the next two weeks the installation of the kitchen equipment will be completed. The ceiling tile will be installed in the kitchen area. The underground plumbing rough-ins will be completed in the new nurse’s office and teacher work room. The floor coverings in the music and choir area will be installed. The casework will be installed in the music and choir areas. The final coat of asphalt will be applied in the parking lot. The acoustic wall panels will be installed in the music area.

Washington Elementary
During the past two weeks the curbs and sidewalks have been installed. The canopy steel has been erected. The aluminum frames for doors have been installed and exterior doors are now in place. The vinyl wall covering in the cafeteria is installed. The kitchen equipment has been delivered and is set in place. The new quarter walls are up in the renovation area. The masonry piers on each side of the new stage opening have been completed. The fire alarm is 90% completed. The plumbing underground in the renovation area has been started.

During the next two weeks the paving will be completed with the stoning of the driveway on June 30. The masons will complete work on the canopy. All of the kitchen equipment will be installed and plumbed. The casework in the new computer and music rooms will be installed. Vinyl wall coverings in the computer lab will be applied. Ceiling grid will be put in place in the north addition. A steel beam will be set in the stage opening in the gym. All doors in the north addition will be hung. The underground plumbing rough-in will be completed and all new walls in the renovated area will be dry walled.

Webster Elementary
During the last two weeks the shingling of the roof has been completed. The quarry tile in the restrooms is installed and the insulation is currently being installed.

During the next two weeks the final coat of asphalt will be put in place. The casework will be set in both classrooms. The ceiling grid will be put in place. Carpet and other floor coverings will be installed. The doors will be hung. The toilets, fixtures, and partitions will be set. All hookups to the boiler will be completed and the ceiling tile will be put in place.

Plymouth High School
During the past two weeks the roof over the music wing is now completed. The brick washing and caulking in the music wing has been completed. The east and west walls of the multipurpose room has been completed. The south multi-purpose room wall is started. The joists and decking has been set over the hallway and the weight room in the multipurpose room wing. Interior demolition at the high school is underway. The power at the high school is currently shut down and should be restarted Friday afternoon, July 1st. All casework for the music wing is on site.

During the next two weeks the metal siding on the music wing will be installed. Windows in the music room will be put in place. Painting of the music wing rooms will be completed. The roof over the mezzanine area will be installed. The air handling units in the music wing will be rolled onto the pad. The south multipurpose room wall will be completed. The steel over the mezzanine in the multipurpose room will be installed. The entrance to the music wing will be completed.

Site improvements: The installation of curbs and sidewalks will begin.

Internet and email services should resume either July 6 or 7, 2005, for the district.

The next construction meeting will be July 7, 2005.