Mid-Semester Update

As first quarter wraps up and we begin the second half of this semester, I want to share some happenings in the district.

I am reminded each day how fortunate we are to have such a caring staff and community in South Bend.  It is a pleasure to work with our school team and surrounding community, as we strive to provide the best learning opportunities for our kids.  I invite all community members to become involved with our school.  If you ever have any questions or ideas, please feel welcome to share!  You can contact me here, or feel free to visit my office.

Enrollment

South Bend School District Enrollment Comparison 14-15/15-16

We started the school year with significantly higher enrollment than the previous school year, and we are continuing to see growth.  We are excited to see new faces in each of the grades and welcome all our new students.

In addition to these numbers, we also are serving over 100 pre-school students throughout the tri-district, with the majority being served in South Bend.

Mrs. Tanaka teaches SB's newly added kindergarten class

Additional Kindergarten Class Added

Due to our large kindergarten class and newly funded class size ratios from the State, we were able to add a third kindergarten class.  We are happy to have hired Mrs. Lenora Tanaka to fill this additional role.

Small class sizes are important, especially at primary grade levels, in order to meet the learning needs of our students.  We are fortunate to be able to offer these smaller class sizes (about 16 per class) and we are already seeing academic gains.


Cheney Foundation Provides New Sound System to Koplitz Field House

If you have attended a recent athletic event at South Bend High School, you probably noticed the new sound in our main gym.  We were fortunate to receive a grant from the Cheney Foundation which provided $30,000 for this new system.  The system includes all new speakers, amplifiers, microphones, and external i-Pod connections.  The system is used daily in PE classes and provides clear sound throughout the building.

We appreciate the generosity the Ben B. Cheney Foundation continues to provide our schools.

New Greenhouse Constructed

South Bend students have several additional classes offered this school year, one of which is Horticulture.  Instructed by Mr. Steve Lazelle, students will be growing a variety of plants while learning the science behind horticulture processes.

The greenhouse was constructed by Gary Wilson, Al Lewis, and the construction class taught by Mr. Ryan McMurry.  They did an excellent job and we are excited to see the program grow.



New School Bus Purchased

The school district purchased a new school bus that arrived after the start of school.  The school receives dollars from the state each year according to the number of busses on our depreciation schedule.  In order for a bus to generate depreciation dollars, it must be less than 13 years in age.  Once a bus exceeds this age, we no longer receive replacement dollars.  Though we currently have a majority of our busses on depreciation, several will be coming off within a few years.  We are working on a replacement schedule to maximize the money available from the state.

Transportation Supervisor Wyatt Kuiken does an exceptional job maintaining our fleet.  He recently received a perfect inspection report from the Washington State Patrol.

Emergency Defibrillators Installed

 Our campus serves many community groups and events.  In addition, we have over 100 employees and over 600 students onsite on a given day.  We believe in being as prepared as possible in order to best meet life-safety needs.  In collaboration with the Raymond Fire Department and the Pacific County Health Department, the district has installed four defibrillators located at key points on campus.  They can be found in Koplitz Field House, the high school office, the elementary school, and the Early Learning Center.



Curriculum Adoption Work Currently Underway

Chauncey Davis Elementary is currently working to update curriculum in the areas of math and language arts.  Because the state has adopted the new Common Core Standards and our students are being assessed by the Smarter Balanced assessment, our curriculum needs to be updated to align with these new standards.  These changes can take time, and also introduce challenges as we learn to adapt both instruction and learning requirements.  At the end of the day, our goal is to provide the best opportunities for our students to be successful.

Similar work is also beginning at the secondary level, where we are now taking an inventory of current instructional materials to assess needed updates.  Administrators are meeting with curriculum advisors from ESD 113 this week for increased support.  Principals Jason Nelson, Kresta Byington, Manuel Rangel, and ELC Director Amy Nelson are all working hard to provide our teachers and students with the instructional resources needed to best impact our students.

New Art Class Offered at SBHS

Our new high school language arts teacher, Mrs. Jana Johnson, is also teaching a high school drawing class this fall.  Currently, 15 students are enrolled in the class and are learning basic drawing techniques.

Our goal is to add additional art classes down the road.  We believe that fine and applied arts are an essential component to a quality education.

The new art class is also generously supported by the Willapa Heritage Foundation, Hearts for the Arts program.

The SB Football Team's spirit bell received a fresh coat of paint this fall.  The bell is actually a historic fixture in the South Bend School District, originally purposed in the old "A Street" School (shown below) around 1914.  The school was torn down in the early 50's and the bell was given to the district to keep as a historic piece.  An old newspaper article can be found here describing the old school and bell.

Wyatt Kuiken and his shop students resurfaced the bell.  Historic information was provided by Steve Rogers.

A Street School.  Photo provided by Steve Rogers

School Year Going by Fast

It is hard to believe we are already in November!  Hopefully this blog article gives you a picture of some of the things happening in the district.  We have lots of other "irons in the fire."  As some of those projects progress and materialize we will provide further updates and information.

We at South Bend School District appreciate our community and surrounding areas.  As superintendent, it is a privilege to serve such a great school and community.