Teacher-Librarian Lori Dearmore Brings Wealth of Experience to SB

Mrs. Dearmore is South Bend's new teacher-librarian

South Bend Public Schools has many new faces this school year and several new programs for students.

One program in particular is making increased services available to all students and teachers in the district, and that is our new school library program under the direction of new teacher-librarian Lori Dearmore and her para-professional Karen Clements.

Love for Reading

Mrs. Dearmore is a skilled teacher who had spent the last 25 years working for the Naselle School District, before coming to South Bend this school year.  We are very fortunate to have been able to hire her, and we have already seen a significant impact on our school.

"One of my roles is getting the right book into the hands of the student," says Mrs. Dearmore.  "My goal is to know both the library collection and the individual students well enough in order to match them together," she continues.

It is fun to watch as students of all ages get to know Mrs. Dearmore in the library.  It is clear that she loves kids and cares about their learning.  "I love working with students and seeing our new books fly off the shelf," she says.  "It is fulfilling to see students who love to read, and I enjoy being able to teach a love for reading."   "We are growing a student request list for additional books, we want the library to be functional for all student groups."

Enhancing Student Learning & Teaching

As superintendent, I believe the library should be a central, main feature of the school.  More than teaching students to read, we need to teach students how to be effective consumers and producers of information.  A quality library augments the teaching and learning happening in the classroom, and the teacher-librarian leads this effort.

This is where Mrs. Dearmore is invaluable.  Being a certified teacher, with teaching experience K-12 in a variety of teaching assignments, she knows how to enhance both the teaching and learning experience using library resources.  "I love working individually with teachers or co-teaching to enhance the curriculum," Lori explains.  "For example, the high school AP English class is just beginning a 7 month research project.  I have been working with Mrs. Haugan [AP teacher] to teach the kids about website bias, learning how to conduct scholarly research, and how to use library resources to create content," she continues.  "Information literacy is crucial for today's students---we are teaching kids to be both users and producers of information."

To be an effective instructional space and resource to learning, the library also needs to be setup and organized efficiently, and Mrs. Dearmore and Ms. Clements have been hard at work since before school started this September.  "We are just this week converting to an Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC) that will bring a lot of efficiency to both organizing our collection and getting it into the hands of teachers and students," says Mrs. Dearmore.  "Teachers and students will now be able to search and place holds through the Internet, and we will be more effective in providing our users with the resources they need."  Beyond this, the library houses two mobile learning labs, where students and classes use Chromebooks and Apple laptops to engage in library learning activities and research, all of which Mrs. Dearmore has ample experience.

First a Teacher

Not only does Mrs. Dearmore provide South Bend with significant technical expertise in library and information services, she also is a naturally gifted teacher who cares for all students.  "I enjoy working with and teaching all age groups, one of the things I have always loved about K-12 schools," she says.  "I really enjoy getting to know all of the kids and learning about their interests."  Fluent in Spanish, Mrs. Dearmore gets to utilize her language skills on a regular basis as well--another asset to the district, and something that allows us to better serve all kids.

Moving Forward

In my opinion, a functional library is much more than a collection of books.  Libraries serve as a gateway to the world---a vehicle for the discovery of knowledge, and a platform for students to have voice.  You will see our library develop over time as we add more and more opportunities for learning.

We are privileged to have Mrs. Dearmore working with our staff and students, and I am thankful for the educational service she and Ms. Clements provide---our library is a big part of the educational future here in South Bend.

If you are interested in learning more about our school library at South Bend Public Schools, please feel free to contact us.

Ryan Miskell: "More than enforcing the law"

Officer Miskell during SBHS lunch

As a school administrator we often have the need or responsibility to interact and work with law enforcement.   As you can imagine, this can be a positive or challenging experience; especially when kids are involved.

South Bend Public Schools is fortunate to have the City of South Bend Police Department as a community partner and resource.  A big part of this partnership comes from Officer Ryan Miskell, and the daily interactions he has with our students.

Made possible through a grant from the Pacific County Teen Advocacy Coalition, Officer Miskell is available to students most days of the week during student lunch times---not to enforce the law, but to build relationships with kids.  "Students don't always have someone safe to talk to," says Miskell, who came to South Bend in 2013.  "They come to me for help, whether it is for them or a friend, and they know I'm here to offer that help."

Of course, students will only come to an adult, especially a uniformed police officer, if they trust that individual.  This is where Officer Miskell shines.  "I think the kids here know that I'm someone they can come to for support, I spend a lot of time talking with the kids and building positive relationships--they are comfortable coming to me for help, " he continues.  By having trusting relationships with kids, Officer Miskell hopes to prevent difficult situations from getting worse.  He is often called upon at all hours of the night when students are in need.  "I find situations at least weekly, where my relationships with students come into play during a time of hardship," says Officer Miskell.  "When I respond to an incident at a student home, a car accident, or other situation, I can often see the relief in the student's eyes seeing me show up to help."  "It definitely makes a difference in the whole situation," he continues.

When students feel safe at school, safe at home, and safe in their community, they are better able to learn.  Officer Miskell is a solid role model and I am thankful to have him in our community and helping at our schools.  In addition to his school role, he also helps kids with reading at our summer school, volunteers with Big Brothers/Big Sisters, and can be relied upon to help out with most any school or community function.   Having two children of his own (5th grade student and preschool student), Ryan Miskell has a passion for kids, and wants to help create good opportunities for their future.  All of these things add to the positive educational environment we offer our kids in South Bend.  Another example of great people doing things to support students.

The staff and students of South Bend Public Schools are fortunate to have Officer Miskell in our buildings.  Please take time to thank him for his efforts, he brings a lot of good things to the table.

Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn Addresses Students

 The 2015-16 school year is officially open at South Bend Public Schools!  With 550+ K-12 students on the rolls we are excited to get school back up and running.

We were honored to have a special visitor kick off the Jr. Sr. High opening assembly this morning!

Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn delivered a positive presentation to students and staff in the newly remodeled Koplitz Field House.  Supt. Dorn's message to South Bend students centered not on the importance of test scores, but pursuing personal interests, creativity, good decisions, and positive personal traits of how to be successful in life (click here to see his list).  Supt. Dorn engaged our students and interacted with them in a motivating and entertaining way.

Supt. Randy Dorn speaks to SB Jr. Sr. High Students

I thought it refreshing to have our State Superintendent focus on positive life attributes, and not test scores.   Don't get me wrong, students should strive to do their best on our state tests and it is important to measure student learning.  However, it is my belief we need to also focus on the tenets of success as described by Supt. Dorn.  I would like to thank Supt. Dorn for his encouraging message to our students.

School Pics

As superintendent, I consider it both a privilege and a duty to frequent our classrooms, and I enjoy being able to visit with students and staff on a daily basis.  Below are some pics of my first day walk-through.  Welcome back!

Mrs. DeLap's 6th grade class

Ms. Verdun's Computer Applications Class

Mr. Huber setting the expectations for the year

What a great saying...  Found in Ms. Johnson's HS English class

Ms. Druzianich reading to her 3rd grade class

Mrs. Sanchez's math class

Encouraging quote found in our school library

 

Substitute Teachers & Paraeducators Needed

South Bend Public Schools is looking for substitute teachers and classified staff!

With a teaching staff of 40 teachers and approximately 60 classified staff, we often have a need for a substitute.  If you have interest in working with kids, we may be a good option for you.

What Does it Involve?

If you work as a substitute teacher, you follow prepared lesson plans left by the regular teacher.  Students still report to each class and school continues as if the teacher was still there.  We have excellent students, and staff are on-hand to assist and support you.  We are told that South Bend is well known as a great place to substitute teach!

Substitute classified staff work to assist classroom teachers, office support, kitchen staff, transportation, special education, early learning, and custodial.  Hours vary from 8:00 to 4:00.

What Does it Pay?  What are the Qualifications?

South Bend School District is increasing our daily substitute teacher wage to $145 dollars per day.  Classified subs' daily wages are set by union contract and vary according to position.

If you have a Bachelor's degree, South Bend School District can help you receive an emergency substitute teaching certificate, which will qualify you to teach in South Bend.  After obtaining this certificate and passing a required background check, you can substitute teach in our schools.

Please contact the South Bend District Office at 360.875.6041 if you are interested or have questions.

SB Moves to 7 Period Day

A change we are implementing at SB Jr. Sr. High this school year is moving from a 6 period day to a 7 period day.  For a variety of reasons, going to the 7 period day does a lot of good things for our kids.  We are excited to offer several new courses and opportunities to our students here in South Bend!  With the change, school K-12 now begins at 8:30 and ends at 3:14.

What is a 7 Period Day?

Prior to this fall, South Bend has operated on a 6 period student schedule, where periods ranged in length from 55 minutes to just over an hour.  Full time students took six subjects/classes per day.  The 7 period schedule will consist of seven, 50 minute periods.  This year's periods will be slightly shorter, but will allow students to take an additional class/elective.

More Electives and Opportunities for Kids

It is important to offer a variety of classes in order to best provide for student interests.  One of the benefits of the 7 period day is that it allows us to offer more opportunities to students.  Each teacher has one additional class which provides more options for our kids.

Below are some of the new classes we will be offering 7-12 grade students:

• JH Health
• JH Spanish
• JH Geography
• 8th Grade Algebra I
• HS Art (Drawing)
• HS Drama (Theatre)
• Horticulture/Greenhouse Science
• 2 periods of Robotics
• Increased Vocational Offerings

These offerings provide opportunities that both students and parents have requested.  In particular, I am excited that we now have an Art class, Horticulture, middle school Spanish and 8th grade Algebra 1.  In addition to our other new offerings, these classes will help our students better prepare for future years, and will allow them to pursue more advanced courses later on.

Positive Impact for Elementary Students

Adding the 7 period day at the Jr. Sr. High level also has a positive impact on our elementary offerings.  For example, the music and PE teachers now have more time to offer the elementary school.  This allows us to offer music for all grades Kindergarten through 6th Grade.  We will also be offering additional PE time, as well as adding keyboarding classes to the upper elementary grades.

Elementary Teachers Now Have Daily Planning Time

Because of the added specialist (music, PE, keyboarding, and library) time in the elementary school, we are able to provide a daily planning period for all of our elementary teachers.  South Bend teachers now will be able to collaborate with each other on a regular basis during the day, coordinate and plan curriculum, and work to better prepare instruction.  It is important to provide time for teachers to adequately plan and collaborate with each other.  I am excited to see the benefits of this play out for our students.

Why the Change?

I do not believe in making changes without good reason.  The above offerings for our kids and increased planning time for our teachers are certainly the primary reasons for moving to the 7 period schedule, but there other reasons as well.  With the upcoming changes from the State requiring more credits to graduate, and increased instructional time, we feel this is an opportune time to make the switch.

With any change comes uncertainty and questions.  Teachers, principals, and staff have worked hard to plan a schedule that best provides for the needs of our students.  We are excited to provide these additional offerings and look forward to seeing our students develop their abilities and skills with these new opportunities!

If anyone has questions about our new schedule or would like to talk about anything else, please feel free to contact me or drop by the office for a visit.