The End

It's almost November, and my term on the school board is coming to a close. It has been such a memorable experience for me. When I applied for the position last year, I honestly never thought I would actually be appointed, but I'm very grateful I was. Looking back, there are things I would have done differently if I knew at the beginning what I know now. I'm sure if I were on the Board for another year, I would say the same thing next year about this year! I have learned so much and still have so much more to learn.


My family and I will soon be settled in our new home in Maryland. We will miss beautiful Colorado and our beloved Delta County, but we are excited for this new chapter in our lives. I wish Tammy, Cheryl, and the new board members the best of luck, and I wish all the best for the students and staff of the Delta County School District.

Changing of the Guard

North Fork schools are getting quite a shake up in leadership this coming year. We have several teachers and administrators leaving us, including Brent Curtice (Paonia Jr/Sr High School Principal), Cindy Swartzendruber (Paonia Jr/Sr High School Assistant Principal and Counselor), and Helen Groome (Crawford Principal).

I have only been on the Board of Education for a little over a year. These wonderful educators have been working hard for our students much longer than that. I am very sad we won't have them with us next year, but I wish them well in their future endeavors and thank them with true sincerity for the good they have done. We will miss you!

Graduations

It's the most wonderful time of the year -- for seniors, at least.

Last week our high school seniors officially graduated. I was fortunate enough to attend the North Fork Vision and Paonia High School graduations. They were very different ceremonies, each perfect for its group. If you have never attended a graduation ceremony for either of these schools, I encourage you to go next year. They are truly celebrations that recognize each individual graduate. How lucky they are!

Congratulations, graduates!

Celebrate the Beat

Last week I attended Celebrate the Beat. It was a dance performance involving students from Hotchkiss K8, Montessori, Vision, Paonia Elementary, and Crawford. It was amazing!

In college I was a ballroom dancer. I danced about 5 hours a day and absolutely loved it, but I didn't discover my love for dancing until my freshman year at BYU. Watching so many kids dancing simultaneously and throwing everything they had into it made me tear up. That, of course, made me feel very silly considering they were dancing to Motown music. The students had so much energy, and many of them were so talented. I wish I had had something like that when I was a kid.

Most of them will not become dancers, or be involved in dance in any way. But they were involved in a healthy, fun activity that brought joy to those lucky enough to see it, and it was very obvious that it was joyful for them too.

I am so proud of our students who participated, and I am so grateful to the adults who made it happen. Thank you for all of your hard work!

Mondays With Mike

Our superintendent, Mike McMillan, writes "Mondays with Mike" every week. It is an update on things happening in the District. Here are links to recent publications:

Mondays with Mike: May 23, 2011

Mondays with Mike: May 27, 2011

Mondays With Mike

Our superintendent, Mike McMillan, writes "Mondays with Mike" every week. It is an update on things happening in the District. Here are links to recent publications:



Mondays with Mike: April 25, 2011

Mondays with Mike: May 2, 2011

Mondays with Mike: May 9, 2011

Mondays with Mike: May 16, 2011

This month

If you're wondering why I haven't posted in a while, here she is:

Margaret Joan (Maggie) Sweetwood

Mondays With Mike

Our superintendent, Mike McMillan, writes "Mondays with Mike" every week. It is an update on things happening in the District. Here is a link to this week's publication:

Mondays with Mike: April 18, 2011

Crawford 7th and 8th Grade Consolidation

Tonight the school board voted to consolidate Crawford 7th and 8th grades into Hotchkiss K8. The final vote was 3-2, with Bill Kehmeier and I voting against consolidation.

My decision to vote no was based on hours of discussion, research, and careful thought. I was torn for a long time about it, but once I finally came up with the plan I felt was the right one, I felt very passionately about it, and I expressed that passion up through the final vote. At the end of this post you will find the proposal that I wrote this week and read at the meeting as my first comments. It explains the reasons for my vote and the action I felt the District should take in regards to Crawford.

Once the final vote was taken, I made a comment that I believe is very important, especially to the citizens of Crawford: The decision is done. The choice is made. There's nothing more we can do now. So we take that decision and run with it, and we make it a good thing. We throw all of our support behind making the transition smooth for students and staff, and we do it with optimism. Sure, it was not the outcome I would have chosen. But now those 7th and 8th grade students need to see that their parents, teachers, and community members have faith that this can be a good experience for them. And it can be.

A comment on my fellow board members: I disagreed with most of them tonight. But I firmly believe that we ALL put a lot of thought and effort into our decisions. We all tried to look at the situation objectively, not with the bias of what community we represent. I am sure I will disagree with them many more times while I am on the school board, but I continue to respect their decisions and know that they always do what they believe is best for the District.


For your interest, here is the proposal I presented:

Crawford Consolidation

I am NOT in favor of consolidating any part of the Crawford school this year. However, I do think some action needs to be taken. The Crawford middle school, as it currently is, is not sustainable, and the luxury of small class sizes is unfair to teachers in Delta who are continuing to make budget sacrifices while teaching large classes. In deciding whether or not to make such a permanent closure, however, I feel that the topic of conversation needs to change. Since the issue has been debated by the Budget Task Force, the focus has obviously been whether or not it is worth it to consolidate the school and save the money. I think we need to shift the conversation to how we can make more efficient use of this asset, the Crawford school. It IS an asset, and if there is a way to use it more efficiently, I think it is our responsibility to try.

My Proposal

I propose that we immediately establish a Crawford Task Force, whose charge is to fully examine any ideas to make the Crawford school more economically efficient. This task force will be made up of volunteers—mostly from Crawford, with participation from Hotchkiss and Paonia—who will take the suggestions and comments that we have received, as well as find new ones, and come up with detailed, feasible recommendations to present to the Board of Education. The following are just a few examples that I have taken from comments at meetings and letters I have received, which can be included in the task force’s agenda:

- Discontinue bus route from Hotchkiss High to Hotchkiss K8

- Change/cancel/restrict open enrollment policy

- Find out why more than 50% of Crawford middle schoolers are NOT attending school in Crawford, and address those needs if possible

- Explore revenue generating options: building sharing, fundraising, etc.

I am confident we will find more than enough people willing to participate, given the activism we have seen from Crawford in an attempt to save the school. I also think this task force can work on its own, without the constant presence of a District administration staff member, so as not to overburden the central office staff with multiple task forces. The group can, of course, direct questions to and ask for information from the District staff.

I propose we establish this task force as soon as possible and give a deadline of January 2012 to present recommendations. A January deadline gives the schools more time to prepare for consolidation, if that is the outcome. If at this time the task force is unable to present viable recommendations to the Board’s satisfaction, I would support consolidation of the Crawford middle school.

This is not a stalling effort. As was mentioned at the BTF meeting this Monday, it seems as though several controversial topics have again been “pushed off” for another year. This proposal, in contrast, is an attempt to take action now. I feel it is a necessary step to take before we make such a big and permanent change.

Vision

The Vision Home and Community Program is one of the reasons I wanted to be on the Board of Education. Its program, and its inclusion as part of the public school system, is a unique credit to this school district. I have always been a supporter of the public school system, and I am proud to be involved in a district that gives students more options for being a part of that system.

There is a lot of misinformation about Vision in our communities, and I am certainly not the best person to set it right. I would say, however, that the administrators I have met in the Vision program are eager to talk about their work with anyone who is interested. You may also find additional information by looking under the “Schools” tab on the District website, deltaschools.com, and clicking on one of the Vision school websites.

Some people say that the Vision homeschooling method cannot be effective because parents are not “highly qualified.” It is true that by the standards set for hiring teachers in our traditional schools, most parents would not meet the criteria. However, though parents may not be “highly qualified” in specific subject areas, they ARE highly qualified in knowing and addressing the learning needs of their own children. The Vision program is imperfect, but recent years have seen consistent improvement. With parents and staff dedicated to the educational needs of their students, I am confident we will continue to see growth from our Vision learners.

* Comment about Vision in a recent newspaper article: I have received several emails from concerned parents who read an article in a local newspaper that quoted our superintendent Mike McMillan as saying that our budget would be balanced if 200 Vision students returned to traditional schools. Please allow me to clarify the conditions surrounding this statement. It was made at a meeting in Crawford, where town citizens were invited to ask Mr. McMillan questions, and he answered them. I attended this meeting. As I recall, someone asked the specific question, “How many Vision students would it take returning to traditional schools to balance the budget?” Mr. McMillan answered, “200.” He was NOT advocating that we try to make this happen. He was NOT suggesting this would even be possible; we know many Vision parents are dedicated to the homeschooling format. He was NOT in any way trying to place blame on the Vision program for current budget problems. He was answering a direct question because that is why he was there. I am sorry for the confusion that this has caused.

The School District is currently in the process of renegotiating its contract with the Vision Home and Community Program. We are all hopeful that a renewed contract will be acceptable to all parties, so we can continue a successful partnership in the education of Delta County learners.