Tuesday, November 22, 2016

Happy Friends-giving!


By: Tim Culver
Last week during my visit to Meadowview Elementary School I had the privilege of observing their first ever “Friendsgiving”.  As a strategy to increase student engagement, the school has implemented a ‘buddy program’ matching cross grade level classes in relationships-building activities across ages and the school.  I saw several examples of these lovely interactions.  The 3rd to 5th grade matchups experienced an activity Friday where families brought in food representing their very diverse heritage or backgrounds and buddies shared a meal.  From latkes to pad thai to tamales...what greater way is there to build bonds than sharing one’s story over a meal; and it showed in their faces!  My first thoughts connected this to traditions surrounding Thanksgiving and the power of sharing meals to build relationships with families, friends and others.  My second thought was how our teachers and students show us a way forward in times like these when there's so much divisiveness in the broader national sphere of politics.


At moments like this, it is a privilege to be an educator and school leader. Our children are indeed the hope for our future; their minds and souls innately curious and loving. Our role as educators is to help them remain this way. We must strive to ensure that our children are prepared to do better and that they feel safe and hopeful as our society strives to increase understanding, compassion and coming together after a divisive campaign earlier this school year.  Everyone, students and adults, returned to school after the election with widely different reactions and emotions and yet, were expected to recommit to their community, their friends, their colleagues — and to continue to work and sit side by side with each other in classes, at lunch and on the athletic fields. I am proud to say that in Oak Creek-Franklin schools I observed our core value of respect and integrity.  So many examples of people working to ensure that each student, family and employee is able to be fully who they are, and in so doing, exhibiting a commitment to kindness, understanding, and community. 

Times of change are rich fields for real life learning and growth and it is incumbent upon schools to capitalize on this and also model the high road:  that we continue to insist that our students learn to respect others whose opinions and beliefs may be different than their own because we know that meaningful, respectful dialogue and activities build character and help our students understand the strength of our democracy.

Our mission statement begins with the words, “working together”. To work together, we have to find ways to come together.  I am thankful for the opportunity we have to do this - parents, community members, students, teachers, support staff all striving to make a positive difference in the lives of our children and therefore our future.  I hope your Thanksgiving break is as full of the happiness, bonding and hope I saw among the 3rd and 5th graders at “Friendsgiving”.  Let’s hope this custom becomes more and more common throughout our community.

Friday, September 30, 2016

Cathy Cramer Reflects on her Career at OCFJSD



By: Cathy Cramer, Director of Business Services
Fall has arrived and we are already a month into the school year – a school year that started with a lot of “new” things: the opening of a new elementary school, ongoing construction of the new secondary building, an updated leadership organizational  structure, a new website, and a new mission statement.   I have found the start of a school year, with the enthusiasm and energy it presents, to be a unique characteristic of working in the business of education, and one of my favorite times of the year.   

This time of year is also one of the busiest in the Business Office.  Office staff are busy issuing orders for supplies, the work of the annual audit and closing out of the 2015-16 school year is complete, and the preliminary 2016-17 budget prepared.  The activities that occur between the third Friday in September and end of October will determine what will ultimately be included in the adopted 2016-17 budget. These include compiling the third Friday pupil count and the district’s revenue limit calculation, DPI’s certification of state aid to be received, the review and update of the plans for the allocation of the resources for school operations, and preparing the tax levy to be certified by the School Board.  

Because the primary sources of revenue for school districts are state aid and local property taxes, these amounts—along with school budget information—will be reported out across the state.  Recent headlines in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel have highlighted the unfunded financial obligations of several local governments, including school districts.  Since these reports often generate questions from community members, I think it is important to relay some background on the Oak Creek-Franklin Joint School District’s finances.

The district has been recognized for its solid fiscal position and has been able to maintain programs, increase staff, open a new elementary school, and plan to operate a new secondary school within its available funding sources.   In its most recent bond rating (Aa2) report, Moody’s Investors Service highlighted the district’s modest pension liabilities, its ability to adjust expenditures to match changes in revenues, and its favorable reserves that avoid the need to borrow funds for operations, (unlike most other school districts), as the main factors in recognizing the district’s sound financial operations.

The district has effectively managed the voter approved debt it has incurred for the renovation of the High School, and the construction of Deerfield Elementary School and the new East Middle School.   By taking advantage of the favorable interest rate environment and refinancing some of the debt for these projects (total of approximately $36 million), over $2 million in taxpayer savings have been realized.  All of the district’s outstanding debt is at a fixed rate, and nearly half of it is planned to be retired in ten years.  The most recently approved referendum for the new elementary and secondary buildings was projected to cost approximately $77 on a $100,000 home.  Not only are the actual debt costs less than $64 on a $100,000 home, but both projects are anticipated to come in under budget.  Any unspent building funds have to be used to offset debt and will result in additional savings to taxpayers.  

While many government entities are experiencing financial difficulty, this District has been able to preserve its strong financial position.  It has done so with one of the lowest costs/pupil and lowest tax rates in southeastern Wisconsin.  As you read about other districts’ budgets and financial obligations, I hope you know, without a doubt, that due to the School Board’s actions related to its debt service, its capital project and facility planning processes, and a conservative budgeting approach, your school district is not only working "to engage, challenge and inspire every student every day", but is also effectively managing the resources it receives to do so.

It has been a pleasure to have served as the Director of Business Services here for the past 12 years and to have had the opportunity to get to know the many dedicated staff and community members that make this a great school district—and the best place for me to have been able to begin and end my career in public education.

Friday, August 12, 2016

Back to School Resources



 
Dear Parents, Guardians, and Families:
 
By now (or very soon) you will be hitting the back to school sales and specials to get the supplies your students’ need to start the new school year on September 6.   Every first day it’s a brilliant sight to see so many students arrive with colorful new backpacks stuffed with supplies and their faces filled with anticipation.
I appreciate you taking such great care of your children getting them ready with their supplies, a new sleep schedule, and a positive attitude.  I’d like to share some information with parents and caregivers that might be very useful as you support your child through this school year to ever higher levels of learning and success.

The first resource gives some specific research based tips to make the transition from summer to school mode as smooth as possible.  It’s a quick read with a comprehensive list of ideas that make that switch from lots of free time to greater structure happen with the least amount of stress possible.  (https://goo.gl/LKCTMa )

Practical Information that Parents Can Put to Use is a set of 18 two-page guides providing  parents and caregivers with great tools to encourage their children's success in school. They were developed through a joint effort between the National Parent Teacher Association and the National Education Association.  Just a few of the many topics you’ll find:  Helping Your Child Learn to Read,  11 Ideas for Better Communication between Parents and Educators, Helping Your Child Get the Most out of High School and Hey Mom, I want to be an Engineer!  (http://goo.gl/ueVCGZ)

As our schools evolve to reflect the growing diversity of our community and the world, efforts to understand, value, and incorporate differences become increasingly important.  An excellent resource I recommend is “Beyond the Golden Rule: A Parent’s Guide to Preventing and Responding to Prejudice”.  This free download booklet, available  HERE,  (or http://goo.gl/l2JSQJ) gives age-specific practical advice from experts about the challenges and rewards of parenting in today's diverse world.  There are mini-chapters with tips from experts on age groups from preschool through high school.  This is a great resource for parents raising kids ready to excel in the increasingly diverse future.
Our district has adopted a new policy and procedures to eliminate bullying.  The updated policy, procedures and forms for reporting bullying can be found HERE on our district website (http://www.ocfsd.org/parents/bullying). Parents play a key role in preventing and responding to bullying.  In addition to understanding our new policy, I recommend the following site from the U. S. Health Resources and Services Administration:  www.stopbullying.gov.  It has one of the best overviews with suggestions and resources to help parents and students that I’ve yet discovered.
If your child is 13 or older and preparing for high school, you should check out some very interesting options for them at Get Schooled.org.  Here teens can find: “Tips for succeeding in high school (including text wake up calls!), selecting classes or even advice about navigating homecoming; Games that teach everything from refresher math for ACT to college application tips;  A searchable database of scholarships; Tools to find a job that will help pay for college, and tools to explore college options.”  It’s a project of the Gates Foundation, Viacom, and AT&T that  “ ...uses our digital platform, gamification and a recipe we call ‘sizzle and substance’ to inspire and engage students.”   To get to some of the more specific services, teens have to register, so look it over before passing it on to them; but they do have a strongly worded privacy policy for your consideration. As in all things with teens, if you choose to share it, don’t recommend it too strongly or it may reduce the cool factor.  (https://goo.gl/yPI9Tb )

I hope this is not too much “homework” for you.  I know you are already working hard to get the kids ready to join us again.  However, I believe adding these tools to your “backpack” of ideas and information could really help this be the best school year ever.
Looking forward to engaging, challenging, and inspiring your students this coming school year.
Regards,
Tim Culver

Superintendent

Monday, June 20, 2016

Development of a Middle Level Personalized Learning Center housed at the new 9th Grade Center

Tim Culver, Superintendent, Oak Creek-Franklin Joint School District


Introduction

It was expressed to me that there was a plan presented in the referendum in the fall of 2014 to move the District Office from its current location into a space in the new 9th Grade Center.  This space would someday be converted into about 8 classrooms (serving 200 students) “when the high school grew larger.”


Two issues emerged that are causing us to wonder if this remains the best course of  action.  We discussed these issues with the School Board on March 21 and April 11, 2016.


  1. The ‘8 classroom block’ was not designed last spring  (spring 2015) in such a way as to accommodate the spaces necessary to permit the District Office and all auxiliary services to function.  We had been in talks with EUA (the architects) on how to redesign the interior space and also on creatively seeking ways to accommodate services of the District Office in various locations elsewhere.  It could work conceptually; though there will be some design costs to redraw the interior specs.  Much more significantly, there will be significant costs to equip this “new D.O.” as most furniture would have to be replaced and/or built in as casework in more compact spaces.  Concerns have been expressed about when all this interior casework and walls will need to be demolished and rebuilt in 10 or 15 years to convert the space back to  8 classrooms.  It begs the question of where would the District Office move then.


  1. On February 22, 2016, the UW Applied Population Laboratory prepared projections on district growth were presented to the School Board.  This indicates that the middle schools will exceed their “maximum capacity” by 2019 but level off to between about 20 and 50 students above maximum capacity.  Keep in mind “maximum capacity” is not “effective capacity.” This is problematic in terms of crowding in the near future.   If we could find a way to serve  100 to 200 students in some way besides at the current middle school sites it could resolve this problem.  (See Appendix 1)


What if we built the ‘8 classroom block’ of space in the 9th Grade Center into instructional space to accommodate 100-200 middle school students?  


This could provide two significant benefits.


  1. Financially, there would be no need to go to referendum to add on to the middle schools for at least 10 years (given current projections); a considerable relief to taxpayers.  In addition, the cost to create school space would be the same or likely even less than to implement a district office.


  1. Educationally, it would provide an opportunity to create an innovative model of personalized learning - -  a sort of laboratory of best 21st Century educational practice, potentially scalable in the future. This could be a sort of “magnet school” possibly with some sort of theme that middle-level students and parents could apply to attend if interested; an alternative to the traditional middle-level program.  If it became really popular and successful in producing highly skilled students, the programming could possibly  be expanded to  “school-within-school” models at either or both middle schools.  Further, it would likely push the opportunity for personalized learning up into 9th grade and higher.  Ultimately, we could offer students and families an option for a more traditional style  or a more personalized style and create programming  to meet that desire.  Starting small and thoughtfully,  we could do it really well.


What  does a “personalized learning school” look like?  


They vary widely, customized to each community, but have certain common principles.   Please read Attachment 2 for some diverse examples of schools and districts that have been doing this:  Lighting the Path to Personalized Learning: Inspiring Stories from Next Gen Schools.  


Briefly, personalized learning means learning experiences for students tailored to their individual developmental needs, skills, and interests. Personalized learning does not typically include bell schedules, grade levels, or periods of everyone taking the same subject at the same time for the same number of hours or days in typical closed off classrooms.  It includes the following key elements:  


  • Learner Profiles: Students' strengths & areas for improvement, motivation, and goals are visible to them and their teacher/advisor. Profiles are constantly refreshed.  
  • Personal Learning Paths: Each student follows a path through curriculum content and skills in ways that work best for him or her. Though students' paths vary, the destination is the same - clear, high expectations for college and career readiness.  
  • Competency-based Progression: Student learning is continually assessed against clearly defined expectations & goals. Each student advances as soon as  s/he demonstrates mastery.  
  • Flexible Learning Environment: Time, space, roles and instructional modes flex with the needs of students and teachers rather than being fixed variables.


Certain aspects of these practices can  be implemented in any classroom.   However, implementing such innovation at a school-wide level is challenging.  It’s hard to keep the Boeing 777 flying daily routes while re-engineering it at the same time.   A small “laboratory school” could show us the best way to implement this in an “Oak Creek-Franklin” way of serving students and families well.  Upon creation, it might look like any or none of the many different schools described in  Lighting the Path to Personalized Learning: Inspiring Stories from Next Gen Schools.
After consideration of the above issues and a presentation on the possibilities for an innovative  Personalized Learning Center, on April 11, 2016, the School Board approved this motion:

To authorize administration to proceed with the planning and  development of a Personalized Learning Based Middle-Level Program to be housed at the 9th Grade Center in lieu of the District Office




Next steps / considerations


  • We need to assemble a small team of forward-thinking educators - pioneers -  with interest and creativity to work with over the next year or so, to learn and visit other schools with experience/history, and ultimately design a high quality, innovative program (and space).   


  • The District Office remains in a building that is too large and which will need maintenance over time.  We’d need to develop a plan to deal with this.  However, I would rather program students into a prime school space and keep our offices in a dated building in order to achieve great savings to taxpayers and, most importantly, to innovate how schools of the future might best operate.


  • The first conceptualizations of the space:


PHASE I / Draft 1 (what would be finished when the site opens in 2017)


MSPLC Axon Phase 1.jpg


This view is looking from southeast  to northwest.  This is the north west corner of the building under construction with the long side/window wall (left) fronting Howell.  The space has a segregated entrance/vestibule (upper left) which was a feature of the “district  office” idea but serves ideally to create a separate environment from the high school/9th grade.  Phase I includes the vestibule,  4 restrooms, one large learning space which opens into the commons and two small learning spaces, storage, one wet lab, and plumbing for a second.  Floors will be polished concrete and the ceiling will be open with pendant lighting for a semi-industrial feel and complete flexibility for future design/equipment needs.  The only interior connection to the 9th Grade Center are the doors on the south.  


PHASE II (this is one possible vision of what the space could become.  The design team will need to work with the architects to create the actual space based upon program design decisions made during the 2016-2017 year.  
MSPLC Axon Phase 2.jpg
  • Proposed  Calendar
2016-2017: Small design team of interested  educators and community business leaders assembles, learns, dreams, visits, explores, and designs the program to drive the design of the space.
2017-2018:   Interior is finished furniture and education is provided based upon design decisions, student recruited, staff placed.
August 2018:  Program opens with students and staff. May be scaled up.
APPENDIX ONE:  
Enrollment / Facility Capacity Projections
Enrollment Charts_Page_2.jpg
Enrollment Charts_Page_1.jpg
APPENDIX TWO: