Staff Development — more than meets the eye

the
MARCH 2007
Vol. 34, No. 8
Staff Development — more than meets the eye
District teachers spent January 26 on the “other
side of the desk,” learning new instructional methods,
receiving technology training and preparing new unit
plans, among other activities. If you ever wondered just
what teachers do on those days when the kids are out of
school, here’s just a sampling of the day’s sessions:
u Comprehension and Vocabulary Instruction for the
Early Learner
u Basic Reading Inventory Training for regular and
special education teachers in grades 3-6, and then
a Comprehension Fix-Up Strategies Workshop focusing on several strategies for struggling readers
u Eating Disorders, Self-injury, and Aggressive Outburst - for counselors and nurses, including a visit
to Lutheran Hospital
u Art Careers Trunk - for elementary and junior high art
teachers, including a visit to Clay Works studio
u Pottery Workshop - for senior high art teachers
u Movement and Music - for elementary general music and p.e. teachers to design a collaborative dance
unit for incorporation into the curriculum
u Collaborative Service Delivery - for senior high
teachers with Heartland AEA, to focus on consultation, co-teaching and planning based on IDEIA
requirements for special education teachers
u Reading in the Content Areas - for career and technical education teachers
u Inquiry-based Science for grades 7-12 science teachers - with Dr. John Stiles from Heartland AEA
u Infinite Campus - training on the district’s new student and record data management system
Elementary general music and p.e. teachers spent part of their day January
26 designing a colllaborative dance unit to incorporate into their curricula. The
goal is to increase physical activity wherever possible in connection with the
district’s Wellness Policy. Donna James, Willowbrook p.e. teacher, said, “we
shared and communicated ideas and outside resources so students at Southeast Polk might learn the fun and tremendous health and fitness benefits that
dance has to offer as a lifelong physical and musical activity.”
Elementary assessment process ties performance to outcomes
The January 2002 Board of Education’s
long-range instructional goals included
direction to develop an outcomes-based,
rubric-scored assessment system for the
Southeast Polk elementary schools. Steve
Bass, Delaware Elementary principal, and
Dr. Kristine Condon, district director of
Curriculum/Instruction, were assigned leadership of the project. The two spent about a
year sifting through volumes of research
on the topic, during which they were taken
with the work on assessment by renowned
statistician Dr. Thomas Guskey and the
powerful assessment research of Dr. Robert
Marzano.
Then, over the next two years a committee of teacher and parent volunteers,
Bass and Condon, and a district technology
Our Business is Learning
consultant studied that important research
on elementary assessment practices and
various accompanying means of reporting
classroom achievement to parents.
The group looked at samples of standards-based assessment from a number of
other large midwestern school districts,
deciding to create a local design using the
Assessment...Continued on Page 7
The mission of the Southeast Polk Community School District is to be an innovative, educational organization committed to
providing learning experiences of superior quality which enable ALL students to successfully meet challenges now and in the future.
Thumbs-up to new Delaware addition
For the first time, Delaware students
don’t have to eat lunch in their gymnasium,
as the new lunchroom is separated from the
new gym by a movable wall. They were
looking forward to their first p.e. class in the
larger, lighter and less loud gymnasium.
“I think it’s cool,” said sixth-grader
Brooke Mozey. “It’s a lot bigger.”
“We got lucky,” added sixth-grader
Jozie Butler, “because last year we didn’t
even know about a new addition. At least
we get to spend some time in the new gym
(before going to junior high), and we’ll be
in our new classrooms in March. The old
gym is going to be the library.”
The 21,753 sq. ft. addition houses the
gym, lunchroom, restrooms, classrooms and
new entry. With that completed, workers are
now in the process of renovating the old gym
into a new media center and making the former media center into a computer lab.
Growth in the Delaware area has caused
hallways and corners to be pressed into service for certain activities, so the opening of the new addition is a welcome event.
“The students and staff at Delaware
are extremely excited about the move into
our beautiful new addition,” said Principal
Steve Bass.
Delaware 6th graders give the “thumbs-up” on
their first day in the school’s new lunchroom.
FFA advances five events to Districts
You can support SEP Dollars for
Scholars and it won’t cost you a
penny! Dollars for Scholars and
Altoona Hy-Vee will partner on Sat.
and Sun., March 31 and April 1, for
a Dollars for Scholars fund-raiser.
Promotion slips will be passed out
as you enter the store. When you
check out, have the cashier record
the amount from your register tape
to be added to the total donation of
3% of total receipts from 9 a.m.-6
p.m. for those two days. Last year’s
Hy-Vee fund-raiser netted $2,000 for
the scholarship fund.
| Southeast Polk Community School District
Twenty-four members of the Southeast Polk FFA Chapter competed in the North
Sub-District Leadership CDE events Feb. 15 at North Polk. Teams and individuals who
advanced will compete at Winterset at the South Central District FFA Convention on
March 10. Students who advanced and their categories are as follows:
Gold Awards to:
Conduct of Meetings Team - Nick
Hutchinson, Taylor Gondor, Matthew
Smith, Chelsea McCrum, Tiffany Noble, Joe Haines, John Gilbert
Maggie Hummel - Ag Broadcasting
Amber Patterson - Job Interview
Silver Awards to:
POA - Meaghan Wahlert, Zach
Ballard and RJ Bernau
Mitch Hutchins - FFA Creed
Speaker
Others competing included Brad
Gilbert, Jason Scholbrock, Kevin An- Junior Maggie Hummel points proudly to the anderson, Vivian Bernau, Angel Balduchi, nouncement that her Ag Broadcasting presenJessica Curry, Brooke Patterson, Kealie tation at the North Sub-District FFA Leadership
Rogers and Kari Konrad.
CDE event Feb. 15 earned a Gold Award and
Matthew Eddy is Southeast Polk’s advanced to the District Ccompetition, which will
FFA faculty sponsor.
be held March 10.
DMACC to offer
Good dental care part of health
instruction for Runnells kindergartners basic skills classes
locally
Des Moines Area Community College
is offering basic skills classes at Southeast
Polk’s Harbor Alternative School at 1301
First Avenue North in Altoona.
Free individual and group instruction
in all levels of math, reading and writing;
GED preparation in English or Spanish;
and all levels of ESL (English as a Second
Language) are available.
For more information, call 287-8700,
or check the website at <www.DMACC.
edu/success>.
RAM signs to play
for Indian Hills
On a recent field trip to Altoona, kindergarten students from Runnells Elementary not only
learned how to brush and floss their teeth properly, they learned that going to the dentist
doesn’t have to be a scary experience. Dr. Jen Wolfe of Altoona Pediatric Dental demonstrated proper brushing and flossing techniques on her friendly helper, Mr. Bear, and the
children even got to practice the skills in recognition of National Children’s Dental Health
Month. From left with Dr. Wolfe are Alex Rickabaugh, Alex Maze and Evan Gjersvik.
SEP
softball player
Ali Umdenstock has
signed
a
letter of intent to play
softball for
Indian Hills
Community
College in
Ottumwa
on a full
scholarship. As a
RAM third baseman, Umdenstock earned
second team All-Conference honors last
season. Her coach at SEP is Tia Stiles.
Bring your children, your grandparents and your friends to
see the SEP Drama Department’s production of Lewis Carroll’s
, adapted for the stage by Anne
Coulter Martens.
Malaura Werling directs the performances, to be presented
on Friday, March 2, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, March 4, at 2 p.m.
in the senior high auditorium. Tickets are $5 for adults and $3
for students and senior citizens. Children especially will enjoy the antics of Tweedledum
and Tweedledee, the Queen of Hearts and the March Hare.
Tickets are available from the Activities Office in advance
or at the door.
| Southeast Polk Community School District
Check out your
class reunion here
The SEP Class of 1972 reunion committee is searching for classmates. Please
contact Cheryl Brashear at 967-4690, Sandi (Mott) Siedel at 287-3181, or <[email protected]>.
The SEP Class of 1987 is beginning
plans for a 20-year reunion next summer.
Please contact Lisa (Hansen) Harney at
957-8830 with contact information or offers to help.
The SEP Class of 1992 will hold
its 15-year reunion on Saturday, June 30,
from 6-11 p.m. with a dinner and dance at
the new banquet hall at Toad Valley Golf
Course. The cost of the adults-only event
is $30 per person in advance, or $35 at the
door. Dress is semi-formal, but jackets and
ties are not mandatory. If you did not receive an information letter, contact Jenny
(Schumacher) Crawford at <[email protected]>. The SEP Class of 1997 is beginning
plans for a 10-year reunion this summer.
Please contact Amanda (Trent) Underwood
at 205-4245 or e-mail her at <underwood.
[email protected]> with contact information, suggestions or offers to help.
All graduates are encouraged to register their contact information on the SEP
website at <www.se-polk.k12.ia.us>. Click
on “Alumni,” then “Alumni Database.”
Sign up for spring
playschool
Ann Law’s Child Development class at the senior high will
again offer playschool classes for
preschoolers age three and up this
spring. There is no charge for the classes,
which will be held from 8:40-9:25 a.m. and
9:30-10:15 a.m., beginning Thursday, April
5. Children may attend one or both sessions.
Playschool dates are all Thursdays: Apr. 5,
12, 19, 26, May 3 and May 10. Playschool classes typically include
free play, circle time with a story, an art activity or game, and a snack. Law says that
children may be finger painting on some
days, so should dress accordingly. The
class gives the Child Development students
an opportunity to plan activities for, work
with, and observe preschoolers.
Children may be preregistered by calling Ann Law at 967-6631, ext. 2088, or by
accessing the SEP website at <www.sepolk.k12.ia.us>. Click on “Child Development Playschool” on the home page.
| Southeast Polk Community School District
100 days of learning fun for
Willowbrook kindergartners
Willowbrook kindergartner Sydney Ruhl and her dad, Craig, read the Dr. Seuss book, I’ll
Teach My Dog 100 Words, during the 100th day of school kindergarten reading and math
night. Sydney is wearing special “100” reading glasses for the occasion.
Students across the district celebrate the 100th day of school each year with creative
activities and lots of fun while they are improving their math, reading and writing skills.
Parents of Willowbrook kindergartners joined their students for the first “Willowbrook Kindergarten Reading and Math Night” January 23 planned by kindergarten teachers Carol Pedersen, Karen Becker and Shelly Noe.
Parents read books to their children and then joined in activities related to the books.
They discussed rhyming words, made patterns with Cheerios, wrote poems, sorted M &
Ms, counted by twos and fives, and worked with shapes and stamps.
SEP to host state finals of National
Word Power Challenge®
Southeast Polk will host the state championship of the Reader’s Digest National Word
Power Challenge® on Monday, March 19, at 1 p.m. in the senior high auditorium.
The competition will begin with 100 students in grades 4-8 who have qualified from
their local schools. Ten students make it to the championship round, which will be hosted
by WHO-TV 13 meteorologist Ed Wilson.
Winners of the state championships, along with their teacher-escorts, receive an allexpenses-paid trip to the national competition in Orlando, Florida, May 13-15, where they
will compete for $50,000 in college scholarships. The Today Show’s Al Roker will host
the national event.
The Reader’s Digest National Word Power Challenge® is an innovative program
promoting literacy through an entertaining competition. Based on the celebrated Word
Power® column in Reader’s Digest magazine, two million students from all 50 states, the
District of Columbia, U.S. territories and the Department of Defense Schools participated
in this multi-level vocabulary bee during the 2006-07 academic year.
The public is invited to attend the March 19 state championship.
DATE
Fri., March 2
Sat., March 3
ACTIVITY
LOCATION
Spring Play
TIME
High School Auditorium
A
C
T
I
V
I
T
I
E
S
7:00 PM
Delaware Elementary Fun Night
Delaware Elementary
6:30-8:30 PM
Whipple Benefit/Four Mile Cafeteria
Four Mile Elementary
4:00-9:00 PM
Speech District Ind., Event Contests
Sun., March 4
Spring Play/Drama Awards
Mon., March 5
Sugar Shack Night for Willowbrook Elementary
High School Auditorium
4:00-8:00 PM
2:00 PM
Four Mile PTA Ice Skating Party
6:45-7:45 PM
Hoover Jazz Band Festival
Tue., March 6
Thu., March 8
Senior Announcement delivery at high school
High School Student Center
All Band Concert
High School Auditorium
8:00-1:00 PM
7:00 PM
PTA Meeting
Centennial Elementary
7:00 PM
Jazz Band Concert
High School Auditorium
7:00 PM
PTA Meeting
Runnells Elementary
7:00 PM
Fril, March 9
Four Mile PTA Family Movie
Four Mile Elementary
6:00-9:00 PM
Sat., March 10
Willowbrook Elementary Spring Fling
Willowbrook Elementary
11:00-2:00 PM
Show Choirs to Waukee/Prairie View/ All Choirs
SCIBA Concert Band @ Ankeny
Tues., March 13 Four Mile Vocal Music Concert Grades 1, 3 & 5
Four Mile Elementary
Sun., March 11
RhythAMette Show @ 2 and 6 PM
High School Auditorium
Mon., March 12
PTA Meeting
Altoona Elementary
6:30 PM
Centennial Elementary 3rd Grade Vocal Music Concert
Centennial Elementary
7:00 PM
Centennial Elementary 5rd Grade Vocal Music Concert
Centennial Elementary
7:30 PM
Athletic Boosters Meeting
High School Library
7:00 PM
PTA Meeting
Mitchellville Elementary
6:30 PM
High School Spring Vocal Concert
High School Auditorium
PRIDE Meeting
High School Library
7:00 PM
Spring Vocal Music Concert @ Runnells Elementary
Runnells Elementary
7:00 PM
PTO Meeting
Delaware Elementary
7:00 PM
Four Mile Cultural Fair
Four Mile Elementary
4:30 PM
School Board Meeting
District Office
7:00 PM
Staff Development /NO SCHOOL
District Wide
Tue., March 13
2:00 & 6:00 PM
High School Band Trip to Florida - March 14-19
Thu., March 15
Fri., March 16
Sat., March 17
State Individual Events Contests for Speech
Mon. March 19
Spring Break March 19-March 23
District Wide
Central Place Meeting
District Office
4:30 PM
Post Prom Meeting
High School West Lobby
6:30 PM
Wed., March 21
Dollars For Scholars Meeting
District Office
6:30 PM
Mon., March 26
PTA Meeting
Willowbrook Elementary
6:30 PM
Tue., March 27
Thu., March 29
Fri., March 30
Date
Committee X Meeting
District Office
4:00 PM
Four Mile Elementary Kindergarten Parent Meeting
Four Mile Elementary
6:30 PM
Centennial Kindergarten Round Up Meeting
Centennial Elementary
6:30 PM
Runnells Elementary Math Literacy Night
Runnells Elementary
5:30 PM
Centennial Elementary Mid Terms Sent Home With Students
Centennial Elementary
Junior High Parent Communication Council Meeting
Junior High School
Group Name
Time
Opponent(s)
Event Description
Tue, Mar 6
Boys Basketball, Varsity
Tue, Mar 6
Jr. High Swimming
Wed, Mar 7
Girls Basketball, Varsity
Thu, Mar 8
Jr. High Swimming
5:00 PM
Fri, Mar 9
Girls Track
5:00 PM
Indoor/Bulldog/Panther Classic
Tue, Mar 13
Boys Track
4:00 PM
ISU/Indoor (check date & time)
Tue, Mar 13
Jr. High Swimming
5:00 PM
5:00 PM
Johnston
9:00 AM
Facility
T
@ Summitt
A
State Tournament 7-10th
Wed, Mar 14 Boys Basketball, Varsity
5:00 PM
H/A
Substate Finals
Ankeny
A
Swimming Pool
H
A
A
Dowling Catholic
A
State Tournament 14-17th
A
Pekin Indoor @ Central (check)
A
Thu, Mar 15
Girls Track
Fri, Mar 23
Girls Track
UNI State Indoor Meet
Sat, Mar 24
Boys Track
Dickinson Relays @ UNI
A
Thu, Mar 29
Boys Track
Johnston Relays
A
5:00 PM
| Southeast Polk Community School District
Page 5
A
S
P
O
R
T
S
RhythAMetteS sweep many Kindergarten Parent Meeting
regional competition awards dates announced
Parents of SEP children enrolling in kindergarten for the 200708 school year are invited to parent meetings at the elementary
schools this spring. To be eligible for kindergarten next year, a
Gold Squad, left
child must be five years old on or before Sept. 15, 2007.
Although every attempt will be made to let parents know beWhite Squad,
fore school is out this spring where their kindergartners will attend
below
next fall, district administrators emphasize that some families may
not know until July registration is completed exactly where their
children will attend, as enrollment numbers sometimes change drastically over the summer.
If you are not already on a school’s contact list, call the school
nearest your home to make sure the principal has your child’s name.
The meeting for parents whose kindergartners will attend Clay Ele
mentary will be held at the junior high building at 8031 NE University
The
SEP
Avenue. Enter the southeast doors and follw the signs.
RhythAMetteS took
Meeting locations, dates and times are as follows:
the Marching AuxilAltoona Thurs, April 5
6:30 p.m.
967-3771
iaries Regional Drill
Centennial
Thurs,
March
29
6:30
p.m.
967-2109
Team
Competition
Clay (at Jr.Hi.) Thurs, April 12
6:30 p.m.
957-3429
held in Shawnee MisDelaware
Thurs, April 5
6:30 p.m.
262-3197
sion, KS, on Feb. 5 by storm, as they swept a number of award catFour Mile Tues, March 27
6:30 p.m.
265-1972
egories. The varsity Gold squad, the junior varsity White squad and
Mitchellville Mon, April 2
6:30 p.m.
967-4274
the junior high squad all earned Best in Class and Super SweepRunnells Thurs, April 19
6:30 p.m.
966-2068
stakes Awards.
Willowbrook Tues, April 10
6:30 p.m.
967-7512
u First Place Large Ensemble for “Silent Night”: Kourtnie
Fetters, Audrey Holland, Brenna McDonald, Morgan Northway,
Rachel Schossow, Madison Simon and Brittany Smith
uVarsity Trio: 1st Place: Stephanie Voss, Natasha Overturff,
Chelsea Foresman
The SEP Board of Education, at its February 15 meeting, took
u Varsity Duets: 1st - Monica McConnell, Natasha Overturff; a first look at the elementary enrollment plan created from objec2nd - Rachel Schossow, Brittany Smith; 3rd - Chelsea Fousek, tives developed by the Elementary Enrollment Management Committee, made up of 40 teachers, support staff, administrators, PTA
Lindsey Seley
u Varsity Solos, Grades 9-10: 1st - Monica McConnell; 2nd representatives and other parents.
The plan takes the first steps toward creating as much of a
- Margarita Diaz; 3rd - tie Lindsey Wade & Morgan Northway
“neighborhood
school” concept as is possible in a rapidly-growing
u Varsity Solos, Grades 11-12: 1st - Natasha Overturff
district, while adhering to the highest-priority objective of the com
u Choreography Awards: Gold Varsity - Kick, Lyrical & Jazz;
mittee - that of maintaining balanced class sizes across the district.
White JV - Prop; Jr. High -Kick & Pom
The Board will vote on the plan at its March meeting, which has
u Jr. High Duets: 1st - Audrey Holland, Brenna McDonald; been changed to March 29 at 7 p.m. at District Office, after which a
2nd - Kourtnie Fetters, Madison Simon; 3rd - Sara Mallicoat, Shel- community meeting will be scheduled to show details of the plan and
by Nelson
allow for questions. For details of the committee’s objectives, see the
u Jr. High Solos: 1st - Brenna McDonald; 2nd - Shelby Nel- district website at <www.se-polk.k12.ia.us> and click on “Enrollment Management Committee,” or call 957-3418 for a copy. son; 3rd - Sara Mallicoat; 4th - Hannah McFarlane
Coaches for the 2006/2007 Gold and White squads are: Marianne Mayo, Melissa Ballagh, Stacey Bouchard, and Sara McManus.
Tracy Holland coaches the junior high squad.
Elementary enrollment plan
presented to school board
Spaghetti Dinner
at Runnells Elementary
| Southeast Polk Community School District
March 2
E T
G HFriday,
5-7:30 p.m.
to benefit SEP
Dollars for Scholars
I
Sunday, March 11
Performances at
2 & 6 p.m.
Senior High Auditorium
Tickets $6
Available at the Activities Office
967-2944
A
T
The 2007 RhythAMetteS Show
S P
We’re All In This Together
$7 for adults
$5 for 10t & Seniors 65s
Take-out available
Spaghetti, salad, breadsticks,
beverage and dessert
Centennial hosts
dinner, Family
Literacy Night
Amber Krakau, Lilyana Baccam, and Bryelle
Baccam each choose a new book to take
home from the Centennial Family Literacy
Night.
More than 300 people attended Centennial Elementary’s PTA dinner and Family Literacy Night on January 25. The evening began with hamburgers and hot dogs
grilled by Principal Steve Stotts and ended
with an opportunity to read under the stars
in the gymnasium.
Raffle prizes were donated by Porter Hardware, Altoona HyVee, KCCI-TV8,
Claxon’s and Centennial PTA. Many students received prizes that included reading
tee-shirts, books, gift cards and flashlights.
Each student also received a new book of
their choice to take home.
Spring Break
Soccer Camp
Assessment...
Cedar Falls, Iowa, as a starting model. It also explored the potential for using an electronic, teacher-driven system to gather classroom learning information that could be directly
printed at each building, both as an informal progress report and as an official trimester
report of classroom achievement to parents.
Federal No Child Left Behind requirements have brought some positive forcedchanges to schools across the nation, according to Condon, one being a new era of accountability for student achievement. Along with that accountability, the available solid
research on effective and appropriate assessment practices has increased. “Assessment systems and reporting systems must now be more accurately aligned
with state standards and district outcomes,” Condon said. “In our new process we have
identified a set of critical content area outcomes to be assessed from the curriculum at each
grade level, providing specifics about student performance in relation to those grade level
outcomes.
Condon and Bass say the new system offers greater possibilities for “differentiation
of instruction,” or tailoring instructional strategies to serve all students; those who require
a corrective, re-teaching loop, as well as those who have mastered outcomes and require
additional challenges. The teaching rubrics are based on a fourpoint outline of what students are The new assessment gives a more
expected to know, understand, accurate picture of how the child
or be able to do toward a given
performs in the classroom......
learning outcome.
Jacque VanBoord
Throughout the 2005-2006 Centennial 4th-grade teacher
school year a small team, rep- resenting a different grade level
at each of the seven elementary
buildings, piloted the assessment system and the reporting process with great success.
This pilot team discovered and corrected some early glitches in the technology, reworded grade-level outcomes to be more student- and parent-friendly, and created a set
of four-point rubric guidelines for teachers to use with each content area outcome for
each grade level. Last August, during the pre-school teacher workshops, all elementary
teachers participated in grade level training sessions. Throughout the school year, the experienced pilot group at each building has been available to assist colleagues learning to
navigate within the new system.
This first school year in the full implementation with all elementary teachers is proving to be a challenging learning experience for those who most often have the teaching
role. However, the positive response from parents who like having greater detail from the
outcome assessments about what their child knows versus the previous system’s general
summary letter grades makes the change worthwhile.
The original pilot trial team already knows of a couple of major pieces it wants to
adjust, and along with the established study committee and elementary and district administrators, is planning a series of grade level workshops for next school year to clarify
scoring interpretations for teachers. Keri Steele, Southeast Polk’s new director of Special
Education, who comes to the district from the Ames Community Schools, has become a
key member of the project’s administrative team, bringing two years of experience from
the similar Ames project.
“It’s been very beneficial to have an instrument in place that ties instruction, curriculum and assessment together so nicely,” said Bass.
The Centennial 4th-grade teachers piloted the assessments in their classrooms last year.
“It’s a big adjustment,” said Jacque VanBoord, one of those 4th-grade teachers, “and
it takes a while for both the teacher and the parents to grasp such a different concept after
so many years of letter grades. The new assessment gives a more accurate picture of how
the child performs in the classroom.”
The Altoona Soccer Club and Brazilian
Futebol Arte are joining to offer a Spring
Break Soccer Camp for all interested U5U14 soccer players March 19-23 from 911:30 a.m. at the Altoona Soccer Complex
The camp will focus on the basic skills
of soccer, emphasizing technical and tactical skills needed to improve your game.
Sessions are 2-1/2 hours and will consist of
drills, conditioning and games, all in a safe
and friendly environment. Cost is $45 per
player. Email <[email protected]>
or call 480-2529 for more info.
| Southeast Polk Community School District
Continued from Page 1
Selection criteria for Dollars for
Scholars scholarship applications
The Selection Committee for SEP Dollars for Scholars scholarships will be made
up of four-to-five members from the SEP
Dollars for Scholars Foundation Board.
Each committee member will receive
copies of all scholarship applications prior
to the scheduled meeting date set for selecting recipients. Preceding the review, the
names of the applicants will be removed
and the applications numbered. Committee members will receive applicant ranking
criteria established by the SEP Dollars for
Scholars Board. Each Selection Committee
member, upon reviewing the student applications, will rank them in order according
to the ranking criteria.
The results of each Selection Committee member’s ranking of every applicant
will be tabulated. From this tabulation the
committee will make its final scholarship
selections. The Selection Committee will
designate three alternates (in the event a
scholarship recipient does not go on to
school or complete the necessary paperwork by the stated deadline).
The majority of scholarships awarded
during the Awards Evening are given by or-
ganizations, businesses, endowments, memorials and private citizens. They, in turn,
have the opportunity to choose the award
recipient. These businesses, etc., join the
Dollars for Scholars flow-through program
to gain benefits from colleges that match
awards from Dollars for Scholars chapters. The SEP Dollars for Scholars chairperson will relay to the committee which
applicants are recipients of other scholarships and the dollar amount awarded. The
purpose of this is to comply with the SEP
Dollars for Scholars philosophy of “spreading the wealth” to as many students as possible. Open Gym continues
each Sunday until Spring
Break at SEP Senior High
from 2-5 p.m. Bring your
own balls. The pool, both
gyms and the weight room are
open and supervised.
All SEP students (K-12) are admitted free, with all others charged $2.
Post-Prom needs YOU
Parents are busy planning an exciting
“Almost Paradise” Post-Prom party scheduled for April 21 at the high school. More
volunteers are needed to help with decorating, food, games, prizes and chaperoning.
The committee will meet on Mon., March
12, in the West Gym lobby. Call Kyrie Garras at 266-1679 or 371-0818.
Dates to
Remember
March 16........ Staff Development - NO SCHOOL, ALL GRADES
March 19-23... Spring Break - NO SCHOOL, ALL GRADES
March 29........ School Board meets at District Office, 7 p.m.
(note change from regular date)
the
Non-Profit Org
U.S. Postage
PAID
Runnells, Iowa 50237
Permit #2
• SOUTHEAST POLK COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT •
The UNIFIER is published monthly by the Southeast Polk Community School
District and is printed at the Heartland Area Education Agency (AEA 11).
Deadline for copy and photos is the 10th of each month.
EDITOR:
Marti Kline - Southeast Polk District Office
8379 NE University Ave.
Pleasant Hill, Iowa 50327
(515) 967-4294 (direct line 957-3418)
<[email protected]>
Call Evie Witmer at the SEP Activities Office with
calendar information - 967-2944.
The Southeast Polk Community School District does not discriminate based
on gender, race, national/ethnic origin, creed, age, marital status or disability.
Inquiries and grievances may be directed to Dr. Stephen Miller, the Affirmative
Action coordinator, Equity coordinator, and Title IX coordinator, at the above
District Office address and phone number. Or, contact the director of the
Region VII Office of Civil Rights, Department of Education, Kansas City, MO.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Katie Temple - Pres.
Steve Hanson - VP
Brad Skinner
Pat Staggs VanderWert
Andrew McGrean
Tom Hadden
Joanne Moeller
Thomas J. Downs, Supt.
CARRIER ROUTE PRESORT
ECRWSS
Postal Customer