Curious Kids Opens New Sites
Curious Kids child care will open four new sites this
fall. In addition to the Moorsbridge and Woodland sites, Amberly, Angling
Road, Lake Center, and 12th Street will offer before and after school care.
Transportation to the Milham site will continue to be provided for Haverhill
and Central Elementary students. All of the sites will be open on Sept. 7.
For more information, visit the Curious Kids
website.
New Assistant Principal Appointed at Central Middle School
Chuck Haskin, a Portage Schools faculty member for the past 18
years, has been appointed assistant principal at Central Middle School,
replacing the retiring Bonnie Neal. Haskin has been the Technology
Integration Specialist for the District, helping teachers add value to their
instruction through technology. He has also served as a teacher at all
levels in the District since 1992 and as a boys and girls basketball coach.
He began is career with the District as a long-term substitute teacher
at North Middle School in 1992, followed by a stint as a special education
aide at Northern High School. Haskin then served on the faculty at North
Middle School for 11 years, teaching science and language arts. Next, he
taught at the Enrichment Center, the District’s gifted and talented program
for elementary students, before assuming his most recent job as a technology
integration specialist in 2008.
He holds a BA in Elementary Education from University of Michigan and an
MA in Educational Leadership from Western Michigan University. Posted July
14, 2010
Athletic Director
Named at Central High School
Jim Murray, a faculty member of Portage Schools for 20 years and Portage
Central Hockey Coach for 15 years, has been appointed to replace retiring
P-C Athletic Director Dr. Larry Edlund.
Murray
has been teaching accounting
and was department head of Business Education at
Central High, in addition to serving as head coach of Central’s hockey team.
He has also taught physical education at Central and previously taught
marketing at Northern High School. Murray
earned his bachelor degree from Michigan
Technological
University
and holds two graduate degrees: a Master of Arts from
Western
Michigan
University
and a Master of Education from
Nazareth
College.
“We will miss Larry,” said Central’s principal Eric Alburtus. “He has been
an incredible leader, a thoughtful and hard-working athletic director, and
an even better friend. Having said that, Jim has been successful at
everything he has ever done for the Portage Public Schools, and with his
commitment to supporting kids, he will be very successful. We are thrilled
to have him serving our community in this new role.”
According to Murray, “I’m extremely excited about the
opportunity to lead Portage Central athletics. We have a very proud
tradition here and it is an honor to be selected for this position. Larry
Edlund has been an excellent role model for all of the Mustang coaches, and
I will be stepping into an office that has been in outstanding hands for
these past 13 years. Of course, he has had excellent help from AD Office
Secretary Gina Beatty. Both Larry and Gina will certainly be missed.”
Murray
established the DECA Chapter at Northern and served as its advisor for 11
years, leading the team to national conference every year since 1994. He
also was an assistant hockey coach at Western Michigan
University from 1979-1985.
Posted July 26, 2010
School Funding Audio slide show
http://www.wash.k12.mi.us/movies/misfc3/
Watch this 15-minute presentation on how schools are funded in Michigan.
North Middle Science Teacher Earns National Board
Certification
North Middle School science teacher Mary Roobol has just earned her
National Board Certification from the National Board for Professional
Teaching Standards. She earned her certificate in Early Adolescence
Science. Roobol will be recognized for this extraordinary achievement at
the May 24 Board of Education meeting.
Roobol, who serves as Science Department chair and Environmental Club
co-sponsor at North Middle, is now one of only four faculty members in
the District with NBCT certification. She earned her BA and MA from
Western Michigan University, and has been on the NMS faculty since 1993
teaching math, language arts, and science.
Other PPS faculty holding this distinction include John Dunlop (Physical
Education), Donna Emerson (Art), and Janet LaVasseur (Language Arts).
Learn more about the NBCT at
www.nbpts.org. Posted May 21, 2010.
Survey Results Reinforce Importance of Competing
in Global Economy
A total of 96.7% of Portage School residents say it is important for the
District to be competitive in a global economy and society. Read entire
survey results
here.
A total of 2,000 randomly selected residents were surveyed by mail
during February and March with a 38% response rate. The results were
released tonight at the Board of Education. The 44-question survey was
conducted by the Kercher Center for Social Research at Western Michigan
University.
The survey will assist the Board of Education and the administration in
strategic planning and improving services. Survey questions were divided
by the following categories: academics, community engagement, current
issues, District services, demographics, and general opinion. The first
11 pages consist of an introduction analyzing the results, Appendix A is
a listing of the questions with responses by percent, and Appendix B
with responses to open-ended questions. Survey highlights include:
▪ 96.3% say it is important to provide classes and programs to prepare
students for employment following high school.
▪ 90% are satisfied with the level of customer service throughout the
District.
▪ 86.7 are satisfied with the reputation of the District.
▪ 78.6% say that student achievement in the District should be as good
as the top school districts in either the state or the nation.
Respondent comments included praise for teachers, staff, and academic
programs, while they shared concerns about state funding of education
with 58.1% dissatisfied with the way Michigan funds K-12 education. A
total of 58.3% of survey respondents have had children attend Portage
Schools, while 32.6% currently have students in the District, and 21.7%
plan to enroll their children in the future. Almost one-fifth of
respondents (17.7%) are Portage School alumni. Posted May 24, 2010.
PEF Launches "PEF Now" Appeal to Assist Portage
Schools
The PEF launched an appeal this week in response to community feedback
on how to help reduce the impact on Portage Schools from the continuing
state school-funding crisis. A special PEF: Now (Protecting Education’s
Future Now) has been established by the PEF to raise $1.3 million that
will be given to the District to help cover essential school needs.
The effort was among three such appeals nationwide featured in the May
10 USA Today, and was praised in the Kalamazoo Gazette's editorial of
May 12.
According to Sarah Bricknell, “PEF: Now” chair, and Dorilee Schieble,
PEF president, the District is being squeezed. “While the District’s
revenue sources are diminishing, state-mandated expenses will increase
almost $1 million next year. Without substantial changes to the funding
structure, instructional services will suffer and, ultimately, our
students will pay the price. We cannot wait any longer for the
legislature to restructure school funding; we need to take action now.”
“PEF: Now” provides an avenue for all stakeholders of the District –
parents, alumni, business owners, and homeowners – to help preserve the
quality and reputation of our school district and community. A new
website has been created to help with the appeal that features online
giving. Read more at
www.portageeducationfoundation.org (see the “PEF Now” link). The
site includes a Q&A about this appeal and a printable form for donations
to be mailed. Posted April 23, 2010.
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