FEBRUARY 2, 2023
Franklin District Bi-Weekly Newsletter | 2022-23 #11
2022-23 Issue #11 | 2/2/23
Part of A Better Community
Welcome to Winter in Wisconsin! We have experienced the cool temperatures and the crisp air that meets us as we leave the house for the day’s adventures. January provided some opportunities for Franklin Public Schools (FPS) to continue to partner with our greater community as we continually strive to be part of a better community. I have a few updates to share with you in this newsletter.
CITY OF FRANKLIN HEALTH DEPARTMENT (FHD)
I had the honor of attending the Community Health Partner Meeting in January, along with Dr. Angela Bier of our FPS School Board. The City of Franklin surveyed the citizens around areas of physical, social and mental health and the data received was reviewed as the team set action plans for further growth within our community. The following valuable data from the 2021-22 Community Health Assessment stood out during our analysis in the area of mental health:
Adults (In Franklin) Ever Diagnosed with Depression: 17.8%
Poor Mental Health (14+ Days): 12%
For those seeking Mental Health & Alcohol/Substance Use Services:
Cost was too expensive; can’t pay: 41%
I worried that others would judge me: 25%
For FPS, this offered an opportunity for us to review our resources for mental health that we have access to for staff and families. Did you know that you and your child(ren) have access to a variety of resources for social, emotional and mental health? Franklin High School and Forest Park Middle School have counselors on hand to help students with a variety of needs and we have School Psychologists in each elementary school. In addition, all buildings have access to onsite counseling clinics with our partners from Clinical Psychology Associates (info here) available for our students and families. We also partner with Aurora Health Care for their Student and Family Assistance Program (SFAP) (info here) which offers services to you and your family. With a limited amount of access to mental health providers in the state and specifically in Franklin, we remind you to take advantage of these confidential resources available through FPS. Only together can we break through the stigma of “I am worried that others would judge me” and find support where needed.
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IMPORTANCE
During the Community Health Partner Meeting, the FHD also provided data points from their survey around physical activity. While we celebrate amazing trails and parks in Franklin and some spaces for physical activity indoors, it is likely not a surprise that there is never quite enough space for indoor activities for citizens of ALL ages in Franklin, especially in the winter. A few data points from the FHD:
Franklin Adults who are obese: 31%
Estimated prevalence of physical inactivity among adults aged 18 years and older: 16.7%
PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE
How can FPS offer support to meet our vision of being part of a better community in the areas of physical, social, mental and emotional health of our community? We are honored for over 25 years to run the Community Education & Recreation Department (Rec Department) through the district. Their funds circulate through Fund 80 (not our general operating budget) and Brad Anderson and his staff offer a plethora of activities for infants to senior citizens, while also maintaining waitlists and delaying offering for programs due to space.
Currently, with the School Board, we are working to approve a Community & Recreation building, including outdoor green space/fields, to be built adjacent to the ECC District Office. The Rec Department has saved up approximately $2.3 million dollars over at least the last 15 years to expand facilities for their offerings, allowing more citizens access to activities that benefit them physically, socially, mentally and emotionally. This will take financial support from the community over two years in exchange for decades of activities for our citizens. The 2-minute video below showcases the preliminary planning for this project...
Being part of a better community takes all of us and FPS continues to do what we can to offer better for our community. Growing communities, like Franklin, include safe and high performing schools, while also knowing that healthy schools include a healthy community. All residents in our community should benefit from healthy options for programming around social, mental and physical health so we can all be better connected.
I invite you to head to our webpage dedicated to this project at tinyurl.com/fpsrecplan where you can review all details and offer your feedback directly to the FPS School Board before they revisit this topic on March 22, 2023.
I look forward to continuing to find innovative ways to make us part of a better community and I thank you for the many ways you support FPS throughout this journey.
With gratitude,
Annalee
As a reminder, the 2023-24 District Calendar can be found in PDF format here and linked into our district calendars on our website here. All of our calendars are able to be subscribed to! Follow the steps at the top of the District Calendar webpage for how to subscribe.
Southwood Glen Turns 30!
Last week, the Southwood Glen PTA put on some very special events to recognize the 30th Anniversary of the opening of the school! Former staff members were invited for a school tour and to visit with staff while enjoying some coffee and birthday cake. Memory scrapbooks were brought out and great stories were shared. Following the event, a group of former staff wrote a very nice letter about all they had experienced and that is included here with a few photos. Happy Birthday, Southwood Glen! #BetterCommunity
FHS Hosts UW Varsity Band Run-Out Concert 3/4!
We are very proud as a district to be one of the hosting sites for the University of Wisconsin Varsity Band Run-Out Concert series! The event will take place at the Franklin High School Saber Center for the Performing Arts on Saturday, March 4th @ 2pm. Get your tickets online here! They will go fast!
Welcome Andy Daniels, New Director of B&G
In our effort to continually work towards being a better place to learn, a better place to work and part of a better community, we are pleased to share with you the hiring of Mr. Andrew (Andy) Daniels as our new Director of Buildings & Grounds. Andy replaces Kasey Stumvoll who left in early January to pursue another career opportunity.
Mr. Daniels' first day with Franklin Public Schools will be Monday, February 20th. You can see the formal announcement here. We will share an announcement with families in next week's District Newsletter. Welcome Mr. Daniels!
Community & Recreation Department Upcoming Highlights
As the winter months drag on, your Community Education and Recreation Department wants to highlight a few opportunities available to your family:
The next session of Glee Club and Theater begins Thursday, February 2nd. Both classes will run on Thursdays for 6 weeks at FHS. Spots are still available! Register ASAP for these fun and creative classes. See this webpage for more information and other activities being offered by the Rec Department.
To see more of our great winter programming, head to franklinwi.myrec.com to see the WINTER RECREATION GUIDE!
WI Bus Driver Appreciation Week Activity!
Wisconsin Bus Driver Appreciation week begins Monday, February 13th and runs to Friday, February 17th! If you click on the attached picture, you can print off a copy and have your child(ren) color the page and hand this to your bus driver as a way of showing appreciation! We are very thankful for the bus drivers that show up every day to help safely transport our kids to and from school. Thank you!
BONUS POINTS: Snap a picture of your child giving the bus driver the color sheet and send it to communications@franklin.k12.wi.us and we may feature it in an upcoming newsletter!
2023-24 Registration Open NOW For New Families!
Registration for the 2023-24 school year is open on our website here. Registration is for any new families to Franklin or new students looking to register for next year in 4K, 5K or up through 12th grade. If you have any friends or family in Franklin that plan to have children attend Franklin Public Schools next year, please pass this information along to them! Registering early helps to get all information in our system for planned communications.
Please note that any student that is already attending Franklin Public Schools DOES NOT need to register for next school year as a new student. This includes students already in Preschool Speech, Early Childhood, and 4K. All parents/guardians will be required to review your student’s data during our summer Back-To-School Online Check-In process. Any family who knows a student will not be returning for the next school year should notify your school’s main office staff.
FPS 2023-24 Open Enrollment Information
At the January 25, 2023 School Board Meeting, the FPS School Board approved (81) open enrollment seats for the 2023-24 school year. Online applications for open enrollment are accepted beginning Monday, February 6th through Friday, April 28, 2023 @ 4pm. For all other open enrollment information, please view our webpage here which includes the breakdown of open seats by grade level and directions to follow for those wishing to open enroll. For any questions, please contact Heidi Engel, FPS Auxiliary Service Coordinator by email or phone (414) 525-7634.
On Valentine’s Day we invite you to surprise a Franklin Public School teacher or special staff member with a personally delivered Valentine greeting! Just let us know who you wish to honor, and our volunteers will take care of the rest. Remember, if you would like to recognize a staff member but are not sure of names, use the FPS staff directory here to find those favorite administrative assistants, aides, custodial staff or special teachers in addition to your student's homeroom teachers.
Choose from the following 3 options:
Pkg. #1 - Personalized Valentine & Chocolate $10.00
Pkg. #2 - Personalized Valentine, Chocolate & Large Decorated Cookie $15.00
Pkg. #3 - Personalized Valentine, Chocolate, Cookie & Gourmet Hot Cocoa $20.00
Sun, March 12th Wave Game for Franklin!
After the success of our Back-To-School Milkmen Game right before school started, we looked into hosting another event in the (somewhat) middle of the year! The Franklin Educational Foundation has been selected to be the nonprofit of the Milwaukee Wave vs Kansas City Comets soccer game for Sunday, March 12th at 4:05pm at the Panther Arena in downtown Milwaukee. All donations received from this event will be distributed to our FPS PTAs and PTOs at our middle and elementary schools! We would love to get as many Franklin families and staff together for this fun event! Secure your tickets at this link here.
Registration is now open for our semi-annual children's consignment sale. Sign up to sell your children's clothing ages 0-18, books, toys, bikes, baby items and much more! Doors open at 8:30. Half-price sale starts at 12:30. We are grateful for Next Step Dance Studio for sponsoring this event! For more information go to https://www.franklineducationalfoundation.org/events .
FEF Tee Up For Education: Save The Date!
FRI, June 16, 2023 at OAKWOOD GOLF COURSE (corrected date)
Registration Opens Wed, March 1, 2023!
To sponsor or volunteer this event, download our informational packet here or contact us at foundation@franklin.k12.wi.us
Quarterly Connect With A School Board Member Opportunities
Would you like to speak to a Franklin school board member in person? Two board members will be available 30 minutes before regular meetings to speak with community and family members informally four times during the 2022-23 school year. The next opportunity is before the Board Meeting on Wednesday, March 8th at 5:30pm with the Board Meeting expected to begin at 6pm. Board members can also be reached by email or phone.
Work With FPS!
Franklin Public Schools has a variety of positions available that you can view at the links below:
Certified Staff (teaching positions, administration roles, substitutes, nurses)
Support Staff (coaches, aides, custodial, food service, bus drivers, Rec Dept, Kids Club)
Franklin Public Library Events for Teens!
Check out the two flyers below for upcoming Franklin Public Library offerings for teens. The first is a Valentine's Day Cupcake Decorating event on Saturday, February 11th from 2-3pm. The second flyer is a booklet of Winter-Spring events taking place at FPL! Check them out!
FHS Sabers Baseball Mod Pizza Fundraiser Wed 2/15
FHS Sabers Baseball is hosting a fundraising night at the Mod Pizza in Greenfield! 20% of your bill will go back to the program. Click on the attached flyer for the code to use so you can support Saber Baseball!
Children's Wisconsin Walk-In Mental Health Clinic
Children's Wisconsin has recently opened the Craig Yabuki Mental Health Walk-In Clinic. This clinic provides same-day care for children and teens ages 5-18 who are experiencing urgent mental health issues. This clinic is designed to offer and alternative to traditional urgent care and emergency room services. For a more detailed overview of the clinic, please see the associated flyer or these slides. To schedule a walk-in visit, go directly to their website here.
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(Note: Any imagery containing students, staff, events, or FPS logos shared by FPS are the property of Franklin Public Schools and are solely for district use. Reproduction or reuse of these images without written permission is not allowed.)
District Newsletter Archive Page: Click Here
Email: communications@franklin.k12.wi.us
Website: http://www.franklin.k12.wi.us
Location: 8255 West Forest Hill Avenue, Franklin, WI, USA
Phone: 414-529-8220
Facebook: facebook.com/franklinpublicschools
Twitter: @fpsdistrictwi
Instagram: @fpsdistrictwi