East China School District News
Every Child.Every Day
January 25, 2021
January is School Board Appreciation Month
Message from Superintendent Cybulla
Dear ECSD Families,
In a year full of challenges for public education and the East China School District, our school board members persevered through the adversity to provide the best possible education for our students. During and continuing through the pandemic, many of the challenges the school district faced did not have clear cut solutions. The school board members represented the views and priorities of our community.
Too often, the efforts of school board members go unrecognized; thank you to President Jeanne Frank, Vice President Pat Biebuyck, Secretary Lynn Griffor, Treasurer Amy Murphy, Trustee Todd Distelrath, Trustee Karen Cedar and Trustee Michael Westrick for your service to the East China School District.
Even though we are making a special effort during January to show appreciation for our school board members, we recognize their contributions reflect a year-round effort on their part.
Sincerely,
Suzanne Cybulla
Bond 2020 January 25, 2021 Update
INNOVATION CENTER
1585 Meisner Road
East China, MI 48054
As documentation is wrapping up, the construction team is working hard to develop and finalize a project phasing plan. The goal is to not impact spring sports. A pre-bid meeting for the site work took place this week. It is anticipated that bids will be received and opened at the end of the month.
MARINE CITY 6 – 12 BUILDING
1085 Ward Street
Marine City, MI 48039
Design for the renovation work will be ramping up over the next several months.
ST. CLAIR 6 – 12 BUILDING
2200 Clinton Avenue
Saint Clair, MI 48079
Design for the renovation work will be ramping up over the next several months. A schematic design meeting was held where the focus became the new competition gym addition. It will be developed into its own package and expedited in order to get construction to begin quicker.
St. Clair Middle School News
Amazing Art at SCMS
The Art department continues to dazzle and amaze even through the distant learning platforms that we all encountered since November 30, 2020. Recently, the SCMS Art teacher, Ms. Lori Hannon, challenged the SCMS Art students with virtually creating a Digital Mosaic Art piece. Mosaic Art is a work of art created with tiny fragments of glass or tile. The works of art can be found by CLICKING HERE.
Chromebook Device Drop Off
Recently the East China School District transitioned to a Remote Learning platform from November 30 - January 15. Students were allowed to check out chrome books for this distant learning time. St. Clair Middle School held a voluntary Device Drop Off on Monday, January 18 where most devices were returned. The rest of the devices were returned the week of January 18-22, and nearly 95% of them by January 19. It was amazing to see the level of care our students had in carefully using these devices as well as the number of devices returned in such a short time frame. What an amazing process and we would like to give kudos to the parents, students and staff involved in seamlessly getting these devices to families as well as recollecting them back into the building.
Technology Special - 5th grade @ SCMS
The 5th grade students at St. Clair Middle School are currently being introduced to a brand new Technology class as a Special! In Technology, the curriculum is based on the Michigan Computer Science Standards. The class has units on how to be a safe, responsible digital citizen, coding and programming, 3D printing, and much more. The students use Dash for a hands-on experience in coding, besides Code.org. They also learn to be a great 21st century learner by using the 4 C's: Critical Thinking, Communication, Collaboration and Creativity! This is the second year that Mrs. Kelly Robbins has been teaching the program in the district, but the first year at SCMS. We are very excited about this new addition for our students and the students are having a blast!
St. Clair Middle School Staff Spotlight
This week’s Staff Spotlight highlights Mrs. Kim Burkart of St. Clair Middle School. Mrs. Burkart currently teaches 7th grade Ancient History as well as 8th grade Science. She has spent the last 20 years teaching in the East China School District and prior to that, she taught at St. Mary's St. Clair for 5 years and Port Huron Schools for 2 years. Several years ago, Mrs. Burkart started the Yearbook class at St. Clair Middle School. She has also served on several science and technology committees at the Middle School level. In addition, she and her husband started the St. Clair Starz girls softball travel team and coached it for many years. Mrs. Burkart has two daughters and she is proud to say that both have come through the East China school system.
When asked what the most rewarding part of her job is, she states, “Having students come back to me after years and say they remember me or remember something that happened in class. Also, seeing students years later as successful adults and knowing I had some small part in their success.”
Mrs. Burkart would like the ECSD community to know that being an educator is a marathon, not a sprint. It takes years to gain knowledge and confidence to do this job well. You have to be willing and able to change, adapt, and compromise. Also, many of the skills you may impart on students may not be academic, but every bit as important to their future success. Being a good role model means a lot.
We thank Mrs. Kim Burkart for her dedication and commitment to students and community of the East China School District.
Little Explorers Excited to Return!
Community Wellness Activity
Mark Your Calendars!
Chili-Heart 5K Sponsors - Thank you!
SCC SPEAK Presents: Trivia Night
Give Your Child A Great Start!
The Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP) is a state funded preschool program for eligible children who will be four years old on or before September 1st. This program covers the key areas a child needs to be ready for Kindergarten. Applications for the 2020-2021 school year are now being accepted! The application and more information can be found by clicking on the links below:
Click the link below for additional information
http://sccresa.org/cms/one.aspx…
Click the link below for an online application
https://docs.google.com/…/1GYmnqXQlzntv1d3kadfXeE…/viewform…
For additional questions, comments, or concerns, please contact:
Chris Klecha, GSRP Enrollment Specialist
cklecha@ecsd.us
(810) 676-1010
Contact Information
Email: info@ecsd.us
Website: www.ecsd.us
Location: 1585 Meisner Road, East China, MI, USA
Phone: 810-676-1000
Facebook: facebook.com/EastChinaSchools