ST. CROIX CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL
The Journey Begins
I'm excited to... Ready or not... Here we go... man, it's hard to start this letter.
On behalf of Jason, I want you to know how much we are looking forward to the start of the school year. Of course, there is always the feeling of being overwhelmed, a bit nervous, too lazy to start again, and yet excited to see everyone and make this a wonderful experience.
I can't believe this is already the start of year number three for me at SCC. It's been said that a teacher doesn't really start to feel comfortable in the classroom until year three. I can attest to that sentiment as a building principal as well.
What's coming down the road...? We will be setting goals around three key areas: Culture, School Climate, and Academic Achievement. These goals will be used to develop and drive of our High School Strategic Improvement Plan over the next five years.
This year, and for years to come, we will focus on growing our positive culture by investing in the growth of our staff and ourselves in meaningful and impactful ways. We will be developing leadership skills, relationships, and high-functioning groups.
We will invest our time and efforts in the development of systems, practices, and key result measurements to drive school improvement through BLT, PBIS, RtI, and PLC's.
Finally, we will continue to pursue a high degree of academic achievement for all students. By setting building-wide goals, measuring and reporting the results, and growing SBA&R through investigation and implementation of best practices in the classroom, we will drive improvement.
We look forward to sharing these experiences with you as we all grow as educational leaders, role models, and colleagues.
Thank you, in advance, for your dedication to students, families, and each other.
Go Panthers,
Kurt
Welcome Back Schedule
8:00-11:30 New Staff
11:00-11:45 Lunch
11:45-3:00 New Staff and Mentors
Tuesday, August 21: Teacher Work Day (Paras Encouraged to Attend)
8:00-9:00 Building Staff Meeting
9:00-3:30 Teacher Work Time
12:00-1:30 SBA&R Pilot Group Meeting
1:45-3:30 New Teacher Meeting
Wednesday, August 22: Open House
12:00-8:00 Staff
1:00-4:00, 5:00-7:00 Families
1:00-7:00 Pictures
Thursday, August 23: BLT/DLT Day
9:00-3:00 at the High School
Tuesday, August 28: Teacher PD Day (Paras Encourage to Attend)
7:30-3:30
Wednesday, August 29: All Staff Welcome Back
7:30-3:30 at the High School
Information Shared with Families
"Day One"
Tuesday, September 4th is designated as "Day One" and will operate like a normal school day (8:05 am - 3:25 pm). However, this day will be set aside as an orientation day for incoming freshmen and other new students (i.e. transfer and exchange students) only.
Along with the high school staff, a group of upperclassmen who have volunteered to be part of our "Pathfinders" leadership group will be working with the freshmen and new students to help with their transition to the high school.
10th through 12th-grade students will begin school on Wednesday, September 5, 2018. We ask any students who are not directly involved with "Day One" to stay out of the high school and off the property between 7:30 am and 3:25 pm.
Normal bus routes will be available and the school will be open each day by 6:00 am.
If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Koele (jkoele@scc.k12.wi.us).
Open House: August 22nd - Fall Open House & Lifetouch Picture Day.
- Session 1: 1:00 - 4:00 pm
- Dinner Break for Staff: 4:00 - 5:00 pm
- Session 2: 5:00 - 7:00 pm
Each family should have received a packet of information providing other details for the open house. If you have questions please contact the main office at 715-796-5383.
The 2018-19 Daily Schedule
While the school day still begins at 8:05 am and dismisses at 3:25 pm, we've made some minor adjustments to the schedule to help all students learn at their highest level and feel connected to the school and the staff.
- L-3 ("L-Cubed"): Last year we moved from a 25 minute lunch period to a 45-minute lunch period to allow students a chance to do three things... have lunch, have learning time, and have leisure time. The feedback on that format was very positive so we will continue with that model. This allows students a little extra time to get academic help, be active, and relax.
- CORE Intervention/Extension: In an effort to respond quickly to the academic needs of students we have created a system which has two teachers in each of the core areas (math, science, and English) available at the beginning of both lunch periods to support both struggling and advanced students. Students will be moved in and out of CORE as needed by teacher recommendation. This is not designed to be a permanent placement.
- WIN Time (What I Need): Following the lead of the elementary and middle schools, we have adjusted our "9th-hour study hall" to create a more impactful opportunity for students to receive academic support during the day. This 30-minute period, which will take place during 7th-hour, will allow students and staff to connect and support the individual needs of the students.
- EXTENSION - 10th-period: From 3:15 pm - 3:25 pm students will connect with staff prior to leaving for the day. This is another chance to connect with staff regarding academic, emotional, or social needs. We believe this period will allow for academic benefit and connectedness.
Link to the SCHOOL CALENDAR (NOTE: Friday, September 21st was originally a "day off" for students but it has been changed to a regular school day. In exchange, Friday, October 5th has been changed to a "day off" for students.)
What's New in Academic Offerings?
I am pleased to share some exciting news about academic programming for 2018-19. We will be offering the following new courses at SCC.
- Advanced Placement Biology
- Computer Programming: Java (open to 10th-12th-grade students)
- Advanced Placement Environmental Science
- Advanced Placement Physics (this is the same course but will be officially recognized as AP)
- Construction Academy (this course leads to credentials through WITC)
Any student interested in these courses should contact Mr. Fern or Mrs. Klein via email.
2018-19 Class Schedules: The 2018-19 student schedules are NOW AVAILABLE. Students are encouraged to access their schedule via Skyward.
If students would like to make schedule changes, they may email their assigned counselor.
- Jeff Fern (Last Names A-J) jfern@scc.k12.wi.us
- Tracy Klein (Last Names K-Z) tklein@scc.k12.wi.us
Questions? Please contact HS Counselors Jeff Fern at 715-796-5383 ext. 1122 jfern@scc.k12.wi.us OR Tracy Klein at 715-796-5383 ext. 1192 tklein@scc.k12.wi.us
Standards-Based Update for 2018-19
As you probably know, the SCC School Board has approved the introduction of standards-based assessment and reporting at the high school. This does not mean that we will begin utilizing the SBA&R system at a set date/year. We are working hard to develop a system that maintains some of the important traditional grading and reporting practices while utilizing best-practices within the teaching and learning process.
- I created the video below to provide an introduction to standards-based concepts and demonstrate the conversion from achievement levels to letter grades and then to grade point averages.
- These videos are not designed to be a complete guide to SBA&R but will provide a solid foundation for understanding the purpose of standards-based and how grades will be determined.
- Standards-Based Video Link