[ad_1]
NEW ULM – The District 88 School Board held a working session on Tuesday evening that included a building update for the first month of the new school year.
Washington Learning Center (WLC) director Dawn Brown said the year started with 168 kindergarten students enrolled in the building. This is the largest kindergarten class since 2014. The Eagles 3 preschool class is 77% full and Eagles 4 is 98% full.
The school has new physical instruments on the playground thanks to a grant from District 88.
Brown said the school continues to face COVID. The pupils are spaced as far apart as possible. The school uses the outdoor learning space.
At Jefferson Elementary, vice-principal Jonathan Schwaegerl, about 100 students in grades one through five come to school during the summer for targeted services. These are the students who have suffered the most learning losses due to the pandemic.
With the start of the school year, Jefferson’s students work on relearning expectations. The school began diagnostic testing early to place students in intervention programs as soon as possible if necessary.
In college, there is a return to a regular schedule. Last year, students were limited to moving to different classrooms because of COVID. The school continues to avoid large gatherings. Principal Michelle Miller said sports and club registrations are high.
High school principal Mark Bergmann said the school was missing a math teacher and a special education teacher. This resulted in schedule changes for the students.
In addition, the ninth grade class is the largest since 2006 with 197 students. The school had minimal warning that the 9th grade would be this big. Bergmann said enrollment continued to increase until the start of the school year. He said the high enrollment was a good thing, but that means the base classes are larger, with 30 students in some classes.
The new vocational and technical education path (CTE) has 25 students enrolled in the program. Many of these courses are taken in the new CTE center. These classes include Advanced Welding and Fabrication, Advanced Woodworking and Cabinetmaking, Small Gasoline Engine and ATV Repair, Carpentry, and Eagle’s Enterprise. Students who are not part of the CTE course can also take courses at the CTE center.
Bergmann said the school has relaunched the Student Educational Equity (SEE) program. The program helps identify students at risk of dropping out of school. Bergmann said students generally drop out of school because they are behind the rest of their classmates. The SEE program helps to catch up on credit and provides students with vocational and trades training options. Students meet the standards necessary for graduation.
–
Superintendent Jeff Bertrang presented the current COVID data in the school. Since mid-August, seven staff members and 10 students have tested positive for COVID. The number of staff quarantined since the week of the workshop is five. There are 19 students quarantined since mid-August.
The number of students and staff as of Friday, September 10 is 13, including four with positive COVID tests.
The school is working on a voluntary COVID testing protocol. The state of Minnesota has free test kits for schools. These tests are called CUE tests and provide results in 20 minutes. Training on the use of the test is underway. The school is working with its lawyer to determine how to ask parents for permission to take the test.
Bertrang said the school has the same decision tree for what to do if a student has symptoms. If a parent takes their child to be tested, it can take two days to get results, but the CUE test could have given 20 minutes and started isolation or quarantine protocols if needed.
–
Representatives of the Heart of New Ulm (HONU) made a presentation on the work of the organization. Jen Mauer said HONU started in 2009 as a research project aimed at eliminating heart attacks in the region. In 2019, the group turned to promoting general well-being.
“We have broadened our vision, we don’t just look at heart attacks”, Mauer said. “We are looking at healthy eating, active living, mental health, wellness and substance use across the city and county. “
Until 2021, HONU is funded by the New Ulm Medical Center Foundation (NUMC). NUMC has funded HONU for the past three years because the foundation estimates that 80% of health is influenced by what happens outside of the clinic.
HONU has worked with schools in the area through education programs. HONU has worked to promote the Safe Routes to School program. This program aims to encourage more children to walk or cycle to school, but also to promote safer streets. In addition to improving health, more children walking or cycling would reduce traffic congestion at school.
Moving Forward HONU is seeking community partners and funding to continue their work. HONU will write a grant to the Community Education Council to keep some of their action teams running.
The next regular school board meeting will be Thursday, September 23 at 6 p.m. in the District Council Chambers, 414 S. Payne St.
[ad_2]
Source link