Staff writer
Goessel Elementary School Superintendent Dr. John Fast shared news that the school received notification of winning a prestigious Governor’s Achievement Award on Monday. The news topped the agenda of the January U.S.D. 411 school board member meeting.
“To receive this award, Goessel Elementary must have achieved the Standard of Excellence in both reading and math on the 2011 assessments, made Adequate Yearly Progress in both reading and math and one additional measure, and must be in the top 5 percent of both reading and mathematics,” Fast said. “There are 812 accredited elementary schools in Kansas, and Goessel Elementary is one of the top 43 schools to receive this honor. Students, teachers and staff are to be credited for the outstanding results.”
Fast also shared that teachers and staff would join other schools from Marion County at a TEEN workshop in Herington on Jan. 16, Martin Luther King Day.
Principal Scott Boden updated board members on scholar’s bowl activities and basketball game results for boys and girls’ teams.
Fast said many good applications had been received for the district’s clerk position, and interviews would be scheduled in the near future.
Board members spent time reviewing long term goals for the district and released the following list of priorities — enhance teaching and learning technology, provide adequate and efficient in-service time for teachers, grow the district in numbers by attracting families with children to the community, support and retain quality staff, and prepare U.S.D. 411 to be a leader in the 21st Century accreditation process.
In other business:
- Board members moved meeting dates back on the calendar to accommodate for spring break in March and Eight Grade Graduation in May.
- Board members approved a resolution to allow Bethesda Home to use district facilities for emergency housing should the need ever arise.
- They discussed the board’s visit with state school board representative Ken Willard at the previous meeting and outlined plans to visit Governor Brownback in Topeka sometime in February.