MISD schedules IMS groundbreaking ceremony March 27 | School briefs

Published 11:11 am Monday, March 16, 2015

Elementary No. 4 Naming Committee set

Superintendent Dr. Gary Plano announced PTA co-presidents Julie Ogata and Jackie Brown have agreed to oversee a process selecting parents for a Naming Committee for Elementary No. 4.

Two parents from each of the three schools will be named, in addition to three fifth grade students. At least one of the two parents from West Mercer and Island Park will come from the geographic boundary of the new school. Aimee Batliner-Gillette, who will be principal at Elementary No. 4, will also participate. The committee will be formed by April 3. Committee meetings will be held at each of the three schools.

“We hope to have a set of names, hopefully three, for you to consider at your retreat June 23,” Plano told the board at their regular meeting Thursday.

Late start time committee beginning outreach

Representing the High School Start-Time Committee, MISD Director of Transportation and Emergency Management Todd Kelsay said the committee was amidst the second phase of its outlined three-phase plan for exploring the implications of changing to later high school start times.

The first phase consisted of gathering information about teenage sleep times and its relation to student performance. Kelsay said the second phase entailed outreach with internal stakeholders, those being students and school staff.

Kelsay said the committee have looked at the possibility of regularly starting later than 8 a.m., either 8:15 or 8:30, or having one late start day on Wednesday. Instead of early dismissal, students would start at 8:55 with a final bell at 3 p.m.

He said there’s been very little disagreement among the committee that sleeping later into the morning for teens and adolescents is a good thing.

“There happens to be some sweet spots with the data that suggest at 8:30 a.m., you see higher attendance, better test scores and all the things that we would love to see,” Kelsay said.

Next, the committee will begin community outreach outside of the high school through focus group discussions and parent surveys.

“It’s our goal in the May or June timeframe to be able to provide a recommendation to Dr. Plano and we’re on track to do that,” Kelsay said.

IMS groundbreaking ceremony March 27

Superintendent Plano finalized a groundbreaking ceremony date for the Islander Middle School expansion for 2 p.m. Friday, March 27. Minor site work will take place before demolition begins in April.