WCS Looks At Strategic Plan

December 16, 2016 at 5:05 p.m.

By Michael [email protected]

Warsaw Community Schools laid out a rough draft of its strategic plan for the next five years at its board meeting Thursday.
Dr. David Hoffert, WCS superintendent, said school officials developed the plan in a retreat in Wabash. The plan will have seven focus areas known as acceleration teams. Each team will be headed by two people to oversee the team's goals.
The first team is the accountability team, which will be headed by Chief Accountability Officer Dani Barkey and instructional coach Kelly Meeks. The team will focus on data analysis, homework and grading.
Community Partnerships will be headed by Chief Financial Officer Brandon Penrod and Chris Bonifield, grant and project manager. This team will focus on industry-driven circulation, public relations and database analysis.
The curriculum team will have the goal of helping students have resources to pursue their dreams. It will be headed by Chief Academic Officer David Robertson and instructional coach Rashelle Lofgren.
Chief Technology Officer Brad Hagg and Claypool Elementary School Principal Melissa Rees will head the family partnerships team. The team will focus on trying to provide access to resources in the school system and in the community for parents who need it.
Learning and Instruction will be led by Lorinda Kline, who works in professional learning communities continuous improvement,  and Nancy Rooker, who works in professional learning. The focus will be improving professional development for teachers and staff as well encouraging students to take ownership of their dreams.
The student development and wellness team is a new area. It will focus on students’ mental and physical health. It will be headed by Corporate Office Manager  Lori Tilden and Nurse Coordinator Tracey Akers.
The final team will focus on staff, with the focus being to decrease turnover and recruit talent to work at the school. The staff team will be headed by Director of Human Resources Jeannie Corson and Michael Casey, assistant principal at?Edgewood Middle School.
The plan is expected to be up for a vote at January's meeting.
In other business:
• The board approved a the 2017-2018 school year calendar. The school year will start a little later, with the first student day being Aug. 16, to allow two teacher work days to prepare for the year.
Students will still only get two days for Thanksgiving. Jefferson Elementary School Principal Kyle Carter, who heads the schedule committee, said the committee looked at adding a third day, but wanted to keep the balance of days off between first and second semester.
• The board honored outgoing board member Curt Hermann, who opted not to run for re-election. He will be replaced by Elle Tulley, who was elected in November.
• The board heard updates on the current building projects.
The new Lincoln Elementary is  nearing completion. In the next 30 days, school officials expect to complete all carpet, vinyl tile and concrete floor finishing in “A” wing; complete cement panel installation; install all kitchen equipment; complete all the walkways; do a final cleaning and life safety inspections; and prepare for the demolition of the existing building.
[[In-content Ad]]

Warsaw Community Schools laid out a rough draft of its strategic plan for the next five years at its board meeting Thursday.
Dr. David Hoffert, WCS superintendent, said school officials developed the plan in a retreat in Wabash. The plan will have seven focus areas known as acceleration teams. Each team will be headed by two people to oversee the team's goals.
The first team is the accountability team, which will be headed by Chief Accountability Officer Dani Barkey and instructional coach Kelly Meeks. The team will focus on data analysis, homework and grading.
Community Partnerships will be headed by Chief Financial Officer Brandon Penrod and Chris Bonifield, grant and project manager. This team will focus on industry-driven circulation, public relations and database analysis.
The curriculum team will have the goal of helping students have resources to pursue their dreams. It will be headed by Chief Academic Officer David Robertson and instructional coach Rashelle Lofgren.
Chief Technology Officer Brad Hagg and Claypool Elementary School Principal Melissa Rees will head the family partnerships team. The team will focus on trying to provide access to resources in the school system and in the community for parents who need it.
Learning and Instruction will be led by Lorinda Kline, who works in professional learning communities continuous improvement,  and Nancy Rooker, who works in professional learning. The focus will be improving professional development for teachers and staff as well encouraging students to take ownership of their dreams.
The student development and wellness team is a new area. It will focus on students’ mental and physical health. It will be headed by Corporate Office Manager  Lori Tilden and Nurse Coordinator Tracey Akers.
The final team will focus on staff, with the focus being to decrease turnover and recruit talent to work at the school. The staff team will be headed by Director of Human Resources Jeannie Corson and Michael Casey, assistant principal at?Edgewood Middle School.
The plan is expected to be up for a vote at January's meeting.
In other business:
• The board approved a the 2017-2018 school year calendar. The school year will start a little later, with the first student day being Aug. 16, to allow two teacher work days to prepare for the year.
Students will still only get two days for Thanksgiving. Jefferson Elementary School Principal Kyle Carter, who heads the schedule committee, said the committee looked at adding a third day, but wanted to keep the balance of days off between first and second semester.
• The board honored outgoing board member Curt Hermann, who opted not to run for re-election. He will be replaced by Elle Tulley, who was elected in November.
• The board heard updates on the current building projects.
The new Lincoln Elementary is  nearing completion. In the next 30 days, school officials expect to complete all carpet, vinyl tile and concrete floor finishing in “A” wing; complete cement panel installation; install all kitchen equipment; complete all the walkways; do a final cleaning and life safety inspections; and prepare for the demolition of the existing building.
[[In-content Ad]]
Have a news tip? Email [email protected] or Call/Text 360-922-3092

e-Edition


e-edition

Sign up


for our email newsletters

Weekly Top Stories

Sign up to get our top stories delivered to your inbox every Sunday

Daily Updates & Breaking News Alerts

Sign up to get our daily updates and breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox daily

Latest Stories


Public Occurrences 04.30.25
County Jail Bookings The following people were arrested and booked into the Kosciusko County Jail:

AWL To Hold ‘Empty The Shelters’ Event Starting Thursday
PIERCETON – Starting Thursday and going through May 15, the Animal Welfare League of Kosciusko County is reducing the adoption fees for adult dogs and cats and kittens sponsored through the Bissell Pet Foundation’s spring Empty the Shelters event.

County Health Board Discusses Birth Certificates, Funding For Health First Kosciusko
Kosciusko County Board of Health members held a regular meeting Monday to discuss changes regarding birth and death certificates in Indiana and funding needs in Kosciusko County.

Milford Man Arrested For Criminal Recklessness While Armed With A Deadly Weapon
A Milford man was arrested after allegedly firing a shotgun in the air two times.

Syracuse Man Arrested After Allegedly Impersonating Law Enforcement Officer
A Syracuse man was arrested after allegedly impersonating a law enforcement officer.