At the Opening Convocation for Kent teachers and staff, Kevin J. McFarland was posthumously awarded the Emilio Ferrara Community Service Award by Board of Education President Rebekah Wright Kulis.  McFarland, who had worked as a custodian in the district for 10 years, died suddenly earlier this year.

The award was established by the Kent Board of Education in 2005 to recognize and encourage community service efforts by employees of the Kent City Schools.  It was named in honor of Emilio D. Ferrara, D.D.S., who served on the Board of Education for eight consecutive terms, retiring in December 2005.

McFarland was recognized for his commitment as an altar server at St. Patrick’s Church for 36 years, as well as his involvement with the Knights of Columbus.  He volunteered to assist children with special needs with sports activities as part of the Tallmadge Challenger group and played Santa Claus at the St. Pat’s Christmas breakfast.

New teachers in the Kent City Schools were treated to lunch by the Rotary Club of Kent on Tuesday.

Front row from left, Melonie Tweten, Stanton math teacher; Laura Simmonds, Stanton language arts teacher; Katherine Ingrassia, Stanton Intervention specialist; Mary Rozum, Franklin first grade teacher; Chrystal Fu, Roosevelt/Stanton Chinese teacher; Valerie Walsh, Stanton math teacher; Laura Ban, Roosevelt Spanish teacher.

Second row from left, Michelle Gulla, Longcoy Intervention Specialist; John Roebke, Roosevelt band director; Jenna Ward, Franklin third grade; Kristen Caipen, speech/ language pathologist; Kristin Vlajkovich, Roosevelt language arts; Jessica Meyer, Stanton Family and Consumer Sciences.

Top row from left, Garrett Doty, Stanton band director; Paul Wilson, Roosevelt intervention specialist; Brendan Haggerty, Roosevelt social studies teacher; Caroline Loomer, Roosevelt language arts teacher.

Fourth row from left, Donteil Lewis, Roosevelt intervention specialist; Jim Pfleger, Roosevelt/Stanton physical education teacher.

Stanton Middle School teachers and students will benefit next year from a $225,000 grant from the Ohio Department of Education. The grant is entitled “2010-2011 TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS TECHNOLOGY GRANT.”

The team of grant writers included the following staff members:

Courtney Baliman
Catrina Burwell
Cindy Carpenter
Jennifer Garwood
Annette Marino
Kathy Scott
Chris Vanderneut

These teachers and administrator wrote this competitive grant with an emphasis on technology inservice and new software and hardware. The grant supports sustained, collaborative, job-embedded professional development and the use of research-based methods that explore new models and strategies for teaching and learning. Teachers will become facilitators and co-learners and create technology-enabled learning environments.

The source of these grant dollars is the federal stimulus program from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). President Obama has consistently highlighted in his economic recovery proposal the urgent need to create 21st Century technology-rich classrooms for America’s students in order to boost the U.S. economy in the short term and to prepare students for the global economy in the long term.

This competitive grant will provide funding to assist students with meeting or exceeding the state academic content standards and develop 21st Century skills. This project should assist students in developing the following skills in a technology-rich learning environment:

• Collaboration and communication skills
• Flexibility and adaptability
• Accountability and the ability to be self-directed
• Problem solving and critical-thinking skills
• Creativity and innovation
• Media and information literacy and technology skills

This grant team recently attended a grant kick off meeting in Columbus, Ohio. David Warlick, educator and international speaker, inspired the recipients with his talk on Leading Education into a New Century: Telling the New Story. The event also provided an opportunity for the teams to strategize and network.

Debbie is a plant pathologist (tree doctor) at the Davey Institute and the vice-chair of the Kent City Shade Tree Commission. She has earned two Masters degrees in plant pathology and education. She will cover selection of fruit trees, planting, care, and insect and disease control.

This free presentation is offered as part of the Davey School Orchard Dedication. The orchard will be dedicated to retiring Principal, Linda Walker, in gratitude for her many years of service. The dedication will take place at the Davey Orchard the following afternoon, May 25th at 2:40 P.M. all are welcome.

At this time of year, we think of the rite of spring as a rebirth, a reawakening. We reclaim from Old Man Winter what’s ours in our yards, our flowers, and our trees. Spring is a new beginning in nature’s cycle.

Ironically, in schools, the rite of spring is a completion, a wrapping-up. Our students are concluding their school year with a battery of tests, to include the Ohio Achievement Assessments (OAA) in elementary and middle schools and the Ohio Graduation Test (OGT) in high school. Each year, we anticipate increases in our test results. We anticipate and hope for excellent results this year!

One of schooling’s most definitive acts of completion is graduation. Students graduating from preschool, kindergarten, 5th, 8th, and 12th grades are parents’ greatest sources of pride. The following dates are important for community members who wish to participate in the various activities for our Roosevelt seniors.

May 18, 7:00 PM, Roosevelt Scholar and Achievement Awards Program

May 21, 8:10 AM, Roosevelt Senior Honors Assembly/Senior Slide Show

June 6, 1:00 PM, Senior Baccalaureate at KSU MAC Center

June 6, 2:30 PM, Roosevelt Commencement at KSU MAC Center

I congratulate our Roosevelt seniors, members of the Class of 2010! I also thank you the parents for all of the support that you gave these graduates. Without the help of our parents, our schools could not be as successful as they are.

Finally, I am proud to announce that the Kent Board of Education approved at its April board meeting two new administrative appointments: Tom Larkin as Assistant Superintendent/ Personnel Director and Abbey Bolton as Davey Principal. Congratulations and best wishes to these two individuals!

In closing, we approach the end of another school year with confidence. Nevertheless, I warn all families that we stress academic rigor to the very end of the year. For students in grades preschool through 11, the rigor continues through June 4. As it has been said, “It’s not over until it’s over!”

Sincerely,

Dr. Joe Giancola

Superintendent

At this time of year, the Ohio tests for students in grades 3 through 10 are our main focus. Specifically, the Ohio Achievement Assessments (OAA) are administered to elementary and middle school students in grades 3 through 8, and the Ohio Graduation Test (OGT) is administered to high school students in grade 10.

The OGT was taken by Roosevelt students during the week of March 15, 2010, this year, and the make-ups were administered during the week of March 22. Older students who did not pass all sections of the OGT in tenth grade must continue to take particular subtests in eleventh and twelfth grades during the OGT testing weeks.

In order to provide the best possible testing environment for our Roosevelt students, we have used the practice of “late starts” during the week of March 15 through 19. Specifically, all 10th graders and any 11th or 12th graders who still are trying to pass one or more OGT sections arrived all week at 7:35 AM and completed each subtest by 10:15 AM. On those days, our first period began at 10: 25 AM for all students who were not taking the test.

In order to provide the best possible testing environment, we use regular classrooms instead of large-group rooms where too many students may affect the concentration of individual students. Small class size and a building focus on early-morning testing before other students arrive are two of the strategies we have used to maximize test results.

The OAA will be administered at the end of April this year. Third-grade students through eighth-grade will take their tests during the weeks of April 19 and April 29. Make-ups for these students occur between May 3 and 6.

As all parents know, plenty of sleep and a good breakfast and lunch are required for the development of children. Imagine how equally important it is to provide these requirements during our weeks of testing. Please help your children to perform better by making sure that they get to bed at a reasonable hour for their age!

Later in the summer, the Kent City Schools will be reporting the OAA and OGT test results. We expect and hope for excellent results, and we appreciate your help in focusing the students by giving them plenty of rest and nutrition.

In closing, thank you for all of the support that you give Kent children and the schools. Without the help of our parents, we could not be as successful as we are.

Sincerely,

Dr. Joe Giancola
Superintendent

Your Cafeteria is conducting a student survey to find out how we can Improve Your School Breakfast and Lunch Experience.

Please visithttp://www.studentvp.com/kent/
 to take this survey.

Our annual survey will be launched April 5, 2010. Visit your cafeteria to learn more about this survey and how you could win a Best Buy gift card.

Let your voice be heard, practice your Survey skills, improve your dining experience and be entered for a chance to win free stuff!

David Dix reading to Becky Dunlap's 3rd grade class about the history of Kent.

The Rotary Club of Kent has embarked on a special project with the Kent City Schools. Motivated by a program presented by Dr. Nancy Padak, an international reading expert who teaches at Kent State University, Kent Rotarians have committed their time and resources to Kent students.

On Tuesday, March 2, the birthday of Dr. Seuss, “Rotary Readers” offered their services to read to Kent Schools’ elementary children. The program was a great success! Kent teachers and students were excited to have guest readers, and Rotarians were delighted to be a part of our children’s lives.

A variety of other Rotary programs are planned in the future, to include reading opportunities for Rotarians during Ohio’s Right to Read Week, from May 10-14, 2010. In addition, the Rotary Club of Kent has agreed to underwrite the cost of children’s books for home reading and also dictionaries for all third graders.

Thanks, Kent Rotarians, for your commitment to Kent students!

Dear Kent Community Members,

 This month we introduce a new idea to the community: “Kent Schools Coffee Talk.” You might say it evolved from our 2008-2013 Five-Year Plan, adopted by the Kent Board of Education in May, 2008.

 Of the seven subcommittees during the strategic-planning process, the “Communications/ Community Relations” group emphasized community outreach. Current Kent Board President Rebekah Wright Kulis participated in the Communications subcommittee, and now she has brought us the idea of Kent Schools Coffee Talk.

The first pilot of Coffee Talk took place last month, just before the February board meeting at Franklin Elementary. That evening, parents, staff members, and board members enjoyed presentations by Franklin teachers Barb Vasbinder, Jennifer Weitzel, and Jody Frank. Coffee talk and the presentations began informally at 6:15 PM, immediately preceding the business meeting of the Kent Board of Education at 7:00 PM. I would like to thank members of the Franklin Parent Teacher Organization (PTO), especially PTO Co-Presidents Tiffany Jones and Jeanie Wills, for their hospitality that evening, and Principal Todd Poole for coordinating the entire evening. The pastries and coffee were delicious!

We will be having a “Coffee Talk” before each of our board meetings in the school buildings in the remaining school months. The starting time for “Coffee Talk” at the March board meeting, to be hosted at Roosevelt High School, will be at 6:30 PM, and the actual business meeting of the board will begin at 7:00 PM. (Between now and the end of the school year, our board meetings will be hosted in the following buildings: Roosevelt in March, Holden in April, and Longcoy in May.) Please come to these informal gatherings where you will enjoy the company of the Kent Board of Education, the refreshments of each building’s parent support group or PTO, presentations by teachers, and fellowship with your building administrators and other Kent community members.

In February, the Kent Board of Education also acknowledged one of our school guidance counselors, Laurie Knuth, with a new program of recognition announced from the board president’s seat. This new outreach idea is a letter directly from the board president to a staff member for an exceptional accomplishment. Thanks to Rebekah for bringing forth these two new ideas to expand our communications program with the community!

My closing thought is a serious reminder about Ohio’s Achievement Assessments for elementary and middle school (April 19-May 6) and the Ohio Graduation Test for tenth graders (March 15-26).  We are hoping for excellent results this year in our pursuit of Ohio’s “Excellent” rating.

Sincerely,

Dr. Joe Giancola

Superintendent