— by Margie Doyle —
Enrollment, staffing and generous donations dominated the September Orcas Island School District (OISD) Board meeting last week.
With board members Tony Ghazel and Chris Sutton absent, the board and public heard from Business Manager Keith Whitaker, who said that, as of the end of September, enrollment hadn’t yet met the 750 target set last spring.
Financially, he had hoped for the first apportionment report from the state, but had not received it as of Sept. 26. He said the report provides “a critical comparison to see how state interpreted its own law as compared to the [state] Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI’s) preliminary interpretation.”
Year-end budget expenditures came in at 91.29 percent of the annual budget; and the District did get its first apportionment of Safety Net funding.
Principals Lorena Stankevich (Elementary), Kyle Freeman (Middle/High) and Becky Bell (OASIS) reported on the first weeks of the school year.
Freeman said that adding the 6th grade to the Middle School “has been a tremendous thing. [The school is] full of energy, full of people; the 7th-8th grade blend schedule is successful. It feels very good and good for the school.”
The High School is still juggling staff, due in part to unplanned sick leaves at the start of the school year. The new staff are all great, Freeman said, and the school is looking forward to Homecoming Week starting Oct. 8.
OASIS Principal Becky Bell reported “a very, very busy start, placing students with appropriate teachers, families settling in.” She expects to see enrollment increases as the month unfolds. OASIS is trying to find a certified substitute teacher to relieve the staffing load, as well as a .6 FTE (full-time equivalent) OASIS teacher and an office clerk.
As Special Education Director, Bell said that the fall “Childfind” to look into the community and screen for the special education program is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 9 with the Pre-K Special Education teachers and school psychologist.
The English Language Learning (ELL) program is collaborating with the Lopez School District to join an ELL cooperative at the Educational Services District (ESD) office in Anacortes, which provides training for teachers, paraprofessionals and administrators. Katherine Laflin and Becky Bell participated in it last year.
In 2016-17, 44 students were enrolled in the ELL program, seven of them attained proficiency to exit the program this year, and as of Sept. 207, there were 33 ELL students enrolled.
When asked by Board member Scott Lancaster how new families from Mexico who have limited English are filling in, Bell said, “The ELL parents are very included and a part of our school, which is not typical at a lot of places; so a lot of work has been done over the years to make that happen. It’s pretty cool how the new families are included.”
Superintendent Eric Webb reported that the shortfall in OASIS staffing was caused in part by three medical leaves taken in the first month. “We’re aware of and watching very closely how we move people into new positions in the district, without much warning,” he said.
Webb conceded that “Enrollment in the district is a concern. Last year we were at 784, and this year we are down 10 from the Minimum Education Plan.” As of September, the OISD enrollment was 740, including Waldron and OASIS.
Webb reported that negotiations with classified employees are at an impasse and a meeting with a mediator is planned for late November.
Webb also reported that following the visit by State Superintendent Chris Reykdal on Friday, Sept. 8, “when he went back Monday morning, things changed.” Among those changes was full funding of all-day kindergarten for the Alternative Learning Program (ALE).
The board officially accepted donations from the Orcas Island Education Foundation donations totaling $124,299.07. Of that amount, $23,122.07 was allocated from OIEF for the 2016-17 school year as follows:
- $14,453.54 for “Arts for Orcas Kids (A-OK);
- $8,668.53 for the Farm to Classroom 4th quarter payment.
Donations for the 2017-18 school year for $101,177.00 were awarded as follows:
- $2,900.00 for PBIS;
- $410.00 for a Weather Station;
- $2,250.00 for Naturebridge trip to Olympic National Park;
- $750.00 for Connections;
- $7,500.00 for Theatre as Literature Class;
- $2,167.00 Plastic Torso for HS Anatomy Classes;
- $15,200.00 HS Computer Science teacher (.2 fte);
- $70,000.00 (final year of support) OASIS Principal/Special Ed Director. (This donation came from unrestricted funds from the Henigson estate).
OISD Board Member Greg White said, “It’s incredible what OIEF contributes to the school every year.”
The next regular OISD board meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 26 at 5 p.m. in the School Library. The public is welcome and encouraged to attend.
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