From the Principal’s Desk

The Holiday’s are officially here.  Second Trimester is under way.  ICP’s have begun in our guidance office with the Junior class making scheduling requests for next school year.  Winter Sports Teams are in action.  All of our schedules are hectic…it’s just that time of year!

To assist with your planning during the busy holiday season, this newsletter will be devoted to dates, times and events scheduled here at the High School. 

December’s Calendar of Events:

DEC 1 - 2        HS Fall Play @7:30PM both evenings

DEC 2             Down Home Christmas Breakfast with Santa (HS Auditeria)

                                    (Sponsored by the Music Boosters)

DEC 8             2^nd Trimester 1^st set of  INTERIM REPORTS distributed

DEC 9             ACT Testing will be conducted at the HS

DEC 11           PLAN Testing (10^th graders only)

DEC 12           Early Release Day – Bus Transportation will be provided at 12:20PM.

DEC 12           HS Band/Choir Concert @7PM

DEC 14           Parent/Teacher Conferences from 4 – 7PM.  (Please call 734-2271 Ext. 2302 to schedule conferences.)

DEC 19           Tiger Tails Event (during the last 2 hours of the school day prior to the Holiday Break)

DEC 20           Holiday Break begins

JAN 2             Students Return To School

May you and your families enjoy the happiest of Holiday Seasons and a joyful, safe New

Year!

From the Superintendent’s Desk

Superintendent’s December Update

By Jim Smith

The voters have spoken. With the passage of State Issue 5, smoking is now banned outside of exterior doors leading into public buildings. As a result, we are removing outside ash receptacles from the high and middle schools and are asking the public to cooperate with this new state requirement. Smoking is still permitted in other outside areas beyond the exterior doors.

Through the generosity of Wichards, Southside and the High School Tiger Boosters, new scoreboards will soon be installed beyond the home run fences on both the baseball and softball fields at our high school athletic complex. The scoreboards are quite large and will provide up to date information for fans attending games. We do expect the scoreboards to be fully functional in time for spring baseball and softball seasons.

Both the middle and high schools have recently undergone Technical Review Visits (TRV) from outside education experts. The reviews are designed to evaluate the progress each school is making with their continuous improvement plans as well as areas that need to be addressed for future improvement. The review teams are made up of individuals assigned by the state as well as area educators from schools that participate in the High Schools That Work and Middle Grades That Matter reform models. Team members sit in on classes as well as interview students and teachers about their educational experiences. While we are pleased with our district “excellent” rating, we will not rest on our laurels. As state and federal requirements continue to grow, we need to respond accordingly. That’s how we got to be excellent and that’s how we can stay excellent. The reviews are simply part of that process.

December is typically the month for holiday concerts, sporting events and plays with plenty going on in each of buildings. Check out our web site at www.betheltate.org for a complete list of upcoming events. In closing, the board of education, staff and I wish the very best for you and your family for the holidays and the new year to come. And again, thank you for your support of Bethel-Tate schools.