September 2009

In education, everybody starts fresh each year. We open our school doors to eager, excited and motivated students. These new beginnings can be among the most exciting times of our lives.

This year we put into action the fine work of our Communications Committee and its “green” initiative. We are online in 2009. Many of the forms and much of the materials we send home in back packs or mail are now accessible to you online. We hope you join us in our environmentally sensitive efforts to reduce waste.

This fall we will also be unveiling our new strategic plan. Over the summer, a representative group of teachers, administrators, parents and board members developed a new mission statement, core beliefs and critical strategies for success. We are excited about launching this during the early part of the school year.

This also is the year to address our critical facilities issues. Everyone in the school system appreciates the public confidence in our schools, as expressed by two consecutive years of record high yes budget votes. The critical facilities building project vote, twice delayed due to the challenges of these economic times, is scheduled for December. Watch for information this fall on our proposal to make our schools green, safe and accessible.

The kindergarteners this year will be the graduating class of 2022. Their working lives will take them past 2060. Those years unimaginable to us, are the future for our children. We can enter those years together guided by a new mission, protected by clean, green and safe buildings, and understanding, always, that when we work together, great futures are ahead for our children.

Sincerely,

Kenneth R. Freeston, Ph.D.
Superintendent of Schools