March 15, 2020 Through the weekend, the Nevada superintendents have been collectively monitoring and communicating about the world, national, and state coronavirus situation.  Last Friday morning, we had a lengthy conference call regarding athletics and extracurricular activities. As the situation continues to evolve extremely rapidly, we met again this morning to discuss school closures. There are many, many factors that weigh heavily on our minds at this time, including the social and...

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I want to take a moment to celebrate the really wonderful accomplishments towards world class learning that our students and staff have achieved recently. First, it’s so important to lead with the fact that students’ overall core academic learning is improving.  Elementary literacy proficiency rates have improved by nearly 10 percentage points in the last three years. And elementary math proficiency rates have improved by nearly 9 percentage points in the last three years. ...

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Please click on this link for the Key Communicators Message.

In my last message, I shared information about student growth as measured by the Nevada School Performance Framework (NSPF).  Click here if you missed that message, which includes data about White Pine students and their growth as compared to a fairly complicated norm-referenced measure called the student growth percentile (SGP).   A hefty portion of the WPCSD’s district performance plan is centered on creating world class Tier 1 instruction.  I’ve shared a number...

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Please click on this link to read A Deeper Look.  Due table and other formatting, it's difficult to view in this platform.

Today was the official back to school for this forever student. I started my career 20 years ago in this historic building--which is also where I graduated from high school. By the time I returned to Ely, it was White Pine Middle School. My classroom was on the second floor just outside the main office, on the right hand side from this angle. There has been lots of change both personally and professionally in that time; and I couldn't help but feel a little nostalgic today! That year, I taught...

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Please click on this link for some outstanding information about the schools in our community.

I’d like to share some incredibly exciting news! For the last four months, David E. Norman principal Cammie Briggs and I have been working with Nevada Department of Education professionals to secure funding for an innovative new college and career ready program at the school.  I am thrilled to announce that the school has received a grant of nearly $300,000 to launch the DEN Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM) Academy. This concept was developed in examining the...

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The WPCSD has three overarching goals in its District Performance Plan (DPP).  The first two of these goals are focused on academics--specifically, students’ literacy performance and progress and students’ engagement and performance in college and career ready learning opportunities.  The third goal in the DPP focuses on school culture: attendance rates, chronic absentee rates, and students’ perceptions regarding their social and emotional experiences at school. The...

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It’s fairly easy, as a student or even as a working professional, to get to a point where one feels “I’ve learned enough to be reasonably competent, so now I’m going to just take it easy for a while.”  Believe it or not, this can even happen in education, where lifelong learning is constantly preached but less frequently observed. I am so thankful to be part of an organization where continuous learning is embraced, modeled, and part of the culture. More Fridays...

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In legislative years, the Nevada Association of School Superintendents (NASS) works to create a platform about needs in education from the school district perspective.  With 17 very diverse school districts, all of which have different individual needs, the group establishes an agenda of commonalities.   NASS's presentations to the Assembly and Senate will both be later this week.  The focus of iNVest for the 2019 legislative session include the following. Reset per pupil...

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In October, I wrote about the Nevada School Performance Framework (NSPF) and the growth specific to literacy that is occurring in the district.  This month, I will share additional information regarding the NSPF as it relates to the District Performance Plan (DPP) with a spotlight on the efforts being made in connection with College and Career Readiness (CCR) at all levels. But first, two quick notes on CCR in general.  To embrace CCR is not to attempt to prepare each and every student...

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The Nevada School Performance Framework (NSPF) is a system designed to measure a number of different indicators regarding schools’ performance and then assign stars to represent the number of points schools earn in each of these different indicators.   I will focus on attempting to provide clarity regarding what these indicators are and how they do (and many times do not) measure the work going on in schools within the WPCSD. While it’s tempting to pay attention to "stars"...

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One of Nevada’s priorities is developing college and career readiness skills in students prior to their graduation from high school.  This is an endeavor that the White Pine County School District supports wholeheartedly. Some people believe that preparing for college looks differently than preparing for a career.  Given that the purpose of attending college is to prepare for a career, the WPCSD subscribes to the notion that many of the skills needed to succeed in a career are...

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Did you know the following about the WPCSD 2017-2018 school year?   24 students earned an advanced diploma (accomplished by earning an extra math credit, extra science credit, and 3.25 cumulative grade point average)? 11 students graduated with a career and technical education endorsement (accomplished by earning a B or better in three years of a CTE program and passing the associated skills and employability exams)? 3 students earned associates degrees from Great Basin College...

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So many folks think that great teaching just happens naturally.  And it's true that there are some teachers who have a seemingly effortless and innate ability to make the right "teacher moves" at all of the right times.  But for most great educators, there is a huge amount of work that goes into becoming really great at their craft. The really great teachers show up way before they're supposed to and leave way after they're allowed to.  And this includes the summertime. A number...

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Over the course of the last two months, school district staff and Dr. Andy Bath have been working together to create a new and exciting partnership between community members and the school district featuring and celebrating science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).  This work is coming at a time when the entire school district has been learning about, implementing, refining, and increasing rigor levels of STEM within all classrooms. A hefty amount of professional learning has occurred...

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In February and March of 2018, the WPCSD Board of Trustees grappled with the issue of drug testing students who are involved in activities within the district. After tabling the issue to receive additional feedback from the public, coaches, and advisors, along with extensive discussion among members on the Board and the district's legal counsel, the Board held the required first and second readings of the policy and adopted it effective for the 2018-2019 school year. Essentially, the policy...

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One of the parts of my life for which I am so grateful is the powerful effect of music.  I began my music studies at the age of 9 with Minus Alderman on the piano. She taught me to read music, to count, to understand key signatures, and to practice.  I later learned from Dauna Allred how to connect piano with emotion and to play from my heart. In middle school and high school, I continued with instrumental music, learning to play the tuba, baritone, and trumpet from Sherm Hawkins and...

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The White Pine County School District’s vision is to “change the world by promoting, supporting, and ensuring high levels of learning.”  The District Performance Plan (DPP) specifically outlines a number of strategies and measurable outcomes which assist staff in monitoring success.  One such measure is that of the graduation rate. Graduation rate is defined as the number of students who complete all required courses with the grades necessary to demonstrate proficiency,...

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