Dear Families,
On Monday night, the Board of Education heard a report on and approved creating a Spanish dual language immersion program, Academia Bilingüe, at Three Fires Elementary. This program will be a new and exciting educational option for our elementary students. In Academia Bilingüe at Three Fires Elementary, students will learn the same coursework as in other classrooms in the district, but in Spanish. By the end of elementary school, students will be proficient in both English and Spanish. For the 2023-2024 school year, Academia Bilingüe at Three Fires Elementary will consist of one kindergarten classroom and one first-grade classroom. This program is an educational choice for families and is not mandated for any student. Enrollment for the program will begin in February. To learn more about Academia Bilingüe at Three Fires Elementary, please visit http://bit.ly/3QAQ1QG. In addition to the website, we will host a parent information night on Tuesday, January 31, at 6 p.m. in the Three Fires Elementary Media Center.
January is School Board Recognition Month. Often, our school board members' tremendous efforts and work go unrecognized, so I want to publicly thank them for their incredible dedication to our students, staff, and community. Under their leadership, our district continues to update our curriculum, add new and innovative programs, improve our facilities and security, and much more while being fiscally responsible. Over the next month, if you see any of our school board members, please thank them for everything they do for Howell Public Schools.
We are currently accepting nominations for the 2022-2023 Howell Public Schools Teacher of the Year and Support Person of the Year. These two awards honor an outstanding teacher and an excellent support staff member for their work with our students. The nomination deadline is Friday, January 27, at 4 p.m. If you would like to learn more about these awards or to submit a nomination, please visit http://bit.ly/3ZsZa1D.
Begindergarten and kindergarten registration for the 2023-2024 school year is now open. If you have an incoming Begindergarten or kindergarten student, please visit HowellSchools.com/KDG to enroll them today. All registrations will be done online. On Thursday, March 16, from 6 to 7 p.m., each of our elementary schools will host a Begindergarten and Kindergarten Information Night. At this event, families will learn about the school, meet the principal and begindergarten and kindergarten teachers, and tour the school. If you know of anyone with a child who will be entering begindergarten or kindergarten next year, please let them know that registration is open.
It is no secret that our transportation department has been struggling with staff shortages. Our bus drivers and transportation office staff have been working incredibly hard to avoid canceling routes. However, the reality has been that there are days we simply do not have enough drivers, substitute drivers, or fully licensed bus drivers to run each route. I understand the hardship this puts on our families, and we are working very hard to recruit, hire and train new drivers. We have held a "try it out" event to allow interested individuals to test drive a bus, increased wages, implemented signing bonuses, launched ad campaigns, and added messages to newsletters and school signs. We are also exploring additional advertising opportunities to recruit bus drivers. If you know of anyone who may be interested in becoming a bus driver, please have them visit BeABusDriver.org. I would be remiss if I did not thank our current drivers and transportation staff for everything they are doing to try and lessen the impact of these driver shortages.
Just before our holiday break, four of our five middle school FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) Teams competed at the FIRST In Michigan FTC State Championship. One of our teams, Team KRASH, was on the alliance of teams that won the State Championship event. In addition to the state title, Team KRASH was a finalist for the Promote and Innovate awards at the state event. This is a huge accomplishment and showcases the talent of our students. To read more about Team KRASH and their victory at the state competition, please visit http://bit.ly/3vVOfzZ.
Today, fifth-grade students at Southwest Elementary partnered with Plante Moran on a service project in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. For the project, the students filled over 100 bags to be given to a homeless shelter. The students packed soap, a toothbrush and toothpaste, socks, chapstick, and a mylar blanket in the bags. They also wrote encouraging notes to include in the bags. The messages included ideas the students learned through the school's work with the Positivity Project. This is another example of how our schools and students continue to give back to the community.
Please remember that there is no school on Monday, January 16, in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. On Monday, the Howell Carnegie Library will host a presentation of the one-person show King Crusader and the Missing Michael as part of its MLK 101 series. The event will begin at 5:30 p.m., with light refreshments before the show starts. According to the library, the show is appropriate for ages 11 through adult.
Sincerely,
Erin J. MacGregor, Ed.S.
Superintendent
Howell Public Schools
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