Public forum reminder and information 4/27/23

Hello all,

Sorry for the long message, but please read *everything.*

This is a reminder about the public forum tonight (Th) from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Elementary School. This event looks like it will be well-attended by both parents and staff, which I am greatly encouraged by seeing. 

A COUPLE OF NOTES: 

1) So that it doesn’t get lost later on, I want to state up front that I plan on staying this evening until all questions are answered for everyone in attendance. 

2) We aren’t discouraging children from attending this event, but I will say it is likely far more appropriate for adult participation for this particular go-around. 

3) When you enter the building, some staff will greet you at the door and hand you a colored sticky. Please don’t throw this out! We will be using it for an activity later on in the evening. From there, please feel free to grab a snack (BUT, please do not bring it into the Reach with you – John will not be happy with me!). 

The tentative schedule for the evening will be:

5:30-5:40 – Introduction from Superintendent Dan Ross, followed by a discussion of goals for the evening.

5:40-6:00 – Q/A with the Superintendent and administrative staff. This is the *initial* opportunity for parents, staff, and community members to share concerns, ask questions, and hear more about the processes we use to address different situations.

6:00-6:45 – Breakout sessions. We will be dividing into working groups of mixed stakeholders to problem solve questions that the administrative team has developed. These questions point at challenges with student support, school-to-home communication, and partnering between parents and the schools. Each of these working groups will be facilitated by a member of the administrative team, and will consist of parents, staff, Board members, and members of the community who are in attendance. You don’t need to bring anything into these other than a desire to work together!

6:45-7:00 – Break/Admin technology prep

7:00-7:30 – Full group debrief/review of goals. Here we will go back to the Reach and share the initial results of the workgroups on the overhead screen for all to see. All questions will be seen and responses shared out. Either I, or the administrative team, will comment on any questions or content shared by the group (basically respond to anything that allows for a quick answer while keeping the focus on the larger ideas). We can also field additional questions from any stakeholders pertaining to the ideas that were developed, or lingering questions from the Q/A. We will also informally determine if we reached our goals for the evening.

7:30 < Meet and greet with Superintendent Ross. Like I mentioned above, if folks come away with any questions or feel like they need more information, I am going to stay until all that is taken care of. I will see about getting a pot of coffee! This piece is more optional, but I want to make sure all your questions are answered, your concerns addressed, and your suggestions taken back with me. 

From here, I will be meeting with the administrative team early next week to work through feedback from the stakeholders and see if there are some common themes. We will develop a set of recommendations and initiatives based on your work to bring back to the School Board for further consideration and possible implementation.

If nothing else, I want this to be a starting point for renewed positive collaboration between the schools, parents, and community. If it goes well and everyone feels it is productive, we can repeat it in the future. Kids win if they see adults working together. They are diminished when they see us at odds. I want to encourage everyone (ALL STAKEHOLDERS) to come into the forum with the goal of supporting each other, and the needs of children (whether emotional, behavioral, or academic).

I am looking forward to seeing folks tonight!

Dan Ross