Greetings and Welcome!

The Iowa City Community School District welcomes you to our official blog!  We appreciate your interest in our district and hope that you will use this site to stay tuned to news and updates.

Iowa City Community School District Seeks Public Input Through Operations Audit

The Iowa City Community School District is still gathering input on what community members see as areas needing improvement in District Operations.  A process audit is looking at how the school district does business.  The audit has included interviews of District personnel and community members in individual, small group, and open forum settings.  It is vital for community members to provide open and honest feedback in the areas of human resources, technology, business, custodial and food services. The public can still provide feedback through an online survey at  http://tinyurl.com/IowaCitySurvey.  Thank you in advance for participating!

Iowa City Community School District Seeks Public Input On Operations Audit

The Iowa City Community School District will host a public forum Monday, October 17 at 7:00 p.m. at City High Opstad Auditorium to gather input on what community members see as areas needing improvement in the School District Operations.  The District has retained an outside firm to engage in a process audit to help look at how the school district does business.  The audit will include interviews of District personnel and community members in individual, small group, and open forum settings.  It is vital for community members to provide open and honest feedback in the areas of human resources, technology, business, custodial and food services.

Teaching Positions for 2011-12

How many teaching positions were eliminated, including any through attrition, before the start of the 2011-12 academic year? How many “special education” related positions did that include? Shouldn’t the money discovered recently as reported by the Press Citizen http://www.press-citizen.com/article/20111007/NEWS01/110070321/School-district-sees-influx-in-unspent-balance have been used for something specific? How should we have seen “the district taking in more money to cover special education expenses” funding used – what was it supposed to be used for and when? (submitted by a Hills parent)

There were no teaching positions eliminated, including through attrition, before the start of the 2011-12 school year.  For the 2011-12 school year, the District has staffed both elementary and secondary general education full time equivalent (FTE) teachers at the same level as the 2010-11 school year.  All retirements and resignations were filled although, in some cases, the positions may have been reallocated to other grade levels or subjects at individual schools.  Special Education positions funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (also known as ARRA or stimulus funding) had a 2-year funding window.  All ARRA-funded special education positions were either reassigned or funded by other sources for the 2011-12 school year.

The funds that are cited from the Press Citizen article were not “discovered” but were instead funds that were budgeted to be expended that were not expended.  This includes the labor costs that were entered twice as expenditures for the 2010-11 school year.

In regard to to the Special Education budget, the deficit in expenditures for special education services was $1,493,934 for the 2009-10 school year and fell to $926,192 for the 2010-11 school year.  Thus, although the District did “tak[e] in more money to cover special education expenses,” the District still spent more than it took in for special education services.

North LIberty Enrollment

The North Liberty schools appear to be nearing capacity, with growth in North Liberty continuing. What is the school districts 2 and 5 years plans to deal with this issue? When will the temporary buildings be removed from Penn school and replaced with a building with plumbing?  (submitted by a North Liberty Parent)

In regard to the question about school in North Liberty, in July, 2011 the Scho0l Board adopted the goals:

• We will develop a 5-year comprehensive facility plan that includes a vision for the alignment of school facilities and educational programs. It will include a plan for building the third high school that defines when the enrollment will support it and the actions needed to prepare for covering the additional operating expenses.
• We will analyze school boundaries and district enrollment data on an annual basis.

Discussion at recent Facilities Committee Meetings has acknowledged the continuing growth and the need to consider a new elementary school in the mid- to long-term in the North Liberty area.

In regard to the question about temporary buildings at Penn Elementary School, all temporary facilities throughout the District are currently being evaluated.  Due to the cost of utilities and maintenance, the long-term plan for the District is to eliminate the use of these types of structures.

Resolution of both of these issues would eliminate the need for additional construction at the Penn Elementary School site.

Workplace Learning Connection Shared Student Career Choice Preferences

Top 10 Job Shadow Career Choices for Area High School Students
Nanci Young, Workplace Learning Connection

Close to 1300 high school students in the Grant Wood Education Agency Area 10 will be out taking part in job shadows this fall and winter, including 72 from City High, 24 from Tate High, and 135 from West High School.    Workplace Learning Connection coordinates these career experiences with local businesses to provide a quality learning experience for ICCSD students to better prepare them for the world of work.  Here’s a breakdown of the top ten career fields requested by this year’s students:

#10 is a tie between Athletic Trainer and Radiology Technician with 21 requests each;

#9 Pharmacist request are at 24;

#8 Psychologist requests are at 34;

#7 Physical Therapist requests are at 38;

#6 Careers in Veterinary Sciences are close behind with 55 requests;

#5 The U of I Mini Medical day, geared toward becoming a doctor, garnered 39 requests, but add another 19 requests for specific physician fields and Doctors round out at 58 total;

#4 Nursing is the 4^th on the list with 62 requests;

#3 Teachers came in 3^rd with 86 total requests, the majority of them for Elementary teaching (47);

#2 The Law Enforcement field includes 79 total requests for the Mini Police Academy and 36 requests for the FBI for a total of 115;

And, the #1 choice in the region: Engineers top the list with 131 total requests, the majority of them for Biomedical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering at 23 requests each.  Other engineering job shadow requests include Aerospace, Chemical, Civil, Computer, Electrical, Environmental, Industrial, Manufacturing, Materials, Nuclear and a smattering of misc. engineering careers.

Engineering, Human & Family Services, Health Science, and Agriscience are the top four career pathways.

Students are encouraged to explore their future through work-based learning activities such as job shadows and internships.   There will be a second opportunity for students to apply for WLC job shadows.  The deadline for 2^nd round Job Shadow applications is December 16, 2011.   Area schools’ Guidance departments will receive information about that opportunity shortly after Thanksgiving break.   Area High School juniors and seniors can apply for WLC Winter/Spring 2012 Internships, as well.  Applications are due 11/18/11 to WLC.  WLC is connecting today’s students to tomorrow’s careers!  Students can speak with staff at their high school or log on to www.workplace-learning.org.

Department of Education Town Hall Meeting

Join Jason Glass, Director of the Iowa Department of Education, and Linda Fandel, Governor Branstad Administration’s Special Assistant for Education, for a Town Hall in Iowa City!

Sunday, October 16^th

1:00 P.M.

West High School – Auditorium

2901 Melrose Ave

Iowa City, IA 52246

** The event is free and open to the public. Please feel free to invite friends and neighbors. **

For More Information Contact:

Lynn McRoberts

Lynn.McRoberts@Iowa.Gov

515-725-3516

Iowa City Education Town Hall Flyer

Iowa Education Blueprint

Coalition for a Greater Hills Community Meet The Candidates Forum

On the ICCSD website there was a public forum to meet the school board candidates in Hills.  I cannot find that information posted anymore.  Can you tell me what happened to the forum or when where, what time it will be?  I would like to attend, but need the specifics. Thank you!  (submitted by a Hills community member)

The Meet The Candidates forum you are referring to is being hosted by The Coalition for a Greater Hills Community.  It is taking place on August 29, 2011,  at 7:00 PM at the Hills Community Center, Main Street, Hills, IA.  According to the CGHC, “We will be introducing the candidates running for the ICCSD Board of Education and there will be a question and answer session.”  There is no cost for the event and questions can be referred to Judy Cambridge, 679-2512 or Stacy Kron, 936-1017.

Social Media Presence

Why don’t you set up a Facebook page for the ICCSD? It would be a free and easy way to get information out and more people are on Facebook than Twitter.  (submitted by a parent)

You are right … using social media is a great way to share information with a wider audience at little cost to the District.  Currently the District has a Facebook presence (http://www.facebook.com/IowaCitySchools),  a Twitter presence for emergency notifications (http://twitter.com/ICCSDnotify), and a Twitter presence where the Superintendent posts tweets about education related issues (http://twitter.com/sfmurley).  The District does have a new twitter feed at (http://www.twitter.com/IowaCitySchools) which just went up.  We will work to get the word out about these opportunities to learn more about the District!

Administrative Assignment at Lincoln Elementary School

I have a question for clarification about the Lincoln Principal position. It was my understanding that Chris served as half-time principal and half time director of the Home School Assistance program. Did you eliminate the HSAP director position since you are keeping the half-time principal position? (submitted by a Lincoln parent)

2010-11 Lincoln Elementary School Principal Chris Kolarik was classified as a 1.0 full-time-equivalent (FTE) administrator in pay, but in addition to her role as Principal, she was assigned to oversee the Home School Assistance Program. Therefore she served as less than a full-time Lincoln principal.  2011-12 Lincoln principal Ann Langenfeld is classified as a 0.5 full-time-equivalent administrator and 0.5 mentor trainer.  Principal Langenfeld’s presence in the building will not be markedly different than Principal Kolarik’s as her district-level responsibilities will allow her to complete much of her work from her office at the school.  Home schooling and the Home School Assistance Center responsibilities have been assigned to the Tate High School Principal Stephanie Phillips.

Local Food Options in Our Schools

I’ve been reading about various initiatives to get local food into our schools, specifically from the Johnson County Food Alliance and the “Farm to School” program. I think this makes a lot of sense and I am supportive of getting food locally wherever possible … has the District looked at how much money could be saved by getting more food locally? (submitted by a community member)

Yes!  During the past two years apples were purchased from local orchards.  These local apples have proven to be a cost effective purchase.  The district’s Farm to School committee held a Field Greens menu day June 1 which featured lettuce from three Iowa growers.  The fact that two growers are needed for just one menu item brings to light the challenge of finding enough local food to provide for the entire district.   The local greens purchase was funded through a $900 Farm to School grant.  Based on cost for this menu item, this may not be a viable option.  Discussions are taking place regarding produce used in smaller quantities such as cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes.  In addition, the student garden at West High is yielding a few pounds of tomatoes to use for salads and sandwiches.  The District is also looking at bidding local watermelons.  In all instances, the District must still follow USDA procurement guidelines.