Superintendent’s June 2010 Newsletter
by Jay McCracken
June 29, 2010
While summer has arrived, our district office staff remains very busy throughout the entire year. I try to take a little time to reflect upon the accomplishments of our entire educational team, and it is remarkable to note all that has been completed. Without the collective effort of numerous people, we would not be able to make this outstanding progress, and I express my appreciation to everyone.
Recently, we have finished the collective bargaining agreement, and all parties involved did a fine job negotiating this new contract. We can be proud of the process and the outcome, as everyone worked hard to get this tough job done. As everyone knows, this can sometimes be a very divisive process, but we worked together for the benefit of our staff, students, school district, and our taxpayers. The new contract is available for viewing on our school district website.
Some additional highlights of our year’s accomplishments include the revitalization and implementation of EPIC, our district curriculum planning process. As a result of this, we are moving forward with a complete curriculum mapping process in our Putnam County Schools, and this should ultimately lead to continual, articulated improvements in the curriculum offered to all of our students. We believe this will help us attain our goal of improved student achievement for all students.
Our administrative team will also complete our updated administrative procedures, and this should be very helpful in communication with staff, students, parents, and the Putnam County community.
During this past year, we have formed the new parent advisory committee, and among other successes, they were instrumental in the planning and implementation of our P.C. Partners in Education Parent Workshops.
Our district has begun offering graduate level courses for our teachers in our Putnam County Schools. This provides cutting edge opportunities for continual, ongoing professional development for our excellent staff. Of course, this work leads to the best possible education for our youth.
With this newsletter, I am merely mentioning a few of the numerous areas of growth for our district, and we will continue our quest of continuous improvement for the benefit of our most important asset…..our Putnam County students!
As we approach the July Fourth holiday, my wife and I send our best wishes to all of you for a safe and enjoyable celebration with family and friends. We remain thankful to share this time with all of you!
Yours in Educational Service,
Jay K. McCracken, Superintendent
