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E.News  

The Latest News from the Mill Valley School District

 

Important Dates:
 
School Board Meetings
October 22nd- 6pm 
Study Session on student learning - Mill Valley Middle School
November 5 
District Office
*Unless otherwise posted, all School Board meetings begin at 6:00pm
 
Holidays (no school)
Nov 11 - Veteran's Day
Nov 26, 27, 28 - Thanksgiving Recess

 

 

District News Archive  

 

September 26, 2008

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June 2008 - special

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October 2008
Superintendent's Message
California Budget Report
Parent Survey Results
Board Highlights and October 22nd Preview
Department Reports
GATE Event: An Evening with Dr. Jim Delisle
Sironka visits MV Schools
 
Superintendent's Message
 
Greetings to our Learning Community:

We are just a short few weeks from election day.   It's not only an important day to exercise a precious right we have in this country to participate in the democratic process, but it is a marvelous 'teachable moment' to demonstrate to our children...and future decision makers why this right is foundational to our democracy.  I hope you will take the opportunity to make this a teachable moment for your children or grandchildren.  We all do have a voice in shaping the future, both through our actions at the polls and by what we teach our children.  In many ways, we are all teachers!
 
I also want to remind you that you have until October 20th to register to vote in that upcoming November election. Among the many important issues that Mill Valley voters will decide is Measure A to amend the Mill Valley School District's existing parcel tax. To help you make an informed decision about Measure A, I encourage you to read your voter pamphlet. And remember to vote, whether you cast your ballot by mail or in person on Election Day.

 Sincerely,
 
Ken Benny
Superintendent
California Budget Report
The California State Budget was signed a record 85 days late this year.  It is well recognized that the State Budget includes a $1.5 billion deficit that will need to be addressed in the 2009-10 State Budget.  One of the key catch-phrases for the state budget is that most funding changes are temporary fixes. State education categorical programs received a modest (but cautionary) 0.68% cost of living allocation.  Categorical programs that receive significant levels of funding are the K-3 Class Size Reduction Program and Special Education.  We always remind our parents and voters that our operating budget relies heavily on local sources including property taxes, parcel taxes, foundation and PTA funding, leases and rentals and some other types of donations.  Eighty-nine percent of our general fund is dependent on these sources. The good news is that what we raise in Mill Valley stays in Mill Valley. 
Parent Survey Results
Each spring, the Mill Valley School District surveys its parents to assess their perceptions about the school district's operations.  Here are some quick indicators about how our parents feel about the Mill Valley School District over time:
Issue                                                                            Percentage in Agreement
                                                                                   2003                        2008
Positive perception of elementary schools                       97%                         97%
MV Middle School continues to improve                           34%                         60%
Teachers are responsive to parents                                 86%                        91%
Administrators are responsive to parents                        70%                         79%
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Additionally, 87% of parents responding report they are kept informed about their child's progress in school.  Also, 91% of parents responding report they are kept informed about important District issues.  This is an increase from 77% in last year's survey.  For the full power point presented to the Board of Trustees, click here.
 
This year's parent survey will be conducted in early spring of 2009.
Board highlights and October 22 Preview
 
At the October 1st meeting, held at Edna Maguire School:
  • Edna Maguire Principal introduced PTA and Site Council leaders, provided an overview of school programs including the integration of writing, math and science, and conducted a brief tour of the Children's garden which is a key component of the school's integrated curriculum.
  • Superintendent Ken Benny presented the results of the Spring 2008 District parent survey.
  • Assistant Superintendent Kerri Mills presented for first reading a revision of the District's 504 policy.  

Board Study Session On Student Learning -October 22, 6-8pm, Mill Valley Middle School Library
The Board will conduct its first study session of the year, focused on student learning.  Study sessions are for the sole purpose of more deeply studying one particular component of the District's operations and educational programs.  Agendas do not generally contain action items.  This study session will include a presentation and exercise by Matt Huxley, Middle School Principal, related to the District's use of DataDirector, a student achievement data management system adopted by all school districts in Marin County.  Strawberry Point Principal Leslie Thornton will discuss District Collective Commitments and how they were used at the most recent Staff Development Day.  Park Principal Peg Katz will provide an update on how the Mill Valley Teaching and Learning Collaborative (MVTLC) serves as a district-wide collaborative team for the purpose of improved student learning.  Superintendent Ken Benny will create the context for the District's core strategies as a Professional Learning Community as well as budget decision packages aligned to the strategic plan.  We hope you can join us for this evening.
Department Reports
Technology
A major project to replace an aging phone system was approved by the Board of Trustees last spring.  Implementation of that project begins in October and will conclude at the end of November.  The phone system, which uses its connectivity via the internet (VOIP), will enable the District to reduce telephone operating costs and will have as one component a District wide emergency parent contact system called School Messenger.  Through implementation of the phone system, the District will also be able to conduct breakout learning through wireless connectivity in all of its facilities.
 
Two years ago, the District learned that the current phone system would not be supported by the current vendor; and replacement parts had become scarce that many of them came by the way of 'parted out' equipment.  Additionally, the District began to experience phone outages, compromising communications and safety.  No general operating funds were expended to accomplish this goal of implementing a safe, reliable and cost effective phone system.  While staff recommended a basic system, the new technology on which it is built offers many easily add-on options should the District decide to go that way.
GATE Event: An Evening with Dr. Jim Delisle
 
When:   Monday, October 20, 7:30-9pm
Where:  Mill Valley Middle School Gym  
Audience:  All MVSD Parents are invited 
 
Event Description:  
Dr. James R. Delisle, author of Parenting Gifted Kids, a book on how to raise happy and successful children,  brings along his toolkit of information about various issues: understanding giftedness, setting appropriate expectations, underachievement and its reversal. 
 
Dr. Delisle has more than 30 years of experience as a teacher, counselor, college professor, and parent of gifted students.  His book guidebook for parents combines his professional and personal experience with gifted students into a new guidebook for parents. Delisle's up-front, insightful, and personal approach to the education and guidance of gifted children and adolescents has led him to become one of America's favorite experts on the topic. Delisle has penned more than 14 books on gifted education, including The Gifted Kids' Survival Guide: A Teen Handbook, and continues to serve this population as a professor of gifted education at Kent State University and as a middle school teacher in the Twinsburg, OH, school district.   
 
To read an interview with Dr. Delisle click here!  
 
This event is open to all Mill Valley School District parents.
Sironka visits MV Schools

Nicholas Sironka, whose dance troupe toured our schools in the fall of 2007,  returned the past two weeks to share his expertise in traditional Batik painting.  He worked at both Strawberry Point and at the Middle School with students and staff.  He conducted a professional development session with District art teachers.  He also worked at schools outside Marin County and at functions in Monterey.  We are so pleased that Sironka was able to return to our community and we thank John and Sanna Thomas of Mill Valley for hosting his visit to Mill Valley.  A welcoming reception on September 30 at the Community Center was attended by about forty staff, parents, children and community members.   A broader community initiative to bring the dance troupe back and build a sustainable cultural relationship is underway.  If you have an interest in helping build this relationship, please contact Ken Benny at the District office.