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Our teachers and staff are responsible for the active engagement of all of our students --regardless of their race, ethnicity, or socio-economic status--in rigorous academic pursuits and in core curricular and extracurricular experiences.

Statistically, we know that students who are involved in extracurricular activities and co-curricular activities have a better attendance rate and demonstrate better academic performance. They leave our high school much better prepared for their choice of universities, technical colleges, military service, or the world of work, and that is an expectation District 16 has for all of its students.

District 16 is strategically focusing its resources to provide rigorous professional development for its quality staff. Our primary goal is to develop and retain only high quality staff who pursue ongoing learning and who demonstrate a commitment to the District’s Purpose, Values, and Vision.

We take great pride in our high-quality staff, which includes a former Minnesota Teacher of the Year and others who are National Board Certified Teachers. In the past dozen years, District 16 has also had a principal with Minnesota administrator-of-the-year honors, three School Board members selected to the All-State School Board, and two Minnesota Superintendents of the Year. Each of the district’s cabinet-level administrators have just been elected to serve as president of their state-wide professional organizations.

The improving test scores of our students (and their success after graduating from Spring Lake Park High School) are a testament to the focused efforts of our staff and students, in partnership with parents and the community, to improve achievement for all students at all grade levels.

District 16 continues to maintain and enhance its strong community connections and communications. Last year at this time, the District was successful in passing a bond referendum totaling over $95 million to accommodate a 20 percent increase in enrollment, renovate and expand all schools, create a nearly new high school, and build a new K-3 elementary school in a high-growth area of Blaine where the district has no elementary school.

The decision to seek a bond referendum was made only after a comprehensive 18-month study of district infrastructure, nearly year-long review and recommendations by a citizen-staff advisory committee, and a thorough, transparent, and open dialog with school district parents and community members. Once the decision was made to present a bond referendum to the community, nearly four dozen meetings and appearances were held to communicate the message, answer questions, and reassure the community of the district’s consistently prudent use of taxpayer dollars.

Following the successful bond referendum, the district launched its nearly four-year Facilities Implementation Plan. In the summer of 2006, classrooms were added to Park Terrace Elementary and Westwood Intermediate School and a new media center was also added to the Westwood Intermediate site. Significant work will occur at all school district sites this summer and will continue during the summers of 2008 and 2009, with all projects being fully completed by the summer of 2010.

These facilities improvements will not only repair and renovate all schools, but also will add much needed classrooms to support the increase in student population over the next half-dozen years. The improvements will also enhance safety and security at each site, including providing better traffic patterns for buses and cars and using technology and facility modifications to improve security.

District 16’s residents have a wide variety of perspectives, interests, and needs, and we utilize many means to inform and engage them. These include timely school and district mailings, award-winning website (which will soon have a new look), cable television channel, parent portal, and e-news updates.

The district’s Wellness Committee is working to improve not only the nutrition, variety, and quality of the foods that we serve, but also the health and wellness of students and staff, in addition to providing educational opportunities for the community.

Our district has been recognized for its precise, transparent accounting processes and its thorough financial reporting, and its “A3” credit rating has been upgraded three times in four years as well. The district will continue to demonstrate to the public its fiscal health and accountability.

There are issues to address.

As the student population of the district grows, our facilities will continue to improve, sometimes dramatically. The next three years will feature important, exciting facility improvements and gains. Throughout that time, the community will continue to seek the greatest value for its tax dollars and they will also seek proof that those values have been realized.

One of the District’s two existing operating levies will come up for renewal in 2009, and the District must once again demonstrate to the public that it a) has prudently utilized those resources in the past, and b) will continue to need this funding that is already in place in order to maintain and improve our existing academic programs and successes.

Our parents and community continue to tell us they like the fact that District 16 is “personal in size, but extra-large in opportunity.” While our teaching and learning are aligned to improve student achievement, and these results are evident, parents and students will continue to seek more academic options, and the district will proactively respond to those needs.

As our student population becomes more culturally and economically diverse, we need to anticipate the challenges and opportunities that these changes provide. The governor is asking for all students to graduate from high school having successfully completed four years of a world language, and some schools already offer a world language at the elementary level. We need to look at this option for our students as well.

I hope that this brief review of the “state of the district” provides a sense of where we’ve been and the exciting direction we are headed. On our journey from good to great, we are building a better school district to serve all present and future students and their families. We invite you to come along with us!

Our district purpose is clear. High expectations. High achievement for all. No excuses.