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Valley schools open with more security
(by Steve Novak - August 27, 2008)
Valley schools open with more security
By SUE HOFFMAN
Higher security, more Chinese courses in some districts and increased lunch prices across the map marked the beginning of the 2008-2009 school year.
School started this week for the Chagrin Falls, Kenston and Orange districts and last week for the West Geauga School District.
The start of school "went very smoothly and was uneventful," West Geauga Superintendent Anthony Podojil said. "People worked hard to get our buildings ready, and we were very pleased by our start."
New at West Geauga High School this year are professional learning communities, said Bonnie Gruttadauria, director of communications. Teachers will meet every Wednesday morning in learning teams to decide on academic goals, design assessments and develop plans of action to boost student learning, she said.
Emphasis on professional development is taking place in the other districts as well.
"Teachers will be engaging in a variety of professional-development opportunities focused on technology integration, as well as increasing student depth of knowledge," said Robert Hunt, assistant superintendent of the Chagrin Falls School District.
This year, the Chagrin district is offering full-day kindergarten for the first time, expanding its Chinese programs to all school buildings and offering Chinese 3 at the high school, community relations director Leonard May said.
The Kenston district is offering Chinese for the first time, starting with classes at the middle and intermediate schools.
The Orange District has added an evacuation drill to the list of safety drills run each year, school officials said. It will take place Oct. 7, with Brady Middle School and Orange High School evacuating to Ursuline College in Pepper Pike.
Additional security measures and other efforts to create a peaceful environment have taken place throughout the local districts.
Chagrin Falls has added a camera and new buzzer system at the middle school, a check-in, photo-identification system for visitors and photo-identification cards for staff and volunteers. In addition, the district offers a system of registering children in kindergarten through eighth grade with photos and fingerprints.
Also concerned about security, the West Geauga District added seven surveillance cameras inside the middle school and two at the building's exterior.
Affecting each district, new laws are in place requiring all school employees to undergo FBI and Bureau of Criminal Identification background checks and fingerprinting.
In another effort to promote safe schools, Kenston started the new school year with plans to enhance the district's social-skills-awareness and anti-bullying education programs. Peaceful Environment at Kenston, planned by the guidance staff and PTO, will promote a safe and harmonious setting for students, staff and the public.
While changes are taking place across the Chagrin Valley, enrollment is similar to last year's for the Chagrin Falls and Kenston districts. West Geauga's enrollment is down by 50, compared to last October, and Orange has 34 more students than it did at the end of the last school year.
No levies are planned for this year. The Kenston School District has projected the need for a levy in 2010, according to community relations director Katy McGrath. Its last levy was passed in 2005. Lower raises are part of the new separate contracts with teachers and non-teaching staff. The district has consolidated four bus routes to save costs.
The Orange district's business services office and transportation department are looking to save fuel costs, according to communication coordinator Louis DeVincentis. "This will include combining groups for field trips and athletic competitions. For example, the varsity cheerleading squad will now travel to away games on the same bus as the marching band. They are also looking at ways to improve daily bus routes for Orange students and private-school routes to save on fuel."
The Orange district, which passed its last levy in 2004 with the promise that it would last four years, will be able to extend the levy cycle another year, school officials said.
While taxes may be stable, lunch prices are up across the board. Increases range from 15 to 35 cents, varying from building to building within each district.
New faces this year include three Chinese exchange teachers -- two in the Chagrin Falls district and one in Kenston.
Among other course offerings, the new Chagrin Falls Performing Arts Academy is a college-preparatory program for high school juniors and seniors. Students from schools in the Excel Technical Education Career Consortium are eligible to attend the program at Chagrin Falls High School's new performing arts center.
Chagrin Falls High School also is offering philosophy as a new elective.
Moreland Hills Elementary School in the Orange district is investigating a pilot program to teach Spanish in kindergarten.
To get ready for the school year, local districts worked through the summer on building and parking-lot maintenance, as well as security.
Districts also hired new staff members, mainly to replace those who retired, resigned or are on leave.
Some changes are at the principal level. The Orange District welcomed new Principal Brian Frank and assistant Principal Darla Wagner at Brady Middle School, where former Principal Stephen Hegner retired and Assistant Principal Paul Lucas moved to the high school.
John DiCello is the new intermediate school principal and Kathleen Poe is the new principal at Timmons Elementary School in the Kenston School District. Both were administrators at their schools. Kristen Hasenohrl is the new assistant principal at the intermediate school and Craig Caroff is the new assistant principal at Timmons School.
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