Editor’s note: It came to our attention that regretfully, two Q&As were cut off in the School Board Candidate Forum within Amber Kolousek’s column. Please find them below in their entirety.
Amber Kolousek
What are two-three strengths of which our district can be proud?
This question could also be re-worded to say “Why should I send my child to WSSD”? Let me tell you why! Our class sizes are averaging around 20 kids per class, which offers a good teacher/student ratio for learning. In the Elementary School, our Smarter Balance tests have shown that our younger students continue to improve in both Reading and Math. At the High School, students have the opportunity to take a wide range of classes to meet their interests and to help them prepare for their future. In the National Career Readiness test, our seniors consistently score much higher than the state average. Plus, several of our kids leave the halls of WSHS with dual credit courses that they can use at college with no expense to them.
We also offer a wide range of extra-curricular options to our students. Our kids have so many opportunities at our school that you would struggle to find another district our size who offers as much as we do. So, yes, we have a lot of great things going on at WSSD that we can all be proud of and a wonderful school to send your child(ren) to.
What are two-three needs that must be priorities for our district to address?
Last spring, the school board held a special meeting to focus on goals for our school district. The three categories are: 1.) staff recruitment and retention; 2.) academic achievement and 3.) a 5–10-year Capital Outlay plan. The first one is self-explanatory. We need to be thinking of ways to recruit and retain our staff. Next is academic achievement. This is the heart and soul of who we are as a school district. We are doing well in this area, but we should always strive to find ways to better ourselves. Finally, when we create short- and long-term plans for Capital Outlay items, the budget committee can prepare for those needs financially and the community knows the direction the school board is taking. We have made some steps in the plan already, but still have work to do. We need to continue to reevaluate our short-term and long-term goals annually and work towards making them a reality.