Title I program making steps to address the gaps in student education
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By Amber Hayden
GLENWOOD CITY — The Glenwood City Board of Education was presented with a Title I update from elementary school principal Betsy Haltinner and Title I teacher Nicole Langman.
Langman explained her roll within the program as addressing gaps and engaging literacy with teachers using a push in and pull out method.
“When we pull out students we are taking them from the classroom to address their needs,” Langman explained. “Pushing in refers to observing the student in the classroom.”
Langman also helps with facilitating response to intervention meetings to figure out where the school goes moving forward with each student.
Haltinner let the board know that currently they have 79 students in tier two and tier three, tier three students are given time during the day to focus on math and reading in interventions and tier two students receive interventions delivered in the classroom.
“The teachers are working together,” stated Langman. “So if one has a set time they are instructing other students in math or reading, and another teacher has students that need the same help they are sending those students over to get the extra instruction.”
The typical student who does not need any additional help would look at a 103.5 point increase each year in assessment testing.
The elementary school will begin a proactive approach starting in grades kindergarten through third grade, by addressing the issues in the early years.
Students in grades four and five would have continued intervention from 10 to 30 minutes in a given week.
“We are working on identifying the essential standards,” said Haltinner. “We are wanting to dive deep into the Forward assessment performance data also.”
Langman has begun going into the kindergarten classrooms and using a strategy called RIME TIME to help kids learn the ins and outs of words.
During the seven steps each student is able to identify the key part of the word making it easier to see the structure of the word.
The students are able to see what the onset, beginning, and endings to the rimes, to combine those parts into words.
Approvals
During the action items portion of the evening, Superintendent Tim Johnson asked the board to approve several items that would have an estimated cost of $54,000 in total spending on the three items. All of the items received board approval.
The first item was an updated HVAC system that would provide materials and the installation of a global controller, create a new interface for the entire building consisting of one main floor plan and eight detailed area floor plans, and eight hours of training with facility staff.
The cost would also allow a 3D plan with ductwork shown and allow for the updates to be done remotely which would total $19,700.
Bus drivers will see new radios in the coming weeks as digital radios were approved for each of the 13 buses used by the district.
Included in the cost from Rassbach Communications in Eau Claire, there will be five new portable radios, digital repeater, and an antenna.
The final action item was for a new pole vault pad/pit purchase up to $17,600. Johnson explained briefly that it was needed for the track team in the upcoming spring season. The pad/pit was not staked down correctly last spring, and a gust of wind tipped it over and blew the equipment over into the swampy area behind the school.
“We did what we could in order to get through last season,” Johnson said.
Committee Updates
Chuck Draxler and Jon Mrdutt gave a quick update from the committee meeting stating that several programs and services may be eliminated for the 2020-21 school year.
This would allow the school district to save revenue in excess of $20,000 to keep the school district from operating in the red.
In other business the Board of Education:
• Accepted the resignation of Food Service Staff – Lu Jasperson, effective at the end of the 2019-20 school year.
• Approved the posting for a Food Service Position.
• Accepted the Retirement of Elementary Secretary Mary Blaser.
The Glenwood City Board of Education will be again on March 9 with a 5:30 committee meeting and a 6:30 regular meeting.
