Document text
- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Menu Guide Wedding Weather Subscribe Contact Us October 11, 2005 Alternative schools gain attention Committee wants new programs to be built from the ground up By Jennifer Squires Ashland Daily Tidings Creating more alternative programs consumed most of the Ashland School Board meeting on Monday night. A school board committee recommended the school district establish an experimental K-8 program for the 2006-07 school year and Ashland Schools Superintendent Juli Di Chiro appointed 13 administrators, educators and community members to a committee examining the district’s kindergarten offerings. Three members of the K-8 committee, which was created more than a year ago, presented the sum of its work to the school board Monday night and asked that the board now charge teachers and parents to flesh out the program. The committee concluded that creating new grade configurations would provide alternatives for students and families — a switch that may help keep families in the district while attracting students from outside Ashland. The committee recommended the school be limited to 100 students in its first year and have an art and science emphasis. “I think we really need to offer an opportunity to families with children who don’t want to have the middle school experience,” school board chair Heidi Parker said. The committee also asked that the K-8 alternative not be added onto existing programs. “I think the consensus of the group is that we will build something new,” said Debbie Pew, the Willow Wind Community Learning Center administrator and a K-8 committee member. District staff will now seek educators and community members interested in helping structure the proposed alternative. Meanwhile, the kindergarten committee has two months to come up with recommendations for enhancements to the existing kindergarten program in the district. School board members have stated they will consider altering kindergarten as soon as January 2006. They would also like proposals for changes that could be implemented in for the 2006-07 school year. The school board has not set a deadline for making decisions on either program. “I think I’d like to look at all of these options before deciding on a single one,” school board member Amy Patton said, noting she wants to review a cost comparison of the programs because they are probably not revenue-neutral. In other business: • Di Chiro reported class size at the elementary level is down slightly and the overall district enrollment didn’t drop as much as the demographer’s report had predicted. • Amendments to school grounds maintenance agreement with Jackson County Roads, Parks and Planning were approved, including the OK to use herbicides on school property. The board planned to revisit the use of herbicides at a later date because the next spraying is scheduled for March. • Southern Oregon University business professor Andy Dungan was bumped from the budget committee after serving one term. Chris Holzshu, a CPA who works at Lithia Motors and has two young children, and Mike Zodrow, a long-time Ashland resident and the vice president of catalog marketing at Harry and David, were appointed to the committee. Dungan did not interview with the board prior to the meeting and did not submit a new cover letter asking to be reappointed. • In the final minutes of the meeting, board members approved a draft of the district’s continuous improvement plan with very little discussion and signed off on a resolution regarding state spending limit initiatives that will go before the Oregon School Boards Association in November. Staff writer Jennifer Squires can be reached at 482-3456 x 3019 or [email protected]. DailyTidings.com Home Page Archives | Revels | Classifieds | Real Estate Guide | Weather | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2005 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Deep Muscle Stimulator Ceramic Piggy Banks FREE Entertainment Guide Women's & Men's Slippers Accelerate Weightloss Products Backpacks Online Pharmacy Vegas Travel Guide Search Engine Optimization Student Loans Hotel & Airline Reservations Hammocks Water Filter Helzberg Diamonds Online Casinos Community Bonus Casino Mortgage Calculator Security Systems Mailing Lists Click Here Advertisement .:Advertisements:. Site Search: RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams