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Hundreds of teachers start work Photo by Jim Craven Tiffany Lemley, an Oregon State University junior studying to be a teacher, helps get seventh-grade English teacher Clifford Cowley�s classroom at Hedrick Middle School in Medford ready for the beginning of classes next week. Teachers from across the district met Monday to hear Superintendent Steve Wisely talk about the upcoming school year. Schools have week to prepare for kids By Vicki Guarino With a week yet to go before the buses roll, hundreds of teachers returned to their classrooms Monday to get ready for school. Some 30,000 students are expected when Jackson County school doors open next Tuesday. This week of classroom preparation and staff meetings began early for Medford teachers with an annual back-to-school breakfast in the courtyard at North Medford High School and greetings from Superintendent Steve Wisely. Wisely outlined the district�s plan to spend much of the school year studying the potential for construction of a third high school specializing in technical skills and a new three-grade middle school. The tech school, for both vocational and college-bound students, would be a new school style in the region. Such schools in other communities in Oregon and elsewhere have brought real-world business and industry expertise into the classroom. The grade realignment proposed by administrators would move sixth-graders into middle schools with seventh- and eighth-graders. Other districts, including Central Point, have shifted to three-grade middle schools, and the communities have been happy with the results. The Medford School Board is expected to name citizen committees next month to study the district proposals, possibly to present a school construction bond measure to voters in 2002. Wisely was optimistic about the prospects and reminded the teachers about the support they and the district have in the community. "The community has been supportive of its facilities," Wisely said. "We have a community that loves us and supports us." In Eagle Point, Superintendent Bill Jones will treat his staff to breakfast on Wednesday. The district�s annual get-together is a time for Jones to introduce new staff and highlight new programs. This year, he will introduce a new administrative position � curriculum coordinator. The coordinator will work with district staff throughout the district�s eight schools. Jones also will highlight a new reading initiative at Eagle Point Junior High, where a period will be set aside school-wide for reading. Until now, reading has been a part of language arts and humanities classes. The plan is to boost reading skills, improving students� academic performance in all subjects. In the Central Point district, Superintendent Candy Manary spent much of the day Monday traveling from school to school to greet teachers and administrators. Today at Crater High School, the district will hold its annual crash course in what it takes to run a school system. Everyone from principals to classroom aides to food service workers and bus drivers will meet at the high school to brush up on job duties. The group training format gives all staff the chance to see that they are part of the district�s educational team, said Manary. The session also gives Manary the chance to voice her appreciation. "I talk about where we�re going and remind people what a good job they�re doing and how important their work is.�� Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA