8 29 14 District Dialogue

District Dialogue Bi-weekly news from the Laveen Elementary School District

August 29, 2014

Laveen seeks input on Strategic Plan

Laveen launches flickr page

The Laveen Elementary School District has developed a draft strategic plan and is seeking public input before finalizing the plan.

The plan may be viewed on the district’s homepage, www.laveeneld.org. A short survey follows.

Comments will be accepted through September 3. The final plan will be presented to the Governing Board for approval at the September 11 meeting.

The Laveen Elementary School District has launched an online photo album on flickr. This will allow Laveen to easily share numerous photos from events around the district.

You can view our photos through the flickr icon link at the top of our school webpages or by visiting the direct flickr link, https:// www.flickr.com/photos/laveenesd/.

In addition to flickr, you can also find the Laveen District on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/LaveenESD.

Schools, Administrators recognized At the August 14 Governing Board Meeting, three schools and four administrators were recognized.

Rogers Ranch School was recognized for outstanding student achievement as demonstrated on Arizona's A-F Letter Grade Accountability System. Rogers Ranch School received 62 growth points, which is a 37 point increase from 2013. The growth score represents the average academic growth of all students and the bottom quartile students.

M.C. Cash and Trailside Point schools were recognized for receiving the Arizona Educational Foundation’s A+ School of Excellence™ designation.

Rogers Ranch Principal Tim Thomas, M.C. Cash Principal Lisa Sandomir, Trailside Point Principal Sarah Zembruski, and Technology Coordinator Eddie Lopez were also honored with the district’s Pinnacle of Leadership Award. This award recognizes select individuals for exceptional leadership, outstanding accomplishment, and dedicated service to Laveen’s students and community.

The principals received the award for their school recognitions as mentioned earlier. Lopez received the award for the number of technology devices that have been integrated into classrooms, specifically almost 1,700 Chromebooks in July.

The District Dialogue is issued twice monthly.

Construction starts at LEC Phase II of the Laveen Education Center construction is expected to begin in early September.

Once completed, the second building will house academic services, business services, technology, and support services staff. It will replace the buildings that currently house business and technology.

Once this second building is completed, our transportation department will temporarily relocate to the old buildings while their new building is constructed.

This project is funded through proceeds from bond sales as approved

by Laveen voters in 2008.

The project was designed by Orcutt Winslow and will be constructed

by Jokake Construction

Architect renderings show how the Laveen Education Center (top) and Transportation Building (bottom) will look after construction.

Vista del Sur student wins golf tournament Vista del Sur student Ahmen Williams,13, took first place in the Western States Golf Association’s 34th Annual Alan Bennett Jr. Memorial Golf Tournament held in Portland, OR earlier this month. He scored a 64 after hitting seven birdies.

Williams started playing when he was just two and a half years old after his father took up the sport. His first club was a cut-down 3 wood that his father found at Goodwill; it was just his size. He went on to win his first tournament when he was in kindergarten.

Golf has kept him busy ever since. Williams plays four hours a day, every day. “I love the competition and I love meeting new people,” Williams said. “You meet so many good people on the golf course.”

Nominations needed for Employee of the Month Nominations are needed for the Employee of the Month Awards.

Each month one certified and one classified employee are selected to receive the district’s Employee of the Month Award. To be recognized for this award, candidates must meet the following criteria:  Be a strong supporter of the district;  Have the desire to assist in the development of Laveen students;  Demonstrate initiative in their current position;  Be reliable and demonstrate excellent attendance;  Effectively communicate with the community, parents, students, administrators, and staff; and  Demonstrate involvement in the community and professional curricular activities concerning the district.

To nominate someone for this award please submit a narrative that meets the above criteria to your principal for approval. Nomination forms can also be found in the Community Relations section of the district website.

Nominations are due on the 15th of each month and will be considered for up to six months.

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August 29, 2014