from the desk of the superintendent

Happy New Year! I am often amazed at how fast time goes by when we are in the hustle and bustle of life. I am sure the first day of school was just a couple of weeks ago, but that is not the case. We have concluded the first half of the school year, and it feels like we are moving at warp speed toward an exciting finish to the year. Although the days seem to fly by, I am confident that each day holds the same amount of time, and the speed at which they seem to move is caused by the amount of positive energy being pushed into them by our entire school community. As we move into a New Year, I find myself thinking about the pace we keep and our need to slow down at least for a minute and reflect on what has occurred in the life of our school district over the past year, as I believe selfreflection is good and often a step we miss in realizing all we have accomplished and seeking ways to improve. Furthermore, the beauty in self-reflection is that it always allows us to have a 20/20 vision and look at things for what they are instead of what we hoped for them to be, and in the words of John Maxwell, “Hope is not a strategy.”

Over the past 12 months, the district has seen a great deal of change, and while the change may have seemed scary, the district has continued to move with a positive trajectory. We came together as a community and passed a much-needed operating levy to support our teachers and support staff with needed pay raises. Doing so allowed us to stay competitive in a tightening job market and attract and retain high-quality teachers and staff. We have welcomed new administrators, teachers, and support staff to the district. Each of them has brought great energy and excitement to the betterment of students. We have worked on branding the District in an inclusive way that identifies the importance of our entire school community working together to ensure the best is yet to come, “We Are Lawson, where Proud Traditions meet Endless Possibilities.” We have implemented a communication system to allow easier communication with our patrons. We invited the community to participate actively in the dialogue surrounding our vision for the future as we develop a “Strategic Plan” to guide us through the coming years. We began designing a long-range facility improvement and maintenance plan to guide the decision-making of the District in planning for and executing future capital improvement projects. We sought the input of our students, parents, and staff members to gauge our District’s “Climate and Culture” and are committed to finding ways to support each of them and what they need to make their experience the best possible as a Lawson Cardinal. All told, I believe that 2022 was an excellent year for the Lawson R-XIV School District, and 2023 is setting up to be an even better year for our District and Community as a whole, and I am so excited to be a part of it.

In closing, we are blessed to have a great support system of amazing parents, grandparents, staff members, and community members who are always ready to come together and do great things for our students, and I want to say thank you for that. I encourage you to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and our newest way, the Lawson R-XIV School App. The app is available in both the Google Play Store and Apple Store free of charge and can be downloaded by searching for “Lawson R-XIV.” Our goal for these communication tools is to celebrate the great things occurring in our school district daily and allow you to stay informed on all the exciting events and activities that make us all proud, to say #WeAreLawson.

Feb. 22 – 5-6 p.m.

April 26 – 5-6 p.m.

(Location - Southwest Elementary Cafeteria)

Please pick up an enrollment packet in advance at Southwest Elementary beginning Feb. 1.

Kindergarten Round Up (enrollment) will be held on Wednesday Feb. 22 and Wednesday April 26, from 5-6 p.m. at Southwest Elementary. To be admitted to kindergarten for the 2023-2024 school year, your child must be five years old before Aug. 1, 2023. Parents may come in any time from 5-6 p.m. to turn in their completed paperwork.

Essential paperwork for enrollment at Southwest Elementary:

· Copy of Birth Certificate

· Copy of Immunization Records

· Enrollment Affirmation (signed and notarized)

· TWO Proofs of Residency in Lawson School District

Examples include:

· Utility bill

· Mortgage statement

· Lease/rental agreement

· Property Tax statement

Your child does not need to be present at enrollment. Parents will have the opportunity to meet some of the kindergarten teachers and sign up for kindergarten screening, which will be held in May. This screening enables the teachers to plan more appropriately for instruction. There is no “pass/fail” on this test. During kindergarten enrollment, parents will be able to sign up their children for Summer School.

Early enrollment is important so that we can be prepared when school begins in the fall. Please call Southwest Elementary at 580-7272 if you have any questions.