Picking Up STEAM

Webber stoked to begin his second year at the helm

By Tim Smith

For his opening act as Northville Public Schools superintendent, RJ Webber went all-out to learn the lay of the educational land. He made hundreds of in-school visits during 2022-23, all while striking a chord of inclusion and exploration – something that shouldn’t be surprising, since he also is a fledgling guitar player.

Fueled by last spring’s overwhelming approval of a $134.4 million bond issue capping off his first year at the helm, Webber knows the district and community much better entering Year Two of his tenure.

And with that, he intends for 2023-24 literally to pick up “STEAM” and continue last year’s momentum, beginning with Tuesday, Sept. 5 when classes begin.

“Last year was all about listening, learning, observing and hustle,” said Webber, during a recent interview in his office on the third floor at Old Village School. “So I made 350 building visits, … to get to know the people in this community who give so much and take so much pride in it.”

Webber called 2022-23 an important year of personal discovery where he learned about a district jewel for special needs children, the Cooke School located on Taft Road.

“The love, care and empathy given to those families – and many of those students are with us until they’re 26 – is really astounding,” Webber noted.

“It’s why I will always fight for public education and why I believe so much in our public, community schools.”

With 120 staff members serving about 150 special education students from nine western Wayne County districts, “it shows you the level of need there,” Webber said.

“I’m really proud of that, having never (previously) served in a district or a community with a center-based program.”

As for STEAM – the aforementioned Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics program which was a key component of the May 2 bond proposal – students in grades K-12 ultimately will tap into five key learning disciplines.

“I think the big thing that pops is our attention to STEAM,” Webber said. “That was a big feature of our bond. … The experience of our kids are about to have at the (elementary) level is going to be absolutely phenomenal. It’s really a continuum of services that goes for 12 years.”

Physical improvements which were touted in the bond proposal will take some time to begin materializing, such as canopies above the main entrances at all schools as well as new bleachers at the Eight Mile Stadium.

But Webber said the 73-percent approval for the bond proposal indicates most Northvillians won’t be too impatient to start seeing those kinds of results.

“We asked the community to put their faith and trust in us in a bond. People worked really hard on that. This community has consistently invested in their kids. And to me, that’s one of the things that makes it an absolute pleasure to serve here,” he said.

Regardless of progress on bond-proposal projects, Webber noted a number of curriculum enhancements which will welcome students in early September.

At Northville High School will be an expansion to the multimedia class, for example.

“The way people create and consume information now is very different than when you and I came up,” Webber stressed. “Small video bits, using podcasts.”

With the multiple modes of technology such as iPhones, tablets, laptops and more comes an important job for educators at every level – helping students better communicate and connect with each other.

Teachers and paraprofessionals will each receive what Webber described as two days of “capacity building” -- namely beefing up their own skillbuilding in order to parlay that new knowledge to youngsters.

“It’s how do we learn to listen to each other, how do we learn how to speak with each other in ways that we do things with each other, and not to somebody or for somebody,” he continued.

Another enhancement at the high school will be Virtual Learning, to assist students who are still not completely comfortable with attending full days of school in the post-Covid world.

“The positive out of Covid is we got better on-line instruction,” Webber said. “But I will always argue there’s no substitute for being with a great teacher together and building community. But it doesn’t work for everybody.”

Also launching at the high school will be an orchestra program, which took root over the past three years at Hillside and Meads Mill middle schools.

“That gave it time to grow, rather than saying ‘We’re going to do orchestra in grades 6-12,’” Webber said.

At the middle school level will be math support and Peer Link Physical Education offerings, the latter which will pair students with special needs with students from the general population.

“That teaches so many great things around empathy, care and relationship-building,” Webber said. “And that’s what we’re about here.”

The district will continue to focus on providing family wellness initiatives for families, staff members and students who need it who may be facing difficult mental-health issues “or require additional support academically and emotionally,” Webber said.

A longtime culture of “high accountability, high support” is what Webber said attracted him to the Northville job when it became available in 2022.

The district is exploring ways to increase its outreach with families who might need their children to receive additional guidance and direction.

Bringing in college interns who are looking to log enough hours (500) to receive social worker certification is one aspect. Another is setting up an office to foster improved outreach efforts.

Webber said the district is all-in on having family outreach efforts join its academic and athletic programs among the very best in Michigan.

“If you look, we’re in the top five every year in both,” he chimed. “We won three state championships last year. However, excellence is also determined by how we take care of each other and how we make sure people are well. And this is obviously a very stressful world. Our kids have so many expectations on them and the parents want the best for them. And teachers have their own pressures.”

Webber also wanted to chime in about his 2022-23 record on calling multiple “snow days” and how he hopes parents aren’t holding those sometimes-errant decisions against him.

“I had to call six snow days,” said Webber, smiling. “I want to thank the community for being kind. I wish I didn’t have to call that many. I know the kids weren’t upset with me, but it puts a burden on parents.”

Yet he and the rest of a sixperson team likely would make the same calls all over again.

“I will always err on the side of caution, because I think of those 16-year-old drivers we have going to the high school,” Webber concluded. “We have 2,400 kids at our high school and I worry about them on the roads without driving experience.”

Caution about weather is understandable. But for education itself, with RJ Webber at the NPS wheel, it looks good that the path ahead for youngsters will continue to be onward and upward.

The first day of the 202324 school year for Northville Public Schools is Tuesday, Sept. 5th.