R OUNTREE N EIGHBORHOOD N EWS V OLUME 5, ISSUE 5
D ECEMBER 2008
City Manager Talks Sales Tax Vote with RNA December 16th Mark your calendar for 7 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 16th. That’s when Springfield City Manager Greg Burris will give a presentation to Rountree residents and answer your questions on the proposed one-cent city sales tax increase that will go to city voters Feb. 3. The presentation will take place in the Rountree Elementary School cafeteria. The city is requesting the sales tax increase to rescue the grossly underfunded police and fire pension plan.
This issue has been controversial. The vote will be important. EVERYONE IS ENCOURAGED TO ATTEND THIS MEETING!
And, mark your calendar also for the first general membership meeting of the new year—Monday, January 19th. I NSIDE
THIS ISSUE :
Chair’s corner
1 2
Neighborhood Clean up update
3
P ICKWICK U PDATE
3
Rountree Elementary news
4
RNA B OARD
4
RNA M EETING
V OLUME 5,
ISSUE
5
P AGE 2
C HAIR ’ S CORNER — BOB KEYES R OUNTREENEWS . ORG IS BACK One of the keys to a strong neighborhood - or any community - is good communication. So we’re pleased to announce the Rountree Neighborhood Web site Rountreenews.org is once again up and running. Rountree Neighborhood Association Board members have preached for months among ourselves - about the importance of Rountreenews as a communication tool. Now that it’s back, here’s a reminder of what it can provide: 1: The quarterly Rountree newsletter. We will continue to deliver the paper newsletter to your door. But in case you lose it, or want to view a back copy, we’ll post and archive the e-newsletter on the Web. 2: The ongoing neighborhood survey. We’ve been conducting this quality of life questionnaire door-to-door now for several months. Thanks to those who have responded. To those who have not, please take a minute to fill it out on-line. 3: Background on the association, its bylaws and standing as an Urban Conservation District. 4: Photos that celebrate the special occasions in the neighborhood. Please share them. 5: A boundary map of the association. 6: Direct links to Web sites for Rountree Elementary School, Jarrett Middle School and Parkview High School and, we hope, occasional input from students and staff from those schools. 7: Contact information for those with concerns or good news about the neighborhood.
What else? That’s where you come in. How can we use Rountreenews.org to share the important things that make Rountree such a great place to live? A special thanks to resident Lincoln Whisler who helped us ramp up the old Web site and has agreed to help with occasional maintenance. Happy holidays and all the best in 2009! Bob Keyes Chairman Rountree Neighborhood Association 865-8321
V OLUME 5,
ISSUE
5
P AGE 3
N EIGHBORS TOSS TONS OF TRASH Rountree residents surrendered more than 16 tons of trash and recyclable scrap metal during the neighborhood’s first-ever cleanup, funded by the City of Springfield and coordinated by Community Partnership-Caring Communities. The Sept. 20 cleanup lasted about six hours as load after load of useless household items and building material was tossed into industrial-sized dumpsters and hauled away. Rountree Neighborhood Association thanks the city and Caring Communities for providing this valuable cleanup free of charge. We look forward to another such event. RNA trash cleanup ... by the numbers:
Number of households served - 122 Number of loads dumped - 179 Number of industrial loads - 4 Total tonnage - 16.67 Number of flatbed trailers for scrap metal - 3 Number of volunteers - 8 Number of volunteer hours - 30
Cherry-Pickwick Improvement Update Cherry and Pickwick project wrapping up! City of Springfield Senior Planner Randall Whitman reports that the city’s work at the Cherry and Pickwick intersection is nearly complete. The last task for construction crews is to stamp and paint crosswalks – which should take place soon. We thank the city for its work on this project and hope residents will reward the patience of area shops and businesses with their continued patronage—especially during the holiday season.
V OLUME 5,
ISSUE
5
P AGE 4
Rountree begins new chapter in learning next fall By David Martin—Principal Rountree Elementary School
I’m excited to share some details on the Rountree Elementary School “International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme,” or PYP, which begins here next school year. PYP is the elementary component of the International Baccalaureate program which is designed to foster the development of the whole child. For more information on the program go to www.ibo.org/pyp/ PYP was initiated four years ago at Boyd and Field elementary schools and remains successful at both sites. The program helped attract more families to the schools’ surrounding neighborhoods, contributed to reductions in school discipline and increased student engagement. We are hoping for similar results at Rountree. Springfield Public Schools also offers an IB “Middle Years Programme” at Pipkin Middle School; Central High School offers the high school IB program. PYP at Rountree will not require a specific curriculum be taught. Rather, it will provide a framework of five essential elements: concepts, knowledge, skills, attitudes and action. The knowledge component is developed through inquiries into six themes of global significance, supported and balanced by six subject areas. Teachers will receive special training that focuses on inquiry-based teaching and learning. This will emphasize the development of inquiry skills and nurturing of inquiring attitudes or habits that inspire students to seek knowledge throughout life. The first group of Rountree teachers will attend PYP training in January. Remaining teachers will attend training next summer. This promises to be an exciting chapter in Rountree’s history. Thanks to the teachers and parents who supported our PYP proposal, and thanks to the school board for funding PYP.
Keep watching the RNA newsletter for periodic PYP updates. Call me at 523-4900 with any questions.
Rountree Neighborhood Association Executive Board for 2008 Chair: Bob Keyes Vice Chair: Ken Reese Secretary: Elizabeth Johnston Treasurer: Sara Hollis Member-at-Large: Jeff Barber Member-at-Large: Patricia Norton Member-at-Large: Gary Keoppe