Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Has The Flu Gone Away?
Our attendance is back to normal this week, but we don't need to get complacent. The flu is now wide-spread across the state and although we had it run through the school a few weeks ago doesn't mean it will not reappear its ugly head. We are still encouraging parents to remind the students of safe practices to prevent the spread of viruses. Wash your hands or use sanitizer. All classrooms have sanitizer and there is a wall mounted dispenser next to the cafeteria serving line. Cover your cough. It is everyones responsibility to keep others safe and not to expose them to airborn infections. Keep your children at home if they have a fever. I understand that both parents have to work in many families and there is no one to watch the kids, but sending sick children to school jeopardizes the welfare and safety of everyone.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Thayer Meets All Standards on Annual Performance Report
The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education released the preliminary APR, Annual Performance Report, today for school districts in Missouri. Thayer is proud to announce that the school has met all 14 standards which qualifies them to be classified as being accedited with Distinction In Performance. This will make the fourth consecutive year that Thayer has recieved such an honor.
The APR is used in the Missouri School Improvement Program to track performance of school districts. The report is broken down into 14 indicators. Six of the indicators deal with MAP, Missouri Assessment Program, test scores broken down into grade spans. The MAP data in Mathematics and Communication Arts is used to determine if a district has met a standard established by the State Board of Education.
In addition to the MAP scores, additional indicators include: ACT scores, Advance Course Offerings, Career Eduation Courses, College Placement, Career Ed Placement, Graduation Rate, Attendance Rate, and Subgroup Achievement.
Thayer School District will under go a MSIP review this March. District undergo reviews every five years. We are proud of the hard work our parents, students, and teachers have given to this school system.
The APR is used in the Missouri School Improvement Program to track performance of school districts. The report is broken down into 14 indicators. Six of the indicators deal with MAP, Missouri Assessment Program, test scores broken down into grade spans. The MAP data in Mathematics and Communication Arts is used to determine if a district has met a standard established by the State Board of Education.
In addition to the MAP scores, additional indicators include: ACT scores, Advance Course Offerings, Career Eduation Courses, College Placement, Career Ed Placement, Graduation Rate, Attendance Rate, and Subgroup Achievement.
Thayer School District will under go a MSIP review this March. District undergo reviews every five years. We are proud of the hard work our parents, students, and teachers have given to this school system.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Welcome Alumni
Thayer School's administration and staff welcome alumni and visitors to our homecoming activties. School will be dismissed at 11:45 on Friday so that the we can prepare for the parade to be held downtown starting at 2:00. I hope that everyone can attend. We anticipate a large crowd for the football game against Miller which kicks off district play. There is plenty of parking at the football field, high school parking lot and the elementary parking lot. Parking fills fast, so if you want to park close to the field you must arrive early.
We have been seeing our attendance from the recent flu concerns continue to improve. This morning, Thursday, October 15th, our attendance at the high school is normal at 94% and the elementary school is at 92%.
We have been seeing our attendance from the recent flu concerns continue to improve. This morning, Thursday, October 15th, our attendance at the high school is normal at 94% and the elementary school is at 92%.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Attendance Picking Up
Attendance at Thayer Schools continues to improve. It appears that we have seen the number of children sick start to decline from the peek last Friday. Today, October the 14th our morning attendance rate is at 91.2% at the high school and 90% at the elementary school. We continue to ask the parents to monitor their children and not to sent them to school with a fever. Keep children home for an additional 24 hours after the fever breaks.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Flu Update
This week has started off better than we ended last week. Today, October 13th, our attendance rate is at 87% at the High School and 89% at the Elementary School. This is up significantly from hitting 79% last Friday. Please read the posts below to help keep our schools and your children safe.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Flu Information
The flu bug seems to be hitting the area sooner than expected. We have been trying to keep students and parents informed about the flu and the precautions you can take. Unfortunately, we still have children coming to school with a temperature. The nurse has been sending those students home. Please do not send sick children to school. Wait at least 24 hours after the fever breaks.
The public health agencies have given us guidance that unless the number of sick students reaches 20% schools should remain open. This week we have been running about 85% attendance. But we are unsure how many have the flu, seasonal allergies, or other reasons for missing school. We will continue to monitor the situation.
Unfortunately the health agencies are not testing for the flu and are not keeping us up to date on the actual numbers of flu cases. I know that we must have some from the symptoms, but we have not been informed of any confirmed cases by the health department.
Fortunately, the symptoms do not appear to be very severe or long lasting. The symptoms we are seeing is a cough and temperature that lasts two or three days. This appears to be much milder than expected and from my visit with a physician the cases in the county are much milder than the seasonal flu and a little worse than a common cold. Once a child has had this they should have enough antibodies developed to prevent reoccurance.
A word of caution. If after the fever breaks and things are getting back to normal, continue to monitor your children. If they continue to cough seek medical attention, secondary conditions may exist.
For now we are taking precautions to keep our school functioning as usual. Here are a few things you can do to help.
· Teach your children to wash their hands often with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub. You can set a good example by doing this yourself. In order to kill viruses hand sanitizers must contain at least 60% alcohol. Caution should be exercised to prevent young children from consuming hand sanitizers
· Teach your children not to share personal items like drinks, food or unwashed utensils, and to cover their coughs and sneezes with tissues. Covering up their coughs or sneezes using the elbow, arm or sleeve instead of the hand when a tissue is unavailable.
· Know the signs and symptoms of the flu . Symptoms of the flu include fever (100 degrees F or greater), cough, sore throat, a runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, and feeling very tired. Some people may also vomit or have diarrhea.
· Keep sick children at home for at least 24 hours after they no longer have fever or do not have signs of fever, without using fever-reducing drugs. Keeping children with a fever at home will reduce the number of people who may get infected.
· Do not send children to school if they are sick. Any children who are determined to be sick while at school will be sent home.
For more information visit www.flu.gov or call 1-800-CDC-INFO. We will notify you of any additional changes to our school's strategy to prevent the spread of flu.
Sincerely,
Rod Priest
The public health agencies have given us guidance that unless the number of sick students reaches 20% schools should remain open. This week we have been running about 85% attendance. But we are unsure how many have the flu, seasonal allergies, or other reasons for missing school. We will continue to monitor the situation.
Unfortunately the health agencies are not testing for the flu and are not keeping us up to date on the actual numbers of flu cases. I know that we must have some from the symptoms, but we have not been informed of any confirmed cases by the health department.
Fortunately, the symptoms do not appear to be very severe or long lasting. The symptoms we are seeing is a cough and temperature that lasts two or three days. This appears to be much milder than expected and from my visit with a physician the cases in the county are much milder than the seasonal flu and a little worse than a common cold. Once a child has had this they should have enough antibodies developed to prevent reoccurance.
A word of caution. If after the fever breaks and things are getting back to normal, continue to monitor your children. If they continue to cough seek medical attention, secondary conditions may exist.
For now we are taking precautions to keep our school functioning as usual. Here are a few things you can do to help.
· Teach your children to wash their hands often with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub. You can set a good example by doing this yourself. In order to kill viruses hand sanitizers must contain at least 60% alcohol. Caution should be exercised to prevent young children from consuming hand sanitizers
· Teach your children not to share personal items like drinks, food or unwashed utensils, and to cover their coughs and sneezes with tissues. Covering up their coughs or sneezes using the elbow, arm or sleeve instead of the hand when a tissue is unavailable.
· Know the signs and symptoms of the flu . Symptoms of the flu include fever (100 degrees F or greater), cough, sore throat, a runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, and feeling very tired. Some people may also vomit or have diarrhea.
· Keep sick children at home for at least 24 hours after they no longer have fever or do not have signs of fever, without using fever-reducing drugs. Keeping children with a fever at home will reduce the number of people who may get infected.
· Do not send children to school if they are sick. Any children who are determined to be sick while at school will be sent home.
For more information visit www.flu.gov or call 1-800-CDC-INFO. We will notify you of any additional changes to our school's strategy to prevent the spread of flu.
Sincerely,
Rod Priest
Career Ladder
Career Ladder is at risk of being eliminated due to budgetary constraints. The teachers across the state and here in Thayer receive up to an additional $5,000 a year for participation in career ladder which, if eliminated, would have a huge impact on our teaching staff.
Career Ladder provides additional pay to teachers who take on extra duties. The state pays approximately 45 percent of Career Ladder funding on average, In Thayer the state pays approximately 65% with the district paying the remaining 35%.
One problem with the way the state funds for Career Ladder, is that appropriations for the program has always been in the year following the year that the teachers have already put in the extra time. Teachers are therefore unsure of whether they will receive pay for the work they completed in the previous year.
State statute says that funding for the Career Ladder Program is to be placed in a “Career Ladder Forward Funding Fund,” so that teachers can receive compensation for their work. The fund was created in 1995 to try and end the practice of funding the program retroactively, but no action has been taken by any legislature to follow through with proactive funding.
Sen. Nodler said that legislators and budget analysts will have a better idea of available funding after a Consensus Revenue Estimate (CRE) is released in December. Sen. Nodler yesterday recommended that the best way to fix the practice of retroactive Career Ladder funding would be for the governor to ask for funding in his supplemental budget, which is traditionally proposed towards the beginning of each legislative session to address budget issues that were not passed or were not funded to the level of being sufficient for the whole year. “I am asking Governor Nixon to make clear to teachers and school districts in the supplemental budget process whether or not it is his intention to fund the current year’s Career Ladder Program in whole or in part,” said Sen. Nodler.
“Career Ladder funding for the current school year depends on several important questions: Do we have the money to fund the program, and, if we do, then how do we do it?” said Sen. Nodler. “If the governor believes there is enough revenue available to pay for some or all of this year’s Career Ladder expenditures and will request a supplemental appropriation, then I will support it, and I will vote for it.”
Career Ladder provides additional pay to teachers who take on extra duties. The state pays approximately 45 percent of Career Ladder funding on average, In Thayer the state pays approximately 65% with the district paying the remaining 35%.
One problem with the way the state funds for Career Ladder, is that appropriations for the program has always been in the year following the year that the teachers have already put in the extra time. Teachers are therefore unsure of whether they will receive pay for the work they completed in the previous year.
State statute says that funding for the Career Ladder Program is to be placed in a “Career Ladder Forward Funding Fund,” so that teachers can receive compensation for their work. The fund was created in 1995 to try and end the practice of funding the program retroactively, but no action has been taken by any legislature to follow through with proactive funding.
Sen. Nodler said that legislators and budget analysts will have a better idea of available funding after a Consensus Revenue Estimate (CRE) is released in December. Sen. Nodler yesterday recommended that the best way to fix the practice of retroactive Career Ladder funding would be for the governor to ask for funding in his supplemental budget, which is traditionally proposed towards the beginning of each legislative session to address budget issues that were not passed or were not funded to the level of being sufficient for the whole year. “I am asking Governor Nixon to make clear to teachers and school districts in the supplemental budget process whether or not it is his intention to fund the current year’s Career Ladder Program in whole or in part,” said Sen. Nodler.
“Career Ladder funding for the current school year depends on several important questions: Do we have the money to fund the program, and, if we do, then how do we do it?” said Sen. Nodler. “If the governor believes there is enough revenue available to pay for some or all of this year’s Career Ladder expenditures and will request a supplemental appropriation, then I will support it, and I will vote for it.”
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