#HighlanderNation 01.28.21

School Board Recognition Month - January is School Board Recognition Month. I am so thankful for our team of school board members. They are focused on making us better while supporting our students, staff, and families. This year they have been faced with numerous challenges and very difficult decisions. I am thankful for their thoughtful and steady approach during these extraordinary times. 

Jan Stewart - it is with very mixed emotions that I share with the team that Jan will be retiring at the end of this school year. Jan has been an integral part of our district for more than 20 years. Her caring approach, knowledge, professionalism, and attention to detail set the bar for our organization. Quite simply, she is the best. I feel fortunate to have worked with her for these past 5+ years. I am happy and excited for her to begin this next chapter of her life - I know time with grandchildren will be a priority. Please join me in wishing Jan the very best.

Executive Director of Finance - I am delayed with formally introducing Nicole Reinhardt as our new Executive Director of Finance. Nikki comes to us from Lenawee Intermediate School District. She received a BS in Accounting and Business Administration from Houghton College (NY) and an MBA in Finance from Rochester Institute of Technology (NY). She is also MSBO Business Office Manager Certified. Nikki is a great addition to the Central Office team and has already made some great changes with our processes and procedures. Please join me in welcoming Nikki to the Highlander team.

Supervisor of Facility Use - we recently posted and hired for a new Supervisor of Facility Use. To this end, please join me in welcoming John Brennan to the team. John is a 2015 Howell graduate, attended Hillsdale College, and recently completed his Masters in Sports Management. The purpose of this position in the short-term is to get the Highlander Aquatics and Fitness Center back online. After this, John will be coordinating use of all of our facilities by external groups.

Half days moving to distance learning - I continue to meet with the district Task Force to monitor the various aspects of our school operations during this very challenging school year. One of the decisions that came out of this group this week is to transition to distance learning for our two remaining half days on Friday, February 12, and Friday, April 23. These days will now be asynchronous distance learning days for all students while maintaining our flexible PD offerings. Additional details will be provided by Elson and your building principal.

Waiver of Certain Assessment and Accountability Requirements of the Federal Every Student Succeeds Act - recently, our State Superintendent Dr. Rice requested the federal government waive certain aspects of the accountability system (i.e. spring assessments). Given the dynamics of this year, I am hopeful this is approved. For your information, public comment is open on this request - more information is included in this MDE memo. Moreover, it would be refreshing to use this disruption to rethink our current approach to assessing students - from both a state and local perspective. We certainly need to assess how our students are progressing on standards, however, our current emphasis on traditional assessments needs to be reevaluated.

Howell Education Foundation (HEF) Classroom Grants - as a reminder, the HEF is ready to help with your creative instructional ideas that need a financial boost. To this end, please consider applying for a classroom grant. The grant application can be viewed by clicking here.