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Funding Public Education

It is that time of year when Nebraska’s Unicameral convenes to consider, debate, and take all necessary action to form new legislation and settle on a state budget. At some point, State Senators participate in conversations that focus on property taxes and funding public education. I have been a superintendent for several years, and the common themes surrounding the funding of public education traditionally include school spending, a heavy reliance on property taxes, and the state of Nebraska’s contribution to education as compared to all states across the nation. There has been finger-pointing, the alarming willingness to alter facts, and a commitment to undermine board members who have been elected by their constituents to make decisions for their school district. This version of Supts On is intended to offer specifics regarding the condition of a budget for Gibbon Public Schools. I do not intend to point a finger; however, I do wish to highlight the reality of our particular situ

Professional Learning Communities

Regardless of the occupation, keeping up with current trends, learning new skills, staying abreast of rules and regulations, and mastering new techniques are behaviors exhibited in all successful organizations.  Finding time when you can train staff on new techniques, introduce new skills, or learn changes to existing practice is always a challenge.  This challenge exists in the world of education as well.  Providing ongoing training for educators is absolutely critical to build knowledge and skill in the use of technology, curriculum development, instructional practices, classroom management, and keeping abreast with changes to federal and state accountability measures.  Time is required to provide training experiences so educators can build these skills, and time is necessary for teachers to collaborate with their peers on effective practice.   Gibbon Public Schools will be implementing a concept called Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) to provide that needed time.  Expert

Thundering Herd

It has been a few weeks since I offered a SUPTs On and I apologize for failing to connect with you prior to today. However, Gibbon Public Schools has been very busy participating in planning activities designed to enhance the learning environment and educational experiences for EVERY member of our family. Since our last edition of SUPTs On, parents, students, community members, teachers, and our board of education have developed a Strategic Plan, created a collaborative planning process, and increased the number of voices involved in decisions that impact our school district and our wonderful community. The next several editions of SUPTS On will highlight decisions made through this collaborative effort, and we want to emphasize initiatives that will be implemented during the 2018-19 school year. The reason for this approach is connected to communication and informing the community how new initiatives will impact the school district. All decisions are aligned with best practice and r

Supts On! - April 4, 2018

Gibbon Public Schools is taking a serious look at the protocols and procedures associated with School Safety. This serious look involves revisiting language and expectations for students and staff, reviewing information for different drills and our response to each situation, and setting the stage that being familiar with our safety protocols and procedures is the responsibility of our entire family. Students and Staff. The past two weeks, representatives from our safety and crisis teams presented information on Gibbon Public School’s Standard Response Protocol to staff and secondary students. Our goal is to strengthen our approach to school safety while increasing the level of knowledge connected to the Standard Response Protocol. Reviewing information is the first step. Practicing different scenarios will be our next step, and learning from each time we practice a drill will help us improve procedure and protocol. On March 28th,  we practiced our processes and protocols associate

Continuous Improvement - Calendar Change

The Gibbon Public Schools is committed to continuous school improvement and dedicated to raising the level of academic performance required of all students. Providing professional development where educators are trained in the areas of unpacking academic standards, creating a strong curriculum, identifying levels of performance expected of all students, and developing classroom assessments to determine that students achieve the level of performance established for them is absolutely critical in the support of this commitment. We share this information because a change in the district calendar will take place to offer the time necessary for quality professional development. April 11, 2018, was originally scheduled as a 1:00 p.m. dismissal for school improvement. The change, there will be NO SCHOOL on April 11th so that our education family can participate in a full-day of professional development in the areas mentioned above. We value your support and appreciate your patience while w