School Reporter

Developingcitizensofintegritywhoexcelinandbeyondtheclassroom

School ReporterSummer2009

Superintendent’s Message

ThankyoutoallthosewhohavehelpedbringFarmingtonArea

PublicSchoolstothisimportantpointinourhistory.

Page 2

What’s Inside

Foundation Awards Grants

TheFarmingtonAreaEduca-tionFoundationawardedabout

$10,000ingrantsforprojectsthroughoutDistrict192.

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District Calendar

Checkoutimportantdatesandupcomingeventsatschoolsand

districtwide.

Page 8

Student-Author .............. Page 7

This article originally appeared as a Blackboard Article in the Farm-ington Independent newspaper. Additional Blackboard articles are available online at www.farming-ton.k12.mn.us/news.

Tech integration aims to enhance learning The2009-2010schoolyearisbringingsomechanges tohow technology isbeingtaught in Farmington’s elementary class-rooms. The restructuring of staffing duetotheopeningofthefifthelementarypro-videdsomeof the impetus for integratingtechnologyintoeveryteacher’sclassroom.This provides an exciting opportunity to

connect 21st century skills into authenticlearningforstudents. Ourstudentsare21stcentury learn-ers. Technology advances have broughtcomputers intovirtuallyevery schoolandhome. Technological literacy becomes animportantelementforourstudentstode-velop. They need to learn not only how

technologyworks,but itsusesandconse-quences. Our students must also developthe ability to adapt in an ever-changingtechnology-basedenvironment.Theschoolsystem must play an imperative role inadaptingtokeeptomorrow’s leaderstech-

Ribbon-cutting,dedicationcelebrationsslated Four District 192 schools will cel-ebrate their new identities in Septemberwithdedicationceremonies.

Riverview Elementary School–previous-lyFarmingtonMiddleSchoolEast–willbeunveiled in conjunction with the school’sopenhouseonSept.3at6p.m.

Levi P. Dodge Middle School–previous-ly Farmington Middle School West – will

have itsdedicationceremonyonMonday,Sept.21at6p.m.justpriortotheschool’sBacktoSchoolNight.

Robert Boeckman Middle School –locat-edattheformerFarmingtonHighSchool–willbededicatedonTuesday,Sept.22at6p.m.,alsoinconjunctionwithitsBacktoSchoolNight.

Finally, the ribbon cutting ceremony and

public open house for the new Farming-ton High School isscheduledforSunday,Sept.20at2p.m.TheceremonyhelpskickoffHomecomingWeekattheschool.

Watch formoredetailson theschoolanddistrict Web sites – www.farmington.k12.mn.us-orbysigningupforSchoolhouseE-News at www.farmington.k12.mn.us/news/enews.htm.

Saying Goodbye

Kindergarten Center teacher Diane Titusdahl says goodbye to her students on May 28, the last day of school in District 192. After 15 years serving kindergarten students, the facility will be home to community education and special education classes next fall. Kinder-garten will join grades 1-5 at all five elementary schools.

FHSgraduateisnamedMcKnightDistinguishedArtistfor2009 The McKnight Foundation hasnamedMinnesotatheaterproducer,direc-tor, designer, actor and 1957 FarmingtonHighSchoolgraduateBainBoehlkeasthe2009 McKnight Distinguished Artist, inrecognitionofartisticexcellencespanning

more thanfivede-cades. The annualhonor, now in its12thyear, includesa $50,000 cashaward and recog-nizes individualMinnesota artistswho have madesignificant con-tributions to thequalityofthestate’scultural life. Boe-

hlkeisthefoundingartisticdirectoroftheJungleTheaterinMinneapolis. “TheworkandsingularspiritofBainBoehlke have left a lasting imprint onMinnesota’stheatercommunity,”saysKateWolford,presidentofTheMcKnightFoun-dation, “Under his leadership, the JungleTheater has earned a national reputationfor artistic integrity and excellence. TheJungle’s contributions have also long sup-ported healthy community developmentalong Lake Street, one of the Twin Cities’most vital commercial and cultural corri-dors.” Fordecades,Boehlkehasbeenacon-stant, catalytic leader in the Twin Citiestheaterscene.Amonghispriorawards,hehas received theMcKnightFellowship forTheaterArtsin2001;wasnamedBestAc-torof2006bytheStarTribuneforhisroleofArtieShaughnessyinTheHouseofBlue

About This Article

Bain Boehlke

Technology............................. Page.3

Boehlke................................... Page.3

Superintendent’s Message

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High School Construction Update

School Board meetings are held onthe second and fourth Mondays of eachmonth with some exceptions for holidaysorotherevents.Meetingsregularlystartat6:30 p.m. in the Farmington High SchoolLittleTheater,800DenmarkAve.Afulllistof meeting dates for the 2008-09 schoolyearisavailableonlineatwww.farmington.k12.mn.us. Agendas, meeting information,minutes, streaming video and the BoardReview are available online. Regularmeetingsof theSchoolBoardareopentothepublicandattendeesmaycommentonanyagendaitemorspeakduringaspecificPublicCommentsectionofthemeeting.

SchoolBoardMeetings

Bob Heman, ChairTerm ends Jan. 1, 2011

John Kampf, Vice-ChairTerm ends Jan. 1, 2011

Julie McKnight, ClerkTerm ends Jan. 1, 2013

Julie Singewald, TreasurerTerm ends Jan. 1, 2013

Tim BurkeTerm ends Jan. 1, 2013

Veronica WalterTerm ends Jan. 1, 2011

You can contact board members by e-mail at [email protected].

School Board

Brad Meeks, Superintendent

District 192 Mission

Statement

The mission of

Farmington Area

Public Schools, as

a dynamic learning

community, is to

develop citizens

of integrity

whose passion

for continuous

learning ensures

they excel in a

global society.

Signs installed, equipment moving WithintwodaysaftergraduationonMay29,boxeswerebeingmovedintothenew Farmington High School. Over thesummer,nearlyanentireschool’sworthofbooks,chairs,microscopes,andequipmentwillbemovedfrom800DenmarkAvenueto20655FlagstaffAvenue. Althoughthevastmajorityofactionistakingplaceinsidethebuilding,changescanalsobeseenontheexterior.Signshavebeeninstalled,includingtheonethatwel-comes visitors on Flagstaff Ave. Turf hasalso been installed on the stadium field,andthetrackwillbepouredlaterthissum-mer. For more information, pictures, andtour dates, check the Web site at www.farmington.k12.mn.us/newfhs.

Follow the progress on the new Farmington High School,

including board meeting updates, financial information and photos,

all online at www.farmington.k12.mn.us.

Independent School District 192421 Walnut Street

Farmington, MN 55024

Phone: ...............................(651) 463-5000Fax: ...................................(651) 463-5010E-Mail: [email protected]: ..............www.farmington.k12.mn.us

TheSchool ReporterisapublicationofFarmingtonAreaPublicSchools.Contact

AaronTinklenberg,communicationsspecialist,withquestionsorcommentsat

(651)[email protected].

About This Publication

A time to reflect and say ‘Thank You’!IntheMay2009editionofthehighschoolnewspaperProwler Press,theheadlinereads,“CenturyofProgressforFarmington.”Althoughourdistricthasbeenimmersedinatremendousamountoftransitionthepastfiveyears,therealfactofthematteristhatgrowthhasbeenpartoftheFarm-ingtonfabricforthepast100yearsandthereisn’tanyindicationthatthisisgoingtochangefortheforeseeablefuture.Forthosetriviabuffsoutthere,thepopulationofFarmingtonin1920was1,449comparedtothealmost20,000residentswhocallFarmingtonhometoday.Asevidencedbyitshistoryinourcommunity,educationisahighlyvaluedresourcethatthepublichasbeenwillingtosupportandinvestinwiththeirtimeandmoney.Withtheopeningofthenewhighschool,afifthelementaryschoolandtheotheraccompanyingchanges,thiscommitmenttoedu-cationisaliveandwellinDistrict192.

Withtheconclusionofthe126thCommencementExercisesforthisyear’sseniorsonMay29,anotherincredibleyearisinthebooksforFarmingtonAreaPublicSchools.Studentachievementcontinuestoimproveandshine.Professionaldevelopmenthasbecomestrongerasstaffisusingdatatoprovidedirectionandstrategiestoimproveteachingandlearning.Studentinvolvementinextracurricularactivitiescontinuestoshowmorestudentsparticipatingandgettinginvolvedwiththeirschool.Thelistcouldgoonandon.

ChangeandtransitionhavebeenfrequentlywrittenaboutintheSchoolReporterforthepastcoupleofyearsandforverygoodreasons.Thefinishingtouchesonthenewhighschoolwillbewrappingupthissummer,whileremodelingprojectsareunderwayatRiverviewElementary,andRobertBoeckmanMiddleSchool.Theseconstructioneffortswillcompleteamajorityoftheproj-ectsthatwerepartoftheFebruary2005bondreferendum.

Attendanceboundarieswerestudied,analyzedandpresentedtothepublicthispastfallbeforetheschoolboardmadeafinaldecision.RiverviewElementary(formerlyFarmingtonMiddleSchoolEast),LeviP.DodgeMiddleSchool(formerlyFarmingtonMiddleSchoolWest)andRobertBoeckmanMiddleSchool(formerlytheoldFarmingtonSeniorHighSchool)willbecomethenewnamesofschoolsinthedistrict.Morethan250certifiedstaffand74supportstaffwerereas-signedtonewbuildingsfornextyear.Movingplanswereformulatedandstaffspentthepastfewweekoftheschoolyearorganizingtheirroomsanddepartmentsinordertobepreparedforthesummertransitionstonewschools.Dedicationactivitiesarebeingplannedforfall.DatesandtimesareincludedonPage1ofthisSchoolReporter.

Allofthesechangescouldonlyhappenwiththesupport,cooperationandcollaborationofliteral-lythousandsofpeople.Toallofthepeoplewhowerepartoftheseeffortsfromthebondreferen-dumtoworkontheconstructionprojectstoeffortsonboundarychangestopackingtonamingschoolstosimplyofferingakindwordofsupport,IsayTHANKYOUforyourcontributions.Wecouldnothavedoneitwithoutyou.Youreffortsoverthepastfiveyearshavebeenincredibleandtheresulthasbeenthecreationofastrongereducationalfoundation,superbfacilitiesforschoolandcommunityuse,andanopportunitytolearnmoreaboutourselvesaswefacedthesechang-estogether.IwouldalsoliketoextendaspecialthankyoutoFarmingtonCityAdministrator,PeterHerlofskyandtheCityofFarmingtonfortheirefforts,cooperationandpartnershipthesepastthreeyearstoassureasuccessfulhighschoolproject.

Asboxeswerepackedandgood-byesexchangedbetweenteachers,students,parentsandstaffthisspring,therewereafewtearsshedasonechapterofthedistrictclosed.However,smilescamequickly,too,aspeoplelookedtowardfallwiththehope,excitementandanticipationofthenextstageoftheschooldistrict’sjourneyinitscontinuedpushtowardEXCELLENCEandCOM-MITMENTtoourmostvaluedresource.

HaveagreatsummerandIlookforwardtoseeingyouthisfall.

BradMeeksSuperintendent

Clockwise from top left: The school’s east entrance; the sign on Flagstaff Avenue; boxes ready to move from the office at 800 Denmark Avenue

District News

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District News & Notes

Board adopts 2010-11 District calendar

The School Board approved the dis-trict calendar for 2010-11 at its June

8 meeting. Under the calendar, school will start on Tuesday, Sept. 7 and will end June 9. The calendar

also includes a week-long spring break. See all the details at www.

farmington.k12.mn.us/calendar.

Tour the new FHS in July

District 192 will offer two options for getting familiar with the new Farm-

ington High School this July.

Afternoon and weekend tours will continue to be offered for commu-

nity members. Those tours will be led by district or school administrators.

Any community member interested in seeing the new school is invited to

attend.

In addition, special daytime tours will be offered specifically for next year’s high school students. These

tours will be led by students with the help of district administrators, and

will be available two days per week, including every Tuesday.

To see the schedule and register to tour the new Farmington High

School, go to www.farmington.k12.mn.us/newfhs.

Partners in Education award winners named

The Farmington Area Education Foundation announced the winners

of the 2009 Partners in Education Awards in April.

Akin Road Elementary volunteer Kim Donohue was named School Volunteer of the Year; District Vol-

unteer Coordinator Marianne Feely received the Bill Patterson Distin-

guished Staff Member Award; Bill Whittier (class of 1952) was given the

Distinguished Alumnus Award; and Dan Nicolai of Castle Rock Bank was

named Community Partner of the Year.

Facility use fees set for 2009-10 and 2010-11

The School Board has approved in-creases in labor fees related to facil-ity rentals for the 2009-10 Facility Use Fee Table, and rental fee increases

for the 2010-11 Facility Use Fee Table, as recommended by the Commu-

nity Education Advisory Council.

Rental and labor fees had not been increased since the 2004-05 school

year. Board members noted that the stepped approach will help facility

user groups better prepare and plan for fee increases.

The complete fee tables are avail-able at www.farmington.k12.mn.us/

communityed.

nologicallyliterate. Education and technology can pairupto leadtoclassroomsuccess.Ingener-al, technology has a positive influence onlearning. Technology helps build excite-ment for learning and has been found toincreasemotivationforstudents.Teacherswho use technology in the classroom aremore likely to incorporate higher orderthinking strategies and move towards ateaching style that better fits the needs oftoday’schildren. Farmington’sTechnologyIntegrationprogramwillprovideteacherswithlessonsthat provide a foundation of basic skillsfor all students. This will be a consistentcurriculum that every elementary studentwillreceivefromtheirclassroomteachers.

Teacherswillthenbuildonthosebasicsbyintegrating technology into the classroomcurriculum. By doing so, we provide op-portunitiesforstudentstogrowandlearnusingtechnologyinconnectionwithclass-roomactivities. Startinginthe2009schoolyear,moreflexiblelabspacewillbeavailableforteach-erstousethroughouttheschoolday.Insteadofbeingaskilllearnedseparately,studentswilllearnandusetechnologyskillsaspartof their classroom learning. Students willuseExceltomakegraphstosupportmathwork. Students will use Word to publishtheirworkinadigitalformat.PowerPointpresentationswillshowcasestudentlearn-ingfromresearchprojects.Thepossibilitiesareendless. Over the summer months, a teamof 30 teachers will develop the newly ad-

opted curriculum and then provide sup-porttoteacherswhowillbeusingit.Thistechnology integration team met for thefirst timeonMay18andwill continue towork throughout the summer. They willalign technology standards to each gradelevel and write the basic lessons that willreach across the district. As we transitioninto next school year, this team of teach-erswillalsoprovidestaffdevelopmentandother support to their colleagues to makethistransitionassmoothaspossible. Through this process, Farmington’sstudentswillbegivenbroaderopportuni-ties toconnect21stcentury skills to theirownlearningexperiences.Theseauthenticlessonswillbuildexcitementandenthusi-asmforouryoungdigitallearners.

Technology....................from.Page.1

Education Foundation grants support several programs The Farmington Area Education Foundation announced$10,160 ingrants for the2009-10schoolyearat itsannualPart-nersinEducationCelebration,heldApril17.Thegrantsarefor10programsandwillsupportprogramsthroughoutFarmingtonAreaPublicSchools. Thisyear’sgrantwinnersare:

Teaching Music through Performance in Band” series;Amount:$1,100;Requestor:JanetEllingson,FMSEMusicSmartMusicSoftware/Laptops;Amount:$1,000;Requestor:JeffGottwigandCharlesWeise,FHSInstrumentalMusicSafariReal-LifeReadingSeries;Amount:$1,000;Requestor:MonicaSummer,ARESInternational films and compatible DVD players; Amount:$500;Requestor:ReneeKothe,FHSWorldLanguagesElmoDocumentCamera;Amount:$700;Requestor:BonnieJoachim,FESMediaCenter

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ElmoDocumentCamera;Amount:$700;Requestor:NicoleRoach,ARESMediaCenterElmo Document Camera; Amount: $700; Requestor: MaryBethMartin,MVESSaltWaterReefAquarium;Amount:$1,000;Requestor:JulianBuss,FHSScienceCDPlayerswithheadphones;Amount:$480;Requestor:Re-neeSchultz/DianeTitusdahl,kindergarten2Know!StudentResponseSystem;Amount:$2,980;Request-or:DebWeimelt,MiddleSchools

FarmingtonAreaEducationFoundationgrantsareintendedtohelpbridgethegapbetweengovernmentaidandincreasedneedfor innovative programs. The Foundation is supported throughprivatedonationsfromDistrict192employees,residentsandotherindividuals.Formoreinformationaboutthisyear’sgrantwinnersortheFoundation,gotowww.farmingtonedfoundation.org.

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Leaves; and the Jungle received the SallyOrdwayIrvineAwardin1992.OfBoehlke’saccomplishments,JungleboardchairJohnSullivan says, “Bainhasbeenanunselfishcontributortoboththeartsandthebroad-ercommunity,fromgenerouslysharinghistheatercraftwithyoungactorsonthestagetocommittingtoTheJungleTheaterbeingthecornerstoneofavitalLyn-Lakeneigh-borhood.” In 18 seasons, Boehlke has directed,designed sets, or appeared in most of theJungle’s 80-plus productions, which in-cludeLongDay’s Journey IntoNight,BusStop,FoolforLove,HouseofBlueLeaves,ALifeintheTheater,LobsterAlice,UnderMilk Wood, Gertrude and Alice, TorchSongTrilogy,Speed-the-Plow,andTheGinGame.In1996hewasalsofeaturedas“Mr.Mohra”intheOscar-winningCoenbroth-

ersfilmFargo. Born in Warroad in 1939, Boehlkewas one of two children born to parentswhowerebothteachers.Inthelate1950s,Boehlkeandclassmatestookoveranaban-doned barn to produce two seasons ofsummer theater. As a student at the Uni-versityofMinnesota,hereceivedtheawardforbestundergraduateactorbeforejoiningthearmyandleftMinnesota. HiscareerhasincludedworkwiththeChildren’sTheaterCompanyinMinneapo-lis, the Arizona Theater Company, Louis-villeChildren’sTheater,andHonoluluThe-aterforYouth. In1990hereturned toMinneapolis,andestablished the Jungleat the intersec-tionofLyndaleandLakeStreet.Afteropen-ing in 1991, the intimate, 99-seat JunglequicklybecameafocalpointforTwinCit-ies’ theater, spurring neighborhood rede-velopmentaswellasculturalcommunion.

“I wanted a storefront theater wherewecouldhaveasmallspace,dosimplepro-ductions,andlavishalotofcareonthem,”Boehlke has said. “I think of a rose. Youdon’t need a bigger rose to enjoy it. Sizeisn’ttheissue;it’stheintegrityoftheartisticexperience.” In early 2009, Boehlke began a one-yearsabbaticalfromtheJungle.Abouthistimeaway,Boehlkehassaid,“It’sessentialto have the freedom to withdraw. If youholdontoanythingtootightly,itsmothers.”Sofar,hehasrevisitedtheAmericanSouth-west,theCaliforniacoastandHawaii,eachamarkerofearlierjourneysandremindersoftheroadthathasbroughthimtotoday.HeintendstoreturntotheJunglein2010witharenewedandclarifiedfocus.“Idon’tthinkintermsofretirement,”BoehlkesaidtotheStarTribuneearlierthisyear.“Ithinkintermsoftransformationandchange.”

Boehlke.......................... from.Page.1

Elementary schools receive reading instruction grants Four Farmington elementary schools will offer additionalreadingsupportforstudentsnextyearthankstograntawardsfromtheMinnesotaReadingCorps.Thegrantswillprovide full-timeliteracy tutors during the 2009-10 school year to Meadowview,AkinRoad,NorthTrailandFarmingtonelementaryschools. The Minnesota Reading Corps is an AmeriCorps initiatetohelpeveryMinnesotachildbecomeasuccessfulreaderbytheendofthirdgrade.TheprogramplacesAmeriCorpsmembersinschoolsitestoprovideone-on-onetutoringandresearch-basedin-terventionstostudentswhoarestrugglingwithreading.

“It is aprivilege tobepartof thisgrantprogram from theMinnesota Reading Corps,” said Christine Weymouth, assistantsuperintendent for educational services. “Engaging our studentsinmeaningfulrichliteracypracticeisaveryimportantgoalforourschooldistrict.Thisgrantwillhelpclassroomteacherstostrength-enandenrichallliteracyopportunitiesforourstudents,enablingustoengageourstudentswherenecessaryinonetooneinstruc-tion.” FormoreinformationabouttheMinnesotaReadingCorpsprogram,goonlinetowww.minnesotareadingcorps.org.

The District 192 Art Show was held April 30 at Farmington Middle School West. The annual show features works by students in grades 1-12 as well as demonstrations. Hundreds attended the 2009 show. See more photos at http://ow.ly/4COB.

Art on Display

District News

Page 4 Page 5

Along with it being graduation day for Farmington High school seniors, May 29 was also moving day – or at least ‘packing day’ – for many District 192 staff members. With the high school moving to a new fa-cility, the creation of Boeckman and Dodge middle schools, and opening Riverview El-ementary at the current Middle School East, more than half of the district’s teachers will have a new home next fall.

Clockwise from top: Fiona Keel prepares her room to be moved to Boeckman Middle School; social studies teacher Jon Holmes will be at the new Farmington High School along with the District’s ninth-grade stu-dents; FHS video production teacher Mark Toutge works on dismantling an entire TV studio; teachers used clear signs to mark items that were to be moved.

MovingDay

Proposed budget aims to open schools, maintain staffing AttheJune8BoardMeeting,FinanceDirectorJeffPriesspresentedapreliminarybudget proposal for 2009-10. Mr. Priessnoted that the budget is built on severalrevenue assumptions, including expectedenrollment growth of 160 students, statefunding that remains flat (current law),and receiptof federal stimulusmoney forspecialeducation. General fund (operating) expensesnext year total $56,822,385. Priess notedthatabout87%ofdistrictexpensesarere-latedtoemployeesalariesandbenefits.Ma-jor changes in next year’s budget includeadditionalstafffortheopeningofthenew

Farmington High School and RiverviewElementarySchool,anadditionof6.0FTE(full-timeequivalent)licensedteachingpo-sitionstoaccommodateenrollmentgrowthand maintain class sizes, and additionalcoaching positions related to the creationof two middle school athletics programsforsomesports. Thebudgetaspresentedalsoreflectsstaffing reductions of 2.0 administrativepositions and 1.0 clerical position in theTeaching&LearningDepartmentandtheMaintenance Department. Those reduc-tions were enacted this year and will becarriedoverto2009-10.

Aspresented,theproposedbudgetisbalanced between revenue and spending.Priessnotedthat,ingeneral,theproposedbudget represents an effort to maintaincurrentprogramsandclasssizeswhilealsoopening the new high school and River-viewElementarySchool. Moreinformationabouttheprelimi-narybudgetpresentationisavailableonlineatwww.farmington.k12.mn.us/budget. State lawrequires theDistrict toap-prove a budget for 2009-10 before July 1.The School Board was expected to act onthe budget at its regular meeting on June22.

ThreetechbidsawardedforFHS The School Board approved threetechnology-related contracts for the newhighschoolatitsMay11meeting,includ-ingcomputerpurchases,videoproductionlighting,andinstructionaltechnology. The contract for classroom instruc-tional technology materials that includeclassroomprojectionsystems, theschool’svideo head end, and monitors for thevideobulletinboardwasawardedtoTier-neyBrothers,Inc.District192technologymanager Julie Toner said that the districtdeliberatelywaiteduntillateintheprojecttogooutforthesebidsbecausetechnologyitems generally come down in price overtime.Shesaidthedecisionseemedtopayoffbecausethedistrictwillbeabletofur-nish83classroomswithprojectionsystems,andprovideadditionalsystemsthatcanbesharedormovedfromroomtoroom. The contract is in the amount of$363,937.24forthebasebidand$5,201.25foradditionalprojectorcarts. AlphaVideowasawardedacontractintheamount$39,889forthepurchaseandinstallationoflightingforthevideobroad-cast studio in thenewhigh school.Tonernoted that this lighting bid was separatefrom the general electrical bid because ofthespecializednatureofstudiolighting. Finally, the School Board approvedthepurchaseof405DellOptiplex760com-puterswith19-inchmonitorsandS-VideocardsfromDellComputerswithaunitpriceof$883.15foratotalof$357,675.75foruseatthenewFarmingtonHighSchool.

Children who qualify may receive special education services FarmingtonAreaPublicSchoolspro-videadditionalassistancetostudentswithspecialneedsasmandatedundertheIDEA’04FederalLaw.Specialeducationservicesareprovidedfrombirthtoage21.Anystu-dentattendingapublicorprivateschooliseligible tobeevaluatedby the schooldis-trict. Students who have speech, vision,hearing,physical,behavioral,learning,de-velopmentalproblemsoraspecificcondi-tion which may cause difficulty in schoolsuchasAttentionDeficitDisorderorAu-tism,maybeeligibleforservices. Currently, students in kindergar-ten through 12th grades identified as ex-hibiting difficulty can be referred to theirschools’ Intervention Team by parents/

guardians,teachersoradministration.Theteamwillprovideinterventionstobeusedintheclassroomtohelpthestudent.Ifthestudentcontinuestohavedifficultyandtheparentagrees,anumberof tests,observa-tionsandassessmentswillbegiven.Ifthestudent’sscoresmeetthecriteriasetbytheMinnesota Department of Education, thestudent is eligible for special educationservices.WhenastudentiseligibleateamwouldmeetanddevelopanIndividualizedEducationPlan(IEP)toaddresstheneedsofthestudent. Ifyouknoworsuspectthatyourchildhasadisabilityandisnotyetinschool,youmaycall(651)463-5066totalkwithMarciaBorka,EarlyChildhoodIntakeCoordina-

tor. If a child meets the criteria for EarlyChildhoodSpecialEducationthenanIndi-vidualized Family Support Plan (IFSP) orIEPisdeveloped. Costsforspecialservicesaredefrayedthrough federal funds received for specialneedsstudents.Theschooldistrictfollowsthestateandfederalguidelineswhenapply-ing forspecialeducation funding.Federallaw also provides for additional trainingofstafftokeepthemcurrentonthe latestadvancesandtechniquesforworkingwithchildrenwithspecialneeds. Anyonewishing further informationmaycallDr.CarlaNohrSchulz,DirectorofSpecialServicesat(651)463-5020.

Page 4 Page 5

Graduation 2009

Classof 2009

Asthelastclasstograduateat800DenmarkAve.celebrated

commencement,weaskedpeoplewithstrongtiestothefacilitytosharetheirthoughts

andmemories.

Movingintothenewhighschoolasafreshmanwaswonderfulandexciting

becauseitwasallnew.Thenewnessandadditionalfacilitieswerewonder-

ful.Itwasnewtoallfourgrades,soitwasalevelplayingfield.Everyone

wasonthesameunfamiliarboat.

Acoupleofmyfavoriteteachers,TerryHolmesandChuckHansen,

justretiredandone,GaryAbrams,isstillteaching.Mydaughterhadallthreeoftheseteachersandmyson

hadone.Ilovethatwe’vesharedthatexperience.-Julie McKnight

Current Board Member and Class of 1978 Alumna

IlovethattheMediaCenterhasbe-comeameetingplace—agathering

place—forstudentsinthemornings.WhenIfirstcamehere,itwasseldomvisited,andnowstudentscomehereoftentomeet,workandsocialize.It’s

alivelyplaceinthemornings.- Wendy Larson

FHS Media Specialist

Highlightsformeincludethegraduations,ToysforTownand

proms.Whatresonateswithmeisnottheeventsthemselves,butthe

studentswhomadethoseeventshappen.It’sthepeopleandhuman

interactionsthatmadeeachdayexcitingandmemorable.

- Former Principal Monica Kittock-Sargent

Ireallyenjoyedworkingwiththeprincipals.Ivisitedtheschoolatleast

weeklyandwouldstoptovisitwiththeteachers,custodiansandcooks.

Isnatchedacookieandacupofcof-feewheneverIhadthechance!

-Robert BoeckmanFormer Superintendent

Ithinkit’ssweetthatwe’rethelastclassinthehighschool.It’skindof

cooltothinkthatIscoredthelasttouchdownontheFarmington

footballfield.-Derek Waldbillig

Class of 2009

Ithinksometimespeopleunderesti-mateus,andIthinkthenewschoolwillboostourconfidence.Itwillbe

cooltohavesomethingthatrep-resentsourgrowthandshowsthat

we’removingforward.-Abigail Graham

Class of 2009

Parting Words

School News

Page 6

Are schools closed because of weather?

When can I provide input on the District budget?

When is the Fall Play this year?

How can I contribute to Farmington Area Public Schools?

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Stay informed - Stay engaged

Stay on top of what’s happening with your schools through e-mail. Sign up at www.farmington.k12.mn.us/news.

SchoolhouSe e-newS

FHS junior named to All-State Choir

Farmington High School junior Tara Castellano has been named to the All-State Women’s Choir. All-state selections are made through an au-dition process that involves hundreds of singers.

As part of the choir, Tara will partici-pate in a six-day instructional camp held at Concordia College in Moor-head in August, and will perform at the Minnesota Music Educations Convention in February 2010. Two FHS students named to All-State bands

Two Farmington High School instru-mental music students were se-lected to participate in the 2009-10 All-State bands. Junior French horn player Annie Kezar was named to the All-State Symphonic Band and junior trombonist Josh Huot-Gallus was named to the All-State Jazz Ensemble.

Auditions were held statewide for membership in these prestigious groups with hundreds of instrumental students auditioning. Both students will attend All-State camp this sum-mer and the groups will perform at the Minnesota Music Educators Con-vention in February 2010.

District teams fare well at state DI tournament

The two Regional Champion Desti-nation Imagination teams from Dis-trict 192 competed and placed very well at the State Tournament held in Chaska on Saturday, April 18. The Shooting Stars from Mead-owview Elementary placed third. Team members include: Victoria Almquist, Jordan Anderson, Austin Hegele, Jacob Herrera, Madeline Oines, Kyle Smith and Pieper Walton. The Shining Stars from Farmington Middle School East placed fourth in their division. Team members include: Kathryn Almquist, Brittany Baertsch, Amanda Burrell, Jessica Herrera, Kelli Kariampuzha and Mi-chaela Robertsdahl.

FHS Environmental Club

The SEE (Schools for Energy Effi-ciency) Program and FHS science teachers, Zach Howard and Julian Buss, have joined forces to create the high school’s first Environmental Club. Over 30 students have signed up to participate in the club’s initial year, which begins in September.

Through environmental activities, field trips, group projects and ongo-ing energy monitoring, students will investigate the way energy is used in our community and how we can become conservationists and good stewards of the world.

Students interested in participating can contact Mr. Howard at [email protected]..

News & Info

Meadowview students excel at regional science fair Seven Meadowview students re-ceived ribbonsat the regional science fairinMankatoonMay2,includingfourwhoearnedtop-level(purpleribbon)honors.Studentsearningribbonswere:

PurpleRibbon–TopHonorsCarrie King, third grade, “ChemicalReactions:Isitanacidorabase?”MikaylaClark,fifthgrade,“IsitFasterto Head Food Separately or Togeth-er?”PieperWalton,fifthgrade,“CanIDefy

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GravitybyPouringFourDifferentLiq-uidsSideways?”Paula Asmus, fifth grade, “Does SaltAffect Floating and Sinking in Wa-ter?”

BlueRibbon–SecondHighestHonorsCarl Asmus, third grade, “WhichHousehold Item Uses the Most Elec-tricity?”

RedRibbon–ThirdHighestHonorsKayla Petersen, fourth grade, “What

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PottingMaterialWorksBestforStart-ingSeeds?”Amiral Khondker, fifth grade, “WillSolarEnergyBeUsedtoPowerCarsintheFuture?”

Science fairs are an opportunity forstudents topractice thescientificmethod.Throughtheirindividualprojects,studentsinvestigate and conduct an experimentin an area of their interest. Photos of theMeadowview science fair are available attheMVESWebsite.

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MelvillenamednewFHSassistantprincipal Farmington High School namedBeckyMelvilletofillanewassistantprin-cipalpositionthisweek.Thepositionwascreatedtosupporttheincreaseofstudentswhen ninth-graders join the school nextfall, which will bring the school’s enroll-menttonearly1,700. Melville joined Farmington AreaPublicSchoolsinJuly2007andiscurrentlythe director of Teaching & Learning. She

hasbeenresponsibleformyriadprogramsandprojects,includingassessment,profes-sional development, and curriculum re-view.PriortojoiningFarmingtonschools,Melville was a social studies teacher andadministrativeinternatHopkinsNorthJu-niorHighSchool. “I am very pleased that Becky willbe joining the staff of Farmington HighSchool,” principal Ben Kusch said. “She

bringsagreatknowledgeofthedistrictandawidevarietyofideasandexperiencesthatwillhelpusachieveourvisionofFHSasaworldclassinstitution.” Melville holds a bachelors degreefrom Hamline University. She earned hermastersdegree, educational specialist cer-tificate, andadministrative licensure fromtheUniversityofMinnesota.ShewillbeginhernewpositiononJuly1.

Farmington High School students who are part of Community Education’s Youth Development program helped sort food on May12 at a Dakota Electric warehouse. The food was donated as part of the US Postal Service’s Stamp Out Hunger food drive, and collected by mail carriers on Sat-urday, May 9.

The students worked with many other com-munity volunteers, and the effort was orga-nized by Farmington Food Shelf coordina-tor Imelda Becker.

Helping hands

North Trail’s Jack Olwell recognized as ‘Top Teacher’ by Fox 9 RobyneRobinsonandFox9NewsvisitedNorthTrailEle-mentarySchoolonApril14topresentphysicaleducationteacherJack Olwell with a Fox 9 Top Teacher award. The school held asurpriseassemblytomaketheannouncement.Mr.Olwellhasbeenteaching for 31 years in Farmington schools, and has been rec-ognizedbymanyorganizationsrecently,particularlyforhisworkdevelopingaLiteracyinPhysicalEducationcurriculumthatusesphysicalactivityincombinationwithliteracyskillbuildingtoim-provereadingscoresforstrugglingstudents.Mr.OlwellreceivedtheFarmingtonEducationFoundationDistinguishedStaffMem-berAwardin2008,andistheFarmingtonEducationAssociationTeacheroftheYearfor2008-09. The Fox 9 Top Teacher awards are given to nine teachersthroughthestate.Winners’schoolsreceivea$900checkforschoolsuppliesfromM&IBankandaSubwaylunchpartyforupto100people.Fox9airedthenewssegmentonApril14,at5p.m.,9p.m.and10p.m.,andagainduringtheApril15morningnewscast. Congratulations to Jack for all his work and dedication toFarmingtonstudents.

North Trail physical education teacher Jack Olwell addresses stu-dents and staff after being presented with a Fox 9 Top Teacher award this spring.

School News

Page 7

Athletics News

Hussing leads boys at state track meet Farmingtonsentsixathletestotheboys’statetrackandfieldchampionshipsthisspring,andtheteamfinished11thoverallbe-hindjuniorLoganHussing’sthird-andseventh-placefinishesinthediscusandshotput,respectively.Hussingeffortearned11oftheTigers’22teampoints. Otherresultsincluded:

JoshZitzmann,110MHurdles,6thPlaceJosh Jackson, 110M Dash, 8th Place and 200M Dash, 8thPlaceMikeAmofah,LongJump,8thPlaceDerekWaldbillig,AdamSturm,JoshZitzmann,JoshJackson,4x200M,9thPlace

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Fall Sports Important Dates

It’snevertooearlytostartplan-ning for the upcoming 2009-2010school year and official start datesfor Fall 2009 athletics programs.HerearesomeimportantFall2009dates:

Tuesday,Aug.4,2009:FallReg-istration,6p.m.atFarmingtonHigh School (Please note that

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the Fall Registration Meetingwillbeat thenewFarmingtonHigh School, 20655 FlagstaffAvenue.)Monday,Aug.17:OfficialStartDateFallHighSchoolathleticsprograms.Monday,Aug.31:OfficialStartDateFallMiddleSchoolathlet-icsprograms

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Thursday,Aug.27:Firstvarsitygame on the new Tiger Stadi-um,girls’soccervs.Winona,5p.m.

The 2009-10 Athletics Regis-tration Packet will be available byJuly1.Finditonlineatwww.farm-ington.k12.mn.us/athletics or atFarmingtonHighSchool.

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Fifth-grader’s novel published AkinRoadElementaryfifth-graderBenHeckmannbecameapublishedauthorthisspring,andexperiencedalittletasteofcelebrityat thesametime.Hisbook“VelvetBlack” -whichhebothauthoredand illustrated-waschosenforpublicationbyKidPub.comandcameoutinApril.Hisworkearnedhimfeature-storyinterviewswithfournewspapersandapackedhouseforareading/concertonApril25atTheUglyMugcoffeeshoponPilotKnobRoad. “Basically,IthinkI’mprettylucky,”Bensaidabouthissud-denfame. Hisnovelisthestoryofanewkidatschoolwhofindshis

placebytryingoutforagarageband.Itstartedwithdrawingsofguitarplayers,whichledtocharacterprofilesoftheseyoungrockers,andeventuallybuiltintoanovel.Benhadtogothroughamonths-longeditingprocesswithKidPub.comeditorsbeforefinallyseeinghisworkinprint. “ItwasmoreworkthatIeverthoughtitwouldbe,”hesaid. Apparently,theworkpaidoff.Bensignedmorethan150copiesat theUglyMugreadingandeventually thebooksoldout. There’s no resting on his laurels for the young author,though.“Ialreadyhaveideasforasecondbook,”Bensaid.

AdvisoryCouncilmembersneeded Farmington Community Educationiscurrently seekingresidentvolunteers toserve on its advisory council during the2009-2010schoolyear. Thecouncil’sroleistogiveadvicetothe professional staff of the CommunityEducationDepartmentaboutitsprograms,services,plansandbudgets.Councilmem-berswillrepresentthediversityofthecom-munityandhelpstafffocusprogramsandservicesontheneedsofthecommunity. Theadvisorycouncilwillalsorecom-mend an annual Community Educationbudgetforadoptionbytheschoolboard. Members of the Community Educa-tionAdvisoryCouncilareaskedtoattendmeetings, be active participants in dis-cussing issues, represent their particularsegment of the community while keepingthegreaterneedinmind,andtakepartincommitteesorspecialprojectsaccordingtointerestandtime. The council meets six to eight timesduring each school year, generally on thesecondThursdayofeachmonthat6:30p.m.intheCommunityEducationCenter,6100195thSt.inFarmington.CallCommunityEducationDirectorHeidiCunninghamat(651)460-3200formoreinformationortovolunteer.

www.farmington.k12.mn.us/athletics

Girls’ relay team sets school record at state The Farming girls’ track team also had six athletes qualifyforthestatechampionships,andthe4x800MrelayteamofJackieBeckett,MariaKiminshki,NicoleClifton,andKaitlinMincketookthirdplacewithaschool-recordtimeof9:27.49. Minckealsowrappedupsixth-placeinthe800Mwithatime2:18inthefinals,andpolevaulterKatrinaFitzgeraldfinishedfifthatthemeet,clearing10-09. Overall,theTigersfinishedin20thplacewith17points.

Senior golfer Werner takes 11th at state FarmingtonseniorGregWernercardedroundsof76and77tofinishinafive-waytiefor11thplaceamong88contestantsatthe2009ClassAAAstategolfmeet this spring.Werner’s strongshowingfollowedamedalistfinishattheSectionmeetaweekear-lier,whereheshotaneven-par73inthefinalroundtowinby3strokes. WernerwasthefirstTigertoqualifyforthestategolfmeetsince1999.

By May 23, workers had finished installing most of the artificial turf on the Farmington High School stadium field. The surface was installed instead of natural grass to allow for increased usage. Athletics Director Jon Summer has estimated the field will be used ten times as much as the current Tiger stadium, including fall and spring sports practices, competitions, marching band, and physical education classes.

Fieldinstalled

Ben Heckmann (left) and band mate Vincent Donohue played to a packed crowd on April 25 at The Ugly Mug. The concert was part of a book-signing event for Ben’s novel “Velvet Black”.

District CalendarJune

School Board meeting, 6:30 p.m., Boeckman Middle School Little Theater, 800 Denmark Ave.

Community Education presents ‘Wall-E’ as part of Dew Days celebration, 10 a.m., Boeckman

Middle School auditorium, free

July

School Board meeting, 6:30 p.m., Boeckman Middle School Little Theater, 800 Denmark Ave.

August

Athletics Registration Night, 6:30 p.m., Farm-ington High School, 20655 Flagstaff Ave., more details at www.farmington.k12.mn.us/athletics

Schedule/Picture Day, 10 a.m., Boeckman Middle School and Dodge Middle School

Schedule/Picture Day, 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Farmington High School, 20655 Flagstaff Ave.

September

Farmington Elementary School open house, 3:30-5:30 p.m.; Meadowview Elementary open

house, 3:30-5:30 p.m.; North Trail Elementary open house, 5-7 p.m.

Akin Road Elementary open house, 3:30-5:30 p.m.; Riverview Elementary dedication ceremo-

ny and open house, 6 p.m.

First Day oF school

Farmington High School Ribbon-Cutting Cer-emony and Grand Opening Celebration, 2 p.m.,

20655 Flagstaff Ave.

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Onward and UpwardTheFarmingtonHighSchoolclassof2009participatedincommencementonMay29asthefinalgroupofstu-dentstograduatefromtheschoollocatedat800Den-markAvenue.Asthe359graduatesmoveontothenextphaseoftheirlives,sentoffwithguidancefromfacultyspeakerRonWilliams(right),FarmingtonHighSchoolit-selfismovingontoitsnewhomeat20655FlagstaffAve.nextfall.SeemoregraduationphotosonPage5.

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OPEN SWIM: Monday-Friday

1-3 p.m.Admission - $3 per person

SWIM AT THE FARMINGTON

INDOOR POOL!!!

Registeratwww.FarmingtonCE.com

or(651)460-3200

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District 192 news and info, now delivered InanefforttomakefindingnewsandinformationaboutDistrict192

moreconvenient,FarmingtonAreaPublicSchoolsisnowonTwitterandFacebook.YoucanfollowtheDistrictatwww.twitter.com/district192orbe-comeafanonFacebookbysearchingforFarmingtonAreaPublicSchools.

Thegoalistomakeitasconvenientaspossibleforpeopletokeeptrack

oftheirpublicschools.WithFacebookandTwitter,residentsdon’thavetomakeanextrastopattheDistrictWebsitetoseethelatestheadlinesand

getremindersaboutupcomingevents.