Constructing Dreams: Moorhead Schools welcomes students for new year
September 1, 2016
This is an exciting time for Moorhead Area Public Schools. It’s time to welcome our students back to school, and I hope you are as excited for this year as I am. Last year, we worked together with our community to provide new facilities and learning spaces for our growing school population. We had planning and design discussions with parents, staff and students. Our goal is to have all our buildings ready for our future students and their learning. We’re ready as teachers, administrators and support staff to build on this success in the 2016-17 school year.
Our district is in a good period of growth. Our estimates show about a 1.5% to 2% growth in student population. Our staff members are working hard to make sure all students have the best learning environments and prepare for the transition to new and remodeled buildings. We are dedicated to making sure all students have their best year and are prepared for the next step in their educational program.
Next year we will open two new buildings. Dorothy Dodds Elementary School will be home to kindergarten through grade 4 students. Horizon Middle School West will be a wonderful place for students in grades 5-6 to learn and thrive. I know we have a lot of work to do. Our work will take patience, creativity, discussions and thoughtfulness, but together we will be ready to open the schools for all our students next fall.
We have developed community partnerships to provide mental health support services for students. These partnerships are vital for our students and our school community. All of our elementary schools and Horizon Middle School are part of a framework for responsible school citizenship called Positive Behavioral Intervention and Supports or PBIS. This framework provides instruction for responsible behavior in our school environments and celebrates the positive behaviors in school. We are committed to providing safe and caring environments for all students. We also want to model the kind of caring and respectful society we want for all our students.
We have worked this summer to update the offices in the three elementary schools to provide a secure entrance with a new visitor management system for visitors to check in and out of the school. We will have more information in the next few weeks regarding these updates and new system. We are fortunate to have dedicated and hardworking individuals who provide the guidance and grit to get these projects completed for our students.
We all have to work together, but we truly believe the mission of Moorhead Area Public Schools is to develop the maximum potential of every student to thrive in a changing world. I hope families have an opportunity to visit our schools and see the great work our teachers and staff members have done to prepare for the 2016-17 school year. We are ready to have a great year as we are constructing dreams.
Sincerely,
Dr. Lynne A. Kovash
Superintendent
Moorhead Area Public Schools
Categorized under: School