Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Job Vacancies within York Public Schools

York Public Schools is currently advertising for five teachers. All vacancies are due to retirement. Interested applicants are encouraged to visit www.yorkpublic.org in order to fill out application materials. A resume, cover letter, and credential file will also need to be sent in to fulfill a person's candidacy.

We will advertise for at least one more week. On Monday, January 31st the administrative team and I will begin to review applicants and to make plans to interview throughout the month of February. Applicants that turn in materials after January 31st will continue to be analyzed and considered as well.

Go Dukes!

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Tremendous In-Service Day

"Tremendous" and "in-service day" don't typically get used in the same sentences. However, yesterday at York High School was the best day of professional learning I've ever been associated with!

Steve Joel, Karen Haase, and Barry Carlson made up our all-star cast of main session speakers. Our four break-out sessions were headed up by YPS staff, ESU 6 personnel, and other special guests. The ideas on student engagement, technology integration, NeSA preparation, vocabulary acquisition, student diversity, etc. were wonderful and easy to implement.

Thank you to everyone who made the day a huge success.


Thursday, January 13, 2011

THE "OLD" MIDDLE SCHOOL

Mr. George Duncan from Meadville, Missouri has purchased the old middle school with a cash offer of $25,000.

We have found that Mr. Duncan and his associates have several companies that are listed with the Secretary of State in Missouri and all are listed in “good standing” from what we’ve been told. He has indicated to us that he wants to buy the building to present to a group of investors that may want to pursue a nursing school or apartment complex.

Dave Connelly, the realtor, has made sure Duncan understands that any future use of the facility must get approval from the City due to its zoning, etc. Mr. Duncan has “flipped” properties in the past as he has bought some buildings and then turned around and re-sold them at a profit. I assume he may try that in York if he is unable to get the facility developed into something.

The school district received bids this past summer on what demolition and excavation would cost of the facility and it came to over $700,000. By selling this building, we are able to get it on the tax ledger and shave close to $50,000 of annual expenses.

YPS maintains ownership of the land north of the old middle school where the football field, track, and baseball fields are.

Friday, January 7, 2011

School Safety

We are all very saddened by the tragic events at Millard South earlier this week. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all of those negatively impacted by the shootings. I am sure school administrators all over the country have taken time yet again to review their lock-down and evacuation policies. I know we have in York. We continue to dedicate time each year to reviewing these policies so we can be prepared as much as possible for intruders, gunmen, etc.

Schools are full of helpful people for any student that would need to reach out for support.

Have a great weekend and let those you love know how much they mean to you!

Monday, January 3, 2011

Professional Development

York Public Schools is excited to have our annual in-service day on Monday, January 17th. It is shaping up to be a wonderful day with lots of great presenters, breakout sessions, etc.

* Dr. Steve Joel, superintendent of Lincoln Public Schools, will jump start our day at 8:00 AM with a 45-minute talk about the importance of public education, being lifelong learners, etc.

* We will then have breakout sessions on technology integration, state assessments, student wellness, behavior interventions, effective instruction, early childhood, autism awareness, and more.

* Cornerstone Bank is providing a sandwich bar for our lunch.

* We've invited our parochial school colleagues as well.

We're excited to model the importance of "lifelong learning" and to pick up some tips that will make our classrooms even better places for our students to learn.