Hello Parents, Guardians, and Web site Visitors,
Welcome to the 2010-2011 school year! I am beginning my eleventh year as your Superintendent, and I am looking forward to serving your children and our two communities again this year.
As you know, we have a very special place here, because we constantly focus on supporting and educating your children based on their individual needs. Over the past several years, I have presented the following challenge to every one of our staff members: "Every single day, every moment of the day, every child is better off because of his or her interactions with every staff member." This will continue to be our theme.
I am sure you have read newspaper articles and heard news broadcasts about the challenging budget situation for schools throughout the state. Large numbers of layoffs are taking place, programs being dropped, and class sizes are increasing to balance budgets as school districts receive less state aid. Fortunately for our children, our school district has no layoffs, no reduction in programs, and class sizes remain some of the lowest in the area. All staff members and a great School Board of nine elected officials have helped make us even stronger by expanding programs and adding staff members in spite of the budget challenges.
Our overall enrollment continues to increase. This year, we had a large number of fifth and sixth grade students. Consequently, the School Board added an eighth section of fifth and sixth grade. As we begin the third year of our 4-year-old preschool program, the enrollment and interest continue to be very strong. This past year, we had 167 students in the preschool program, and we are anticipating another large number of students for this upcoming school year. Kindergarten teachers are already noticing the positive impacts of the preschool program as the children move into kindergarten.
Our school district will be one of the seven districts in southeastern Wisconsin selected to participate in an innovative pilot program called STEM. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. Combining the STEM program with the second year of Project Lead the Way (pre-engineering), as well as 14 advanced placement high school courses, will result in a continued strengthening of the achievement success of our students. Our parent and booster clubs have been a great asset for our district and have been responsible for assisting us in becoming a beacon of educational success, developing highly skilled students with strong character and citizenship.
In conclusion, we have some very exciting times ahead during this 2010-2011 school year for our students, parents, and communities. Thank you for your support and assistance, and feel free to contact me if I can be of any assistance. Your children are in good hands in this very special place.
Best regards,
Michael R. Weber, Ph.D.
Superintendent of Schools
Port Washington-Saukville School District
