Echoes from Cañon
Our Core Beliefs
1. We meet the social-emotional needs of all students, putting Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs before Bloom’s Taxonomy.
2. We believe learning growth matters most, requires risk-taking, and the work we do in our schools has the greatest impact on this.
3. We’re future-focused, believing the development of certain traits and skills will best prepare our students for ever-changing careers.
4. We emphasize what is good for kids over the needs and comfort of adults.
1. We meet the social-emotional needs of all students, putting Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs before Bloom’s Taxonomy.
2. We believe learning growth matters most, requires risk-taking, and the work we do in our schools has the greatest impact on this.
3. We’re future-focused, believing the development of certain traits and skills will best prepare our students for ever-changing careers.
4. We emphasize what is good for kids over the needs and comfort of adults.
Our Core Beliefs in Action
Some of this year's Gateway to College graduates met with the Board of Education in April.
On Monday evening the Cañon City School District Board of Education will be on hand in Pueblo to present its 2019 Cañon City High School Gateway to College graduates with high school diplomas. We'll be extremely proud as Alexis Burns-Manley, Nicholas Jackson, Nautica Jamieson, Ashley Key, Cassandra Kingery, Serina-Lin Lopez, Isaac Samples, Austin Steffens, and Jewel Orser cross the stage, each with a bevy of college-level credits to boot. These incredible students overcame many personal challenges to reach this milestone, and have benefited tremendously by Pueblo Community College's commitment to this program. Gateway to College is a national program sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, serving just over 3,600 students per year. It provides vulnerable youth opportunities to earn a high school diploma while on a pathway to postsecondary success. The program values relationships and support systems for all. In 2017-18, 172 school districts participated in 32 programs across 18 states. Incredibly, the average Gateway graduate takes with them 20 college-level credits. Cañon City High School is fortunate to have access to this program, thanks to Pueblo Community College. In 2018 168 PCC-Gateway students, with an average entry grade point average of only 1.78 achieved an average 2.50-grade point average thereafter and amassed an average of 23 college credit hours per graduate.
The Abbey Events Center was packed for this year's Workplace Learning Banquet!
CCHS Manufacturing and Machining Instructor Jake Hogan demonstrates a piece of updated equipment.
This week it was reported four of our precision machining students earned NIMS Level 1 certification in Measurement, Materials, and Safety. This qualifies for the Colorado Department of Education's Career Development Incentive Program. This was made possible by the outstanding progress Cañon City High School Manufacturing and Machining Teacher Jake Hogan is making in modernizing his programs. Thank you, Mr. Hogan!
On Wednesday evening we held our annual Workplace Learning banquet, and we sure have a lot to be proud of on this front. PaICE Coordinator Lisa Tedesko reports we had 71 participants in the program, 61 who successfully completed at least a one-quarter long internship. Of our nearly 100 regional business partners, 60 hosted interns. Our final count of successfully completed internships for the 2018-19 school year was 122.
On another workforce learning front, Cañon City High School-Pueblo Community College Vocational Automotive instructor John Duston reports his CCHS students have earned a total of 84 Pueblo Community College credits, 50 ASE Certifications, 364 Subaru University Certifications, 63 Snap-On Certifications, 435 Valvoline Certifications, and a variety of 11 other industry certificates. Amazing!
On Wednesday evening we held our annual Workplace Learning banquet, and we sure have a lot to be proud of on this front. PaICE Coordinator Lisa Tedesko reports we had 71 participants in the program, 61 who successfully completed at least a one-quarter long internship. Of our nearly 100 regional business partners, 60 hosted interns. Our final count of successfully completed internships for the 2018-19 school year was 122.
On another workforce learning front, Cañon City High School-Pueblo Community College Vocational Automotive instructor John Duston reports his CCHS students have earned a total of 84 Pueblo Community College credits, 50 ASE Certifications, 364 Subaru University Certifications, 63 Snap-On Certifications, 435 Valvoline Certifications, and a variety of 11 other industry certificates. Amazing!
Our Future Focus
Cañon City High School graduate Yumiko Sakamoto was one to the keynoters at the Workplace Learning Banquet.
Though the end of the school year is already upon us, Assistant Superintendent of Schools Adam Hartman and his instructional team have already put together an outstanding Professional Development Fair to be held when we all return from summer break. Key to this effort is also a comprehensive plan for supporting building and district level professional development twice per month on upcoming early release Fridays planned in our 2019-20 school calendar.
With our preliminary budgeting process behind us, we were able to focus on wrapping up certified and classified negotiations.
On Tuesday, May 14th representatives from the Cañon City Education Association met with representatives from the Board of Education and Administration to negotiate certified staff compensation. The process was once again positive and a tentative agreement was reached regarding the award of experience steps, the level at which the district supports licensed staff health benefits, and our continued need to focus on the overall fiscal health of the district.
With our preliminary budgeting process behind us, we were able to focus on wrapping up certified and classified negotiations.
On Tuesday, May 14th representatives from the Cañon City Education Association met with representatives from the Board of Education and Administration to negotiate certified staff compensation. The process was once again positive and a tentative agreement was reached regarding the award of experience steps, the level at which the district supports licensed staff health benefits, and our continued need to focus on the overall fiscal health of the district.
CCHS-PCC Automotive students were not only good at amassing turkeys this year, they gathered an amazing number of college credits and industry certifications.
On April 15th and again on May 16th, representatives from the Cañon City Educational Support Personnel Association met with representatives from the Board of Education and Administration to finalize contract language negotiations and negotiate certified staff compensation. The process was quite positive and a tentative agreement was reached regarding the process for notifying staff of position assignments, annual work calendars and holidays to be recognized, employee experience steps, and the level at which the district supports certified staff health benefits. It was also agreed options will be explored to improve entry-level compensation for secretarial, and crafts and trades employees, and an interim committee has been established to study how we might best incentivize employees to work in our most challenging positions.
Bond Progress
On Monday, May 20th we'll hold our Washington Elementary new school construction groundbreaking ceremony on the playground to the east of the current school. We encourage the entire community to attend and to arrive around 10:00 AM because parking in the area will be limited.
The ceremony will begin at approximately 10:30 AM, with completion slated around 11 AM, and will include a traditional Cañon City High School Color Guard presentation, a set of student speakers, an address by Board of Education Vice-President Lloyd Harwood, and a performance by the Washington Warblers.
The ceremony will begin at approximately 10:30 AM, with completion slated around 11 AM, and will include a traditional Cañon City High School Color Guard presentation, a set of student speakers, an address by Board of Education Vice-President Lloyd Harwood, and a performance by the Washington Warblers.
We had a standing-room only crowd at our May 13th board meeting, mostly because many amazing students were being honored for their accomplishments.
Last Week
On Friday in Arvada, a team of CCHS educators presented the work they have accomplished toward measuring student learning through capstone projects.
On Monday we gathered K-5 technology teachers to plan for their future roles. We also held a board work session and regular meeting, during which many outstanding students were honored and our preliminary budget was presented and accepted. On Tuesday we conducted certified staff compensation bargaining, then shifted our attention to a district leadership team meeting. On Wednesday I turned my attention to expulsion hearings and attended our annual Career and College Connections Banquet. On Thursday I facilitated the final gathering of this year's Leadership Cañon cohort and participated in classified staff compensation negotiations. On Friday was in Denver with a team of Cañon City High School staff for a Colorado Education Initiative Assessment for Learning Project culminating meeting.
This Week
Assistant Superintendent Adam Hartman presents CCSD's Student Empowered Learning (SELF) Framework to participants of Leadership Cañon.
I'll start my work week with an early morning meeting with folks from RLH Engineering, our Owner's Representatives. We'll then hold our Washington Elementary groundbreaking ceremony, and I'll end the day by first going to Pueblo for the annual Gateway to College graduation, before returning in time for the Farewell Pops where we'll honor our state championship Encore crew. On Tuesday I'll hold a SAC meeting, host a Fremont County Regional Manager's Meeting, conduct an expulsion hearing, attend the annual classified association barbeque, and attend CCHS Honors Night. Wednesday includes another expulsion hearing, a meeting about district psychologist services, a meeting about our new School Health Professionals grant, and our CCHS HomeBiEd program annual banquet. On Thursday all effort points toward our Cañon City High School graduation ceremony. On Friday I'll focus on end of school year office work.
Thanks for listening once again!
George S. Welsh
Thanks for listening once again!
George S. Welsh
