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2021 This Week News Guest Articles
2021 This Week News Guest Articles
(As submitted)
Academics, Finances, Facilities
October 2021
By Dr. Bill Wise, Superintendent
This school year we have been given the opportunity to reimagine what our schools can look like in a more flexible learning environment to provide our students with a stronger technology-rich educational foundation. We have never been more focused and determined to ensure that each child is challenged to learn, prepared to pursue a fulfilling post-high school path, and empowered to become a resilient, lifelong learner.
Our students continue to improve each year with the Class of 2021 earning the highest graduation rate in the history of the district - 88.41%. Last school year our students took more than 2,370 college courses and earned more than 7,100 college credits while also working on their high school graduation requirements. The average college credit per hour in Ohio is approximately worth $500, which means our students earned more than $3,550,000 through the College Credit Plus program.
338 students scored a 3 or higher on Advanced Placement tests last school year. This means that our students also earned more than $507,000 worth of college credit through AP opportunities last year.
479 Career-Technical Education students earned at least one industry credential with 20% of those students earning a 12-point credential, such as Automotive Service Excellence (ASE), State Tested Nurse Assistant, FANUC Robotics, Electrical Trades Pre-Apprenticeship, COMPTIA Security +, American Welding Society (AWS), National Retail Federation Customer Service Credentials, NCCER Carpentry and I-CAR Automotive refinishing, Adobe Certified Associate and many more.
Next month, the SWCSD treasurer will be presenting the district’s updated five-year forecast to the board of education for current fiscal year 2021-2022 through fiscal year 2025-2026. The forecast provides detailed information regarding actual and anticipated revenues, expenditures, and cash balances for the General Fund and is used as a financial roadmap for the district.
The current forecast indicates that the district will have a positive cash balance through fiscal year 2024-2025 - 12 years beyond what was originally promised during the 2009 levy campaign. The board of education, administration, and employee groups have worked together to manage operating expenditures to allow the district to stretch the levy funds farther than promised.
The district received Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) III funding in the amount of $45,645,000, which was outlined in a plan presented to and adopted by the board of education on August 9, 2021. The board-approved plan is available on the district website for community viewing.
We continue to work closely with the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission to ensure that our middle school construction projects, even with supply shortages and inflation, are on time and on budget. The new replacement middle schools are scheduled to open for the 2022-2023 school year. The additions to Jackson Middle School will also be completed for the start of the next school year.
Our middle schools will have new school safety and security systems, air conditioning, technology, science labs, and specialized instructional space to help our community to continue to grow and attract families and businesses that value education. An update on our middle school construction project can be found on our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CRLaKG1zeY.
Our students are leaving better prepared with the potential for less debt than ever before. Our financial position may be as strong as any time in the history of the district. Our facilities support our students more effectively and efficiently than at any time in the past and our deferred maintenance continues to decrease. We are committed to continuously improving the positive trends we have demonstrated over the past many years.
Financial Literacy Course Helps Prepare Students for the Real World
September 2021
By Amy Schakat, Career-Technical Education Coordinator
Before starting your first job, moving away from home or heading to college, did you ever wish someone had taken the time to teach you all about saving and budgeting, credit and debt, investing, insurance and identity theft, careers in finance and more?
Many of us were just sent out into a world filled with multiple opportunities to acquire debt.
South-Western City School District eighth-graders have the opportunity to take a nine-week Foundations in Personal Finance Career-Technical Education course as part of the middle school electives rotation. The goal of the course is to educate students on the principles of finance so they can avoid future money mistakes – a fun way to learn how to win with money.
Most eighth-graders have been introduced to financial concepts at some point in their lives by accompanying their parents to the grocery store, listening to adults discuss budgets and credit/debt and earning money from part-time jobs, but many have not received a formal introduction to financial literacy.
Personal finance simply means how someone handles money. In this course, students will learn to be money smart in a fun way through activities on the following topics:
• Saving and budgeting to create a road map for your money.
• Credit and debt to avoid dangerous money traps.
• Education, careers, and entrepreneurship to set a course for the future.
• Investing, insurance, and identity theft to prepare for the worst and plan for the best.
• Global economics to show how money moves around the world.
• Marketing and consumerism to learn to be a wise spender.
Making sound financial decisions can have a lasting impact on a person’s quality of life. As labor markets continue to change, health insurance costs increase and traditional pension programs decrease, understanding the fundamentals of personal finance is an important aspect of our children’s future.
Having a firm understanding of our personal finances is empowering. As with most things in life, understanding the language is the first step in the process. Content literacy is a significant part of most educational programs as we prepare our students for the real world.
Buses on the Road
August 2021
By Monte Detterman, Director of Business Services
The first day of school in the South-Western City School District is August 25, 2021. There will be more than 21,000 students heading back to classes either walking, being driven to school, transported on one of 182 school buses, or riding their bicycles to and from school. The roads and sidewalks will be teeming with students excited to return to school for the new year.
Our school buses must pass rigorous inspections by the Ohio State Highway Patrol on a regular basis. With a school district that covers 119-square-miles, our buses transport students on more than 1,195 bus runs per day - public schools, special education, non-public schools, and shuttles between schools. We transport more than 15,000 students throughout the district. Our school buses travel more than 15,000 miles per day - that’s back-and-forth to San Francisco, California 3.5 times per day!
As always, our goal is to transport students to and from school as safely and efficiently as possible. Community members can help keep our students safe by following these few basic safety tips:
Be aware that it is illegal in every state to pass a school bus stopped to load or unload students.
Learn the “flashing signal light” system that school bus drivers use to alert motorists that they are going to stop to load or unload students:
Yellow flashing lights indicate the bus is preparing to stop. Motorists should slow down and prepare to stop their vehicles.
Red flashing lights and extended stop arms indicate that the bus has stopped, and that children are getting on or off the bus. Motorists MUST stop their cars.
Slow down. Be mindful of children walking to the bus stop and to school, especially if there are no sidewalks in the neighborhood. As you enter and exit driveways, check for students crossing. Be aware of children playing ball and gathering near bus stops as they may dash out quickly.
Be Alert. Children arriving at the bus stop late may dart into the street without looking for traffic.
Comply with school zone speed limits. Pay close attention to the flashing lights indicating school zone speed limits are in effect during morning and afternoon hours.
Don’t honk or rev your engine as this may scare young children.
Don’t block the crosswalk when stopped at a red light or waiting to make a turn, forcing walkers to go around you and possibly into the path of moving traffic.
Ohio law says that if a bus is stopped on a street or road which has fewer than four lanes, all traffic proceeding in either direction must stop. If a bus is stopped on a street or road which has four or more lanes, only traffic proceeding the same direction as the bus must stop. Drivers must not proceed until the school bus resumes motion or until signaled by the school bus driver to proceed.
Bus drivers will report the license plate number of any vehicle that fails to comply with the law to a law enforcement agency, and an investigation will be conducted to identify the driver for enforcement purposes. Penalties for not obeying these rules could cost a driver up to $500 and a maximum one-year license suspension.
We are looking forward the new school year and thank you in advance for helping to keep our children safe.
Technology in the ‘Deep End’
July 2021
By Bryan J. Mulvany, Executive Director of Management Information Systems
The 2020-2021 school year has been one of the most unique in many educators' careers. However, in spite of its challenges, last school year presented some rare opportunities in the area of educational technology.
What's the fastest way to teach someone to swim? Some would say, push them into the deep end! I'm sure that's what last year felt like for many educators, students, and families. Remote and hybrid learning models forced teachers, students, and family members alike into the world of video conferencing, online assignments, remote monitoring tools, and many other potentially new environments.
In the South-Western City School District (SWCSD), we had been planning for the possibility of a future 1-to-1, Chromebook rollout for several years, so we were positioned well for this transition as we were thrust into the deep end of the pool. While we had been using Chromebooks out of carts during school hours, we were able to provide devices for home use. Every family wishing to have a Chromebook for their student to use at home was provided with a device.
Once devices were distributed, the work required by our teachers and curriculum team to move instruction to an online model began. This involved implementing several new systems to support online instruction, take attendance online, monitor student engagement, and ensure students were kept safe while they were working and learning online.
Video conferencing became an integral part of both daily classroom instruction and periodic meetings held by various district groups and teams. SWCSD functions in a Google environment as a district and Google's Meet tool combined with Google Classroom provided excellent support for our users during this major transition. We had already been using Google Classroom as one of our Learning Management System (LMS) options, but some staff and students who had never been part of an online video conference or webinar found it essential to use these new tools and newly-acquired skills on a daily basis to keep students learning and the district moving forward.
As we have transitioned back to classroom learning, some of the new tools and skills we used and learned last school year will continue to be utilized. Especially, the ones which proved to make many routine processes, meetings, etc. more efficient and effective during our year surviving "in the deep end." We started the year using technology as a substitute for in-person learning but finished the year using technology to accelerate and, in some cases, transform instruction. We have progressed from the dog paddle to the butterfly stroke.
Beating Summer Slide
June 2021
by Margaret Towery, Curriculum Coordinator
Consider for a moment, what you have learned since March 2020? Did you learn how to navigate video meetings? Did you master sourdough bread? Did you have insights about your place on the planet in the midst of so many issues? I haven’t come across an adult who hasn’t learned in the past fourteen months.
Our kids are also learning. There is a common idea among educators that all children can learn. I’ve never liked that phrase. Because I know that all children learn. They just do; they are hardwired to learn, and the pandemic has not stopped this. Some kids are learning how to be resilient in the face of changing circumstances. Some are learning how to be safer online, or how to navigate personal space when the family is at home 24/7. Some are learning how to take care of a sibling or a pet, and some are learning how to produce and star in an amusing TikTok video.
Of course, it is true that school has been disrupted during the pandemic, and that has been a great struggle for most of us, but school is not the only kind of learning in this world. We can be sure that our students will catch up quickly to the school-kinds-of-learning that were challenging during the pandemic because they have been learning all along. Here are three things you can do this summer to position your students for success at school:
Affirming our humanity matters. When the world tells you or your family that there is something wrong with you, don’t believe it. Develop a practice of noticing what your kids have learned and what they are doing well, and remind them of these things. They belong here and will learn the things they need, even if not there yet.
Becoming a reader matters. Read something as a family, give the gift of books, go to the library, read signs and recipes and mail and news. Every kind of reading counts. We have a new resource called Beanstack, which is an easy and fun way to keep track of reading and earn digital badges. Find it here: https://www.beanstack.com/swcsd
All learning matters. Watching how-to videos, creating art or music, talking to family about the old days, playing a sport or just being active, learning a new skill...all of these things keep the brain active and learning. The more experiences one has, the more confidence is developed, and these experiences even contribute to reading success.
As a community, we are learners. Students will have a variety of summer learning opportunities provided to them. Let’s endeavor to celebrate all kinds of learning with confidence that the coming academic year will be one of care, belonging, and academic success.
Bricks ‘n Sticks
On-Time and On Budget
May 2021
By Mark Meadows, Property Services Supervisor
There are five words that make anyone involved in a construction project happy - on time and on budget. We are happy to let our community know that our middle school building projects are currently on time and on budget.
On November 6, 2018, voters in the South-Western City School District passed a ‘no new millage’ bond issue to replace the district’s four oldest middle schools (Brookpark, Finland, Norton, and Pleasant View), renovate and build a minor addition onto Jackson Middle School, renovate East Franklin Elementary School, and complete some much-needed roofing at Grove City and Westland High Schools and asphalt projects across the district.
The community told us they wanted the materials used in the replacement middle schools to be similar to those incorporated into the replacement elementary schools - traditional design with contemporary details. The windows will have a more contemporary style and we are using tilt-up panels for a portion of the two-story construction.
Staff members were very innovative in the recommendations for the look inside the replacement middle schools. The replacement buildings will have both large and small extended learning areas with eight breakout rooms that can hold up to 12 students for small group instruction. Art display cases will be located throughout the building to spotlight the outstanding work of our students. Wide hallways will help with congestion issues between classes. The modern media centers will feature breakout rooms and will mirror the look and feel of a public library.
If you drive by any of the four replacement middle school locations you will see completed reinforced slab work and the tilt-up walls installed. Concrete and underground electric work has also been completed.
The East Franklin Elementary School renovations will be completed this summer with the delivery and installation of new furniture. East Franklin will have the same furniture as the other 15 elementary schools to start the 2021-2022 school year.
We had good participation in the Jackson Middle School project bidding process, which helped us to keep costs down. Construction will begin this summer. There will be a classroom addition, a multipurpose addition, and increased seating capacity in the gymnasium. There will also be a covered walkway from the school bus drop-off area to the building. The materials will match those used in the original building.
If you haven’t already done so, please watch the board of education presentation on our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CRLaKG1zeY) and follow our Facebook photo albums for additional construction pictures.
Times have changed since the original schools were built. New school safety and security systems, air conditioning, technology, science labs, and specialized instructional spaces will help our schools and our community continue to grow and attract families and businesses that value education.
Did You Know?
South-Western City School District IT Programs and Courses
April 2021
By Amy Schakat, Coordinator of Career-Technical Programs and Travis Wood, Career Education Technology Specialist
Did you know the IT industry is one of the hottest growing industries today and Columbus, Ohio leads the pack? OhioMeansJobs ranks Software Development as third on the list of top rapid growth jobs in the area with a median annual salary of $103,000. According to a September 9, 2020 (WSYX/WTTE) article “Columbus is not just Ohio's capital anymore; it's also becoming a capital in the tech industry.”
Did you know that the South-Western City School District offers numerous opportunities to gain the skills needed to succeed in the IT industry?
Through its unique partnership with Apple, the SWCSD has brought Intro to Coding and App Development as electives in each of its five middle schools. In the Intro to Coding class, students learn the basics of Swift Programming through the use of Apple’s iPad and Swift Playgrounds.
Did you know that the SWCSD has been host to two App Showcases where middle school students designed and pitched App prototypes? The App Development class teaches students the process of challenge-based learning through the development of an App prototype designed to solve an issue in the community.
Did you know that these two classes can build a pathway towards future courses offered in high schools?
Students can further their programming and design skills through classes offered at each high school that include Intro to Network and Security, Programming I, and Programming 2.0.
AND … did you know that the SWCSD offers Software Development through its Accelerated Learning Center? Students can earn up to 30 college credits through Columbus State Community College while in high school.
Did you know that the SWCSD also offers programs in Cyber Security, Mobile App Development, Interactive Media Design, and Medical Data Management at the South-Western Career Academy? Applications are now being accepted for these programs for next school year.
In just one year, the Mobile App Development class produced a team of first place winning students for the NATIONAL MobileMakerEdu Winter contest where they showcased their skill in Swift’s iOS programming language.This is the second time in three years that SWCA students have taken first place in this INTERNATIONAL App Development contest. Both the Cyber Security and Interactive Media Design programs have had students take second place in state competitions where both qualified and will soon compete nationally.
Students not only develop the skills needed for today’s high demand jobs, but they will also gain the experience and notoriety through these fun, yet challenging, competitions.
To learn more about these programs, visit www.swcsd.us and www.swcsdcareertech.com.
Music - a Vital Role in All of Our Lives
March 2021
By Brandon Moss, Central Crossing High School Music Educator
It is playing when we get to the stands before the football game. It introduces our favorite show. It makes cleaning the house a little more enjoyable. I am talking about music, of course, and our love for it develops from a very young age. In a recent survey of my high school choir students, they shared these action words for music in their lives: music calms, motivates, expresses, empowers, sustains, connects, and focuses. Indeed, it seems that music plays a vital role in all of our lives.
For those who make music, it provides an even more crucial outlet. In the same survey, I asked students what they missed about being in an ensemble—be it choir, band, or orchestra—from before our present situation amid COVID guidelines and restrictions. Response after response spoke of the thrill that live musical performance brings: that high which can only come from sharing the hard work and efforts you and your fellow musicians have toiled away on, and receiving the appreciation and praises of an audience. In this respect, it has been a tough year for our student musicians. In March 2020, we went on COVID-19 “lockdown” the day before my high school choir was to have performed at the Large Group Adjudicated Event sponsored by the Ohio Music Education Association, commonly known to the students as “Contest.” This event has always been a source of pride for our students, as they prepare high-level musical literature for a panel of judges and even read down a brand-new piece of music by sight for a rating.
Yet while the music itself often takes center stage, it is what an audience member does not necessarily see that keeps our ensembles filled: Music is social. It is teamwork; it is a shared goal. As one student shared, it is knowing that your work is one piece of the puzzle, without which the picture would be incomplete. Making music together builds memories and creates traditions.
Music also teaches a lot more than dotted quarter notes and scales. Some of the “life skills” shared by my students include listening to others, confidence, leadership, patience, perseverance, and flexibility. Numerous studies show that students who take music classes excel more in other disciplines.
School music this year has looked different all over the country. Some ensembles in small schools have been able to carry on in full groups, five days a week, giving limited, masked and socially distanced performances. Others have been unable to meet at all in-person, instead creating virtual concerts that are impressive but which cannot replace that connection piece our students crave. I suspect as various areas of our lives begin to return to some semblance of “normal” that we will all have fresh appreciation for the power of live music.
As we celebrate “Music in Our Schools Month” this March, let us reflect on the ways in which music is important in each of our lives and give thanks for those students who choose music as an outlet for their own expression and connectedness. Be sure to catch the next available concert—as a society we are all eagerly anticipating that first live audience!
The Excitement that Lies Ahead
February 2021
By Brian Bowser, Executive Director of Elementary Education
Can you imagine what you might be doing in the spring of 2034? I can tell you that next year’s kindergarten class and families will be preparing to graduate from our high schools and be ready to enter a world we cannot even imagine. Starting school is an important milestone for each family and child in the South-Western City School District and we are ready to welcome you through our doors next August.
In Ohio, kindergarten attendance is required and students who turn five-years-old on or before September 30 are able to attend kindergarten. Families who have a child with a birthday close to that September 30 date often ask, "Is my child ready for kindergarten?" This question can only be answered by the parent, but here are some things to consider as families make the decision about the right time for a child to begin school:
A key component of the kindergarten experience is supporting the social and emotional development of each child. Typically, school-aged children are able to work in small groups with other children, work independently on various tasks for 5-7 minutes, and take direction from adults in the classroom.
Kindergarten begins a journey of high academic expectations. Our kindergarten teachers will excite, motivate and challenge their students as they learn to read, write, and work in the number system. Kindergarteners also work with technology tools across all subject areas. While your child certainly does not need all of these skills entering kindergarten, your child's proficiency with these skills may help your family make a decision about what time in their five-year-old year may be the right time to begin the school journey. You can find more about the kindergarten curriculum on our website.
Kindergarten registration for the 2021-2022 school year opened on February 1, 2021. Registration is a three-step process:
Register your child online at www.swcsd.us. Click on ‘Student Enrollment’ for the step-by-step online process.
Call your child’s home elementary school to schedule a school visit.
Attend your scheduled school visit to get answers to any questions you may have regarding kindergarten and school in general.
We are excited about our partnership with parents and welcoming your child to school in August. Working together, we can help provide the best experiences to prepare them for the world in 2034!
Financial Outlook Looking Good
January 2021
By Hugh W. Garside, Jr., Treasurer/Chief Financial Officer
As the treasurer/chief financial officer of the South-Western City School district, I presented the five-year forecast for the current fiscal year 2020-2021 through fiscal year 2024-2025 at the October 26 board of education meeting. The forecast is a standardized planning tool required by the Ohio Department of Education to be completed annually. The forecast provides detailed information regarding actual and anticipated revenues, expenditures, and cash balances for the General Fund and is used as the financial roadmap for the district. The forecast is prepared conservatively based on economic trends and known facts, which are detailed by category in the written assumptions that accompany the forecast.
Based on these assumptions, the forecast indicates that the district will have a positive cash balance through fiscal year 2024-2025. During the 2009 levy campaign, the SWCSD Board of Education made a promise to the community that the levy funds would last through fiscal year 2012-2013. The forecast currently projects a positive cash balance twelve years beyond what was originally promised. The board of education, administration, and employee groups have worked together to manage operating expenditures in such a way that enables the district to stretch the levy funds farther than promised.
State funding currently represents roughly 57% of the district’s General Fund operating revenue. The district anticipates receiving roughly $155 million in fiscal year 2020-2021 from the State to support General Fund operations. Under the current state funding formula, all school districts receive the same funding as they did in the previous fiscal year. It is important to note that during the previous year, fiscal year 2019-2020, the state funding formula was reduced for all school districts in the State of Ohio. Due to this reduction, the district’s state funding was cut by $3.4 million last fiscal year. This reduction was carried forward to the current fiscal year.
Fortunately, the district has received funds from the Federal Government through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act that have helped shore up the budget decrease that was realized in state funding. In addition to stabilizing the overall budget reductions from the state, the CARES Act funding has provided the resources for the district to purchase Chromebooks to provide electronic access to all students - a vital resource to implement the district’s necessary virtual learning platform due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The district has consistently forecasted revenues and expenditures in a conservative manner, which has provided financial stability for the district overall. The district is currently in the second year of the State of Ohio’s most recently enacted biennial budget. With this in mind, it is important to note that the forecast has biennial budgets starting on July 1, 2021 and July 1, 2023, respectively, that are completely unknown which could have a significant effect on future revenues. It will be imperative to monitor the State’s upcoming biennial budget approval process due to the district’s heavy reliance on the funding it receives from the State.
The South-Western City School District will continue to closely monitor the progress of the forecast to ensure that it is staying on track and utilizing the funds it receives in the most cost effective manner. If you would like additional details on the five-year forecast, please visit the district’s “Financial Information” section on its website at www.swcsd.us Additionally, forecasts for every school district in the State of Ohio can be found on the Ohio Department of Education’s website at www.ode.state.oh.us.
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