Scot Graden's Blog

On home game Fridays this fall we will be able to watch the Saline Marching Band, led by Mr. Nate Lampman, show off their skills.  They kicked off the year last Friday at the Big Day Prep Showdown hosted by EMU.  Although the game didn’t end the way we wanted – the band’s first performance of the year looked and sounded great.  The next home game (and chance to see the band) is Friday, September 12th vs. the Chelsea Bulldogs.

As you can tell, we have switched the blog over to WordPress, which is basically the main player in open source blog technology.  I am still getting used to some of the features.  It clearly does more than the old one – so get ready for embedded audio, video and other things I still haven’t figured out.

In the switch, we did lose old comments – sorry to those of you who commented.  I would really like to get more comments/questions regarding the issues I am posting about, so feel free to comment when you have a thought.

Some of you may recall the story from last year about a Saline Middle School student who had decided an old greenhouse attached to our Middle School needed some repair. I was pleased to hear the Saline Kiwanis Club presented Joey Omichinski with a plaque that will be hung in the greenhouse in honor of Joey’s efforts and Mr. Alton Ealy, a longtime science and agriculture teacher for Saline Area Schools.

The Omichinski family should be very proud of Joey’s accomplishment.

Okay so it’s not Hollywood, but Saline Area Schools took its first shot at the film industry as a movie set for a short film by Steve Karageanes, an independent film maker from Michigan.

The movie tells the story of an aging stage dancer and her battle to keep the spotlight as younger dancers enter the Theatre profession. The film is expected to be played at the Canne Film Festival in France. Filming took place on August 16th in the Performing Arts wing of Saline High School. Saline gets International recognition in the credits!

A new school year is just two weeks away. As summer comes to an end, we are busy putting the final touches on the new programs and planning for the 2008-2009 school year.

We are training staff on PowerSchool, our new student management software. The new product includes a component called, PowerTeacher. This is where staff will input attendance and grades and ultimately where parents will go to check on their child’s progress. We will be sending home log in and password information for parents in mid-September.

This Friday we have training on the NWEA assessment. As I have mentioned before on the blog, it will provide us with needed norm referenced data to aid us in making instructional decisions. There are also parent reports that will give families information on where their children are achieving as related to national averages. I had the chance to talk with Naomi Norman from the Washtenaw Intermediate School District at a recent meeting. As of this year there will be seven local districts using the NWEA tool. We shared ideas on using our collective county data to target future professional development.

The trimester at Saline High School will be an adjustment for all of us. By reducing the number of lunch periods from four to three, increasing the passing time, and scheduling final exams at Thanksgiving… the whole rhythm of the day and year will change. Staff has been working all summer to adjust curriculum, developing pacing guides and common assessments.

We are implementing the AlertNow automated dialer system. This product was used at the high school last year and now we are going district-wide. To test the system and introduce it to the Saline Area Schools families, expect a call from me soon and then one from your building principal. If we have any snow days this year – you’ll get a call from school!

There are several other new programs this year including expanded foreign language at the middle school, the Young Adult program, grade looping at Pleasant Ridge, a Smartboard pilot program at Harvest and more. I will let you know how these are going as the year progresses.

Last night’s board meeting marked the end of the 6 year run of Brian Cox covering the Saline Board of Education for the Saline Reporter by presenting him with a certificate of achievement. Mr. Cox has consistently provided the Saline community with in-depth and fair coverage of Saline Area Schools. He, along with the constant pencil behind his ear, will be missed.

The meeting included a quick update about Jump Start by Mr. Ben Williams and Mr. Brad Bezeau. They informed the board that the program was a success – especially for the first year. In total, 29 students successfully completed the program.

Mr. Dave Mellor, who teaches science and agriculture classes at Saline High School gave a powerful presentation regarding the ongoing wetlands project by several of his students. The presentation highlighted various issues related to wetland health on the campus of the High School, along with the constant issue of water and sport drink bottle litter.

On the business side, the board approved having breakfast programs at the High School, Heritage and Harvest – with a possible Middle School option during the year. They adopted the 2000, 5000 and 7000 series of policies – leaving only the 8000 and 9000 sections left for our next meeting. They also adjusted he pool rental policy to include fees for various equipment rentals and staff costs.

The board also announced their new voice mail number – 429-8000×2020. Each board member has an individual email, and then they have a collective voice mail.

Five new school buses are in the lot at the Middle School. They look a bit different – they are painted white on the top to reduce the passenger compartment heat. They also have “sporty” vents on the side of the hood, larger entry doors and steps, and cruise control on the steering wheel.

Two buses have adjustable locking tracks that allow for seats or for wheelchair straps. Our Transportation Department staff is excited to take delivery and to “decommission” some buses that have served us well, but have been on the road a very, very long time.

Unless you have this blog directly bookmarked (which I doubt) then you have noticed the changes to our website. Our Director of Technology, Mr. Ken Lupo has made the switch to a product called Joomla that is making content management easier for all of us, which in turn permits increased content on the site.

I have gotten some comments that we need to “dress it up” – which I agree with. In talking to Mr. Lupo, he reminded me that he is a “tech geek” and not an artist, so we have enlisted a few creative and stylish minds to help us out with making the site more attractive over the next several weeks. Keep and eye on it for changes.

For our staff, they will find that upon logging into the site, they will see staff related content, forms and new Moodle forums to discuss district related news and issues.

As always, I would like feedback – please give me your comments and suggestions on the site. On a side, note my blog also will look different soon. I am moving it to WordPress – you will still be able to find it linked to our site.

Football Season is here! The Lions are at training camp, the Wolverines are working on a new offense and the Saline Varsity Football team is gearing up for the Big Day Prep Showdown IV on Friday, August 29th. This football extravaganza will take place at EMU’s Rynerson Stadium beginning at 11:00 a.m. The Hornets will play the premier game at 8 p.m. against Ann Arbor Pioneer. Come on out for this all-day event at EMU and help start the year on a positive note. The Saline vs. Pioneer has turned into a great rivalry. In the past 8 years we have played Pioneer 10 times, going 5-5. The Hornets are currently on a 3 game winning streak. For more information on the Big Day Prep Showdown, check out www.bigdayprepshowdown.com.

Advance tickets are $9 for adults and $7 for students. The tickets will be $10 the day of the event.

There are several ways to get your ticket to the event.

1. Visit the athletic office in the high school. The athletic office is open weekdays from 8 a.m. until noon, and then 1 p.m. until 4 p.m.

2. At the Blue/Gold Intra-Squad Scrimmage on Saturday, August 16th from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. in Hornet Stadium.

3. At the four-team (with Novi, Dearborn and Livonia Franklin) scrimmage in Hornet Stadium on Thursday, August 21 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

4. In front of Busch’s and TCF Bank from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on August 9th, 16th, and 23rd.

5. During the Saline Summerfest on August 8th and 9th in parking lot 4 behind Brecon Grill.

For more information on Saline Athletics and season passes please visit www.salinehornets.com

Attached is a copy of the building start times for the 2008-2009 school year, which by the way is only 33 days away! 2008-2009-building-schedules