Highland’s new year means new faces, plans, activities

Being back in school for another year always adds a bigger hop in everyone’s step. Everything seems to be moving at a much faster pace with fall sports starting and school activities occurring on most nights. My hope for the students in our district is to be safe and get the best possible education. Just below that hope is one of involvement. The more students are involved in activities, the better their experience is for them. Studies have shown a higher grade-point average when active in several activities. Being active helps with students organizing themselves better and improves the pride in their school. As we start the year, the school always is pushing for our students to be as active as possible. It makes school better, their organization better, and their time at school that much more fun.

Another great thing to start out our school year is the creation of our Facilities Advisory Committee. We have asked OPN Architects to study our facilities over the summer and they presented their findings to our committee on Monday, August 28th. We will continue the process of looking at our facilities, looking at our finances, and then deciding what is next for our school district. I believe there are improvements we need to make so we have the best possible facilities for our students to learn and grow in. We will be meeting with this committee throughout the fall and finalize a facilities plan when we are done. This work will take some time but I think it is exciting work. The plan we put together will be something that benefits the students and community for decades to come.

We are also excited about our five new teachers this year. We did not have a lot of turnover from last year, but we are always excited to bring on new teachers to our district. They have a mentor and an induction coach to help with their transition to our system of grading, communication, and any questions they may have as they begin working with our students. We want them to feel comfortable and welcome!

I would also like to thank the community for the continued support. Our parent groups support teachers and make them feel welcome. Please look for ways to participate in those groups or talk to us about ways to support the district. Enjoy the start of fall and another year of school! Go Huskies!