Monday, March 18, 2013
School board members hope decision will bring resident students back to district.
The Ferndale Schools Board of Education voted unanimously Monday night to reduce the number of new School of Choice students they will enroll in Fall 2013. The district will accept up to 43 new Schools of Choice students in grades K-3 only, compared to about 80 new students usually accepted each year in grades K-8. The change will bring the percentage of Schools of Choice students in core K-12 programs to 15 percent, compared to 16.8 percent this school year. School board president Jim O’Donnell said the decision was made in part to bring Schools of Choice enrollment back to 15 percent, which the school board informally committed to several years ago. The decision is also in response to feedback from district parents and others who have …
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
District will also dip into "rainy day fund" to prevent further cuts due to lower-than-anticipated enrollment.
The Ferndale Schools Board of Education on Monday voted to lay off two teachers, reduce one to part-time status and to dip into the district's rainy day fund to cover unanticipated budget shortfalls. The decision comes in response to decreased revenues due to lower-than-anticipated enrollment, particularly at the new Digital Learning Center, which opened this fall, according to school officials. Enrollment was down by about 449 students from this year's projections, resulting in a loss of state aid of approximately $3.5 million. The layoffs are in addition to two staff modifications through attrition (not filling positions left open when an employee leaves), and reductions made in goods and services. The staff adjustments equate to about $…
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Jim O'Donnell discusses strategic planning, school board meeting policies and more.
Ferndale's new school board members were sworn in last week and new board president Jim O'Donnell is looking forward to a productive year. O'Donnell said in a phone interview on Friday that engaging the community in the district's strategic planning process and ensuring open communication between the school board and residents are among his first plans. He also emphasized improving academic achievement as a top priority, and beginning the budgeting process in February for the next school year. Ferndale Schools is currently working with consulting firm Project Innovations to formulate a five-year strategic plan for the district. O'Donnell said the next step in the process is a series of town hall meetings and focus groups - the timing and …
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
The Board of Education met for its annual organizational meeting on Monday night.
It was a full house at the Ferndale school board meeting on Monday night as family members, friends and elected officials came to show their support as the board begins a new year with four new members. Raylon Leaks-May, Amy Butters, Jim O'Donnell and Kevin Deegan-Krause each took their Oath of Office during the Board of Education's annual organizational meeting. Ferndale Schools Superintendent Gary Meier said at the beginning of the meeting that it was a special night and marked "a new era, so to speak" for the school district. "I'm so excited to get down to work," Butters said during the meeting. Senator Vincent Gregory was present and congratulated the board members for taking an active role in the community. He said he would be happy …
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
We'll recap some of the candidates' recent forum responses in advance of two more upcoming forums.
Eight people are running in the Nov. 6 election to fill four seats on the Ferndale Board of Education. Last week, all eight candidates participated in their first candidate forum at Ferndale City Hall, hosted by the League of Women Voters. Two more forums are planned Oct. 28 and Oct. 29. In the meantime, let's take a look back at some of their individual responses, in case you missed it last week. Question: Describe in detail the problem of student attrition and its cures. Amy Butters said it's something the district has trouble with. "It's hard for there to be any sort of consistency in the education of that child and also it takes away from the community," she said. "We don't want to lose kids." She said addressing academic achievement …
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Here are some highlights from Monday evening's school board meeting.
The Ferndale Schools Board of Education met on Monday evening at Harding Administration Center. Here are some highlights from the meeting: District architect Bill Weinrauch provided an update on the progress of projects included in the recent school bond issue. Among the completed projects so far are guardrail replacements at Ferndale High School/Ferndale Middle School and Harding Administration Center, ceiling replacement at Jefferson, technology network equipment replacement and more. Flooring replacement at Roosevelt and bathroom improvements at FHS/FMS had been delayed but are in progress, Weinrauch said. The district is also getting ready for projects that will be completed next summer, including kitchens at University High School and…
Monday, September 24, 2012
Get ready for the week ahead in Ferndale with these five things to know.
A free parenting series titled "Handling the Fusses and Fits of Parenthood" starts Monday at Roosevelt Primary School. The workshop series is open to all Ferndale Schools families and free babysitting is available. The first workshop is from 6-8 p.m. Monday and the series continues Oct. 8, Oct. 22, Nov. 12 and Nov. 26. For more information or to sign up, call 248-586-8800. The Ferndale Schools Board of Education meets at 7 p.m. Monday at the Harding Administration Center. You can find the agenda here. Ferndale City Council will meet at 7:30 p.m. Monday at Ferndale City Hall. Included on the agenda is the consideration of an appointment to the Board of Review, and an agreement for the use of the city's Southwest Storage Yard as a transfer …
Monday, September 17, 2012
Get ready for the week ahead in Ferndale with these five things to know.
Head over to the Kulick Community Center this morning (and the third Monday of each month) for Messy Craft Monday. This class is free for those with a current Kids Corner or Romp and Stomp visit pass, which are available for purchase at the Kulick Center, or $10 for the class. Class meets in the Art Studio at 10:45 a.m. and is designed for children up to age 5. School Improvement Mondays - a new Ferndale Public Schools K-12 school improvement initiative - continues today at all of the district schools. As part of the program, all students across the district will be dismissed 55 minutes early on Mondays. Find more information here or check out the district's latest newsletter. The Knitty Gritty knitting group, which started earlier this …
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Citizens for Better Education throws support behind Keith Warnick, Katrina Collins, Jim Pfleger and Bradford Parks.
The Ferndale political action committee Citizens for Better Education announced on Wednesday its support of Keith Warnick, Katrina Collins, Jim Pfleger and Bradford Parks as candidates for the Ferndale Schools Board of Education election on Nov. 6. Four of the school board seats are up for election this year. Warnick, Collins and Pfleger currently serve on the board, and Parks is running for the first time. Carol Frederick, CBE president, said the group spent months interviewing candidates and talking to community members about the school district and goals for the future. "We strongly believe that the combined years of experience these candidates have on district committees and their leadership roles in parent organizations across all …
The political action committee is supporting Amy Butters, Jim O’Donnell, Raylon Leaks-May and Kevin Deegan-Krause for the Nov. 6 school board election.
Ferndale political action committee CLEAR recently announced its endorsement of four candidates for the Ferndale Schools Board of Education election on Nov. 6. The group is supporting Amy Butters, Jim O’Donnell, Raylon Leaks-May and Kevin Deegan-Krause. Kate Baker, a CLEAR founding member and former Ferndale City Council member, called the candidates "one powerful group of diverse community leaders." "As a group, CLEAR is looking to back school board members who enthusiastically support our schools, yet aren’t afraid to ask tough questions of administration," Baker said in a press release. "We need a board that welcomes community discussion about topics like resident retention, academic performance and strategic planning. The ‘BOLD’ …
Adelaide Downing
2:52 pm on Tuesday, March 26, 2013
just a few months in for the new board and already my worst fears have been confirmed. I am very glad all my kids are either out or almost out of Ferndale schools. Narrow minds is not the environment I would want for them. If all the school of choice kids were coming from Birmingham this would not be an issue. more ›