Springfield High’s success requires community input

6:57 PM Saturday, March 13, 2010

It’s already been said many times on these pages, but I’ll say it again: The future of the community of Springfield is dependent upon the success of our schools. The Springfield City School District educates approximately 8,000 of our students — we know we play the biggest role in building a strong future — and we take this responsibility very seriously.

Over the past five months, many of our parents, students, teachers, administrators, retirees and other concerned community members have rolled up their sleeves, volunteered their time and helped us understand how to improve Springfield High School so that we can have the strong future we all want.

I would like to publicly say thank you, thank you, thank you to all those who have helped us come this far.

As you may know, since October, the SHS Improvement Guiding Group, which includes a diverse representation of our community, has been meeting weekly to identify issues and propose solutions to improve the academics, school climate and student behavior at SHS.

As this Guiding Group has now nearly reached the point where they will forward recommendations to Campus Director Chris Shaffer and to me, they are again asking the larger community to answer the questions, “Do we have it right? What are we missing?”

Last week, we hosted a community forum to talk about the Guiding Group’s proposals to improve academics. Those who attended told me they enjoyed the evening. They said they learned some things, they enjoyed the conversations at their tables, and they were glad they got a chance to share their ideas or, as one gentleman said, “to put his two cents in.”

On Tuesday, March 16, the Guiding Group will host another community forum, and this one will focus on proposals to improve school climate and student conduct at SHS. In other words, what changes should we make so we can have an atmosphere at Springfield High School which will support academic improvement, and thus will support a stronger future for all of Springfield?

This phase of the work — the research and planning phase — is almost done. Based on what we heard last week and what we will hear Tuesday, I will make recommendations to the school board at the end of this month. Based on the board’s response and direction, we will start implementation of the highest-priority changes immediately.

Before those recommendations are made, we need to hear from as many in our community as possible. YOUR voice is important. You may have opinions or ideas that no one else has shared, and we really do want to hear every point of view.

Please make plans now to join us Tuesday night, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., at Springfield High School’s Cafetorium. Our Guiding Group has worked hard to make this forum accessible and enjoyable.

• Transportation is available to those who would like a ride. (call 505-2805)

• We’re serving a light supper buffet. (It’s free)

• We will give away some great door prizes.

• Students who attend will earn community service hours and the Guiding Group has some special incentives just for them.

If you have any questions, please call my office at 505-2806. All of us involved over the past several months are reaching out to ask you to make one evening available and to join us in this important work. I look forward to seeing you at Springfield High School next Tuesday, at 6:30 p.m.

David Estrop is superintendent of Springfield City Schools.

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