The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

DAYTON--During the Show and Tell portion of last week’s school board meeting, Colonel Bill Bialozor with the JRROTC program at Walla Walla High School spoke about the role JRROTC plays in the lives of students. The goal of ROTC is to motivate young people to be better citizens, he said.

Bialozor, who emphasized that he is not a recruiter, talked about the pillars of learning, which are; Citizenship in Action, Leadership Theory and Applications, Foundations for Success, Wellness and Fitness and First Aid, Geography and Map Skills, Environmental Awareness, Citizenship in American History and Government, and Courses in Military Science, along with Rifle Marksmanship, Service Learning, and Special Teams.

“We work hard on soft skills, that employers are looking for. It’s all about respect, respect, respect,” Bialozor said.

Dayton School District Superintendent Doug Johnson said the district is considering options for exposing students with an interest in ROTC to connect with the WA-Hi program, which includes some summer programs.

Ski Program

Fifth grade students shared a PowerPoint presentation they created about their experiences in the district’s ski program for 4th and 5th graders, during the Show and Tell portion of the meeting, as well.

Their advisor, Wendy Richards, who is a district reading teacher, helped the students create an oral presentation, thanking the board for its support of the ski program, using the Elements of Plot.

Board Chairman Dan Butler told the students, “I think you guys are awesome. . .This reminds us of why we’re here.”

Johnson said the district is grateful for the students, parents, and teachers who participate in making the ski program a success.

Fundraisers are a major source of funding, and help has come from community members, including Stephanie Guettinger, who has spearheaded a cookie dough sales program, providing for lessons and lift tickets, Johnson said.

Policy

Middle and High School Principal Paul Shaber introduced a draft policy that would help identify students coming to school impaired, and unable to perform required school work. Shaber‘s policy emphasizes education, and decision-making, rather than suspensions, and arrests. Johnson said that he and Shaber will look into the issue, and report back to the board.

Capital Projects

The cost for the asphalt project that was to be completed this summer will be higher, according to estimations from Anderson Perry & Associates, Johnson said. In order to provide proper elevation for water runoff and meet existing sidewalk levels, a more expensive “build-up” is required.

“It might be necessary to evaluate other projects that were part of the capital levy to determine how to proceed,” he said.

Visioning

Johnson said three different work groups, made up of teachers, administrators, support staff, parents, students, and the Board of Directors, will be created to study each of three strategic priorities identified at the community visioning meeting in January. The work groups will guide future work in the categories of; Facilities, Real World Life Skills/ Employability, and Social and Emotional Learning.

Fifteen families have responded to the Choice Enrollment Survey. The survey was designed to help the district identify why families are choosing to attend school districts other than the Dayton School District.

“Most of the students, who have ‘choiced’ out, did so during their high school years, with the largest number of students leaving for a change in their learning environment,” Johnson said.

He said the desired change was reported as the result of the lack of positive peer relationships, or harassment, intimidation, and bullying

“One surprising aspect was that of those who completed the survey, only 33% of them shared their concerns with school personnel,” he said.

The district hopes to use the results of the survey to make changes that might decrease the numbers of students leaving the district.

Personnel

Also during last week’s meeting, the board approved certificated personnel for the 2017-2018 school year and they are: Susan Stege, K-12 Counselor; Tracy Pearson, MS/HS Wood Shop and Agriculture Education; and Clayton Strong, MS/HS Health and Fitness.