Jim Sutfin, Ed.D. Millard Public mpsomaha.org
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HE COLD MONTHS are when every-
thing heats up in Millard Public Schools. Students may need a coat to get into the buildings, but once they are here, they fire up the iPads and laptops and settle into a good day of learning. Our elementary students move seamlessly between books and pencils and iPads and styluses. Our high school students are in the second year of one-to-one devices, and our eighth graders just received their laptops this fall. By the end of next year, all of our secondary students will be one-toone. This is key as we continue to build our Advanced Placement culture, encouraging our students to stretch themselves intellectually and explore career and college paths through our multiple academies, dual enrollment opportunities, Junior ROTC, and Early College. Students are able to collaborate in Google classrooms, continue their work with classmates and teachers at home, and access online textbooks and documents whenever and wherever they are. Of course, they will also be keeping a close eye on the weather. I have thousands of high school students who help me track inclement weather on Twitter at even the hint of a snowflake and offer all sorts of advice on when we might need to call a snow day. Join in the fun! We are #Proud2bMPS! Check us out at @jsutfin and @MillardPS
Mark Evans, M.Ed. Omaha Public district.ops.org
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ELCOME BACK!
Omaha Public Schools remains focused on our five-year Strategic Plan and achieving the goals we set in 2014.
We ask for the community’s continued support as our board of education searches for the next leader of Omaha Public Schools. Additionally, we’ve received widespread support from the bond steering committee, made up of community representatives from around the city of Omaha.
The chamber of commerce and our board of education have agreed it’s time to move forward with placing a Phase 2 bond on the ballot this spring for much-needed renovations of schools that haven’t been renovated in decades. Follow us on social media and at bond.ops.org for the latest updates. Thank you for your support of Omaha Public Schools.
Blane McCann, Ph.D. Westside Community westside66.org
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every student entrusted to us the tools they need to succeed. We teach not only ABCs and 123s, but empathy, respect, teamwork, and how to grow physically as well as cognitively. In recent years, that focus on health has become more important than ever. We at Westside Community Schools hope to nurture children, sending well rounded citizens out into our world. We are teaching our learners about fueling their bodies as well as minds through our new Safer & Healthier Foods plan, our Farm to School partnerships, and our Summer Food Service programs. We partner with community businesses like Eric Crouch’s Dreambuilders program and UnitedHealthCare, that donated new playground equipment to our students at Hillside Elementary. Thanks to the Westside Foundation, we were once again able to send all sixth graders in our district to Outdoor Education this fall to run, learn, and simply enjoy being kids playing outside. Our goal at Westside is to help kids prepare for life. Having a healthy, active lifestyle is a key part of that. We are grateful to all teachers, families, and community leaders helping us keep health an important part of education at school, and in learning at home. FamilyGuide
8 FamilyGuide
| Winter 2018 |
S EDUCATORS, OUR goal is to give