Seniors Called to Superintendent's Office

Board of Education – Monthly Update – May 2012

The Board of Education of Regional School District 17 is pleased to communicate the following District News, Board Items, and Involvement Tip to the citizens of Haddam and Killingworth:  

District News:

HKHS Graduation will be held on June 22, 2012 at 6:00 pm.

Two Teams of students at HKMS won First and Second Place in the state at the United States Army Science, Technology, Math, and Engineering Competition. This nationwide competition asked students to use science, math and technology to design and build solutions to real world problems.  Members of the First Place winning team were Stanley Chrzanowski, Connor Agro, Troy Early, and Parker Rogers. The second place team included Sawyer Platt, Julianna Rushford and Emily St. Lawrence. The first place winners each received $500 and the second place winners each received $250. The students were recognized by the Board of Education at our May Education Committee Meeting.

A is scheduled for June 2, 2012 from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Middle School.  The Conversation is an opportunity for members of the community to discuss the role of the parents and the community in the education process. Members of the public are welcome and child care will be provided.  The District is jointly sponsoring the event. 

Over 200 students from area school districts visited Haddam Killingworth High School on May 21st to compete in the first Shoreline Mathematics Challenge.  Students worked in teams at this competition to solve life size mathematics and logic puzzles.

For the second consecutive year Superintendent Thiery will be conducting interviews with every member of the senior class prior to graduation.  These interviews present an opportunity for graduating seniors to provide insights and feedback on their experience in RSD 17 as well as advice for how the District can improve.

A team of students from HKHS Project Lead the Way competed on May 3rd in the Connecticut Electrathon Challenge at Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, CT. This competition requires students to design and build an electric car which will compete in both a design and performance competition.  Project Lead the Way is a pre-engineering curriculum program open to students in grades 9-12 at HKHS.   

Board Items:

The Board’s Budget for 2012-2013 passed at the referendum held Tuesday, May 8, 2012.  The 2012-2013 Budget is for $37,886,401, which is a 0.14% increase over the 2011-2012 Budget.  The vote count from both towns was 672-548.  The budget passed in both towns, in Haddam by 4 votes and in Killingworth by 120 votes. 

At its May 15, 2012 meeting, as a result of an open and competitive bidding process, the Board was able to approve a new three year trash hauling contract for a price $42,000 less than the existing contract.  In addition, the Board approved the expenditure of certain capital items, including the installation of a new roof on the Central Office building, as well as replacing the stage curtains at KES and HES.

The Policy Subcommittee of the Board is reviewing the 5000 series of policies, focused on student issues.  Input from the community is welcome.

Involvement Tip: 

Researchers have consistently concluded that parent involvement leads to improved educational performance in children.  Parent involvement is often defined as having an awareness of schoolwork, comprehending the interaction between parenting skills and student success in schooling, and a commitment to consistent communication with educators about student progress.  Would you like to see our District more strongly embrace and foster parent and community involvement?  Attend the Community Conversation on June 2nd at the Middle School from 9-1, and share your thoughts and ideas on parental and community involvement in the education process.

Submitted by the Regional School District 17 Board of Education.