GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION GCSC WINTER NEWSLETTER

January 2017

From the Desk of Superintendent Jeff Hubble Happy New Year! We hope that you had a wonderful winter break and great holiday celebrations with your families. The second semester is off and running smoothly. It sure is nice to have the students back! I would like to thank those that have called, emailed, sent a card, or talked with me at local businesses to congratulate me on my new position as Superintendent. After working side-by-side with Mrs. Puckett for the last three years, I knew that it was a giant role. I appreciate the trust that the school board has placed in me and will work hard to make them, and the families of GCSC, proud of our school corporation for years to come. In this edition of the GCSC newsletter, I would like to explain what will be happening with the 1100 secondary iPad Air devices. Three years ago, we kicked off the 1:1 initiative after the committee had worked for the two years prior preparing for the move. GCSC decided to abandon the adoption of textbooks and invest in instant information at the fingertips of each learner. We had been investing $4.5 million in the textbook adoption cycle of six years. We are now four years down the road and have phased out charging parents for everything but science and math books. The science textbooks will phase out at the end of this year and math will phase out next year. The teachers of GCSC have worked incredibly hard curating lessons, activities, and curriculum materials for students using Canvas, Google Classroom, and many other apps and resources. There never has been an intention to abandon print materials, so we have been adding to our libraries, book rooms, and classrooms. We also wanted instant updates in the learning device; now when the name of an African country changes, for instance, it is reflected on maps within a day on the iPad. The first three year lease of the secondary iPads will be up at the end of this year. The eleven hundred iPads will be collected from students and will be recycled. The State of Indiana has officially made electronic devices “textbooks”. The cycle has changed from six years to four years, but the rules are still the same. We have been paying a $124,000+ lease payment for those iPads for the last three years. We have been recouping 25% of the cost of the iPad from parents through textbook rental, which is the mandated amount by the State of Indiana. We have given parents a first year discount on the 1:1 roll out the device since some books were still in the cycle. Continued on next page-Hubble Inside this issue: Mr. Jeffrey Hubble Superintendent

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Mrs. Jennifer Finnerty School Safety Specialist

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Mr. Russell Hesler GHS Principal

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Mr. Scott Weltz GMS Principal

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Mr. Jon Strube Tzouanakis Intermediate

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Mrs. Emily Johnson Ridpath Principal

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Mr. Michael McHugh Deer Meadow Principal

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The challenge is ours… Commitment from everyone Excellence from everyone

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Hubble-continued from page 1 This discount was to reduce the sticker shock. In the end, when textbooks are no longer adopted, the cost per student will actually be lower than the cost of print book rental. At the very first distribution of iPads, two and a half years ago, we could not predict what we would do with the iPads at the end of the lease. The Apple sales team told us that there would be a buyout value at the end of the lease, but we were skeptical. Very few textbooks had been bought back in the past, so we were not quite sure what we would see as the next step. It turns out Apple was right and the iPads will have buyout value. A third party market has sprung up and there are companies who are competing to purchase the iPads from us for market value. When we checked the market price just before winter break, we found companies willing to pay $140.00 per device. It became clear that this would be a great way to go and the money made from the buyout of devices could go to make payments on the new device lease. One speculation, three years ago, was a dollar buyout for the students who had been using the device. As you can see, if we charged $1.00 per device we would collect $1100.00 toward the next lease payment. If we sell them to the third party vendor we would collect $154,000.00 toward the next lease. No brainer - this is a win for the parent in textbook rental payments and a win for the corporation in the next lease. As we wrap up year three, we will be using some of the current secondary iPads to upgrade the primary schools to 1:1 and then using the balance to sell to a third party vendor for money to put toward the next device lease. A few folks have asked if they could buy the iPad from the school corporation for the fair market price. Truthfully, I am not opposed to that as $140.00 is $140.00 no matter who is giving you the $140.00. We will not have a lot of time or resources for drawn out sales, but we might be able to provide a very short time period to allow families to purchase the devices. More to come about that when we get closer to the collection of the devices at the end of the year. As for the next secondary device, we have been going through the same process to select the next device as we did when we chose the iPad Air. Chromebook and Windows device makers have really stepped up their efforts. When we returned from winter break, the first day for teachers, we invited vendors in to show off their device options. We collected needs and wants from faculty and students, then compared the results to the possible devices. We have written evaluation rubrics and tested the devices using the standards. We will be narrowing down our options for the next secondary device as the second semester progresses. As a father of three boys, I remember the annual family budget meeting to see where the dollars will come from for textbook rental. GCSC has built that step into the rubric for device selection as well. There are some really neat, but very expensive devices out there; some that we cannot consider like the iPad Pro or the MacBook. Our school community can just not afford them. We also added the factor that the high school device did not have to be the same device as the middle school one. There have been no decisions made as of the writing of this text, but we are working our way there. Hopefully in the spring newsletter, we will be able to share more.

I hope that this article has helped everyone to understand the process and how diligent we have been in using your money wisely. If I have inspired more questions, please invite me to a PTO meeting, send an email, or consult our FAQ on the technology webpage to get them answered. Thank you for choosing GCSC to be a partner in your child’s education!

GCSC Main Website

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Jennifer Finnerty, School Safety Specialist

Greencastle Community School Corporation continues to work towards creating and maintaining a safe and secured learning environment for all of our students, and an important part of that is conducting safety drills. In addition to our normal fire, tornado, earthquake and lockdown/lockout drills, in the first semester of this school year we successfully completed a corporation-wide afternoon bus dismissal tornado drill. This drill involved high school students acting as bus leaders and guides to relocate all of the bus riders into their designated shelter locations inside of McAnally Center. All of the students did a tremendous job, and all buses were evacuated to safety quickly. A special THANKS goes out to the high school students who took on this added responsibility and did great at it! In the second semester of this school year, GCSC will conduct a Reunification Drill with a small selection of students. The purpose of the drill is to develop and troubleshoot our Reunification Protocol. A Reunification Protocol gives us a process to follow in the event that a school building has to evacuate the entire campus to a different building, and the school has to guarantee that parents or guardians have taken custody of their child. At the Reunification site, the parent or guardian must show their ID and sign a form indicating that they have taken custody of their child and transported them home. Our Reunification Protocol drill will be conducted with our smallest and most dependent students – one of our pre-school classes. We have chosen these tiny scholars as we feel that they need the experience of being picked up at a different school building the most, and they will make it clear to us quickly if there are problems with our protocol. We thank the parents and guardians of the pre-school class for their help in practicing and improving this important safety protocol, and please remember, School Safety is Everyone’s Responsibility!

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Russell Hesler, GHS Principal

There’s clearly no need to be bored at Greencastle High School! We have a variety of extracurricular opportunities our students can get involved in, if they choose to do so! For the new year students can try something...new...different...challenging! We encourage our students to step out of their comfort zones, get involved, and meet new people. By paying it forward and helping other students, our students get the most they can out of themselves...and their school.

GHS pep block students step out of comfort zones and into ugly Christmas sweaters

For our music-loving students, band and choir have many concerts and a big trip to an exciting location every other year. As you can see from the picture, they literally rock and have fun doing it!

Choir students preparing for an upcoming concert with Mrs. Lambert

I am very proud our students who are working under the guidance of Instructional Assistant Julie Fodrie to upcycle and recycle furniture and lamps. For the second year in a row, students in Ms. Evans’ class sanded, painted, and re-upholstered various pieces of furniture, including coffee tables, chairs, and side tables. Continued on next page-Hesler

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GCSC WINTER NEWSLETTER

A silent auction was held and more than $280 was earned as a result of the students’ hard work! All proceeds were then donated to the Putnam County Giving Tree, and 11 tags were purchased. Congratulations to the team who worked hard to help themselves, others, their school, and their community!

Students in Ms. Evans class raised money and were able to play Santa

Other than being involved, Greencastle High School now lights up students’ lives in another way (literally!). The new parking lot lighting improves the safety and security for students, especially at this time of the year when many students walk through the parking lot in the dark. Now students can feel safer coming and going from our school.

GHS Website

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Scott Weltz, GMS Principal Greetings and welcome back for the start of the second semester! Great things are happening at GMS!

There are many opportunities students have to be involved at GMS, beyond the regular school day. Whether it is a club, sport, or academic team, being involved is important. If you find there is an activity you would like to be part of, don’t hesitate to contact a teacher to find out more. While many of these clubs have already been meeting, some are just getting underway!

Important Current/Upcoming GMS Events Jan. 28 - Instrument Solo & Ensemble in Terre Haute Feb. 4 - Vocal Solo & Ensemble in Terre Haute Feb. 23 - NAEP Testing, 8-10 am NAEP Testing, 1-3 pm GMS Website

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Jon Strube, Tzouanakis Intermediate Great Things are Happening at Tzouanakis Intermediate School! TZ continues our journey exploring FISH! For Schools™. This journey is helping us—teachers and students and parents—to establish and build a vibrant, supportive learning community. FISH! For Schools is all about effective relationships, promoting individual accountability and providing an emotionally and physically safe atmosphere so we can learn better. It is also a lot of fun. What is

Some ways we are living the FISH Philosophy at TZ... 

Students and staff sing the TZ FISH Song that Mrs. Hamilton created each Monday morning.

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Teachers provide brain breaks throughout the day that are fun and sometimes challenging.

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TZ students, staff, and parents showed that we were there for others by collecting 4,486 food items for the Putnam County Emergency Food Pantry. This will certainly make others’ days brighter, and Mr. Strube and Mrs. Rhoades had some messy fun with an Eat It or Wear It Challenge. Get Involved @ TZ

TZ offers many fun and engaging during and after-school activities. Some activities first semester include: reading challenges, fitness intramurals, fitness fanatics, art club, musical, Every Kid Votes, spell bowl, science bowl, robotics club, college mentors, Spanish enrichment, student council, among others. Second semester will bring math bowl, wrestling club, geography bee, 4th & 5th grade choir, Bradford Woods, Little Olympics, field trips, strings program, among many other opportunities. Time with Teacher This fall TZ teachers provided students with extra time with teachers with the Time with Teacher afterschool program. This was the second year that the TZ staff enriched the students afternoon with some fun, hands-on-, and creative activities. Students will have another opportunity to join in this fun activity when the TZ teachers provide another Time with Teacher event in March. The Tiger’s Den Have you seen “The Tiger’s Den” at TZ? This is a place where teachers may take their students to read in a relaxed and different environment. This classroom space has been repurposed into The Tiger’s Den with comfy and cozy areas to sit and read. We were thankful to receive donations from Lilly, DePauw, and other generous donors. We hope to add artwork and murals to this space soon. Continued on next page-Strube

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GCSC WINTER NEWSLETTER

We look forward to spreading joy to others by following the FISH Philosophy.

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Emily Johnson, Ridpath Principal Ridpath Happenings! It is hard to believe that it is the second semester of school. At Ridpath, students have been very busy learning and having fun. In November, the entire school participated in our Pancake Supper. Each grade level shared songs, instruments, and dances in celebration of Indiana’s 200th birthday. Mrs. Jill Dombrowski led the performance with help from the Ridpath Staff.

In December, the first grades presented plays to their respective parents and friends. Mrs. Heather Miller and Mrs. Kacey Seaver’s class presented, “A Flea on Santa’s Tree” and Mrs. Beva Miller’s class presented the play, “The Little Red Hen and The Christmas Tree.” We definitely have some budding actors and actresses!

To wrap up the semester, Ridpath had a holiday program, “Round the World at Holiday Time”. Students performed at Parker Auditorium to a full house. Each grade level took the stage to share their songs, instrument playing, and dances to illustrate how different countries and religions celebrate the holidays. At the conclusion of the program, students sang together to wish the audience a Merry Christmas. Continued on next page-Johnson

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GCSC WINTER NEWSLETTER

Johnson-continued from page 9

As we move onto the second half of the school year, we want to say thank you to all of our volunteers that have given their time and energy to our school. We have been blessed to have many volunteers come in to our school to do a multitude of things. Each volunteer brings joy and enthusiasm, whether it is cutting paper, making copies, reading stories, or helping with addition or subtraction. We love our volunteers. If you have been thinking about volunteering, now is the time. Just 20 minutes once a week can have the impact on a student or a staff member. If you would like to volunteer at Ridpath, or any of our buildings, do not hesitate to contact us. We would love to have you! RP Website

What’s in the News

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Michael McHugh, Deer Meadow Principal Deer Meadow Happenings! Deer Meadow students finished the first semester of school with a great mixture of learning and fun! Our staff and students work hard every day to improve our reading, writing, mathematic, social, and critical thinking skills while making sure that we have lots of movement and fun. Our PTO provided a new book for each child with our annual PTO Book Give Away. We ended the semester with our Holiday in the Meadow. We even had visits from Santa’s elves and rode on the Polar Express! Our students love learning together, whether they are reading, melting an ice cube for science, or climbing a rock wall on a field trip.

As we continue to develop our foundational skills, we welcome support from our community. This year, Deer Meadow received grants from Wal Mart Distribution to support our Roaring Readers program. The grant helps us promote reading among our students by allowing us to purchase t-shirts for our students as they join the Roaring Readers Team. We are happy to have our guests from Real Men Read come back to our building and read with our kindergarteners this year. DM Website

GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION

GCSC WINTER NEWSLETTER

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2016-2017 school year calendar GCSC Calendar

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Download Lunch Menus

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Read Health related news

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Visit the Athletics Website

How can I help? Volunteer Forms 

School Start Times 

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Skyward

Corporation Website

Interested in becoming a Corporate Partner of GHS Athletics? Contact Athletic Director, Greg Hill [email protected]

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GCSC WINTER NEWSLETTER

Central Office 1002 Mill Pond Lane Superintendent: Mr. Jeffrey Hubble Assistant Superintendent: Telephone: 653-9771 Deer Meadow Primary School 1000 Deer Meadow Lane Principal: Mr. Michael McHugh Counselor: Ms. Megan Ward Telephone: 653-3518 Ridpath Primary School 711 Central Avenue Principal: Mrs. Emily Johnson Counselor: Ms. Megan Ward Telephone: 653-3315 Tzouanakis Intermediate School 500 Linwood Drive Principal: Mr. Jon Strube Assistant Principal: Mrs. Jennifer Rhoades Counselor: Mrs. Megan Smith Telephone: 653-4700 Greencastle Middle School 400 Percy L. Julian Drive Principal: Mr. Scott Weltz Assistant Principal: Ms. Stephanie Christopher Guidance Director: Mrs. Katherine Asbell Telephone: 653-9774 Greencastle High School 910 East Washington Street Principal: Mr. Russ Hesler Assistant Principal: Mrs. Jennifer Finnerty Athletic Director: Mr. Greg Hill Guidance Director: Ms. Rose Stephens Telephone: 653-9711

Special Services 1002 Mill Pond Lane Director: Mrs. Kimberly Sullivan Telephone: 765-301-4882 Department of Transportation/Operations 316 North Vine Street Director: Mr. Dan Green Telephone: 653-6840/653-9771 Area 30 Careers Center 1 N. Calbert Way Director: Ms. Lora Busch Telephone: 653-3515 W. Central IN Education Services Center 1 N. Calbert Way Director: Ms. Valerie Buchanan Telephone: 653-2727

Food Services 1002 Mill Pond Lane Director: Ms. Debbie Carrico Telephone: 653-3725 IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS... When a citizen or a school patron has a question involving the operation or programs of the schools, he/she should contact the office or person most directly responsible for the area in which the problem exists. Where the question involves an individual student or class, the classroom teacher and or the principal are the pr oper persons to contact. School counselors are also ready to assist you. When the question involves the overall program of the schools or the welfare of all students in the corporation, a member of the Central Office Staff may need to be contacted. If your question cannot be answered or a response to your concern made when you call, your call will be returned as soon as possible.

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GCSC WINTER NEWSLETTER

BOARD OF SCHOOL TRUSTEES Mrs. Denise Sigworth

President

Mr. Michael White

Vice President

Mrs. Lisa Lazar

Secretary

Mr. Dale Pierce

Member

Dr. William Tobin

Member

Mr. Jeffrey Hubble

Superintendent

School Board Meetings will be on the 4th Monday of each month unless otherwise specified. GCSC School Board

MISSION GCSC provides an engaging learning environment of high expectations in partnership with parents and community where students safely grow academically, emotionally, and socially.