School board updated on Jump Start program

Hot Springs County School District No. 1 held their monthly meeting for September on Tuesday, the 20th, discussing a variety of items, including the Jump Start program and major maintenance items that were completed over the summer.

Thermopolis Middle School instructor Tom Olsen, reported to the board on the effectiveness of the Jump Start program, formerly known as summer school.

"We sit down and collaborate when it comes to who we think should be included in the Jump Start program," Olsen said. "We check scores, we discuss which students we think could use some extra help, and then we decide who we are going to officially invite for the summer.

"That doesn't mean anyone gets left out. If parents feel their child could use a little extra help, we're more than happy to invite them, too."

Olsen said the three-week summer program focuses on those students who may be struggling; students that may have some weak areas that can be addressed.

Two language arts teachers, two math teachers and STEM educators are used during the program, shifting around to create a team teaching atmosphere.

"This summer we invited 35 kids," Olsen said. "We have two sessions, one in June and one in July, three days a week, four hours a day. By having two sessions we give room for parents to vacation with their families in either June or July without the student having to miss the opportunity.

"They lose so much during the summer. This way, they're prepared for next year. Not just academically, but getting them familiar with things like using lockers when they go from sixth to seventh grade."

Olsen said the best thing about the program is they are seeing the seventh and eighth graders wanting to participate, too.

"They are coming to school when they could be sleeping in," he said.

Toby Emery and Brock Merrill discussed Jump Start at Ralph Witters Elementary (RWE).

They, too, have two sessions and indicated they had excellent attendance this summer with a great percentage of the students invited attending. Of the 64 students recommended for the program, 41 attended all or nearly all of the days.

"We look at their scores and concentrate on math and reading," Emery said. "We should be seeing new scores soon to check the effectiveness of the program this summer."

RWE is considering perhaps changing around their times or dates for Jump Start next summer in an attempt to increase attendance even more.

"We want to make it (the program) even stronger," he said. "If we can get them to attend even a majority of the time we're ahead of the game."

A connection with the students is also an important part of Jump Start.

Some of the students may not have a male influence at home, or maybe mom is having to work funny hours at her job, leaving the student without the attention they crave in their younger years.

"We're connecting with them on a one on one basis," Merrill said. "That's bigger than just data."

Some of the most at risk students are found on the high school level, making Jump Start even more important.

According to principal Scott Shoop, getting them there is sometimes hard.

On the high school level, the concentration is more on getting things completed from the year's classes, things like research papers or perhaps a test the student missed in order to get them at least a passing grade. For most students, they don't have to attend the entire three-week session like the younger students because once they have that assignment finished they were missing, they are done.

Twenty-seven high school students were invited for the summer session with 16 checking in. Shoop indicated one of the toughest things is finding teachers willing to do the summer sessions.

Many adults can recall the smell of walking into a freshly painted classroom the first day of school, but oftentimes, we forget the work that goes on during the summer to get the schools ready for fall.

Maintenance Supervisor Jere Apland, gave his report to the board on what he and his team did over the summer to prepare for the first day of school.

With Thermopolis scheduled to host regional track next spring, Apland and his crew spent part of the summer working on a concrete pad around the track. The Wyoming High School Activities Association regulations require a three-foot lane of concrete next to the track for athlete safety.

Work began on the entrance to LeRoy Hayes Field, including the sign, which was just completed this week in time for Homecoming.

As for the brickwork that will be added to the entrance, Apland said they had hoped to have it done in time for Homecoming too, but the mason they had hired to do the work "bailed" on them, requiring them to hire another brick layer.

Up at the middle school, Apland said the irrigation system was what they concentrated on along with replacing some of the topsoil in the area. Grass was planted in June, and was really coming up by July.

Tom Koehler, the woods and auto instructor at the high school had his class build the new shelter at the middle school.

Apland said RWE received some new carpeting and signage and the math lab at the middle school got a "ton" of new whiteboards. Lots of painting went on district-wide, including classrooms, fencing and doors, and the kitchens were each dismantled and deep cleaned before being put back together.