Center Schools begin the 2017-18 school year

CENTER — Center Schools is off to a rousing start after teachers met last week to plan for the upcoming school year and meet new staff and faculty members.
“As you can see from the picture, our staff is quite big and energized to get back to working with our students,” Superintendent Chis Vance said. “We have 14 new staff members this year. We have been lucky to attract some very skilled and compassionate new staff educators.”
One couple comes to the school from out of state and others have joined the Center team from across the Valley.  Vance says he is “excited to see such a wonderful group of educators joining us here in Center.” 
Open house will take place on Sept. 20 starting with a meal at 6 p.m. The district will provide a main course while the community generally brings in side dishes.
After a community meal, teachers return to their classrooms where the parents and students stop by and say hello.  As in years past, there also will be a drawing for a ton of great prizes for everyone.
 Last week the school held a one-night registration process referred to as CHAMP.  This is an opportunity for parents and students to come in, get registered and even get a free sports physical. 
“It was a successful evening and we had a really great turnout,” Vance commented.  “As with many first-time efforts, we also learned a lot.” He added that staff worked to ensure there was not a long wait time in any of the lines so parents and students could look forward to a short period to register.  
 Most of the school’s programming has remained the same, Vance said, and nothing new is being added. Staff and administration will continue to work with PEBC as part of their professional development.  All staff has been trained on Kagan which are strategies to make classroom instruction even more engaging.
Center Schools officially starts its four-day school year this week with classes running from 7:45 a.m. to 4 p.m. The decision to move to the new schedule was made after parents and school board members filled out a survey and discussed the pros and cons earlier this year.
Stay tuned for further information as Center administration gears up for their new school year.